Stress Relief

It’s been a depressing and maddening week due to weather and other problems, but one ride makes it all go away.  It doesn’t even matter that it’s a ride to work in –2C (28F) with 50kph (31mph) winds.  The coldest windiest day on bike is far better then the warmest day in car.

There’s no snow sticking so I’m not giving up my riding season just yet and that fairing is just the thing to keep the cold from seeping through my leathers.  It doesn’t keep all the wind off my hands, but I can make it to work with plenty of feeling left in my fingers.

Lest We Forget

It’s Been Wet…

and that’s an understatement.

The rain started last Thursday evening and hasn’t stopped.  It’s been either misting or down pouring with strong winds every day since.  It doesn’t look like we’ll get relief until Wednesday and even that’s iffy.

It’s been a crappy fall (I believe I’ve mentioned that), but there is some beauty around.

Worthy Cause

Two of my favourite stars are on a ride to raise awareness.

Katee Sackhoff and Tricia Helfer are riding two BMW R 1200 GS’ from Los Angeles to Louisiana to help raise awareness about the Gulf Coast disaster and raise money for the Gulf Restoration Network.

Every night they have a live Ustream broadcast on their Acting Outlaws channel where they discuss the days ride and generally act like a couple of tired nutty bikers.  We all know what that’s like.

Visit and donate or just do your part to help keep the disaster fresh in peoples minds and not buried like the big corporations would like.

 

Happier Times

Fall = Suck

The change in the season has brought too many changes and too many problems.  Any time I get to myself now I spend on bike, as long as it’s okay with Mother Nature.  We are having a typical Maritime autumn with cold temperatures and gale force winds.  There was barely enough time to see the leaves change before they were blown away.

As usual, I be pushing my riding season as far as I possibly can with hopes that the new fairing will make things more bearable when the temps drop below freezing.  I can already notice a difference during my ride to work with my hands being mostly protected and the wind taken off my chest.  Definitely no regrets on that purchase.

Really, it’s just the same shit happening all the time.  There’s too much crap going on for me to be in a good mood to post anything.  Winter is just around the corner which means I won’t even be able to use my bike to cool off or escape.  I think I’ll probably just let this go dormant until something happens to make me the person I used to be…

ciao for now.

A New Love

Seems like every year there’s a new piece of two wheeled machinery for me to fall in love with.  This year is no different, but we’ll get to that shortly.  It all started two days ago at the Harley Davidson Test Our Metal test ride at our local dealer.

The day didn’t start off the best.  During the pre-ride scout, one of the ride leaders dumped a test bike and suffered a bit of rash.  That took the Sportster 1200XR out of the test ride instantly.  Not sure what happened to cause the dump, but a newly sealed parking lot probably had a lot to do with it.  He made out fine though.

That delayed the ride by quite a bit and by the time they actually got back from the scouting run, it started to rain.  Wet roads means no rides as apparently their insurance doesn’t cover them when it’s wet out.  So there was a lot of waiting.

The first ride didn’t get out until early afternoon and I was bound and determined to get as many bikes out as I could before they closed up for the day.

First bike: 2011 883cc Sportster Superlow

I didn’t like the standard controls and after a while my right knee was whimpering to get stretched out.  It felt like a small bike, a really small bike.  Also, I don’t know if there was something wrong with this particular test bike (very possible) but it was jumpy as shit.  Every other bike I rode that day had a smooth throttle, but this one was have epileptic fits every time I would let off and increase on the throttle.

It’s a really nice looking bike, easy to handle and takes corners well, but it’s definitely not for me.  If it had forward controls, it would have been a lot more comfortable as the bars were in the perfect position.  But that’s not hard to change, the mount points for forward controls are right there at the front of the frame…all you need is money.

Second bike: 2011 1250cc Night Rod Special

The only reason I took this one out was the fact that it was the only bike left on the second ride.  I had the black and red one out for a ride last year and it killed my lower back.  I’ve been on a regular workout routine for the last year and my back has gotten a lot stronger, so I was able to survive this stretch rack of a bike.  This thing is still crazy powerful and the odd growl that it pumps out is rather appealing.  It’s fun, but I’d never be able to ride it for a long time.  At the end of the ride I was happy to step off, but smiling from the rush.

Fourth bike: 2011 1600cc Super Glide Custom

You’ll see why I skipped the third bike in just a bit.

Super Glide?  I didn’t like it.  It just felt like a plain old bike and I wasn’t a big fan of the seating position with standard controls.  Plus it felt much fatter then it actually looked.  Crazy pick up on this thing though and no lack of power with the six speed tranny.  Too bad the ride was too short with not enough straight aways to take advantage of it.

