When it Rains It Pours.

I was out on the other side of town on my Sportster when I heard the first rummble of thunder.

I knew I could beat it to the house.  I got headed home and, what do I end up behind, someone doing 10 mph in a 35 mph zone.  Then I caught the first two Red Lights.  While sitting at the second one the rain started to hit me.  It was coming down in buckets and waves.  At moments I litterally could not see the car infront of me.  I was about 5 mins from the Mall and ended up parking in the lower parking deck.

By this time I was Soaked like a half drown cat.  I went into the first store I was at bought a new shirt and a jacket.  Rode home, it was not a rain coat, but was water resistant.  Was a long 5 miles home, cleaning my glasses off, trying to keep the ride as turn free as possible.

Man it was a good storm, tree limbs down all over the place.

The min I made it home, what does it do?  Turns to a lite drizzle.

Makes me want to get my saddle bags fixed so I can carry the extra stuff I usually carry, like tire repair, rain coat, spare shirt.

Was not thrilling while it was going on but now I sit and just kinda laugh at it    Now that I have some dry clothes on and my feet are warming up a little.

Only second time I have been caught in the rain, but was the heaviest rain I have been caught in.

Normally if I am heading home I don't even worry about rain. Just ride the rain and leave the wet clothes in the garage go in the house an get dry clothes on.

But saddle bags are nice so you can have gear with you for any weather. Before I had saddle bags I had a cheap plastic rain jacket (got at Target by the camping stuff) that rolled up small enough to fit in my tool pouch (with the tools.

Being here in N Calif with its changeable conditions,especially along the coast, it makes sense to carry raingear & extra warm clothes along for any riding.The first chance I had I added my old saddlebags on the ride and never have taken them off.For example you can ride from 80+ degree weather inland and 20 miles away at the coast hit heavy fog n drizzle in the 60's

Well Lucky I hate to get wet. Even in the military I hated to be wet. I always carried socks in a plastic bag to make sure I had halfway dry feet. Guys use to laugh at me cause I hated to be wet and would pull out a poncho in a second.

I use to live in San Francisco and know the changing conditions of the west coast. But you gotta luv them saddle bags and what they can carry. I keep a nice hooded raincoat in mine. If they were not broken I would not have gotten anywhere near as wet as I did.

When ever my riding buddy and I get caught in the rain, he always says "Every time I get wet, I've always dried." Then he smiles and keeps riding. I'm starting to believe he's right. We don't worry about the rain, only the lighting, wind and hail.

I normally don't carry a rainsuit or install the windshield. Just ride through it. Most times I just ride through rain showers in the summer and will be dry 10 minutes or so after passing through. Except last year I had a really miserable experience with rain, cold and wind. Maybe I'm just getting old but vowed never to get that wet and cold at the same time again.

This year for my annual trip I clipped on the windshield (took it off when at the hotel for local rides, but amazing how those things reduce fatigue and keep wind off) and packed the rainsuit (bought 7 years ago and first use was this year....damn, those things really work).

Silver
I agree,saddle bags really are a must for distance riding along the west coast.What part of the coast did you like out here best? Mine is near Big Sur,not a lot of beaches,yet the riding & views are awesome along that stretch.

I use a Ruka rainsuit for the heavy cold stuff & have used it quite a bit over the last twenty years,for just a chance rain, a light rain jacket that I can stuff in a pocket, my clip on MS shield keeps the worst of the wet off,even at freeway speeds.Watching some weather channel clips n it seems to me a lot nastier to get caught in the open there, over riding here.

Well here in New England if you want to ride you'll get wet. I normally carry a rain suit in the saddle bag. One day I knew it was going to be a close one. The weather forecast called late afternoon 5,6 o'clock showers with thunder storms. Being its a 30 mile one way ride I rode to work that day. Left right at 5 and it had just started a little drizzle. But I can see sunshine across town. So off I go no rain suit (still in saddle bag) headed for the sunny part of town. Half way across town it start coming down hard, I mean to the point of I better stop (which I never do) and put on the rain suit. Still I can see sunshine just ahead of me. Well on the other side of town is not the sunshine I'm chasing but adding to the heavy rain comes the lighting. Still can see the sunshine ahead of me. So the push is on to get to the sunshine the next ten miles is nothing but hard rain and lighting. Well to get home I must go over one of the highest points in town and its all open with the lighting still around me. That was surely the quickest I've ever cover that open high point on a bike. My thinking is if I still see the lighting it didn't hit me. Oh and I can still see sunshine in front of me. Well as Murphy would have it with my nerves shot from constant lighting I start down the road I live on. Then and only then a mile from the house did I find the sunshine. As I pulled into the driveway it was dry. There's a moral to this store but I have no clue what it is as I'll most likely do it again.

