Rides

Rode down to Roanoke on a recent Sunday for breakfast with friends and, hopefully, a nice ride somewhere.  But only three rode their bikes and one was headed South for a trip to Spartanburg.

So after breakfast, I headed over the the Valley View area to pick up a new power supply for one of my computers and then contemplated the rest of the day.

I rode around Roanoke for a while, visiting a couple of haunts from my time in the city in the 60s, then headed out Brandon Road towards Salem, veering right on Route 311 towards Catawba.

Rode through Catawba and over the mountain to New Castle. The weather continued to warm so I went over Topps Mountain to Paint Bank, stopping at the General Store for some coffee. Struck up a conversation with a couple who recently moved from New England to Troutville. They planned to head towards Blacksburg on Route 18.  I opted to stay on 311 and head over another mountain, this time to Crows, Virginia. With an empty road beckoning, traversed one more mountain to White Sulpher Springs, West Virginia.

After stretching my legs, I headed East on U.S. 60 to Covington and on to Clifton Forge, veering off on U.S. 220 to follow the river towards Fincastle.  My reserve light kicked off just short of Fincastle but I have at least 100 miles left when it lights up so I turned on U.S. 11 at Troutville and headed through Cloverdale and Hollins and into Roanoke. Picked up I-581 at Hershberger Road and headed south, staying on 220.  Stopped for gas at an Exxon Station where 220 turns from a limited access highway into just another four-lane road and looked across the road at the I-Hop on top of the hill. That's where we had breakfast earlier in the day. I had ridden 189 miles since breakfast.

With a full tank of 93-octane premium, I headed south on 220 to the Blue Ridge Parkway. As I headed up Bent Mountain, I realized it had crossed a half-dozen mountains during a day's ride.  I turned off on Franklin Pike, then hit Poor Farm Road and Sandy Flats Road for the short ride home. When I checked the trip odometer in the garage, it read 287 miles since leaving the house 11 hours earlier.

No wonder my butt was sore.

I like riding in the fading light of a cool autumn day, especially on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The brisk air chills your face and an air-cooled V-Twin responds well to the cool, dense air.

Some call the approach of winter the end of the riding season. Not me. I'll ride as long as there isn't snow or ice on the road. Riding brings one closer to nature and the chill of fall and winter are part of that nature.

I'll let the wimps and wannabes hook up their trickle chargers and put their bikes away for the winter. Just means more room on the road for serious riders.

Cool, crisp night air stung my face as I left the parking lot of Roanoke Valley Harley Davidson Tuesday night after the regular monthly meeting of the local Harley Owners Group (HOG).  Moderate traffic greeted me on Peters Creek Road as I headed towards Salem and Virginia Rte. 419 for the jog over to U.S. 221 and the ride home.

Some riders avoid night time, especially in Southwestern Virginia where a heavy deer population but I enjoy riding after dark. Traffic on 221 runs lighter and the cool, crisp air of approaching fall slaps me awake as I approach the winding road up Bent Mountain.

The car that had closed on the rear fell back as I leaned the Sportster into the turns up the mountain.  The ultra-bright driving lights on the Harley slice into the night as I snap the bike right and left through the twisties.

The last tight turn at the top of the mountain often brings a scraping sound as the lower exhaust pipe finds the pavement. Yep, there it is. I straighten out the bike and shitt up to 4th and 5th for the final run up the hill and the flat straightaway.

Some traffic coming north on 221 but I have the road mostly to myself as the 1200 V-Twin easily handles the turns and hills between Bent Mountain and Poor Farm Road, where I turn for the final mile-and-a-half to the house.

I pull into the garage refeshed by the cool air and smiling from yet another fun ride.

Life is good.

Woody Crenshaw, owner of the Floyd County Store -- home of the Friday Night Jamboree -- and a friend from England rode their bikes down to Maggie Valley, North Carolina, this week. I didn't have time to make the full trip with them but rode along on the Blue Ridge Parkway from Tuggles Gap on Virginia Rte. 8 into North Carolina for breakfast at Bluffs Lodge in Doughton Park, a ridge of about 75 miles.

