In each of the last ten years, the club with whom I ride holds a multi-chapter event (Mostly the Nevada and California chapters) at Peggy Sue’s Diner. This year was no different. On Sunday the 16th of October I hit the road with some of the good folks from the Orange County Chapter of the Southern Cruisers Riding Club, and we rode from Corona into the Calico Ghost Town in Yermo. Then on to Peggy Sue’s 50’s diner.

We could not have asked for better riding weather, and I couldn’t have asked to ride with a nicer bunch of folks. Big thanks to Rhino for leading us to the Ghost Town and to Peggy Sue’s. Those who group-ride understand what that means. And thanks also to Cruizer who rode as tail gunner. Together they got us there, on the slab, at an awesome pace, safely. Nothing more needs to be said.

While the attendance this year seems to have been a bit down, the spirit was as high as it ever was. As always, announcements were made, appointments were made official, and we even had a laugh or two. And I HAVE to mention the buffet that Peggy Sue’s set up just for us. Well organized, easy flow, and tasty food. Yum.

I must say, I’m proud to be a part of the SCRC and hope to continue riding with them for a good long time. It’s a wonderful bunch of folks, with every bike imaginable, coming from all walks of life, with the common mindset of enjoying the ride. If you want to learn more about the SCRC just follow this link. We have chapters all over the country so if you’re interested, feel free to find the one closest to you and consider riding with us.

Photos from this year’s run are here.

More later…

General, Rides

On the tenth anniversary of the attack upon the World Trade center and Pentagon, I was honored to have ridden with, by my estimation, a couple thousand other riders, to collectively remember that horrific day. It was an excellent and well executed ride through the Protrero canyon starting from Point Magu Naval Base and finishing at Pepperdine University where, they had 2,977 flags set up to honor each of those innocent victims of that terrible day. It was an excellent ride… but this post isn’t about the ride. It’s about the collective heart that went into it.

Too often we are consumed by our narrow and isolated lives and our efforts are put into satisfying our own personal needs. Charity, nurturing the collective human spirit, and efforts in the name of someone else, are rarely executed. Yet when this country experiences such a devastating event as the attacks, we are brought together as one to stand and shake our collective fist at those who would dare to bring us harm. Such was the case on 9-11-11.

The ceremony, the reading of letters sent by fallen soldiers to their families, the beautiful singing of our national anthem, the 21-gun salute, all brought me, and a couple thousand tough “bikers” to tears. I’m not ashamed to say that I did in fact cry as I heard Taps played on the bugle by a uniformed soldier. I love my country and whenever I am witness to an outpouring of love it just gets me.

As for the ride…

Dubbed The Ride to the Flags the event is a volunteer based ride intended to benefit charity (see the website to learn more) and is host to a couple thousand bikes. Staging was at the Naval base where security was well-managed (because it was a military base after all), the bikes were stacked 4-deep for as far as you could see and was lead by the Patriot Guard Riders through Protrero canyon and onto the Pepperdine campus. I was initially concerned about ability to lead such a large number of bikes through the narrow mountain roads but I’ll be honest, it was so damn well-executed I am left incredibly impressed.

Along the rout were road leaders managing the line of bikes, managing intersections, and at times taking some risks to make sure the rest of us were safely guided through the canyon. Everyday people were on the roadside waving flags, cheering, saluting, and watching as we rode by. Parents were out there with their kids and traffic stopped to let us by. Again… I’m impressed. I will most certainly make sure to take the same ride again next year.

Here are a handful of photos we took on that awesome day.

And finally, I want to thank my dear friend Nickie for riding with me and standing next to me as I cried like a child during all the ceremony.

More later…

General, News, Raves, Rides

You read that right. This was the 31st annual, Hansen Dam, all British bike Ride, dubbed the “Best ride by a dam site” put on by Southern California Norton Owners Club . This club is dedicated to all bikes but have a penchant for British bikes both old and new. It’s a club with no officers, no club rules, no politics. Just a bunch of people who like the British bikes and know a hell of a lot about them!

The day started out as planned and even though there was a threat of rain, we left Long Beach Sunday morning and rode about 40 miles to Pacoima and Hansen Dam Park. This was my third time attending the event, and just as the preceding two years, the place filled early with a large number of riders. All of them eager to either show off their bikes, or to check out the bikes of those who are showing them off.

This is where I met the guy from V8Choppers. He rode this behemoth 350 cubic inch chopper from Virginia and across country as a way to promote interest. I didn’t learn too much about the bike but from what I did learn, I’m thinking that Boss Hoss needs to watch out. You get your choice of a 350, 372 or 400 cubic inch engine, and the rider claimed it weighs the same as a Goldwing. Their website has the bike weighing in at just 900 pounds!

