 Here’s my honest review of one of the most famous motorcycle roads in the world. 11 miles with 318 turns - yeah it’s by far the most challenging road I’ve ever ridden.
So many people put such fear in me about the road, I was doubting that I could handle it even with my 18 years of riding experience. I had seen a few pictures and videos online and what I was fearing most was the pressure from the large crowds of bikers and/or being run off the road by riders trying to race. Friends said "Take caution, it's unlike anything you've ever ridden on. There will be lots of people going way too fast. Things happen really fast in some sections" Ok, I get it, way too much for me, or so I thought.
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 As promised - a blog about the gear we took camping this past weekend. I figured that I had so much to rave about, this deserved a post of it's own. So here it goes.
First, I need to give a shout out to both Kriega AND SW Motech for awesome luggage solutions. Yes, I had to use a hybrid set-up because SW Motech makes really clean racks for my Triumph which are easy to install (check out the Insta story - coming soon!) But they don’t have the adaptable, waterproof dry bag options that Kreiga offers. And because I always get stuck in the rain when I travel (it’s true - there was zero precipitation foretasted this Memorial Day, yet the rain found me), these dry bags kept everything dry and packed tight. I love that I am able to cinch everything down on the bag, and if I decided to throw more in during my adventures - like some cans of wine - the bag will adjust - and only ever be as large as the gear I’m carrying. No bulky gear if I don’t have much with me. The SW Motech racks and accompanying plate (sold as left side or right side but here's a hint - the plates are interchangeable - I used two right sides) were sturdy enough to hold whatever I stepped to it - Kriega bags and multiples sleeping bags - without losing anything! My first motocamping adventure I lost both my sleeping bag and tent on the Interstate - so this successful solution felt like a HUGE win for me! One more bonus to these Kreiga dry bags - they're modular which allows us to have bags of different sizes, and attach them together for a truly customized luggage set-up. Absolutely LOVING the versatility of these bags!  Wow, an epic motocamping trip this Memorial Day weekend! Although it was a quick trip, it couldn’t have been better!
 Although we’ve been mostly focusing on prepping for our road trip through the Great Smokey Mountains, we decided that we NEED a getaway this upcoming Memorial Day weekend. We chose moto-camping to be sure and keep costs down, while still experiencing all we can during this ongoing pandemic.
 Beyond thankful to have been able to ride so many miles this weekend! While it seems like most of the world has fallen into COVID despair, we have been fortunate to get out, enjoy the beautiful weather, and share lots of smiles (all while social distancing).
When you know it's going to be a beautiful Saturday, and have zero commitments, you plan a nice long ride - I figured it was finally time to give my Indiana guy a full tour of Long Island. Since we spend so much time riding east, I decided it was time to head west. Using what seems to be a great motorcycle app - Scenic - I put together a 200 mile ride with lots of twists and turns, and gorgeous water views. Has anyone used that app? If not, what navigation app do you use? Although it was a bit cool, we decided to take advantage of the sunny clear skies and get on the motorcycles and head east. We found ourselves cold and hungry out in Greenport. Luckily, we came upon a place that looked welcoming and vacant – First and South. Despite this quarantine situation, they still had an inviting front porch with clear instructions for social distancing. I was so grateful that we were the only people there; and at a distance, the owner was welcoming, turned on the porch heater as she could tell we were chilly, presented us with a hot tea selection, and brought us a large bottle of Pellegrino with cups of fresh cut lemon. So we comfortably sat on the porch waiting for what turned out to be a delicious meal. The small mushroom mac and cheese with truffle oil was more than enough for two people to split, and the black bean burger was literally overflowing with the freshest ingredients – avo, onions, lettuce, tomato – and accompanied with a plentiful salad that was more than enough for us. Because of this stellar service even in such a crazy time, I would highly recommend this place and can’t wait to return again when we can enjoy this place to it’s fullest.  So I’ve finally decided to jump into the Go-Pro world thanks to a certain Ducati rider - yes, I know, about sixteen years late. We have an epic road trip planned at the end of May so we’ve started to experiment and “play” with a Hero 5 Session and a Hero 8 Black. We’ve recently taken a bunch of raw footage from a few local rides here on the North Fork, and some beach drives in the Jeep with the pups. The footage looks great using both a fork mount and a helmet chin mount. I haven’t yet started to edit, but I’m looking forward to working with the footage to make a montage and see what I can do. Let me know if you have any suggestions, editing tips, software recommendations, etc. While I’m not an expert at technology in any sense, I’m looking for something with a lot of creative capabilities but that’s still relatively user-friendly. Would love to hear your thoughts and/experiences using the Go-Pro! (Believe me, the Ducati-rider has done extensive YouTube research, I just wanted to reach out to this motorcycle community)
 One of the main reasons for staring this blog/website was to create a sense of community, and bring together people with similar interests. I know there are endless motorcycle blogs/online shops/website etc with similar goals (and KILL IT!). But I thought maybe adding a little something from this corner of the world (North Fork of Long Island) would be valuable.
So my most recent Instagram post asking for feedback on women’s protective pants, did just that – I received feedback from a variety of people. It’s awesome to get encouragement from other moto enthusiasts I’ve yet to meet who can provide helpful advice. Although not entirely a motorcycle related post, I believe this is something all the moto ladies might want to check out – beautiful, unique jewelry – By Yaeli. I’ve been fortunate enough to receive two of her gorgeous necklaces as gifts from a very special someone. After receiving a gorgeous elephant head necklace following my trip to Africa, I then received a necklace that looks just like my Great Dane, Dexter! The prices are very reasonable for such high quality, exquisite pieces. They are light enough not to get in the way or weigh you down (especially when layering up for a ride on the bike) yet bold enough to still make a statement. What moto lady doesn’t want that in her life? Also both necklaces also came beautifully packaged (score for the time-saving, gift-giver) and in time for special occasions. Her Etsy shop will definitely be my next stop for jewelry purchases whether for a gift, or if I’m looking to give myself a little something special. Definitely take some time to check it out! How about those skull studs? YESSSSSS!!!!  Can’t lie, the fact that the talented people at the construction company that I work for helped design AND build this establishment, was a HUGE reason for taking a ride to the South Fork just to go to a “bakery”. Oh, and the beautiful weather DEFINITELY helped (60F in January - I'll take it!).
Carissa’s Bakery, in East Hampton, has created a huge local buzz since it opened this past summer 2019. There’s been countless Instagram posts, write-ups in local publications, and various comments about how spectacular this project by Lettieri Construction turned out. And I must say, I wasn’t disappointed either. |
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