New Brunswick, Canada - The Chuck Palahniuk Ride

[jrobinson]

I've had luck hitting the back button and still having what I typed. I'll then copy it, just in case it doesn't let me post it.

[dredman]

been there - wish I had a solution
only thing I can offer is click the stay logged in button - should give you an hour

[Brian A]

yeah, I generally do both and using "back" has saved me a few times here-and-there.

Unfortunately in last night's event, I completely closed the tab. My browser was still open.  I just didn't pay close enough attention and closed the tab that was the connection to BR that had my update in it.

All calmed down this morn. I'll get back to it soon.

In Word this time....

[Fencejumper09]

New ADVrider automatically saves drafts of posts!!! We need that up in here!

[KrisCook]

Ctrl-Shift-T, if you get to it quickly enough, can save your bacon. 

I've done the same thing, although my stuff is never as epic as yours.  It makes me want to stick a fork in my eye. 

[Brian A]

Thank you Kris.  Your tip seems to work. I will try to remember that in the event I need a future OH NO! bail-out.

And if you are seriously enjoying the thread, I say a sincere "Thank You."

I have said before: much of my motivation is self-serving. I benefit from reliving the ride and having a RR to look back on months and years down the road to serve as a means of reliving the ride again and again.

(recently did that with the Idaho report, riding with Mill.... that was a great trip)

But, it is rewarding to know that other folks enjoy the hodge-podge of thoughts and pics I throw together.

So, thanks again.

I'll try to get some more update stuff posted within the next day or so.

In the mean time, something to sort of set the stage and get us all on the same page.....


The Bell Curve: The bell curve is the most common type of distribution for a variable, and due to this fact, it is known as a normal distribution. The term "bell curve" comes from the fact that the graph used to depict a normal distribution consists of a bell-shaped line. The highest point on the curve, or the top of the bell, represents the most probable event in a series of data, while all other possible occurrences are equally distributed around the most probable event, creating a downward-sloping line on each side of the peak.

The term "bell curve" is usually used in the social sciences; in statistics, it's called a normal distribution and in physics, it's called a Gaussian distribution. However, they all refer to exactly the same thing: a probability distribution that has certain characteristics, including the fact it's shaped like a bell.

The graph below ties in with a thought that ran through my mind while experiencing:

Definition: Adverse Weather Condition - severe weather that causes unsafe conditions.

[klaviator]

Losing a new post sucks

I am enjoying this report as I do ALL of your reports.  I'll save further comments for after you are done.

[Brian A]

We had known the night before that Day 7 would have us riding in the rain. There was a big mass of storms and rain in a widespread area. Pretty much the area we would be traversing on Day 7. It was a big enough weather deal that The Weather Channel was talking about it on TV. Flash flooding and the like.

We found ourselves sitting in the hotel breakfast area, eating breakfast and checking weather radar on TV and our cell phones.

It wasn't a matter of "What?"  It was a matter of "How much and how bad?"

We loaded up the bikes and rolled out of the hotel parking lot in Lock Haven and hit I-95 south.

Rain. Hard rain. Lots of rain. At times interstate traffic would slow way down and we'd have to do the same. But at other times we'd find ourselves cruising along at 70-75 mph in a pretty heavy rain, and doing so without incident or any real perceived hazard or undue risks.

I have found riding a motorcycle in the rain - especially on the interstate - to generally be a far safer and less harrowing proposition than I believe many folks view it to be. With good tires you can make very good time and feel safe doing so. At least that has been my experience.
I remember a few years back I was solo, riding the CBR 1000F home from North Carolina, when I got into rain on I-59 near Ft. Payne. The traffic was light and I decided I wanted to see how fast I could go and still feel comfortable. I cruised several miles at ~90 mph in a pretty good rain and I never felt things were sketchy at all.  We didn't do that speed on I-95 South that day in Pennsylvania but we did make decent time now and then.

We rode on. Passed College Station and then passed Altoona. The rain had abated a ways back and, for now at least, we were in the dry.

Things were about to change....

So, what's the deal with the Bell Curve? I'll go ahead and explain it now.

I see the Bell Curve applying to many life experiences and situations. (Same with the 80/20 Rule or 20/80 Rule, depending on how it is applied.) The Bell Curve represents, to me, the fact that most data points, most things you wish to sample, most experiences, etc., all tend to fit the Bell Curve. Most things cluster in the area of higher shared probability of existence.

When you get out on the tapering edges of the Bell Curve, you are getting into data points/experiences that are more the exception than the norm.

When you get waayyy out there, to the really thin part, well in those cases you are in situations that are WAY outside the norm.

Applying that to what lay ahead...

We stopped for a break just before we would get onto the Pennsylvania Turnpike. We bought gas and had a snack. We looked at the weather radar on our phones. We knew we would be getting back into rain but didn't really know how bad or how hard it would be. Sometimes it is just as easy to ride without rain gear, especially in summer, and let the wind and windscreen keep most (well, some) of the rain off you. I guess we must have all taken that view as it wasn't raining when we pulled out of the convenience store parking lot sans rain gear.

This is the one and only picture from Day 7. You can see, in the distance, the rain which we would be riding into.




