Hot, hot, hot!

Woke up at 6:05 sweltering in the tent. Could this be the same place I was yesterday when it was 40 degrees outside? Today was going to be a big demo ride day, so I quickly got ready and zoomed down to Roaring Brook by 6:30.

For details on all the demo rides that day, check here.

The whole day was blisteringly hot, and I was drinking water by the gallon. The perforated leather jacket that froze me yesterday was cooking me today. And don’t get me started on the leather pants….

After the last BMW demo, I headed back to the campground for a shower and then down to The Great Escape amusement park in Queensbury. Americade was having a ‘Dinner Spectacular’ there that night, and the first 1000 (2000?) bikes in line get to ride inside and park next to the Comet roller coaster.

I am a HUGE roller coaster enthusiast, and this was an opportunity I was not going to miss. I was probably among the first 100 people or so in line, and had to wait for nearly an hour in the sweltering heat. It would have been great to have someone selling drinks in that line, but no such luck.

I met up with a guy in the line who had my first bike – a 1981 Honda CB750K. He was kind enough to let me sit on his bike, which really took me back. I bought my CB back in 91, and promptly crashed it the day before taking the MSF course. Riding around the countryside, doing just fine, until a curve came up in the road. I panicked and ran straight off the road, dropping the bike with some force onto the grass. I was OK except for a very sore back, but the bike hit the ground so hard I cracked the frame.

After taking the course, and getting the frame welded back together, I came across that same curve a few weeks later. Barely even noticed it. Dumb-ass.

Finally 6:45 came and we started our ride through the back gate and into the park. I have to be honest, I was just thrilled to be riding in an amusement park. I got a spot right next to the Comet (a top-10 coaster for me), and quickly went in search of beverages.

Riding into Great Escape

Great Escape

Riding into the park

The Great Escape crew put on a nice spread, with salad, ziti, and a bunch of other food. I drank 4 cups of water before filling up my plate, and got a seat in the huge pavilion. I ate quickly and headed back to the Comet to get some rides in.

The food at Great Escape

A nearly empty train goes by

They were running both trains, and there was NOBODY in the line. I went right for the front seat, and the incoming train had one guy in the front, and one kid in the back seat. I joined the guy in the front seat, and away we went.

It turns out my seatmate was also a coaster enthusiast. His name was Dave, now retired, who was stationed in the Air Force near me in NJ many years ago. He was a long-distance motorcycle riding enthusiast with many Iron Butt rides under his belt. We did almost 30 circuits of the coaster, moving around from seat to seat as people arrived in line. We never had to leave the train. Truly a great evening for this coaster enthusiast.

Giving away doorprizes

I went back to the pavilions to see if I would win any door prizes. The grand prize was a $7k Bushtec trailer of your choise, to match your ‘Wing or Harley. I was almost afraid to win this one in front of all these people.

“Congratulations! What do you ride?”

“A Ducati”

“Oh. What are you going to do with the trailer?”

“Can you say eBay?”

Alas, I did not win anything. They gave out the awards for oldest rider, longest distance, etc, and then it was time for the fireworks. I walked back to the bike, and got some nice photos of the fireworks exploding over the Comet and my Multi. Very cool.

Rode out of the park in the dark as the fireworks finale was lighting up the sky – a most excellent way to exit. Headed into town for the ‘show’, and then back to the camp.

Leaving Great Escape

My cell phone was almost out of battery, and I needed to use it as my alarm clock. I brought the wall charger with me on this trip, and an ac inverter. Once back to my campsite I plugged everything in and wrote notes on the laptop for about 30 minutes. Figuring this was enough juice to make it through the night I unplugged everything and went to sleep.

Chirp.

Chirp.

Hmmph, wassat?

Chirp.

Oh crap, the phone’s LOW BATTERY chirp. It’s 2am. If the phone dies, I’ll surely oversleep tomorrow and miss my last planned Americade event – the parade. So 2am, there I am in my boxers plugging the freaking phone into the bike and then laying in the tent trying to stay awake while it charges for a while. If I fall asleep now I’ll probably wake up late, and with a dead battery on the bike. Eventually I unplug and go to sleep.