Odd note: During the ride I reached up to adjust the left mirror and the whole damn thing came loose.  Not only that, but the signal light below also came loose because they’re attached.  It wouldn’t have been so bad if it wasn’t for the vibration point on the bike.  About 1/3 of the way up on the throttle, the whole bike vibrates like a runaway dildo and all I could do was watch the mirror and signal bounce around.  So yeah, not the bike for me.

Third bike: 2011 1200cc Sportster 48

Meet my new love.  H-D?  You listening?  You hit the nail on the head with this piece of machinery.  It’s lean, it’s low, it’s barebones, light and a great sized engine to power it along.  It only weighs 257kg wet (567lbs), so it almost feels like you are tossing around a bicycle…a really fast bicycle.  It’s a feet and fists in the wind riding position with a little tiny seat to snuggle your ass in.  And you better snuggle your ass in nice and tight, cause this bike is going to try and slide you out of it.  I lost track of how many times I slide off the end of that seat when I cranked the throttle.  It just goes and wants to keep on going like some over anxious little pony.

The two big wheels made this bike track like a dream and corners were easy to dive into, easily scraping those ridiculously long feelers.  The only “problem” is the small fuel tank, you won’t be doing long long stretches on this bike with a measly 7.9L (2.1Gal), but I wouldn’t change it for the world.  It gives the bike such a minimalist look and suits it so well that I wouldn’t mind taking that frequent break to fuel up and stretch out.  Besides, the tank is where the bike gets it’s name from.  First year of the peanut tank.  I would gladly have this bike in my stable and it would be my daily ride…it would also result in me having a few speeding tickets…but I’d smile and accept it.

Best description for this bike?  An adult BMX.  Seriously…I love this thing.  Joey you listening?  Top of the Xmas list here!  Ha, one can dream.

Sons of Anarchy Season 3

The premier is just around the corner and it should be a killer season.

Where have I been

It's been a hell of a summer, really.  The weather around here has been great...hence the minimal posts.  August has been a whirl wind of "if it's nice...GET YOUR ASS ON THE BIKE!"

Other things have been sitting on my mind as well, including making one major change in my life.  I was all ready to head back to school, but nerves got the better of me and I backed out.  We just have way too much debt for us both to be in school.  Maybe we'll be a little more solid next year and I'll be able to do something I want, instead of something I need.  Also...my work schedule changed...and I'm not too fond of it.

Two weekends ago was my riding club's national rally in Halifax.  We packed up the bike and headed out early on a Friday morning.  You couldn't have paid for better weather then what we had.  And you couldn't have asked for a better time.  We met lot's of new people and I slept in a tent for the first time in...shit...I can't remember.  Suffice to say...a long ass time ago.  I got a few pics that I'll toss up.

We got lost on the way down, due to my own stupidity and instead of learning from it, I got pissed off and just made things worse.  Oh well, I'm my dad through and through.  Guess I'll mellow out sooner or later.

Last weekend we took a trip down to a little island near the border (Deer Island).  It was a nice trip and the island, although small, was quite picturesque.  I'll have to do a solo photo trip down there.  Hard to stop and take pics when you are in a group ride.

In other news...CAN YOU BELIEVE IT'S SEPTEMBER TOMORROW?!  ugh...

Riding again

Try as I might, I could not get the rear wheel off  my bike.  Even with the enlisted help of my wonderful assistant the tools I had wouldn't make the damn axle nut budge.  Note to self...need tools for Xmas.

So yesterday I dropped the bike off at a local shop and had a person who has all the right tools put my tire on.  It was done by noon and an hour later we were off and running.  Couldn't have asked for better weather.

We hit my parents place to make sure things were alright while they are still on vacation and then went to the in-laws for a bite to eat.  All in all, just under 200 Km on the new tire and it's amazing how different the ride feels with it.

Maintenance note: Rear tire changed at 41,091 Km.

Finally

Now to get the damn thing mounted…

Good gods...

If I don't get my new rear tire soon, I'm gonna snap.  I have it ordered, but it still hasn't come in.  It's been over a week since my last ride and it's killing me.  I can't even ride to work.  Also, it's almost mid August...holy shit...

Long days

I keep trying to drag out these summer days, but it's not quite working out for me.  I need more vacation time...

