RedHot Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Bad Week – Good ending… Last weekend was kinda yucky! Then Monday night, I had to make a personal decision that I was NOT happy about! (this is where the pitty party comes in.) Whoever says making the right decision is easy, is sooo wrong! Soooo, I’m bummed out and not having a good week. Taking all of my frustrations out on my poor employees and thinking this has to get better! Now, my choices were: go to the Memorial Bridge and jump or get some much, needed therapy! Some of you know that I’m terribly afraid of heights and especially bridges, so I chose the THERAPY! Yup, Big Red needed to do his job! I PM’d a friend of mine and asked if he and his wife wanted to go for a little ride. I asked him if he’s ever heard of the Bun Burner Gold (BBG), he, of course, says no! HAHA! I’ve got a noob! I tell him that I’m riding to AL and back and ask if they want to go. He talks it over with his wife, calls me back and says we’re in. Orrrr, maybe not. All of this is kind of happening fast, as I just told him about it on Friday morning. After he spends the afternoon researching the Iron Butt Association and the different rides, he explains a little more to his wife, in which she asks one very simple and yet very important question – “when do we sleep?” LOL! Sorry, honey, a BBG is 1500 miles in 24 hours, there’s no sleeping! She very politely backs out and tells him to have fun. Soooo, the smart one stays home and the 2 dingbats hit the road. I leave at 4am to meet him near Winchester, VA. It’s 34 degrees outside my house when I leave. By the time we head down I81, I start to see the temps dropping on the bike thermometer. Pretty soon, it says it’s 28 degrees and there’s a snowflake flashing at me. I’m pretty sure the subliminal message says “you’re an idiot, you’re an idiot, …” but we push through. HOURS later, the sun finally shows up and starts to warm things up, which makes us pretty happy. Since it was early and no one on the road, we picked up a little speed. First mistake (well, not counting doing this silly ride in the freezing cold.) But, we’re cruising along until, we are joined by this pretty white car with sparkling blue and red lights on the top. This big ole’, pot belly, HARLEY DAVIDSON RING wearer, jealous looking sheriff pulls us over and proceeds to admire my pretty new 2010 BMW motorcycle and my friends 2007 BMW motorcycle. We could see the jealousy in his eyes, knowing that he’s probably thinking to himself “nice bikes”, “wish mine was still running,” “wish I wasn’t working on this beautiful day,” hmmmm “I’m getting kinda angry,” okay – “here’s your performance awards!” Yay! Yup, gave me my first ticket on the new bike. I’m pretty sure if we were on HD’s he would have happily escorted us to the state line so we could gain some time. JUST KIDDING! We did get the awards but he was pretty nice about it and I wasn’t near brave enough to ask about the HD ring. So, off we go again…. The rest of the day was VERY uneventful. Our biggest problem was taking too long of rest breaks. Since my accident in July, I haven’t ridden as much and was really out of practice for the endurance rides. But the day was nice, sun was shining and I was feeling pretty good about riding long distance again. Because we took so many breaks, we were behind the gun as far as getting the 1500 within the 24 hour time limit. We had done 1,000 miles and it was dark again and we could feel the temps falling fast and furious! We talked about what we should do next. If we pushed really really hard, we MIGHT be able to do it. Well, for me, it wasn’t worth it. Cold temps, fatigue, night riding, lack of sleep, COLD temps, it just wasn’t worth it. I said, let’s just get a room, take a nap and finish the ride tomorrow. We still have tons of time to at least get the Bun Burner (1500 miles in 36 hours.) So that’s what we did. Grabbed some dinner, a room, SLEEP and WARMTH and then got up early to finish the ride home. By the time I got home, I had done 1631 miles in 35 hours. I rode from Springfield, VA to Tuscaloosa, AL. and back to Springfield. It wasn’t the BBG that I had originally wanted, but it was good enough! Since the accident, I have been going to physical therapy for my back and hips so it was a good test run to see how I felt on the long rides again. I still have some issues (besides the mental ones) but I think my healing is going well and after a few more PT sessions, I’m sure some day, I’ll be back to normal (or as close to it) as I can. At least I hope so! Congrats to Blake for his first ever, endurance ride! He did a little over 1500 miles in 36 hours! We’re already talking and planning about our attempt for the BBG, but it will definitely be in warmer weather!! I love the GT and Love riding him! So, even though it was a rough week, my boy came through for me in the end! Motorcycle riding is the best therapy ever! I’m now certifying myself as a Dr. of Therapy! If you guys need any advice, feel free to call me, anytime – Dr. Tina! I’ll figure out your needs, plan your therapy and send you on your way! That's how you turn a bad week in to a great weekend! Link to comment
jb11GSA Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Good for you Tina (zippy) Joe B 04 R1150RT Link to comment
Matts_12GS Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 go girl! I'd like to try a BBG myself, maybe we can attempt it in the spring? Link to comment
Paul Mihalka Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Great, Tina! Good to see you in real good shape! Too bad you didn't try the ride today... It was the most beautiful day in a long time... Link to comment
Mike05 Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Nicely done & shared! You'll have more fun doing a BBG (& your bones will feel better ) when the weather's warmer next spring. Glan you're enjoying the bike; it's a beauty! Link to comment
Firefight911 Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Well done!!!! And smart choices made. Congrats!! Link to comment
Rocer Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 I presume the therapy session includes use of the GT Yikes, 1500+ miles in 36 hrs. I think we rode less than that in kms. this whole season - but then again it never quite raining - at least on our time off. Congrats. on the warmer. Link to comment
RedHot Posted November 9, 2009 Author Share Posted November 9, 2009 Thanks guys - Paul - I started on Saturday and finished on Sunday so we did ride on nice days! I'm very thankful that Blake went along. It was good to have someone bounce ideas off of and plan things and he's great at motivating. I'm sure he's got more miles riding than I do but it was his first endurance ride and did great with that! I like doing these rides with someone else, it is soooo much better than doing it alone. Thanks Blake! Matt - I'm not sure if Spring is a good time - besides the chill in the air, it rains a lot! Yup, I'm a baby. Link to comment
Obi-Wan Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Tina, BMWGirl sent me a link to this story. I joined the site, to make sure my name is kept "in the clean". So, hello to all. It was an enjoyable ride that we did. Link to comment
RedHot Posted November 10, 2009 Author Share Posted November 10, 2009 Hey Blake!! Here's a shot of our bikes near the end of our ride! Two AWESOME GT's!! Link to comment
Paul_Burkett Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Very cool...glad the road could clear your mind. Link to comment
tallman Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Obi-wan(derer), welcome. Try as hard as you want, Tina will still get her way. Tina, Good for you. That is impressive. Link to comment
Endobob Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Obi-wan(derer), welcome. Try as hard as you want, Tina will still get her way. Tina, Good for you. That is impressive. It was impressive and yes - Tina usually does get her way! Link to comment
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