Hard Ride, a Motorcycle Pilgrimage

As 2011 closes I can look back on the past year with much fondness and affinity. 15,000 miles have been added to the bike’s odometer and many great memories have been added to my life. From the first ‘official’ ride of the Hard Ride Tour, the Papa Joe Ride for Cancer on May 28th which took us from North Bay to Mattawa and back, it’s been a year of adventure and camaraderie and a significant bonding experience for my brother Derrick and I. The Key West trip ( trivialized by some pseudo-biker at the Papa Joe Ride who’s likely never ridden further than a few hundred miles ) was an achievement of note even for a young, healthy rider let alone a rider with my bone and joint problems. We rode through brutal heat and 10 to 12-hour days and never once had any regrets.
To be perfectly honest, the Hard Ride didn’t take as much a toll on me as I had expected. I believe that has to do with the hot weather, the comfortable bike and the great companionship. We rode stress-free and focused on the fun.
It was a great year, a great adventure and a great experience. I don’t know what the coming years will bring but I know I have found a renewed love of the road and travel in general. It’s easy to meet people and make friends on the road and I savored all of it.
I learned a lot about motorcycle riding this year, even though I have been riding for over 30 years. The roads are becoming more and more dangerous for the motorcyclist as traffic and general lack of common sense on the road grows each day. Each ride has it’s perils and today’s rider has to be alert, attentive and diligent.
At the end of it all, the bottom line is we had a dream and we did it. And the final icing on the cake? My brother showing up at my place Christmas eve on his bike, taking advantage of the very rare green Christmas to get in one last ride of the year. It was -10 degrees outside, but that didn’t stop the huge smile on his face, and on mine.