Wandering in Indiana

Radianrider
Merely an observation here from afar. You have struck a chord with many of the inmates on here. I will admit to having spent too much time on here on more than a few occasions reading of some epic journey to far off and wonderful lands. Having said that I will also add that as much as I enjoy those, most of those trips certainly don't fit my lifestyle. I'm not complaining in the least but my family and career would get in the way of me doing some of those RTW ultra high mileage trips. What you are doing here and now sharing it with your buddy is way better. It ain't the distance or even the destination that is important. It's the trip and you are doing a magnificent job of chronicling that for those of us not on two wheels right now. I'm with you, I don't have a DS bike yet. Kinda in the market but it ain't appeared in my garage yet. For now it's a Norge and I ride it like it's the best bike in the world. Yea, when I get back I'll look you up. Maybe there will be a place or two left to see..
Stay safe out there man..
Ken

As long as we are all still having fun on whatever bike we have! The Norge looks like a fantastic bike.

Well, hit the road again Sunday afternoon. Was supposed to have two friends along, but one bailed. Sorry about the picture quality this time. Using a computer without photo editing software and Photobucket.com editing is just weak. Edited most of these using it and hit replace original. Photobucket then carefully posted the original photo. You should get the idea of what it looked like anyway.

Decided that this ride would complete one I started last year. I turned back from a ride to Cataract Falls due to impending thunderstorms last year and never completed the trip. Chuck (friend pictured above) jumped at the chance to take the GR out again.

It was a strange day of riding. I think the high was 73 degrees and it was windy! Really strange to hit a high in the low '70's in July in Indiana. That's about 20 degrees below normal for this time of year.

The SV and the GR are both fairly light and the wind was not constant. Got tossed around a bit, particularly once we hit the open farmland west of Mooresville. I was wearing mesh gear and spent a fair amount of time wishing I had the liner in the jacket.

No shots on the ride out-- compromised two of my cardinal rules (don't necessarily have a destination and don't have a set time that I need to be back) and that came back to bite me. Nothing serious, but it changed my mindset in ways I didn't necessarily like. "Can't stop! Have to get there and back!" Not how I like to ride.

Enough whining. I was still riding, how bad could it be?

Arrived at the Falls and stopped to pay the entrance fee. I thought was $2.00, turned out to be $5.00. Only had four dollars on me. Was thinking, "Crap, all this way (ha, 40 miles) and I won't get any pictures to show for it."

The guard said, "Well, it is one bike for five or two bikes for five."

I turned to see if Chuck had a dollar and noticed he was way back at the entrance. About the time I started to turn around he rode up, handed me the mirror--minus the stalk and said, "The left side mirror fell off as we turned in!"

Have to admit, of all of the things I worried about breaking on a ride with a 30-year old bike, this was not in the top 20. We entered the parking lot and started working on reattaching the mirror. Just as we started a guy in a Trans Am pulled up beside me and said, "Man, I like your bike!"

I replied, "Thanks, like your car." (Confession time, I'm not a Trans Am type. The cars that flip my trigger were built by the English. Triumph, MG, Lotus, etc. That's why Miatas have been my primary vehicle since 2001. All of the fun, none of the headaches.) I was mostly being polite, but it was a nice example of the breed. He immediately offered to trade "straight up." Nah, but thanks.

Turns out he has a Harley Fat Bob, but prefers bikes like the SV--"just more comfortable." He and his son are planning a cross country ride as soon as his son returns from deployment in Afganistan. His son has a GSXR and an SV650S. The dad will ride the SV. Said he preferred the naked version like mine. Had to agree. Can just see the front of the TA in this shot.


Bumped into him again at the Lower Falls lot and he said, "Last chance to trade!" Assured him I was good. Wished him luck on the ride as he drove off.

I had the top case on the bike for this trip. Should have loaded my jacket liner, but who figures they'll get cold in July in Indiana? Anyway, Chuck started trying to reattach the mirror. We've been friends for over 20 years. Raised our families together. Taught he and his wife to ski and our families spent a lot of time hitting the slopes together. He'd tell you he was touch more svelte in those days. Guess we both were.

