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2004
Sunday, January 25, 2004
Friday, the 23rd, sheet lightning was illuminating the pre-dawn sky as
I rode to the airport. I laid as flat as I could on the tank and pretended I
was NOT a lightning rod. I had thought about calling a cab, but had not made
it to the bank and had no cash to pay the $20 fare. So, I donned my bright
yellow rain gear and headed out.
I could feel the "bow wave" from my bike
wash over my feet as I made my way through Downtown Hilo, avoiding the storm
drains - I've memorized their locations. Not only is the current near them
fast, but the muddy water hides broken bottles, old automotive belts, bits of
string and rope, and other assorted debris.
The street lights were dimmed by the pounding rain,
and I could barely make out the tops of the coconut palms, except when
lightening flashed and their stark images were slammed into my retinas with
such force the afterimages danced in the street before me.
Fortunately, at that hour, there was little other
traffic.
As I reached the airport, the winds shifted, and the
raindrops became sparse, though the individual splatters were huge. I
parked, covered my faithful steed with his "blanket", and checked
in.
Going through security, my fellow passengers watched
with interest and sympathy as I - a "secondary female" - was
selected to be rather more thoroughly searched than were the others. The
usual x-rays of all gear were performed, and then each pocket and pouch was
thoroughly explored. It seemed to help that my back pack held mostly food:
pork, salt fish, freshly harvest sweet potatoes, and fresh leaf wrappers to
cook it all in. Also, some objects of ceremonial importance were tucked in as
well. At least most of the security personnel were smiling.
Just in time, I was released, dressed, and escaped to
the sanctuary of my plane.
As the engines spun up, I watched the rain again
remind us that this is really a water planet. More lightning illuminated the
runway, and I wondered just exactly what ARE the physics of a lightening
strike on an aircraft in mid-flight? Then, we were airborne.
Dawn broke over a sea of clouds, flashing in the
receding night behind me, and glowing gently before me. It was time for
morning prayer, and I offered my chant with more fervent thanksgiving than
usual. Before I could take it all in, we were dropping back down through the
clouds to the welcoming lights of Honolulu.
Soon, I was at the airport curb, watching for a
largish teal Harley. My fellow passengers smiled and waved as my Sweetheart
pulled a lei pua tuberose from his saddlebag and placed it around my neck,
with a kiss that let me know how much he missed me! As I wore my leathers on
the plane, and had only one bag and my helmet to carry on, it didn't take long
to load the bike, and we were off, blessed by the good wishes of our
"audience!"
Since it was a working trip, I had to attend to
business, but we also managed to take some time out to ride. Here is the
result of ONE of our jaunts:
 February
25, 2004
Well, Li'l Black, after
putting in over 100,000 miles for me - he was purchased used at
40,000 miles - needs an overhaul before he rolls any farther. So, to keep
me on the road, my honey got me a Suzuki - 1400 Intruder. What a GREAT
bike!
February 26, 2004
I'm pretty bummed right now. Yesterday, when I
went to pick up the bike, there was this really weird guy at the shop. He
made comments about how I had bought the bike out from under him. Well,
geez, all he had to do to hold it was put a deposit on it, and it would
have been his. Anyway, he kept being a buttinsky and wanting to talk about
the bike, and what he would do with it, and I just wanted to
listen to the instructions from the mechanic who had set it up. He started
getting "that" body language and voice, so I told him my fiancé
had bought it for me as an "engagement bike." He backed down.
Anyway, they only had a little gas in the tank,
so I went straight to the gas station. ARRRGGGGHHH!!!! Ran out in the
middle of one of the town's busiest intersections. Here I am, full
leathers, brand new cruiser, pushing the durned thing up the hill and into
the gas station! No one stopped to help me - they were too busy laughing
their durned heads off!
So I finally got to the gas station, and the
weird guy pulled up. He wanted to "help" me start the bike, and
was giving me all kinds of unsolicited advice, telling me it probably
wasn't fuel, that there was no sense in wasting money on fuel when that
might not be the problem. I was trying to tell him to go away, but my
biggest client had phoned me because I missed our meeting, what with
running out of gas and all, so I'm trying to not lose the client, and this
jerk is yapping at me and putting his paws on my ride! Wherever I stand,
he moves around to the other side, so I'm trying to body block him away
from the bike, and I finally told him to lay off. So he reaches over and
flips the fuel valve! Then he walks over and stands by the front end, and
says, "Well, since you bought it out from under me, I just wanted to
get a final chance to check it out," and bent down like he was
checking out the front. Then he gave me this really smarmy smirk and
went to his car and drove away.
I finished my call and got gas, bike started up
just fine. Jeez, the mechanic says you are on reserve, and has run the
bike a few miles to check it out, maybe that IS the problem!?!?!?
So I went home, was late for hula, parked the
bike in my LOCKED garage.
