Leading Tutorial

Grumpy's inadvertent video offers a little taste of how the group photo gets done each week.

CT Bears in Eastampton, NJ, from left: Grumpy, Captain, John J., Anonymous Ed, CT Blogger, Mac, Marco and Pogy down front.

Polar Bear Motorcycle Blog, Polar Bear Grand Tour, ride to O'Connor's American Bar and Grille, Eastampton, NJ, December 15, 2019.

By: Chris Loynd
Photos By: Grumpy

Anonymous Ed and I swapped places this week. I led. He was sweep. I figured it was a good opportunity for him to compare my style of leading to his last week. You see absolutely everything from the back of the pack. Although I must say (actually I did say in last week's blog) Ed did a great job leading last week.

John J. was my wingman this week and kept close. There was only one time when we got ahead of the group. As we entered the Hutchinson Parkway, a tight, decreasing-radius, right hand turn, me on my Honda ST and John on his Beemer really leaned into the corner and had some fun. As we entered the parkway I looked in my rearview mirror. The lumbering Harleys and Goldwings were far behind.

Captain tried to talk Marco into taking his first lead on this ride. Marco pleaded he was still "fuzzy" from his bout with the flu last week, the same flu he claimed made him miss last week's jaunt. We supposed he can use that excuse just one time. At lunch when I heard of this, I told Marco he was in luck! He'd just witnessed a perfect job of leading, chock-full of lessons he could apply next week when he took the lead.

We were eight bikes this week, which can be a bit to manage. Ed was attentive and prompt in clearing lanes, blocking merging lanes and anticipating my needs. With eight bikes you have to think in long times and big distances. Hopefully Ed and Marco noticed how I waited, waited, waited to signal a lane change until I thought Ed had clear space to move over. Sometimes, though, you just have to signal, wait for your sweep to "make a hole," then wave the cagers ahead to clear room to move the rest of the group over.

With this size group, I tried to limit lane changes. Generally that worked fine. We kept a respectable speed. Anyone driving in their car behind us who felt we were holding them up was speeding, excessively. Actually, I had just one irate a**hole guy — of course at I-95 Exit 15 in Norwalk — who got jammed up in the left lane by his own miscalculation. We were in the middle and moving with traffic. This guy came zooming up on my left, purposefully too close to me, then cut sharply in front of me, crossing four lanes to catch his exit in the nick of time. (By the way, jerk, do you really think your bad behavior will make me change my riding style in the future? We were steady and safe. You could have gone one exit more and looped back without endangering anyone.)

Oh, there was one other cager on the Merritt Parkway on the ride home. We were in the left lane, yes, but passing cars. Some guy tried to race ahead of us on the right. He didn't have room and so cut in behind me and ahead of Mac. We prefer if you not cut into our line of bikes, although I do have to admit Mac can leave a lot of space ahead of him sometimes. I slowed to close up our line, then slowed even more. The car driver quickly got the point and moved his Audi back over into the right lane to wait his turn.

Other than that, the ride was pretty smooth. Morning traffic was uncharacteristically light. Afternoon coming back wasn't too bad, just some stop-and-go approaching the Tappan Zee Bridge. But by that point, my group was down to three bikes, Grumpy, Mac and me. We'd taken time out for a leisurely hot chocolate at the top of the Garden State Parkway. The other CT Bears had rushed home.

Weather was fine for Polar Bear Riding, except for a gusting and annoyingly strong wind the entire day. It was especially intense crossing the flat open lands of southern Jersey. I've written before how my Honda ST sits up high. It feels all too tippy in these conditions. Its flat plastic panels catch every sideways puff. I prefer the Harley in such weather. It's heavier, sits lower, feels planted. However since we've already had our first snow and DOTs everywhere are laying down their stripes of corrosion, my Harley stays in the garage until spring rains wash all the crap away.

EDP had us arriving at 10:45 a.m. We were not the first to arrive, but were one of the first big groups to be seated. Originally Captain and Grumpy grabbed a big table on the lower level. But an attractive, polite and insistent hostess convinced them to move us to the upper tier. She said she did not yet have servers for the lower level and that we'd get our food faster. That's a pretty good incentive for our long distance crew.

