Sunburned in October...
Credit S. for the main picture.
Just got home from a WONDERFUL little vacation to Key West.... on the GoldWing. The company was indeed wonderful, with one person I was already close with, and two others who quickly found a special place in my heart.
The riding was great, with only a little touch of rain on the way home, but no biggie. You should have seen me when the crotch ripped out of my raingear, though.
There was one flat tire (not mine), which provided a bit of adventure in BFE, Georgia, before we really even got started. Lamar, the inbred local who helped us out (bless his little heart), seemed to be intent on scratching his brain with his truck keys... he literally had to stop pushing the key into his ear because the head of it was too big to fit in there. I wanted to take a picture of this SOOO bad, but figured it would be in my best interest not to piss him off, as he was our only option for help at that point. But dear jesus, it was truly amazing.... we just couldn't tear our eyes away from this spectacle.
Oh, and I won't mention the parking lot tip-over (again, not mine). Let's see- what else worth mentioning..... I was nearly guillotined by one of those parking garage barrier-arms.... spent just a few minutes at the "Garden of Eden," a "clothing optional" rooftop bar..... question- why on earth is it that the only people who DO take their clothes off are the ones who you wish the most would keep them ON?
Please, people- if you're over 500 lbs, make it a point to keep your clothes on in public. It looked like a blubber festival at the bar.
Irish Kevin's was a definite highlight of the trip, excellent entertainment, by both the musicians and the patrons. You can definitely tell the people who don't get out much...... We also visited a "leather shop".... and not the kind of leather you wear on a motorcycle.... some really cool stuff in there, but I swear the place was staffed by the Village People. And a few of the customers looked like my Flickr stalkers.
Saw an absolutely beautiful sunset from Mallory Square.....
That shit puts you in the mood for romance instantly. Well, at least until you see the naked fat people...
Oddly enough, we passed my Deal's Gap buddy Bernie in his van on 75 on our way home, and I didn't even realize it until I saw him at the Gap this week. But I remembered his van, and he remembered our bikes passing him.... Small world, huh? And when I mentioned Key West to him, he asked me if I went to Irish Kevin's.... evidently he knows the owners.... weirder still.
The GoldWing performed flawlessly, although I never did manage to get the front wheel off the ground.... but those of you who know me know that I will persist until I succeed.... perhaps a passenger would help to get the weight rearward- any volunteers?
The CD player on that thing was a godsend (yes, it actually does have one)... I made sure and put together some old school GoldWing cross-country mixes for the trip... lots of Allman Brothers, Stevie Ray Vaughan, a dash of Clutch, some Zombie, and one En Vogue song. Part of the fun of riding the GW is throwing sparks in corners with the floorboards... wish I had some video of that.
So my last day of the trip was roundabout 700 miles, from Kissimmee to home- needless to say I was totally beat after that one. And the last hundred miles or so I was fighting a nasty tummy-ache from some SUPER spicy mexican we ate in Chattanooga. My lips were still numb the next morning. So if you eat at the new Mexican restaurant in Hamilton Place, do NOT get the Chile Colorado unless you're either stupid, or truly a bad-ass. Or perhaps both.
I slept in a bit the next day, and then took the new (to me) CBR up to Deals Gap.... snapped about 200 shots of an phenomenal sunset along the lake- here's one of the many.
And then I spent the rest of my waking daylight hours at the Gap on the KTM- should have some good pics from that next week.
To my company and hosts on the Key West trip- thank you. Thank you for a truly wonderful time, great food, great conversation, and lots of laughs. I'd do again in a heartbeat.
Actually, I can't wait to do it again.
-t
Just got home from a WONDERFUL little vacation to Key West.... on the GoldWing. The company was indeed wonderful, with one person I was already close with, and two others who quickly found a special place in my heart.
The riding was great, with only a little touch of rain on the way home, but no biggie. You should have seen me when the crotch ripped out of my raingear, though.
There was one flat tire (not mine), which provided a bit of adventure in BFE, Georgia, before we really even got started. Lamar, the inbred local who helped us out (bless his little heart), seemed to be intent on scratching his brain with his truck keys... he literally had to stop pushing the key into his ear because the head of it was too big to fit in there. I wanted to take a picture of this SOOO bad, but figured it would be in my best interest not to piss him off, as he was our only option for help at that point. But dear jesus, it was truly amazing.... we just couldn't tear our eyes away from this spectacle.
Oh, and I won't mention the parking lot tip-over (again, not mine). Let's see- what else worth mentioning..... I was nearly guillotined by one of those parking garage barrier-arms.... spent just a few minutes at the "Garden of Eden," a "clothing optional" rooftop bar..... question- why on earth is it that the only people who DO take their clothes off are the ones who you wish the most would keep them ON?
Please, people- if you're over 500 lbs, make it a point to keep your clothes on in public. It looked like a blubber festival at the bar.
Irish Kevin's was a definite highlight of the trip, excellent entertainment, by both the musicians and the patrons. You can definitely tell the people who don't get out much...... We also visited a "leather shop".... and not the kind of leather you wear on a motorcycle.... some really cool stuff in there, but I swear the place was staffed by the Village People. And a few of the customers looked like my Flickr stalkers.
Saw an absolutely beautiful sunset from Mallory Square.....
That shit puts you in the mood for romance instantly. Well, at least until you see the naked fat people...
Oddly enough, we passed my Deal's Gap buddy Bernie in his van on 75 on our way home, and I didn't even realize it until I saw him at the Gap this week. But I remembered his van, and he remembered our bikes passing him.... Small world, huh? And when I mentioned Key West to him, he asked me if I went to Irish Kevin's.... evidently he knows the owners.... weirder still.
The GoldWing performed flawlessly, although I never did manage to get the front wheel off the ground.... but those of you who know me know that I will persist until I succeed.... perhaps a passenger would help to get the weight rearward- any volunteers?
The CD player on that thing was a godsend (yes, it actually does have one)... I made sure and put together some old school GoldWing cross-country mixes for the trip... lots of Allman Brothers, Stevie Ray Vaughan, a dash of Clutch, some Zombie, and one En Vogue song. Part of the fun of riding the GW is throwing sparks in corners with the floorboards... wish I had some video of that.
So my last day of the trip was roundabout 700 miles, from Kissimmee to home- needless to say I was totally beat after that one. And the last hundred miles or so I was fighting a nasty tummy-ache from some SUPER spicy mexican we ate in Chattanooga. My lips were still numb the next morning. So if you eat at the new Mexican restaurant in Hamilton Place, do NOT get the Chile Colorado unless you're either stupid, or truly a bad-ass. Or perhaps both.
I slept in a bit the next day, and then took the new (to me) CBR up to Deals Gap.... snapped about 200 shots of an phenomenal sunset along the lake- here's one of the many.
And then I spent the rest of my waking daylight hours at the Gap on the KTM- should have some good pics from that next week.
To my company and hosts on the Key West trip- thank you. Thank you for a truly wonderful time, great food, great conversation, and lots of laughs. I'd do again in a heartbeat.
Actually, I can't wait to do it again.
-t
posted by tjayswift at 5:02 AM
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