The 360 Get Back Jack Ride
A few people have asked why I haven’t posted anything about this past weekend’s ride yet. Well, I’m still working on the video (not happy with output quality) and it’s been a busy week at work (it’s only Tuesday!) so far. I should mention, though, the ride was fantastic!
I had breakfast with Carl at Cracker Barrel and just as we were leaving Ian came in. We rode over to the Harley dealership together and waited as riders assembled. The HOGs had a ride that morning, too, and the result was quite a few riders gathering in the parking lot. I made my best effort to leave close to our scheduled time and we got out about 9:15. The ride up 710 (Beeline Hwy) was nice with few traffic light stops and moderate traffic. The roads were clear, the skies were clear, and the temperatures were cool. It was shaping up for a beautiful day.
About 10 miles south of Okeechobee, long after you passed through Indiantown, there’s a place where the railroad tracks cross the road. I was waiting for it, but it took so long I thought I might have misread the maps. Eventually, we came to the landmark and I watched my odometer for the next 1.9 miles for a sign indicating the entrance to Martin Hwy. I was rewarded with a sharp right followed by another sharp right leading back east towards Stuart. The tree-lined road created a beautiful canopy with the sun pushing through from the east. Traffic was light coming towards us and there was none in front of us. We rode through the 50 MPH two-lane road and enjoyed the calming effect of this back road. This was the nicest road I’ve ever been on in South Florida. It’s so rare to have miles of road lined with trees that connect at the top. I recommend this stretch of pavement to everyone, even though it’s a straight line.
We eventually reached the junction with I-95 and continued east into denser traffic. Vic took the lead as he was almost home and I wanted to include him in a group photo. He lead us to a Starbucks where a bathroom break seemed to be on the mind of almost everyone. Coffee was consumed and we moved outside where I took a panoramic to make into a screen saver. I had brought a tripod, DSLR still camera, and a video camera for the day. There had been as many as 18 people signed up for this ride and it would have been a great photo opportunity. As it was, we had a great group shot. Three of our bikes peeled off here and we were down to six.
We got underway again and gave the gas guzzlers a chance to refuel before moving over to A1A. We rode through Martin County to Bridge Road where we made the left turn towards the ocean, now less than a mile away. This road had been a tree-lined beauty before the hurricanes. It is still recovering and has a beauty of its own. Within a minute or two we were in the park by the ocean. We had learned just after the fuel stop that Frank had been involved in an accident where he was run off the road. While mildly injured and his bike somewhat broken, he filed the report and tried repeatedly to join up with us on the road. There was a lot of concern for him in the group. We care about our riders.
After hanging out at the beach and enjoying the scenery (yeah… ) we headed out. I was consumed with starting the camera and missed the immediate turn on exiting the park. After turning around, I turned too quickly and led us into a parking lot. Undaunted by total embarrassment, I went out and finally got us on the right road. We rode along multi-million dollar homes at 30 MPH, a common speed along A1A. We came into Jupiter and rode through Juno Beach until we joined US1 again. A short jaunt to PGA Blvd and a left turn took us onto Singer Island, passing MacArthur Park and a series of high-rise condos. We crested the Blue Heron bridge and rode south to 45th St., just east of the Harley shop.
A quick ride down I-95 and out Okeechobee Blvd. brought us to Island Jack’s, the planned end of the ride. Burgers, shrimp, and pulled pork satisfied my friends and me as we talked about the ride that day and the ride coming up. We talked about bikes and experiences and had a great time. It was a long day due to the slow ride along the ocean from Stuart. After five and a half hours of riding we were ready for refreshments.
About 4:00 or so we split up with Will and Rabbi headed towards the Beeline to get home and Rich, Ian, and myself heading west to Wellington. It was a really nice ride. If I had remember to put the sun screen on it would have been better ( I got fried ). I hope this coming weekend works as nicely as this ride did.