Passes & Canyons Blog

Granted I don’t fill my cart at Costco like some people do, but this was a pretty typical run for me, and it all fit in the V-Strom’s bags.

So I did it. I finally made a coronavirus era trip to Costco and I did it on the V-Strom as I had said I would. I bought everything on my list and a few extras and the huge bags that bike has ate every bit of it and could have held more.

First off, the bike came to me with two absolutely enormous Givi side bags. I don’t normally keep them on the bike except when I travel but I put them on for this occasion. And there is also a fairly large top bag on the rear that holds quite a bit, too. Heck, as long as I’m not buying some ginormous package of toilet paper–Costco size–I could probably do most of my Costco shopping on this bike.

Not having been to Costco in about six weeks, before all of this coronavirus shutdown got rolling, I was a bit leery, wondering what it would be like. I pulled in and the parking lot was not as full as normal but I could see a long line of folks waiting to get inside. I parked and put on my mask and took my place in line. They have freshly painted markers every six feet along the sidewalk to keep people from getting too close.

I pulled out my phone to text Judy to say I was in a line to get in, but it was moving quickly, but the lady just in front of me turned to me and started chatting. I never did text Judy because we talked motorcycles the whole while that we waited.

Yes, she was retired, about my age, and she used to ride motorcycles. She said she rode a Harley Low Rider for many years but then a friend suffered a horrible crash and was left a quadriplegic. That scared Wanda (that’s who this was) and she decided that if you’re scared you have no business on a motorcycle. So she sold it.

But she missed riding and after awhile she bought a Yamaha V-Star. She said she really liked the V-Star better than the Low Rider but after awhile she got scared again and sold it. But she was adamant that she continues to keep her M on her driver’s license. She might yet ride again some day and lord knows you don’t want to have to take that rider’s test again.

So we talked bikes. She asked me if I’d ever gone down and I told her about the time up by Deckers when I was coming down the gravel road pretty slowly when a dog walked out right in front of me from between two parked cars. She told me about putting her foot down once at a stop and discovering only then that there was a rut and only air where she expected pavement. I said yeah, I’ve done that, too.

She also told me of how she twice got her leg burned by the exhaust on that Low Rider. I concurred and told he that while I have never owned a Harley I have ridden them at times. Once it was raining and I had my rain suit on and at a stop one time I looked down to see that the leg of my rain suit was melting against the pipe.

In this manner we whiled away the time until we got to go in. And then for the first time in weeks, the store had everything I came for. And the bags swallowed everything I bought.

Biker Quote for Today

Biker Mom. Like a regular mom only cooler.