Yesterday we rode a 300 mile day on our rental MotoVermont motorcycles. We rode our first 300 miles through some amazing and colorful Vermont and New York countryside. What I am really enjoying is literally watching the fall season unfold before my very eyes and the beautiful farm and homestead houses that are scattered about the landscape. It seems to me that Vermont people really love a well mowed yard. I’ve seen both men and women mowing and maintaining their lawns. Every yard seems to have huge lawns; most don’t have fences up so their homes seem even more picturesque. We have seen hundreds and hundreds of wild turkeys both on and off the road and surprisingly not one deer. You know the saying be careful for what you ask for as you might get it. Well, more on that later.
We crossed over to the New York side on a ferry. New York looks entirely just like Vermont. I don’t think we’ve seen any modern looking buildings. There’s definitely a difference in the people you see here. Earlier I saw several people that probably resembled their at home lazy boy recliner, couch or sofa. And most older people don’t acknowledge the greeting of the day. Not that their unfriendly, it’s just that you are not part of their clan or group. Just an obvious east coast west coast observation on my part.
Today, if we follow the suggested route for our day two we would be riding for eight hours and 325 miles. That’s what my friends recommended to MotoVermont and that’s just what we got.
Not doable or wanted by this little ride group. Outside of our Grey Ghost hotel the temperature is 41 degrees and sunny. By the time we finish our maple syrup topped pancakes it should warm up to 44 degrees. Welcome to Vermont and riding in mid September. This morning the group vented a little over a few ride related things like lack of waypoints for attractions to see and do.
Kip and I also came to an agreement over the rooms toilet seat. Last night in my sleep I felt this warm tinkle splash around my legs before figuring out that Kip had intentionally put the toilet seat down. Who does that in a room with two manly men. I guess back home he is trained to so, Patti is still working me to do the same.
Teri who is riding pillion with John doesn’t want to just ride countryside roads for the next two days and neither do I. I also don’t want to eat fast foods and in chain type places.
On our first day in Vermont our cuisine included a hotel breakfast with reconstituted eggs, A&W hamburgers and bar tacos and beer for dinner as the only available option.
And today I also have your answer. Bridge engineers pointed out that uncovered wooden bridges have a 20-year lifespan, but if you covered a wooden bridge with a roof it could last upwards of 100 years. And just like that they started covering all their bridges. Today the plan is to visit two bridges that are less than 30 minutes from where we are now staying at the Grey Ghost.
HIT BY A DEER- And so as I like to say; the difference between an adventure story and an ordeal is your final attitude about the outcome. My attitude is now great and thankfully I didn’t nearly get killed by a moose or antlered deer
I’m still walking; limping a bit on my right side but, manageable pain and the same with my right wrist and road rash elbow.
The deductible on the rental Triumph Tiger is $2500. And the cost to fix me is currently at one Advil aspirin. I guess I fell right. The helmet took the brunt of the fall and slide real well also.
Deputy Cohen who was on traffic watch nearby was also very attentive and both offered an ambulance and tow if needed. He followed all emergency management protocols like at the scene of an accident. Only with my accident it was more a hit and run.
And so there I was minding my own business cruising on a country road at around thirty miles per hour. My exact location earlier was at a little just before 10:00 a.m. on Highway 9, just outside of the town of Marlboro, intersection of Pond Road and Highway 9.
We were all stopped for highway road construction traffic. You know the kind where they have an escort vehicle take one lane and then the other. We were on our way to see and experience our very first covered bridge. So far deer one and covered bridge zero for me.
Little did I know that I would also be experiencing my first full on impact with a full grown adult female deer who shouldn’t have been up but, bedded down for her morning nap.
Since we were stopped for a few minutes at the road construction I began to look on google maps and saw that the road immediately to our left was Pond road that would bypass the highway traffic and take us to the covered bridge.
Pond road turns out to be a well groomed and maintained dirt road. I was leading the group when I turned onto pond road. I stopped to ask Teri and John if they felt comfortable on this dirt road. They said they did and so I continued on the road periodically looking back. I was riding on a straight stretch of road in second or third gear I now forget when suddenly without any reaction time a huge deer takes a flying leap from the forest and suddenly t-bones me like a linebacker does his opponent.
I actually felt the deer on my body. Thankfully no ticks or worse- Lyme disease. The strange thing is that the deer came from my right side as I was riding in the same direction. I was hit with such force that the bikes damage was all on the left side of the motorcycle.
The crash bar took the brunt of it and was was pushed into the tank. I slid for possibly fifty feet. I have a video that I narrated to myself showing the impact location and two other road contact locations on the ground.
The right side of my helmet took the impact. I have slide abrasions on my right elbow and just below my right hip. I am still walking with a little limp and it felt like I was tackled so my head was rattled and my right elbow hurts a little.
The bike damage is the front rotor on the front brakes is bent to such a degree that the front wheel barely turns. We did try fixing it as best we could but soon gave up.
Thank goodness for full protection gear, a helmet and the fact that it was a large deer and not a moose.
It’s now looking like my replacement motorcycle will be a Yamaha Super Tenere and I’ll be able to continue the ride tomorrow.
So far MotoVermont has been outstanding in every way from the immediate contact to offering up a replacement motorcycle. More to follow.
I’m seldom lost at home, but, when I am my wife Patti says to me, “Don’t know what to do with yourself today? Want to take Lexie out for a walk? Want to clean the gutters?” Immediately I get inspired to do anything else.
Right now my inspiration is just sitting on a porch at the Grey Ghost just watching the road traffic go by.
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