The Art of the Ride Report - Planning, Tips, Opinions, Discussion

[SchizzMan]

Originally Posted by tricepilot

Xanax, people

You will feel a lot better

Or Vagisil.

[JayElDee]

[quote=Lone Rider]

Originally Posted by JayElDee

....
Anchovies are a good thing, even if only on half of the whole. Grab a bit of the outer ring.
Make things jump.

As far as spaling goes, let's just receive and appreciate the reports as they come. Works of art or not.

I would never disparage the rough neck from the reporting that comes from his bared soul while on a trip.

couldn't agree more on the anchovies, the appreciation and the roughneck. I like the baring of the soul thing, it's a liberating experience and fun to do.

But, what if you only see the face of God everyday and never meet Satan; would there be no edge, no contrast, all flowers and no dirt? I have been lucky on my rides in that I have not had mishaps other than the occasional tumble. Though I suppose I could be the Satan since all else I see is God. And you'll get Satan's ramblings.

Or you could have a good RR that includes a lot of half-eaten pizza shots, and a bad one that is all action shots.

In my opinion, it's about how you present the photos. Are you telling a story, or are you just throwing a lot of pictures up there? Stories draw people in; random pictures bore them and make them lose interest quickly.

Agree fully. And stories need to be readable. They need to flow and make sense.

Vagisil? Shouldn't that be Premarin?

[elprime]

Originally Posted by dave6253

It's obvious, there are many preferences regarding what sort of report and what content is important to some viewers. I wouldn't disregard a cool report because of bad spelling. I certainly wouldn't want to discourage someone from posting a cool report because they feel their spelling or grammar is not the best. Not everyone here speaks English as a primary language. ..And some of us dat doo R pro ducks of public eduKation. As long as u speeek motorcicles youR Kool w/me.

+1

[homerj]

Originally Posted by Guy Jinbaiquerre

Roger Ebert said something about movies that applies equally well to ride reports: "A movie is not about what it's about; it's about how it's about what it's about."

Just my 2 cents...

+1000

I went on a relatively tame ride but was asked to do an RR. Here is the result.

My RRs tend to be long on narrative because to me it's the *story* of the trip, not just a reporting of the trip--if that makes sense. Any fool can tell you who, what, when, where, it takes *talent* to make that worthwhile reading.

Someone mentioned themes earlier. I couldn't agree more, but not every RR needs a theme, sometimes the destination is enough.

[TwoShots]

Now that you mention it, we're missing a dedicated Show Us Your Pizza Quest thread.

[Cannonshot]

Originally Posted by RandyM

Cannonshot's reports, for example, often take us to historic places and he provides a little background history of the place he visits.

Another approach to the wide variety of ride reporting:
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showp...&postcount=191

[DRZ Charlie]

This is a wonderful thread. I've learned a lot here. My ride reports are in fairly entertaining but that being said they could still use some fine tuning.

My major bugaboo is photo composition and quality of my camera. I would say that about 90% of the time I just "see, point and shoot" with little regard to how they will look when I post them. As for the camera for now it is what it is until the cash fairy visits my wallet.

After learning about the rule of thirds I spent some quality time with Google to learn as much as I could this afternoon.

My friends and I are doing a day ride tomorrow to "Glade Top Trail" in Missouri and I will apply the techniques and suggestions I learned today from this thread and the rule of thirds.

Hopefully my next ride report will reflect better technique and photo composition..

[storman113]

I have enjoyed reading this tread with all the advice and comments.

I am posting here a pre-ride report with the hope that the readers here can critique and provide some pointers. All positive (if any) and negative accepted. I'm hoping what I learn here I can provide a decent RR and well received RR on the ride to Spokane and the future ride to the east coast.

Norm

Planning a trip to get some custom made boots in Spokane, WA. I have found I don’t like motorcycle boots, but lace up boots. In the car I could make it in one day. I however expect to triple the mileage and take 5 days on the bike. This will be my first multiple day ride. I got out the maps and Google route planning and made the plan. I posted on the forum asking for a revue of my route. Received many responses with suggested route changes, places to not miss, places to miss, places to camp, eat, and invitations to stop by for a beer when in the area. ADVriders are awesome!

