Riding home on the freeway on Friday night, after a lateish night at work, I was lucky enough to find myself faced with a dry night, open road, and an opportunity for a smooth ride rather than a stop-and-go traffic fest. I remember my early freeway rides, just a few months ago, and a very distinct feeling that while 55 was a comfortable speed, 65 was terrifying and unsafe. I remember being so concerned by the fairing vibration on Zoë that I'd short-shift her to keep the RPMs below 5K; I needed 6th gear just to keep up on the freeway, that way. It took a very slow hand on the throttle to keep below that magic rev number, and she really didn't feel like she had much in the way of guts, down that low.

It's amazing how much of a difference the last month has made. With my posture a bit improved, earplugs, experience, and a little bit of faith in Zoë, I find myself at 85 on the freeway, feeling totally relaxed, gliding along in the midrange of the tachometer. I've yet to find the need to redline it, but between 8000 and 8500 rpm that engine really comes alive, the bike settles into a comfortable cruise, and I feel right at home. Now that I've had the chance to lean her over in a turn at speed, I know how she can move if I need her to, and that calms me on the freeway. Ever since I started adding emergency stop practice to my daily ride - if there's no-one behind me, I e-stop for yellow lights when I can - I feel a lot more secure in my braking, and I spend a lot less mental effort on "omigod what will happen if that guy stops?!?!" and can free my mind up to really understand the road, see everyone around me, know my escape routes, and try to be at one with the whole experience. Honestly, I'm feeling really, really good.

Riding has a really strange learning curve; it seems like it alternates between being really steep and being almost flat. In the flat spots, you can't help but think "Wow, this is easy! I've learned all there is to learn!", and then a few days or a week later, the curve takes off again, and you realize how much there still is that you haven't even thought about. Keeping a diary, log, or whatever has been very interesting to me; I can look back at the posts from my first days and remember when shifting was a task that didn't always work and 45 was a speed that felt on the edge of control, and it makes me proud to see what strides I've made, limited as they are.

Here's to another steep slope on the learning curve, right around the corner.