The Famed Sunday RIde

Well, if there is anyone out there that is following my blog, then you know that Sunday's are normally reserved for a Bike ride into Central Florida. Today was no exception. I got up a little early just to hit the gym and get my morning working out done. Then home for a fast shower and on the bike! It was a perfect Florida day, sunny, low humidity and around 74 degrees. There was a little wind, but over all just a perfect day. One other thing added to making these conditions my favorite riding time...the orange blossoms were in Bloom! What a sweet smell. It is intoxicating...makes you want to talk with a southern accent..."my my, won't ya'll have a mint julep on the veranda?"...LOL. Another favorite ride thing to to find some little Mom & Pop restaurant along the way for breakfast. Friendly folks serving up cups of coffee and country style breakfast. Mmm mmm!!


Then it was time to go "kick stands up" and head north. The great part of a casual ride is when I see a road I haven't travel...down it I go. We ended up in Leesburg again. This is going to be the site of a very cool weekend bike fest in April. While riding through the old historical downtown district, I noticed a VERY COOL street sign and had to get my picture taken by it...not that I'm bias or anything! lol Being on the corner of MIKE ST and MAIN, is not as cool as "standing on the corner of Winslow, Arizona, but I could claim that Mike St. was named after me! Just to let me beat any of you to it...yes I know there are tons of comments you can make about the One Way street sign, spare me! :} I'm now thinking that I might start a collection of places and sign's with my name or my friend's names. Ok..I'm back to acting like I don't have a life again!

Maybe I will and maybe I won't! On the trip back, I was driving through another little burg and spotted yet another old fashioned sign pointing to the old downtown district. These are the coolest spots on earth. Narrow streets lined with shops or abandoned shops. You can find some of the greatest little places. I circle around one of the blocks and I found myself on the edge of a city park and a huge lake. People were jet skiing, boating, and fishing. Across the street was a jamming little bar with a big deck facing the lake! Next weeks road trip!!! Going to check it out and I'll give ya a review! Until then...cyaz!

A Cool Ride

I look at the news several times a day..yes I do have a life, I just like the news. Anyway, I look at the weather from around the country and see wicked snow storms in the west and north. I looked at my local forecast for my "Sunday Ride" and it was going to be 50 degrees in the morning getting up to 65!! Woohoo...winter is still here! LOL Although not considered cold by many, it was cool enough to throw the dead cow on, which consists of a leather biker vest leather chaps and a leather jacket over my black biker shirt and jeans. Now, not a fashion statement by any means, but in the crisp cool wind I was very comfortable. Being very wet or very cold drains your energy when your riding for any distance. Today was not a long distance, maybe about 150 miles. The ride was my favorite, north of Tampa into the hilly area of the West Central Florida area. Because of St Patricks day being the night before and the in taking of a bit of the Irish spirits, we opted to get a little later start to the morning ride. The usual heading out to grab some breakfast turned into going for lunch! So, the first choice was "Pancho's" in San Antonio, Fl. The little hole-in-the-wall, is one of the best authentic Mexican Catina's! The food is great, the prices are good. Now, as you can see in the photo it is not a very big place and those are people waiting to get in. Just out of camera view are a bunch of bikes. We asked one couple closest to the door about the wait time and they had already been there 30 minutes! Ouch! We were hungry and needed to kill the St Paddy virus coursing through our veins with COFFEE!!!!! So, sadly, we mounted up and headed into the next township and hit another chain-restaurant. The rest of the ride was really great. The rolling hills and scenic pasture land makes it a relaxing ride. I always say that I'm going for a "ride to clean out the cobwebs". It lets me think about a lot of things, people and the future. One thing I was thinking about is the upcoming Leesburg Bike Fest the last week end in April. I have missed the last two years because of obligations at work. (I have high work ethics and couldn't just play hooky... ;} ) But this year my calendar is open! I'm so pumped!!! There will be a lot more about this in later blog entries. Be safe... Remember, growing older is mandatory. Growing up is optional. mws