Riding alone on a 1966 Velocette Endurance

[Thruxton71]

The Corvair trike was the only other person at the meeting place, and because of a seriously injured shoulder, he was driving a Dodge Mini van. I rolled in on my 1966 Velocette Endurace, gassed up, and headed up 33. My plan was to ride up to Lynn's leap and return, as that section of the road is, in my opinion, the most interesting.

Unlike my brother, I don't mind riding by myself. In fact, I enjoy it. Today was a perfect riding day. There was cloud cover, so no bright sunlight blinding me in the middle of corners and for some reason, no traffic at all. On top of this, there is one land in each direction all the way to the leap.

Under these conditions, with the Endurance running well, I can focus on my entry and exit for every familiar corner all the way to the top. My riding style doesn't rely on heavy braking, that would be counter productive, as the 500 cc Venom engine, on a good day, is rated at 27 hp. So, scrubbing off speed going up hill with the brakes just makes the transition to the next corner more difficult, as the bike really doesn't have a lot of punch on this road. Better to downshift on the approach, maintain a safe corner speed (This road has all sorts of hidden risks...rocks and gravel in corners.. animals..) and carry that speed into the next corner. I focus on road position, keeping my sight line as far through the corner as possible, and setting up for the next corner. Done without drama, I find this exercise to be oddly relaxing, like meditation. Even more so on the descent, were I don't need to keep the engine on the boil to maintain an interesting pace. I try not to touch the brakes in either direction. Very Zen.

With no other riders I can really ride within myself.

I stopped at Lynn's leap and we practically had a convention. First the Miata came back down the road, claiming that nobody was at the gas station at 7 sharp, so he left without us. Then a 650 GS BMW with an old friend dropped in on his way to a dirt road (quatar road) between 33 and pine mountain.

It was a wonderful day, even, or because, I was riding by myself.

Ojai