May 2007 news articles |
May, 2007
I had been contacted by a Boston Globe reporter who’s doing a story on the popularity of motorcycles. We had a brief phone interview then I gave her some contact people from the Massachusetts Motorcycle Associate who would know the lay of the land better than me. A Globe photographer came down to take pictures of us for the article and ended up on the back of “Lisa the Legend’s” bike. Luckily, Don Gadd brought a n extra helmet for him to wear. Bill led the ride through the State Forest. All was going smoothly from my perspective, over the rollercoaster like road, when out of nowhere a tan minivan turned the corner just as I was coming round on the inside. I swerved to the right but swung out too far and braced myself to head onto the soft shoulder. Somehow, I corrected myself in time and stayed on the road. I believe it was divine intervention that kept my rubber side down. Surely, it wasn’t “skill” that saved my butt. With my heart now in my throat, I continued the rest of the ride unscathed but slowed down and paid closer attention to the curves. A bicycle race was passing by just as we were trying to leave the forest but an environmental police officer rerouted us back through Myles Standish. This was a huge mistake on his part because we were then stuck in the midst of the pedalers. The onlookers weren’t too pleased to see us roaring past but who knew about the race and why wasn’t t he road blocked from normal traffic? Meanwhile, Lisa kept Matt, the photographer, snapping plenty of action shots of us from the back of her bike. She pulled ahead several times to capture our mugs coming up a hill or around a bend. He seemed to be enjoying himself even though he hadn’t ridden a bike himself in years. Maybe he caught some HOG fever while he was with us and we'll get ourselves a new convert? Out of the forest, but now on the wrong side, we had to make a huge loop through Buzzards Bay and Onset and then picked up Rte. 105 to our final destination in Acushnet. Our original plan was to go to the Country Whip for an ice cream cone. Did you expect anything else with Bill leading the ride? I hope everyone will see us in the Boston Globe on Sunday, April 29. We’ll be featured on the front of the Metro South section - unless we get preempted by a more current event. See what you missed if you didn’t come out to play with us on our very first whip through the country? Paulatics – The Tootster by Paula McCallumMy Honda Rebel was a great bike for learning on but after a couple seasons, it was time to find something with a little more pizzazz. I didn’t like the look of the peanut tank so Sportsters were out of the question. Yet after trying out Deb’s Dyna Super Glide, I realized that I just wasn’t ready for t he power of the big bikes. In Laconia, a cute bobber caught my eye. Disappointedly, the vendor said it wasn’t for sale, if it were, it would carry a price tag of $18,000. Ouch - that was a little too rich for my blood. Bill knew a guy with a Sportster for sale with only 800 miles and told me to just take a look at it. We went to his garage and upon seeing her, I knew instantly that she was the bike for me - I also knew she would need a few minor beauty enhancements to transform her into the bike I’d seen in Laconia. The peanut tank ceased to be an issue for me. She became known as The Tootster after Bill’s nickname for me, “Toots” (pronounced like foot not hoot). One day, as I was pulling into the garage, he called out, in Tonight Show fashion, “Here’s the Tootster!” and the name just stuck. It became official when I had Alex Olivera pinstripe h er fender at our last cookout. Her make over began when I lowered the shocks so that my feet could lay flat (I’m only 5’2”). I next ordered a red leather solo seat, never intending to ride a passenger. The exhaust was enhanced with slip-on pipes but eventually, I’ll replace them with mufflers that sweep up in the back at a 45° angle - they weren’t available for the 2004 models last year. We removed the heat shields and covered the pipes with header wrap and sprayed red with high-heat paint to give it that old school look. The air filter was changed out for a Forcewinder and the drag bars replaced with mini-apes and braided cables by Mark Reihl, a Manomet Mystery Rider and our local Harley mechanic. Bill surprised me one day with a new engine guard - much better than flowers! Yet, he surprised himself even more during the job. While tangling to get a screw loose, he cut his arm on a piece of slate on the ground. Wisely, he sought medical attention when the bleeding wouldn’t stop. The hospital said he was lucky he came in because the vein he severed wouldn’t have stopped bleeding on its own. His arm required stitched inside and out. For her latest installment, I took a chilly ride up to Scott Lally’s house in Pembroke. Scott is a Mystery Rider as well having a custom paint & body shop in his garage. Scott’s buddy did the red powder coating to match her red seat and another friend laced her wheels with stainless steel spokes and gave The Tootster her new Avon white walls. Coincidentally, I’m from the town of Avon, OK who cares, anyway, Scott attached the red hand grips and then put her all back together. When the cold weather is upon us again, I’ll bring her back so he can chop the fender and maybe attach a low profile brake light. For now, I’m going out and enjoying the ride and hopefully heads will turn when everyone sees The Tootster roaring passed them down the streets of Plymouth. Yo Momma is a Biker Chick! In honor of Mother’s Day, this May 13, I sent out an email to some of the mothers in our group to get their perspective on riding. Gail Quinn and Deb Johansson were kind enough to send in their answers.
Gail “Bubbles” Quinn: Terry (her husband) only started riding 1½ years ago. Both daughters and sons-in-law thought it was a crazy idea at first, but when they all saw how much he enjoyed it – and that he was able to get me to ride on the back, they changed their tunes, and both boys wanted t o take riding lessons and get their own bikes. They did not believe that I would actually ride on the back of the bike. And neither did I, at first. Then, when I did it, they thought I was funny! When I started to explain how much fun it was to see things from the back of the bike, they began to see the whole thing in a different light. Both my sons-in-law want to ride bikes, but have never done it. I think they envy the fun we have on Sunday rides & tours. We tell them all about it whenever we go anywhere. I think they would all like to join us some day. I wouldn’t encourage them to join us just now, though. One daughter has a new baby, and it would be hard for her husband to ride without her. She would worry about him getting hurt, so it would be better all around for them to wait a few years. Our other daughter & her husband would enjoy riding & I would encourage them to do it if they are really serious about it. I’d say that they think I am a pretty cool old bat now - a nearly sixty year otherwise stodgy old grandmother in biker boots and a leather Harley jacket!! They are still a little bewildered by that “ B u b b l e s ” mo n i k e r , though! Keeps ‘em guessing – and that’s a good thing! Deb “Ho” Johansson: I ride my own bike, and my k ids think it's great. My sons have their own Harleys . I have always encouraged them to ride. When they were young they had their own dirt bikes and rode in t he motorcross races, which we always attended. They think of me as both. A cool Mom. My children are adults now, so now if I don't have to work or attend something, we ride. We've gone to Laconia and had a great time. I would love to be able to travel more with them, but now they have families & they're in the same place we use to be. Stick that in Your Pipe and Smoke It! By Lee JohanssonDear Lee, DEAR GREAT HORNED OWL, Lee, DEAR HARD-CASE, Lee, DEAR NEW GUY, Dear Lee, Dear Lee, I saw your picture in last month's newsletter. You look very much like the man I saw with a Standard poodle on the corner of Chilton Street down at the waterfront last year. I was just wondering, do you ride? Skidder DEAR SKIDDER Dear Lee, DEAR QUIET AND SLOW, Hi Lee, DEAR RIC, HAVE A FAMILY PICTURE TAKEN AND USE IT FOR A HOLIDAY GREETING CARD. LEE Dear Lee, DEAR WET SEAT, |