Labour Day in Port Alberni with Robocop

September 1, 2008

I thought I was ready for this event, but though I thoroughly enjoyed the ride to Port Alberni (it really is such a scenic and wonderful ride with loads of twists), my shoulder wasn't ready for the parking lot practice.

One of the PA riders, Chevy, has set up the parking lot by the College and Multiplex in Port Alberni. It has the slowcone weave, figure 8, slalom, intersection, and even a snowman marked out in paint, and Chevy (aka Wayne) also brings small traffic cones to really help with the visuals. The end result is a perfect "Ride Like A Pro" practice lot. It was terrific to see the huge turnout, and Dave Hay, the RCMP Motorcycle Trainer here on Vancouver Island, was there to give us his experience and some terrific training. He ended up setting up another rather difficult practice pattern called the Texas Star as well.

Stephen excelled at all of the patterns and sure made me proud. Vic does well with his riding too. I started the slalom and the off-set cone weave, but my shoulder was just bitchy with ache and the slow friction zone maneuvering wasn't kind. Oh well, it did give me the opportunity to watch everyone else and to sit and chat with friends.

The PA group is wonderful, and they had a barbecue set up cooking hotdogs for the riders and a huge cooler full of very icey water to keep us all hydrated. What an incredible day for all of us. We ended it with a ride to Starbucks and another delightful gab session before heading out to the highway and home again. Memories are made of days like this and I'm sure thrilled to have become a member of this fine group of people. Gosh how I've changed. I can remember driving to BC in 1992, and as I got to the midwest, I began to notice more and more motorcycles on the road. By the time I got to the Dakotas I couldn't find either a restaurant or a motel that didn't have more bikes than anything else in the parking lots. I actually started to feel nervous about this. After all, I was driving through the States all by myself. Where were all these bikers coming from? Where were they going?

Now I realize they were the best safety factor for me on this solitary journey. They were all heading to Sturgis where every year a good half-a-million riders come together to celebrate their bikes, each other, and all things to do with riding. Maybe some day I'll make it to Sturgis and enjoy that celebration with them... although maybe that's more bikes and people than I can cope with. It's something to think about.