TealdoMoto.com Blog

Biking on Mount Lemmon Outside Tucson

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 12:05:55 GMT

Yesterday I took a road trip with the infamous Lapis while Tealdo and his best friend Andy took the bikes (yes, I am a great wife, loaning my Ninja for the day), also to Tucson, as it happens. They didn't get to see the great twisties I did, though. Instead, they mostly got freeway and in-town roads. Fun!

I, on the other hand, explored Mount Lemmon, which I've wanted to do since we moved here. The mountain is known for starting as desert terrain (the saguaro and orange flowers in bloom made for an impressive sight) and becoming the equivalent of what you'd see if you drove to Canada from Arizona. I'm not totally convinced of that, as there still was no green floor at 8,000 feet, but then again, this is Arizona, where you camp in dust pretty much wherever you go.

Anyway, the road up Mount Lemmon is 25 miles of beautiful, drool-inducing twisties. The top (legal) speed is 35 mph, and I'd say it's good to adhere to it because there are so many pedestrians and cars that suddenly stop or pull over in front of you. The vistas are amazing as well. You see a miles-wide swath of the Tucson valley and the Santa Catalina mountains. You could probably see Mexico on a pollution-free day.

I can't wait to take this ride. We're about 1.5 hours from Tucson, and it's another 30 minutes or so across the city to the Catalina Highway that takes you up Mount Lemmon. And then, shangri-la, baby! At the top, there's a little community called Summerhaven. They have a restaurant so I envision a nice long ride -- without Lapis, alas -- and a relaxing lunch then a tired ride home. Heaven.

--K

Long Time, No Blog

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 15:47:57 GMT

So even though it's been ages since the last blog entry, that doesn't mean motorcycling hasn't been on our minds. Far from it. Business has been all-consuming since the start of the new year. So has the flu bug, but we're coping.

Tealdo's done a fair amount of riding of late, while I haven't been on my bike for a couple of weeks. I really miss it. But I have had the fun of some virtual riding, sorta. I finally signed up on the ZRXOA forum (as EddieLawson'sLoveChild -- get it?!) and it's been a blast. There are some great people who (habitually, perpetually, constantly) post there. They're very supportive and funny and -- they'll love to hear this -- they have convinced me to buy leathers. Tealdo and I both are ordering our custom leathers this week. The pocketbook says, "Ouch," but common sense says, "Bravo." The ZRXOA guys will be proud.

TealdoMoto.com T-Shirts Now Available for Purchase!

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 21:53:46 GMT

The first batch of products -- TealdoMoto.com t-shirts -- is available!

Click here to go to our t-shirts (and more) store!

We'll be adding more shirts, with fun and pithy quotes, soon. It takes me a while to get the artwork just right. In the meantime, if there's something you'd like to see on one of our t-shirts or mugs or whatever else, let us know! Send a comment or e-mail.

And please remember: each product is made-to-order, which means it takes a week or two, maybe a little longer, to get to you. But we promise, it'll be worth the wait!

Thanks for supporting TealdoMoto.com. We couldn't do it without you!

The Politics of Biking

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 17:51:22 GMT

Today I was going to blog about how much money the motorcycle industry has contributed to the various presidential campaigns, but guess what? The latest records I find only list one dude in California donating $360 to now-defunct contender Duncan Hunter ... last May.

Hunter is a Republican representative from California who hasn't even registered on voters' radar. I can say that because I follow politics closely and I hadn't heard of him until I just looked him up.

That begs my question ... should the motorcycle industry be lobbying the two presidential nominees once they're decided? If so, what would be the hot issues? Post your thoughts!

--K

Gas Prices

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 02:38:42 GMT

So, how ‘bout those gas prices? Watching them soar past the $3 mark makes me extra-glad we sold our 16-mile-per-gallon Frontier last month. Now the TealdoMoto.com crew is down to one car and two motorcycles, and the pocketbook has stopped waiting to exhale.

Part of the beauty of riding, definitely, is having lower fuel costs than the gas guzzlers. And there’s a funny thing about the motorcycle biz: Sure, a lot of what we sell earns the rider bragging rights, but when you think about it, there’s a lot to be said for spending money on a mode of transport that, overall, saves money. (Use that one on the wife next time you want a mod. And that’s coming from a wife.)

I think that even as the economy worsens (the December unemployment report was the worst in four years. Fallout from the subprime debacle won’t abate for at least another year. Consumers curb spending when gas prices rise …), the motorcycle industry will maintain, or even pick up, its momentum. When the going gets tough, the tough find other ways to get going. I am hopeful that more people this year will choose to ride. Not only would this be great for those of us in the motorcycle sector, but it would reduce carbon emissions somewhat, and even lower demand for foreign oil.

Hey, a girl can dream.

--Kelly

We're Live!

tealdot@tealdomoto.com (TealdoMoto) — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 18:02:20 GMT

Greetings! Kelly here. It's a semi-stormy Saturday night in the Phoenix area, and that has caused some lamentations in the Teal household. The plan was to ride up to Scottsdale tonight, to The Pavilions (the shopping center at Indian Bend and the 101 where motorcycle and car enthusiasts gather every Saturday, and apparently have for 20 years). The Barrett-Jackson auction is in town and the people who can't afford or don't want to pay to sell their cars at the auction try to hawk them at The Pavilions. So we were really looking forward to a long, varied, zippy ride and spending a couple of hours shooting the schmit with other ZRXers/Ninja-ers (I know, I made that up). I was just pining to ride but, alas.

If you don't live in Arizona, let me explain that we're not afraid we'll melt in the rain or anything. The problem is that it rarely precipitates here; when it does, the roads ooze up slick layers of oil and grease that don't wash away for a while. It's not safe riding.

So tonight we'll be installing my new Ear Cannon -- 141 decibels guaranteed to shoot pure adrenaline into the heart of any driver that tries to take me out this world before my time.

Well, I think that does it for now. We're excited to have the TealdoMoto site up and running after about three weeks of hard work. Hope you like it. Please let us know if something doesn't work, or strikes you as unclear, or whatever. We want this site to work for everyone.

Happy riding!