Rosco and the blogging thereof

[roscowgo]

Hey all decided to start my own blog. Or as I like to think of it. Stop posting random threads doofus.

Rode to work again today. 25f today 27 yesterday. Brrrrr chilly neck. And I'm coming to the conclusion that all those avalanch shows on Discovery and the like are right. If you keep the torso warm, the rest of the body stays warm. My only special concession to the weather today was two pairs of socks. Yesterday i wore a light but very warm underjacket, my riding jacket with liner, etc..... wasnt a bit cold. Today i'm frozen. And more importantly....my Feet are frozen. Though they werent yesterday. Eh practical hypothermia.

And now that my standard look what i did look what i did prancing is over.... I think i'll do a review of the bike.

05 Boulevard C50.

Bike is very comfy. When i can un-goofball myself long enough to remember to wear pants that will let me kinda sprawl out that is. For me If i can't kinda slouch down in the seat my tailbone recieves all my weight. And every bump in the road. A lil different from my katana, where the tighter in your knees are the more comfy you are. Otherwise nice wide saddle, Jennifer finds no issues with the pillion seat. Her only problem is doing the one legged hop-mount because she cant swing her leg up over her head to clear the sissy bar. I think i'm going to suit her up and putt around the mall parking lot a few times tonight. She's getting more and more anxious to ride, But now tells me that she's scared to learn how to actually ride the thing on her own. I'm giving her plenty of time and space to herself so she can come to grips with Wanting to do something silly like perch on a machine with only two little bits of rubber on the road and no seatbelts.

Performance wise.... Lovely bike. It's a v-twin so it does shake and twitch a little more than i'm used to. But it's all engine movement if you know what i mean. The frame and suspension feel very very solidly planted. The mirrors actually work. Though are a bit hard to adjust without a wrench. Turns great. Though i've been easing into working the rest of tire since its been way too cold to get the tires warm, and they're still new.... hence i want em plenty scrubbed. I do notice that counter steering is a bit delayed showing up on this bike. Maybe another 10-15 mph later than the kat.

The throttle response is.... well .....abrupt almost. It's a FI bike so i suupose having the thing want to start when its cold, and not having to deal with a choke are very well worth that. This being my first experience with alot of things on a bike, FI, shaft drive, water cooling, an actual cruiser, a V-twin instead of an I-4... that I'm sure it will take some getting used to. Seems to have no trouble taking me places that i would get in trouble for being. Scares elderly folk and small furry mammals with the god awfully (to me) loud pipes. I must say it Sounds nice, but i need some baffles. Must remember to take some good pics of the exhaust to see if any of yall can identify it.

That pretty much says all i wanted to say about it.

And now it's time to take my "make will dizzy for 24 hours pill" bye

[Koss]

Sounds like you are having fun with the new bike! Awesome... and cool a new blog! Yay!

[roscowgo]

Riding under the influence.

Lately I've been riding under the influence..... of Lisinopril. It's a blood pressure medication and it aint the bees knees. For the first month I was a touch lightheaded, then that went away and I was happily going around feeling better and operating normally.

In the past couple of weeks, it's started to come back. Light headedness. Dizziness. small loss of balance. And its driving me INSANE. I have an appointment next wednsday, hopefully will be switched to something new. Might need to park my beloved buelah for a week or so until i get used to it.
/sigh. anything is better than feeling like I'm living 4" out past the tip of my nose though. Eh maybe it'll be good news. The meds are workin too well. Actually that kinda makes sense to me. I skipped a dose to see if I would explode from the pressure, and felt pretty much perfect, for just about 24 hours. When i take the meds, i feel dizzy for just about.... 24 hours.

I find having to balance a want, (riding the everlovin Snot out of buelah), and a need, (continuing to live), to be a real real pain in the butt. Left to my own devices I'm quite sure i would pick feeling bad and riding buelah, over the right choice of trying to maintain my health.

I can attribute my right choice to one factor. My hopefully soon to be wife, Jennifer. She's the only one out of the two of us with any sense. And she won't put up with much silliness from me.

So what about yall? Anyone else have to deal with Blood pressure and biking? Any weird medicationalisms that interfere with your day to day life? Crazy woman that beats you about the head with something blunt when you goof up and try not taking your pills?

[roscowgo]

I think I've gotten my med schedule ironed out. Since the only advice i can get from my nice friendly doctors nurses is.... come in for a visit sooner. . I skipped a day, then took it at the regular time...... small bit of dizziness. Took my bp this morning at about 6. 2 hours before the pill was due again.... 115/69. Well take me out behind the shed and call me sally. No wonder popping a lovely bp pill on top of that was making me lose my head. Schedule till dr day is gonna be one day on, 3/4 day off. And... I don't feel like I'm gonna pass out all the time. Woooohooo.


