July 18, 2010, Sunday

Gypsy Stats: 144 mi, Oak Lane to Redners

5 hrs 32 min elapsed time

3 Hr 28 min riding time

42 mph average speed

Tim: ’78 Honda CX500 with antique plates which he picked up this past year for $350

Dave: ’99 Triumph Sprint ST 955 Triple (aka Smokin’ Red)

Lindsey: ’07 BWM R1200R (grin) equipped with built in thermometer and now wired to power the GPS.

Breakfast at the Masonic Temple in Birdsboro – 3^rd Sunday each month (except no breakfast in August) $7.00 all you can eat featuring custom omelets, salt mackerel, and a strawberry stuffed French toast special.

After breakfast, we rode across the south central part of the county. The corn is just coming into tassel, so the fields are a mosaic of light yellow green of the corn tassel and the deep dark green of the soybeans, which are also coming along very nicely. Some fields were bare golden stubble having recently been harvested of wheat. The rains during the past week have caused the landscape to green up and start growing again.

We made our way north, crossed into Lebanon Co., then over the mountain at Swatara on Rt 625, up “around the block” to Pine Grove (with a gas stop and hydration break outside of Tower City), then back over the mountain on Rt 183 and wander home to the Redners Quick Stop at the junction of Rt 73 and 12 to wrap up.

The temperature was in the mid 70’s early in the morning, rising to low 80’s after breakfast and finally to the upper 80’s around mid day. Highest temp was 89.6 F riding through Temple on the way home.