Cyclerides.com Weekly Update

1/4/11

Greetings Riders,

I would like to wish all of you a Happy New Year. Hopefully all of your New Year resolutions, hopes and dreams will come to fruition. Isn’t it funny how the change of the calendar, virtually one day, can change your whole attitude or outlook on life and the future? I mean, how much can really change by just turning the calendar page from December 31st to January 1? It all happens in one second, how much can it really make a difference? Well, on paper not much, but in our attitude it can be monumental, and our attitude is what really determines how we perceive things to be.

The change of the calendar can help us to wish a bad year good riddance and make our cup half full again, instead of half empty. It also seems to serve as an attitude adjustment to give us a fresh start in our mind, to wake up in the morning and believe that this year will be better than the last. Personally I try to start my day looking for the good in my life and deal with the curve balls as they come, rather than getting up looking for the curve balls and never seeing the blessings as they come. Attitude is everything. At least START your day with the glass half full and work from there.

I usually tend to compartmentalize the calendar. As the year comes to an end, I can only see to December 31st, but when the calendar changes to January, I can all of a sudden visualize the next 12 months. And for me, that means starting to plan some rides breaking the calendar down to short and longer ride opportunities. To get in the mindset for this, Mrs. C. and I decided to take advantage the beautiful weather we have been having by spending the afternoon of January 1st out on the bikes.

We headed from the NW Valley to Desert Ridge and then on into Cave Creek where we planned to grab a late lunch. The idea to go for a ride on this afternoon wasn’t unique to us as there were tons of bikes on the road everywhere. The Hideaway looked like a bike week kind of crowd with bikes parked everywhere and Harold’s was full of football fans and bikers. Our intent was to try out the new Tap Haus but apparently their wait staff enjoyed a little too much New Year’s eve and didn’t show up for work. There was a 40 minute wait for a table with most of the tables unoccupied. Felt sorry for the manager as she was sick about missing out on all this business. But it does look like a neat place and we will give it another try.

We wanted to set outside and enjoy the weather so we settled on Big Earl’s Diner in Cave Creek. I have to say the grilled chicken sandwich there was excellent. They have a nice outdoor covered patio right on the road that is perfect for watching the bikes go by. They even have milk shakes if you just want to have a snack. Give them a try. From there we went on to Greasewood for about 30 minutes where there were also a lot of bikes, locals and tourists. We left Greasewood at about 4:15 for our 25 mile ride back to the West side and a stop at the local Dairy Queen for a milk shake to end what had been a great day, at least up to that point.

We had just gotten back onto Deer Valley Rd. and I opened the door on my cell phone holder of the new Mako Glide to change the song at the exact same time that I ran over an unfriendly manhole cover. You know the kind I am talking about. The one that was last level with the street back in 1982 and can lift you off your seat. As I rode over this one at about 40 MPH the phone ejected from the holder and down onto the street. By the time I realized what happened, I heard the phone sliding along the pavement and turned my head to see it doing about 38 MPH next to me. So as I slowed down to make a stop to retrieve it, the phone kept up momentum and made its’ way underneath my rear tire where I promptly ran over it. (See Pic)

Needless to say, my new Samsung Galaxy S2 phone that was 4 weeks old, is now nothing more than road kill. I stopped the bike on the side of the road to go back and retrieve what was left of it. I picked up the battery, back cover and phone in different parts of the road to verify my fear of the obvious that this phone wouldn’t be making any more calls. The worst part of it is, that it also ejected the SD card that had several pictures that I had taken of my Grandson over Christmas. I looked for about 10 minutes, but after playing human “frogger” on Deer Valley Rd. while trying to find a 1/4 inch piece of black plastic on asphalt, I decided that getting hit by a car would hurt worse than losing the pictures.

The moral of this story is: #1. Don’t change songs while riding over a manhole cover. #2. Back up the pictures you take on your phone, because you never know when they are going to get lost or destroyed. For those of you that are interested, I promptly found an Android App that will instantly sync pictures you take directly to the internet so that your photos will always be backed up. The app is called SugarSync. It gives you free 5 GB of storage and works perfectly. Fortunately I had insurance on the phone and have it replaced already. It was still a $100 oops, but could have been much more costly without the insurance.

If you are like me, and want to start coming up with ideas and planning your next road trip, Take a look at this excellent article from About.com Motorcycles highlighting what they call the Best 15 Motorcycle Roads in America. We have been on 6 of the 15 roads. Click Here to View.

Enjoy this great weather we are having by getting the bike out and taking a ride. And remember to always start the day with the glass half full. The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; the optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. I will be back next week with some ride ideas to get you out for the first part of the year.

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Tidbits and Updates:

**Take advantage of this GREAT DEAL!: Trask 2012 New Year Performance Special.

Thinking of new pipes, intake, cams or all of the above? Start your new year off right, come into Trask Performances premier dyno tuning center January 1st - 31st for a FREE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION (normally a $75 value). Our tuning experts will help you make your bike run the way you want it to. Arizona's premier performance and service center, Trask Performance! Located at 21601 N. 3rd Ave. in Phoenix, AZ. Call 623-879-8488 to make an appointment and Refer to this offer from Cyclerides.com.

**New Google Search for the Cyclerides.com Archives: If you remember something from a newsletter that you want to revisit but can’t remember the date of the newsletter, now you can use the new Google Search of the site. Just choose “keywords” that is unique to the subject and click search. It will come up with all the newsletters that have that word in the letter. Click Here to give it a try. Or go to the Archives button on www.cyclerides.com.

**If you need to kill some time in between rides, go to the Cyclerides.com Smugmug Photo Gallery for all of my recent photos. Click Here.

