You Find Out Who Your Friends Are

Christmas is a wonderful time because you get the chance to see family friends who live far from home.  At the same time you also spend time with a lot of people you may not otherwise choose to see.  So I came up with a convienent and easy test to determine how you should prioritize your time.  Before spending time with anyone this holiday season ask yourself this simple question.

If they asked would I let them ride my motorcycle?

Now the Z1000 is by no means an exotic or expensive ride, but its mine and I like it (I like it alot).

There are only about 5 people in the world that if they came to me and asked, "Hey can I take your bike for a ride?" that I would say yes.  So next time you are asked to attend a holiday event ask yourself, would I let them ride my bike, and if the answer is no, call up those people you would and go for a ride.  It is not a coincidence that the people I would let borrow my bike are also the people I ride with and they would not hesitate to let me borrow their bikes.  I am just saying. 

(There is one caveat to this rule, if your wife tells you, "I don't care about your stupid motorcycle rule, get your ass in the car we are going to my Grandmother's Christmas Party", you had better go.  Just remember as Red Green of the great Red Green Show says "I'm pulling for you, we are all in this together."). 

Happy New Year's Everyone.

Christmas Highs and Lows

I have always been a fan of Christmas.  This may be due, in large part, to my dilusional tendencies.  At Christmas time I forget the real world and believe that the entire world is like a Norman Rockwell painting.

This is reflected in my choice of Christmas music as well.  Roger Whittaker sings the only Christmas music which escapes from my Ipod these days.

However, Christmas is a tricky time at my house.  The joy of seeing my daughter, (who is lovingly referred to as "Babes") who is five, getting excited at the sight of presents under the tree, and seeing my son (known as "D") at his first real Christmas, he is only one this year, is contrast with the saddness of those loved ones who are no longer with us.  This was brought to a head the other day when I waived to a fellow rider.  Yes, I am lucky enough to live in a climate which allows year round riding, and I waive to other riders, especially those willing to ride in the (colder) winter months, regardless of make or model of bike.  This is the bike I saw.

My younger brother owned a CBR 600F3 like the one above, and he loved to ride.  He passed away five years ago, no not at Christmas time, but I seem to miss him more at Christmas than any other time.  He was only three years younger than I am and we were always close.  We spent many Christmas nights dreaming of toys and of course trying to decide which motorcycle we would ask Santa to bring us.  Yes this tradition continues, I still ask Santa for a Motorcycle every year.  Perhaps this year I will ask for a custom Cafe Racer based on a CB750. 

So while I will read the Christmas Story from the book of Luke in the Bible to my family on Christmas Eve, and wake my daughter up at 4:00 am the next morning exclaiming "Santa has been and left us presents."  A part of me longs for the days when I lay down next to the Christmas Tree with my brother, watching as a slide show of photgraphs, taken by my father, of past Christmas' is projected on the wall.

To all the other riders, keep it shiny side up, enjoy time with friends and families during the holidays, and to steal a phrase from Clement Clarke Moore "Happy Christmas to all and to all a good-night."   

Chicken Strips and Hard Bits

The two of you familiar with this blog, will remember my good friend and riding buddy Supe.

Here is Supe with his beloved Suzi, a Bandit 1200.  Supe recently relocated due to a change in employment, it was a change for the better, to a location that has a nice winding canyon road within a short distance.  A few days ago a received a very excited phone call from Supe, at which time he explained that during one of his recent afternoon runs he had scraped his foot peg through a turn.  Now this is not the first time I have had the opportunity to join in another rider's enthusiasm for doing something that others would consider just down right stupid.  During a trip with my brother he also scraped "hard bits" (read foot peg) while riding the Cherohala Skyway.

This recent conversation reminded me of many conversations I have had with other riders regarding chicken strips, and hard bits.  Some riders believe that attempting to eliminate the chicken strips or scrape hard bits to be an act of stupidity and to demonstrate a lack of maturity.  On the other hand there are even some tires which have markings to document your lean angle (Metzler M5 Sportec).  I have tried to determine why some riders I admire, are so against riders comparing chicken strips, but I think I have resolved this problem.

