05-12-2025, 10:40 AM
Didn't do anything with my CB1100 over the weekend, but I'm getting her ready for the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride coming up this Sunday, which means I'm also pulling out my favorite ceremonial helmet for the occasion - I'll take a ride in a bit to get a photo with it for this month's photo challenge, as I can't skip a challenge this easy! I was going to give the Bonneville a turn at the DGR this year. But, half of the participants will be on Triumphs, and I've never seen another CB1100 on the ride. Plus, she'll be sporting her new Road Comet fairing and Staintune muffler, so how could I deny her the chance to show off a bit.
The Orange County CA ride is going to start from the Huntington Beach Pier and head up Pacific Coast Highway to Long Beach. My initial thought was "Oh jeez, not again..." Our DGR went up the coast a few years ago. Even riding "Dapper and gentlemanly", over 200 bikes in a herd barging their way up the most heavily-travelled road in the county on a spring Sunday morning made for sort of a S&*@-Show.
However, subsequent emails about the route sound encouraging. We're starting on the Huntington Beach Pier, and will be "The first time motorcycles have ever been allowed on the Pier", and we'll have a police escort. So, it sounds like the only group ride I engage in annually might be fun after all.
I'll pre-ride the route this week after work to get my bearings. Even with a police escort, I imagine there will be some confusion. Last time the ride went up PCH and got splintered into smaller herds due to the light-to-light breaks in traffic, I fell in with a group that was following a vintage BMW. He made a few turns, with 10 or so riders behind him. He stopped after a few blocks and yelled back "I'm trying to find a gas station, please don't follow me!"
The Orange County CA ride is going to start from the Huntington Beach Pier and head up Pacific Coast Highway to Long Beach. My initial thought was "Oh jeez, not again..." Our DGR went up the coast a few years ago. Even riding "Dapper and gentlemanly", over 200 bikes in a herd barging their way up the most heavily-travelled road in the county on a spring Sunday morning made for sort of a S&*@-Show.
However, subsequent emails about the route sound encouraging. We're starting on the Huntington Beach Pier, and will be "The first time motorcycles have ever been allowed on the Pier", and we'll have a police escort. So, it sounds like the only group ride I engage in annually might be fun after all.
I'll pre-ride the route this week after work to get my bearings. Even with a police escort, I imagine there will be some confusion. Last time the ride went up PCH and got splintered into smaller herds due to the light-to-light breaks in traffic, I fell in with a group that was following a vintage BMW. He made a few turns, with 10 or so riders behind him. He stopped after a few blocks and yelled back "I'm trying to find a gas station, please don't follow me!"
You know what? I actually would like a pickle.