New Year's Day 2018 - Bobbing and Weaving

Bobbing and weaving, we wound through the canyons and along the spine of the Santa Monica Mountains on the Mulholland Highway through the Snake and past the Rock Store so we could hook up with the PCH for lunch at Duke’s in Malibu. Because that’s how we like to ring in the New Year.

Were our fifteen bikes a boxer, no palooka would they be. We did not attack the twisties with vicious body shots and head butts. No, we are more like The Greatest – floating and flitting through route like a butterfly. It was poetry in motion from the Starbucks in Porter Ranch to Duke’s.

Our four first-timers with the group fit like well broken-in gloves, as though they were born to the group of usual suspects. (List of riders and their rides below) We had clean lines through twisties, nice tight groupings in traffic, and exquisite spacing throughout. It was a joy to open the New Year with a ride like this on a clear day with mild temperatures; in the mid-sixties on the coast and low seventies in the hills.

We had Johnathan on his orange/white High Ball, soon to be customized to take out the white tank highlights. I think it will be an awesome look. Aaron joined us on a Touring Cruiser, a model I hadn’t heard of ‘til this ride. Larene and Roger came in from Bakersfield on a XC Touring and Vision, respectively, and won the prize for longest commute to the meet point. Vickie won for overcoming obstacles having repaired a flat and coming in from the Inland Empire on her Honda F6B and getting to the Starbuck’s in time for a Martinelli’s New Year’s toast before we put up our kickstands for the ride.

Kevin joined us after his forced sabbatical to care for his beloved Dory who passed away this past October after battling Alzheimer’s. We honored her with winged ribbons Bev put together. We all miss her and it was not lost on us how poignant this was for Kevin being his first holiday season and New Year’s Day without her. We continue to hold him and the family in our hearts for his grief.

New Years are for renewal. Rides punctuate our love for the road with friends, new and old. Our rider’s hopes are for roads to new places and rides to refresh our connections to familiar favorite roads and destinations. May it be so for you.

Ride well, keep the iron side up, and be blessed in 2018.

jerry

New Year’s Day 2018 Group:

Tim Robertson – Vision (The Enterprise)

Bev Hope – Vegas (Cloud 9)

Jed – Vision

Sue – Cross Country

Larene Meng – Cross Country Tour

Roger Meng – Vision

Steve McLean Sr. – Vision

Kevin Shaw – Vision (Nit Vision)

Todd Skaggs - Vision

Shawn Frausto – Cross Country (Sancha)

Vicki Peterson – Honda F6b

Aaron Staubach – Touring Cruiser

Stephen Thrasher – Cross Country

Johnathan Urazoff – High Ball

Jerry White – Cross Country (Stick II)

Note: We had more Vision riders than any other model. And, they let us know it.

Approaching Pt. Mugu

Run of the Amoeba - 2017 New Year's Day Ride to Malibu

Consider the amoeba – a single cell organism containing all the functions of life within a single membrane; nucleus (control), ingestion of nutrients, and elimination of waste. That’s right, all amoeba, like people, have one. Amoeba move via protoplasmic flow, or extending pseudopods in any given direction and the rest of the cell following along. Ingestion of nutrients is via phagocytosis, extending pseudopods to encircle prey or scavenged materials.

Reproduction is most famously achieved via asexual binary fission. The amoeba pulls in all pseudopods to form a more circular cell, the nucleus then splits and the pieces separate to opposite ends of the cell and the cells splits in two. Our lady riders will be pleased to know that these two cells are known as daughter cells. Thus the amoeba is cloned and the two cells move along to their purpose.

Typical Amoeba

Atypical bikes for today's Amoeba Run

Tim Robertson suggested the analogy a few days before our 2017 New Year’s Day ride to Duke’s in Malibu for their Sunday Breakfast Buffet. It was with this analogy in mind that I met up with the other riders at the Mobile Station in Newberry Park for New Year’s hugs all around - Tim and his excellent wife Bev, Jed and his amazing Sue, Shawn, the incomparable Vicki, and myself. This group of riders fits the Amoeba analogy to a tee. We formed up and rode through Potrero Canyon to Oxnard where we made a stop at the Point Mugu Missile Park for a photo op.

I rode sweep for this first section, a position in the ride group I rather like. I suppose it is the mother-hen part of my personality, or better yet, the sheepdog part. Or maybe I just like having everyone in front so they don’t see my goofs on the road. This all changed when we reformed the group after the amoeba stretched out a bit coming off PCH onto the Mulholland Highway. At that point Vicki took the sweep and was treated to a couple of deviations on my part; nothing serious as I could see that I had a clear enough road to come back into the lane. I guess even in the bits of the amoeba cell can get too close to each other and cause a spasm of sorts. I’d let the gap between me and Shawn close a bit too much and didn’t have room to gracefully slow down into a curve and went wide with my late reduction in speed. Ah well.

The day was ideal; chilly, but nothing reasonable cold-weather gear couldn’t handle. And, even though we’d had some good rain the two days prior, there was very little in the way of storm debris along the canyon roads and everyone did the group ride thing of pointing out the occasional rock or gravel for those following. We practiced a little phagocytosis at the Rock Store when Todd, who had just finished his breakfast, saw us coming and jumped on his Vision to take the sweep from there to Duke’s in Malibu. He helped round out our table for eight for the very good buffet, stimulating conversation, and a stunning view of the Pacific.

Arrival at Duke's Malibu

As with any group ride, goodbyes are said before everyone mounts up for the last leg of the ride and this we did in the parking lot of Duke’s. The amoeba reformed and headed north from Duke’s on PCH to catch Kanan Dume Road heading to the interior. The process of binary fission started at Highway 101 and continued on until every rider and bike was at their home base, safe and sound.

For all that; the ride, the riders, food, comradery, and most importantly, the safe arrival home, I am well and truly thankful.

Vicki Peterson created a splendid video of our day, the link can be found below.

Whenever you find yourself in a ride-group, remember the amoeba and know that you perform a critical function to the organism, whatever it might be, and keep the iron side up.

Peace

jerry

Vicki's well done video with great musical selections: