With a beautiful 75° day, it was finally time to take out the “black widow”, named after this sometimes deadly arachnid that inhabited this old field find. I rolled down the valley to King City and then Bitterwater Road over to Highway 25. We must remember that in 1977, the stock R 100 RS was BMW’s ultimate, most expensive sport tourer. Our bike was parked after only 17,500 miles, uncovered in a field in Carmel Valley for 25 years. My old friend gave me the bike, and now this BMW, stripped down to the frame, has been repurposed into the Scrambler/Enduro that I rode today. The “Widow“ is one gorgeous ride with its custom high pipes, cream-colored fenders and Granada red paint. It corners like a banshee with good leverage from my old Yamaha motocross bars, and begs to be cornered with your leg out and your shoulder dropped. The 70 hp, 1000 cc boxer motor has good available torque and pulls strongly right up to the ton. The solo, German police seat and comfortable geometry make it a joy to ride. Two-finger braking (thanks to Reg Pridmore ) works well with the two big front disc brakes. Today was a great riding day.... --Robb