Commander's Ride

This past Thursday was our new Commander's "1st Annual Group Ride," and all motorcycle riders in the unit were told that this ride was their place of duty. So with me being a new motorcycle owner, and all excited to go on my first actual ride longer than four miles, I got my stuff ready and showed up.

We were to meet at Jimmy Ray's Cycle Shop in Graham, WA at 9:00am, and go through some safety & awareness classes. The Group Commanders spoke and then they picked out several veteran riders to lead packs of eight (or so) riders. The route Would take us from the motorcycle shop through a few towns, and straight to the base Mount Rainier to a small town named Paradise. It was a relatively straight shot from the shop to the mountain, with few turns off.

I didn't count the exact number of motorcycles that ended up showing up, but it easily numbered over 60 bikes. It was many more than I thought would show up. Cruisers, sportbikes, a couple sport tourers, a couple full baggers, and the expected compliment of Harley Davidsons were present. But the one ride that stood out in the crowd was the shiny, black Vespa 250 that lined up alongside everyone else in the open field outside of the shop. Let me tell you, that guy caught a lot of crap, too. The Commander thought that it had only shown up for the send-off, and as a gag. One of the funniest things I can recall about that Vespa was watching a guy walk across the parking lot of the compound in full leather riding gear, and then sit astride that scooter. But to everyone's surprise, it hung with the group all the way there and back.

When our group took off it was broken up into a couple of pieces because of traffic. Everyone stopped about 10 miles or so up the road to wait for everyone to catch up, and once we all got there we re-grouped and continued off.



The ride itself was great: sunny weather, 60º temperatures, dry roads, a few light breezes. Once we got to our turnaround point, it was in full view of the mountain. For those who have never seen Mount Rainier, it is an incredible sight to see regardless of where you view it from. It is just as picturesque up close as it is from far away.



We had some food at the lodge: sandwich, chips, nachos... general short-order-type stuff. Of course it was overpriced because there wasn't a food place for miles. I would love to say that nothing tastes better when you're hungry than a $9 sandwich, but I'd be lying. It tasted just like any other sandwich, except for the bitter aftertaste of supply-and-demand.

After eating, we all got back on the bikes and started our ride back to the shop. One from our group was a bit nervous about going down the mountain on his sportbike, and he, myself, and one other rider ended up descending to the base of the hill (and the park) very slowly. I don't fault him for going slowly - I'd rather he be comfortable at his own pace than feel hurried to catch up. It was close to the park entrance (and the base of the mountain) where he finally became more comfortable with his leans and turns, and began to pick up speed. Once we exited the park, the rest of our group was there waiting patiently to link up, and we continued on the return leg of our journey.

The ride back was warmer than the morning ride up, and I was thankful to have lightened up on my gear before leaving the mountain. I had packed a tripod, hoping to be able to get a scenic group picture, but nobody sat still long enough for me to get everyone together for the shot. Next time I'll remember to speak up earlier to try and make that happen. I did see a couple guys earlier in the morning who were walking around with large cameras, and I'm sure they were actual professional photographers; I'm hoping that they took MANY shots and that I managed to appear in one. I did end up with a nice t-shirt from the event that the Commander had made; a long-sleeve black t-shirt with the unit logo on front left and full-sized on the back in silver reflective paint.



I enjoyed my first official ride that day, and I made note of a few things that I would have to keep in mind for the next ride such as: packing snacks, remembering to top off the fuel tank before arriving at the starting point... normal trip-type stuff. Most of all I noticed the spreading of a shared camaraderie, among both established friendships and new acquaintances, of riders old and new. If I'm not deployed or away for the next Commander's Ride, I will most certainly be there, ready to ride.