Berks County Blitz II - December 2, 2017

december intro 1

The December ride is usually a tough sell; beyond the usual work, family, and equipment issues that can sideline riders, there are many who are not able to endure the typical December temperatures. But, for those willing and able to brave the cold start, there is a fun route in the offing!

And so it began for the 2017 edition. The temps were below freezing, everywhere in the area, for the ride to meet up at the Starlite Diner. But, the forecasts held the promise of a sunny day in the mid- to upper-40’s by mid-morning. A couple riders planned to drive by and join us for breakfast, while another unlucky rider lost his cold weather gloves on the way and had to abandon his plan to ride with the group. So, we gathered and we ate while waiting for things to get above freezing. Ultimately, four of us suited up and a little before 11AM, we headed out for the most back-road route of the year (again).

And, it was worth the wait! This is not the time of year for edging out one’s Chicken Strips, but the route is technical, fun, and scenic, nonetheless. As mentioned in August, this route passes through a lot of farmland, which is all harvested and cleared off by this time of year. So, in contrast to the lush green canyons of summer, this ride offers long, clear sightlines through the scenery (as you can see in some of the pictures). At one point, instead of following a pick-up truck towing an old Mustang on a trailer, Rusty decided to improvise in order to find some “new” scenery.

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Pounding the Poconos Ride - November 4, 2017

intro 1It’s always a blessing to enjoy our CSBA Friends and Family; and today was another eventful day in the life of the CSBA adventures - join us for another action packed episode – read on….

Brrr – The day started quite cool. When I pushed out, I was riding in 40º temps, but the day was calling and forecasting for mid 50s, so I was ready to enjoy the roads. With fresh rubber and certified (LS) approved chain, I was ready to get some twisties in. I arrived on-site just before 9am, only to find our crew had just gone in to start their meal. So much for an early start.

To my surprise we had a cameo appearance by one of our CSBA members (Larry S) who is recovering for a duel he had with a cager. Thank God he arose victorious in the end (still with us) but not without some bumps and bruises. We won’t call him T-Rex (inside joke) just yet, but he’s working hard to be back to 100%. It was great to have him with us for breakfast. During breakfast we learned that Pink Barbie (Ana) was having battery issues and was planning to sit this one out. The team wasn’t having our star not in the ranks so Mike G and KC to the rescue – they ran over to her house and got her going so she could make the ride – way to go team! We delayed our leaving time to accommodate, but no one had a problem if it meant the sun would rise higher and shed some heat on the day. We had one new rider with us, so to save time I went over the rules of the ride and road with him so when Barbie and our two heroes returned, we could leave immediately.

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Shamokin Screamer Reloaded II - October 7, 2017

intro 1It’s always a blessing to enjoy our CSBA Family – and for that fellowship I am most grateful….

Finally – we actually pulled off a scheduled ride this year – and it was so worth the wait! People were itching for a good ride (22 in attendance) on what would be the perfect day for a ride – beautiful weather, beautiful scenery and beautiful people. The only thing that wasn’t perfect (if you were in the slower ranks) was the traffic (more on that later in this report).

For the first time in a long time, we had a lot of experienced riders in the ranks – people came ready to get it in – which is always a good thing. Our man Ron W. was so serious that he brought his bike in a trailer – he was determined not to miss the day. (so awesome to have him with us – see picture)

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Berks County Blitz - August 5, 2017

august 2017 01Who knew Berks County was full of bountiful corn fields? None of us, if you only ride there with the CSBA in December...

For the month of August, the PA CSBA postponed the annual Shamokin Screamer route because the much beloved Rt. 125 was recently covered in gravel, making it unsafe for motorcycles. We are hoping to be able to revisit the ride next month. As a result, the much neglected December ride was brought in as a substitute. The Berks County Blitz is a beautiful ride, provided you like green rolling hills, green grass, green trees, flowing streams, cornfield canyons, and some challenging back roads.

The August ride for the PA CSBA was also the first ride of the year to be run on its scheduled date! However, we did have to start an hour later, in order to allow the tail end of a storm front to move through. After some lingering clouds and drizzle made their way out, what was left was a beautifully sunny and breezy day that felt more like mid- to late-September than the beginning of August.

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Dive into Delaware (Reloaded) July 2nd, 2017

july 2017 01We give thanks to God for His wisdom and His Blessings….

Rain Date Rides – Need I say more – always interesting… Rain date rides are usually not very popular – but that was not the case this time. Thanks go out to our 6 gentlemen and 1 lady (Bev) that came out to enjoy a big breakfast and a full day of riding with us. The roads weren’t the best – but the company was outstanding! It was a BK Broiler of a day – but we were determined to get in some twisties as this represented our first official ride of the year (due to all the rain cancelations). We broke bread, enjoyed our stories, and then ventured out to prepare to launch.

After breakfast, we did our standard ride meeting and then prepared for our ride. I cautioned the team the roads were going to be challenging due to wash out, debris and other issues – and thus why were planning to dial down the pace a bit. Russ (aka Rusty Bucket) was most familiar with the revised route having done a recon on the roads recently, so he led us off.

The roads were a little wet and sure enough, we lost our trailing rider nearly in our first turn of our back roads route. We quickly got him settled – thank goodness no operator injury as it was just a low side into a winding left swing – no harm/ no foul. After a little roadside repair work, we were back underway. Hats off to being a good trooper and wanting to keep riding. (must remember to ride your own ride – the group will always wait)
Aside from that – the roads didn’t disappoint.

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