The website now has a “Bonus” section.

It appears on the menu, right next to “Blog”. This new section contains less-than-public versions of certain ride reports, photos and videos. It also permits you to upload files of your own to share.

But there’s one catch: You can’t see it!

Well, you can’t see it yet. But you can if you want to, so let me explain what’s going on.

Take a look at the top, right-hand corner of this page. Do you see that link which reads, “Register”, right beside “Login”? To access the Bonus section you will have to use that.

Once you click “Register” and follow the instructions, the system notifies me of your registration. Next, assuming you’re someone I know, I then tell the system to approve you and it promptly sends you an email, telling you that you are now registered. Simple as can be.

Once registered, whenever you want to access the Bonus section on this website, all you have to do is click the “Login” link at the top of this page and the Bonus section will become functional for you.

Now, hold on a second. You’re not too crazy about registering yourself on some dumb website, right? What does the site need your information for anyway? And is this some initial step towards closing things off to all those who don’t register?

Well, it’s nothing sinister like that. I have way better things to do than collect your email information. After all, you’ll only get the bonus features if I know you and, if I know you… I probably know your email already anyway!

If you don’t register, don’t worry. Nothing will change from what you are seeing right now. You can even add comments to this blog without being registered, so this is a very open system as it stands already.

There is one, main reason why registration is needed, and that will become clear once you know what this new feature provides you with.

The new feature is one that gives you the ability to view less-than-public ride stories and upload pictures, videos and stories of your own. What you upload, only other registered users will be able to see. And, in turn, you will then be able to see others’ contributions as well.

In terms of the ‘less-than-public’ ride reports, I am placing the story of my high-speed collision with the drunken/suicidal pedestrian near High Prairie in the Bonus section, for instance. And there will be some others I have been holding back on which will appear there as well.

These are reports which - although there is nothing wrong in them - I would rather not disseminate too broadly over the Internet because they can be misconstrued. But, among people I know… no problem at all. In this way, the registration feature facilitates providing what otherwise would never have become available.

Knowing access is restricted in this way, you might have stuff like that you’d like to contribute as well. If so, register and fire it up here.

Got some nice pictures of your bike or a road trip, maybe a story? I’d appreciate you sharing them. Later, I can put some of the photos and stories together (with the contributors’ permission, of course) onto a “Friends” Web page.

In addition to restricting who sees certain content, giving just anyone on the Internet an ability to upload files would make this site vulnerable to misuse and mischief. For that reason alone, providing an upload capability has to be restricted to trusted persons only – to people who I know will not engage in something malicious.

So the simplest (really, only) way to accomplish this is by means of a simple registration process which verifies the people contributing are those who they claim to be. And the way it is accomplished is very simple: When registering, you provide your email address. The system then sends an email to the address you provided and, if you reply to it by clicking a link it provides, it will consider you verified (i.e. that you provided your authentic address). Once I know that, I can grant you access as a registered user.

So there it is. Use it if you wish and we’ll see what comes.