Wright Out of the Gate – Family and Friends As I write this blog, I can’t help but notice how fortunate I am to have spent some good quality time with family, friends and my girlfriend. When I had last checked in with the previous blog, I was getting ready to go pick up my girlfriend from the airport in Los Angeles. When you are down south all alone for an extended period of time, I do have to admit it does get a little lonely without the close friends and family that I would normally see on a regular basis.
Last week I was fortunate enough that my girlfriend was able to get some time off work and come visit me in the Golden State for five days. When I am there alone, all I do is focus on riding, training and bike work, making sure I am on top of everything. This means I haven’t made any time to do anything too touristic or get the chance to see the great sights Southern California has to offer. Let me tell you, the five days that Jayme was able to come down and see me, we filled each day and were constantly on the go. Let me tell you a little bit of what we did!
On Friday morning we woke up to a colder rainy day and all I could think of was that there couldn’t have been a better day to head over to the Fox Head headquarters. It was the perfect opportunity to head out to the headquarters, pick up the items I needed and meet the amazing people at Fox. Such an awesome experience at Fox, I felt so welcomed and proud to be a Fox athlete.
After we got our shopping done we tried to check out the beach, but it was cold and rainy therefore that was a bit of a write off. The next day was also a little cooler in temperature, raining off and on. Jayme and I decided to take advantage of this weather by going hiking in the hills, which always leads to some pretty cool waterfalls. It truly is a great place for hiking because of the beautiful scenery and the change in elevation. To top that day off we did the famous Palm Springs aerial tram ride up Mt. San Jacinto. This is the largest aerial rotating tram ride in the world. From the bottom to the top it climbs a total of 1,790 meters and you end up at an elevation of 8,500 feet. Our ears could not stop popping. At the top it was more of a familiar site to back home with bigger trees and snow, whereas at the bottom it is all desert land for miles.
The following day was time to check out Los Angeles and Hollywood. We did the walk of fame, which I find to be a little overrated, but it is something you have to do when visiting SoCal. Shortly after we finished that walk, it was time to head up to the Griffith Observatory and do the popular hike over to the Hollywood sign. This has been on my bucket list for a long time and I couldn’t be happier to finally cross it off. I do have to admit it was quite a hike to get there. It took us over two and a half hours to get the whole hike done. The hike is so deceiving, as it looks much closer than you think.
The following day, the moto tracks finally opened and we headed to Milestone to get some riding in. It is always soo much better going riding when you have a loved one with you. Going to the track is also so eventful… especially when Jayme locks your keys in the truck. It just so happened that the nice gentleman parked beside us was able to help us out. We were welcomed to use his AAA membership and in a quick 45 minutes my truck was unlocked. People like him are what makes the moto community so unique and awesome! When the day of riding was over we decided to head to Laguna Beach where we spent the rest of our afternoon and evening. We also met up with Hayden and Megan for dinner on the beach at an Italian restaurant that was to die for.
On the Tuesday, I went back out and got some riding in at Perris Raceway. The track was a little muddy, which is a sight you never see here in SoCal. It was awesome being able to ride some muddier and rutty conditions. Later on that day, it was off the Santa Monica pier and Venice Beach before Jayme headed home that evening. It was such an amazing time that we had and I can’t wait to do more touristic stuff in the future! I was very fortunate to be able to get down to work, as well as fitting in some fun.
As I continued on with my week I went riding again Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday night I got a lot of needed bike work done because I had to catch an early flight out of Los Angeles the following morning to head to Montreal for the motorcycle show. My flight to Montreal went very smoothly. When I arrived I checked into the hotel and went straight over to the show to meet the amazing people from Honda. I then ended up staying there until the show closed.
The following day I headed back to the Montreal Motorcycle Show where I met a lot of amazing people. It was a great experience to be able to give all the people my personal opinion on the new bikes and share my expertise in the sport with the public. Also, my parents and some family surprised me by showing up at the show. It was very pleasant to see them as I hadn’t seen them in a while. My parents stayed the night with me, as it was great to spend some time with them. I headed back to the show on Sunday for the third and final day. I had never been to a motorcycle show before, I was surprised by the amount of people that were in attendance and that came through the Honda booth while I was there. When the show ended I do have to admit I was pretty tired, but all the new people I was able to meet and the familiar faces I got to see made it a very enjoyable weekend. I then headed back home to Ottawa for Monday where I was lucky to see a few good friends before heading to Toronto to see my girlfriend and get ready for the Toronto Supercross this weekend. It will be great to see everybody at the Supercross and I cannot wait to attend this event. For all that don’t know Colt, Cole Seely and I will be doing an autograph signing in the afternoon, so don’t be shy to stop by and chat with us or even get an autograph!