Thursday 8 July 2010

I Went Naked Today.....

....which for a Brit means no more than riding without a helmet! I wanted to try it and I had the perfect opportunity – a very slow ride on wide safe roads in a residential area. It was so hot again and going without a helmet was really good, but not so good that I would do it regularly. It did give me a feeling of freedom though....

As I was riding today sans helmet, I was thinking about the different names we bikers use for helmet. Here are a few I thought of.... please let me know of any others and I will add them to this list.....

Bash Hat
Bone Dome
Brain bucket
Bumper Cap
Crash Helmet
Der Sturzhelm (German)
Lid
Skid lid

Thanks to Axel for these....

Deutsch: der Sturzhelm
French: Casque de moto
Suomi: Moottoripyöräkypärä
Bahasa lain: Topi keledar
Norsk: Motorsykkelhjelm
Portugese: Capacete motociclístico
Русский: Мотоциклетный шлем
中文: 機車安全帽
SvenskaMotorcykelhjälm


Today, I was in Newport, Rhode Island and I rode around Ocean Drive which must be one of the most opulent areas in the US. Some of the houses here are magnificent and some steeped in history. Here are a few photos of the biggest....

The gates to Belcourt Castle....




























Belcourt Castle ( a very French influence at work here)....






















A very traditional mansion....




















The Marble House (front).... I went for a tour around this one, but they didn’t allow photos to be taken inside....




















The Marble House (rear)....




















Not sure of its name, but a French Chateau style house....




















One of the bridges I went over today in Rhode Island....




















Today I reached the 2000 mile point of the tour and to follow what I started at 1000 miles, here is the view of what was exactly at the 2000 miles point. This was near Charlestown, Rhode Island and the lady that owns the little shop came out to see why a biker was taking photos of the road outside her shop!




















To continue with the opulent theme for today, this is the Ocean House Hotel, in Watch Hill which is almost the most westerly point in Rhode Island.... I did like the look of this hotel.....




















My journey continued into Connecticut and I sheltered from the rain and met Rick, on his Harley. We rode together to the local Harley dealer – Mike’s Famous of Groton, CT, where I bought a couple of long sleeved shirts to help protect me from the sun. Thanks Rick for introducing me to the Mikes – the timing and hospitality was just perfect!

Tonight I am staying in Rocky Hills, CT.

8 comments:

mq01 said...

bumper cap :)
i have a coworker in jamestown. ive always heard its beautiful countryside. thank you for bringing it to life for me.

SonjaM said...

Der Sturzhelm ;-)
Lovely architecture that you captured, you must feel like being back in Europe again.

Anonymous said...

plesure was all mine gary.hope the coffe did the trick after the rain.im looking forward to keeping up with the blog.ride safe and please feel free to use my cell number if i can help with any thing.( i sent it e-mail )

Rick

Axel said...

Some wiki-knowledge:

Deutsch: der Sturzhelm
French: Casque de moto
Suomi: Moottoripyöräkypärä
Bahasa lain: Topi keledar
Norsk: Motorsykkelhjelm
Portugese: Capacete motociclístico
Русский: Мотоциклетный шлем
中文: 機車安全帽
SvenskaMotorcykelhjälm

wear it please...

Eve said...

Ooops! I commented on the helmet names below after reading two posts at once...havent had my coffee yet!!! I'm sure I can come up with some names but....haven't had my coffee yet!!! hahaha! Those are some big houses Gary! Nice to visit but I wouldn't want to live there! I think they are calling for relief from the heat by the weekend. Ride safe!

iansolley said...

I rode without a hlemet in Florida a few years ago - really enjoyed it until I turned on the freeway and - then I was VERY scared!

Unknown said...

Gary:

Actually, going Naked feels good in every way, except where helmets are concerned. I tried it once in the 'states and it felt insecure. I can't imagine having enough funds to be able to afford one of those castles, but it's nice to be able to window shop and it does have that European flavour

bob
Wet Coast Scootin

Gary France said...

mq01 – You are most welcome. Thanks for the bumper cap.

Sonja – Tanks for your addition. Yes, just like being back there. Talking of Europe, sorry about Spain.

Rick – Many thanks for your cell number. If I need it, I will call.

Axel – Thanks for the language lesson!

Eve – They were splendid houses, but I wouldn’t want to do the dusting if I lived there!

Ian – I am scared of them WITH a helmet on!

Bob – I feel insecure above about 20mph. Below that, I am ok with it. Those house must have cost 10’s of millions. One was for sale, but I didn’t have the nerve to ask how much!