Day 118 : Thursday September 4, 2014 : Miles 8843
I have decided that the best therapy is to just get on my bike and go for a nice ride so I am taking tomorrow off work and my alarm is set for 0320.
Safe Travels,
Richard
I am a leaf on the wind!
-
Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Day 120 : Saturday September 6, 2014 : Miles 10474
I took a day of vacation yesterday and went for a ride. I got out the door and on the road by 3:30. I wanted to go visit the McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains of West Texas and I wanted to beat the morning traffic out of town. This is where I had wanted to go on my first ride back on May 10th, when I bought my motorcycle, and I decided it was time. Compared to May, I had a much easier go of it. For once, the West Texas winds where not blowing as if from the gates of hell and my bike was better equipped with a Givi screen that has greatly improved my wind management. I reloaded the fuel tank in Ranger, Big Spring, and Pecos, and I was at the McDonald Observatory a bit before lunch time.
>>>> McDonald Observatory - September 5, 2014
The ride up 188 to the observatory was just gorgeous. This is, to date, the best road in Texas that I have experienced. The ride included dramatic clouds and the road was well maintained except for one curve where gravel had been washed across the road in a recent storm. The craggy highs of Mt. Livermore where cloaked in a mist. I was surprised how empty, exposed, and primitive the area felt. There is a state park in the area and I want to go back some time and camp for a while.
>>>> Texas 118
The McDonald Observatory was the highlight of my trip. After that I rode on to the outskirts of El Paso,, and then headed east on I-10 toward San Antonia. Living in Dallas, I have been up and down I-20 several times, but I have never ridden much of I-10 between the junction of those two super highways in West Texas and Houston. This was my first time on this part of I-10 and I was pleasantly surprised by the scenery. It was much better than the complete drudgery of I-20.
After San Antonio, I headed north up I-35 and this highway was just a mess with numerous construction zones and lots of crazy drivers.
I finished the ride a bit after one in the morning and climbed into bed, smelly, worn out, and happy.
>>>> SpotWalla track of my ride.
Interactive Spotwalla link >>>> https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id ... 600a53146e
Safe Travels,
Richard
I took a day of vacation yesterday and went for a ride. I got out the door and on the road by 3:30. I wanted to go visit the McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains of West Texas and I wanted to beat the morning traffic out of town. This is where I had wanted to go on my first ride back on May 10th, when I bought my motorcycle, and I decided it was time. Compared to May, I had a much easier go of it. For once, the West Texas winds where not blowing as if from the gates of hell and my bike was better equipped with a Givi screen that has greatly improved my wind management. I reloaded the fuel tank in Ranger, Big Spring, and Pecos, and I was at the McDonald Observatory a bit before lunch time.
>>>> McDonald Observatory - September 5, 2014
The ride up 188 to the observatory was just gorgeous. This is, to date, the best road in Texas that I have experienced. The ride included dramatic clouds and the road was well maintained except for one curve where gravel had been washed across the road in a recent storm. The craggy highs of Mt. Livermore where cloaked in a mist. I was surprised how empty, exposed, and primitive the area felt. There is a state park in the area and I want to go back some time and camp for a while.
>>>> Texas 118
The McDonald Observatory was the highlight of my trip. After that I rode on to the outskirts of El Paso,, and then headed east on I-10 toward San Antonia. Living in Dallas, I have been up and down I-20 several times, but I have never ridden much of I-10 between the junction of those two super highways in West Texas and Houston. This was my first time on this part of I-10 and I was pleasantly surprised by the scenery. It was much better than the complete drudgery of I-20.
After San Antonio, I headed north up I-35 and this highway was just a mess with numerous construction zones and lots of crazy drivers.
I finished the ride a bit after one in the morning and climbed into bed, smelly, worn out, and happy.
>>>> SpotWalla track of my ride.