Rode home from Daytona in a HARD DRIVIN' RAIN, in '91. Coincidentally, the 50 yr. Anniversary of Daytona BIke Week. On my brand NEW Harley. 1200 Custom XLH. Chromed, pretty, and award winning SPORTSTER. The "last" of the "chain" drives. An EVO, without the belt. Yet. She was one, cold-hearted bitch. Had to pull that choke, each and every time, unless she was "duly" warmed.

Got in a fight that particular Saturday mornin', with a chick who hated the fact, I had my own ride. She kept accusing me, of bein' a "male predator". So much so, that I finally knocked her ass into the pond, behind our tents at Rose Glen.

I wasn't any such a thing. And just cause a friend (a guy) followed me, and "we" made camp together, he knew what was what...feel me? We were just "buddies".

So...when I did come "home" with another male, from another place...she started shit, she should've thought twice about. Needless to say...after I near drowned her silly azz...I had to "move on". In a DOWN-POUR.

And it was. All 150 miles. From Daytona to Lake Wales. Hard drivin', breath-chokin', pants SOAKIN' RAIN.
I got pneumonia on that ride that day. I also got pregnant....the minute I got home.
We weren't married. Hardly. Just HORNY, for each other, as I'd been gone seven dayz....lol

Note to self (and, every other horny woman on the planet)....
Do not get on top...
when raincoats are the only "gear"...lol

But I digress.
My son is awesome (yes, we still fight. A LOT)
But...he came from a place of love.

My Love of Motorcycles.
My Love of Living.
My Love of Adventure....

And my Love of GOD.

Can't say...I have any regrets...not on that.
LET IT REIGN.  

Ride Free
Tweek

Wow Tweek that was totally interesting.    I am speachless.  Thank you for the enlightenment.

That was almost 23 years ago, SS. Feel me? But, at the core...God has always, had my back.

Ride Free
Tweek

Epic tale Tweek

Remember well when life itself was an adventure and the consequences from a small act would last forever.


My rain story ends with me remaining dry.
Was tent camping up near Copper Harbor and like most mornings when on the road turned on NOAA Radio. They were predicting a massive storm around the entire length of the Great Lakes. The morning was beautiful, clear and sunny, that could not possibly be true, so checked the marine bands and they were advising all vessels to seek safe anchorage.

Packed up fast and decided to get as far downstate as possible and then seek shelter.

Crossed the Upper Peninsula on the really boring Seny Strip, did get to see some Sand Hill Cranes tho, then picked up the even more boring Rt. 75. By then clouds were gathering to north and the west.

Just kept running south and watching the clouds gather to monumental proportions in my rearview mirrors, gad that was such a great feeling I decided to keep running. Kept running into the night, riding past friendly looking exits with lodging.

Everybody must have listened to the weather radio because there was almost no traffic on Rt. 75 and I started to worry about running into a deer. Uly’s headlights are a bit sketchy and don’t illuminate the shoulders as well as one might wish and I really wanted to run with another vehicle to take advantage of their headlights, when up ahead I saw a motorcycle. Closed up the gap with the motorcycle and saw it was a V-Rod. The rider must have been having the same thoughts as me and my headlights must have given him some added confidence because he opened the throttle. We ran together for probably 100 miles before he took an exit, flashing his lights as he did so and left me feeling so damn alone. Running ahead of the storm no longer felt sexy, just dumb.

Somehow I made it to Port Huron and checked into a really creepy motel with the desk clerk behind bullet resistant glass. Took the gear off Uly, stepped into the room and then the rain came down like nothing I ever saw before. The motel had industrial type gutters with 4” PVC downspouts and the rain came down so hard it overcame the downspouts and overflowed the gutters, no way anybody could have ridden in that storm, probably could not even drive in that storm.

Dang, Sav...

Never knew what a good story-teller you were. I KNOW that weren't a story, cause
(we just can't make this shit up///LOL)

Only people with heart will go the distance. Under the most difficult of circumstance. EH?

