A Great Autumn Day

The morning was glorious. I awoke reluctantly to the piercing scream of my alarm clock at 6:30. I could tell that it was cold outside, because it was cold inside. Time for breakfast. I was happy that I had spent the time Saturday night to check the oil, and the air pressure in the tires so that I could just go. I helped my wife get the kids ready to go to her parents for the morning and then donned my riding gear.

A quick check of the thermometer showed 33 degrees, 1 above freezing. Perfect riding weather. I have never been a believer in electric riding gear. I know my luck and I know that the time I rely on it I will get let down. I do have electric grips, but they came with the bike, and I love them very much. So I layer up. T-shirt, long sleeve t over that. Wool socks under my water proof boots. Jeans covered by my two piece riding pants. Tourtech saber jacket over that. Opps, can not forget my fleece neck tube, helmet on top. Good to go.

The bike cranked a little slow due to the 20W50 in the case, but it started quickly and settled into a nice idle. The sun was just starting to rise and the Garmin GPS unit was still in night mode. As soon as I pulled out of the driveway I realized that I had not closed the vents in my helmet, that air was cold! But nice.

The road leading away from my house is a dream road. Tight bends and long sweepers it goes by much too quickly. I have fun watching the leaves swirl in mirror. If I go faster will they fly up higher? Fun stuff, but I am careful to keep an eagle eye out for deer. They are in rut and going nuts. There is not a day that goes by that I do not see them so I need to be vigilant.

As I approach 422 I am glad to see that the corn fields have mostly harvested. I see a herd of deer running across one of the bare fields. It’s a lot easier to spot the deer this way. Hopefully soon the hunters will have thinned the herd a bit, cars will probably take more.

A stop at the gas station to fill up and I got another bit of pleasantness. I was able to fill up the tank with premium for under $10. That hasn’t happened in a while. The rest of the ride into the Pottstown Family Diner was uneventful and kind of boring. 422 is not a nice road, but I was running a little late. I got there just as most of the crowd was arriving. Hellos were said all around then Jack Riepe arrived. He was berated and belittled for driving his car. He lamented that the Mac-Pac is the only group of people who will verbally assault a man stricken by arthritis and using a cane. But we do, that’s who we are.

Sitting at breakfast with Jack is a treat, just be careful when you drink. We heard about his x-rated train layout and the way his scale figures have made them “their leader”. The absolute best was the interaction between Jack and the waitress who calls him “Slim”. I am pretty sure that Jack will be writing about her in his blog, so I will let him give you the details. Let’s just say that she can make Jack speechless and that says something.

Leaving the PFD I had the rest of the morning to burn before helping my father in law pick up his new grill. So I rode 422 to 662 and turned North. I followed a little bit of the roads that I used for the covered bridge tour then started making my way west towards home. Berks county is shaped like a baseball diamond. My house is close to home plate, and I was almost at second. So I rolled through the back roads looking at leaves and watching them in the mirrors. Great stuff. By the time I got home I was chilled, but I had a wonderful day. You cannot ask for more on an autumn day.

This was all followed by watching my daughter's soccer game (They won, even though they don't keep score) and she did great. She played goal for one portion and did not allow a goal and made 4 or 5 really good saves. She is getting the hang of using her hands when in goal. Then I worked, which was work, but the night went quickly because we were busy.