Happy Holidays from Klay

Key West?

Could this be the real reason for the Key West trip?

Daytona Bike Week 2013 - All the HOT stuff you want to see!

SPLITTING LANES

Vinny P. sent me this link to an article on the AMA website regarding their position on splitting lanes.

AMA Position Statement Regarding Lane Splitting http://americanmotorcyclist.com/Rights/PositionStatements/LaneSplitting.aspx

Regardless of the AMA’s position based upon the Hurt Report, I still believe splitting lanes increases your risk of a collision. One of the first things I learned from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation training was to always look for an escape route. Riding in close proximity between two moving objects greatly reduces your options.

It's bad enough just trying to be seen by other motorists when you're in a lane where they are expecting to find you. Half the time they're pulling into your lane before they even look; regardless of whether you're in a car or on a bike. Imagine how well they're going to see you when you're riding right up next to them. They're going to look right past you and you've got nowhere to go to get past them.

I speak from experience here. Even after having ridden for a few years, I had an occasion when I went to change lanes with my car and suddenly found a bike right next to me blowing its horn. I never saw him coming. (Lane splitting is illegal in NYC too, but that doesn't stop them from doing it. Cops are too busy to bother with them.)

You can forget about watching out for cagers to signal their intention to change lanes. It's just an afterthought. Especially up here in New England where as the McDonald's/Newman's Coffee commercial parodied:

  

Question: "What's a turn signal?"........................................

........................................Answer: "A sign of weakness."

On the other hand, I hate feeling like a sitting duck while I'm waiting for traffic to move. I flash my brake light, watch my mirrors and point my wheel in the direction of escape.

It must feel great to keep moving past the cars that are stuck in traffic, but it must be done carefully. Any one of those cars can jockey for position at any time even if they don't have anywhere to go yet. In major cities like New York it's not uncommon for drivers to stick the nose of their car between the cars next to them so the car in back is forced to let them in when traffic moves again. You'll never see it coming if you're cruising too quickly between rows of cars. 

I've seen, on more than a few occasions, a driver, stuck in traffic, throw open their door and get something out of the back of the car or trunk. They're assuming that traffic is stopped and they are not looking before they act.

I guess the bottom line is that even if I were riding somewhere where it was legal to split lanes, I would only do so very cautiously and fully expect someone to block my path at some point.

Some videos showing the proper way to split lanes:

Harley Davidson Fatbob GoPro Rush Hour L A Traffic  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-l5PNO4KivE&feature=youtu.be

Motorcycle Q&A: How to lane split or whiteline "safely"!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2x0usMULWc

Some videos that highlight the hazards of splitting lanes:

Split Lane Motorcycle Crash I-10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB2j45GLEdk 

This one is typical of a car driver throwing on  their signal as they are changing lanes, rather than before they change direction. This is a common move in NYC (I'm guilty of it too.) because if they guy in the lane next you knows that you want to get ahead of him, he'll close the gap before you can make your move.

Lanesplit/Filtering fail, almost dropped motorcycle.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2qAMHI44zY

This one shows just how little room there really is between cars.

No, there isn’t!

Motorcycle vs Truck Door while Lane Splitting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRlVZXIrV-Q

This guy was lucky.

Position Holder Meeting Report

From the President

Position Holder Meeting Report:

The meeting was positive. We discussed the Bike Blessing, Recruitment and the Ride Calendar.

NEW: This year each member of each County may submit a “Sunday Ride Choice” to their County Chairman which will go into a voting box with one being picked per County. That will be presented to the E-Board and placed on the 2014 calendar. The ride and/or destination does NOT need to stay within that county.

“Away Trips” will be separate and will not change the master calendar of Sunday Rides.

Two Sundays will be dedicated to:

(1) A Reason to Ride (Sunday – June 8, 2014)

http://www.areasontoride.org/

(2) Babies Heart Run (Sunday – August 17, 2014)

http://www.babiesheartrun.com/

 2014 Position Holders Organizational Chart

Bylaws

Constitutional Article 9

Section 9.1.0 Rules of Order

Robert’s rulers of order shall be used as a “guide” for governing the parliamentary proceedings of the Club unless otherwise provided.

                                   

1. Call meeting to order

2. Pledge Allegiance to the Flag / Moment of Silence

3. Roll Call

4. Past Minutes

5 Introduction of Guest

6. Officer Reports:        

Executive Management Group

Corporation Executive Board
President:       James R. Moran ----- Sgt. at Arms: Doug Young Sr.

