Brian A. Hopkins
Two-Wheeled Terror?

My (Belated) Valentine's Day Present
2006 Honda CRF230F
(18 Feb 06)

So, the wife decided I needed something purty and red for Valentine's Day (or close enough to Valentine's Day that I wasn't gonna argue when she wrote the check).  Oklahoma Honda made me a decent deal on it. I could have shopped for a used one, but I really like knowing where every scratch originated on my machines.  There's something to knowing exactly how the machine was treated from Day One, something that adds to the man-motorcycle relationship.  I got the little beauty home just before dark and didn't really have time to ride it by the time I got it unloaded from the truck.  (Click any picture for a larger photo.)

As those who've been following my moto-adventures know, there's something of a tradition around here when a new bike comes home.  We certainly weren't going to break tradition just because this isn't a street bike ... into the living room she went.  No bike of mine's ever gone through the front door easier...

A meeting at work meant that I couldn't take the next day (Friday) off.  So the bike had to wait.  Then I was late getting home and here it was getting dark again dammit!  So the bike had to wait some more.  At least she was warm and comfortable.  I got out my Plexus and gave the plastic a nice polishing.  I checked her over real good, familiarizing myself with all her intimacies.  I read the owner's manual.  I took a few things apart, checked that the dealer had oiled the air filter, filled the engine oil to the right level, checked the battery (yup, she's got that magic starter button!), aired the tires properly, etc.  (I don't trust anything about my bikes to the mechanics at a dealership.)  Friday night ... what the hell?  We haven't had a winter at all this year, but now -- now when I have a new bike sitting in the middle of the living room! -- Mother Nature decides to throw friggin' Arctic temperatures and an ice storm at us.  WTF?!?!?  Here's what I woke up to Saturday morning:

What a bitch!

So, I should just sit on the couch, watch the Olympics, and admire my clean, shiny, brand new bike, right?  Screw that!

Nothing like slipping and sliding on ice, the back tire wriggling back and forth like a serpent, the front tire trying to shoot out from under you at every turn.  I only went down once: lost the front end on a big sheet of ice.  (I was wearing all my gear, so it was really more cause for laughter than alarm.)  Gotta break the new mount in right, doncha know.

Stay tuned for further adventures.  This might get messy...

Brian A. Hopkins
at Road's End, Oklahoma City
18 Feb 2006