Inside Looking Out Looking In!

Is this cool or what. I was outside taking a picture of Smokey the cat as he looked outside, and the outside reflected in the window and looked like he was outside looking in! All rights to this image are reserved for R A Mahaffey Promotions TM and may not be reproduced without permission. (sorry, had to say that)

I left VA and went to KY and stayed with some great people, Janet and Rodney (their cat Smokey). They made me feel right at home and kept me an extra day when my bike had some trouble. I broke down outside of Lexington and had to be towed to Louisville. Turned out to be an easy fix by resetting codes somehow. Bluegrass Harley Davidson fixed it and donated two nice shirts for the auction when I get back to Seattle.

Speaking of the auction, I had an idea that maybe we could do a run for Robin's Ride and have it end up at the auction. More ways to raise money for the charities! You are all invited!!!

The Surprise Place: Milwaukee Iron in Lynchburg, VA!

The surprise place I visited was Milwaukee Iron. Randy and his wife Rhonda were very gracious hosts. They let the two newspapers and the TV station come to their business to interview me and they also gave me a tour of the facility. Pretty cool. They also took me out for dinner and Big Al and Tucker hung with me for a couple of drinks. And while I was there a couple showed up out of no where on a vacation and they let them come in and see the business too! Great people for sure! They also contributed to the cause before I even asked, because I have to be honest and admit that I would have asked :-)

Notice the picture of the fish and the guy delivering it to my hotel room - freshly cooked for my breakfast - is Randy's brother Rick. (If I got any names wrong - I so apologize and let me know) He said he would do it, but I didn't think he really would. Al said he was a man of his word and that I better be ready in the morning.

They had great memorial pieces around the shop for Gary. If you didn't know, he passed away in September of 2005 at the age of only 52. That's his picture up in the top left and those are his work clothes in the picture beside him. In the lower left is Big Al. Under Gary is me and Randy.

To all of you there at Milwaukee Iron, thank you very much for your hospitality. I had a great time!

Back in West Virginia

Hi there biker fans :-) I'm back in West Virginia and will be heading out again tomorrow to visit a surprise place. I'll tell you about it after I have been there. Aaaawwww I know that's now fair but it's fun.

I have some awesome video of me and some new friends riding our bikes. Really good film that would be great if I ever get to make a documentary or use all of these recordings and pictures for anything. Oh and yesterday I met some people who just had a good friend pass away and they actually gave me a part of his bike to put on mine - a visor for my headlamp. I was blown away and honored - of course I cried - but just couldn't believe they would share something like that with me. They had only just met me. And to top it off, this man's daughter had just been told Sunday that she was going to get a house from Habitat! How cool is that! I'll share more later like I said when I get settled in with my computer.

I'm on Throttle's computer so I can't add any pictures but I will next blog after I settle at my next stop - the secret stop - hehehehe.

In New York Today

I arrived in New Jersey Friday night, and just as I got to the toll booth and pulled over to see where I was, I noticed my foot pad for the gear shift was missing! Don't know when it fell off or how I could not notice.

Got it fixed today and headed in to New York to meet up with an old friend from the coffee industry - Scott Rogers - who used to be the east coast rep to my west coast for Tea & Coffee Trade Journal. He's a good guy for sure. Thanks for dinner Scott and for your help. Since all of your pictures are in video I don't have one here for you. :=(

We also ate with Richard and Bernice - owners of Ceylon Treasures Tea company. I will be helping them tomorrow at their booth in the Everything 4 Coffee and Tea trade show in NYC. I should have been in helping them today but for the bike trauma. Also great people!

Riding the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Skyline Drive, and visiting Throttle

Want to see my Bear Butt? :-)

He was pretty close and he kept stopping and turning around and looking at me like "I dare you to come over here". I filmed for a while until I decided I better get a picture of him before he hit the woods. So this is the shot I have to share - and I think in this case it's his best side!





This is from left to right: Me, Spinner, Fox and Throttle. I stayed at Throttle's house in Virginia and she arranged for me to go be on this radio show, Classic Rock 101.5in Chambersburg, PA - which was a blast! Spinner and Fox made me feel right at home. Spinner's show is on from the wee hours of the morning until after Throttle and I left at around 11am. Spinner talked to me on air many times over several hours and helped me explain what I am doing in hopes of raising some pledges. Throttle had been on the show before for her book "The Biker Babe's Bible; A guide to Being a Good Ole Lady". She signed and gave me a copy which I read today and it had lots of interesting and helpful information for anyone who rides. She will be coming out with a couple new books and I can't wait for the recipe book after seeing the dishes she has in the back of this one. This book relates to how a woman (ole lady) should know her place (don't scream - it's ok) in the biker world - the MC club world. I swear that if I changed a few terms, it would relate to how a woman is expected to act in the corporate world - supporting her man on the way up the ladder. This is a peak into the world of the one percenters (see her book at www.bikerbabesbible.com) and I can only tell you that Throttle, Tex, and Papa Smurf were great hosts! She makes a mean Margaritta! Throttle rode with me on the way to Baltimore - to show me the back roads - and we had a blast. This lady can ride and has had her own bike since she was 11! I took some film of us riding (don't ask) and it's great.

