MotoCam Mount Trois

Here are a couple of quick pics of my latest camera amount on the ZRX. Tried a helmet cam and it worked really well from an anti-vibration standpoint but the constant head movement was nauseating. One can never say I don't look both ways... at least 4 times before crossing traffic! In any case, this was a quick mock-up using 16g tin, final version would be in aluminum plating on the order of 3/32" or 1/8". Let me know what you think, maybe some drawbacks I haven't thought of. Also, the helmet cam video I reference above is still on my FTP if you care to watch. Use a puke-bag and don't say I didn't warn you!

Front 3/4 shot. Using mounting points on the radiator.



Rear 3/4 shot...



Detail shot of mount...



View from cockpit. Quick glance will now show if camera is in record mode so there are no more "I'm sorry, I thought it was on" moments...




Front view. Mounting points are confirmed vertical but camera plate is missing lower velcro mount making camera appear off-axis. I have confidence final install will be vertical...



Front view detail showing missing velcro...



Detail from above. I'll make final version slightly longer to capture more of the mounting plate...

"The Fix"

There is nothing like one of my "super scrambles" to clear the cobwebs in the morning!

The ingredients. A little pit ham, fresh tomtoes, avacado, mushrooms, cilantro and cheese...



The eggs. A little MSG, salt, pepper, paprika and red pepper flakes.



Looking good!



Eureka! A little salt and pepper and fresh cilantro to top it off.

From the Hillbilly Garage....

I attached this to a thread I started years ago on the ZRXOA board. It's the pipe trick I use when installing the back wheel.

Happy Birthday!!!

To the guy who can ride circles around us all, who can fix whatever it is with what's in the toolkit under the seat, and who will ride it no matter how bad it's been crashed.
It's always fun riding with you, Joe B.
Here's to many more years to come!!!

Happy birthday, compadre!!!

Passion For Your Hobby

Was trolling the FZ1OA this evening, just looking for something fun and ran across the below video. This guy(CopperDawg) is well-known on the Fizzy board and makes custom parts for the Fizzy. Very expensive custom parts that is! Sure would have been nice to have something like this as a reference when I was first getting into modding the ZRX. The guy obviously has a passion for his bike and it really comes through in his video. Douglas, maybe you could produce something like this. Of course you might have to spruce up that hillbilly garage of yours to give your video any credibility! LOL...

She's 40!

Well, the ZRX flipped 40K on the way to work today, woohoo! I miscalculated and got caught on the freeway as it happened so close will have to do. Ironic that I achieve this milestone just as I am having a rekindling of my passion for the ZRX and it is nice to see her come this far and still be something to look at. There are a lot of things I like about the Fizzy, it's razor sharp handling being at the very top of the list but I just feel more "right" on the ZRX. We'll see what happens with the Fizzy but I'm fairly confident now that I could never get rid of the ZRX. Thanks to all of you for your support as I went through this time of crisis and thanks to those of you who whispered words of wisdom to me as I was contemplating the unthinkable!

Radiator Fan Woes. RTFM

Thanks for everyone’s input on my radiator fan woes. Jody saved the day and sent me his stocker. I got it in the mail on Friday. I got off work at 8pm that night and got started in the garage at around 10:30pm. I hooked up both fans and listened to each within minutes of each other and it was clear that mine had a high pitched whine to it that Jody’s fan lacked. Hard to pick up on in the video, but easier to hear in person.

The wrenching part of it was pretty much just changing out parts. As Joe likes to say, this part could have been done with the ZRX tool kit on the side of the road. The tricky part was the coolant. I called John and Chuck ahead of time and asked them about the specifics of refilling the bike with coolant after having the radiator off. I wanted it to be simple. I didn’t want to have to mess with bleeder valves and pressure testers.

So we’re off to the races. I started off by adding the coolant mixture. When it filled up to the filler neck, I started the bike and ran it and waited for the level to go down. Instead of going down, it gradually rose and then went down……..down onto the floor of my garage. I repeated this process about three times and knew I wasn’t doing something right. So into the house I went and re-read the repair manual about how to use the bleeder bolts and valves. Back out to the garage…now confident with Kawasaki knowledge. I started the bike and cracked the bleeder bolt on the water pump. A very audible hissing ensues and within seconds coolant mixture emerges. Tighten the bolt and done. I did the same with the bleeder valve on the thermostat housing. By this point, the water level had gone way down and I was able to add at least one more cup of coolant….maybe two. Also very noticeable now was that the water was swirling in the filler neck and not just sitting still with the occasional bubble. Clearly the water was now actually circulating. How cool….pardon the pun. Buttoning it up was text book.

Lesson? RTFM. Read the Fuggin’ Manual.

