What a week. Pressure cooker stress at work, a 5 hour certification exam Saturday morning (math and statistics at 8 am – ugh) and sheets of rain in the forecast. My darling daughter understood and even agreed to a half hour earlier start time to get in a ride this morning before work and rain.
What better way to unwind and de-stress than an early morning motorcycle ride? Quiet streets, cool temps and a fresh new day. We fired up Pearl and Moto and cruised over to our favorite breakfast joint – Grandpa’s. We discovered this place soon after moving to South Florida and it’s still one of our favorites for breakfast – especially on Sunday mornings. They greet you at the table with coffee and these cinnamon stick pastries – oh so gooey and melt in your mouth bliss.
Bellies full, we headed north on A1A to cruise the beach along Ft. Lauderdale. As the fabulous beach view faded into condos as far as the eye could see, we turned inland and cruised back down US1 toward home and the only tunnel in South Florida. Only about a quarter mile long, but long enough to make some noise, this tunnel goes under the New River at Los Olas Blvd. And did we make some noise. Not just the bikes, but also the laughter that peeled from my gut as I throttled Pearl to the max in third gear before stomping on the shifter to give her some relief as we approached the climax. I love that cars think you’re going to be pokey through the tunnel because we slow down to a crawl right before entering. They all get in the other lane and leave us plenty of room to fly by with engines roaring – flashing astonished looks as they realize they’ve been passed by girls on motorcycles. Now that’s therapy 
I first learned about tubing from a dear friend when I lived in Chattanooga, TN. Scenic City has several tunnels, all well-suited for tubing. As with many other “firsts”, I was scared sh*tless to go that fast in an enclosed tomb-like structure. My friend Warren told me it was almost as good as sex. I didn’t believe him at first – but now I’m a convert. It really is. It just doesn’t last long enough. Ok you can stop smirking now and tell me about your own tubing experience.
i LOVE tubing!!! i used to go out as often as i could, behind a jet boat, holding a water ski rope. there was an occasion where waves got hugely choppy and the rope handle jumped up and smacked my neck and chin. i kept going, having the time of my life. to my surprise we realized that night that i had turned black and blue from that. i turned around and went back out the next AM
mq
Haven’t been tubing on the water in a long time, but we did take the kayak out on the ocean yesterday. It’s more fun in the waves that in still water. I think we all return to stuff we find fun even if it beats us up a bit.
Tubing on the motorcycle is a blast because it has the two of the best elements of motorcycle fun – engine roar and going fast. Girls just want to have fun