We soon pulled up to the toll booths that marked our entrance onto the PA Turnpike. I pulled a few dollars out of my tank bag. They were kinda wet. I handed them to the lady in the booth. She made a wrinkled up nose face as if I had just handed her a half eaten boiled egg. 
I think I made the "pfffttt" sound and pulled away to find myself in front as we started down the turnpike.

Wasn't ling before we entered rain. Looking ahead it was easy to see we were headed for some serious rain. The clouds were hugging the hills and the turnpike went up and over and all around the hills.

I pulled off onto the right shoulder and stopped under an overpass so we could all get our rain gear on. It was long about here where things started to get a bit harrowing.

It was raining, the shoulder - while not extremely narrow - didn't offer a very wide berth between us and the traffic that was whizzing by and sending rain mist swirling all around. We got our rain gear on and it was time to get back into the flow of traffic.

There was no break in traffic. None. Car after semi after truck after semi, all blew past us with rain and mist engulfing us. Within 15 seconds my face shield was covered inside and out with turnpike spooge and my eyeglasses as well.

I was timid about speeding up on the shoulder and dropping into traffic because my vision was so jacked up. Eventually, somehow, we managed. We were on the turnpike again.

I have never ridden a motorcycle, ever, where I felt more at-risk. I had to keep my head constantly moving and bobbing around. If I stopped the head bobbing, the 4 layers of misty turnpike spooge that cover both sides of my face shield and both sides of my eyeglasses made seeing where I was going virtually impossible.  We were not going fast enough to keep the outside surface of the face shield blown clean (for whatever benefit that might have offered). Only by keeping it all constantly moving was my brain able to fill in the gaps and create a picture of what lay ahead. A fuzzy, blurry picture but one that only ever so slightly managed to get the job done.

It was about this time when I thought something like "Wow. I am on the very fringe of the Bell Curve now. I'm out there where things have gone from normal/average, past the area of rare/less probable, and I am living in the land of extraordinarily uncommon/rarely seen in nature."

Truth be told, I really should have thrown in the towel and pulled off. But I didn't. I managed to make it all OK without incident but that doesn't mean it was the right call to make. Not sure I'd do it again the same way.

It really was dangerous and truly the only time I can remember seriously thinking, over an extended period of time while riding, "I really might die if things go wrong."

I do not know for certain how it was for Mulley, Lincoln and Darrin. I suspect not as bad because they all had the advantage of better windscreen and/or no eyeglasses.

But in the end we made it out of the gaping maw of death. I found myself drifting back into the meat of the Bell Curve. I felt much better in that area.

On we rode. Still some rain now and then but nothing like what was behind us. We stopped somewhere fro gas and a snack. It continued to rain, just not as hard. My flimsy little rain jacket was in tatters. I think I just threw it in the trash. I had a perfectly good rain suit at home. Would have kept me bone dry. But it was at home. And I was in Virginia. I would just ride wet. And so I did.

We would end the day somewhere near Roanoke, Virginia. I think every stitch of clothing on my body was saturated. I poured water out of my boots.

It had been a memorable day. Not all of it good events, but, having escaped unscathed, I choose to mark it all as good memories.

This would be our last night on the road.  Tomorrow morning we would jump on the Interstate and head for home.

[Mulley]

That was an exhausting day of riding. I'm very thankful that I wear contacts instead of eyeglasses. I agree with Brian pulling back into the endless stream of traffic after donning the raingear was on the edge of terrifying. I never want to experience that again. I was using a modified (shorter than stock) windscreen that did nothing to keep rain out of my face. It honestly may have made it worse.

Brian forgot to mention one moment that describes how bad it was. We stopped at gas station for a break toward the end of the day, not even to get gas just a break from the exhaustiveness of the road. We all went inside to use the restrooms and get coffee. When we went up to pay for our hot coffee the cashier lady took one look at us and said, "no charge", we looked horrible and she could easily tell how rough of a ride we were having. We stood inside the store drank our coffee and went back out to suit up.  We had multiple people starring us like we were out of our minds. Some of them asked questions, just trying to understand what kind of idiotic mental cases we must have been.

[Brian A]

Yes, it was as Mulley described. We were the beneficiaries of some convenience store clerk sympathy in the form of free coffee.

Darrin took this picture at the Stop of Misery.

[Brian A]

After a month long hiatus, I think it's high time I got around to finishing this story. Can't leave us all stranded in a hotel somewhere near Roanoke!

We knew when we went to bed that the weather for the next day, our final day of riding, was to be much improved. The weather guessers had said so and they were spot on.

Our last morning on the road was partly cloudy, with bright sun and blue skies fighting the clouds to decide which would win the day.  The clouds eventually lost.





After breakfast in the hotel we all began loading our gear and getting ready to hit the road. Lincoln and I were early to the bikes and we found a small stuffed penguin someone had left on his bike. Not sure who or why, but it was there. Lincoln moved it to Mulley's bike. I think he stuck it in his tank bag or one of his hard cases and gave it a ride to Springville, Al.