First it is important to remember that it is impossible with some bikes, including ones I have owned in the past, to completely eliminate chicken strips, therefore, comparing the chicken strips on the Z1000 to those on the Raider would be completely idiotic and mean nothing.  Therefore, I believe the action which should be looked upon with disdain is to go out with your riding buddies for the sole purpose of comparing chicken strips.  This could well be a sign that you are in fact a squid.  That being said, one could and should be excited about pushing yourself and your bike farther than before.  On occasion I investigate the status of the chicken strips on the Z1000 (happy to say there are none on the Pirelli Angel ST currently mounted), but I do this not to compare them against others, but to assess my own progression and abilities.  I am always seeking to improve my riding skills, better head and body position, better lines and throttle control, and the natural result of any improvement is more aggressive lean angles, therefore, the chicken strips, or lack thereof is a visual confirmation of my increased ability and confidence.  If you ride just to prove that you can eliminate your chicken strips, or scrape your hard bits you are an idiot, if you ride for the love of riding, and and you use the elimination of chicken strips and ability to scrape the hard bits as one of many indicators to demonstrate you improved riding ability, you should be excited to have evidence of your improvement.

Therefore, to Supe I say congratulations to safely exploring Suzi's limits, and commend you on a job well done.

Moto Vlogging

I am generally not a fan of most Vlog sites, even motorcycle Vlog sites.  This is because it is difficult to have something interesting to say everytime you ride, especially if you ride everyday like I do.  That being said, I am a big fan of travel blogs and vlogs.  Therefore, in an effort to share with others and give credit where credit is due, I came accross two gentlemen out of Canada who take a trip every summer, and create some of the best motorcycle videos out there.  They refer to their summer trip as the "Big Trip" and have created videos for 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.  The editing is extremely well done, and the video and photography is excellent.  I must also confess that thanks to these videos I discovered the Canadian band "The Trews" which is fast becoming one of my favorites.

This is the video for the Big Trip 2011 Day 1, I hope you enjoy. 

P.S. Do not begin watching in the morning at work, if you do you might as well go home as your work day will be an utter waste.

The other videos can be found on YouTube, simply search Big Trip 2011, and if you would like to watch the previous years, search "Big Trip and include 2008, 2009, or 2010"

I hope you enjoy.

A Brief History

Another blog that I follow closely, once took the position that any motorcycle blogger should be required to list the motorcycles they have owned and ridden, so people get an understanding of their history.  I thought this was a good idea so here goes.

The first motorcycle I ever road belong to my grandfather.  He was the foreman of a large ranch.  The actual owner lived in California and would fly in from time to time, but in my childhood brain, the entire ranch was my Grandpa's and therefore mine by association.  My brothers, sister and I would often spend time their as children.  Anyway, the motorcycle I first learned to ride on was a Honda Trail 50.

I conquered many a dirt road and trails as a wee lad on this trustee machine.  Perhaps this was the origins of my love for the two wheels.  It was at about this time that four wheelers become popular and as I got bigger I began riding more four wheelers than bikes.

Next when I was 15, I had a crush on a girl from the next town over, about 15 miles away by legal roads, and about 20 miles by the back roads.  It was at this time, that my entire world turned upside down, I discovered that girls did not in fact have cooties, but could be quite enjoyable.  Alas, with no drivers license how could I indulge my desires?  At this time a friend of mine, most well known for breaking both of his arms, at the same time, while playing basketball, introduced me to the benefits of an enduro.  He owned a Yamaha Trailway,

which we would often ride to the neighboring town, to visit my girlfriend and her friends.  The benefit was that we could entirely avoid the highways and freeway with the dirt road alternatives, and as long as we obeyed traffic laws, we did not get stopped by the local small town police force, even though the bike was not registered.

Finally, a driver's license.  While in high school I generally drove a car, do in large part to the fact that Supe seldom had the use of a car, and had to compete with his older brother, and our other friend, LP had no car, I usually had more than one person to drive around, I did however, ride at times, my brother's Suzuki GS425

this is not an actual picture, as the one my brother owned had a WindJammer Vetter fairing, which probably explains my hatred of fairings and love of all naked bikes. 

