It was 8.58, and still raining, when I was ready to mount up after meeting a student at the Northgate Panera Bread. Too late to return the Netflix in the Givi tailpack without penalty. “Oh well, I won’t tell Mike,” I thought, because he hates it when a free rental winds up costing a dollar.

I backed the Transalp out of the parking slot, mounted up and pressed the starter, my mind more on the Netflix return than starting up. Sputter, sputter. Sigh. It’s been so long since this happened; must be the rain. Flip the engine cut-off switch off and back on. Sputter, sputter. Press the starter again. Rumble rumble!

At 9 pm in June in Seattle, it’s still not dark, even on a wet day like today, although visibility was, to put it kindly, limited. I merge into heavier-than-expected northbound I-5 traffic and make my way carefully over to the car pool lane.

No sooner than I make it over, the bike slows down.

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