All that to say, I knew we weren't going anywhere until he spent considerable time trying to puzzle out how the mirror attached. I was right. Not in his nature to let something like that go. Used to tease him about having his parking spot picked out at the ski resort in July the summer before we left. (I wasn't wrong by much about that either.)


He finally admitted defeat (I have disliked the mirrors since day one and couldn't care much less about them. Have no need to see what my shoulders look like while riding,) and we used electrical tape to hold it on. Took these after we got back.

I was concerned that electrical tape wouldn't hold and the mirror would end up tangled in the spokes. Happy to be wrong, but they get replaced shortly.

One of IN's covered bridges


The upper falls

Niagara Falls has nothing to fear.

"Uhhh, how do you do a selfie?"

"Oh yeah, get the sun out of your eyes."

Remarkably better without me in it.




Fullcyc had mentioned an old-time General Store near the falls, so we went looking. He also mentioned the baloney sandwiches sold here were pretty good. I mentioned them to Chuck. He said, "If you are into that kind of thing."

Got the distinct impression he wasn't. No sale on the sandwiches today. I knew I was supposed to be back to go out to dinner with some friends (see the cardinal-rule breaking mentioned above) or I might have tried one just to see if Fullcyc was right.

The place is for sale, if any of you are looking for a more laid-back lifestyle. :)

One for American Pickers fans.


Discovered that it was possible to get colder on the way back. The park is in a valley and it got hot with no breeze. Worked up a sweat wearing a long-sleeve T, mesh riding pants and riding boots. Threw the jacket on and started back. Proved that natural evaporation lowers the core temp nicely at 60 mph.

Had to hustle to get back--and in fact I was late for dinner by about 20 minutes. Fortunately we've been friends with the couple for over 20 years and they know how I am. Still, made the spouse a tad upset. You'd think that after 30 years of marriage (well, okay, two days short of it) that she'd know me too.

Taking the spouse to Nashville, IN tonight to celebrate 30 years of her putting up with me. Google Earth it. Some great roads down there, but taking the Miata instead of the bike. She's not fond of riding without pillion footpegs and a backrest. Don't have either on the SV.

All for now.

Don't get distracted and overlook your "pre-flight" checks, gang. Allowed myself to get distracted filling bicycle tires for my wife and daughter this a.m. before leaving on the SV.

Got about 20 miles from home and stopped for gas and then remembered I hadn't checked the air pressure. Bike was running and handling fine, but I figured since I was stopped...

32 lbs in the front, okay. 8 lbs in the rear...What?
"Musta read it wrong---one more time...8 lbs. Uh-oh."

Filled it to 36 lbs and then inspected the tire. Nail pentrated the left side front of the tire and extended out through the left sidewall. Great.

No way to patch it and I have no trailer. Middle of the working stiff's workweek, so my buds with trucks are all working. Check the tire after 10 minutes, still holding.

Get back on and head for home as slow as is safe on a 55 mph road and get to the sideroads asap.

Gentle riding with left hand covering the clutch all the way home. Windy today, so really hard to tell whether the bike was squirrely because of the wind or the tire. Stopped every couple of miles to check the pressure. Still holding pressure at the moment, but I don't know how.

I'll post up a picture later. The hunt is on for a new tire. Michelin really impressed me with its low pressure handling, so I'll start my search for another.

:huh Hate the old Nail in the Tire thingy....hope it held up all the way home.

This usually only happens to me when the tire is brand new, say like the first 500 miles.

Here's the culprit that's kept me off the SV for almost a week.



I have a Continental Motion rear tire installed on the rim and will be installing it back on the bike today. Shopping for tires is such a pain. Read the reviews and they all go from "this tire made me Rossi" to "this tire was like riding on ice and it killed my kittens." Hard to know what to believe, so finally you just make your best guess and pull out the credit card.

