New Routine and Coming Attractions

It’s been two weeks since I started at Jalopnik. I’m settling into a new routine. Traditionally, I woke up, had coffee, and then dove right into Wikimotive edits and any other writing work like ADVRider. Now, mornings are dedicated to Jalopnik. I break for lunch, then do all that other work in the afternoon. I no longer have much time to take off on the motorcycle for an afternoon, but it’s okay. There are many worse ways to make a living, and I’ve done a few of them.

Rather than late-breaking news, I’ve ended up writing less time-sensitive and more SEO-driven articles for Jalopnik. Published so far are articles about removing moisture from inside headlights, blue dots on motorcycle tail lights, why the Boeing 747 has that hump like Igor from Young Frankenstein, and the pros and cons of cold-air intakes. It looks like they’re saving up what I write during the week to publish over the weekends. This weekend, I have articles about why you need to change the fluid inside sealed transmissions despite auto manufacturer claims, and how Tesla owners are installing emergency rip cords to open their doors manually in case the electronically operated doors malfunction. That, plus whatever else they decide to edit and publish between now and then.

Before starting at Jalopnik, I wrote a whole bunch of product reviews for ADVRider before I had a lot less time to write them. Of course, they want to space them out over time instead of publishing them all at once. My review of Free Ride by Noraly Schoenmaker, also known as “Itchy Boots,” came out before the book’s release date. It’s one of the perks of the business. I would’ve read it regardless of any review. My Polaris Slingshot review is in the can, just waiting for publication. I’ve finished writing a review of Leatt’s ADV MultiTour 5.5 jacket and pants, with delays because of some trouble getting Melissa a matching jacket in the proper size. She has it now, and the gear is excellent except for the sizing issue (not unusual for women’s riding gear). As soon as I get a picture or two of her modeling the jacket, that one’s done.

Next is a review of the HMD OffGrid satellite tracker, which I’ve found handy to keep in touch and share my location with Melissa while on motorcycle rides in the Ozarks, where there’s frequently no cell service. I also have book reviews coming up for the recently updated edition of Proficient Motorcycling, as well as King of the Desert by Nick Arley. Nick messaged me on the ADVRider forum after reading my Free Ride review and asked if I’d be interested in reviewing his upcoming book. Of course I was, and as a fellow forum member (we call them “inmates”), getting approval from the powers that be was a no-brainer. I may also be getting yet another Apple CarPlay unit to try out, this one with a blind spot monitoring system and a detachable mount. All this, plus a bunch of regular news articles on the fly.

So, yeah, I’ve been pretty busy lately. But I think I’m settling into the new routine enough to be getting used to it. Here’s a cat picture as your reward for reading all this.