that was sooooo beautifull..It almost made me cry??

 

As those of you that have gone before me already know... guess it's one of those things that you just have to experience yourself before you really "get it". I "get it" now.

On an additional note:

As we left for church this morning, it was 78 degrees... the thick clouds were clearing. Once out of church we had big fluffy clouds amid a gorgeous assure blue sky, temps still in the upper 70's. All the way home both the wife and I were getting excited about spending the entire afternoon aboard The Beast. Stopping fora quick lunch at Arby's, I noticed the leaves were blowing across the road from the "wrong" direction, and the flags were going the opposite way than they had been. The wind had kicked up to gusts in the 30+ range.

Unfortunately, I've "been here, done this" way too many times when out dirt biking.Deep down inside I suspected we had what we call a "Blue Northern" blowing in. Sure enough, the thermometer in our cage started dropping, almost by the second. I predicted it would be the mid sixties by the time we got home. Sure enough, in the short drive home it went from 78 to 65 and still dropping. By this time, the Mrs declared thatshe is a "fair weather rider" (her words) and decided to dumb-out at the house watching the tube.

Well... I decided to at least go out for a quick spin.

Dawning my gear I was off and motoring. Frankly, the briskness felt good... but I knew it was not finished dropping in temp, so decided to keep it close to town so I could bail out when the comfort factor was pushed up the scale pastthe fun factor.

Chugging along the boulevard (man you gotta' love the sound of an HD V twinblowin' through a set of V&H Big Shots!), I saw the HD of a neighbor (named "Stacy") parkedat a local beanery. Finding a place to flip it around, I motored back and went in.

Sitting there shootin' the bull with him... the hot cup of coffee tasted good. We visited for at least 45 minutes... talking about bikes and stuff.

I'm amazed at the nigh-instant "comaraderie" I'm receiving from some of the local HD riders. Shoot, this kid dishwasher (maybe 17 years old?) walked up to Stacy and told him he now had a "Hog", and it was parked outside by our bikes... be sure to look it over when we leave. (Said with a smile on his face.) As we got up to leave, parked beside our HD's was hisnew looking "scooter".

"See? What do think of my new 'hog'?" he teased.

"Hey... it's RIDING! That'swhat matters most!" was Stacy's answer. This Stacy fellow seems to be a geniunely nice guy. (Stacy's involved in a local MC club that does a lot of benefit efforts for local needs. Like I said,he seems to be a really good sort.)

Anyway... we went out to our bikes and he looked over my new scoot. He too, thought it a great value and a sharp looking bike.

Well.. with that, we fired up and he motored back toward his house,and I motored off toward "nowhere".

However, "nowhere" was soon turned into my own home... for by now it was 52 degrees and still falling. Decided to pack it in and call it a weekend.

So now I sit at the computer... listening to the cold front continuing to blow its way in... and thinking about the "next time".

This "hog thing" is sort of addictive, isn't it?

L.A. Ming
Hooked In Oklahoma