I meant well. I do plan to sell the bike. I do plan to stop riding, so my wife does not worry about me.

On the way home Wednesday afternoon, I was changing lanes on the freeway (turn signal, mirror check, shoulder check) and half way into the lane I got knocked back into the lane I was leaving. Sideswiped, hard, by a lady coming from the lane further out. Running damage down the drivers side of my car, and my side view mirror (the one I had just checked – ah, good times …) was destroyed. We pulled over, exchanged insurance and registration information, and went along our way. I very carefully made sure to stay in the far right lane all the way to the exit, and then stayed in the left lane all the way to the house. No mirror to check, you know. But I can guarantee that my shoulder checks were often and thorough. My insurance adjuster still gave me an earful when she found out the mirror was gone and I had still driven it home. I was told in no uncertain terms that the car was not to be moved under it’s own power until the mirror was replaced.

Our auto insurance covers the cost of a rental car. I was OK with it at first, my beautiful bride was not. I offered to let her drive the rental, but even that didn’t help. We turned it back in yesterday.

That left only one option: the motorcycle.

While my bride reluctantly agreed, and I know my knee cannot take another hit like it did in May, I certainly enjoyed the ride in to work this morning.

(full disclosure: my bride had agreed, before the sideswipe happened, to allow me to make one last Patriot Guard ride, to escort the National Riders from Winslow to Kingman on Saturday morning)

So, while I had planned to park it, circumstances changed that. I’m not saying it’s God’s will for me to ride, but …

Chat ya later…

Thanks for stopping by, In GOD We Trust, and Wear Red on Fridays!

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I love riding. I have loved riding for many, many years. The feel of the wind against your body, the sensation of flying or floating along is incomparable.

Adding a mission to my riding, with the Patriot Guard Riders and the Missing In America Program meant that it was no longer a hobby and a method of transportation. It had meaning. It is a way for me to express the honor I feel for those who have served this country, with no thought of themselves. Riding escort to the final resting place of those who have served, or standing a flag line to honor those still living is an extension of myself, my own service, still under oath to this country.

I may be considered a radical patriot, but I am a patriot. I love this country and those who serve it.

I am a Christian. I love Jesus more than myself. He is my role model for selfless service. He is my role for how to love my wife.

I love my wife. More than this country, more than my service to others, more than my own life, I love my wife. Giving my wife any reason to be concerned for my safety is not a way of showing her the love she deserves. My wife does not like motorcycles. I have tried to show her that I am safe on my motorcycle, but the actions of others have an impact on my safety –and that is something I cannot control. When other’s actions cause me to be injured, it is a valid concern for my wife – if I am injured to the point of being incapacitated, I cannot provide for or protect her.

I love riding, but I love my wife more. After my non-accident in May, and after what my wife saw this morning on her way to work, I have decided to park the bike. In fact, I’m going to sell it. I’ll have to, to avoid the possibility of being tempted to ride it. And I am tempted to ride it. Every day, it sits in my garage, ready to go – and I am not ready physically to take another maneuver like I did in May; my knee isn’t strong enough yet. One day it will be, and when it is I may look at getting another motorcycle – but not without my wife’s input and blessing.

I will miss riding. But I never want to cause my wife grief because of it.

Chat ya later…

Thanks for stopping by, In GOD We Trust, and Wear Red on Fridays!

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