Bring on the “leafers”

This time of year in central Indiana can be full of interesting surprises from Mother Nature. Those of you who experienced the inaugural running of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP back in September can certainly vouch for that! Fortunately, this past weekend was a glorious example of how great the combination of clear, warm, sunny days can be with the onset of the fall symphony of colors across the Hoosier state.

After two solid weeks of business travel with all the associated joys of airports, hotels and alien cities, I ended up with a long weekend that was blessed with unbelievable weather for this time of the year. One thing I have learned over all the years of travel is the humor you can find wherever you may be stuck. I hope this pilot figured out where he was going!

I decided to forgo all the fall chores around the homestead and ended up spending most of all three days exploring the twisty routes around central and southern Indiana. The onset of the traditional fall foliage has also brought out hordes of “leafers” out for leisurely drives to gawk at the colors of the fall season.

This past Sunday, Oct. 12 also marked the monthly meeting of the HSTA (Honda Sport Touring Association). Our meeting destination this month was the 58 Café in Kurtz, Ind. Being only four blocks long and three blocks wide, you would miss it if you blinked twice during a spirited blast across IN SR 58. Well, based on previous blogs about the HSTA group, you should remember that indulging in culinary delights is one of our main mission statements. The breaded tenderloins and homemade pies definitely put the town of Kurtz and the 58 Café high on the HSTA destination list.

We’ll have to ask fellow HSTA’er Mike Harrell if the coconut cream pie at the 58 Café even comes close to the brownie fudge caramel ice cream delight at the South Bend Chocolate Company on Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis.

Fortunately, the monthly meeting agenda items were handled expeditiously, giving all the attendees plenty of time to enjoy a hardy lunch prior to round two of one of our favorite fall pastimes; dodging the meandering stream of fall “leafers.”

My trip back up to Indy also included one of the ultimate surprises for a sport bike rider; a 14-mile long, curvy ribbon of freshly laid pavement across IN SR 45 between Unionville and Beanblossom, Ind. What better experience could one ask for to wrap up a glorious fall weekend in central Indiana.

I’ll see you all in a couple weeks at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com.

Greg