Well, the past couple of days have been pretty awesome, weather-wise. However, my body apparently thinks it’s time to catch a cold. I had a sore throat for a few days, and now that that’s gone, I have a stuffy nose and a slight caugh. Why does this have to happen? The best time of the year, and I get sick for it. That’s just great.
I started reading Lord of the Rings the other day, once again. I am not planning on reading all of it, just the first section. My favorite parts… Which is from the begining all the way to Rivendell. It was nice to be back in Hobbiton for a while, all peaceful and very autumnish. I read up till the Gross of Hobbits. Man, that’s such a great book. (sigh)
I’ve also fallen in love with the Dubliners once again. I am seriously thinking about ordering one of their CD’s. Maybe I should ask for it for my birthday or christmas, since that is coming up before too long. Goodness, that’s a scary thought. I’ll be 22 in about a month and a half. (sigh)… Does anyone out there have any suggestions for something I should do for my birthday? You know… since you’re supposed to do something for your birthday, or at least that’s what I am told.
This Saturday I am going to be either riding a motorcycle (with a cold in the cold), or I’ll be in the car with mom so that I can take pictures and stuff. Not sure how it’s going to work yet. Anyway, it should be pretty fun though. Chili cookoff, music, motorcycles, all types of cool stuff. 
Unfortunetly Rachel and Lauren aren’t going to be able to join me, so not as much fun as it could be… but still.
Then that night, Rachel wants me to come to Berry for the Marthapalooza. Not sure if I will or not yet… That would either put me getting home really late, or spending the night there. We’ll see…
Well, I am going to go now. So, have fun kids!
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There comes a time in every man’s life, that he starts to worry that he made a big mistake. Yes… it is true men, don’t try to deny it. I have not come to that point in my life yet, but I was worried I had when I was driving home from Florida.
Now, you might be thinking, “Driving home from Florida? What’s the big deal about that?” — Well, let me tell you. Yes, on this fateful couple of days, I was on a motorcycle. A four hundred mile journey to the northern section of Georgia. Luckily, I was not alone on this journey. My father was also riding his motorcycle, and my mother was in the car following us.
Yes, on this fateful day we got a late start out of Panama City Beach. We had stopped for breakfast, and took longer than we should have. Once we finished up there, we headed on our way. By this time, it was roughly eleven o’clock in the morning. Once we got on the road, it wasn’t long before we stopped for the first time. There’s a motorcycle shop on the outskirts of town that we had made a couple trips to, and we stopped one more time before we left.
Once we left there, about an hour later, we headed on for Columbus. We had decided that we would try to make it there before dark. We didn’t make a whole lot of stops along the way. One or two bathroom breaks, and that was it. Sounds boring, yes?
On one of our bathroom stops, we noticed that the clouds ahead of us were getting really dark. We decided that we should get our rain suits on before we kept going. So we put our suits on, and I went back inside to get a quick drink. While I am waiting in line I hear the weather station come on, but I don’t really think much about it. That is, until I hear the word…. Tornado. That’s right. That was my thought when I heard it too.
We hit the road again, but going slower as the wind is starting to kick up a little bit. I can hear some of you thinking already, “Are you guys idiots?! There’s a tornado out there!!”. Well, to calm your thoughts for now, it wasn’t where we were going. Just knowing it was out there was scary enough, though. — Where was I? Ah yes… We got a few miles down the road, and it started to rain. Not too bad, but enough to get annoying. For the most part, we didn’t have many problems until we got right outside of Columbus right as it was turning dark.
A little advice if you’re ever in Columbus on a motorcycle at night when it’s raining: Don’t.
You know how on some roads they have that patching material that they drizzle on the roads to make it “smoother”? Well, motorcycle tires do not like that stuff very well. When it’s wet, doubly so. Well, in Columbus… they practically paved with the stuff. At least, where the regular car tires go. So that left the middle of the road open for me to drive on. Guess where all the oil surfaces when it rains? Yeah, that’s right. Which left me with a two inch section of road to drive on, with a 4 inch tire. Remember… I am also fighting gusts of wind.
Meanwhile, it’s grown dark and cold. I still have on my tinted face shield. It gets too dark to see, so I have to raise it. It’s raining remember, and the rain is slapping into my face and stinging like a bunch of needles. Not to mention, I don’t even have the protection of my glasses any more. I also still have on my summer gloves, so what’s left of my hands are soaking wet and cold.
But what’s this? — A beacon of hope in the ever growing darkness? A turn signal! I can see the light!