I hit the road a couple of days back to deliver some newly recovered photos of my cousin's son's birthday party.  Three months is a little long for them to wait to get the photos, but they were quite happy and surprised to get them.  I logged over 200 Km on a day that started off scorching hot, but slowly turned in to a hell of a lightning storm.  It was a beautiful ride down to Oromocto and it was still a gorgeous day once the black clouds started rolling in.  I got sprinkled on a bit, but managed to ride out of it and never saw water again until later that night during the storm.  I stuffed my camera in the saddle bag, but as usual I never stopped for any photos.  I love snapping pictures, but I hate interrupting my ride.  Once I'm moving I just don't want to stop.  Hell, even pulling into the parking lot after a days ride is tough to do.

In other news, me and Joey celebrated our 7th anniversary this week.  Wow...7 years.  Where does the time go.  Most times I wonder how she even puts up with me.  :)

Test mobile post

Photos and Such

So it took me a little longer then expected to restore my photo library.  I also found out that I didn’t recover every lost photo.  I’ve permanently lost quite a few good memories, but still have about 95% of my photos safe and sound.

That was my Canada Day photo, but I couldn’t post it until I restored my photo library.  So happy belated Canada Day.

Here are some shots from the Atlanticade Rally held in St. Andrews, New Brunswick.

The rally was alright, mostly boring really.  Lots of walking and lots of heat.  The ride there and back was the best and certainly the highlight of the day.

Hell of a weekend

The third annual Atlanticade Motorcycle Rally was held this weekend.  Well, June 30th to July 4th anyway.  Held in beautiful St. Andrews, New Brunswick.  We got our group together and made a day of it.  Lots of things going on at the rally, but in general very boring.  Lots of walking, lots of sun…blah blah.  It was great to be with friends to enjoy the day, but the ride down and the ride back was definitely the highlight.  Logged around 230 Km and rolled Selene over the 40, 000 Km mark.

I’ll post a few pics in a couple of days.  It’s taken me just over three months to recover my photos from a dropped hard drive.  I thought I had lost 70GB worth of photos, but with time and a lot of patience I have them all back, safe and secure.  For a techie, I’m an idiot when it comes to backing things up.

Senseless

A driver in her early 20s faces two charges of criminal negligence causing death after she came to a complete stop on a highway to allow a family of ducks to cross, causing a collision that killed a teenaged girl and her father.

Andre Roy, 50, and his 16-year-old daughter, Jessy, were riding a motorcycle on Highway 30 in Candiac when they slammed into the car stopped on the road ahead of them.

Roy was pronounced dead at the scene, while his daughter later died in hospital.

The teen's mother, who had been driving a second motorcycle, also collided with the vehicle and suffered serious injuries.

She remains in hospital in serious condition.

Surete du Quebec Sgt. Ronald McKinnis said the young woman who stopped on the highway actually got out of her car to help the ducks.

Stopping a vehicle on a highway is prohibited in the province of Quebec.

-From CTV.ca-

Unbelieveable…

Whaddya got?

Why has it taken me so long to watch this movie?

The Wild One…fantastic…loved it.

Vrooom

So Friday morning I drag my ass out of bed, grab a shower and wander out to the kitchen to start up my coffee.  Slowly gathering my senses so I can get out on the road and ride.  The sun is out and the temperature is already rising.

The phone rings and it’s one of my riding buddies that doesn’t get out much.  The first words out of his mouth, “Wanna go for a ride?”  I can’t deny him, he’s a busy guy so I don’t get out with him much.  He wants to head out later in the day, so I lounge around the house for a while and then meet him at our local Tims.

I’m glad I agreed cause I found out he is the same style of rider as I am.  Point the wheel and go…no destination.  You know you’re having a good time when you both pull up to a stop sign, look at each other and say, “How the hell did we get here?!”.

When that ride was done, I picked up the wife and hopped by the local Tims again.  We hooked up with a couple other riding buddies which led to another ride across town.  After that me and the wife went out for a bite to eat.

All said and done, over 360Km logged and never set foot in the cage.  I love days like that.  You just never want to stop.

Yes please

My weekend starts tomorrow and I sure as hell wouldn’t mind those temperatures.

 

Posing

Not taken with my usual camera cause I can’t find my damn memory cards.  But still a couple of nice shots.

Need to get out

Once again, my head is a mess and I need a good meditation ride.  Just me, Selene and the road.  I think Friday I’ll pack a lunch, pack a camera and head down the coast for a few hours.  Extended forecast looks promising thus far.

Friday blues

Rode into work today with just a hoodie and my vest on.  I sure as shit don’t want to be sitting at a desk today.

Soggy

So it started off dry…

Then got really wet…

It got too bad and with the threat of thunder storms, we bailed before leaving the city.  We did get our pledges in and got the parade around the city done.

