Polar Bear Motorcycles: Hop to Hooters

Connecticut Polar Bears upon arrival in Wayne, N.J., from left: Amber, CT Blogger, Grumpy, Thumper and Captain. Not shown, Anonymous Ed. Photo by Bernie Walsh.

Polar Bear Motorcycle Blog, Polar Bear Grand Tour, ride to Hooters, Wayne, NJ, February 10, 2019.

By: Chris Loynd
Photos by: Grumpy and Bernie Walsh

Wayne, N.J., is one of our closest destinations. For me it's 80-some miles. So we were able to set a reasonable, for me comfortable, departure time. In deference to my fellow Connecticut Bears, I even evoked our EDP (Early Departure Protocol). In so doing we arrived five minutes after the place opened.

Despite being one of the first tables to be seated, it still took an hour to get our food. I'm not sure why. The place was not packed full, even in an hour when our food arrived.

Grumpy led a smooth, speed-controlled ride. We stayed up and out of traffic, taking the Tappan Zee to the Garden State Parkway and then Route 80 west.

I was the sweep rider only by default of my late arrival. Usually I try to arrive just a little bit before the departure time. I just can't see taking off all those layers to hang out at the departure Dunkin' for half and hour and then put them all back on again.

Captain, he shows up an hour early, has coffee, sometimes breakfast, holds court with the Connecticut Bears as they arrive.

Sometimes I cut the timing a bit too close. Somehow, even after 16 years of riding Polar Bears, I forget just how long it takes to suit up. In these cases I have a fall-back trick. Instead of riding the back roads to our departure point, I jump onto the expressway, ride one exit, and get off again. From this vantage point I can generally see if our guys have left or not. They greatly value punctuality.

If they're not in sight, I approach the Dunkin' departure headed toward our riders on the route they have to travel. This Sunday, they were just pulling out. I made a U-turn and dropped in at the back, i.e., defacto sweep.

At Hooters they made fun of me. I said something about being surprised about the riders and route. They made some quip about me missing the pre-ride meeting.

I was delighted to see Thumper lined up with our riders. His moniker comes from the single-cylinder motorcycle he rides. He was one of my motorcycle students in the Connecticut Rider Education Program. I always tell the students about Polar Bears. Most look at me like I'm nuts. An occasional brave soul shows up.

Token2 also came from the CT motorcycle program, although I was not one of his Rider Coaches. He's currently in Ecuador on a motorcycle adventure trip by himself. You can follow his adventures on his blog: Going South on El Burro.

Thumper was especially dedicated. He now lives in New Jersey, about 10 minutes from this Sunday's destination. He got up early and rode to Connecticut so he could group ride with us back to his home. It was great catching up with him.

We had a second visitor on her first Polar Bear ride. Anonymous Ed was waiting for us at the Darien Rest Stop with his friend Amber on back. She said she had a good time, and the CT boys were on their best behavior. (Amazing how a female does that.) We hope to see her again. Amber is interested in learning to ride her own bike. So we may see her next season riding her own bike along with us.

Our ride back was without incident. Captain lobbied for a trip over the GW Bridge. I was in no hurry and more than happy to retrace our steps over the Tappan Zee. The overall vote was for the Zee and we went back that way.

Grumpy and I split off to take the Merritt home. Captain, Ed and Amber took I-95.

This week's destination is just some 25 miles beyond Wayne, also just off of Route 80 west. For me it tips the odometer just over 100 miles each way, so I'll pick up that extra Polar Bear point. I earned my red rocker on this run. I hope for gold.