Healing the Heart and New Friends!

Hi Tara, KT did, Jennifer, Petra, Kim, Gar, Race, RJ, Harley Girl, Tara...all who check in on me. I started this ride to heal my heart form my parents (mostly my mom's death) and to help someone on the way. Thanks to you who have written and those I have met - I am on the way to figuring out what this great adventure is really going to mean to me and to others who watch me. I am not afraid of this ride - I am learing a lot about myself and others as I go along. I am forever grateful for those of you who have written me and find what I am doing of use. I am afraid sometimes that I will fall short of helping the charities and people I hoped to help, but I will keep making noise and hoping I can make a difference. I wish all of you out there could do something like this ride - something that has meaning for you - to help get your life on the road it is meant to follow.
I stopped at a very cool bed and breakfast in Georgia last night, and as it happens, the women who owns it had done something like I am doing before women were really excepted as "riders". She had great courage and got on her bike and went out across this country when women were not doing anything close to this. She worked and did things I don't have to do as I travel this land. She had to find ferself and she did. I spent this morning having breakfast (home made form their own grist mill) crying as I tried to eat. The setting was incredible - water fall outside of screened in porch, flowers like an English country setting, people I met who included me in their games of dominoes - all in all a really intuitive experience. I wish I could have spent a couple of more days sharing and learning from this lady. She has gone above what I am doing, and she welcomed me into her (their) home knowing that I was on a quest like she did so many years ago. What I hope from all of this is that a few more people will strike out how ever they see fit and find out what their life means to them and to the world as they can effect it.
Sorry to be so deep, but this trip is much more of a journey into self and others than I thought it would be. And I am so excited when someone like Jennifer writes and says that anything I have done caused her to fight her fears and follow a dream. We are here for a short time and I think we should make every minute count - and count for what we do and not what someone says we will be forgiven for doing or should do - or were forced to do because of someone else - but to take responsibility every day for what we do and who and what we effect by what we do... it's really up to us. Even if you are a very devout religious person - you are responsible to do the right thing with the information you are given at all times - no excuses .
I have seen a movie that spoke to me - and it's a very bizarre movie for most I'm sure - but if you get a chance to open your mind and experience something different try watching "What the Bleep do We Know". A friend had me watch this movie - and being interested in science as I am - the movie spoke to me. Hope I don't lose some of you on this but always keep an open mind.
The lady who checked me into a room in Oak Ridge, Tennessee tonight (with a discount due to what I am doing) said that God was watching me because of what I am doing - I don't know about God - but I do know that you are watching me and I want to do right by you.
Ok - going to go to bed and shut up now. Hope to hear from all of you about what makes you strive for more. You know what I am doing.
Hey - I rode the Tail of the Dragon today (you can find it online) :-) People kept saying things that should have scared me away - but I knew if I was sensible I would be ok - and I was :-)
resting and reaching out in Oak Ridge Tennessee.
You all mean so much to me - Thanks - and Happy Birthday Race (my baby boy) and thank you Gar (my EX) for being there with him.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Hi everyone - Happy 4th and I hope it was wonderful and fun. I am leaving Athens, GA tomorrow to continue the ride. Let me know what you did for the holiday.

Big hugs to all! :-)

E-mail I Can't Answer from Jennifer

I hope you read my blog Jennifer - who wants to go to Montana. I tried to answer your e-mail and it bounced back to me as denied to your edu address. I would love to send you my response if I can - do you have a different address? Here are some pictures from MT for you :-)




Jennifer is in her 20s and is finding her courage early - compared to women my age. She has a great story. It's about a dream of going to Montana - where I was born and raised - and she is going to finally go there! I hope I can reach her. Wouldn't want her to think I didn't care to answer. I would love to share more - but I don't have her permission - and won't have if I can't reach her. Bummer, but her note came just when I needed it. She is thanking me for encouraging her by my story and she did the same for me!

Hi Kt did - I met Petra from VTwin Mama, but not the Petra who has been writing me from NC. VTwin Mama Petra was cool though. We talked some and are looking at each others sites for helpful input. She just had her 5th anniversary for the site. Have you been there anyone? And thanks for the suggestion about pictures - I just accidentally figured out that the pop up blocker was stopping them! Go figure!

I have images of New Orleans up on the site now, but I need to go in and add captions. With two people in different parts of the world working on the same site - it takes a little juggling sometimes.

Tonight's the closing dinner for AMA and tomorrow morning is the start of the Women on Wheels ride-in. I'll go check that out too. It's 100 out - and that is just too darned hot! Even riding the bike doesn't cool you off!

Athens Georgia AMA Women's Motorcycle Conference

Hey there :-)
I'm in my booth at the conference, selling my little pins and talking to lots of women riders. It's been good to see so many ladies riding in from all over the country - and some have come from different countries to be here, I think 10 in all.
I'm sorry there are no pictures yet - the darned blog won't upload them. However, I am adding an image page to my site for all of those extra pictures - like lots from New Orleans. That should be functional by tomorrow I think, maybe even later today.
I'm going to check with tech support and get this image thing fixed so I can keep putting pics up with my comments. I'm working on that right now - so I better get back to it!
Oh - and did you see my new map on the site? Check it out.