I recently put up an article by Jerry James that talked about going out for a quick 2 hour/100 mile to clear your head and put a smile on your face. When I was still working full-time those types of rides were my real bread and butter, usually in the evening after dinner during the week. A weekend trip was a once or twice a year thing and a Saturday/Sunday all-day ride was maybe once a month. But since I stopped working fulltime my riding has certainly changed. I now do much more in the way of “day rides” that often stretch into several hours and anywhere from 200-300 miles. Almost always there is some kind of theme or destination(s) involved in them. If I was living 200 years ago, I probably would have been the type of person that headed west at my 1st opportunity. I’ve always been the type that wan ted to see what was around the next bend or over the next mountain. I often take roads, just to see where they lead to. I get bored riding the same roads, visiting the same sites, and taking the same trips over and over. Even when i travel to the same rallies from year to year, I try to take different routes to and from them every time.
Several years ago, upon realizing that I had lived in Kentucky for almost all of my adult life but hadn’t visited but a small number of state parks and historical sites within the state, I set out to remedy that. I spent the next couple of years visiting every one of the sites and recording my visit with a picture of my bike at the site.
Kentucky Map
I have kept copies of those pictures in a photo album.
I have also visited every Covered Bridge in Kentucky, and most of the river ferries.
Along the way, I discovered many beforehand unknown roads and towns throughout the state. I also met many local people and listened to their tales and feel that I gained not only much knowledge about the history of Kentucky but also a real sense of the character of the state and its people. Not many people realize that it is almost 500 miles from the eastern border of Kentucky, but it is. Since I live in the most northern part of the state, it took me all day to reach many of the most southeastern and southern parts of the state and return home. In order to do may of the sites east of I-65 I did an overnight trip with a stay at one of the state resort parks along the way. It took me the better part of 3 years to complete my task. As Kentucky has added a few more historical sites since then, I’ve had to augment my original quest with a few additional trips since then and have found those to be fun “rides” too.
I’ve also tried to visit many of the General Stores and Mom and Pop Restaurants in the Kentucky-Ohio-Indiana region that I live in. Many of these I have been clued to by a Facebook site, ‘Only in Your State”. There you can pick out whatever state you are interested in and choose from among the different categories, to find just what it is you’re interested in.
Rabbit Hash General Store
This year I joined the ‘Tour of Honor’ group and have spent much of the year visiting military sites around the region. I written about it on this website several times.
The point is that while I still enjoy “just going out for a few hours to clear my head” rides, I rarely do them anymore. At this point in my life, I much prefer “destination” rides. I get to choose my destinations and ride to them (and back) on the routes that I choose and on the timeline that I want. The destinations are chosen based on a hunch, an attractive and often funny name, (Pig, Kentucky and the Porky Pig BBQ anyone?) or just because they are somewhere I’ve never been before. No particular reason and sometimes just because they lie in a direction I haven’t traveled in a while.
What kind of rider you are is something that you choose. Often it is decided for us by outside influences like jobs, family, time off work, or local. The only ‘bad’ ride is the one you don’t get to take. What kind of ride do you like?