New Year – Jeff Maddox

Sometimes, the answer to most questions in this simple mind of mine is to grab the handlebars of my motorcycle and go for a ride. In my last post Tomorrow We Drive, I talked about winter riding and how we need to find those brief opportunities to get the bike out and depending on your region, those brief moments maybe few and far between. But if you’re lucky, this may not be a concern. I’ve heard there are parts of the country where you can ride in relative nice weather all year long. Oh, the luck.

I work in the motorcycle/powersports industry and I stare at this stuff all day long. I talk to many folks that buy bikes and such in the winter as well, and I guess in some sort of twisted way this is me subconsciously grabbing my handlebars to get a fix. You don’t have to always ride a motorcycle, but it helps when it comes to the I can’t ride today blues. Paycheck? Oh, that too. When you think about, talk about, work around and ride bikes all year long, and still want to go for a ride? Hi, my name is Jeff and I might have a problem.

“When you think about, talk about, work around and ride bikes all year long, and still want to go for a ride? Hi, my name is Jeff and I might have a problem.”

I’m pretty fortunate to do something I love. I’ve been lucky as an adult to really not have a job that sucked, but this particular industry has allowed me to be who I am without everyone thinking I’m crazy. There are a lot of great people I’ve met and gotten to know that I wouldn’t have otherwise had the opportunity to. Hmm, I wonder if they say the same about me? Of course they do.

Now that we’re a couple of weeks away from a new year, I know it won’t be long before the daylight lasts a little longer and the temperature becomes more comfortable. It’ll be fine, right? I’m not the only one thinking about this I’m sure. Well, except those living in a place where it’s unimaginable to reside somewhere that has seasons.

And so I sit on this cold, windy day looking at the forecast. Sunday looks like a possibility and it might be nice to ride around this small town I live in. Even a short ride can go a long way with me this time of year. And if the ride doesn’t happen you’ll at the very least find me at work thinking and talking about it.

New Year’s Eve to me is like sitting in the back seat of the Plymouth Fury as a young boy, hardly big enough to see over the bench seat in front of me. You remember – vinyl seats, crank windows and the am radio playing KFDI 1070 Country with Don Williams singing in the background. Looking back on those days, it was actually kind of nice to have someone driving me around while I observed the world passing by from the back seat. I surely wasn’t buckled in, so the back seat was this giant playground, at least until things got out-of-hand. That’s when dad would shut down the shenanigans, at least for a while.

But just like New Year’s Eve and the count-down to the ball dropping, when the odometer would be close to a milestone of flipping over to say 70,000 miles, we would all hop up to put our chins on the back of the front seat and count down the miles. 69,995! 69,996! Unlike the count-down to the ball dropping, as you can imagine this took several minutes. And if you were actually driving through town, you could expect it to take longer. But wait for it…69,999 and….70,000!! A loud cheer and it was over for another year or so, and we went about our daily business. Always kind of a big deal back then, I still find myself watching the odometer click over. We didn’t make any odometer resolutions, but in some small way it did put a mark on the year. An ending and a new beginning all at the same time! It was exciting, we had a small celebration and it made us happy. What more could you ask for? Maybe an oil change.

For most of us, the new year indicates the beginning of what we hope will be a good one. We put the bad behind us and as we look ahead, we hope to be better people and make a difference in those around us. While you celebrate your odometer rolling over, remember those who are no longer with us and those who have just joined the party. Carry the feeling of a new beginning with you throughout the year and make a difference in someone’s life. Smile more and laugh a lot. Or at least until Ralph puts and end to the shenanigans!

Happy New Year!