Supposed to rain a lot today, so plenty of time to work on it. Installing a rear on the SV is supposed to be a fiddly process. Guess I'll find out.

Time to put the unpleasantness with the nail behind me and go break in the new tire.

I got out fairly early, but had to be back by 10:30. It was actually a bit chilly for a while, but it was really a great day to be riding.

This spot has shown up before, but I like it here. One minute from suburbia, but a great spot to be alone.


I spotted this guy several miles off and took off to see if I could get a shot. He landed just as I arrived, but then took off and came back around. Got a short video that I'll upload when I can figure out how to get it off my phone. Forgot my good camera this a.m. John Kennedy apparently learned to fly one of these not too far west of Indy. Should have stuck with it considering the end result when he moved up to a bigger plane.



<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LqrEjEfddvA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Back to the area where I took the first shot for the last one in this short report--have to leave shortly.

Back out again today. This is the last day of the summer that I would be able to ride without neglecting something I need to do. Always a bit bittersweet.

I headed west again and hit a nature preserve run by the county.


There is about a half mile of gravel road to get into the preserve. Riding the gravel on a short-wheel based bike, with weight forward and on street tires is less fun than it could be. Wee Strom might have been the bike to have for this task. Fortunately, the experience would not be wasted and I would put it to use later.



Once in the preserve and out on the hiking trails I located these again. They always remind me the scene at the end the Fellowship of the Ring. Oh, sure, the scale is off by more than a little, but I'm going with it.

There is probably a mundane explanation, but I like mine.

Bumped into this guy, but was able to survive the experience and get a shot.


This would be a fun place for a dirtbike, but no vehicles are allowed.


I just like this shot, so sticking it in.


Patiently waiting for me; the trusty steed.


While hiking in the back section of the preserve I had heard the unmistakable sound of cars crossing a bridge and I decided to locate it. I headed west out of the preserve and shortly hit the county line. I turned north toward the river and discovered at about 45 mph that the road was not a high priority for Putnam County. 100 feet of asphalt, a couple of hundred feet of gravel, repeat at random spacing. I slowed down. As noted earlier, the SV is NOT a dirt bike.

Soon found the bridge.


Not a lot going on out here--just the way I like it.


Out on the bridge and looking west.


Fair amount of rust on those railings. Makes me wonder about the parts I can't see.

The part I can see doesn't inspire a lot of confidence either. Wood decking? Really? I suppose it is strong enough. The cars I heard earlier didn't appear to be slowing down much before crossing.


I don't know if you noticed anything about the weight limit sign in the earlier picture, but it was pretty well shot up. If you grew up in the country signs in this condition are just part of the landscape. This one has been hit by a variety of shot types.


Checked my phone after arriving at home and had a text from Chuck (seen earlier in the thread.) Seems he had an unexpected day off and thought maybe I'd be up for a ride.

"Sure, come on over--I'll check the tire pressure on the GR"

Only a few pictures from the second ride and they were taken at Heritage Lake--also seen earlier.




Not a bad way to end the truly free part of my riding season. Grindstone starts grinding slowly tomorrow, but hits full speed on the 26th.

Hope to get some riding in as the semester starts, but I'll always be aware that there is something I need to be doing.

Hoping you all get to ride with no place to go and nowhere to be.

Good stuff radianrider, Glad you were able to get back out...
The nature preserve looks to be in a little better shape than it was last year. My Ol' lady, ( Sherri ), & I were out there near the end of July, during the drought, and most all the wild flowers were either wilted, dead, or dying. Things weren't looking too good but we still had a great time walking some of the grounds.

After returning home I had read there was another old restored Iron bridge located within the park itself, somewhere. We missed it while there and not seeing a photo in your post I suspect you did as well. ( http://www.historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=indiana/mccloud/ )

We plan to make another trip out sometime to check it out and to mark it off our list. Hopefully we'll see a better display of nature the next time around...

Looking forward to seeing were you'll end up next.
Ride safe, & Have a great day, Jeff...

P.S.> You all don't know what ya missed by not getting one of the bologna & cheese sandwiches there at Cataract...

Things looked a LOT better this year! I didn't know there was another bridge out there...could be grounds for another visit for me too.

I loved bologna when I was a kid--then I learned what was in it. Reduced my demand for it considerably.

A couple of unexpected free hours today. Think I'll go ride! (It's either that or work on prepping the GR for paint.

MotoGP is back in Indy this week. One of the events that just gets bigger all the time is Motorcycles on Meridian. Meridian, for those unfamiliar with Indy, is the main street through the city. It bisects the city, north to south, with a huge traffic circle in the middle of town (hence the nickname Circle City.)

I have always wanted to go downtown to see the event, but I have little interest in riding down. If you've read this thread you know where I like to ride--where few others do.

I had to attend a dinner for work at the Columbia Club and it happens to be on the northeast side of the Circle. Excellent! There were bikes already parked outside when I went in at six, but nothing prepared me for how many where there when I came back out. I didn't go north of the circle, but east and west had an entire block full of bikes (streets are closed to cars.) It extended several blocks south on Meridian. Absolutely amazing.

The crowd was really mellow-at least while I was there, and the typical bike prejudices didn't seem to matter. Ducati's next to H-D and Victory, SuperMoto's next to 'Busa's, vintage bikes lined up next to three-wheelers--didn't see any SV650's (though I bet they were there) and not one GR650 (wouldn't be there were any there--rare bike.)

Enough chatter, let's go to the pics! (The shots are a bit grainy; the lighting really challenges the automatic iris on the camera. I'll add a short video after it gets done uploading.)

















It was a strange crowd south of the Circle. GenCon is in town. GenCon is a huge convention of gamers. They dress up in costume--the more fantasy game related the better--and play games at the Convention Center for several days. (Do a quick search for photos.) Not the typical mix-with-bikers crowd. It made for a strange scene when the gamers started mixing with the bikers. Pixies next to leather-clad H-D riders, Klingons next to full-leather sportbikers, etc. A lot of fun!

Did see one face plant just off Meridian. A metric cruiser (maybe an early Intruder?) rider was impatiently trying to get through a bunch of GenCon'ers on the crosswalk. They had the right of way, but he rev'd it up, they parted like the Red Sea and he dumped the clutch. Launched the front wheel up, scared him, he yanked the clutch back in and dropped the front wheel. It landed turned to the left and the bike lurched. Scared him some more so he cracked the throttle again. Launched the front again, the pillion fell off the back and he low-sided. Bike slid across the street, the pillion slid on her hands and knees and the rider on his butt. They weren't going real fast, so unlikely that permanent damage was done. They were both up and walking as I left the scene. Bet there was an interesting conversation after they got home.

"Just had to a be all Bad, didn't you!"

"But, Hon! I was just being cool and everything!"

Ah, well--I was young once.

http://youtu.be/Scc2YRYiiKc

Nothing fancy, just some radom shots to show the atmosphere downtown last night.

Nice post Radinrider. What an outstanding weekend to ride here in the Mid-West.

I am a new inmate, but couldn't resist posting my video link of the Motor-scooters on Meridian. I liked the Kaw Mach III too.

http://youtu.be/ABpt9-UdOQc

Cool stuff, PharohScoots! You got there long before I did and I intend to get there early next year-assuming the MotoGP is back.

Welcome to the ADVRider madness. It becomes addictive.

Got out for a ride this afternoon. I have a few pictures on the internal memory of my camera, but can't find the cable to get them off the camera. Usually use a card.

Not sure anything could have done it justice today. The light was just golden and it was unusually beautiful.

I have to confess I never thought I wanted to live in Indiana--grew up in Maine and Michigan--but IN has been a great place to raise a family. There is a subtle beauty to it at times that can be captivating. Tonight was one of those times.

