With I-96 shut down and many people taking Hines Drive as their alternate route Westward, it took every bit of 30 minutes just to ride from Ford Rd. and Hines, to the BP gas station at Ann Arbor Rd. and I-275.
All of the Hines Drive intersections are now jammed with cars. It took 4 traffic light cycles to turn left onto Ann Arbor Trail because of all the cars in front of me wanting to do the same. For those who have Hines Drive designated as their route West to Kmart for FMC rides this season, tack another 15 minutes to your normal Kmart commute. Yesterday’s traffic was relatively light otherwise due to spring break for many kids.
I was definitely surprised to see every one of the 7 riders (who committed to the ride) already present and accounted for at Kmart when I pulled up ~5:50 p.m. for yesterday’s early 6:00 p.m. departure for our impromptu ride to CJ’s Brewery in Commerce Township. I thought we’d have a few stragglers because of the I-96 shutdown. With everyone present, we departed right at 6:00 p.m. sharp.
Yesterday’s sunny and 65 degree day turned cloudy and (felt) 10 degrees colder once the clouds rolled in at departure time. The isolated rain clouds that Doppler-radar-wielding smart phone users were monitoring didn’t hit us. The weather was still decent.
It seemed for a while that we got stuck behind one slow mid-week sightseer after another at various points in our ride. Maybe it was just me though, eager to get some “ridin” in.
With 15 minutes to spare (before our estimated 7:00 p.m. arrival), I lead the group further East on Pontiac Trail to take a little longer ride around (still frozen) Orchard Lake. We arrived at CJ’s a few minutes after 7:00 p.m., with 3 other members waiting in the wings.
CJ’s was busy and uncharacteristically unprepared for our party of 11 despite my day-earlier reservation for 12. After a ~10 minute wait, with a little bit of negotiating by yours truly and one other member, we were all treated with a “free” adult beverage for our trouble (“free” as in those that ordered an adult beverage were given a 2-pint-sized glass filled with said beverage for a very low single pint price!). All was forgiven… especially after consumption of the adult beverage. Dinner was served up quickly after flagging down our waitress and ordering (our couldn’t wait to tell us about her Dad with his 9 motorcycles, including 2 with siderigs).
Everyone was on the road headed back home before 9:00 p.m.
P.S. Word of caution for anyone that hasn’t been out riding yet this season… if you think your CAR is having a tough time with all the potholes… the roads are definitely STILL in very bad shape. Lots of unfilled potholes, loose gravel from broken pavement strewn about the road, lots of broken-pavement expansion joints, etc. Be VERY careful out there. Leave plenty of distance in front of you to spot potholes well in advance so you can dodge them. Don’t take turns too quickly at gravel-strewn intersections either. With municipalities’ budgets broken from having to buy an excessive amount of salt this winter, most of them appear too broke to go out and patch the potholes. Unfortunately for us motorcyclists, it looks like it isn’t going to get better anytime soon.