Wasn't long before the wheels were turning and we were each depositing minuscule amounts of rubber onto the asphalt, one tire rotation at a time, as we headed SW towards home.

The ride home was nothing spectacular. The weather really was nice. Sunny and quite a bit warmer than some of what we had seen over the last few days. And, truth be told, I thought we were back into some of the nicest scenery of the ride. I really like the ride through Virginia and into NE Tennessee.

As we neared Chattanooga I jumped into the lead. I can't remember exactly why I did. Maybe I just wanted to be in the lead. Whatever the reason, Mulley later commented that when I took the lead and upped the pace a bit he thought "Wow. Brian must have to pee real bad." I didn't need to pee but without regard to the state of my bladder, we managed to get through Chattanooga with nary a problem. That is almost a miracle I think. Seems there is ALWAYS a traffic snag or three in Chattanooga. But on that day, we blew through without a hiccup.

We stopped at Rising Fawn for gas and a snack. It's rare that I pass Rising Fawn without stopping. It's a good distance for a stop, leaving home or headed home. Just the right distance for a break and gas.

We were down to the short rows now. We passed Ft. Payne exit, then Gadsden, then Steele then it was our exit.

We all exited at Springville, right where we had started, and turned left on 174.  A few miles down the road Mulley beeped and waved as he peeled off onto the road to his house. Lincoln, Darren and I continued on to the stop sign where we all turned right onto 411.

When we hit Moody, Darren and Lincoln turned off to head to their respective homes and that left me solo for the last few miles on 411 until I tuned off for my house.

I distinctly remember riding those last few miles and looking at the cars on the road and thinking about the people driving them. Folks just going about their business.

I was going about my business too. The business of getting home. The last few miles of a wonderful trip with three great guys.

We had ridden to Canada to eat Lobster. 

I smiled as I thought "Ha! I bet not a single one of you on this road with me right now can top THAT!"

I thumbed the blinker and turned left into my neighborhood. I rolled into the driveway, turned the key off and climbed off the Versys.

I gave it a pat on the seat. "Thanks for the ride. You done good."

[Brian A]

I'll be back in a day or two to wind things up. Some final comments about the Versys, the trip overall and.....

Chuck Palahniuk.

Who is he (already mentioned he wrote Fight Club) and what does he have to do with me and my ride to Canada?
And life in general.

[Brian A]

Well, well, well..... I called Mulley today and told him about it.

Something that will mean nothing to pretty much every other person in the world but matters to me and makes for a truly unexpected twist to the story.

It is at the same time a near divine dictated encounter and a very, very frustrating missed opportunity.

It involves me and Christmas in the late 70's and early 80's and this commercial. Those old enough to remember will remember.
(Reality check: when I was telling Mulley about it, he said "Ha! I was 4 then."  Needless to say, he didn't remember the commercial.)

One of the best Christmas commercials ever produced. 

It's neat when you realize just when you think the story is over, the story isn't really over.

Stay tuned.


Happy Thanksgiving, and let me be the first to wish all of you a Very Merry Christmas.

[Brian A]

The late 70's marked the end of my high school years. I graduated in '80 and then started U of A that fall.

Christmas was always a big time with my family - immediate and extended. I have always really enjoyed Christmas. It's a good time of year and I am blessed in that it brings back many, many great memories.

The Miller commercial has, since it aired in the late 70's thru '82, always remained with me as a sign of the season from my late teens. It is just a classic in my book. It says so much with no words.

YouTube has allowed me to watch it every Christmas for a number of years.

A few years back I did some research on the commercial.

It was actually filmed in Feb or March. The town was decorated for Christmas and lots of footage was shot, on film, which was later edited to create the iconic 60 seconds.



On our trip I distinctly remember passing through Waitsfield, Vermont. I remember it because I made a special mental note that Waitsfield was the perfect, idyllic New England town. It was the type town you would expect to see recreated in a Currier and Ives lithograph.
It was one of the highlights when it comes to small NE towns.

https://vermontweddings.com/uploads/images/member/1484/AllResized3.jpg



A few days ago I went to YouTube to watch the Miller beer commercial. That prompted me to remember.... "Oh yeah, this commercial was filmed in a town in Vermont, or New Hampshire. I wonder........"

So I dug through the ether and found the info again.

Yep. It was filmed in Waitsfield, Vermont. 

One of the nicest NE towns we passed though. The one town that stands out in my memory as being a favorite.
The one Christmas commercial in a lifetime that stands out in my memory as being a favorite.

And I rode down the street the commercial was filmed on and was none the wiser at the time.

A big missed opportunity for me. I'd sure value a photo of me and the Versys stopped along the route that horse drawn carriage traveled in the Miller commercial.

Alas, I do not have that photo.

But I can now watch the commercial, and remember good times from Christmas seasons 35 - 40 years ago and know I have ridden my motorcycle down that same road.

A one horse ride in a carriage 40 years ago and a one motorcycle ride a few months ago.  Tied together in me.

I'll take that.

[Brian A]

If you want to invest 5 minutes to read about the commercial:

http://tdn.com/seconds-of-pure-christmas/article_2533ac76-d727-5fb5-b766-103cd3597772.html