This was really the beginning of street motorcycles for me.  I used to ride it all over town, in fact it is the bike I first took my riding test on, and failed, due in most part to the fact that the clutch would have been just as effective if you had replaced the lever with a toggle switch, there was no ability to feather the clutch.

It is important to note at this time that my brother was instrumental in my motorcycle life, this bike as well as the next actually belonged to him, but he was kind hearted enough to feed my addiction.

After a few years, I once again took advantage of my brother's kindness and borrowed for an extended time his Suzuki SV650.



While I have always enjoyed motorcycles, it was not until riding this bike that I truly understood, and fell in love with  riding.  While not the most powerful bike in the world, which becomes clear once you get to freeway speeds, for sheer riding enjoyment this bike was top notch.  The short wheel base combined with good geometry and the V-twin motor, always made me smile.  Not you average, I am slightly amused smile, but the face bending, shit eating, time of my life smile.  That is why I classify this bike as the most "fun" bike I have had the opportunity to throw a leg over.  

You could not get two different bike than the SV650 and my next bike a Yamaha Raider.  

 

This bike was very different than any I had ridden before, long wheel base, high degree rake angle, but it was truly enjoyable to ride.  Good suspension, amazing motor, which as my brother once stated.  "There is no tach, so I was wondering what gear I should be in, but then I realized with this torque it does not really matter." 

Finally, what I currently own, the fabulous Kawasaki Z1000.

This bike is getting close to perfection for me, the essences of motorcycles.  I can ride all day, with a decent seating position, and do not hesitate to take the fun roads at speeds sufficient to take care of those pesky chicken strips.  Motorcycles are and should be as unique as their riders, this bike will not be perfect for everyone, not comfortable enough for some, too small, too big, too green, but all of the bikes we have ridden in our life, help to clarify our wants and needs, and we eventually come to an understanding of what bike is best for each of us. 

Until such time as I have the means to have multiple motorcycles the Cafe Racer, Super Standard, Naked Sportbike, will be the kind of bike taking up space in my garage.  You know other than size, there is not a whole lot different from the early Honda Trail 50, and the Z1000.

Fairwell to Yellowstone

As many of you know, I had planned a week long motorcycle trip to Yellowstone,with my riding buddy Supe, as well as his two brothers.  We had it all planned, we would leave on Tuesday, July 12, 2011 and I would get home on Monday, July, 18, 2011.  While we would take advantage of the many "fun" roads, our families would travel in the mini vans and SUVs by interstate and meet us in Yellowstone.  The highlight of the trip, other than a week off work with good friends, food, family, roads, and scenery, was that I would be riding Beartooth Pass for the first time.

Then I got the call.
Supe explained that he had purchased an engagement ring and was getting married,

and because he had accepted a new job which required him to move he would be getting married before the move, which was in August.  Due to the expense, and that all plans and preparations, and Supe had to meet the In-Laws in less than a month, the trip was a no go, although I believe we have agreed that it was simply postponed rather than cancelled. 

My first thought was, "I am getting screwed and I am not the one getting married."  While Supe shall never live down his failure to respect the sacred nature of the motorcycle camping trip, we wish him and his new wife (she does not have a nick name yet) joy and happiness in their new life together.  Congratulations. 

P.S. A weekend tirp to Arches National Park in the Fall may ease some of my pain.  If I cannot have Beartooth Pass, Highway 12 will have to suffice.

A Sunday Morning Ride

This past weekend my friend, you all know him as Supe, was visiting family who live in the same area as I do.  Not wanting to miss an opportunity we decided to go for an early morning ride on Sunday.

Supe arrives at the arranged gas station, with the love of his life Suzi, and his girlfriend.  Suzi is Supe's Bandit 1200.  As all motorcycle rides start with a trip to the local gas station, we met at the Sinclair station, as it is the only gas station within 5 miles of my home.  Another is being built accross the street but is not yet completed.

After filling up we headed up the road to Zion National Park.  This is the most popular ride when we have limited time.  Which can be translated into when my wife did not know I was going for a ride. 
I have a confession to make.  I am attempting to determine the best way to format this blog.  I have decided that I like a format consisting of photographs with captions explaining the photos, however, I would also like to take some videos and post them.  I do not want to say that I will become a Vlogger, as the videos will likely be limited to action shots which have been edited and overlayed with music, like a sound track.  However, I may decide to post videos of the longer rides in a more travel log style, with riding footage with a sound track followed by a monologue of one of the participants talking about the ride or the day.  We shall see.  Anyway this is my first real attempt to capture pictures while riding, so forgive the poor quality of my pictures, I am no artist.