Unfortunately, our table on the upper tier was smack in the middle of everything. We were jammed into a cramped space that got progressively tighter as the morning progressed, Bears pouring in. Just behind us was the sign-in table. All along our one side was the gift table. This week was the amazing toy run. We appreciate, of course, how generous our fellow Bears are in toy donations. Still, there was a steady stream of Polar Bears going up one side of our table to drop off their toys, and then up the other side to sign in, and then back down the toy side to exit, running into each other and trying to pass belly-to-belly behind our chairs. It made our lunchtime conversation more than a bit challenged. Note to self: next year we stay down on the bottom level.

Service was prompt, as promised. Food was great. John Jackson and I had the crab cake BLT. Delicious! Plus a pleasant surprise, Pogy picked up the check, wishing a Merry Christmas to all. Thank you Pogster! (Hope that wasn't a secret. Kathy probably doesn't read this blog anyway.) Oh and Mac won the "Member of the Week" lottery. We were lucky all around!

Faithful readers of this blog know that Grumpy, Johnny Bowlan, is our staff photographer. Others contribute on occasion. But Grumpy is our go-to guy. Each week for years now, he comes prepared with camera and tripod to take the group photo adorning the top of every blog post. Over these many seasons he's gone through a progression of cameras and set-ups (still misses his Sony digital).

Captain's delight is to harass Grumpy each week as he sets up the photo, teasing incessantly about Grumpy's speed of execution. "Are we going to do this today?" is Captain's favorite line. And if you saw last week's blog, Grumpy somehow missed the shot. The camera was set. The timer went off. But when he got home the memory card had no trace of the photo. It can be difficult working under pressure.

This week Grumpy threw technology at his challenge. He came equipped with a cell phone on a combination selfie-stick/tripod with — get this — bluetooth remote control! He was showing off the whole system at lunch, taking dramatic aerial photos, surreptitious shots of Bears from other states, selfies and more.

Lunch done, we gathered in the parking lot for the perfunctory group photo. Grumpy was all set. Then his tripod blew over. He reset it, got in place with the rest of us, pushed the remote control button, but I could see the camera light stayed on instead of flashing. "Are you taking video?" I asked. He wasn't sure. He reconfigured the settings and got back in place. Meanwhile Pogy's knee was freezing to the pavement. As you can see above, and below, he got the group shot and then some. Well, there's always next week.

Oh, wait, Grumpy's not in the photo.

There he is, there we are, from left: Grumpy, Captain, John J., Anonymous Ed (behind John J.), CT Blogger, Mac, Marco (next week's ride leader) and down front on one very cold knee, Pogy.

In GPS we Trust

Connecticut Polar Bears at O'Connor's Grill, from left: Anonymous Ed, Dollie, Tony, Token2, CT Blogger, Scott, Captain, Grumpy and down front Pogy. Leader not shown.

Polar Bear Motorcycle Blog, Polar Bear Grand Tour, ride to O'Connor's Bar and Grill, Eastampton Township, NJ, April 14, 2019

By: Chris Loynd
Photos By: Grumpy, Anonymous and Grand Tour Photographer Bernie Walsh
Video By: Polar Bear Grand Tour Photographer Dave Thompson

Sunday's ride was the last of our 2018/2019 season. It was a bonus ride, rescheduled from January 20th due to a particularly nasty storm. Perhaps owing to Sunday's warmer weather, we picked up a couple of Polar Cubs for this ride: Dollie and Tony.

Our leader on this ride must remain anonymous. All the same, Leader contributed significantly to fodder for this blog post. So I will refer to him/her as "Leader" and use dual-gender pronouns to protect his/her identity.

We started out with seven bikes. Behind Leader was Anonymous Ed, Captain, Grumpy, me, Dollie and Tony offered to sweep. Things went well headed south through Connecticut on I-95. There was one confusing lane change in perpetually-congested Norwalk. But it wasn't our fault.

Mama June was driving a U-haul rental truck towing a car and doing about 30 mph in the center lane of the interstate. I got a good look and am 90 percent sure it was her, Pumpkin as passenger.

