As we approached the Monterey Peninsula, cage traffic increased dramatically, which put an end to our fun in the sun. We passed through small residential neighborhoods and some small retail stores and schools. By then, there were so many cages in front of us that there was nothing we could do but stay behind them and putter along at a snail�s pace. Unfortunately for me, a pickup truck directly in front of me was spewing black smoke from its exhaust making it incredibly irritating. It took a few miles but I was eventually able to pass this pickup truck which BTW, didn�t seem to appreciate that I got around him. When I passed, the pickup gave chase to try to pass me back. I was told by a few riders behind me that the pickup almost hit another car trying to keep up with my Bandit! What was this guy�s malfunction? We arrived at Monterey hot, tired, and hungry at 3 PM. I lead the group to a cozy little Mexican restaurant I know serves good food, which made everyone happy.
Highway 1, Pacific Coast Highway
After lunch, we set off on the final leg of this 300 mile, twisty road extravaganza. We chased the sunset on PCH from Monterey to San Simeon for the last 120 miles. This was perhaps the most scenic of the day�s ride. It also involved the best road and twisty sections. Unfortunately, a lot of cagers thought the same thing. So for most of the way down PCH, we had to continually pass slow moving tourist in cars, SUV�s, minivans, & motorhomes. Sometimes we had to pass 2 or 3 in a row just so we could have a decent pace. It just wasn�t possible to follow them around this road because their speeds were much too slow for our motorcycles. In addition, all the cagers would always be riding their brakes around corners instead of controlling their speed with their throttles like we did. Finally, the skill level of the average cage driver is so poor in the twisties that we simply could not stand staying behind them for any length of time. |
