Rain, rain, go away!

Wouldn't you know it? I came back from Georgia and it's rained everyday since my return on Monday. I finally got the MP3 out for a ride yesterday at lunch for a ride up to my favorite sushi place, but didn't get to ride anymore that day as the rain came back as I was finishing up mowing the lawn, weeding and raking after work.

On a positive note, however, Wanda finally admitted she actually wants to start riding with me and we'll soon go get her some riding gear to make it not only fun, but safe for her as well.

A Gorgeous Ride

Okay, it was beautiful today. It was warm, sunny, and calm. Yesterday wasn't too bad either, but today was simply superb. It wasn't too hot--the temperature topped out at about 78 degrees, and there were only a few lovely, fluffy clouds in the sky. So, when I rode home from work today, I simply couldn't help myself.

The route in purple is the shortest and fastest way home - 10 minutes tops, maybe 4 miles at the most. The route in blue, however, is much more fun. It goes through some beautiful rural areas, up some hills, down some grades, around some curves, and at the top of the ride, looks over a good portion of Washington County all the way to the Coastal Mountain Range in the far distance.

The fact that spring flowers were blooming everywhere and the rhododendrons were in their full glory just added color and beauty to the ride. There wasn't much traffic this afternoon, and while I didn't have the road entirely to myself, for most of the ride I wasn't crowded or restricted by those behind or ahead of me. This is why I got the scooter. If I had had a little more time to get home, I would have stopped several times along the way to shoot some images, but unfortunately, I still had one meeting left before I concluded my day and began a short vacation, so I didn't have that luxury. So, you just get to see the map of my route.

As the weather improves, and it will since Oregon has the best summers, I'm planning on a lot more rides and those will include lots of stops for images. I'm especially looking forward to a ride to Astoria and back in the not too distant future.

Mods

Has it really been nearly a month since I updated this blog? A lot has happened since that Sunday ride. Probably the biggest event was that I completed the Team Oregon Basic Rider Training Course and received my full motorcycle license endorsement. The course is 2 1/2 days of classroom and rider training and the last day concludes with a riding evaluation and a written test. The instructors are knowledgeable and friendly, and do a lot of coaching throughout the course. Motorcycles and helmets are provided, or you can provide your own. Two people in our group decided to ride their own bikes, and many of us used our own helmets. I decided to use one of their motorcycles because I wanted to familiarize myself with braking and shifting on a motorcycle as opposed to the system used on the scooter.

The riding evaluation was definitely not easy. We were tested on everything we learned during the course as well as evaluated on interactive riding on a closed course. I did pass the test, so that was all I was looking for at this point. I did, however, ace the written portion of the exam. The course wrapped up on a Sunday afternoon, so I went home and had a nice cookout with the family to celebrate. The following Tuesday I went down to the DMV and paid for my motorcycle endorsement.

This past weekend I decided to add a couple of safety and security modification to my bike. My first task was to add a brake light modulator so that when stopped or slowing down, I would be clearly visible to trailing vehicles. I chose the Signal Dynamics Back-off modulator. The hardest part about the whole modification was removing the rear panels and the passenger handgrips to access the tail light assembly. Once that was complete, wiring in the modulator was quite easy.

The next modification I installed was much simpler and was accomplished while the rear side panels were off. I wanted a security system that would sound an alarm if someone approached the bike or attempted to tamper with it. I chose the Scorpio i900 system with a backup battery, and RFID pendant and a proximity alarm.  Since the Piaggio MP3 500 has an alarm harness already installed, hookup was a matter of attaching the main module, antenna, RFID sensor and proximity unit. During this installation, my grandson came over for a visit and he decided he really needed to help Papa with the modification. He was so earnest and cute, but I had to watch him with an eagle eye lest he actually do something I really didn't want him to do.

I installed my final modification this evening after work - a headlight modulator. This was a little trickier to wire, and I did leave one function of the unit uninstalled - the heads-up feature that engages when the horn is activated. I figure I'll save that one for when I install a large air horn sometime later this year.

Once again, I chose Signal Dynamics for the manufacturer, and the installation was relatively straight forward, even though the MP3 500 has dual low and high beam headlights. The headlight modulator changes the headlight intensity on a continuous cycle which attracts more attention than steady headlights. The modulation is only active during daylight and automatically reverts to non-modulated lighting at low light levels. The modulation can also be turned off by simply switching between high and low beam lights quickly. The post installation test went well, but I did have to take a short test ride just to make sure everything was working as it should.

The weather is supposed to clear up tomorrow, so I'll be riding into work and running some errands later in the afternoon. Summer rides should now be safer and more secure with these modifications.

