Taking a motorcycle safety course next month. Not sure exactly what I'll be getting yet.

Something european and high maintenance. Because life was too boring with 2 Japanese cars. 2015 KTM Duke 390

Got some new gear (do we still consider this gear when it serves no practical purpose?) and had to take a neighborhood ride to test it out. It was well-received by kids and adults alike.

@trumpybear I'm sorry you think a vaccine is controversial ¯\(ツ)/¯

We had impromptu date of sorts and went for some light off-roading where she actually drove most of the way. Her mom taught her when she was a teenager but she thought she had forgotten everything. I just told her to release the parking brake and off she went. Some rough shifting and a couple stalls, but no clutch burning.
Went back to the spot where this picture was taken, but didn't take a lot of pics this trip.

We also broke something.

The term "broken" being used loosely here as it seems it was just held on by that worm clamp and some exhaust tape.

I was actually very relieved that it was just the exhaust. The sound of if clanking against the frame sounded a lot like something worse like piston slap.

I've found that Calvin's parents steadily get funnier the older you get.

So says my dad on the phone. I laugh and say "because it's fun". But I also laugh because he's a big reason I got hooked on it years ago in the first place.

Rewind back to ~2007, I was a senior in high school and gas prices were reaching batshit levels (by US standards, anyway). My dad decided to get a 50cc scooter to save on gas. Like so many people, he was under the false impression that a scooter was inherently safer than a motorcycle. As such he was only slightly hesitant to let 18 year old me use it. And use it I did.
As soon as I got the hang of it, I couldn't wait for excuses to hop on and ride. I look back on it now and sometimes laugh, sometimes cringe. I wore no protective gear save for a ¾ helmet with a face shield. I inherited my dad's freakishly small head so at least it fit me okay. Between the 2 of us I put many more miles on that black Yamaha Vino. As luck would have it the only thing that didn't seem to notice me was the occasional traffic light, which was good because I had no clue of the risks involved in city riding or that I should always have an escape route planned. I just rode ¯\(ツ)/¯

I left home and was living on the other side of the country and my dad sold the Vino. He barely rode it, so it made sense. Ever since then I've wanted a motorcycle something fierce, but it was never the right time for some reason or another. I'd seriously looked into it a great many times. Through my early 20's I was too poor for anything but my beater Pontiac that I bought from my immobile great aunt for $200. I also looked at many old bikes that I could have sprung for as a first but thought better of it. I had told myself that when I was going to do it, I would do it proper with a bike that's less of a death trap and all the protective gear, and that's $. In the meantime, I read quite a bit and kept fairly up to date with the motorcycling world.

Truth be told, between training, and gear, and life experience, I'm safer on my bike than I ever was on that scooter. I could have told my dad that. Instead, I give my dad and stepmom the boxed reply:

"Yes, I'll be careful. Yes, I'll always wear a helmet"

I still kinda want to buy a Vino for old time's sake.

Fucking finally
Shipping got delayed, and I wasn't notified. Showed up for my appointment last week and they didn't have them in yet. Something about FedEx being slower than usual because they're doing all the shipping some sort of vaccine for some sort of pandemic.
Anyway I have matching tires now and I'm happy.

Took about 2 weeks, and 2 showings. Wasn't as quick as I'd have liked (never is, no matter what) but it was easy, no low ballers or no-shows. It's moto shopping time.

@spacekraken I voted column shift master race, but why is Jaguar J shifter not an option

@neil-in-nomi if you have zero motorcycle experience, taking the course first is what I would advise. It may help you get a better idea of what you want, and what you can handle. Some people will tell you that you want a 650 minimum for regular freeway, and they're not typically wrong, but the 400 thumper they put in the 401 and 390 Duke is tuned fairly aggressively and has the power to do it. You'll want a windscreen though, the air resistance you catch sitting upright on those over 50 mph is no joke.

@exage03040 My instinct is 4runner just because I have limited use for a bed.

or a cult of accountants.

Nonsense. Everyone knows cults of accountants travel on Harleys.

No, not that road

There are basically 2 ways to head south into the Salt Lake Valley, one is the freeway and the other is a divided highway. It's not a bad drive when there's low traffic and is right by my house whereas the freeway is a bit more of a jaunt. There is however, one problem. This road takes you right past the mouth of a canyon, and the wind coming out of said canyon is IN. SANE. I figured I'd have to brave it sooner or later, so I gave it a shot after I got off work, between 6 and 7 am Sunday morning when there's nobody out but me. It was scary as hell. I started to regret it pretty quickly and thought I was certainly going to crash, but stayed focused and relaxed except for my knees that had a death grip on the tank. I tried the "knee trick", either I did it wrong or the wind was too strong to make a difference because it didn't do shit. At any rate I managed to stay in my lane and not crash. Maybe I'll give it another go next weekend as well.

We went a little too hard chasing the RC car today and tore a dew claw, so now we're visiting mom at work

UPDATE:
Doggo is home and happy, just tired. Dew claw got the snippy snip and he's got a gimpy paw for a few days while he heals

@ttyymmnn this was yesterday, it's snowing right now sigh

And of course my pfp!

@ibrad ding ding! You got it! A piece of the master link fell off!