Rode through several small towns and was struck by the wisdom of the home builders from years gone by. Lots of big porches on those old homes. I love sitting on the porch reading a good book with a glass of ice tea. Our house is new-ish and the porch is adequate, but barely. Too bad there was nobody sitting on the porches. They don't know what they are missing tonight.

Was out in the middle of nowhere and a rider passed going the other way. I waved, as is my habit, and got the cold shoulder. Made me laugh in my helmet.

Okay, whatever. No, my bike was not made in a northern U.S. state. About 30 minutes later, headed back home on an entirely different road I saw a bike heading toward me. "I wonder, same guy? Still has the tassels streaming from the handlebars--bet it is."

Felt like waving frantically to see if that might generate any excitement. Settled for nodding gravely at him. He gave me the cold stare down. Man, life is too short to determine somebody's worth based on where their ride was made, or even what kind of ride it is.


The Ural rider 200 yards behind him waved happily. That was a cool rig.

Look for an SV rider waving at you PharohScooter. Pull over and we'll talk about about our respective rides.

Life is SWEET, y'all! Have fun and ENJOY IT!

Got a quick nap in, typical Sunday afternoon, and hit the road for about 50 miles.

Ended up in Lebanon, IN. I was here a few weeks ago with my nephew helping him look over a bike he wanted to buy ('85 Nighthawk 450--he bought it,) and decided to come back on the bike.

This the Boone County Courthouse.


I was interested to see that Lebanon is home to a Carnegie Library. I've always loved libraries. I get nervous if I don't have three or four books in the house that I haven't read. This example of the type is a beautiful place. May have to go back when it is open.


I spotted a historical marker in the parking lot of a Family Video and stopped for a shot. It didn't upload yet, but I'll add it later. Apparently Abraham Lincoln stopped here on his way to D.C. in 1861.

On the way home I noticed this place and turned back the "way-back machine" for a few shots.


I liked the place, so you get to look at a few shots of the joint. I'm of the opinion that every kid deserves to grow up with the sound of a wooden screen door slapping shut as the spring "sproings" as part of their memories. Just the way it should be. Wouldn't hurt if they knew what penny candy and a cold 7-Up from the ice barrel just inside the door tasted like as well.









Judging from the price of a gallon of gas, been a while since the place was in business.


Until next time! Semester starts tomorrow and riding time is greatly restricted.

I found some shots on my card that I hadn't used yet.

I was out running around south of home and came across an old church. This being Indiana, there was a basketball goal for the youth group.





Took the bike out Labor Day Sunday and wandered a bit aimlessly. Could just about feel the anticipation of harvest. The fields are ready and the harvesters will soon have this place looking pretty bare. The only advantage is being able to see cars approaching stop signs and blind corners.



This makes me wonder why the owner wrapped the barbed wire around the post and left it there long ago. Did he forget it there? Just decide it wasn't needed? Change from raising stock to raising crops so the fence was no longer needed? Ahh, mysteries.



Several posts back I put up a picture of a friend on my old bike. Mentioned the scary house behind him (clearly abandoned years ago.) Rode by the same spot today. Not there so much.



All that remains is this old barn off in the distance.



Took a left turn into the past at some point. Didn't see the Sheriff, but spotted his car.




Till next time!

Nice report and pics Radian (as usual) :)

Hey Radian, cool little thread ya got going here. If/when you decide you want to get to Brown/Morgan/Owen and more southern counties give me a shout. I live on the north end of Brown and get around a fair bit. I'd be more than happy to help you explore around down here

Love Brown County, but have been there mostly in the Miata. Haven't been down on the bike this year.

You live in beautiful country, BigEasy.

Commuted to work today. Nice country, but I really hate feeling like I need to get somewhere by a specific time. Guess I'll keep the bike for those special moments when I get to wander.

Stay safe out there and ENJOY your rides!

I couldn't let ya get one up on me. lol..
We headed up to Lebanon today for the Back to the 50's car show & thanks to your thread had a nice, neat, little place to stop & take a photo along the way...

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Thanks for the tip, & Have a great day, Jeff...​