After the meet-n-greet, packs of bikes headed out for an eighty-mile loop through the twisties of the Soledad and Tajunga Canyons. I have to admit that the first leg of the ride left me a bit disappointed. Not because of the course. It was filled with some nice switch-backs and sweepers that all those other bikes [passing me] were clearly enjoying. My disappointment came in the recognition of the fact that I wasn’t negotiating the turns very well. Part of it was the timidness that comes when I have a passenger. Another part is the change in balance points with a passenger (and top-case). But… after that first rest-stop I got my groove and the rest of the ride was awesome. I even dragged the floorboards a few times, something that never happens with apassenger.

I’m sad to say, we took a bit too long when we stopped for lunch because when we got back from our ride, nearly everyone had already left and the parking lot was looking pretty empty. We didn’t get to pick up our ride pins and we missed the bike show where awards are given for best British bike, best Custom, best Vintage etc. Of course all judging is completely arbitrary so it’s clearly all done in the name of fun.

All in all, it was a pretty cool day in the company of some pretty cool people with good weather and enjoying a nice canyon ride. What more can you ask for?

Related links

• Pics from this year’s event
• Pics from last year’s event

Events, General, Rides

This year I had the honor of acting as ride-leader for the group ride. On Sunday with the morning-mist running on high, we rode to the first of two staging points. When we got there, my jeans were soaked and I was cursing the fact that I chose NOT to bring my leather chaps. That and with the moisture in the air, my Shark Audio System decided to succumb to the water and simply stopped working. Once it dried out it was fine but, I digress… We left San Dimas with 8 bikes behind me and rode east on 210 to the 15 freeway north and into Phelan California for our second staging spot, where we picked up 3 other riders. From there we rode the remainder of the 100 mile journey to Yermo California and Peggy Sue’s Diner.

Sparky, SCRC Western Regional Officer

Now there are a couple things to note here. First, we had a guest rider join our group. That was Sparky, our Western Regional Officer and one hell of a nice guy!  Sparky is a great guy and one of the things that impresses me most about him, is he remembers damn near everyone he meets. It’s a talent that I am ashamed to admit, I do not posses. The other is Sandy from the SCRC, Los Angeles chapter, also joined us. And since my tail-gunner for the day dropped out, Sandy stepped up and took that role, and did so quite happily. So Sandy… THANK YOU MAN!

There were many bikes and as always lots of high spirits for the day. This year Peggy Sue’s set up a buffet for us and that made getting lunch a bit easier than in years past. All in all, in spite of the weather fluctuating between cold and wet and hot and humid, we had a great day of riding and hanging out with a bunch of really cool folks.

General, Rides

There is a big misconception about Southern California, with respect to choice motorcycling locations. Given that SoCal is home to Los Angeles, Hollywood and other “big city” places, most believe there aren’t any decent “out in the world” rides left for the true motorcycle enthusiast. Well, let me share something.

For about a year and a half I have been a member of the Southern Cruisers Riding Club (MT. Baldy Chapter). With them, I have had the benefit of being in the company of a lot of good folks, who know a lot of great places to ride. Yesterday was one such ride. In fact, I’ll even go as far as to say, the absolute best, to date, ride I’ve taken with the SCRC! 

First, a slight mishap. I dropped my bike trying to turn around in the parking lot. I put my foot down, slipped on something, and down it went. No damage except a tiny, superficial scratch on the underside of one of the pipes. No biggie at all. 

We left San Dimas mid-morning, and headed east on the super-slab. Yeah, we burned about 55 miles on the freeway to get where we were going. Which was US Highway 101, north along the coast toward Ventura County. From there we took the ever-famous Mulholland Drive, a road with smooth sweepers and tree-top canopies, skirting the Malibu Mountains.

First stop, The Rock Store. The Rock Store, is a well-known stop-spot for motorcycling enthusiasts of all kinds. From the hard-core Harley guys, to retirees with their vintage British bikes, to the sport-bike crowd, to celebrities, to the simple joy-rider, the Rock Store is an attraction that you simply must visit. Great ride getting there, the people are cool, and you’ll have plenty of opportunity for good-old-fashioned motor-head conversation.

From there, lunch at Malibu Seafood for some tasty fish-n-chips and onto Latigo Canyon road for about 20-odd miles of some really hairy twisties! What an awesome ride! No traffic to speak of, few bicyclists, great weather which lead to great visibility, and a group of folks who know how to negotiate their big cruisers through those tight switch-backs! And me at the back of the pack, digging into the turns and occasionally dragging the floor-boards! Yes!