Just a bit later we picked up Pogy and Scott in Darien. For reasons that remain unclear, they stayed behind Sweep Tony for the remainder of the ride, including the ride back home. At breakfast I asked Pogy about it. He was expecting Tony to waive him into line ahead. Tony may not have been sure of our Polar Bear protocol. Tony, Pogy and Dollie all sort of shared sweep duties. It was a bit confusing.

As for Scott, we often let him stay in the back but do not assign him sweep duties. Scott tends to rubber-band a bit and seems to do best sort of on his own just generally following the rest of us. Thankfully his new Harley has an LED headlight that can be seen from the moon. So even when he's drifted back a mile or more, the lead rider can generally see he's still with us. Scott somehow always manages to catch up with us at the final destination and for gas stops.

Dollie was also was a bit new to our group riding protocol, but held her own. On righthand lane changes she shared sweep duties with Tony, moving to clear the lane, sometimes before he could. The he got a chance, Pogy gave her a quick primer on hand signals.

Dollie enjoyed riding in line with us and took to group riding just fine. Quoting from her Facebook comment, "I had a chance to participate with the Polar Bears' last ride of the season. 

"Sunday’s Ride took us to Eastampton, New Jersey. Even though we rode over 300 miles round trip I felt extremely Safe. 

"The Polar Bears make it a point to ride in perfect formation which was exciting to be a part of. The Lead rider communicates his intentions and everyone relays that message back to the Sweep through hand and arm signals. The sweep then takes over the lane so we can safely make our lane changes. 

"Everyone in the pack has a job. Not only do you have to maintain your speed it’s critical to maintain a proper following distance and leave no gaps. Riding like this is like operating a well oiled machine. 

What a rush riding through Cross Bronx Expressway, over the George Washington Bridge and The Tappan Zee. Thanks Polar Bears." DivaCT🏍💭💭

Our group riding discipline held up even when Leader strained it mightily with his/her route choices.

As we rode south on 95, Leader passed by the exit for I-287, just over the New York border. Our usual routine is to take 287 to the Hutchinson Parkway, then Cross County, Saw Mill and the George Washington Bridge. But we didn't Sunday.

Riding along past the 287 exit and deeper into New York State, I next thought of the I-95 exit direct to the Hutchinson Parkway. My GPS most always wants me to take that route. But we soon passed by that option too.

Now the horror dawned completely on my consciousness: Cross-Bronx Expressway. Since we're all on cruisers -- and not dirt bikes -- I could not fathom the choice. Captain thinks it is an over-reliance on GPS, even when it sends you places common sense tells you to avoid. His theory was proved later in the day.

After dodging potholes, trucks, traffic and crazy New York drivers, we finally found ourselves crossing into New Jersey. Leader had us in some questionable lanes but did eventually manage to get us onto the express road headed toward the NJ Turnpike.

We got through the tolls okay and headed south. When the Turnpike split, Leader inexplicably took us onto the truck lanes.

That was when Grumpy started rebelling. He dropped way back at times. Other times he would refuse to join us in lane changes.

We made it to the Pandora Diner okay. Coffee and good food lifted spirits. A general understanding of Polar Bear decorum kept us civil. Then a very welcome surprise broke the spell.

Token2 Surprise

Only Pogy knew. Token2 is taking a work break from his amazing South American motorcycle adventure. He's headed back soon. He talked to Pogy to find out where we'd be, then rode up from Virginia to surprise us. For him it was about the same distance as our ride to Lewes, Del., more than four hours one way. So there wasn't time for much more than an hour or so of breakfasting before we parted company. Grumpy lamented it was not enough time.

Pandora Diner was a great find. It worked well for our Early Departure Protocol objectives. We'll have to use it again. Breakfast was very good. Portions were generous. Service was fast. Our waitress attentive. Several of our party remarked at how good the prices were. But we're used to Connecticut and this is downstate New Jersey farming country.

Mutiny Over Gas

We had a brief meeting before departing breakfast. A general consensus was that we would gas up before O'Connor's so we could sign in and hit the road for home. Leader said we were turning left out of the diner parking lot and would gas up there. I was thinking Leader meant like the gas station was right around the corner.

I remember looking at the map when I chose Pandora Diner that it was right at the turn for O'Connor's and that our Polar Bear destination was less than a mile away. Google Maps said three-minutes travel time.