Sunday Ride

The weather was beautiful today. The grandkids came over to play in the backyard around lunch time, and I managed to get some minor chores and repairs done around the house - you know, little things like adjusting the gate on the fence, pruning some dead limbs from the birch trees, adjust the track on the sliding screen door. When it was nap time for the grandkids though, I took advantage of the nice weather to take the MP3 500 out for a ride. This time, I took a camera with me as the main reason I bought the bike was to support my photography addiction. I also wanted to practice riding during a time when there was little traffic on the roads and on some hills and curves.

I stopped first at the former location of the Sweet Oregon Grill. I say former because the restaurant burned to the ground a few years ago and for whatever reason, the owner never rebuilt it. That's a shame because it  was a very nice little place with live music on the weekend, and cozy bar with a big fireplace, and lots of local Oregon products in their little store. The food was good and hearty fare, but the grill caught fire one night and the whole place, with the exception of a few out-buildings burnt to the ground. The fire was still burning the next morning as I passed by the site on my way to work.

The fireplace still stands and, of course, the concrete slab for the restaurant is still there, but the site is now weed infested and full of scattered trash. I've toyed with the idea using the spot as a glamour shoot location. There are a few issues associated with this:  it's located at a high traffic intersection (not conducive for glamour photography), the trash and weeds make it slightly hazardous for walking through the area in bare feet or legs, and the area is posted "No Trespassing".  Still, it would be fun to shoot a model there early one weekend morning if I can get permission from the owners.  There are lots of useful textures and structures on the site that wold make for a wonderful shoot.

After my stop there, I headed west on NW West Union Road. Traffic was fairly light, but there were lots of two-wheel riders out - both of the powered and non-powered kind. The bicyclist were definitely enjoying the warm weather and sunshine and the motorcyclist were out in droves. I didn't keep count, but there I saw scores of riders on my little one our jaunt.

From West Union, I turned north on Helvetia Road to practice on the hills and curves. Helvetia Tavern's parking lot was full of both cars and bikes and lots of people were out on the patio enjoying the tavern's enormous burgers washed down, I'm sure, with many pints of cold brews. I didn't stop, but I got a few interesting looks as I slowly cruised by the place.

I took the scenic route up to Jacobsen Road and when the road intersected with West Union Road again, I headed west again, this time to North Plains. Since the bike is still in the break-in period, I varied my speeds considerably during the ride. My intent was to practice riding the curves, braking, starting from a stop on hills (tricky when you have no clutch), and just generally working on my riding skills.

In North Plains, I stopped at the Hitching Post tavern for a Diet Coke. A group of motorcyclist standing outside the tavern looked at me with interest as I came riding up, but frankly my camera, a 5DMKII with a 24-105 f/4L lens and the 580 EXII flash got as many looks as the MP3 500 did. In fact, the first question/comment I got was about the camera rather than the scooter, though many question about the scooter did follow.

As you can see from the image to the right, there were more than a few bikes lined up in front of the tavern and lots of guys and gals in leather riding gear hanging out both inside and outside the bar. They were all having a good time and were enjoying the day. I stayed only long enough to drink my soda and grab a few photos. A couple of guys that were asking me some questions inside the bar came outside to watch me ride away. They were really interested in the hydraulic system that locks and unlocks the MP3's dual front wheels, and I overhead one guy telling another in the crowd how the bike worked in that regard. I made a semi-graceful exit from the parking lot - at least, I didn't hear any loud laughter as I rode away.

My final stop took me to an active rail trestle that I've often used as a photographic setting. The trestle spans a couple high ridges and towers above the road below. The large, rough beams make a great contrast for soft skin tones, and the road is not well traveled at all, so there is some degree of privacy available for shooting. Over the years I used the spot for glamour photography, senior photography, portfolio photography, and just as an interesting backdrop for portraits. I'm not sure how many different models I've photographed here, but it's been easily a dozen or so.

It certainly makes an interesting backdrop for portraits and the light hits the road just right a couple of hours before sunset. The lovely, young lady to the right is my daughter's friend Christine. They met in college and as Christine was an aspiring model, I help her build her portfolio over a couple of year period. She loved shooting near the trestle and we went through several outfit changes while we were shooting here.

We also shot under the trestle and in the field next to the right of way. We were totally undisturbed during the entire shoot. Christine got quite adventurous, climbing up on the fence and up into the beams of the trestle as well. I'm sure I'll continue to bring models to shoot here in the coming years, and who knows, it may be on the scooter.

Belize to keep her happy!