Riding home was south from the LA/Ventura County line on the Pacific Coast Highway, all the way into Long Beach and eventually, home. A coastal ride with the waterline to our right and weather that couldn’t make up its mind. We rode through warm and energizing sunshine, to brrr, chilly and damp air, and it even rained for about 30 seconds! What?!

In the end, I had enjoyed freeway, sweepers, twisties, tight switch-backs, and a wonderful coastal ride. We actually hit every venue I enjoy. And surprisingly, I came in at just under 300 miles for the entire day.

So to those who will assert that Southern California doesn’t have any nice rides, I’d like to suggest you check out the hills and coastal rides of beautiful Malibu! I promise, you’ll soon change your view.

Raves, Rides

I have to say, this was by far and away, THE largest motorcycling event in which I have ever taken part! The eleventh annual West Coast Thunder! I was both humbled and honored to have been involved in such an emotionally charged experience. Read more…

Events, Motorcycles, News, Raves, Rides

God Bless America

On Memorial day, we gather as a nation to celebrate and pay tribute to all those brave men and women who fight to protect our freedom. Don’t get me wrong, I do not advocate war or violence. But I do advocate defending the things that are of value to me. And my freedom and my country are among the top of my list of that which is worth protecting. In truth… I love my country. Evidenced by the fact that nearly every time I hear our National Anthem, I tear up.

West Coast Thunder is an annual event designed with one thing in mind; to benefit those brave, selfless men and women, and their families. They literally put their lives on the line for me… it’s only right that I do what I can to show my gratitude.

This year the event will be on Monday May 31st… Memorial Day. The expectation is that several thousand motorcyclists will take part in the event. I along with members of my riding club, Southern Cruisers Riding Club, will be there. Celebrating our military and what they have done for us.

Here’s a brief rundown of the event:

• Priority Registration is $35 per participant (through May 17, 2010).
• Pre-Registration is $40 per participant (May 17 through May 30, 2010).
• Day-Of Registration is $40 per participant (May 31, 2010)

Each registered rider will receive:

• One registration packet for West Coast Thunder XI
• One venue entry wristband
• One general admission concert ticket (upgrade available)
• One West Coast Thunder XI ride pin
• One attachable American flag
• One raffle ticket for event prizes.
• One T-Shirt coupon

Registration packets will be mailed to the shipping address indicated

The first 1,000 riders to register will be invited to attend our
exclusive Saturday night V.I.P. Party.

This year, West Coast Thunder and Skip Fordyce Harley-Davidson have
partnered with their friends at KFRG Radio, 95.1 FM and Soboba Casino
to aide in the production of the event. As of 2010, the parade route
will change to accommodate the increased participation. Soboba Casino
in San Jacinto, California will be the final destination for the
parade this Memorial Day, Monday, May 31st, 2010. The parade will
still leave Skip Fordyce Harley-Davidson the morning of Memorial Day,
and travel directly to the Soboba Casino.

Will you attend this great event?

Visit the West Coast Thunder website at http://www.westcoastthunder.com for event details and registration information.

Events, General, News, Rides

Today I spent the day riding with some folks from the Sherman Oaks Riders. I found them through meetup.com, a place on the net where you can find a club that represents just about anything in your area. Today’s ride destination was Crazy Otto’s, a great place for breakfast if you like good, traditional breakfast foods served up in HUGE helpings.

Inside Crazy Otto's

Our ride took us from Sherman Oaks, California and into the Soledad Canyon. After riding the super-slab into the canyon we hit some really nice sweepers and the ride leader pushed us to just the right level of aggressiveness to make the ride exciting but not so much that it’d cause one to freak out. An absolutely awesome ride with perfect weather! Then we got to Crazy Otto’s where we enjoyed good food, good conversation and an all around good time. I even ran into the good folks from the Southern Cruisers Riding Club, Antelope Valley Chapter. For those of you who know me, I ride with the SCRC, Mt. Baldy Chapter, so any SCRC member is family.

After we ate, narrowly avoiding the dreaded “food-coma” we hit the road out of there and through Bouquet Canyon into Santa Clarita. From there it was super-slab the rest of the way home. It was about 200 miles round trip for me and as I said, an absolutely perfect day with a good bunch of people. I hope to ride with these guys again soon, and from the looks of it, they ride together frequently.

Here are some photos I took from the day:

Check out that paint!