Interactive Spotwalla link >>>> https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id ... 600a53146e
Safe Travels,
Richard
Last edited by Hanson on Tue Sep 16, 2014 5:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Day 127 : Saturday September 13, 2014 : Miles 10633
I changed the rear tire on my moto today. I installed a Michelin Pilot Road 4 150/70ZR17 69W that I had ordered online. I had decided on going to a 100% road tire and selected the PR4 because of its reputation for good handling, breaking, wet road performance and long life. For tools, I used tools that I pack on the bike when I am on the road. The goal is to develop some basic tire skills so that if I get stuck in the middle of some desolate place I have a least a modest chance of self-rescue. To this end I have a cycle pump compressor and tire pressure gauge, a pair of motion pro tire tools, a motion pro bead popper, and a pair of rim guards. I also have the required sockets for the rear axle and other appropriate tools for the road.
I started the task by doing a thorough job cleaning the chain, which was a bit of a mess from when I used to spray it with a wax based lubricant. After that, I opened the shop manual and followed the instructions for removing the rear wheel. This was not that difficult. I positioned the rear on top of the new tire to protect the break rotor and rear sprocket from the ground, and got to work with a bit of soppy water and the motion pro bead popper. I had no luck at all, so I looked for some instructional videos on how to use this blue peace of plastic and it looked easy so I tried again with a bit more enthusiasm in the employment of the hammer. This did not work. I then took some 2x4s, the wheel, and my oldest son and used a technique involving using a long 2x4 and a short peace of 2x4 and the back of my truck to break the bead. This still required a surprising amount of effort, but we where successful. From this point on, I had John as a helper.
The next step was to remove the tire from the rim and this also involved quite a bit of effort, a few viewings of instructional videos, a lot of levering with the tire irons, a bit of soppy water, and indefatigable determination.
Thanks for the help John.
With some dread, we looked at the now naked rim and the new tire and got to work. It is important to make sure that you do not put the tire on backwards, as it must role in a certain direction, thank Providence that we did not make this mistake, but overall the new tire was installed with much less effort than it took to remove the old one. After that, we turned the power on the motorcycle and used the cycle pump air compressor to seat the bead. This worked just fine. Finally, we re-installed the wheel assembly, adjusted the chain tension, and we where almost done.
Out come the valve stem and in when an 8oz bottle of Ride On tire Sealant. I did a lot of reading before deciding on this product and the cost is about $15 a wheel. It acts to dynamically balance the tire and also will seal small leaks in the event of a puncture. The final choice was between this product and Dyna Beads. We followed the instruction for installing the Ride On, inserted the valve stem, and then used the cycle pump to inflate the tire to the final cold pressure.
The entire exercise took an embarrassing long time, over four hours, but we learned a lot and I am sure the next iteration will go a lot faster now that I have a little experience. I am going to get more tire tools, another pair of rim protects, and I am going to need a better solution for breaking the bead on the side of the road.
I also have a brand new Pilot Road 4 Trail tire sitting in the garage for the front of the bike, but that will need to wait until I can figure out how I am going to remove the front wheel. I think I am going to order a centerstand as that will allow me to do this type of work on the side of the road.
Safe Travels,
Richard
Thanks again John for the use of your willing hands.
I changed the rear tire on my moto today. I installed a Michelin Pilot Road 4 150/70ZR17 69W that I had ordered online. I had decided on going to a 100% road tire and selected the PR4 because of its reputation for good handling, breaking, wet road performance and long life. For tools, I used tools that I pack on the bike when I am on the road. The goal is to develop some basic tire skills so that if I get stuck in the middle of some desolate place I have a least a modest chance of self-rescue. To this end I have a cycle pump compressor and tire pressure gauge, a pair of motion pro tire tools, a motion pro bead popper, and a pair of rim guards. I also have the required sockets for the rear axle and other appropriate tools for the road.
