RAIN, RETIREES & REDNECKS IN DAYTONA

Hello my brothers and sisters of the road! Catnip Cougar here reporting from Daytona Bike Week.

I arrived here yesterday, 3/09, to a thunderous greeting! No, I’m not talking about well deserved applause. I’m talking about actual thunder! It rained like a cow pissing on a flat rock! I was greeted by the rain long before I arrived. I started getting wet cruising through Orlando which really sucked. No, I’m a REAL biker gal. I don’t mind getting soaked from time to time. It comes with the territory. You ride a bike, you get wet occasionally. It’s a fact of biker life.

What really sucked is that Florida is still packed with Snowbirds. For those of you who don’t know, Snowbirds are mostly old retired people who live in Florida during the Winter months. They usually come down in September or October and stay till April. Ask any year-round resident of Florida what they think about Snowbirds and you’ll get a mixed response…from the same person! We LOVE that they spend money down here. It helps the local economy considerably. Florida citizens don’t have to pay a state income tax because these Northern visitors pay it for us!

What we DON’T like about these people almost outweighs the money they bring. They clog our roads and have no idea where they are going half the time. This results in brakes being slammed on for no apparent reason, lane changes with absolutely no warning, and traffic moving 30 miles an hour in a 55 mile zone. It’s very dangerous to everyone, especially motorcycle riders. I won’t even get into how rude and obnoxious these people are when you encounter them in a store, restaurant, etc. They have this idea that they are special and have an air of entitlement about them. They really believe that anyone who lives in Florida year-round do so for one reason and one reason only…to serve them! They like being called Northern Visitors but I’ve always thought visitors are guests, and guests don’t treat their hosts like second-rate citizens.

But I’ve gotten off the track here. What these Northern a-holes do mostly is endanger the lives of people on the road…especially bikers. And when it’s raining…look out!!! These geriatric jerks completely forget how to drive when it’s raining.

So here I am, riding East on I-4, going through Orlando in the rain, and dodging these idiots who act like I’m the numbskull because I’m in their way. All you can do is say a little prayer and hope for the best. I’m tempted on occasion to speed up and get away from these bozos but that’s not a good idea because of another obstacle….cops!

Where did all these law dogs come from? They must’ve trucked extra cops into the area from across the country. I have to watch my speedometer very carefully. So here’s the picture for you to envision: I’m driving in pelting rain which makes it a bit hard to see but I have to keep an eye out for moron cage drivers with out-of-state tags AND watch my speedometer to prevent red and blue strobe lights from wrecking my day!
I bet you’re saying, “Why doesn’t she just stay home?”

Are you nuts? This is Bike Week in Daytona! This is Christmas, New Year’s Eve and the Fourth of July rolled into one! This is where we get to see old friends and make new ones. It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old, black or white, tall or short, fat or thin, etc. etc. This is where we all come together to celebrate what we truly love in life: MOTORCYCLES!

Sturgis is great. However, Sturgis is just once a year. Daytona has two bike rallies a year, and even in between, this town eats, breathes and sleeps motorcycles. It’s everywhere you look. Almost every storefront or restaurant is aimed towards the motorcyclist.

As in most Southern towns, you have your fair share of rednecks in Daytona. There was a time, back in the day, when rednecks and bikers didn’t get along unless you were at a David Allen Coe concert. But here in Daytona the rednecks are one with the biker. They don’t hassle us in the bars like they sometimes do in smaller towns  in Central Florida. They is us! We is them! Well, you get the idea.

Well, I’m due at the Iron Horse Saloon in a few minutes so I better get my rear in gear and hit the road. Stay tuned for more reports from Daytona from that Krazy Biker Katz vixen…Catnip Cougar. Yee-Haw!!