Saturday, April 25, 2015

Two Things

Two things I almost never do, even more rare done together, were carried out today and it was a blast.  Urban riding is something I do very little of, primarily due to our living rural.  The other thing very seldom done is my joining a group ride.  These guys justify exceptional.

Our local VJMC (Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club) group gathered after coffee this morning for a Grand Rounds Ride.  Long ago an idea which was then followed through and executed by the founders of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, the goal was to set aside and protect for future generations a ring around the city of boulevards and parks.  We did our best today to cover as much of the system as possible.

Leaving home by 5:30 this morning, our windy 42 degrees felt as if we were a good 20 degrees short of great riding weather.  Even so, the Helix fired right up and I was in north Mpls. by 7AM.  I'd venture to say that the majority of riders that arrived for hot morning beverages joined us on our ride....there were 15 bikes, including 1 sidecar rig.  Two of the bikes had passengers.

The early arrivers........





The 10AM ride began......


 North on Central and then here our first Parkway riding.....


 Downtown Mpls Tall Buildings on the horizon......


Typical of the Victory Memorial Section....



 Theodore Wirth Golf Course......






 Walking and biking paths everywhere, both busy today especially so by the lake sections of the ride.



 Approaching Lake Street and Lake Calhoun......






 We stopped for a short break at the Lake Harriet Band Shell parking lot.



The 'Rounds go past lots of water.....the Chain of Lakes as well as Minnehaha Creek.


 Many sections are one-way......







 Things were crowded and busy around the Minnehaha Falls Park, between the busy events and road construction, detours and adjustments needed to be made.



 We stopped for another break, this one across the river on East River Road.









 J.P. imagining the luxury and elevated social status that Helix ownership provides.

 

My ride with the group ended here since I had to get back home for another event in the afternoon.  I left the group here, the ride continued without me on to Chip's place for food and refreshments.  Many thanks to Mike for leading us around the loop, to Chip for hosting and to all that participated in making this a very fun group ride.

What it looks like, at least the part that I participated in, a counter clockwise voyage.


18 comments:

  1. What is the Cozy sidecar hanging off of? A Bonneville? Kind of hard to tell in the pictures. It looks like too large of a group for me. It took me a while to figure out what you decided to take from your stable.

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    1. That would be a Yamaha XS650....you weren't far off, only geographically. Group size is always an issue with me and by my definition, a group is anything >1. We did surprisingly well considering the urban environment. A fair amount of cross traffic in some places but the parkways (driving portions) were essentially ours to enjoy.

      I've been told the Helix stands out...."almost too much yellow in one place......"

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  2. On a day of at 5:30 with 42F I might have decided to do something different ;-) Respect, that you got there it meet a seemingly fine bunch of likeminded people. The Helix looks pretty big compared to the other bikes.

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    1. Sonja, respect or pity?? :) It took all of my courage to head out in the dark but the trip up went well. My Warm Bib plugged in around my chest felt great though I was very ready for coffee at 7 and relieved to see that D's was open.

      The Helix is long, making up for it's lack of height. Length came up one day with my GS BMW friend.....Helix overall length is greater, axle to axle is greater as well. Bigger :)

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  3. A nice turn out for a chilly morning.

    No easy feat keeping that many bikes together in an urban setting with stop signs and stop lights.

    Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Even by mid-morning it was nicer out than had been predicted and we were the better for it. If you're going with 15 bikes, the Mpls. parkways can be an acceptable place to ride.

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  4. That red and black GPZ looks pretty sweet.

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    1. Scott, even now I'm still surprised at the 'coverage' our group has representing brands and models from the 70's and 80's.

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  5. It looks like the Grand Rounds was a huge success. I love seeing those old bikes out on the street, they have such great character (and characters). I wish the XS and I could have joined you. I had it on my radar but the calendar was full.

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    1. Jason, you missed that one but this coming weekend we'll be much closer to your old stomping grounds. What's your schedule like next weekend?

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    2. My heart says Leland but my calendar says "Birthday Party" :)

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    3. Well don't give up, GR3 in a few weeks, Money Creek after Labor Day.....you'd love Rockerbox and AHRMA at RA :)

      Enjoy the party!

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  6. I had a 1985 Kawi 750 GPZ. It was the red and silver color.Not sure what I was thinking when I bought that bike.My secret desire was the blue and white Suzuki GS 750 ES.For some reason I just loved the way those Suzi's looked.

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    1. Scott, I can say with some certainty that most of us like the way they looked. As I continue to say, you've got to try a lot of them to know what you really like :)

      See you in Pine Bluff next weekend??

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    2. I'm not sure if you've been following STN lately,but I am currently bikeless.Sold the DR to a guy from Galesburg,Ill and the FZ6 to a younger guy from Indianola Ia.Cleaned out a bunch of jackets,pants,boots and gloves too.I'm not getting out of riding ,but my work has decided they can make steel 24/7 with 3 crews.I came to the conclusion that I won't have any time to ride much this year.So decided to cash flow.The Tenderloin Ride will go on,but I might be in my truck.I am thinking the next bike is either a FJR,Tenere,Kawi Versys1000 or a Kawi Ninja 1000.Sher has lost all desire to ride unless it's a luxo barge Goldwing or some such monstrosity.I am right in the stage of a soon to be 10 year old that needs Dad time and a work schedule that really sucks.

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    3. Hey Scott, I just don't get to STN like I once did but manage to stop by for a visit now and then. I did NOT know that you were without a bike.

      Balancing those priorities, loves and responsibilities is a delicate but good thing. I quit riding when Peg was pregnant with daughter #2 and I've never regretted it. Starting again 20 odd years later worked for me and has been good....more than good. You are correct, the Tenderloin WILL continue and we'll appreciate any effort that you can make towards that end. None of us will complain if you show up at an event(s) on 4 wheels. Again, Clayton just isn't that far from Elkader :)

      Please say hello to the Gold Wing fan.

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    4. Oh I will for sure have another bike.I get roughly one day off every seven now.And then the yard needs mowed and then it's right back to work.
      Besides most of my riding gear was getting "too" small or something!lol

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  7. You always know the right thing to say my friend.Sooner or later I will get that desire back like you have.Working all the time just kills my limited time.I think of all the things I need to do on my limited time off and leaves no time for a ride.
    In no way am I depressed.More like I am realistic about time management.Doesn't stop me from drooling about bikes all the time.

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