I started the task by doing a thorough job cleaning the chain, which was a bit of a mess from when I used to spray it with a wax based lubricant. After that, I opened the shop manual and followed the instructions for removing the rear wheel. This was not that difficult. I positioned the rear on top of the new tire to protect the break rotor and rear sprocket from the ground, and got to work with a bit of soppy water and the motion pro bead popper. I had no luck at all, so I looked for some instructional videos on how to use this blue peace of plastic and it looked easy so I tried again with a bit more enthusiasm in the employment of the hammer. This did not work. I then took some 2x4s, the wheel, and my oldest son and used a technique involving using a long 2x4 and a short peace of 2x4 and the back of my truck to break the bead. This still required a surprising amount of effort, but we where successful. From this point on, I had John as a helper.
The next step was to remove the tire from the rim and this also involved quite a bit of effort, a few viewings of instructional videos, a lot of levering with the tire irons, a bit of soppy water, and indefatigable determination.
Thanks for the help John.
With some dread, we looked at the now naked rim and the new tire and got to work. It is important to make sure that you do not put the tire on backwards, as it must role in a certain direction, thank Providence that we did not make this mistake, but overall the new tire was installed with much less effort than it took to remove the old one. After that, we turned the power on the motorcycle and used the cycle pump air compressor to seat the bead. This worked just fine. Finally, we re-installed the wheel assembly, adjusted the chain tension, and we where almost done.
Out come the valve stem and in when an 8oz bottle of Ride On tire Sealant. I did a lot of reading before deciding on this product and the cost is about $15 a wheel. It acts to dynamically balance the tire and also will seal small leaks in the event of a puncture. The final choice was between this product and Dyna Beads. We followed the instruction for installing the Ride On, inserted the valve stem, and then used the cycle pump to inflate the tire to the final cold pressure.
The entire exercise took an embarrassing long time, over four hours, but we learned a lot and I am sure the next iteration will go a lot faster now that I have a little experience. I am going to get more tire tools, another pair of rim protects, and I am going to need a better solution for breaking the bead on the side of the road.
I also have a brand new Pilot Road 4 Trail tire sitting in the garage for the front of the bike, but that will need to wait until I can figure out how I am going to remove the front wheel. I think I am going to order a centerstand as that will allow me to do this type of work on the side of the road.
Safe Travels,
Richard
Thanks again John for the use of your willing hands.
Last edited by Hanson on Tue Sep 16, 2014 5:20 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Day 128 : Sunday September 14, 2014 : Miles 10880
I went for a short ride today to scrub in the new rear tire. The weather was cool, high 60s, but cloudy and I rode a loop in north Texas.
Safe Travels,
Richard
I went for a short ride today to scrub in the new rear tire. The weather was cool, high 60s, but cloudy and I rode a loop in north Texas.
Safe Travels,
Richard
-
Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Day 130 : Tuesday September 16, 2014 : Miles 11028
This is going to be a bit of an introspective post.
I ordered a SW-Motech centerstand from Twisted Throttle for my bike yesterday. I want to change out my front tire and I need a way of keeping the front end up off the ground while I remove the wheel. I looked hard at the option of a triple tree front stand but a good centerstand was not much more money and has the enormous advantage of being on the bike. This will make it a lot easier to perform repairs on the side of the road. I had avoided this purchase for some time as it was lower on my priority list.
I am maintaining a spreadsheet in which I am recording all of my motorcycle expenses and I use it to calculate total cost of ownership as well as operating costs. To date, including payments on my DL650A, all my various farkels, fuel, tires, insurance, oil ... everything but clothing, tools, and items that can be shared between other bikes like my Zumo GPS ... I have spent over $3000 to ride just 11,000 miles in a bit over four months. After all of this, I still have a number of major purchases to make in the future including heated clothing, a long distance seat, auxiliary lighting, and panniers. I only have so much money that I can spend each month on motorcycling, and the truth is that I have been spending more than I should, but if I had more money I would ride more. Right now I am forced to compromise between funding improvements and paying for operating expenses.
So ... what am I to do?
