i know some of you all ride a motorcycle. you'll understand. no doubt, riding a motorcycle is a perishable skill. you dont do it for a long time, while it isnt like starting over..it isnt (ironically) like getting back on a bicycle either. haha.
when i was younger and living in San Francisco, i think i went 5 years without a car. i would rent one, if i needed it. but for my transportation, i went thru two sportbikes. rain or shine i would ride it to work. boy, you get good like that. being young and an idiot; that meant fast cornering and the occasional wheelie. now? no!, i focus on my street survival skills, and being smooth and predictable to other drivers. i remember i could walk a sport bike down a truck ramp easily..i could push my sport bike up a curb backwards to park it on the sidewalk. it was like second nature. all part of living in a big city with a motorcycle. my current idea of a "sunday morning ride" has changed. less trying to drag a peg while racing towards that restaurant "Alice's" and more, "hey, i wonder if Alice's has cinnamon buns?"
i'm not there yet. my 8 year hiatus, atrophied my motorcycle skills. i bring this up because i want to take a big motorcycle trip. my mind is all over the place. from shipping my bike to Spain, to simply heading out my front door and seeing what is happening in Canada. I've never done a trip before. not like that. there is just so much stuff i am not familiar with, like carrying extra fuel and even HOW to load bags for balance. I'm gonna do it for sure. my wife is on board. she wonders why i havent done it already. i am still trying to get really really good on a motorcycle i think. i definitely do not what to tell her that!!
i know two of you here on PPOT have done it for sure. i'll probably have to do this solo, since my circle of friends are all car-based for now. my motorcycle friends are scattered about the country and have their own ideas on what riding is about. Spain might not be on the agenda.