My father turns into a hotel parking lot. At last! Rest for my frozen epidermis! I climb off the motorcycle and prepare for the glorious heat that awaits me in the hotel room. Yesss… I can feel it no—— What do you mean no rooms?
Two hotels later, we finally find room. Even at a hundred dollars a night, it is worth it. I slowly peel off my layers of clothing, worrying that might skin might go with it, and stand in front of the heater. After a few minutes, my phone rings. I slowly reach into my pocket (fingers breaking off in the process) and pull out my phone. A familiar name! My friend Lauren is calling to check up on me. Man, she’s awesome.
I open the phone and am greeted with, “Where have you been?” — Whoa… When did I get married? We talk for a while, and she tells me that she was driving in Atlanta traffic for 7 hours, and had been waiting to talk to me for nearly as long. We talked for a while, and finally got off the phone… I crash into bed, get out my computer, and talk to a few friends for a while. Meanwhile, the rain tries to take the building down.
The next morning, we awake to angry skies. On goes the weather channel, and it’s not looking good. We decide we’re going to make a break for it. We’ll get an early start and beat it out. Mom packs up her stuff and heads for the car. As she is going to breakfast, the skies open up. God didn’t re-nig on the whole flooding the earth thing, did he?
Alright, so we’re not leaving for a little while. We’ll just wait it out… uh-huh.
Knock knock.
Who is it? — There’s no answer.
Who iiiis it? — There’s still no answer.
— Wait, that’s a Weird Al song. We weren’t as fortunate.
Knock knock.
Who is it?
Housekeeping…
We open the door. They have a funny look on their face.
Yeeeah… We need you to get into the stairwell… There’s a tornado headed this way.
Uh-huh… Well, this should be fun.
We headed to the stairwell, and packed in like sardines with the other poor hapless victims, and took pictures on our cell phones. After a while, the staff came around and handed out pillows. They told us that the tornado was fairly close and they would let us know of any updates. Great.
After a while, they came around and told us it was all clear to come out, but it was still raining very hard. We made an executive decision that we would need to stay another day, because we couldn’t ride in the kind of weather that was being thrown at us. So, we paid and went back up to our room.
Fast forward a couple hours… Open the curtains, seeing if the rain has let up yet — Uhm. What’s this? Sunshine? Blue sky? Get the dang car packed, we’re blowing this joint.
We get all geared up, and head downstairs. After taking the covers off the bikes (which are full of water), we head on. How things can change in just a short period of time.
We had relatively no problem, the rest of the way home. We drove about one hundred miles in twilight/dark, but that was about it. Goodness, it felt so good to be home. Never thought my mattress would feel so good.
So, though I was starting to think that this may have been one of “those mistakes” in my life, it was surprisingly not all that bad. There were only a few memorable moments in my trip, that I thought I was going to be hurt pretty badly, so all in all… a good trip.
Gosh, this post was too long.
Tips for the long distance biker:
Though you may look like a smurf, rain gear is your friend.
Tinted face shields are not conducive to night riding.
Work out a signal to let the other riders know when you need to use the bathroom. This can mean the difference between life and death.
When in doubt about needing to stay another night in a hotel, wait in the lobby.
Put on your warm gloves before you need them.
Get earplugs for long distance highway trips.
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The following is an account of a trip from the small town of Ellijay, GA to the happenin’ city of Panama City Beach. Some of the following may be unsuitable for minors due to the intensely graphic nature of the crash scene. If you start feeling dizzy or nauseous, please step away from the monitor and take a deep breath. It will be okay.
Our morning started out at roughly 7:00 AM (Eastern time). Slowly we arose and got busy doing the things that people do when going on trips. This however, is no ordinary trip. That’s right… this is a motorcycle road trip. Four hundred miles in one direction, and the temperature was below thirty. Yes, my children… it was cold.
I spent the last few minutes of my warm life, talking on messenger to Rachel. I told her that the plan was to leave at 9:00 AM (Eastern time). Slowly the clock counted down to that dreadful hour. Finally at about 8:30 AM (Eastern time), I shut down the computer. We were almost ready… However, somehow it took us nearly another hour to get out the door (after sweeping and doing those things that my dear mother deems necessary).
9:30 AM
We head out the driveway.
9:36 AM
We pull into the Gilmer County Bank parking lot, and readjust all our gear.
9:45 AM
We pull out of the bank parking lot, and hit the road for Florida!
9:51 AM
We stop again. My hands are freezing, and I have to change gloves.
9:54 AM
We hit the road again…
9:59 AM
We stop yet again. The vents on my helmet are pouring cold air in and hitting my forehead, making my brain and eyes ache.
