Well it seemed like a good idea at the time...when the bike is the only means of transport

This blog post was started when I realized that I was really hot during the summer.  "Would not a nice fruit smoothie be nice to cool down with" I thought to myself.  "Yes, yes it would be." I said.   So I needed a few things.  I could keep the ice under my seat.  That could help keep me cool, and I could stash the fruit there too!

I thought to myself that the blender could easily fit in the top case.  So I run up to the store, buying the groceries and milk and a few other things all of which stored nicely under the seat.  Kimmie has a cell phone charger under the seat as well, it would not hard to plug the blender to it, I just have to modify the blender cord some!  There was only one slight problem.

Yep, I could not close the top case all the way.   So much for the idea of ice cold smoothies when out in the middle of an adventure on a hot Florida day...at least until I get a bigger top case.

When I decided that my scooter was going to be main source of transportation we owned a car and a jeep.  So I always had a back up plan in case of bad weather or if I need to pick something up.  Eventually we ended up trading both vehicles in to buy a new car, meaning that my bike literally became my only means of going from point A to point B in most cases.

This has worked out extremely well.  There have been a few times I've need to borrow my parents car but for the most part using a motorcycle as my main ride has not been a problem.  Riding the few miles home from the store with the top case open wasn't a issue.  It generally has served me well running back and forth to the store for odds and ends.  I do have to consider what I'm buying however, as space is limited.

The more I ride my bike however the more I realize I would not give it up now.  It's become part and parcel of "who I am."  That's not a bad thing.

Earning my Rounder stripes

Living in Florida, it's easy to be a Rounder.   According to their website a Rounder is:

The Rounders are men and women who enjoy their motorcycles so much they ride them year round. The group was founded by a bunch of Mid-Westerners (inspired by a Kook on the East Coast) who ride them even when the temps are below freezing or above hot. The object of becoming a Rounder is to have fun, promote safe, responsible motorcycle use on a regular basis for as much of the year as you can. In the spirit of fun we have concocted the following levels of Rounderhood following the Fahrenheit temp scale:
100's+ Red Hot Rounder
90's Sweating Rounder
80's Half Baked Rounder
70's - R&R (Rounder Relaxing)
60's -Jr. Rounder (Just Riding)
50's - LOTF Rounder (Looking Over The Fence)
40's - FOTF Rounder (Fringe of the Fringe)
30's - Half Rounder
20's - TQ Rounder (Three Quarts)
0-20 - Rounder
Sub Zero - KHOF Rounder (Kook Hall of Fame)

Members can proclaim themselves to be in the various categories based on the truthful telling of their riding conditions. If you lie, then a pox be upon you and may your valves need constant adjustment.

To be a True Rounder, you have to ride every month of the year.

If you have a motorcycle and like to ride it, then you can be a Rounder.

I have ridden my bike in 90 degree weather, I have ridden my bike into the low 20's here in Florida.  It has been miserable to ride in sometimes, with rain so hard that I have been soaked to the bone in.  Winds so fierce that I felt I was leaning at 30 degrees just to keep the bike up straight.  

Photo from Redlegsrides.blogspot.com

These idiots ride in the snow.  

I want to be one of them.  

It's only in the last few days that I have truly felt like belong to such a honored group.   Over the past few days here in West Central Florida we have had rain and wind gusts up to 30 miles to hour.  At night, when I ride home from work at 1 AM, the temperature's  dipped to freezing or below.  

I feel like one of them because I was one of a handful of bikes on the road.  Even during the day when the temperature was in the mid 50's...I counted maybe a dozen bikers.  Here I am on my little scooter doing what "real motorcyclists" are afraid to do.  I am out nearly every day riding, in all types of conditions.

I'm proud of that.  I am also amazed and impressed by the insanity of taking a bike out in "less than ideal" conditions.  Of course, if I still lived in Pittsburgh, would I feel that way?   I have to say that yes, I would. I don't get to do much recreational riding. But when asked what I like about riding...I said the following "I think it's something primitive. Just you, the machine...no distractions. Your fully committed to keeping yourself and the bike safe...because the road below you is unforgiving. It's being on that edge...not being stupid, not being foolish...but connecting to the world around you. Smelling the flowers as you pass, feeling a stone as it kicks up and strikes you. Your fully alive.  Your fully engaged."

Now that being said.  I'm not stupid.  I'm not going to ride if I don't feel I can't handle the circumstances.  There have been times when I just didn't want to ride in because it didn't "feel right."  So I guess I'm hooked.  I guess I'm a "Rounder."

To read more about the Rounders see this article from Rider Magazine.