Thunderstorms and a Thundering Bike Ride (July 10, 2010)

Shot this photo out of my back door on Friday night July 9. Been a very dry time in the area, in fact officially the region is close to drought conditions, but that ended with this storm (at least for a while) Friday night. Was quite the light show and thunder boomed like cannon. No damage though a lot of people lost power and quite a few trees came down. It is amazing what nature can do; and this storm dropped close to an inch (according to local weather reports) in the Concord, NC area. It also scared my dogs a great deal, but I found it remarkable to watch the rain, wind and light show. This was the first rain I have seen since I have been home this trip.
Went motorcycle riding today, and had a fantastic time. The storm front last night brought cooler temperatures (lower 90's vs the 100+ of the last few days) and lower humidity. Went with Phil down some fantastic roads (he on his Yamaha, I on my Kawasaki). During the ride passed 20,000 miles on the odometer of my bike (purchased new in June 2005). Photo at left is at Lake Norman, of the McGuire Nuclear Power Plant there. The lake, man-made, was built to provide cooling water for this plant. I have seen the lake from the air, and it is quite a sight. There is a sort of visitor center/museum at the plant site, and I took this photo there.

This is Phil, checking out some of the sights on the lake. It is also a nature preserve, and of course fishing is real big on the lake. There are a lot of high dollar houses on the lake and it is the home to many of Charlotte's "movers and shakers" plus many of the Carolina Panthers, Charlotte Bobcats, and many Nascar drivers have homes on Lake Norman.
Ride took us down some beautiful roads, and also through towns in the area such as Huntersville, Denver, and Mooresville. Amazed as always, and even in times such as these to see all the new construction and new businesses that have popped up since my last trip down those roads. Always fun to ride the motorcycle, and that is a very good area to take a cruise on a nice summer day.
This visit is winding down this weekend, but it has been a remarkable time, and great fun with family and friends. Still have the rest of Saturday and Sunday...so sure to have some more to do before it is time to take the drive back to Richmond on Monday morning.