Secretary:       Jason R. Moran
Treasurer:      Paul Neves

V. President:    Dan Dunn  - Special Events, AMA, Town/State Government, Community Affairs


Elected Management Group
2^nd Vice President 2:                          Steve Natale - Managers/Committees/Chapters

Director: (Road Captain.)                   Tom Lloret

Director: (Road Guard Captain)          Reuben Shawver

Director: (Honor Guard Captain)        Dale Adams     

Appointed Positions

Managers                                                            Standing Committees

Website Manager: Tom Miskell        House Committee:           Chairwoman Tammy Perry
News Manager:    Kim Anderson     Grounds Committee:          Chairman John Cherrick

Kitchen Manager: Bill Thibodeau    Good Will Committee        Chairwoman: Kaitlyn Perkins

Blog Manager:      Vince Sileo         Activities Committee         Chairwoman:Patti Duerrler
Recruit Manager:  Steve Murphy     Prop. Improve Committee  Chairman: Jim Scarritt
Master Road Sgt:  Dave Adams       Annual Banquet                  Chairwoman: Donna Lloret
            

                                                                   Counties                                       

                         Washington County                            New London County                         
                         Chairman Doug Young Jr.                   Chairman Tom Yuchiuk  

                         Co-Chair Linda Young                         Co-Chair Guy LaBella   
                         Road Sgt: Mike Cahoon                       Road Sgt: Lane Ventura     

                         Recruiter: Frank Scavello                    Recruiter:  

                        Middlesex County                             New Haven County    

                        Chairman Vinny Yannone                   Chairman  Paul Bertreaux

                        Co-Chair Wells Lippencott                  Co-Chair  Sherry Ambrosia   

                        Road Sgt. Lance Atwood                     Road Sgt. Vinny Pons

                         Recruiter: John Goglia                       Recruiter: Mike Meadows


                        Tolland County                                   Windham County

                        Chairman Mike Demers                       Chairman George Booker

                        Co-Chair Doug Reese                          Co-Chair Mike Bouret
                        Road Sgt. Norm Kowalsky                   Road Sgt. Joe Fogarty
                        Recruiter: Mark Lloret Jr                     Recruiter: Keith Gowin

7. Old Business: ___ 

8. New Business:___

9. Good of the Club:___

10. Adjourn:___

THEY CALL IT THE TRIPLE NICKLE

One Sunday in November 2008 my wife and I were at her brother’s house. At the time George was very interested in following MotoGP, the epitome of international motorcycle racing. As with other forms of racing, MotoGP teams spend millions of dollars each season in order to compete. Some of the teams are “Factory Teams” in which a manufacturer (Honda, Yamaha, Ducati, etc.) officially sponsors the team with money, and more importantly, research and development. The technology that proves itself on the MotoGP track often makes its way into the manufacturers consumer products in subsequent years. Satellite teams also use bikes made by these manufacturers, but they make their own modifications.

George told us stories of MotoGP races that his friends and colleagues had attended. He explained how these were huge events similar to a motorcycle rally with vendors, exhibits and parties, but with a following of dedicated racing enthusiasts. He lamented that while he really wanted to see one of these events for himself, the opportunity had never presented itself. Conflicting schedules with work or family or simply the lack of funds to take on such an endeavor always seemed to prevent it from happening.

My wife, ever the planner and ever wanting to make other’s dreams come true, latched onto this idea with both hands and a scheme was hatched. Before we knew it our schedules were synchronized, vacation time was approved and tickets for the 2009 MotoGP race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway were in hand.

As motorcycle enthusiasts George and I could not simply arrive by just any means to this, the holy grail of motorcycling events. No, we had to ride to this event or we would not deserve the title of motorcyclists. My wife, Rosie, would follow in the car with George’s wife, Lisa, and their daughter (#3) Megan.

Some of us had to ride in the car.

It is a real pleasure having a “Follow Car”. First, you can use the car to carry all your luggage. This means you can bring more “stuff” than you would on your bike. Second, you can leave your gear (helmet, gloves, jacket) securely in the car whenever stopping to eat. We also used the car to hold a cooler with “Road Food”: Water, Gatorade, pretzel rods and beef jerky. With the small tank (about 3.5 gallons) on my Triumph Bonneville, we’d stop for gas, the toilet and a snack about every 100 miles. By this time we could use a break from the Super Slab and we met quite a few interesting characters this way.

