[owlie]

Okay- typical jeans, Harley t-shirts and tennis shoes… Add on full-face helmet hanging off the sissy bar as he cruises down the highway…

[owlie]

Congratulations on making the expert group! That is fantastic.

Isn’t it incredible how much difference a few pointers can make once you already have a skill set?

[owlie]

I take my Saturn on Jeep trails, so don’t listen to me.

[owlie]

Congrats on getting checked out. Especially given your progress and committment to slimming down, that must feel especially fantastic.

[owlie]

I’ve spent the last twelve months reclaiming my life from my job. With spring here (when the crunch had been the worst for the last five years), I have been reveling in the weekends and reconnecting with my husband and the life we are continually building.

The wild roses started opening last friday and the irises at Eklutna were in bloom on Monday. The currents have finished their thing and the cranberries are in bloom now. In a few weeks, the fireweed will be going and the anticipation is sweet.

It doesn’t always take a catastrophe to teach you to appreciate what you have, sometimes is just takes change.

[owlie]

Out of curiosity- how much time have you actually spent in high heels? When you are standing, your weight is still distributed between your ball and your heel. It isn’t like you are on your tip toes all the time. In a wider heel like shown on that boot, if you stumble, you still have plently of surface area so that you can post your foot down straight (though you have a longer lever to torque your ankle if you catch the heel).

A boot like that would provide plenty of confidence that you are firmly on the ground if you are comfortable in heels. For myself, I would be worried that it would change the dynamics of reaching the shifter and brakes too much for me to be comfortable. However, if that is what I rode in all the time, I’m sure it would be fine.

BTW- when I walk in heels, it is heel first then toe. Other women may walk differently.

[owlie]

I’m not sure what is worse- all the scenarios that ran through my head as I waited for the page to load or the truth.

I’m glad that you are safe and in one piece. Take it easy for a couple of days for sure. Too bad you didn’t have a friend you could trust to retrieve it for you. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you.

[owlie]

Don’t get me wrong, its not the gender thing (I train in BJJ- the ratio is 1:7 girls to guys on a good night, 1:30 on a bad night… errr switch that…). Mostly it is just that I’ve never been into motor sports.

I like riding a motorcycle because it gives me time to ground and reconnect with myself. I get off of my usual roads and see more of my community.

Taking up trials? I have no doubt that it is a blast, and that the skills learned are great for street riding. I could give you a handful of excuses for why I’m not going to run right out and try it, but suffice it to say that it isn’t something that I’m interested in trying out this summer.

[owlie]

Not for me, but that looks like it would be fun.

[owlie]

But you passed! Congratulations!

I hope that you take your new experience and knowledge and reconsider your first bike. I seem to remember you posting up a rather nice sportbike with some lovely fairings and “squid” painted on the side in invisible ink.

Take a look at some Ninja 250s to ride for a couple of months. Take it slow, easy and sane, and you won’t regret it.

And… Congratulations!

[owlie]

I tried out ear plugs about a month after I started riding- and the difference that it made was incredible. It was so much less stressful to be out on the busier streets and take longer rides. The only difference that I found in what I can hear is that one level of the bike’s sound was completely blocked at low speeds. I missed it the first week or two, but I don’t even think about it now.

Now, I don’t like to ride without them and keep box of the disposable foam ones next to my helmet and a ziploc bag of extras in my backpack.

[owlie]

The Ninja 250 is a good starter bike. The other guys can weigh in if i say something stupid, but it doesn’t have the same riding characteristics as a supersport (600cc race-tuned sport bike)- which generally means that it has tamer acceleration and braking. It is also relatively common and easy to find on the used market if you are concerned about cost. The newer Ninja 250 also just looks cool if you don’t go for the cruiser look.

For insurance- every rider is different, and every bike is different. Try getting some online quotes to see where it will run.

[owlie]

That was beautiful! Thank you for sharing.

[owlie]

The tribal is awesome. Thanks for posting the pic!

[owlie]

The Buell statement made that one completely. Otherwise, it would have just been some routine HD bashing…

[Author]

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