This may seem like overkill for a short ride but I have dreams of a cross country ride next spring/summer to visit my daughter in West Virginia.

On a short test ride to my sisters, 350 miles away, I took two days to get there. Wanted to camp out to test the gear, what to leave behind and what to bring next time. I did learn a lot! Both what to pack and things about myself. I really got an understanding about what to eat and not eat on the road.

This pic of dinner is self explanatory!



I also learned the porcelain toilet can withstand tremendous pressure overload.

I experienced many things on this trip. Stopped for gas eight miles from the house, dropped the bike next to the pump! Very nice attendants, two of them and self to get bike back up. Had to self talk to get bad trip vibes out of my head. At several rest stops with other riders there, they would introduce themselves and chat a bit about where to, where from etc. Met some great people with very interesting stories of self and rides. I was overwhelmed with the new community I was joining.

Myself: Returned to riding after a 30 year lay off. When living to SoCal used to dirt ride in the desert a lot. Then with little ones and one car, commuted to work for a couple years. My son in college picked a bike to get around on and it got the old biking juices fired up. Did my research and took the Team Oregon 1 day course. Wow, wished I had taken a riding class 30 years ago!

Based on age, size, riding ability and what type of riding I wanted to do I purchased a BMW F800ST. The low center of gravity and belt drive was the deciding factor. I attended the BMWMOA rally in Redmond, OR and though I was going to max out the credit card! So the unit now has all the farkles I could afford.

[dave6253]

Norm,

Great Start! I'd read it. Both photos are very nice and help set the mood for a multiple-day moto-camping trip replete with Ranch Style Beans. Those are yummy, but is that all you had for dinner?

[storman113]

Thanks Dave6253. Now it's time to load up and go have an Adventure!

Yep just the beans!!! Forgot about all the stuff I learned about camping with my boys in the Scouts. Been practicing at home with camp recipes from the bike. Different thread though!

[blender]

Originally Posted by JayElDee

Damn, I sure am alone in this one, but I think that complete thoughts and readability add to a ride report. Incomplete thoughts and unreadability don't.

No, you're not alone on this one. An ability to spell, compose thoughts, and compose a sentence (with correct punctuation) really helps. If you expect to communicate in a language then you need to learn the rules of communicating in that language.

Honest, it's not *that* hard to do.

[TwoShots]

Originally Posted by blender

...and compose a sentence (with correct punctuation) really helps.

Then you probably know your use of parenthesis is overkill.

[PsychoSayWhat]

This is a great thread!

I've been reluctant to post any ride reports, especially prior to the split between the big trips and the day trips forums. Most of the riding I do is local and just for a fun few hours. Even though I really love my little rides, my thinking has been along the lines of "who in their right mind would want to read about a day ride in NJ?"

This site is great for trip info/inspiration and I'm leaving Saturday for a week-long trip through the Northeast using some of the info I've gotten from other inmates. It's still pretty "local" on some accounts but it's a huge deal to me - it's going to be my first solo multi-day trip in about 20 years. If it weren't for all of the reports I've read on this site, great or otherwise, I wouldn't be doing it.

For me at least, thinking about how to share my experiences will add a lot to the trip and give me something to think about to bring the experience more into-the-moment and keep the devils at bay.

Thanks everyone!

[Lone Rider]

Originally Posted by blender

No, you're not alone on this one. An ability to spell, compose thoughts, and compose a sentence (with correct punctuation) really helps. If you expect to communicate in a language then you need to learn the rules of communicating in that language.

Honest, it's not *that* hard to do.

A grasp of the spirit is more compelling than a command of the language.

[dave6253]

Originally Posted by junker

For me at least, thinking about how to share my experiences will add a lot to the trip and give me something to think about to bring the experience more into-the-moment and keep the devils at bay.

That's exactly why I love posting RRs. Well said.