On to the biking goodness. Rain moving in today as predicted. windy as a church social over by old lady garland. Was feeling a bit er.... Spirited on the ride in this morning. Seeing as how i didnt have to scrape ice off of anything when i hopped on. I think i felt the back end want to do a little two-step of its own on a 30 mph curve. That was a touch unsettling.

I'm adjusting well to the vagaries of my new two wheeled darlin. Getting the gear on is developing an almost ritual. Have to put everything on in a certain order or i wind up trying to stuff my gloves up the sleeves of my jacket. A no good proposition seeing as how I'm not a 25 fingered orangutan with stretchy arms. I'm having fewer issues with my heel/toe shifter. Just have to kinda lead into putting my foot back on with the heel. Lord why did you have to give me clown feet? Ah well. at least I'm not my cousin Adam with the size 21's

Happy riding

[Wrider]

Wow! And I thought I had big feet at size 14! What's your shoe size?
Wrider

[roscowgo]

Just 13's here. But I went from a katana with pegs behind me, to the C50 with boards in front of me. The heel shifter is where my foot wants to go. I think it just likes hearing the bike try to pull out in second. And after i stall it in second, it likes to hear it try in third.

Adam is some weird freak of nature. We had a few fairly long and tall folks Going back past my grandmother and grandfather on that side. Up until him though we all tend toward the average and round category. I think at last measure he was about 6'8 or so. His brother Nathan is about my size at 5'10. It's kind of a Dirk pitt/Al Giordinoesqe thing around thanksgiving and christmas

[Wrider]

Wow, that's tall! You're not all that out of average though... No wonder the C50 fits ya! Believe it or not, it actually cramps me up to sit on it... I'd like to have gotten floorboards and rocker shifters, but my feet are too freakin big... How are you liking the new bike though?
Wrider

[roscowgo]

Oh its a hoot. this is my third week...think ive got something like 500 miles on it now. I'm starting to come to grips with her little idiosyncrasies.

I tell you The thing I think I appreciate most about her, is her mirrors. Mirrors that actually work are a true novelty to me. The old kat.... at their widest angle all i could see was blurred shoulders. On the 50 i can see traffic behind me and a portion of the lane beside me. Where have I heard thats a good thing before?

Oh, and It's nice to be able to do a quick over the shoulder without dislocating the top 15 vertebrea.

Has been wet here since yesterday morning. And I'm still jumpy about that little "wOoOoOoOo" feelin the rear end gave me on that curve. So I'm not riding relaxed. Thats always a pain. At least it wasn't a real pucker moment. More of a Hey....did that just happen? Probably should have commuted in the truck or with Jen this morning.

[Scoutmedic]

Awesome blog. I wish my S50 was FI. Having to choke it every morning makes me want to choke!

Good thinking about your b/p med. I was going to ask if you'd checked your pressure when you felt dizzy or "out of it". My guess is your pressure was dropping dangerously low.

As for the wet roads, be happy it's not snow! Still snowing here off and on.

Stay Safe!

[roscowgo]

Hey an almost ride report. cool.

Yesterday evenings commute home. In a word..... Horrible.

My shield was fogging up something terrible. Like I had a slobbering St. Bernard in the helmet with me. Oh did I mention I was riding in a plenty heavy rain/wind storm? Anyway. Bike itself handled everything from puddles to little road rivers with no problem.

What didn't do so well was me and my sinuses. I've never had sinus trouble. (Thank you Jesus.) Yesterday on my ride, There was one position where the wind wasnt making me tear up so bad I couldn't see, or the shield turning pure white. It just so happens this One setting..... Just Perfectly funneled a white hot tornado of wind directly down my nostrils and bounced it off the back of my sinuses. It was bad enough that I thought I was having a panic attack.

So I careened down the highway, being blown side to side by the gusts, alternatively crying my eyes out, Trying not to breathe, with what felt like termites eating my brain from the inside, during a monsoon, in traffic, and partially blind from either my glasses or my shield fogging up. PFUI.


Scout, yep. I Hate dealing with bp stuff. Going by "ear" so to speak instead of taking my meds every 24 hours i've bumped it to about every 36 hours. That seems to be working. I still have little bits of dizziness. Generally the standing up too fast, bending over too long kind. Though there is still a little bit there when i eat something. Which is freakin WEIRD to me. I dunno. I do know that i can cope with the greatly reduced effects until next wednsday now. I quit taking meds once before because of a similar problem. (young and dumb is my only excuse.) Can't remember the name now, but was a horsepill of a slow release nitrate. gave me a splitting headache for exactly 23 hours. Took that one for about 6 months. Doc refused to listen. Me being the hard headed idiot i am, I chucked it in a drawer and went on my way.