The weather has been warm the last couple days. Yesterday was 40F on the way home and today was 36F. The blue skies and warmer temps really made me want to ride, so after work today I just pointed the Ural north and started riding. After a while, I ended up on I-35 and followed that for a bit. I didn’t have a destination in mind. I was just enjoying the blue sky, brown trees, and white snow. It really looked great.
After a bit, I pulled off the interstate for some gas and to look around. I saw this giant Walleye (above), so I had to go take a look. The sign says it’s the world’s largest walleye (1999 lbs and 15 1/2 oz) caught by Paul Bunyan in Rush Lake using a 35lb tiger Muskie for bait on a line made of one inch manila rope. The rod was a 62 foot white pine with a three ton loggers winch for a reel.
of course I had to park the Ural in front of it… I was very tempted to ride onto the muddy grass to get a shot parked in front of it. While I was contemplating shifting into 2WD and riding in front of it, two snowmobiles pulled up and parked there instead. I took that as my cue and set off again.
Just down the road from the giant walleye is the Dennis Kirk Scratch and Dent store. I had to stop and check out the deals. In the parking lot, I got into a discussion with a guy in a station wagon who followed me from the giant fish. Apparently, he has a 850 moto guzzi sidecar rig. He’s too scared to ride it in the snow. Crazy. I told him to get it out and enjoy it.
There were a lot of deals to be had inside. I tried on some roost protectors, but I didn’t like how they fit. At 1/2 off, I really wish they fit better. They also had some decent cheap boots and helmets. I didn’t buy anything and headed out.
On the way home, I had a couple people wave and give me the thumbs up. The Ural just seems to make people smile like no other bike I’ve ridden.
A self portrait in the Ural’s green gas tank. It reflects the sky quite nicely.
After I got home, I couldn’t help but think of the fun Bobskoot and Charlie6 have recently had on their two-wheelers. The roads were mostly clear. Thinking I’d be a bit rusty with the whole counter-steering, leaning thing, I grabbed the Super9.
It really didn’t want to start. The Super9 doesn’t like the cold, which is anything under 45F. It eventually fired up, and I gingerly road onto the street with both feet hovering above the ground expecting to crash.
It was just as much fun as I remembered it. I went to a nearby parking lot and practiced some figure eights and braking. I was happy I remembered to put my feet down when I stopped. I put a few miles on riding around the side streets. I got a few looks, but almost everyone ignored me. It was nice being invisible. Sometimes the Ural attracts too much attention.
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