Club Ride - July 25, 2009: Glenn's Inferno

After our usual breakfast conclave, six of us set out for the Ozello Trail by way of the most indirect route possible. The weather was in a cooperative mood and we rode north under clear blue skies and in air that was still mild in temperature and bearable in humidity. But, alas, those conditions were not to persist as we soon found ourselves in sweltering heat and suffocating humidity. Of course, that wasn't enough to stop us because we're tough! And heat resistant! Or so we like to think, anyway.

The route north turned to two-lane roads once we got north of Zephyrhills:





There were plenty of hills and sweeping curves to be enjoyed along the way:









Boyd was astride his new Suzuki DL1000 V Strom...:




...and this dirt road was just too alluring for him to pass up...:




...so he gave the V Strom's dual sport capabilities a quick test run:




I played around with the camera a bit and took this interesting photo of the road passing beneath my bike:




And then I took this shot of the rider's perspective of the Black Passion's cockpit:




After a water break Boyd swapped off with me so I could ride his V Strom as I am interested in one myself. This is the rider's view from the V Strom:





That's Boyd astride the Black Passion:




Here's the group headed north on SR 491 northwest of Brooksville; Boyd is still riding the Black Passion at this point:




We got lost somewhere in Crystal River while trying to find a Suzuki motorcycle dealership. Glenn used his technology to save us:




But our predicament was so bad that it took multiple iPhones to save us:




Boyd wasn't worried, though, because he knew his new V Strom could get him out of any predicament:




We finally made it to Ozello where the roads are twisty and the community is wired with nuclear accident warning sirens for the nearby power plant:




We had lunch at our favorite seafood joint:




The restaurant sits right at the water's edge:




The Lost Brigade was happy to have arrived at a place where they could eat...again:




No one would take Lloyd up on his offer to pull his finger...so he did it himself:




Boyd and Glenn weren't so impressed by Lloyd's finger-pulling trick:




...But Eddie was mesmerized by it:




Eddie told a story about some big plate or some such that I wasn't paying too much attention to:




...And when I asked a simple question the response was immediate and hostile:




For those who are curious, Ozello is about midway between the mermaid's flippers and her knees:




After lunch we headed out of Ozello and back toward more urban environs:




These are some of the views along the Ozello Trail:






Back in civilization, it was time to feed the steeds:




We stopped at a Suzuki dealership for me to look at a v Strom, but I was less than impressed with their pricing and lack of enthusiasm to sell it:




Bob was a better and more enthusiastic salesman for this Burgman they had in their showroom; I think he almost sold it to Eddie:




Boyd used the downtime to put the V Strom through some paces in the parking lot:




Leaving the dealership we headed south toward home through the urban jungle with its sweltering heat and jammed traffic:




You may not be able to read it, but the air tempature (second reading from bottom right on dash) says 97 degrees; and that's the moving temperature:




That does it for this ride report. We split up at I-75 with half of us taking the fast route home and the other half making their way through the back country to their homes. Another great day of riding and fellowship in spite of the heat.