10.09.2010

Fall in Michigan

My Misty girl.
Ok, so I'm interrupting our previously scheduled set of vacation articles to put in a Michigan, fall, weekend, special edition:  Fall in Michigan.

I love fall, it is my favorite season of the year.  I especially love it in Michigan, because it is apple cider season... YUM... It doesn't get much better than this.  Today was a perfect fall day, sunny, gorgeous, and about 64 degrees Fahrenheit.  The trees are changing colors and the further north you go in Michigan right now, the more colors you'll see.  You'll also see a lot more motorcycles.



Triumph Detroit
Speaking of which, I should say that we took a visit to our local dealership today to check out the fall clearance items and maybe grab a ride or a t-shirt.  You know from my blog that I ride a Honda Valkyrie, and my dad rides a Honda Goldwing, however, our local dealership doesn't sell Hondas, they are Triumph of Detroit.  They are a fun dealership and put on a good show.  Today was kind of mellow: doughnuts, pop, some sales, and rides on their personal inventory of test ride motorcycles (most dealerships don't do such a thing any more).  However, I have to tell you that they throw one of the best open houses you can go to around here.  In the spring (this year), they had 6 huge spits going with b-b-q everything: chicken, ham, beef brisket, brats and all of the fixings with a live band, guys in kilts, and they had the big truck of motorcycles up from Georgia taking out demo rides around the clock.  I've had a chance to try several of the bikes now: the America, the Scrambler, the Rocket III, and the Rocket III tourer (the Rocket III is the only bike that is close to be comparable to my own- which will require replacing eventually).  I also have to say that for a dealership and dealing with a girl, I think they do a better job than most.  I do have the advantage of seeing me ride up on my flat-six, chromy deluxe chick-bike, so they've never asked me if the Rocket III would be too big for me and they will come talk shop and bikes with me.  Amazingly that is not show at most other dealerships around here.  I practically have to handcuff a salesman to get him over to chat with me about a bike.  And women riders are the fastest growing market for motorcycles and this is 2010, go figure.  The salesmen will come talk to my dad, but not me.  It can be very annoying.  (Needless to say, I don't buy bikes from those shops, if they don't want to talk to a lady, they don't need to make a sale to a lady.)


Making the Cider
Anyway, I digress... but the day did start off with motorcycles and was surrounded by motorcycles.  It's too bad fall doesn't last a bit longer, it is so much fun.  After Triumph, we headed north, my niece, my sister, my mom, my dog, and myself.  Off to taste the joy of fall.  Off to visit the wizards of cider...nectar of the gods of fall.  The first day of flannel, the first taste of warm spiced cider with warm cinnamon-sugar doughnuts, and the colors of fall.  There has to be a special place in heaven that is like this year round and I want to be there.

Camero sticks his head into the picture.
So in keeping with tradition, we got much cider, ate enough doughnuts to count for a month of Sundays, the dog got to share (and mark) new special fall places, and we brought a bunch home to enjoy the bounties of fall over the next week or so and relive our yummy weekend.  Oh, and we got to try something new this year- apple cider slushies.  Totally awesome!  They should be available year round also.

So, as I wipe the cinnamon-sugar from my lips, I raise my cider to you all.  Have a great fall and more importantly... have a great fall ride to your special fall place!

1 comment:

  1. I followed your comment from The Kill Zone's First Lines post - I loved yours! - and here I find a biker-mad writer! Can I sift your brain? I'm not very good with motorcycles (or anything on wheels) but one of my mansucripts have a main character who is supposedly good at engines. He also drives a motorcycle, and frankly, I'm terrified I've messed up somewhere and will one day be yelled at by some biker who's been offended by my amateurish way of describing a motorcycle.

    And, of course, can I read the rest of the story from that first line of yours?

    ReplyDelete

Please leave a comment, it will shoot me an e-mail and then I can "allow" it. This keeps spam down (the evil web sort - not the canned meat variety). Thanks.