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Monday, February 28, 2011

Just a great photo...

February 28, 2011
Colorado, USA

Ted (aka Dad, aka "Frosty") stands the flagline on a frigid February morning.

Comment from a friend: ...We have an aged vet standing so close to the most prominent symbol of freedom known to man, but if one didn't know the man and his history, one would still note the age, the alignment with the U.S. flag, the fact that for some reason he's standing there in very cold weather and with a solemn look communicating a devotion to that flag and some kind of duty; otherwise, why would he be doing that? -- Charlie McMurtry


'Nuff said.

Photo by: Brenda (thanks, girl)

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Damn cold says Tim

February 24, 2011
Colorado, USA

Temps hovering around freezing and skies spitting snow made for a darn chilly ride (Tim said damn cold, actually) after scheduled maintenance and new tires.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Winter Weekend Rides

February 20, 2011
Colorado, USA

Saturday -- What luck - it was warm enough (well almost) in northern Colorado to ride in February! Temps rose to 49 degrees before noon in our neck of the woods. So, yeah, we rolled out of the drive about 1 pm under mostly sunny skies. The cold front due in was still a smudge on the northern horizon and the storms raging over the Rockies would stay over the Rockies. Winds were moderate.

We rode around the southern end of Horsetooth Reservoir, still covered with treacherous ice, despite the warm temps and sun of the last few days.




The ChiefWe decided to check out the almost new leather store in the area. What a pleasant surprise! Beavers Den Leathers is located just outside of Loveland, CO on Hwy 34 (that's the road to Estes Park/Rocky Mountain National Park). Larimer County is apparently a stick in the mud where signage is concerned so here are your landmarks... heading west from Loveland, CO, just past the road to Carter Lake left/south is a carved Indian Chief sitting in the middle of a field on your right/north, start looking because Beavers Den Leathers is coming up around a little bend on the same side (right/north) of the road. You'll know it by a large yellow sign and scantily clad mannequins out by the roadside waving a stiff hello. Parking in front of the Den is paved and Todd works hard to keep it clean and free of gravel (no small chore after snow plows run).



Tim goofing around in front of the store... Tim - You didn't get that did you? Me - Uh, yeah... Tim ...!!(&%*(%*^$!! Ha!




Here's the best part. Beavers Den is well stocked (leather jackets, chaps, belts and more), clean, comfy and roomy. They were having a decent winter sale. The front porch looks like the perfect spot to sit a spell after a long, mountain ride. We'll let you know... The owner we spoke with, LeeAnn, is friendly and helpful. This is a biker owned outfit. LeeAnn tells me she owned a leather store in Kansas before moving to Colorado and setting up shop in this location last summer. The owners are ardent supporters of our armed services (offers military/veteran discounts). And, heads up Colorado bikers! The Den will be patch headquarters in northern Colorado. As you know, patches are hard to come by up this way except at rallies. The Den has a room dedicated to patches. We walked in and immediately found a couple that needed to come home with us. At present, the Den is operating under winter hours, but LeeAnn said she'll do her best to accomodate customers. It might be best to give them a call to verify hours. This place will be a great stop for a poker/toy/benefit run. I'm betting if the roads are clear and the sun is shining, you'll find the doors open. See: Beavers Den Leathers. You can also find them on FaceBook. Events (there was a hint about a Biker BBQ before long) will be posted to Thunder Roads. Good luck Beavers Den - we'll see you again soon.

After doing our part to support the local economy, we rode a few more miles. We made our way over to Lyons, CO and stopped in the park for a little while. We saw a good many bikers on the road today... all of us trying to get a few miles in before the next round of weather comes in. We lost the sun while we were at Lyons, so we rambled back home, finishing the day off with pizza, wings and beer.

Sunday: After rain last night, today wasn't nearly as warm as yesterday. We got out for a short while anyway. The blasted winds were howling. We rode north of town in harsh north winds, so we thought, let's ride south of town. By the time we got across to the southern end of town, the winds had changed direction at least half a dozen times. That's Colorado for you.

We purt near froze our butts off riding on the east side of this small, frozen lake near Loveland, CO. Frigid winds out of the west were howling at this point of the ride. Brrrrrrrrrrrrr....

No - we're not complaining about the cold or the winds. We'll ride when we can - except next time - one of us needs to clean the mirrors before we roll out. Ha!

