Jonathan Smith is a web designer, graphic designer, and photographer in Harrisburg, PA.

Yesterday was an amazing day for riding. My daughter and I woke around 7am and geared up to head out to breakfast with the BMW Dutch Country Riders. It was a beautiful morning and the temperature was great.

Later in the day I was out exploring some of my favorite roads here in Dauphin County with the addition of my new helmet camera. After about 50 miles of riding I pull up towards the gate at my back yard like normal. I pull in the clutch to put the bike in neutral but the clutch didn’t have any tension on it and freely came back to the handle grip. And the bike was still in gear! Quick thinking, I hit the kill switch to turn off the motor before I hit the fence. I then proceed to mash the bike into neutral with my foot and put the bike on the side stand. After a close inspection I come to the conclusion that the cable must have snapped. Luckily I was at my house and simply pushed the bike into my back yard. Too bad I wouldn’t have a bike to ride on Memorial Day.

Tomorrow I will call the dealer and see if I can get two replacement clutch cables. One to replace the broken cable, and another to keep on the bike as a spare in case this should happen again and I’m a long way from home.

BMW offers some excellent riding events called XPLOR events. I attended the XPLOR the Pine Barrens event held in New Jersey last April and had an amazing time and met so many wonderful people.

I learned that BMW is holding another XPLOR event in Charlottesville, Virginia called XPLOR Blue Ridge. The event will be split into an off-road event and tarmac event and is being held June 13th, 14th, and 15th. The off-road event requires knobby tires which I don’t have on my bike so I opted for the tarmac event. These events fill up quickly so I contacted the event organizer and asked to be put on a waiting list. On Friday I found that some people dropped out and I was confirmed as a participant.

The event will be be staged from the Best Western Charlottesville Airport Inn & Suites. After some searching I found someone who had reserved a room for the event. A phone call later and I have someone to share a room with. So I’ll only be paying for one night.

More details on the event:

Join BMW XPLOR for a unique double ride event to discover the best of the Blue Ridge. It’s another of our famous off-road GS rides, but with a twist – we can now accommodate tarmac riders too. There is no charge for participation, as this is a way for BMW Motorcycles to say “thank you” to our fellow BMW devotees for all of their support.

Roam the Tarmac with Nate Kern

For our on-road participants on any of our BMW motorcycles, you will be given a route sheet for self-guided tours of the beautiful Virginia Piedmont region, featuring historic sites, horse farms, wineries and some of the best unknown two lane roads you’ll ever see. Well-known BMW Moto-ST racer Nate Kern will take out his personal bike to join up for one of the tarmac routes and he’ll show you how the track really can make you a safer street rider. You will link up with the off-road riders for dinner at the end of the day Saturday and of course, swap stories to argue about who had the most fun. You set your own pace: just remember, you are on public roads in a state not well-known for the tolerance of its police force or the laxity of its speeding fines, so be careful out there!

All participants will receive swag bags, a dinner banquet on Saturday night and much more, all FREE! You pay for your transportation to and from the event, hotel accommodations, and a meal or two — the rest is on us! Off-Road participants will receive training, maps and GPS routes (BMW Navigator/Garmin format).

I can’t wait!

My friend Mike and I decided last week that we should do a weekly ride on our motorcycles with an ice cream destination. Last week it was 3B Ice Cream on Linglestown Road and Colonial Road. A small ice cream is most certainly enough. I don’t know how anyone would be able to hold a large ice cream cone from 3B. It was a nice end to the night after I grilled some dinner for Mike and his girlfriend Lisa.

Last night we decided to head out again. I thought it may be a bit cold to sit outside and eat ice cream. This time we decided to ride to Eat’n Park on Eisenhower Blvd. I haven’t been to Eat’n Park in years and I feel like the establishments have really gone down hill since they first appeared in the area. But it allowed us a nice ride along the river before taking the back way through Steelton and behind the Harrisburg Mall.

We ordered stickies à la mode and hot cocoa. Yummmmm! Spending time with good friends over a tasty treat like that… things couldn’t be much better. Eat’n Park still isn’t my favorite place to go. But it’s definitely worth a trip for some stickies à la mode and hot cocoa.