This was actually taken at the MotoGP by neice, Megan. Pretty good shot for a 10 year old.

As George started to plot our route to Indianapolis, I recalled a letter to the editor of a major motorcycling magazine that I had read some time ago regarding a particular road that we would be passing in Ohio. The writer complained that he could not fully enjoy riding this road in early spring due to the amount of sand washing out onto the road from adjacent driveways.  His letter and the editor’s response described a rollercoaster of a road full of turns, both on and off camber, and abrupt elevation changes. The writer called the road “The Triple Nickel”, the nickname for Ohio Route 555. Our route would be passing the northern end of this road.

George had been riding for a few years before I started and had shared tales of many adventures with us including his ride on the Tail of the Dragon; 318 curves in 11 miles. I was jealous to say the least. Here was my opportunity to share a ride on another legendary road. We were not disappointed.

While The Triple Nickel doesn’t come close challenging the Tail of the Dragon’s number of turns per mile, it is less famous, less congested and can be taken at a quicker pace. In fact, we had the road pretty much to ourselves when we road it in August 2009. Only once did we find ourselves stuck behind a few cages.

And the directional changes are non-stop. Up Right, Down Left, now Up Left, Hard Down Right. The only thing I don’t recall on the Triple Nickel were decreasing radius turns and there were very few straightaways.

Going back for more!

I’ve had the opportunity to ride some terrific roads throughout the North East United States. Some of the roads up in New Hampshire, Vermont, and the Adirondacks and Finger Lakes of New York are simply amazing, but this was, without a doubt, The Best Motorcycling Road I’d Ever Ridden. No other road has matched its ability to keep me smiling from ear to ear, and for so long!

The road starts just South of Zanesville and continues South until it hits the Ohio River; covering almost 100 miles. We only had time to do a short (8 mile) section between Portersville and Ringgold. Here it runs right through Burr Oak State Park.

Not the best map, but the best I could find. 

I would love to do this section again and possibly more of the Triple Nickel. And I may just have that chance when the club rides out to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame this summer. Ringgold is about 50 miles South East of the Hall of Fame. It may require adding a day to the trip, but I think it would be worth it. Hmmm…

Some more shots from our trip:

Valentino Rossi "The Doctor" Pre-Race Interview. He'd crash out of the race.

Jorge Lorenzo, the latest and greatest, pre-race interview.
Jorge won this race.

Colin Edwards, the "Texas Tornado" signing autographs.

Fly Over before the start of the race

The view from our seats

Dani Pedrosa comes off right in front of us in a low side crash.
He got back up and still made it back to 10th place.

Oh, did I mention that the Indy Mile is in the same area on the same day?
We saw more spectacular crashes here than at the GP. Some were really horrific.

Flat Track at its best.

4 Days on the road, 3 Days of racing. The least I could do was take the wife and niece to the zoo!
One of the best zoo's we've been to.

Evidently we were not unique in our approach to reaching the race. Here is a link to another motorcyclist who followed a similar path and also made time for the Triple Nickel. http://www.ducati.ms/forums/22-ride-tales/52013-long-way-2-indy.html

Check out the following videos for more on the Triple Nickel. 

The last one will give a true feel for the road.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V654_BZ89tI  Ohio Route 555 Motorcycle Ride and Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLoJKKqnbHs Part One

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rAViB_hGxc Part Two: Time lapse of whole road. It gets really good at about 3:30 minutes.

More info and opinions on the Triple Nickel from Open Road Journey:
http://www.openroadjourney.com/rides-and-roads/view/oh-555-the-triple-nickel/868

Cuckoo Ride

When I got up at 6 AM everything outside had a nice coating of frosting. So much for the weatherman’s prediction for a low in the mid 30’s. But by the time I left the house about 3 hours later, the temps were already in the 40’s. Margo Rossiter had intended to join us somewhere along the route, but she advised me that her ignition was frozen and she couldn't get the bike started. I later learned that she also had neglected to put the battery tender on and had to wait while the battery recharged as well, but she did get out for a short ride later.

No Windshield and No Helmet!!

Mike Demers pulled into the parking lot at Dunkin Donuts right behind me and Lane came out to talk with us for a while. Lane isn’t ready to get back on the bike just yet, although he claims his bike asks him to take her for a ride whenever he’s in the garage.

Mike was riding the 1980 Suzuki GS850 that had been rusting in my driveway. It was good to see her up and running again.