After loading up on cholesterol and coffee, they headed south and I went back north to U.S. 21 and crossed over to Sparta, NC, to pick up U.S. 221 for a ride back to Floyd via Independence, Galex and Hillsville.

The four lanes of 221 were virtually empty from Independence to Galax but I went through some beautiful country along the way. The reserve light on my Sporty came on just north of Independence but I've learned from past experience that I have at least two gallons left in the tank when the light pops up so I stayed on the road to Floyd, arriving just in time for lunch with local blogger Fred First.

Did notice the leaves are starting to turn on parts of the Parkway. Colors should be out in full in about a week or so.

Haven't had as much time for riding as I'd like. Schedule is picking up with fall sports to shoot and pesky clients who expect a little work.

Still, have had some time to ride some of the great roads in and around Southwestern Virginia, including:

U.S. 11: This is a good ride and you can head North or South out of Roanoke and have a good day in the saddle. North takes you through Buchanan, by Natural Bridge, Lexington, Staunton and up through the Shenandoah Valley. A good ride is to go all the way to Salsburg and then cut over to Front Royal and take the ridge throug Shenandoah National Park (Skyline Drive), hooking up with the Blue Ridge Parkway at Waynesboro.

South takes you up Christiansburg Mountain, on to Radford, Dublin and Pulaski where Draper Mountain awaits. Once over the mountain, U.S. 11 joins I-81 but you can follow "old 11" on Lee Highway that sometimes acts as a frontage road to the Interstate and then branches off from time to time through some of the hills and valleys of Southwestern Virginia. It can take you all the way to Bristol and through Wytheville, Marion and Abingdon.

U.S. 460. Head West from Christiansburg towards New Castle, Pearisburg and West Virginia, where you will find a lot of winding roads through the mountains.

Headed to Roanoke early Sunday for a breakfast ride. Fog encountered on Bent Mountain Saturday morning led me to choose an alternate route -- Virginia 8 to Christiansburg, then U.S. 11 to Salem where we gathered at Chip & Joe's Restaurant for artery-hardening fare before deciding on a ride into Southwestern Virginia that began -- you guessed it -- back up U.S. 11 to Christiansburg.

I have mixed emotions about group rides. I like the camaraderie but riding in a group where riding skills vary can lead to ebbs and flows that can destroy the rhythm of riding. I'm still getting up to speed after too many years off bikes and I'm sure that some find my skills lacking as well. Virginia requires staggered riding on public roads but you often have long lines that break into groups as some ride at a faster pace than others.

Some rides ignore speed limits and that bothers me. One member of a recent group I rode with bragged about running more than 100 miles per hour on the Blue Ridge Parkway, where the speed limit is 45. I find that neither amusing or smart.

Which is why I enjoy riding alone or with one or two others that I know. Larger groups can -- and do -- scare the hell out of me.

Heavy fog on U.S. 221 at Bent Mountain Thursday as I headed towards Roanoke for a dinner ride with the Roanoke Valley Harley Owners Group. Kept the Sporty in second all the way down the mountain and emerged from the fog bank with the windshield smeared with water.

This was my first dinner ride with RVHOG. We were headed for The Homeplace family style restaurant in Catawba. I turned left onto Virginia 419 and headed for Virginia 311 on the other side of Salem for the seven mile run up Catawba Mountain.  Hit a little fog near the top of that 2,000 foot hill but the road stayed drive and I was able to maintain a steady 55 through the twisties.

I had wondered how many would choose to ride in the iffy weather and who would leave their bikes in the garage and drive cagers (cars or trucks). Got my answer when I pulled into the parking lot: Just me. Everybody else rode on four wheels.

The Homeplace serves family style, all-you-can eat, with friend chicken, roast beef, barbecue (on Thursdays) and country ham. We pigged out, topped it off with cherry cobler, and retired to the front porch to talk motorcycles.

Decided to avoid Bent Mountain and the fog on the way home so I turned right off 419 on the way home and took U.S. 11 through Salem, then through Elliston and Shawsville before heading up Christiansburg mountain. Clear all the way.

Stayed dry on Virginia 8 out of Christiansburg until I hit the Floyd County line. Then mist and fog. The bike was soaked by the time I pulled into the garage shortly before 10 p.m.