Supe and friends riding toward Zion.



Riding through a sleepy town which feels a little like a step back in time.

Riding into Zion.

If you look closely at the above pictures you will get a sense of the winding road through Zion, there are numerous turns and twists, as well as the odd decreasing radius turn.  I only wish they had the signs like on the Blueridge Parkway.  "Do you know what a decreasing radius turn is?  Don't find out the hard way."

So if the road is the reason we love Zion, this is the reason we hate the summer time, RV's.  There is nothing worse than riding such a wonderful road, which they have recently repaved so it is track smooth, at 10 miles an hour behind a rent me RV.  As Canyon Chasers say "Save our canyons from RVs."

While I have apologized for my lack of photography skills, I attempted to capture some video with my point and shoot. I must explain that this camera is really old, as my wife would not appreciate me holding her new camera off the side of my motorcycle while riding through Zion.

Here is my attempt at video, hopefully I can get a GoPro or other mounted camera system soon.

Once we got to the otherside of Zion (locally known as "The Park") we bought a motorcycle trip meal

and then turned back around to head home.

On the way back down, while we were waiting for motorhomes to go through the tunnel

 we ran into a group of riders from France.  As you can see the motorhomes are too tall and have to drive down the middle of the tunnel, making everyone else wait at one end or the other.  While I believe that anyone can exercise their right to buy and drive a motorhome around, I also believe they should exercise their right to pull the hell over whenever a motorcycle is behind them.  The riders from France had apperantly rented motorcycles, 13 of them, in LA and were riding around the Southwest, Death Valley, Grand Canyon, Monument Valley and the like.  It was great to talk to them, however, they were riding Harleys, which are not ideal for highspeed passes through decreasing radius turns, and were taking pictures.  It goes without saying that they were holding us up. 

If you look closely you can see them in front of the black Mustang (one of their chase vehicles)

and off to the left between the trees.  While I do not fault motorcycle riders for riding their own pace, there are many a people faster than me, it was slightly disheartening that they did not pull over to let us pass.  I would have thought that other riders would have experienced the frustration of following slower vehicles, and either pulled over or simply moved to the far right of the lane and waived us through.  Regardless, we only got about four turns where we were not hindered by much slower traffic.  Lesson learned stay out of Zion on a sunny late spring morning.

Welcome Class of 2011

As explained in the previous post, I am not a fan of the 2011 Speed Triple redesign, and that got we wondering what new Cafe Racers, Streetfighters, and Standards are avialable in this new year.

Aprillia Shiver 750, not to shabby.

The new Ducati Diavel Carbon.  I do not know what it is but it looks a little off.  Maybe it is that the rake angle looks to high for the bike, or the sitting position, it looks like a chopper street fighter,  I still prefer the Monster.

Although this is not an entirely new bike it has had some upgrades, the Harley XR1200X, which is about the only Harley I find appealing.  The new version has the benefit of Showa shocks and I believe upgraded brakes.  I had the opportunity to ride last year's model, and while I really like the idea, it felt as if the engine was a let down, and that handling could have been better.  Although they tout the wide handle bars, riding the XR after the trusty Z1000, I felt the bars where actually quite skinny.  (Confession, my stock bars have been replaced with ProTaper bars, which are wider).

Thank you Yamaha, for realizing on the FZ8 that the half fairing previously available on the FZ1, was extremely ugly.  History is full of bike manufacturers taking a perfectly good fully naked bike and ruining it with a half fairing, yes Suzuki I am talking to you, Bandit 600S,1200S, (Suzi is a Bandit 1200 no fairing), SV650S, SV1000S.  Now Yamaha have done the opposite taken a ugly half faired bike and made something wonderful.  I would go to the local shop to have a go, but all they have in stock are sport bikes and cruisers.  Road trip to a larger city anyone.

All in all 2011 looks like a good year.

