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... Put a Spyder smile on my face for a free shirt.
My son Eric agrees to ride on the back of the Spyder for our trip to visit a school he is considering attending. As I load up the Spyder, I have to convince the boy that a sweatshirt and sneakers are not sufficient to wear on a ride that will last at least six hours, have high speeds, and will likely be interrupted by thunderstorms.
He reluctantly agrees to wear my Spyder First Owners' Group jacket and my high boots.
We had no intercom system, so all our father-son bonding on this adventure occurred at the rest stops.
Rest stop #1. Eric says over pizza and Pepsi, "So, you have an extra Spyder baseball cap, right? Can I have that one...?"
Rest stop #2. Eric says while sipping Coke and munching Doritos, "These boots are comfortable. Can I wear them when I go back to school?"
Rest stop #3. Eric says while sending a text message to some friend back home, "This Spyder jacket fits me pretty well. You don't usually wear this to ride, do you...?"
Rest stop #4. I say over coffee, "So let me get this straight--You want my boots, my hat, and my JACKET?! Oh, and isn't that one of my helmets you're wearing? Hey, and those are MY old jeans!!"
Right before rest stop #5, I feel pressure in my upper back. I think, "Oh, no. Not another one!"
I nudge my passenger.
The back of my helmet gets a sharp rap.
I nudge again.
Two more raps on the helmet, then a third.
Rest stop#5: "Were you just sleeping?"
Oh, was I? Um, yeah, I guess..."
I pull out my phone and call my lovely bride.
She a l w a y s would fall asleep on the back of my motorcycles.
(Something about her riding horses for hours on end and being able to sleep in the saddle.)
"Guess what, Dear? Genetics have been proven again. He definitely is your son: the boy sleeps while we ride just like his momma!"
Eric now has a new Can-Am wardrobe, with which he is quite happy.
Oh yeah. After the thirteen-and-a-half hour round trip, he decided on a different school...