Ridin’ & Road-side Dinin’

So, what’s my next merit badge?  A motorcycle endorsement.

I’ve been curious about this for a while.  I have a lot of friends who are really in to bikes, so that has definitely spurred on the interest.  When I realized that if you take a course you get to ride a bike that THEY provide, I was sold.

The class I took was 3 days.  Friday evening in the class room, a full day of riding followed by a written test on Saturday, and another day of riding and the riding test Sunday.  It was a lot of fun.  I was surprised how quickly I could get up to speed and be competent on a motorcycle.  That said, this is also the end of me and the biker lifestyle.  Let’s be real, I’m a klutz and occasionally a bit of a hot head on the road.  And on a motorcycle, your margin of error is very small.  I know of no bikers who don’t have a story of how either they or someone close to them have been killed or seriously injured.  I’m not trying to be that story for anyone; especially as it would get in the way of my true road-going dream of the Porsche 911.

After Sunday’s session, I found what could be my new favorite restaurant in the Puget Sound area: Sharps Roasthouse.  Not Sharp’s, but Sharps!  How can you not love a place with your namesake?  For Seattleites, the Roasthouse, down by SeaTac airport is a sister to Von’s in downtown Seattle.  Same cocktails, but bigger, more food options, and more beer options (like 500).  The place will never win any culinary awards, but it's great pub grub.  Instead of free bread, they offer you cornbread with maple butter while you decide on your main course and provide redhot mints (just like Von’s) when you are done.

Not a bad weekend if I do say so myself.

Links
Evergreen Safety Council: http://www.esc.org/
Sharps Roasthouse: http://www.sharpsroasthouse.com/