Continental Conti-Motion Tires

Continental Tires, is one of the largest tire companies in the world, and although quite well known in the US for car tires, they are less known for their bike tires.  However, I have heard that they are one of the top motorcycle tire sellers in Europe (what ever that means). 

Continental makes a variety of tires, if you would like a good review of the Road Attack tires read the review on the Canyon Chasers website.  http://www.canyonchasers.net/reviews/tires/road-attack.php


Last year, my friend (Supe) and I were going to travel to the World Superbike Race at Miller Motorsports Park over Memorial Day weekend, taking all of the back roads of course.  The the day before we were to leave, I had taken my bike into the local Kawasaki dealer because it was making a funny noise.  It turned out to be a noise caused by a faulty valve on the emissions system required in California, the system was unnecessary, as I do not live in California, and therefore dealt with appropriately.  However, I was also in need of a new rear tire and with funds running low I opted for the lowest price tire the shop had available, the Conti-Motion.

So I purchased the tire, which was promptly mounted and away I went.  Over the next few days I put over 1,500 miles on the bike, traveling on everything from mind numbing freeways to tight and twisty mountain passes.   At a cost of only $90 dollars I was extremely impressed with the tire.  Grip was good both while up right and through the turns, it also preformed well in wet weather.  The morning of the last day was met with rain, it cleared up by the afternoon.  The tire was confidence inspiring and felt planted, even when the turns and the speeds were sufficient to eliminate my chicken strips.
Tread life was decent.  The Z1000 is neither light nor heavy at 496 lbs/dry, and I would consider my riding style middle of the road, not too aggressive, however, I do enjoy a spirited ride through the turns.  That being said, I had to replace the tire after about 6,500 miles.  All in all it was a great tire, and I will consider purchasing it again.  It is confidence inspiring, lasts as long as more expensive tires, and is generally one of the lowest cost sport-touring tires (definitely more to the sport side of the spectrum) available.
I currently ride Pirelli Angel STs, and will review them once I have put sufficient miles on to provide a proper opinion.

Spring Ride

I am blessed to live in a location that allows for year round riding, and while I commute to work on  "Dad's Green Motorcycle."  Thanks Babes for clarifying the color.

During the winter months I seldom get the opportunity to partake in the best of all motorcycle rides, a joy ride with a good friend.  I should also explain that one of my best friends "Supe" lives in a more nothern (read snow covered) climate, and only has a carport rather than a garage, so for the winter months I keep his Suzuki Bandit 1200 ("Suzi" not sure on the spelling) warm and safe within my garage. 

However, this Saturday, Supe was visiting me and we decided to take a couple of hours for a pleasure ride to Zion National Park.  As you can see above we started with the obligatory gas stop.  Unitl I started this blog, the only pictures I ever took on motorcycle rides were of my bike with different gas stations as a back drop.  This blog is in part an attempt to force me to better document these wonderful times.  So after a fill up of gas and a check of air pressure, we started our ride.
We started up SR-9 which consists of mostly long sweepers as it is the main road to Zion National Park and must accomodate that most dreaded of road going vehicles the RV, or as Jeremy, Richard, and James would call them Caravans.  This being the first ride of the forthcoming spring, it was my intention to take it easy, however, as I drove up the road, I felt good, the road surface was excellent, and there was surpisingly little traffic.  So as I entered one long sweeper after another my forward velocity began to increase, feeling comfortable I did not glance at the Speedo, as I was concentrating on correct body and head position, however, after one especially good turn I saw my exit speed and quickly realized the extent of my youthful exuberance. 
Soon we arrived at the entrance to Zion.  Now recently the park rangers in Zion have been especially diligent in their duties regarding American the Beautiful Annual Passes (read not allowing other to borrow them, by asking for ID).  In the past the purchase of an annual pass allowed two motorcycles per pass, so at the entrance I argued vigoruously my prior review of the rules and the ranger despite his belief the rule was different obliged our entrance with one pass despite that only one of us had signed the pass.  Because I had dealt with this issue in the past I felt confident in my reading of the rules, however, upon return home the National Park website had been updated to reflect that for two motorcycles to enter the two people had to sign the pass.  So to the Ranger at the entrance on Saturday, if you read this, I apologize for my anger regarding entrance.  
Despite my new understanding of the current rule. I believe the rule should allow two motorcycles regardless of the need for both to have signed the pass.  I can take my friend in the park in a car without the need for him to sign the pass, I am always careful to park both bikes in one parking stall so as not to take up more space than a care, and lets be honest at the speed I travel the familiar roads of Zion National Park, we are not holding up any traffic.  Back to the story, we rode up to a turn around spot and stopped for a few pictures.  To all the other tourists who kindly let us pass, I thank you.  To the one motorhome going 10 under the speed limit, who passed multiple pull offs without letting us pass, I hope you have a wonderful trip, but also hope you will allow those faster than you to pass, it is truly appreciated.

