Martha's Vineyard Sep 11

[vrrmm]

We will be going to Martha's Vineyard.

See website for details www.massxriders.com (http://www.massxriders.com)

[vrrmm]

bump

[Deb0416]

Double Bump!!!

I'll be there.

[Craigs1800Redretro]

Deb, what's the double bump? didja hit 2 bikes this time??? :D

[vrrmm]

That's how bikes her visor hit on the way by!!!

[Smack]

I'll be there too! Looking forward to meeting everyone - the weather is looking good so far! :D

[Deb0416]

You guys are just jealous cuz I got weapons and you can't compete! <neener>

[Deb0416]

Hope to see you all at I HOP base of the Bourne Bridge < cape side> at 8 AM !!!




Happiness isn't just around the corner.... it IS the corner!

[thundering zephyr]

Whatever happened w/the Martha's Vineyard trip?

I've been to MV a bunch of times, but it's been a bunch of years since the last time. I know enough about the place to know that I'd love to tour it on a motorcycle. What's involved in getting a mc over on the ferry?

Thanks-

[Deb0416]

It was a great time Z, the weather couldn't have been more perfect, not too hot and not too cold. We got to the ferry at woodshole just in time to pick up our tickets, and load onto the ferry. $72 dollars for one rider and a bike, and there's no waiting. <off season rates maybe> we met our MV club members there and they took us on a tour of the island. I'd never been there in a car let alone a bike.. so to say I was in awe, is probably an understatement! we hit all all the major tourist spots and had a great lunch at one of our members houses.
I see you are from MA. if you go to our website, you can see the photos.

while you are there, how about joining the Mass VTX Riders? we have a brand new website and forum. check it out at : www.massvtxriders.com (http://www.massvtxriders.com)
Deb

[thundering zephyr]

Deb,

Thanks for the quick reply!

>$72 dollars for one rider and a bike

Ouch! I hope that's for a round trip!

I've always enjoyed visiting the Vineyard. Usually we'd bring bikes (the kind w/o a motor) and typically divide our time between Vineyard Haven, Oak Bluffs, and Edgartown, which would make for a good 1-day visit.

Shortly before my wife and I were married, a friend loaned us a moped for a trip to MV. It was a fun way to get around, but the dinky little thing made me nervous. It was nimble enough for the narrow town streets, but two adults on a beefed-up bicycle with a squirrelly motor and wimpy brakes should not compete with cars and trucks on the roads between the towns.

I only felt comfortable when we could use the bike paths, of which, fortunately, there are plenty. On the roads, the faster we went the "unsafer" I felt. Ascending hills was the worst, because we'd lose about half our speed, and I really hate looking over my shoulder and seeing the grille of a car closing in and I can't go any faster. I wonder what might happen if I have to brake hard, and I doubt the driver of the car behind has the same thought.

Strangely enough, my wife has always been of the motorcycles are "too dangerous" persuasion, but cute little mopeds are fine. I think cute little mopeds are fine around town (barely, if you have a passenger), but I much prefer something that can easily keep up with traffic and stop with authority.

Fleeting flashes of vehicular dread (all mine) aside, we had a great time. So good, in fact, that at the end of the day I ventured to suggest that next time perhaps we should try a motorcycle. That went over like John Kerry at a kid's birthday party. Oh well, I had to try.

I sold my last bike, a '59 BMW restoration project that I hardly rode, to get my wife's engagement ring. I hasten to add that it was entirely my idea and nobody twisted my arm. By then, riding had become a very minor part of my life and I was more interested in undertaking the transition to married life.

Fast forward approx 20 years. My brother buys a VTX1300, my best pal from high school gets a Kawasaki Mean Streak. Even my brother's wife gets a Honda Rebel 450. They love it! It's always nice seeing newbies discover the joys of motorcycling, and, you guessed it, my inner biker began to perk up. All those new biker shows and documentaries in cable also had something to do with it.

Anyhow, leaving out boring interim details, I discovered that Honda was, with no fanfare, anxiously moving leftover 2003 VTX 1800s in mid-summer 2004 for considerably less than new 1300s. I honestly had not planned to buy a bike at the time, certainly not anything like a VTX 1800, but I would have kicked myself for the rest of my life if I let that opportunity go by.

Right now my lovely Illusion Blue 1800C sits under cover, patiently waiting for the first warm day in April next year.

Me, I can hardly wait!