“You ride that bike here all by yourself?”
I had pulled into a small town gas station somewhere in Texas to rest and refuel when the guy driving a black pickup truck approached me and asked such a stupid question.

My grinning reply, “you see anyone else ride in here with me?”

We talked for a bit. He said he used to ride and he couldn’t wait to get himself another motorcycle. He had just bought a dirt bike for his son. As I was riding down the road, I realized I should have asked him if he bought one for his daughter too! Equal opportunity don’t you know!

When I was little, my brother and I had a gocart and a minibike, but I never knew that girls road motorcycles. I sure am glad times have changed.

Another man came up to me and said, “That thing must sure get windy. I can’t even stand having the window down while driving my car.” Well, yeah, it does, and it sure is fun.

Another man from Mississippi, a complete stranger, had the audacity to tell me my skin wasn’t pretty. He thought I should have been wearing a jacket with padding in it. I wanted to tell him to mind his own business. Instead, I just turned around and headed the other direction. Some times it’s not worth the hassle of explaining your choices to some people. I do wear long pants, boots, gloves, and a helmet when I ride. It’s more gear than some wear and less than others wear.

Then, I sure am glad that the police officer that followed me for 10 miles didn’t want to stop and talk a bit. After seeing that I was cruising safely down the highway, he turned around and headed the other direction. “Whew!” I had been going 5 miles over the speed limit when he pulled in behind me. It must have been too much trouble to pull me over for such a minor violation.