SCRC Gang

General, Rides

A few of us at the Lowe's, San Dimas staging point

Saturday January 9, 2010. This date marks the first group ride of the year for me and the SCRC (Southern Cruisers Riding Club). The destination for this ride was The Rock Inn in Lake Hughes, California. For those of you who don’t know the area well, Lake Hughes is a small agro community situated northwest of Palmdale, California and sits about 75 miles due north of Los Angeles International Airport.

About 18 of us met up at one of our frequently used staging points in the parking lot of Lowe’s in San Dimas. KSU at 9:00 AM. From there we took the 210 freeway west through Pasadena and into Sunland. And this will have been the only time we were on the super-slab until everyone headed home at the end of the day.

Once into Sunland the ride got interesting… The rout took us through SoCal’s High Desert and was filled with great twisties and lazy sweepers. Something for everyone. We started the trek on Little Tujunga road through Canyon Country and onto Bouquet Canyon road out toward Lake Hughes. Our ride leader, Tim, lead all of us flawlessly and at a nice enough pace to keep your adrenaline pumping while taking it easy (just enough) for the new rider on her Goldwing (Yes you read the right, NEW rider on a GOLDWING. I’ll talk about that in a bit).

And as is always the case, we stopped for lunch. The Rock Inn is a great motorcyclist hangout and serves diner-style

This good lookin man is yours truly, outside the Rock Inn

 food. Burgers, hot dogs, chili, assorted sandwiches. Basic stuff. The place was packed! When we got there, there were maybe 200 other bikes already lined up in front, back and the parking across the road and the owner of the place greeted each one of us with a hug or handshake as we entered the place. How cool is that?!

After lunch we headed back along eastbound highway 138 through Little Rock and the Cajon Pass. That part of the ride was pretty much just lazy sweepers the entire way until we made Interstate 15. Typically on the return leg of our journeys the group splits off little by little to head their own way. And as soon as we hit the freeway… I punched it! I hit about 90 MPH and was splitting the number 1 and 2 lanes within moments! I left the rest of the gang and opened it up for the entire ride home!

Pulled off on 138 to wait for the rest of the group.

Overall a great day, filled with a varied ride and surrounded by really cool people, in pretty decent weather. What more can a man ask for?

Side-note – The new rider on the Goldwing;

This was a woman who I’d say is around mid 40’s. She was riding a brand new Honda Goldwing. Which, for those who don’t know, is a fully equipped touring bike complete with 1800cc engine, long wheel-base, lots of storage with the hard bags and top-case, full faring, and weighs maybe 900 pounds. I learned later that she had had her motorcycle endorsement for only 2 months after having taken the MSF class.

Now I wouldn’t normally suggest a bike like this as being a new rider’s first bike. I have always been an advocate for learning on a bike you can afford to drop. Because you WILL drop it. Clearly not this rider. She went out and got her Wing and held her own really well. Though she did seem to love the middle of the lane and was timid in a couple tight switch-backs. Otherwise… she did very well indeed…

General, Rides

Carbon Canyon Park

I find it interesting that most Southern California motorcyclists will tell you there are painfully few fun places to ride. It’s not true. Granted, we don’t have long stretches of country road in our back yards, but there are plenty of places to twist the grip and go! My personal evidence is nearly 25,000 miles I put on my bike in roughly 18 months.

This weekend for example, I rode from my home in the eastern edge of San Gabriel Valley and into Brea by way of some nice twisties through La Habra Heights. I’ve ridden this stretch many times and it never gets old. Sure, at times there are far too many slow-moving cars stealing away the road’s excitement but today was not one of those days. I zipped through the switch-backs and punched it in the straights and had a blast! In Brea I stopped for a quick coffee then back on the road and into the Carbon Canyon.

The ride through Carbon Canyon is a stretch that I had taken only once before (when I road-tested the Triumph Thunderbird), so I wasn’t terribly familiar with it. I entered it at a moderate 60 MPH and glided through some soft sweepers past the Carbon Canyon Park where the turns get tighter and a bit more aggressive. Some of them were marked by S-curve signage with a posted 15 MPH speed limit but there was no way I could slow down that much. This took me into Chino Hills near the 71 freeway. Quick turn-around and back down and into Carbon Canyon Park. Which is a small but pristine and beautifully kept place filled with huge shade trees and lots of lush green lawns. It was the perfect place to stop and relax before taking the ride back through La Habra Heights.

This is how I spent a couple hours on a Sunday afternoon right here in Southern California. It’s not a total concrete jungle like many people would have you believe. I’ve had many rides through some really beautiful places right here. So the next time someone tells you there aren’t any nice places to ride here in SoCal, point them to this article.

General, Rides