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Texas: Iwo Jima Reunion

February 19, 2011
Colorado, USA

Of the Marines on Iwo Jima,
uncommon valor was a common virtue.

Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Iwo Jima, WWII

Iwo Jima

The raising of the American Flag on D-Day, February 19, 1945 on Mount Suribachi, Japan.

Texas -- The Folks and other Riders of North Texas will honor WWII Veterans today during a reenactment of the raising of the American flag.

Update: First report in (from Nubbin). This year had 44 survivors and 2 CMoH winners including Marine, Woody Williams. We had a 160 patriots show up and hold flags in honor of these heroes!
Update #2 and photos:
Nezzie (Mom) reports: There were 88 bikes, 147 patriots and at least 10 cages for this years Iwo Jima Reunion. She said, "It was a wonderful sight to see all the bikes arrive at the hotel before the reunion started." There were three gold star families there, including Nubbin and Angela and the Maldonado family. Ted (Dad) held the Air Force flag inside the building until he met a young Air Force S/Sgt whom he asked if he would like to hold the flag for the first time in a flag line. The young man accepted. Nezzie (Mom) stood the flag line inside the ceremony room. she said, "It was a very exciting and a very emotional thing again this year."


Jima survivors
For more info see Iwo Jima: http://www.iwojima.com/

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Temp was right - winds too high

February 16, 2011
Colorado, USA

Housework done? Nope.
Laundry done? Nope.
Paperwork done? Nope.
Shopping done? Nope.
Wanna ride? Yep.

Temps reached the mid 60s in our neck of the woods today and the winds were howling, but that didn't keep us from getting out for a 23 mile tour around the south end of town on a BTGTWR (before Tim goes to work ride).

Mountains glistening beyond frozen lake - believe it or not - there's a storm raging in the high country.

Winds were howling along country roads in our neck of the woods today.

Inadvertent ME shot - ha!

Shadow Riders join us for a short, windy ride.

Fine weather for mBSc ride in Texas

February 16, 2011
Colorado, USA

Ted rides out for mBSc chapter ride Wichita Falls, TX -- Looks like fine riding weather today in Texas. A brief respite from the extended and extreme version of frigid weather of late in north Texas has Ted (Dad) and a couple of other members of the mBSc out on a chapter ride.

The mBSc is the name I gave to Dad and a few of his cronies who have spent the winter roaming between coffee shops generally engaging in biker BS. The acronym mBSc stands for Misfit Biker Social Club or as one of the other members says Mostly BS Club - either way the emphasis is on BS.

Ride safe guys and I want to hear all about it.

Update: Last report was from Hard Eight BBQ in Stephenville, TX... Today's mBSc ride took the guys to the Green Frog in Jacksboro for breakfast, to the leather shop in Hico, to lunch at the Hard Eight in Stephenville and back to Wichita Falls. Mom reports Dad rode out about 8:30 am and finally straggled back in about 6 pm. Temps reached the high 70s, maybe even 80s in Texas today. That's first sunburn kind of weather. This picture was posted for Tim. I had to clean my monitor afterwards. Ha!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Breaking 16,000

February 15, 2011
Colorado, USA

The Ride 02-15-2011 We rolled over the 16,000 mile mark on The Ride today on a 49 mile jaunt over the dam, around frozen lakes and along the country lanes in the area.

When we left Colorado last Thursday evening, temps were in the single digits and considerable ice-pack from the last snow remained on the streets. We were happy to see the ice had disappeared upon our return last night after a quick trip to Texas. Still a little tired and weary after our trip, a 49 mile ride with temps in the mid 50s was just enough to clear the head and put a smile on the day.

Yep, that's a grin on his face. A call this morning said come in to work later than usual - with temps in the mid 50s... there wasn't much of a problem figuring out what to do with a couple of extra afternoon hours.

Horsetooth Reservoir (south end) - frozen

Horsetooth Reservoir (north end) - frozen

Terry Lake - frozen

More frozen water...

The Ride's first outing with all the new chrome

Monday, February 14, 2011

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Monday, February 7, 2011

It's getting serious out there folks...

February 7, 2011
Colorado, USA

We need some riding weather... soon!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Some people have way too much time on their hands...

February 4, 2011
Colorado, USA

Hundreds gather to protest global warmingHundreds gather to protest global warming

See what happens when motorcycles have to sit in the garage too long? NO. It wasn't US!