This Week

Month of January

Arrowhead Harley-Davidson “New Year – New Tires”. Penny Tire Special for the entire month of January. Purchase the rear tire at retail and receive the front tire for a PENNY! First tire at retail price and the lesser retail value will be at one cent. No other offer combined. Must be installed at Arrowhead Harley-Davidson at 16130 N. Arrowhead Fountain Ctr. Dr. in Peoria, AZ. 623-247-5542. Please mention this advertisement to receive the special pricing.

Month of January

Chandler Harley-Davidson “New Year – New Tires”. Penny Tire Special for the entire month of January. Purchase the rear tire at retail and receive the front tire for a PENNY! First tire at retail price and the lesser retail value will be at one cent. No other offer combined. Must be installed at Chandler Harley-Davidson at 6895 W. Chandler Blvd, Chandler, AZ. 480-496-6800. Please mention this advertisement to receive the special pricing.

Next Week

Saturday, January 14th

THE RIDE with Rick Hatch. “Rick says, “Please join me and my friends on this legendary ride and celebration”. Ride starts and ends at the dealership, registration begins 9:30a.m. Kickstands up at 11 AM. This will be a 100 mile ride. 1st stop Road Runner, 2nd stop the Hideaway followed by a scenic North Valley tour to Bartlett Lake. Ends at Hacienda Harley-Davidson at 3 PM where the party starts. Bands, Food, Beer and Fun Times. THE RIDE is free but donations will be accepted for Liberty Wildlife, a Scottsdale non‐profit organization whose mission is to rescue and rehabilitate Arizona’s wildlife and The Colter & Associates Foundation 501(c)3 non‐profit.

Saturday, January 14th

Arrowhead Harley-Davidson New Year BBQ and Used Parts Swap Meet. Happy New Year from Arrowhead Harley-Davidson. Please join us for a New Year BBQ and Used Parts Swap Meet on Saturday, January 14th. Set up for swap meet at 8 AM, space is free. BBQ will be 11 AM to 1 PM. FREE Food while supplies last with Raffle Prizes. Call to reserve space at 623-247-5542 or email ahdebay@ridenow.com . Arrowhead HD is located at 16130 N. Arrowhead Fountain Ctr. Dr. in Peoria, AZ.

Saturday, January 14th

Stand Up and Stand Proud Helping Homeless Veterans. During our event, we focus on saluting those who are true American Hero’s and reminding the community to never forget, our Veterans service and their actions in support of Freedom and these United States of America. EARLY REGISTRATION ONLINE OR Register at the Mesa Marketplace Swap Meet, U. S. 60 and Signal Butte, Mesa. (Map Below) Saturday January 14, 2012 from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Receive a full breakfast including eggs, hash browns, toast, coffee and juice along with music and prizes. Then ride the beautiful Sonoran Desert on our 2 hour ride and arrive at Superstition Harley-Davidson @ noon for a complete BBQ lunch by the Mining Camp Restaurant and Trading Post. Veterans Salute, Flag Presentations and much more! Stand up and Stand Proud Needs your Help! Veterans Veterans Helping Homeless Helping Homeless. Monies go to Arizona Stand Down and support Homeless Veterans. $20.00 per Bike or Cage.

Saturday, January 14th

2nd Annual Skin and Steel. Bike Contest and Tattoo Contest. Event time 11 AM – 8 PM at the American Legion Post 2 located at 2125 S. Industrial Park Ave. in Tempe, Az. All proceeds benefit the numerous programs the American Legion supports. Vendors are always needed and spaces are only $20. Spaghetti Lunch, Baked Goods, Swap Meet, Food, Vendors, Music and Beer. See flyer for details.

Upcoming Events

Saturday, February 11th

Arizona Centennial Ride. Plan to attend this “Once in a Lifetime” event to celebrate 100 years of Arizona Statehood. This will be a DPS escorted ceremonial ride of approximately 15 miles that will take us West on the Loop 202 to I-10 through downtown Phoenix past Chase Field and West on Jefferson to the Capitol where we will end at the Centennial Best Fest featuring a performance by Dierks Bentley. This will absolutely put a rumble in Downtown Phoenix like they have never heard before. I can’t wait. The cost for the ride will be $25 per person that will include participation in the ride, a commemorative t-shirt, ride pin and one (1) ticket for the drawing to win the AZ Copper Chopper. The t-shirt and ride pin will be in limited quantity so you will want to pre-register to guarantee that you get these collectible items. Once they are gone that is it. There will be a very cool patch that will be available to purchase at registration. I will have a picture of that in a couple of weeks. Click the following link for a picture of the shirt design that I took with my cell phone at a meeting. This will be shirt back.

Extras

Mid Week Updates will be made on the Cyclerides.com Facebook. New Easy to remember Facebook address. Go to Cyclerides.com Facebook. Over 3500 FANS! Take a look at all the new photos posted on the wall. If you are not on Facebook, you can still view the page, but you will not be able to post. There will be a link there for you to sign up for Facebook if you are inclined. Click the LIKE button!

Take advantage of this GREAT DEAL!: Trask 2012 New Year Performance Special.

Check out this motorcycle and snowmobile jump over the San Diego Harbor on New Years Eve. Click Here to View.

If this is real, technology never ceases to amaze me. Click Here to View

Video of the Week: This is a very innovative commercial for a vacuum cleaner. Click Here to View. Click on the Video of the Week graphic on the page.

If you would like to sign up for the Cyclerides.com Weekly Update Click Here.

Until Next Week,
Blessings and Safe Riding To All,

Barry Caraway
"The Road Is Yours - Take The Ride"
www.cyclerides.com