However Leader looked at his/her GPS, I'm guessing for "nearest gas," and led us left out of the parking lot. As we rode in the opposite direction from O'Connor's, deeper and deeper into the New Jersey farmland, frustration levels of Leader's followers rose and rose.

It is, of course, difficult to communicate when riding. We mainly rely upon hand signals. Captain caught up with Leader at a stop light and had a spirited discussion. But the light turned green too soon and Leader had us off again. Captain later said Leader said something about going for gasoline.

It may be that previous choices by Leader hurt his/her credibility with the crew.

A little known fact about pirate captains is that most pirate ships were very democratic. The pirate captain had to have the support and consent of his crew to be and stay captain. During battle the rules changed and the captain had absolute authority. But in all other matters the captain relied upon the his crew's good graces.

Captain started hanging back further and further. Only Leader and Anonymous Ed kept going, blithely motoring along. Captain finally had enough of going in the wrong direction and pulled into a crossroad. We all lined up behind him. Leader and Anonymous Ed disappeared over the horizon. The mutiny was afoot.

To his credit Captain emphasized that he acted alone in his own best interest. But communication among riders being limited, us lined up mostly on the barely existent shoulder of a two lane country road, the natural thing to do was follow.

Captain did a 180 turning back toward O'Connor's. We pulled into our destination parking lot minus two. We signed in and found our two missing riders waiting for us in the parking lot -- with full fuel tanks. Of course the rest of us had to ask Leader to make an additional gas stop for the rest of us. We decided to take a station on the road home, instead of searching the countryside.

Token2 loved it all. He said he was glad to see the Connecticut Polar Bears had not changed significantly from those lovable riders he always remembered. Token2 also had a reputation of simply striking out on his own when the group dynamic became intolerable. Token2 headed back to Virginia. The rest of us turned for Connecticut.

Leader did indulge us with a gas stop. From there we did follow him/her onto the turnpike truck lanes yet again. Fortunately Leader did take the Garden State Parkway. He/she stopped at the top. Some of us stayed for coffee, the rest beat for home. The early birds missed the rains. I'm not sure about those who stayed for coffee.

Oh, and if you recall from last week's blog, Anonymous Ed made it home in time for his granddaughter's birthday party.

A New Diva?

It came out more in subsequent Facebook posts, but there was an interesting exchange I'd like to share between Dollie, our prospective Diva and Princess our former Diva. Princess left us for a man and Indiana. But she understood and resonated with Dollie's thoughts about maybe joining us next season.

I started by posting on Facebook a selfie of Dollie and me, "A new Polar Bear diva? Princess will never be replaced, but Dollie enjoyed a warm Polar Bear ride. We’ll hope to see her next season."

Dollie answered, "It was a little chilly starting out ok lol I had a really good time with you guys. Maybe I’ll join you guys next season." DivaCT 🏍💭

Then Joanna, our Princess and Diva NY, chimed in, "You go Dollie!!!! I miss CT Flight B crew! Great group of riders!!! Lots of experience there and discipline!!! I've learned a lot from these guys! You're in good hands and awesome company! 

"Hugs to all, especially Grumpy and Captain!!! 

"I'll work on planning next season and show up on one of the Sundays!" 😁
Dolly answered, "Princess I’ll Never be you. I don’t know about all the cold weather riding. But, with proper gear I’ll give it a try. It was a fun ride."

Joanna concluded, "Dollie, I was a Polar Bear Cub once too! The Captain had no faith in me. 😂😂😂 So finally I made the commitment and I was on a mission to prove him wrong! 😂😂😂I wanted that 100% Attendance pin more than anything in my life! I just didn't realize how small the pin actually was in size. 🙄🤔😂

"One of my proudest moments in life thou. 

"The Captain inspired me a lot and I'm grateful. 

"Dollie, get the heated gear, when you're comfortable, you can easily ride in any weather. Be safe sister and please give everyone hugs from me." 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗❤️
I put the exchange here for those of our blog readers who do not do social media.

It's just six short months until the 2019-20 season begins. We'll see who shows up.

Polar Bear Photographer Bernie Walsh was one of many receiving Perfect Attendance pins and certificates!

Video of our group -- minus two -- pulling into O'Connor's.