A Newbie Joins for a Ride
Back when I was a bit younger and way more supple I rode a rigid frame Sporty, kicker only, girder front end with a 21" spool wheel (no brake). It was a pretty good bike once I got all the AMF bugs, and the bugs I put in during the build, out of it. Candy Apple red over a gold base, polished aluminum, and chrome. Looked pretty good for a Sporty. Back then I didn't understand why anyone would want a 74. Now that I'm older, wiser, and way less supple, I know why.
I usually rode with a bunch of guys from my ship. We all got along great and managed to stay alive through some pretty stupid maneuvers. Once when no one else was around I decided to take a spin out toward the outlying areas around Charleston, SC. There are a lot of really great roads that wind off into the wilds, and even though there aren't any real hills, the rides are pretty nice.
As I was leaving my trailer an acquaintance rode in on a 450 Honda. I'd never ridden with this guy as he hadn't been around long, but had talked bikes with him on the ship. I was a bit reluctant to ride with him because some of our conversations led me to think he might not be wrapped too awful tight. But, here he was, and it was sorta hard to tell him I wasn't really going riding.
So I explained the drill to him as to where I intended going. He was agreeable and we took off for the hinterlands. Now, let me explain about this particular Honda of his. This was back in the mid 70s so this 450 was one of the old ones; two cylinders, high center of gravity, etc. But he had a very long springer front end on the thing, about 15 inches overstock and absolutely no rake. Looked like a praying mantis and was as stable as a two-legged dog stopped in the middle of a field with no trees to lean on. What I'm saying is it was a squirrelly bike, no matter who might be riding it.
The bike leaked as much oil as an ancient HD with a total loss oil system. All in all it was an oogly piece of machinery. The guy managed to keep it upright for the whole trip, about 150 miles, give or take. That in itself was an accomplishment as he could barely reach the ground whenever we stopped. He did alright, though. I was actually surprised at how well he rode, considering the bike.
We had a good ride up toward Francis Marion National Forest and hit some of the fire roads thru it. The fire roads are mostly sand, but are usually in pretty good shape. We used to have a blast drag racing each other down them. There would be no drag racing this time, tho, because the Honda would pull a wheelie if you gave it even a wee bit too much throttle. So we rode sanely, sort of.
When we were heading back into town I took the lead and headed over to the place where my other riding partners lived. We pulled in and parked and the guy made his first mistake. When he put the kick stand down it promptly folded in two when the bike's weight was put on it. Down he went in front of everyone. Perfect timing for an impression. Sometimes it is hard to look cool, ya know?
Of course, everyone had to give him a hard time, guys being guys. But everyone pitched in, got the thing up on a concrete block, and pulled the remains of the stand off so it could be fixed. We all loaded up, went to the ship, and hit the machine/welding shop. Ended up with a better than new kickstand, of the correct length, and with a pad on the bottom so it wouldn't sink into the sand or soft black top.
Now it was time to start the partying for the rest of the weekend. We made our usual rounds and ended up back at someone's house where we could raise a little Cain and crash whenever necessary. But the unwritten rule was not to be the first one to poop out. The new guy didn't know this, being new and all. He went down for some zzz's and the rest of us launched into our usual routine; someone set his pants on fire and the rest of us waited 'til the sleeper woke up and then we put the fire out. By the urination method. He wasn't impressed. At first
__________________
 Chrome sucks.
Barges are for chopping. Otherwise, they might as well be Gold Wings!
WBFFWB
|
