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September 24th, 2008
Day Two Never Disappoints


muse@bikerenews.com

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Finding myself in the Sleepy Night Motel in Culpepper, I awoke to Elvis signing "Heartbreak Hotel". I think it was just a coincidence. I didn’t waste any time. I got dressed, packed the bike, and had my fast food breakfast sandwich at McDonald’s.

The first order of business was to finish what I started the day before. At 7:45 AM, I turned north on US-522 and headed for Front Royal. There is nothing like an early morning ride on a new road in the western part of Virginia. US-522 is a good ride that is worth the effort, especially in the morning. From Culpepper, it flows north to Front Royal then to Winchester before it stretches up to the most northern part of Virginia and into West Virginia. After sticking my front tire across the state line, I turned the bike around and headed back to Front Royal.

In Front Royal, I found the entrance to Skyline Drive. Two things struck me immediately. Skyline Drive is a $10 toll road (as opposed to the Blue Ridge Parkway), and has a speed limit of 35 mph (BR Pkwy has a 45 mph limit). Now this doesn’t make Skyline Drive a bad ride. However, I really wasn’t riding it to enjoy the scenery. I was riding it to "ride it."

With the lower speed limit, it appears that motorists seem to have no aversion to sightseeing while driving below the speed limit. This annoyance is magnified by the wild life that seems to think of the road as their private pathway. During the 100 mile trip, I saw deer beside the road, deer crossing the road, and deer blocking the road while tourist in cars took pictures. I could only be thankful that the local bears did not decide to come out to be part of a Virginia Tourism photo shoot. I wonder if registering to carry a GLOCK can be justified on the basis of protecting bikers from four legged maniacs.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining about the beauty and scenic views along Skyline Drive. It is just that I was out to ride, and aside from the very cool temps (66 degrees at the Byrd Visitor’s Center), it did not provide for the same sense of satisfaction that I had felt on my earlier ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I’m glad I made the ride, so I was able to see the sights and mark it off my "roads traveled" map. However, I don’t think I’ll be making a return visit in the near future.

At the southern end of Skyline Drive in Waynesboro, I turned west on US-250 to ride sections of VA-42 that I had missed on earlier rides. US-42 is the road I was on when a deer tried to commando me off of my bike a couple of weeks earlier. In order to ride the rest of VA-42, I had to do one of those crisscross maneuvers that requires going east to go west, and going south to go north. One of my future rides will be to travel the length of VA-42 in one uninterrupted ride. It has become one of my favorite roads.

After a great day of riding, it was 7:00 PM, and I was in Troutville ready for a good night’s rest. The day’s ride covered 487 miles and was another great Second Day of Riding.

The next morning I was in a good position to ride up to Buchanan (located on I-81) and catch VA-43. Without boring you with the details, the folks that designate Scenic Roads in Virginia know what they’re doing. I rode VA-43 down to Altavista on US-29.

From Altavista, I took US-29 down to Danville, and turned east on US-58 back to Virginia Beach. The day’s ride mileage was 318 miles. For the three days, I had covered 1,185 miles total. I had been south, north, west, and back to the east. Of course, there were a few backtrack routes that helped fill up the riding agenda.

As I was heading home, I was listening to one of my favorite folk groups, The Kingston Trio (from the 1960s). One of their songs, "One More Town," summed up my two wheel weekend.

If there’s one more town, I’ll be going
A fight for the winning, I’ll be there
If there’s one more song, I’ll be singing
I’m always going, but I don’t know where

Until the next time, ride safe, wave at other riders (it makes the cage drivers think we’re all crazy), and I can only hope that we all have ONE MORE TOWN to find around the next curve or over the next hill.

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