This AM, about 5:30, I took the bike out to scrub
in the tires and start wearing in the motor. I went up to Akaka Falls, and
then stopped at the little coffee shop there. It was getting light, and I
was admiring my beautiful ride, and noticed that there was something on
the front tire. It was two slashes! Even the chrome on the front rim was
nicked!
So the bike is BACK in the shop, and the dealer
is filling out the insurance and police paperwork for me, the gas station
is going through their video tapes, and I am seriously bummed. The
whole staff is being really sweet to me. I went into the office, and when
I called my Sweetie, I just started crying. The office manager put her
arms around me like she was my mommy and let me cry on her sweater. Do
real bikers cry? :-(
February 26, 2004
Knapsack was
handed over to me by an employee of the US Postal Service at 15:59 (3:59pm)
Hawai`i Time this afternoon. (Post office closes at 16:00). Wish I'd had a
camera with me. Nappy was strapped to Li'l Black's luggage rack in what may
have been my first bike's last ride. He is fading fast, went seriously
downhill over the weekend, and coming home from the post office was spewing
exhaust from his head pipes, oil from his gaskets, and raw gas from his
tailpipes. Main jet is going, and his rods are starting to clatter. Master
cylinder is oozing, and he has more duct tape and electrical tape than paint
or chrome. But he gamely carried the knapsack in its first Hawai`i Island
leg. After 110,000 miles, I guess I should expect to see some wear on Li'l
Black. But it still makes me feel very sad. He's in about the same shape as
my Dad's 30 year old trail horse. Tomorrow, I pick up Ka Makani, the new
'Truder14. I have a couple of jobs to finish this week, and my schedule is
packed until Thursday night. but during that time, Nappy will attend some
hula shows, take hula lessons, and rest up, as after my gig Thursday night,
I plan to go home, get a good night's sleep, and first thing Friday am, head
out on my first attempt at Ke Kikala Hao o ka Moku Hawai`i - the Big Island
Iron Butt, with Nappy riding pillion.
February 27
 SNOW
ON MAUNA KEA!!!!! HAD to go check it out!
March 9, 2004
Got to do an Elderhostel Tour - a week in Kona - which was really kewl,
but meant that my BRAND NEW bike had to sit under a cover all week while I
drove a bus. :-(
Some people figure that a tour guide just
lounges about chatting with the folks. HAH!!!
I meet them the night before, have my briefing
session with my "boss", and load my gear. Staff gets to bed
about midnight. 4:30 am we are up and loading the bus with the lunches and
gear. I drive the chase van, and my assistant rides with the group in the
main bus. We assist passengers on and off the bus. We stop at various
sites and I tell the stories, sing, and play music while my assistant teaches
them hula. At lunch time, we get the food out and put on a short hula
show. While our guests stroll about, we break down the gear and load it
back on the van and bus. Eventually we get them back to the
hotel for dinner. We chat and answer questions during dinner, then brief
them for the following day. After each day's work, then it's time for
paperwork and incident reports. Staff gets to bed around 10/11pm. Since the
guests eat breakfast at 7 am, I need to be available to them from 6
am (but on call 24 hours). I HAVE to have some personal time, so I get up
at 4:30 to talk to my honey (free cell phone until 6!), have coffee
privately, and eat a light breakfast because sometimes it's more demanding
than others and I don't always get to eat the regular meals. For example,
yesterday one of the guests got lost, so instead of eating lunch, I got to
hunt for him. I had my assistant remain with the group so no one else got
lost trying to find him! Some of the places we go can't take a 53
passenger bus, so I shuttle the guests in the 15 passenger van on those
days. Final night, we do a full hula show (two bell-carts jammed to the
top with gear are finally put to use!)
It's
a blast, and I love it, but restful, it's not! :-)
Pix from the tour are included in the Nappy
the Knapsack Tour here.
March 15
Just whining. It rained 15 inches last night. I
had to ride home 20 miles in it. It was wet and cold, and my boots got full
of water and were squishy. I hate squishy boots. Now my leathers smell like
a wet dog rolled in them. Whimper, whine, grumble. . . . . AND my pretty, brand new, shiny MOTORCYCLE is all
MUDDY!
May 25, 2004
what you don't realize is that what I said wasn't really what I meant. .
. . .
So there I was down at the track, watching the pretty cars drive fast.
One guy kind of lost it and then managed to pull it out with a really good
save - so I made the comment that he drove like my grandmother. . .
BOY did that tick his fans!
What I didn't manage to communicate was that my Nana drove a tricked out
1970 Caddi DeVille with heavy-duty suspension. She could pop a 180 on a
single lane country road, rat patrol that puppy, and two-wheel a corner like
nobody's business! She never raced or drove professionally, but she was
fearless and could get more out of a car than most anyone I knew.
I remember her telling me that with those big V-8s, you needed to "burn
the carbon out" on a regular basis - which meant finding at least 100 miles
of road and trying to cover it in an hour and a quarter - not easy on those
twisty country roads.
