Getting up to speed...

My wife said I can't ride the motorcycle on the highway. I understand why. I haven't ridden that much and people in cars on highways are, generally speaking, not worried about driving. But I'm a teacher and, just like my students, I'm always looking for the loophole.

I found two stretches in my area that are perfect for getting up to speed. East River Road, just across the Camden Bridge is a great stretch. There is a short road from the bridge to East River Road that has a couple of great little curves. After a left turn onto East River Road, you can open it up, twist it and cruise. There is one stoplight. Fortunately, it was green. I got the bike up to 60 and it felt great. It was even nicer because, in the middle of the day, there isn't a lot of traffic to get in the way or worry about. I rode up and down that 2 mile stretch for about 45 minutes.

The other stretch I found is Olson Memorial Highway (Hwy. 55). It technically isn't really a highway until you are well out of Minneapolis. However, the speed limit is 55. I got my bike up to 60. It was a really windy day and I found that if I lean forward, it makes riding easier. This made me rethink cruisers and sport bikes. The leaning forward on a sport bike might be the way to go to avoid the wind. Hmmm...I'll have to look into that.