There was a decent showing even though the weather was threatening all morning.  Hopefully there was still a large amount of pledges collected.  Hate to see a cause like this suffer due to Mother Nature.

Tomorrow's Ride

Looks like we may get sprinkled on during the Ride for Dad.  Iffy weather like this usually makes for a low turnout which is really disappointing.  I’ll be there regardless…with my rain suit…that I probably won’t even wear.

Thinking

I want to wake up in the morning and think, “What do I want to do with my day?” instead of thinking, “How much sick time do I have left?”

Dennis Hopper

May 17, 1936 – May 29, 2010

Ride for Dad

June 5th is the 3rd year for the Ride for Dad in my area.  My own father lost his prostate due to the monster known as cancer, so my whole family has a vested interest in this ride.  I made it to the first, missed the second due to my own surgery (hernia), but intend to make the third.

It’s a tri-city ride, meaning that the three major cities here have three separate rides that meet in one central location.  It’s the last year for that type of set up and it’ll be a shame to see it change.

It’s always good fun and of course this year it falls on a day that I have to work, forcing me to burn yet another vacation day to go on a motorcycle ride…twist my rubber arm…please.

Frank Frazetta

February 9, 1928 – May 10, 2010

Some of the most memorable sci-fi and fantasy art around.
He will be missed, but forever immortalized.

Full bagger

Well, Selene is back in full bagger mode.  I got the saddle bags back the other day and they look great.  I just need to do a final polish and hard wax to get them back to a show room shine.  Now to get those engine guards to keep them safe!

K&N air filter

My new air filter arrived the other day.  I’ve always loved K&N filters and consider them to be a sound investment.  In some case you can get a horse power increase, but I just wanted a reliable reusable air filter.

If you own a Sabre, you probably know that the air filter is under the seat so you start with the rear seat nut which is an 8mm socket.

Then you move to the left and right sides of the seat to remove the 12mm bolts there.

 

Pull the seat off starting from the rear nut and note that there is a lip under the front of the seat that hooks into the frame.

With the seat off you have full access to the air box cover which is secured by four Phillips head screws.  One of those screws is wonderfully tucked away underneath the wire harness.  If you don’t have skinny fingers make sure you have a magnetic screw driver.

Pull off the cover and you can pull out the old filter.

When you get the old filter out make sure you clean out the air box of any gunk, dirt or dust that might be hanging around.  You don’t need to contaminate your brand new filter.

And here is the new pre oiled and ready to go K&N filter.  I love the look of these filters and the fact that they aren’t messy or dripping with oil like some others you can get.

The great thing about this filter kit is that it came with a gasket to apply to the underside of the air box cover.  It’s baffling as to why there wasn’t one in there when the bike left the factory.

Another cleaning tip: make sure you clean the underside of the air box cover to give the gasket a good surface to stick to.

Just peel of the white and stick it to the bottom of the cover.

Slide the new filter into the air box with the open end of the filter facing up and place cover back on.  Replace all four screws to secure the air box cover and you’re done.

The gasket holds everything much more securely then the original setup and doesn’t make it anymore difficult to get the cover back on.

I’ve put on a few kilometers with the new air filter in and I haven’t really noticed any difference in horse power or speed, but I really didn’t think it would have made a difference anyway.  I wanted the K&N for the reason that it’s rechargeable and it literally pays for itself.

That’s it.  A nice and easy upgrade for your bike.  Only takes about a half hour to install.

The Linbar

Well, for the two times that I've dropped my ride and repaired my saddle bags, I could have easily picked up a set of these. So now, they are added to my wish list.

Made by Lindby Custom, it’s the only engine guard that appeals to me.  The low slung styling is quite unique and the built in foot rests are an added bonus.

Comfortable when it’s cool

The last few days have been on the cool side around here.  Temperatures have been in the single digits and morning commutes hover around the freezing mark.  Usually that would mean wrapping up and possibly the full face helmet.

Well, things have changed a bit since Selene’s new addition.  I can easily ride to work in the wind and cold with just my shorty on.  The fairing does wonders for cutting through the wind and keeping just enough cold away from my head.  I’m still a bit chilly when I get to work, but it’s nothing like I’ve been used to.

Memphis Shades fairing?  Sound investment.  Oh…and it looks cool too. ;)

Irked

Okay, I thought changing my rear brake pads would get rid of that damn squeak. Apparently, I was wrong. Every time I come to a stop the rear brakes start squeaking. It's irritating the holy crap out me! I inspected the disk when I changed up the pads and everything looked fine. It was so nice to do low speed turns without a single squeak coming from the rear end, but it all ended two nights ago.

I'm at a loss. Anyone out there have any suggestions before people start staring at me for swearing my head off as I come to a stop?