10:02 AM
We’re off yet again. The wind is bitter cold. Within minutes, all my vital body parts are shutting down. We’re not going to make it.
10:17 AM
My father pulls off in Jasper, Ga. reconfirming my belief that there is a God. We stop for Starbucks coffee, and all is well with the world.
10:45 AM
We finally leave Starbucks, dear sweet Starbucks. We resolve to not stop until Canton.
11:05 AM
We make it to Canton and stop at Motor World to buy better gloves.
11:30 AM
Time to hit the road again. It is decided that we’re not stopping until the other side of Atlanta.
12:30 PM
Passing through downtown Atlanta.
12:58 PM
My balaclava and glasses are causing a bunch on my ear, causing it to hurt tremendously. I try to get dad’s attention, to no avail.
1:15 PM (130 miles)
We finally pull off at an exit, looking for sustenance. We miss our turn and stop in a subdivision. Before dad can make me leave, I shut down the engine and yank off my helmet. My ear is mauled and bleeding… from the feel of it. It however, is just red and sore. After jogging around for a couple minutes to get feeling back in my legs, we decide to head back to our missed turn and get something to eat.
1:25 PM (Content advisory)
I gear back up… but I forgot to put on my glasses. I left them sitting on the “dash” of the bike. We start heading down the road, and as I round a corner they slip off the dash and clatter onto the road. My heart jumps into my chest, and my life flashes before my blind eyes.
I quickly pulled into another subdivision and turned the bike around. Mom followed me, not knowing what was going on. I slowly drove back down the road, looking for them. I saw them and pointed it out to the car behind me, hoping they wouldn’t hit them. Luckily, they didn’t.
As I parked the bike and climbed off, dad pulled in. The car behind him swerved to go around. That’s when I heard it. The sounds of ultimate doom. The bane of my drive to Florida. It was the demolishment of my glasses. I stared in horror as the next car hit it as well, and the lens went flying down the road. This was going to be a very long trip.
Though I have been told to never leave a man behind, I had to turn my back upon my dear friend.
Good bye, you will be sorely missed.
1:36 PM
We arrive at Blimpies for lunch.
2:04 PM
After eating a bag of chips and drinking a Pepsi, I pulled the bike around to get some gas. Dad does the same, at which point a man approaches us. Dad and him get talking, and it turns out that he is from the CMA (Christian Motorcyclist Association). After chatting a little, he prays for us, and we head on our way once more.
3:12 PM (180-190 miles)
Arrived in Columbus rest area. Met a couple riding Harleys, and chatted with them for a little while. Also talked to the grounds keeper at the rest area, who was very interested in mom’s scooter. He asked lots of questions, and thought it
was quite interesting.
3:45 PM
Left rest area.
5:02 PM
We stopped in the “hood” of Eufaula, Alabama for gasoline. Snickered at the signs on the door.
“No shirt — No shoes — Low pants — No service”
6:05 PM
Stopped in Dothan and scarfed down a big mac and coffee. Stomach ache ensued.
6:46 PM (85 miles to go)
Changed shield on helmet to clear (because it was dark), and hit the road again.
7:22 PM (44 miles to go)
Stopped for a while to warm up. Core body temperature had dropped significant amount. Disorientation setting in.
7:40 PM
Headed out again.
8:10 PM (21 miles to go)
Stopped again to warm up. Core body temperature getting quite low. Disorientation getting a little worrisome.
8:32 PM
Headed out once more.
9:04 PM
We arrived in the Panama City outskirts, and stopped for gas. I could not control my hands, and when I could feel them, they would have pain shoot through them.
9:16 PM
Headed out for the last 10 mile leg of our journey.
9:46 PM
We arrive at our destination!! Cold, weary, and sore.
10:00 PM
I take my first walk on the beach in three years. I call my friends to let them know I have arrived safe and sound. Only took twelve hours, when it was supposed to have only been about seven. Overall, it was a really good trip. A good bit colder than I was hoping for, but still a good one for my first long trip.
R.I.P.
Glasses…
Tips for the long distance biker:
Order hot drinks at stops. Ice is not your friend.
Get a mouth guard. Don’t chew on your tongue.
Hug the engine of your following car, whenever you can.
If you don’t have a car, hug the exhaust pipe on your bike.
It is interesting, the amount of heat one can glean from a street light
Don’t worry about looking like a fool doing jumping-jacks in a parking lot. They’ll never see you again.
Don’t irritate the woman in the car behind you. Even if she is your mother.
Downing a Big Mac in less than 30 seconds is not advisable, no matter how hungry you are.
If you wear glasses, get a nerd cord.
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