The Terror of Sharpless Alley

Well, now I’m an official Badass Motorcyclist! That’s me in the picture, wearing my new motorcycle helmet and gloves, bearing down on the camera at breakneck speed like the Lone Biker of the Apocalypse. (Would it look more convincing if I airbrushed out the kickstand?)

Anyhow, I had a great time tooling up and down the alley behind Kate’s parents’ house in West Chester at speeds approaching ten miles per hour, driving fenced poodles into an exquisite lather of rage. I started out feeling like I was playing the pipe organ, except if you forget what you’re doing a pipe organ doesn’t fall over on top of you. Soon, though, I felt more comfortable, and even made it into second gear! Woo-hoo!

Kate and her dad politely looked the other way while I thumbed the start button and stalled, thumbed the start button and stalled. Kate’s dad is a motorcycle racer. Apparently, if you’re a motorcycle person, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of him. He’s also a really nice guy. So, while I was having a great time, I was also in excruciating boyfriend purgatory as I teetered around on the bike, hitting garbage cans at low speed.

But I’m going to Motorcycle Safety School this Wednesday through Friday, and I hope to be able to ride around with some competence this weekend. Who knows, maybe I’ll even put the kickstand up!