And I've sat back, and lived vicariously thru you all, for almost 5 freakin' years!!!
I joined this site, in October of 2010. Remember???

I was without BLUE, (MY 1200 Sporty) for a lotta years before that. Yes, I've "had" others....lol
but NONE were HER.

NO...I'm not GAY. But I knew the day I bought her...she was MY GIRL.

She and I were ONE. Better than SEX...any damn day of the week!
She and I melded. She and I, became ONE. WE WERE ONE.

That kind of relationship cannot be replaced.
One can try. OR PRAY, that God'll give her back to me, in another.
Transcendence? I dunno. I just know...I MISS HER.

But, I'll never miss hearin' Ya'll "stories", and experiences, and the "LIFE". K?

So...please?
KEEP 'EM COMIN' ....K?

Ride Free
Tweek

It has been a while hasn't it, gal?

Got one more rain story, no drama, no danger, no discomfort but when I want to smile I think about it.

For most of 4 decades I kept a K-Mart, vinyl rain suit under the seat of whatever I was riding, always a Penny-Saver rescue.
The suit did just fine; folded compact enough to fit under the seat and kept me dry.

Whenever I came home from a ride, our little Golden would hit me with the momentum of a college halfback and about knock me over. (RIP Zoey, gone but never forgotten)
One ride was cursed from the beginning: left in the rain, for 2 nights slept in a soggy tent and came home in the rain.
The K-Mart, vinyl rain suit kept the rain out but was equally effective at keeping the sweat in.
Came home after 3 days wearing it in the rain and Zoey sniffed me a couple of times then went to the far side of the patio and threw herself down in a huff, facing away from me. "Two words for you boss "Right Guard"'

Bought Frogg Togs immediately after

In Arizona you don't leave home without rain gear. Don't matter if you have bags or not. If you don't you roll it up and strp it somewhere.

I can leave home in 90 degree sun and be in a monsoon 20 minutes later that will last an hour.

Two weeks ago we rode from Springfield Ohio to Springfield GA,730 miles with half of it in the rain,Got to Columbia SC at 8:30 with flash flood warnings.Got up the next morning and and started out in the rain. If you ride you are going to get wet.Never have had any rain gear besides chaps and a leather jacket.

Long ago, in a far-away place called Tucson there was a small dive named 'The Mint'. It was on Grant, just west of Dodge and I would stop there after work and down a cold brew or three because I only lived about 8-10 blocks away.

The bar had 'air conditioning', meaning they left the back door and front door open for flow-thru air conditioning. It was monsoon season so that meant it felt like you were walking around in a pizza oven wearing a black body-bag.
I had been there for 2 beers and noticed someone had shut the back door, so I headed back to open it and visit the urine receptacle. Just before I reached for the door it flew open, banged into the wall (scared the crap outta me) and I was hit in the face with a blast of sand and debris that was being driven by a towering wall of boiling sand, howling wind and it was in that moment that lightning struck so close, there was almost no time between strike and boom! I could see the black wall of driving rain and it was MAYBE two blocks away, closing fast.

I spun around, all thoughts of peeing gone, and headed for the bike. A lil hard-tail Triumph chop, pre-unit kick start. Fast nimble and an easy start... I grabbed her handlebars on the fly and as luck would have it, no traffic coming. I ran her right out on to Grant ave at a dead run and dropped into the saddle and dumped the clutch. She fired right away and off I went, trying to outrun that boiling mass of rain, sand and lightning. There is a light at Dodge and Grant, it was red and I didn't care! Dodging traffic in the intersection, I turned onto Dodge and opened her up... slowed for the 4-way stop but blew right thru it anyway. I throw a quick glance over my shoulder and I'm thinking 'I got this, it's two blocks away!'

Right then, the clouds throw a lightning bolt at a mesquite tree, not 15 feet from me. The shock wave throws chunks of wood at me, I'm blinded in one eye from the flash and a ringing in my right ear is all I can hear and I almost dump the bike right there! As I'm riding through the slo-mo debris flying all around me I think "Wow, this would make a great movie scene!" but I just hunker down and open the throttle a lil more.

As I slide sideways into my carport, the rain arrives... another huge crash of lightning, all being driven by 60 mph wind and flying flotsam. As I climb off the bike, I'm still blind and deaf on one side and my wife walks out and says "Why didn't ya just stay at the bar and let it blow over?"

I shook my head and said "Well, I didn't want to ride home on a wet seat!"