Right now I am setting aside money to pay for my heated clothing as it is going to get cold in the next few months and it is not like I am going to stop riding just because the temperature drops. I find that my purchasing decisions are dictated by whatever the current barrier is to the next ride.
What is that next ride?
Early in October I am going to visit all 7 of the Tour of Honor memorial sites in Texas. I signed up for the ToH even before I had my motorcycles, and it is high time for this ride. I will do this in a loop of about 1300 miles, but I am running out of time as the ToH ends on the last day of October. After that, I want to do a nice ride down to Big Bend, and then I want to do the Ride Around Texas, but that effort will take three days and is hampered by a lack of storage space on the bike.
I am looking forward to that day when all of my moto-money can be spent on nothing but operating expenses instead of a big chuck of my budget going to making improvements on the bike, but I think that day is likely over a year away. After that, I will be able to ride a lot more. Texas is a huge state, and I promised myself that before I ventured out of Texas that I was going to take the time to visit many of the places in this diverse state that I have always wanted to experience. After a few more rides in Texas.... well I have family in North Carolina in the Highlands area. I find it somewhat ironic that I had to wait well over a year to buy my first bike, at least my first bike since I was a kid, and that I am still not at the place I want to be with respect to travelling by motorcycle.
A song from the classic movie Fiddler on the Roof keeps echoing in my head; "If I were a rich man, Yubby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dum, If I were a wealthy man ..."
I am wealthy man in all the ways that truly matter. Patience is a virtue.
Safe Travels,
Richard
This is going to be a bit of an introspective post.
I ordered a SW-Motech centerstand from Twisted Throttle for my bike yesterday. I want to change out my front tire and I need a way of keeping the front end up off the ground while I remove the wheel. I looked hard at the option of a triple tree front stand but a good centerstand was not much more money and has the enormous advantage of being on the bike. This will make it a lot easier to perform repairs on the side of the road. I had avoided this purchase for some time as it was lower on my priority list.
I am maintaining a spreadsheet in which I am recording all of my motorcycle expenses and I use it to calculate total cost of ownership as well as operating costs. To date, including payments on my DL650A, all my various farkels, fuel, tires, insurance, oil ... everything but clothing, tools, and items that can be shared between other bikes like my Zumo GPS ... I have spent over $3000 to ride just 11,000 miles in a bit over four months. After all of this, I still have a number of major purchases to make in the future including heated clothing, a long distance seat, auxiliary lighting, and panniers. I only have so much money that I can spend each month on motorcycling, and the truth is that I have been spending more than I should, but if I had more money I would ride more. Right now I am forced to compromise between funding improvements and paying for operating expenses.
So ... what am I to do?
Right now I am setting aside money to pay for my heated clothing as it is going to get cold in the next few months and it is not like I am going to stop riding just because the temperature drops. I find that my purchasing decisions are dictated by whatever the current barrier is to the next ride.
What is that next ride?
Early in October I am going to visit all 7 of the Tour of Honor memorial sites in Texas. I signed up for the ToH even before I had my motorcycles, and it is high time for this ride. I will do this in a loop of about 1300 miles, but I am running out of time as the ToH ends on the last day of October. After that, I want to do a nice ride down to Big Bend, and then I want to do the Ride Around Texas, but that effort will take three days and is hampered by a lack of storage space on the bike.
I am looking forward to that day when all of my moto-money can be spent on nothing but operating expenses instead of a big chuck of my budget going to making improvements on the bike, but I think that day is likely over a year away. After that, I will be able to ride a lot more. Texas is a huge state, and I promised myself that before I ventured out of Texas that I was going to take the time to visit many of the places in this diverse state that I have always wanted to experience. After a few more rides in Texas.... well I have family in North Carolina in the Highlands area. I find it somewhat ironic that I had to wait well over a year to buy my first bike, at least my first bike since I was a kid, and that I am still not at the place I want to be with respect to travelling by motorcycle.
A song from the classic movie Fiddler on the Roof keeps echoing in my head; "If I were a rich man, Yubby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dibby dum, If I were a wealthy man ..."