The fairing

So, here’s the big thing added to Selene.

I’ve never been a big fan of windshields and the day I took the H-D Road King for a test ride cemented that.  I found the wall windshield to be big, cumbersome and only served to make the ride oddly uncomfortable.  The batwing on the Street Glide though?  Superb.  It had looks and the ability to take the wind away from my chest and hands.

I knew that Memphis Shades made a universal batwing, but finding the mounting hardware in grand old New Brunswick last year proved to be difficult.  This season, Memphis Shades has everything readily available and a few calls produced the entire kit for me in about a week.  Keep in mind that there are three things you need to order for a complete install.  The fairing, the mounting hardware (or plates if you already have a mount) and the windshield.

So, as usual, here is my little write up of the install and my thoughts on the addition to my ride.

The batwing came nicely secured in a full size box wrapped in foam.  Memphis took a good amount of measures to make sure it was delivered scratch free and in one piece.  I would suggest handling the fairing with some kind of cloth gloves on to prevent scratching.  Keep in mind that the fairing is molded Lucite® acrylic and easily scratched.  They supply every tool you’ll need to mount it except for the 8mm socket wrench to remove your signal lights.  The biggest problem you’ll have is trying to get the mounting equipment off the vacuum wrapped cardboard.

With everything out of the boxes and plastic it was time to remove the signal lights.

With this done slip the lower fairing mounting bracket in behind the signal light bar and reinsert the bolts.

I wasn’t big fan of how close the upper section of the bracket comes to the fork covers.  In all likelihood it will come in contact with them if the bike gets jarred a lot.  The only bonus is that this mounting system will likely never come off the bike.

Next up, removing the upper triple tree pinch bolt with the supplied 6mm Allen wrench.  When these are out, you can place them off to the side as they won’t be used again.  The kit comes with new long bolts for the installation.

Now take the L-shaped upper brackets and remove the lower Allen bolt (opposite the L section).  Pop the L-shaped upper bracket in place and re-insert the Allen bolt, but don’t tighten it all the way.  These L brackets must be tab up and facing the forks as per figure 2, below.  Put in the new longer Allen bolt with the spacer in the triple tree pinch bolt hole.

With the brackets in place we can move on to the fairing itself.

Please, keep in mind that the brackets get mounted facing inward.  I got a little ahead of myself and put them on completely wrong.  You find out rather quickly once you try to mount the fairing to the bike.  Please note the picture below illustrates the WRONG way to put it on.

If you put the bolts at the bottom of the holes in the bracket you will end up with the fairing as close to the headlight as it will go.  It looks the best this way and will help block more wind.

Now that you’ve mounted the brackets the right way, go ahead and slip it onto the lower and upper bushing assemblies.  I found this best with help…which I thankfully had around for the whole install.  The fairing will go on, but it will give you a bit of a fight.  If I was by myself, I could very well have scratched the fairing trying to get it onto the mounts.

You have limited adjusting room with the upper bushings and can move the fairing forward and back with them left loose.  Find the best spot for the fairing and tighten them up.

In fact, now is the time to tighten up all the bolts.  The last thing you need is this beautiful piece of plastic taking your head off on the highway.

Now the windshield itself…which has to be ordered separately.  Yes…separately.  Anyway, I ordered the smoke black windshield and it looks fantastic on the black fairing.  It’s simple enough to install, but again it’s easier with help.  One person holds the windshield in place, the other installs the hardware.  Again, use cloth gloves if you have them, the windshield is easy to scratch.

You get three nylon nuts, washers and Allen bolts.  I’ve got them mounted ass backward on my windshield, still wondering if I like it that way or not.

Tighten it all up and…that’s it, you’re done!

Make a final check on all the bolts and pat yourself on the back.  Or get your buddy to point at the fairing saying, “Now that looks cool!”

My thoughts?  I love it and Selene loves the attention.  It’s made a huge difference in the amount of wind that hits my chest, has made my April rides that much warmer and makes the highway a lot more comfortable to ride.  There is a small amount of buffeting, but compared to the amount of wind I’m used to it’s nothing to complain about.  I bought the fairing so I could take it off when I didn’t need it, but now I think it looks so good that I’ll never take it off.  Oh Gods…I’m a convert!  *hangs head in shame*

I do intend to get the lower deflectors and the chrome windshield trim later on.  The chrome will just accent all that black and I’ve read that the defectors make quite a bit of difference.

I will not be getting the fork lowers as the only ones I can get attach to my fork covers and I’m not willing to do that.

That’s it.  Hope you enjoyed the write up.