Hi {{contact.first_name}}, September is when Kentucky riding gets good again. The heat finally lets go, the mornings turn crisp, and the first color starts creeping into the bluegrass and the river bottoms. It is also when the deer wake up and the fog settles on the low ground, so ride smart. Get out early, chase the backroads while the air is cool, and September gives you the front porch of the best riding month on the calendar.
Ride of the Month: The Ohio River Scenic Byway to La Grange
River views, Oldham County horse country, and a train down Main Street
Roll out of Louisville on River Road with the Ohio on your left, then pick up US-42 as it climbs into the Oldham County horse country, all black fences, rolling pasture, and shaded two-lane. Follow it up to La Grange, the little town where the railroad still runs right down the middle of Main Street, and time it right to watch a train roll through a foot off the curb. Grab a bite, let the bike cool, and take the KY-393 and KY-53 backroads home.
It is an easy half-day and it stays cool and green in the river bottoms even when the rest of the state is still warm. Run it on a September weekday morning and you will have the river road almost to yourself.
For a longer day, point it southeast on KY-55 to Taylorsville Lake and loop the Salt River country, some of the best rolling two-lane near the city. Bourbon crowd: run US-150 down to Bardstown and thread the backroads through Loretto and the distillery country before the fall crowds show up. Both stay shaded and low traffic if you beat the heat and the afternoon.
Early-Fall Safety: Kentucky Edition
September in Kentucky is the handoff from summer to fall, and it brings a whole new set of hazards.
- The deer are waking up. Rut season is starting, and the Kentucky backroads and park edges are thick with them at dawn and dusk. Scan the shoulders and tree lines, cover your brakes, and never swerve blind across the center line.
- The first wet leaves are as slick as ice. Early leaf drop plus morning dew turns the shaded curves and the park roads greasy. Give the leaf-covered corners easy throttle and long following distance, and stay off the painted lines when it is damp.
- Morning fog settles in the river bottoms. Cool nights and the Ohio and Salt River valleys mean thick, sudden fog on the low ground at first light. Ride with your light on, slow down, and give yourself room to stop in the gray patches.
- The days are getting short. Sunset creeps earlier all month, and the low evening sun sits right in the eyes of the drivers behind you on the west-running roads. Assume they cannot see you and keep an out.
Know Your Kentucky Law
- Your motorcycle has no no-fault coverage. Kentucky is a choice no-fault state with Basic Reparation Benefits, but the law leaves motorcycles out of the no-fault system. There is no BRB on your bike for your own medical bills after a wreck unless you bought it separately, so carry strong health coverage and UM/UIM.
- Fault is shared, with no cutoff. Kentucky uses pure comparative fault. Your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame, but even a mostly-at-fault rider can still recover something. How the crash gets documented decides the number.
- The minimums are low, so lean on UM/UIM. Kentucky requires only 25/50/25 in liability, which does not go far after a serious motorcycle wreck. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is your real backstop.
- You have two years. Kentucky generally gives you two years to file a motor-vehicle injury claim. Evidence and witnesses fade fast, so do not sit on it.
Ride Nation Kentucky
The local chapter is where Kentucky riders post weekend miles, call out fresh gravel and leaf-slick corners from the river roads to bourbon country, and share the shots worth putting your helmet on for. Post where you rode this month and tag us. It is your scene, run by riders who actually ride these roads.
Still Time for the $20,000 BikeWin Giveaway
You are on this list because you entered, which means you are already in the running for 20,000 dollars toward any motorcycle you want, drawn December 10. Got a buddy who would want a shot? The entry page is open and free.
Enter the giveaway
A driver turning left across your lane on the Watterson. A deer on a bourbon-country backroad. A distracted commuter who never saw you on one of the river bridges. If you ever go down, you want a lawyer who rides these roads and knows your bike has no no-fault coverage to fall back on.
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