Last summer I took my 81 year old mother on a benefit ride on the motorcycle. I had found a good toy run where participants would all pay $15 per person to join this nice ride. The proceeds would go to providing gifts to underprivileged children in the area. The ride was guided through a lot of scenic back roads in our area. It would end at a hall where they provided a meal, raffles and awards.
The weather was great for the ride. It was a little chilly since it was in the fall, but I wouldn't call it cold. I had my mother wear pajama pants under her jeans. She wore two layers of warm shirts under my leather jacket. She wore solid shoes, my leather gloves and a full face helmet. She was all ready to go.
Cooper watched while we got ready. He was all excited to go too. I had planned to leave him home this time but he and my mother had different plans. She really wanted him to come so it wasn't long before they wore me down. She had planned to hold him, but I know from experience, he doesn't like to be held while riding. My son and I found this out one day. Cooper couldn't get comfortable while my son held him. He wiggled and tried to get comfortable the whole time. Within half an hour we had to stop and put Cooper in front of me where he could stretch out.
So, it took us a few extra minutes for me to make myself ready for Cooper to come with us. I had to tie a leash tight around my waste to clip him to me. He can't have room to move while in front of me because if he does, he also has room to fall. This isn't his favorite way to ride but it was all I could do. With a sweat shirt and his harness on, Cooper laid across my lap and over the tank in front of me without ability to turn around or move very much at all. He was going to have to stay put until we got to the staging area for the ride.
We got there safe and sound. It was a rather small turn out with only about 75 to 100 bikes. This was a lot to my mother, but I had ridden on benefit rides like this where there are over 500 bikes. My mother met some of my friends. She knew one of my friends from when I was in my teens. He and his wife hung around with us for the day.
The ride took an hour and a half. They took us along all the local back roads that my mother and I were very familiar with but which we hadn't traveled much in years. Cooper would have liked to get more comfortable, but he did his best. Cooper announced our arrival as he usually did at the end of the ride. He sat up and barked a lot until we parked the bike. My mother got a kick out of that. We had a lot of fun and my mother seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. She won the trophy for the oldest rider. She keeps that on her knick-knack shelf in her apartment where everyone who visits can ask her about it.
When it was time to leave for home, we walked to the bike. Cooper usually has to pee before getting back on the bike but strangely, this day he trotted directly to the bike. I didn't think anything of it until he jumped on the bike, got on the back seat, sat down and looked at my mother. Usually I have to tell him to get on, then he sits on my seat till I'm ready to put his harness on and clip him to the back seat. This seemed to me a sure sign that he was claiming his seat so my mother wouldn't sit there again. It was as if he was telling her, "Ok Gramma! It's YOUR TURN to ride on the tank!"
I was glad it was only going to take about 20 minutes to get home. He would be fine for a short ride. I guess I have to design a better way for him to ride in front of me in the event that we have another human passenger again. It's bound to happen, because Cooper never likes to be left home.
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