We waited until 10:30 AM but no one else showed up. It was their loss, because we had a great ride. The roads were clear (no sand or black ice) and traffic was minimal. It was overcast to start, but it wasn’t long before the sun came out.

We stopped at Dunkin Donuts on the other side of the East Haddam Bridge as planned and discussed the new road track being built at Thompson Motor Speedway (http://www.thompsonspeedway.com/new-track.php) as we warmed our hands around some warm beverages.

I was concerned about how much time we spent there since we left a half hour later than planned, but the ride from there to the Cuckoo’s Nest only took about 30 minutes. We found my wife, Rosie, waiting for us and we went in to eat.

The restaurant has a lot of atmosphere and while the sign clearly says Mexican Food, there were quite a few Cajun items on the menu as well as tried and true American favorites.  We placed our orders and were noshing on tortilla chips and salsa when Joe Fogarty came in. He had some things to take care of this morning but took a chance on catching up with us by taking the highway. 

Everyone seemed to enjoy their food. Joe tried the catfish fingers which he said were very good. I had an enchilada that was on the dry side and a tamale that was very good. Rosie had an empanada which is a type of turnover that we usually treat as “finger food”, but here it was served covered in a cream sauce and was delicious. I found the food to be on the mild side and I'm not one who relishes Hot & Spicy dishes. Anyone who does better ask for hot sauce. 

After lunch Rosie took off to one of her favorite craft shops while the boys hit the road towards home. Mike planned to peel off of Rt. 82 onto Rt. 11 so I asked him to take the lead when we got to the intersection of Rts. 156 and 82. He took off like a bat out of hell, showing that the old bike still had some umph left in her. Joe and I caught up with him in time to wave goodbye as he got onto Rt. 11.

Then it was Joe’s turn as he took Rt. 163 North and I continued on Rt. 82 East. I got home at the respectable time of 2:30 PM. What the ride lacked in quantity, it made up for in quality, and you can’t ask for much more than that in late December. 

Scouting Mission

My original intention for a ride this Saturday was to take a short (One hour) ride along the shore because I thought it might be a little warmer there. Further research reveals the anticipated difference to be less than 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

Upon speaking with a club member who is interested in joining the ride I decided to take a look at a more inland route to our destination. I quickly put together a route using major roadways we have been down many times before.

Unfortunately, I never paid much attention to the time while on previous rides. That’s the beauty of being led by someone else. They worry about the timing and you just go along for the ride carefree. Well now it’s my turn to lead and my responsibility to determine how long or short to make the ride all things considered.

Remember, those previous rides were during much warmer weather. Now in addition to aching knees and backs, I have to consider just how long the average rider can take the cold sting in the tips of their fingers before gangrene sets in.

Fortunately, I had the time to run the route this afternoon. To get an accurate impression of the ride I had to start at our usual meeting place, Dunkin Donuts in Uncasville and stay close to the speed limit.

I took Rt.163 North and crossed over to Old Colchester Road at the Montville Dump and continued North to Rt.82 where I made a left and headed Southwest to Salem 4 Corners. This leg took about 20 minutes and was when I first started to feel the stinging pain of frozen finger tips. 

I held out until I got to the other side of the East Haddam Bridge where I pulled over at the Dunkin Donuts (where else would I pull over?) and put on a pair of glove liners, but I didn’t waste time as I wanted to see how long this route would take.

This was about half way through the trip and by the time I reached my destination, my fingertips were aching again. The pain would probably have been less intense if I had used the liners from the beginning.

Completing the trip I took Rt. 154 to Rt. 153, to Rt. 166 which ended at Rt. 1 and my destination.  Total riding time was an hour and a half; 50% longer than I had intended but 25% shorter than our usual 2-Hour ride.

Keeping with tradition I stopped in the Dunkin Donuts across from the Cuckoo’s Nest Restaurant and wrapped my frozen fingers around a hot tea. 

For the return trip I planned to ride down Rt. 1 to the next entrance ramp to I95 North, but decided to simply get on at the entrance ramp on Rt.166. Once over the bridge I took Rt. 156 to Rt. 1 which I followed all the way back to Rt. 32 and our usual meeting place. The return trip took a little less than an hour.

Overall the route worked well. If we depart on time at 10 AM, we should have time to take a break half way through to warm up and still make to our destination near Noon time.

Rather than continuing to Rt. 32, for the return trip on Saturday I will be staying on Rt. 156 North to Rt. 82 toward Norwich and home.