One time we were coming through the Hamakua gulches, and she was telling
me how you should never be on your brakes in a turn - "ALWAYS accelerate
through curves!" OK. I could hear that. What scared me was that she STARTED
the turns at 80!
I still think that boy was driving like my grandmother - but now I know
to keep my mouth shut!
May 27, 2004
I rode out to Honomu the other evening to officiate
for the opening of a community meeting. A little boy was starting to cross the
street, carefully walking his very well-cared for bicycle. He saw me coming
and hesitated, so I stopped and waved him across. He straightened up his
little back and strode across the street with his bike, turned, and gave me a
"biker wave." I gave the wave back and we parted, knowing we were
members of the same brother/sisterhood.
June 1, 2004
Well, over the weekend, my Sweetie and I
tested new tour routes for his MC tour company, and then
went to a party for his Aunty. We totaled almost 500 miles over
the long weekend.
Well, the party was getting kind of late, so we
were invited to spend the night and camp there under the big awnings. We
decided that might be a good idea, so we rode the bikes down a grassy embankment
- about 45-degree-slope - headed across the lawn - and parked by the
awnings. Well, some pretty humongeous rain clouds started rolling in, and
we realized that if it started raining, we would be stuck until a couple
of days after the rain stopped - unless we could convince all the cousins
to simply pick up the bikes and carry them out - but while they probably
would have carried the bikes over the embankment, we didn't think they
would be willing to carry the bikes the two miles up the 30-degree-slope one-lane
cold-patch road to the highway.
So, we said our goodbyes, loaded up and headed
out. Manu simply rode the rental V-Rod up the embankment and onto the
road. ME, I stated too slow and with insufficient momentum, lost traction about
3/4 of the way up, fishtailed, accidentally chopped the throttle, and
down I went on my left. I was able to control the fall so the bike
went down gently and I had my leg well out from under the bike. We
ended up with the bike on its side and me standing, straddling it.
Disgusted with myself, I hit the kill switch and
picked the bike up, setting it on its feet by the time Manu got off his
bike and back to me. Together, we backed it down the slope and then he
rode it up the embankment for me. Only casualty was to my pride.
I wanna get my Nighthawk fixed and go practice
riding on grass and mud!
June 14, 2004
HA! I was coming around a corner downtown (I had
right of way) when this woman (I think) in spike heel sandals, capris, a
spandex leopard-print top, garish makeup, and a bouffant hairdo looked
straight at me with a smirk, pointedly chewed her gum at me, and sauntered
directly into the path of my bike!
Well, when she first started looking at me, I
knew EXACTLY what she had in mind, so I was already pulling Kamakani
upright. What a wonderful, well-behaved beast! I leaned on the back brake,
feathered in the clutch, and gave him some throttle. He rumbled a little
louder, and came to a stop, vibrating, and pulling eagerly at the brake,
but obedient. I smiled at the creature as she passed in front of me - her
own smirk faded. When she stepped up on the curb, I gently released the
brake and Kamakani gracefully swept forward.
Sometimes, things just work.
July 20, 2004
Over the weekend, Manu and I went by The Hog Pen, his friends'
custom and
repair shop to get a little tinkering done on his dresser. While Larry did his
magic to Manu's Machine, my Sweetie and I spent some time drooling over a
couple of the bikes-in-residence.
Oooooohhhhhhhhhhhh
- They had a Billy Lane in for some engine work, and had recently finished a
custom job. I was doing some major drooling.
Lane's seriously rough tank has inspired me to quit
the Great e-Bay Search and simply fabricate my own tank for the mini-chopper I
want to build out of Li'l Red.
I also really like the treatment of the back fender and that deadly claw where
one normally places a sissy bar. NOTHING on the bike matches - pegs are
different, even the axle spacers come in rust AND chrome. A little over the
top for my own taste, my heart delights in symmetry. But still - it engendered
visions of the Ultimate Rat Bike dancing in my head! Of course, building my
own chopped rat will have to wait for the new gutters, fixing the bathroom,
fixing up the garden shed . . . . . . . But, hey, I have the frame, engine,
and some other assorted parts already!
The other Dream Machine is Deacon's own creation. Built for Jack Daniels, the
bike will be on display at the Honolulu Jack Daniels facility. I'd be itching
to jump on, but take a look at the primary - the thing scares the DAYLIGHTS
out of me! The tank features a proof-meter, and for the christening, the bike
was fired up on some Jack. The carbs have a tap for the Jack - though it would
take a stronger stomach than mine to digest that particular mix!
Take a close look at the bars. Notice
anything? Yes, the bike IS fully functional. How talented are YOUR feet?
The S&S engine puts out, I'm guessing, somewhere over 133 hp. Jewelry-like fit and finish made me want to run my fingers over the bike -
but I didn't want to get in trouble for smearing up the wax. So I
contented myself with rubbing the stacked-leather pegs and grips. Concept
to ridable machine - 29 days.
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Learning
to get comfortable with your bike