Triumph Riders Listen Up! Meet the Rat Pack

Meet the Rat Pack, the only Triumph factory authorized club for Triumph motorcycle owners and riders in the state of Maryland.

We get together for a lot of great group rides (usually two a month!), both local and long distance, as well as attend regional motorcycle events. Our Pack has ridden in EVERY county in Maryland and in Delaware, half of the counties of West Virginia, as well as in parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama! In 2010 our Pack logged in 3890 miles, 2011 riding season we rode 5,642 miles, for 2012 the total came to 6295 miles, and in 2013 we were on the road for 4979 miles! And these totals are just on Pack rides! So you can see there are lots of opportunities to hit the road and have a great time. Our meetings are held at Pete's Cycle in Baltimore located at 7511 Belair Road, Baltimore, MD 21236 on the first MONDAY of every month at 7:00 P.M. Feel free to join us at our next meeting or email us at BaltimoreRAT@aol.com if you are interested in joining. Everyone is welcome to look around and read our posts to see what's happening in our club. So why not join up for some great times and great rides with a bunch of fellow Triumph riders. Hope to see you at our next meeting!

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Blisters Need Not Be Part of Your Ride

This post would like to thank Tip #175 of Mark Lindemann's The Total Motorcycling Manual, a must read for anyone with a motorcycle. Mark is a legend in the industry, once known for outrunning a low-flying aircraft at Bonneville, getting a ticket for hitting 134 mph in a 25-mph zone, and having to be sewed together by a veterinarian after a crash and burn on his streetbike.

Mark’s tip #175 is about not getting blisters. Sure, you have nice tight fitting gloves that you bought from Pete's Cycle--or at least we hope so--but this does not always do the trick. To beat almost any blister, begin by getting a 1.5 inch roll of medical adhesive tape.

Step 1 Ensure that your hands are dry and clean.

Step 2 Use Moleskin generously over the areas where you have blistered before. Cover the problem areas with a patch 2x the size of where you got previous blisters.

Step 3 Create about a 6 inch strip of tape.

Step 4 Using the strip, start at the back of your hand and wrap the tape to your palm. Make sure to apply pressure to the tape so it adheres nicely. Move your hands around to make sure the tape does not inhibit movement, and be sure your gloves till fit.

Step 5 Here’s the secret ingredient—use a dusting of talcum powder in your gloves or on your hands, both to make sure you can still get your gloves on and to reduce moisture, which can be a major cause of blisters. Make sure to bring the materials on your ride.

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