Meeting Report 12/26/13

RIDE THIS SATURDAY

I’ll be leading a ride this Saturday to the Cuckoo’s Nest, in Old Saybrook for lunch. http://www.cuckoosnest.biz/

Meet at the Dunkin Donuts on Rt. 32 in Montville for a 10 AM A.O.B.

Right now the weather is calling for mostly sunny skies, a high in the 40’s and only light wind. So it should be a nice ride.

SAMARITAN SWIM

Our next official Club Event will be on New Year’s Day for the Samaritan Swim at Eastern Point Beach in Groton. Meet at Goldie’s Restaurant in New London at 10 AM for breakfast.

Turn in your cash donations and the Club will write a check for the total. We will then go as a group to Eastern Point Beach where Dave Adams, Kaitlyn Perkins and possibly some other members will take the plunge into the frigid waters of Fisher’s Island Sound to support Malta Ministries work to help the homeless. http://www.maltaministries.org/events/the-annual-samaritan-swim

The Plunge is scheduled for Noon. See Dave in action from a couple of years ago here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJBs4Lo249g

If the weather is good, we will be riding to this event. Afterwards we will go for coffee and if the weather permits, Dave Adams may lead us on a longer ride.

Watch for a Club e-mail with complete details.

RUN TO KEY WEST, FLORIDA

The Long Riders will be making a run to Key West, Florida. The ride is scheduled to take place between March 4^th and March 15^th.

Tom Lloret describes this as a “Kamikaze Run” with two 600-mile days and one 400-mile day to get down there and the same for the return. The only stops will be for gas. Requests for additional toilet or photo stops will be DENIED. However; initial plans do allow for a visit to Daytona during “Bike Week”. They will bring the club banner with them to take a picture with it at the Southernmost point in the continental United States.

This will be a “Snow Adventure Ride” as there is the possibility for the weather to affect the ride. For instance, if it is known that a snow storm will be occurring the following day, the riders may continue through the night to outrun the storm. Or if caught in a snow storm, the riders may be forced to “lay-up” for a day or cancel the remainder of the trip. 400 miles of the trip will be within the “Snow Belt”. 

Even if everything goes as planned, they expect the “riding weather” to be cold all the way until they enter Florida.

Tom estimates this trip will cost about $2000 per rider for gas, tolls, meals and lodging. Riders must commit to the ride by the third meeting in January.

WEAPONS AND AMMO REGISTRATION

Danny Dunn reminded us that the new CT State Law requires that all Assault Weapons and High Capacity Clips (10 bullets or more) must be properly registered with the State by December 31^st. 

Those not registered by this time will be subject to a fine or possible jail time. The State is taking this very seriously and so should you. Repeated offenses can lead to felony charges, leading to loss of your right to possess any weapons or even to vote. 

Dan advises that if you are unable to produce a Bill of Sale to prove that you purchased this equipment before the deadline, the State will accept a notarized affidavit. Dan is a Notary Public and can notarize your affidavit. Follow the links below for more information.

http://www.ct.gov/despp/cwp/view.asp?A=4226&Q=535374

http://www.ct.gov/despp/lib/despp/slfu/faqs_06192013.pdf

http://www.ct.gov/despp/lib/despp/slfu/firearms/dps-414-c.pdf

PISTOL PERMIT CLASS

Tom Yuchniuk advises that he will be leading a Pistol Permit Class with other firearms instructors on Saturday, January 12^th. The class will take a full day including both classroom and shooting range practice. Please contact Tom if you are interested.

Oh, NOW you're interested?

AMA HALL OF FAME TRIP

Road Captain, Tom Lloret, is planning to make this trip coincide with the AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, July 11^th to the 13^th.

http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/events/AMAVintageMotorcycleDays/ScheduleAndDirections.aspx

Tom expects this to be a three-day round-trip ride (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) with two overnight stays.

WISCONSIN H.O.G. RALLY

Dave and Margo Adams are planning to extend their trip after visiting the AMA in Ohio to include the Wisconsin H.O.G. Rally. It is being held in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin (about 125 miles North West of Milwaukee). The rally runs from June 19^th to June 21^st. Talk to Dave or Margo if you’d like to join them. See the link below for more information.

http://wistatehogrally.com/

Yes, the Wisconsin state animal is the badger.

NEW MEMBER VOTED IN

  

After attending many club functions, Gary Dobrinski joined our ranks at tonight’s meeting. As with all new members, he is now on a 90-Day probationary period after which time he will become a member in good standing. Gary rides a 2011 Kawasaki Vulcan.