(Sorry, for some reason when I rotated the pictures the quality was reduced.  I will have to address this issue.  I also made some video but need to edit it before posting.)
As you can see, it was great to get out on a pleasure ride, the weather was good, 60 degrees and sunny, requiring nothing more than my jacket.  I hope to have many more rides with friends this year.  Supe thanks for coming and making my weekend, it was the best part of my weekend. Yes event better than watching the Super Bowl which is saying a lot for this football fan.

Thanksgiving at OBX

Many places have begun making stickers for your car, bikes, panniers, and helmets, with three letters, so you can discretely brag about your travels.  One of the first places to begin selling such stickers was the Outerbanks, North Carolina (OBX).

In 2008 my older brother, who currently lives in Northern Virginia, and used to live in North Carolina, invited my family to spend Thanksgiving in the Outerbanks with his family.  It was one of the best vacations I have had with my family.  So for Thanksgiving 2010 my wife and I decided to pack up the family spend a week with my brother, his family, my mom, and my in-laws on the beach. 
The Outerbanks are a string of barrier islands located along the North Carolina Coast.

Confession time.  My lovely wife of 10 years is not a fan of motorcycles.  She has grudingly allowed me to ride throughout my life, and has allowed me to purchase my current ride, and while I would love to ride North Carolina highway 12, which runs the length of the Outerbanks, if I rode she would not come, and if I went without her, she would likely kill me in my sleep, therefore, while this blog is motorcycle oriented I made this trip in a car, which car I will not admit as it would require that I forfeit my man card. 

On December 17, 2010 we flew into Dulles International Airport, which despite the many upgrades, was clearly built in the 1950's.

After spending a couple days at my Brother's house we drove from Washington DC to North Carolina.  Once we arrived we found the house we rented for the week. 
This was the view from the deck at this point I knew it really was going to be a rough week.  Warm weather clear skies, and a wonderful view of the beach, what a rough life I am forced to live. 

The Outerbanks are also famous for having a number of lighthouses, the most famous of which is Cape Hatteras.

While this is the most well known it is not open during the off-season, therefore, we went to Currituck lighthouse that remains open year round.

After you climb to the top, you can walk around the outside of the lighthouse you get a better view of were you are.

On the left is the Atlantice Ocean, and on the right is the sound which seperates mainland North Carolina from the Outerbanks. 
There are two other lighthouses on the Outerbanks, Bodie Island, which was closed for renovations, and Ocracoke.  To get to Ocracoke you drive to the end of Hatteras Island, and ride a ferry. 

After about a 45 minute ferry ride, you arrive at Ocracoke Island, which is famous for being the hiding place for Edward Teach, aka Black Beard.

The lighthouse on Ocracoke is smaller and is a constant 360 degree light rather than a rotating light.

The most important thing of the entire week was that we were their to celebrate Thanksgiving.  We all worked together to create a wonderful meal.  It also did not hurt that it was about 70 degrees, sunny, and right on the beach.

As it was Thanksgiving here are my thanks.  Thank you to everyone who came and spent time with us.  To our great friends from South Carolina who drove up to spend some time with us, we miss you and hope to see more of all of you.  Thanks to my Mom for getting the great home on the beach, and to my Brother for introducing me to the Outerbanks, although it may be the most expensive addition I have, yes even more expensive than motorcycling, to my wonderful in-laws, I consider myself one of the luckiest men on the planet to have married into such a great family.  Finally, and most importantly, thanks to my wonderful wife and two lovely children, thank you for all that you do for me, I am truly blessed.