I am wealthy man in all the ways that truly matter. Patience is a virtue.
Safe Travels,
Richard
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jstark47
- Site Supporter - Silver
- Posts: 3538
- Joined: Fri Feb 03, 2006 2:58 pm
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 16
- My Motorcycle: '12 Tiger 800, '03 Trophy 1200
- Location: Lumberton, NJ
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Coincidentally, my friend at work who has a 2013 DL650 Adventure ordered a center stand this week, also getting the SW-Motech model. He's a very careful comparison shopper, and apparently the Motech stand was the best value. I put a Motech center stand on my DL1000 years ago, and have always been satisfied with it. As far as I'm concerned, a center stand is a requirement for any large chain-drive bike I might own.Hanson wrote:I ordered a SW-Motech centerstand from Twisted Throttle for my bike yesterday. I want to change out my front tire and I need a way of keeping the front end up off the ground while I remove the wheel. I looked hard at the option of a triple tree front stand but a good centerstand was not much more money and has the enormous advantage of being on the bike. This will make it a lot easier to perform repairs on the side of the road. I had avoided this purchase for some time as it was lower on my priority list.
2003 Triumph Trophy 1200
2009 BMW F650GS (wife's)
2012 Triumph Tiger 800
2018 Yamaha XT250 (wife's)
2013 Kawasaki KLX250S
2009 BMW F650GS (wife's)
2012 Triumph Tiger 800
2018 Yamaha XT250 (wife's)
2013 Kawasaki KLX250S
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blues2cruise
- Moderator
- Posts: 10182
- Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:28 pm
- Sex: Female
- Years Riding: 16
- My Motorcycle: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 1100
- Location: Vancouver, British Columbia
-
Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Oh... Blues...
Cold is a qualitative, not a quantitative term, but I will try:
Cold: Mrs. Hanson's reaction when Mr. Hanson starts rambling on about riding his motorcycle ...
Cold is a qualitative, not a quantitative term, but I will try:
Cold: Mrs. Hanson's reaction when Mr. Hanson starts rambling on about riding his motorcycle ...
-
blues2cruise
- Moderator
- Posts: 10182
- Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:28 pm
- Sex: Female
- Years Riding: 16
- My Motorcycle: 2000 Yamaha V-Star 1100
- Location: Vancouver, British Columbia
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Hanson wrote:Oh... Blues...
Cold is a qualitative, not a quantitative term, but I will try:
Cold: Mrs. Hanson's reaction when Mr. Hanson starts rambling on about riding his motorcycle ...
-
Hanson
- Legendary 300
- Posts: 482
- Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:28 am
- Real Name: Richard Hanson
- Sex: Male
- Years Riding: 3
- My Motorcycle: 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650
- Location: Garland, Texas
Re: I am a leaf on the wind!
Day 135 : Sunday September 21, 2014 : Miles 11337
I was out for a bit of a ride this morning and on the way home I had a small SUV change lanes on top of me from the right. I was in his blind spot, but I simply moved to the left a bit, taped the horn, and he truncated his lane change and went back to his own lane. This is the first time this has happened to me in traffic, and I am sure it will not be the last. I knew that I had space to my left and I used it. I think it important to always think about where you can go, and I don't like it at all when I am in those situations where there are few good options is someone is not paying attention and just changes lanes without looking to see if there is space to do so.
The moto adventure continues.
Safe Travels,
Richard
I was out for a bit of a ride this morning and on the way home I had a small SUV change lanes on top of me from the right. I was in his blind spot, but I simply moved to the left a bit, taped the horn, and he truncated his lane change and went back to his own lane. This is the first time this has happened to me in traffic, and I am sure it will not be the last. I knew that I had space to my left and I used it. I think it important to always think about where you can go, and I don't like it at all when I am in those situations where there are few good options is someone is not paying attention and just changes lanes without looking to see if there is space to do so.
The moto adventure continues.
Safe Travels,
Richard