Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/729573
62 UCW SEPTEMBER 21-27, 2016 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM OCTOBER 1 • HOG COOKOUT at Fort Bragg Harley-Davidson. Visit www.fortbraggharley.com or call 864-1200 to find out more. OCTOBER 9 AND 10 • 6TH ANNUAL BIKERS FOR BIKERS FOUNDATION MUSIC FEST RALLY AND SWAP MEET at Vander Civic Assoc. Park. Call 551- 1161 for more information. OCTOBER 15 • BMC COOKOUT AT FORT BRAGG HARLEY- DAVIDSON. Visit www. fortbraggharley.com or call 864- 1200 to find out more. OCTOBER 22 • SPECIAL FORCES BROTHERHOOD BUDDY CHECK RIDE at Fort Bragg Harley-Davidson. Visit www. fortbraggharley.com or call 864- 1200 to find out more. OCTOBER 22 • HOGS FOR HORSES Registration 10 a.m. $20/ single rider $25/double riders. Food, live band. Benefits Hope- thru-Horses a 501(c)3 providing mental health services for people using animals. hthi@hthi.us Heather Wilkerson 910-494-5888. PATRIOT GUARD RIDERS The Patriot Guard Riders is a diverse group of patriots from every state that come together to honor fallen soldiers at funeral services across the country. Visit www.patriotguard.org for more information about the group. 4624 BRAGG BLVD. $1.00 Domestics ($2.00 or $2.50 beer only) $2.00 well drinks (excluding red bull and juices) $1.00 Domestics ($2.00 or $2.50 beer only) $2.00 well drinks (excluding red bull and juices) Bike Life by JIM JONES A friend just returned from riding his bike from a several-thousand-mile motorcycle trip. His first comments to me were that he just wanted to keep riding. I told him I felt the same way after I had been riding for a long period of time. I started asking myself, what is the difference between riding in a car or on a motorcycle? Have any of us ever finished a long ride in a car and said, "I can't wait to jump in the car and keep going?" Let's face it, on a motorcycle, we ride through some pretty terrible stuff. Often we punish our bodies along the way. Some of us have wrecked and yet get back on these things. For those who have not survived a motorcycle crash, the hospital nurses call our bikes, "donorcycles" because they often use the dead motorcyclist's organs to transplant to others in need. Motorcycle's came about as an evolutional change to the bicycle. The first motorized bicycle came to America around 1886. In 1894, Hildebrand & Wolfmüller became the first series production motorcycle. Their new invention was the first to be called a "motorcycle," which is German for "Motorrad." As for the other mode of travel, the automobile took hundreds of years to mature to a vehicle that could replace horses and other animals. In 1871, a Wisconsin State University Professor Dr. J. W. Carhart built a steam car that won a race that ran for 200 miles at a speed of 6 miles an hour. By 1902, over half of the 900 cars registered in the U. S. were steam cars. Since that time, cars have changed the American landscape. In the book Engines of Change: A History of the American Dream in Fifteen Cars by Paul Ingrassia, he describes how cars changed the industrial revolution and wars, empowered the soccer mom and even changed a presidential election (think Ralph Nader). Over the course of time, automobile innovation has certainly outpaced that of a motorcycle. Over the hundred plus years of the motorcycle, industry has made them faster and somewhat safer with ABS, traction control, better helmets and better tires, but the major component to the bike is the motorcyclist themselves. In a car, we are protected. We do not feel the environment outside unless we have the windows opened. We can make some mistakes. Hopefully, the car will compensate for our mistakes and if not, protect us. On a motorcycle, the slightest miscalculation or event can spell disaster. So what makes us feel the need to keep moving? Our body produces several chemicals while we ride. All riders have probably been called an adrenaline junkie and there is an element of that because we do produce adrenaline while riding, but there is more than that because we do not sustain adrenaline hour after hour for days on end. While riding, our body and mind is operating at a heightened level of physiology and awareness. We produce endorphins, norepinephrine and serotonin. Endorphins fire neurotransmitters within the brain. These transmitters fire electrical signals within the nervous system. Endorphins ("endogenous morphine") are endogenous opioid neuropeptides. This could be why we feel like riding is a drug. Norepinephrine affects alertness and attention and increases heart rate and arousal, improves blood flow and increases oxygen levels in the brain. Norepinephrine, also referred to as noradrenaline, along with epinephrine, which is what most of us think of as the "fight-or-flight" hormones. This is what makes us cautious and afraid when we ride or go fast when we want to get away from heavy traffic or danger. Serotonin is thought to be especially active in constricting smooth muscles, transmitting impulses between nerve cells, regulating cyclic body processes and contributes to maintaining our mood balance. A deficit of serotonin leads to depression. This is why we feel happy when we ride, and it explains why we feel depressed when we cannot. Somehow while having all of this fun, we are exercising while we ride. We use various muscles to hold the bike up, and if you have ever dropped a bike, you definitely will know you used your muscles. Any kind of exercise acts as an antidepressant and is good for us. So the next time you feel the need for two wheels underneath you, it may not just be a feeling but a biological need for speed. If there is a topic that you would like to discuss, you can contact me at motorcycle4fun@ aol.com. RIDE SAFE! JIM JONES, Motorcycle Enthusiast, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@ upandcomingweekly.com. 910.484.6200 The next time you feel the need for two wheels under- neath you, it may not just be a feeling but a biological need for speed. 5409 RAEFORD RD. • FAYETTEVILLE, NC Custom Color Change Paint or Powder Coat "Saving You Hundreds"