New Year.. New habits

Here we are into the first month of 2023 and somehow missed writing in 2022. That tells you what an eventful year it was! And how poorly disciplined I am. 
I will hopefully be using this as a forum for our adventures more this year. It is my mission at least. 
 Starting off with a recap of the events that happened last year. Some day when this is our full time passion and we aren't working away I will be better at being in the moment. 

We would like to use this platform to tell you more about the wonderful places we go and people we meet. Hopefully 2023 sees us, not slowing down per se, but taking the time to enjoy the destination as much as the ride. 

Our end of winter was pretty quiet in 2022 and picked up in March when we were able to finally free the girls. We started with a little local ride that ended up seeing us partaking in a photoshoot in front of the local Ski Hill. 

 April was more local riding and shedding of the winter dust awaiting May when it would all change. 
The first weekend in May brought with it (Rexy's Birthday!) Blessings of the Bikes and Tank in her Motorcycle safety course! THEY ARE ON THEIR OWN! 

As is our tradition when a new family member gets their own.. in June we go to PEI to camp! This trip was a one nighter but packed with miles across three Maritime provinces and lots of firsts for Tank! 

July...  The Cannon Ball.. oh my. 
  During Covid we began doing the 1000mi Cannonball Rides. In 2021 we completed the Nova Scotia Loop and decided it was time to explore the New Brunswick/Quebec route for 2022. With roads bordering the province of New Brunswick and entering into Northern Quebec around the Gaspe area. 
Papa Wally, Gadgit and I (Rexy) rode into Moncton on the eve of July 1 to stay with Mitts and Mace. We toured the city a little, ate and enjoyed the fireworks show. As we were about to settle and prepare for an early departure, we got a call from Blinker proclaiming he should have come again this year. Well.. you know we said come now and met him in Amherst!  Now we were set.
 At 6am early on the morning of July 2/22 we were off! With 6 bikes and 7 people  to rip through the loop in 36 hours.  We decided to start and end our ride at Toys for Big Boys in Moncton, and run clockwise heading south first. You can see all the videos on our Youtube channel - Coastal Gypzies 
Of course it started to rain about an hour in, and by rain I mean a down pour,  well what ia a cannon ball without it?  It did clear off (well we rode out of it) mid afternoon to make for a beautiful evening ride up to Rimouski, where we "checked in" (got our photo proof)  at a closed Rimouski Harley Davidson, then planned to stop for a few hours of sleep. 
 Who would have expected it to be such a hard city to get a room? Well it was near impossible but Mitts & Mace figured it out. 
Day two was progressing amazingly with sun (though you should know it is cold up there) and many miles behind us.. when... 

Blinker blew a back tire. He did get it safely over to the side, but while we were discussing the plan, Gadgit was moving our bikes to a safe location off the side of the road.  While moving the last bike (Mine) a car tried to pass him when he was turning left into the road.  I won't get heavy into details as it was a sight that still gets to me (see youtube for more) , but the end of that situation was that Gadgit has a few broken ribs and a small puncture in the lung.  
The fates were on our side as Papa was able to make a new friend, who went out of his way to help us out.  We ended up staying another night in Quebec and heading for home the next day. 

Once home we had Privateers HD check out my ride for insurance, and so maybe I shouldn't have pushed it home.  Melly wasn't a write off (WHEW!!) but she was going to be a while getting fixed. The list of damages was significant. 
Time to figure out a ride for summer ..  read on for that... 
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While the trip did not go as planned, and had many hiccups.. those are what make the best memories. We were all ok.. the bikes were ok.. and it reminded us of the real value of family, friends and time. 

HELLLLO Rosebud... other wise known as RB (racebike) to some. 
 After some searching and decision making, I decided to go with a Ninja 500 for summer. She is a great little ride and now lives in the Pit as an extra. 

The rest of the season was made up of many great adventures.. from Halls' Harbour for date day, Of course Meat Cove (that is a post to come) and Wharf Rat Rally / Party at the Tupper..
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