Man Day at the Dynos - ZRX Edition

I won't bother repeating the Dyno Day setup as it is all in the previous Fizzy dyno post. Needless to say, I had no preconceived notions as to what I expected out of the Fizzy for horsepower and the 150hp pull was a nice surprise. As for the ZRX, well that is a whole different story. You guys have listened to me complain about my ZRX over the last year and given that I pulled the numbers I did on the ZRX, I feel the majority of my issues probably revolved around the coil wire that was working during the same time frame. Although I had fixed the coil wire issue on the ZRX and confirmed it ran, I only took it around the block and never ran it hard before getting the Fizzy and putting the ZRX into hibernation. I can't help but think my ZRX was not running as it should have been for months prior to me finding/fixing the coil wire issue and that reinforced some of the negative feelings I had for the bike based on the pitted Muzzy cams and my "imaginary" pinging issues. In any case, you can see from my post documenting my return to the ZRX World, the bike is running stronger than ever and I am extremely pleased with it!

Back on topic, the first pull on the ZRX showed 142hp with an A/F above 15. Bike was so lean it was shooting flames out the exhaust which you can see in the video and really popping on decel. Driveability on the street was good but I was definitely running too lean. As dyno runs were only $20, Dick and Brett suggested we rejet the bike to see what kind of difference we could make going from 135 to 138 mains. Brett ran me to the house in his truck, we picked up all the tools needed and rejetted in the parking lot. I paid for another run and the dyno operator was confused as to why I wanted to run it again. I explained we had rejetted the bike and wanted to see where A/F was at. He seemed duly impressed! Second pull netted a solid 147hp with A/F still being well above 14. At Dick's suggestion, I will come out on the air screw 1/4 turn next time I have the carbs off but I think going up any more on the mains will kill my driveability and mileage. Also, a little lean in Tulsa would only fatten up as I gained altitude in Arkansas so all in all, I think I'd prefer to be a little on the lean side. I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts on the subject.

Maybe it was just my imagination but the bike seemed peppier on the way home and I am looking forward to getting it out where I can really "wick it up"! Looking at the power curve of the second dyno run, I think it explains pretty clearly why we all love the ZRX so much. Overlay that power curve over the Fizzy power curve and there isn't even a question as to which bike would be more "fun" to ride. All in all we had a great time and I feel I got my money's worth for the $60 I spent. It was nice to spend the day with my friends and a bunch of motorcycle guys standing around watching dyno runs like they were a burlesque show. There were some pretty sick bikes out there with one guy trailering his drag bikes from Fayetteville to take advantage of the dyno. Enjoy the videos and pics!














Fizzy on the dyno...


ZRX on the dyno...


How to rejet a ZRX in 7 mins...


Always willing to help...


Contrary to popular belief, I am capable of doing
some things on my own...


Lots of friendly folks around...


Sonny Crockett stopped by...

Man Day at the Dynos - FZ1 Edition

A local bike shop, Metric Cycles, had an "End of Summer" bash on Saturday at which they were offering $20 dyno pulls. I thought this would be a great opportunity to get the Fizzy baselined for horsepower and also, I hadn't had the ZRX officially dynoed since I added the hi-comp pistons and cams so was excited/nervous to get that done. I invited a few folks to join me and Dick, Brett and I headed up to the shop arriving right at 10:00am, Dick on the Fizzy, me on the ZRX and Brett in his truck. Dyno runs were from 11:00am to 2:00pm and I was just sure bikes would be lined up in the streets for the bargain dyno runs and I wanted to get in line so we would be sure to get a pull. Well, I guess the rest of Tulsa wasn't quite as excited as I was and Dick, Brett and I were the first 3 people to show up. Fortunately there were donuts and coffee available and we sat around for a while catching up and talking motorcycles. After "breakfast", I got both bikes signed in and paid for and we rode around back to the dyno which was loaded with a beater V-Max that was just finishing a wicked 90hp pull. As much as I lusted over the V-Max in the late-80s, they seem to disappoint every time I see one on a dyno!

As we were the only bikes there, the Fizzy immediately went on the dyno. Now I really had no idea what to expect as I had read so many different things on the Fizzy board concerning various mods and expected horsepower. All I have done to the Fizzy performance wise to this point has been to add an Akra slip-on I got from Scott Vint for $300 shipped, install Ivan's Fuel Cut-Off Eliminator for about $100, gutted the catalytic converter in the mid-pipe along with opening up the airbox. Collective wisdom on the FZOA says these mods require a power commander lest "extreme damage" be inflicted on the engine due to an exceptionally lean A/F ratio. "Danger, Danger!". Well, although I had intended to pick up a Power Commander at some point just to get to play with custom mapping, I almost pulled the trigger as soon as I found out about the dyno day thinking I would need it to make maximum horsepower. As you can see from the dyno chart below, that would have been an exceptional waste of money and I may still buy one but it is by no means "required".

The other guy in the video, assisting the dyno operator, is Brad and is someone I have dealt with before as he mounted my last set of Diablos for me. Interestingly enough, it turns out he has an '07 Fizzy as well but his is bone stock but more on that below. Once the Fizzy is secured on the dyno, the operator brings the bike up to speed and pulls some baseline readings. After his first full pull, I notice him glance over at Brad giving him a strange look. Although I can see the dyno monitor, I can' really tell what is going on but fear the A/F might be so out of whack that the operator is concerned to pull again. That turns out not to be the case as the operator executes another couple of pulls. As the operator finishes the run, Brad steps up to the operator who says something that I can't quite hear and to which Brad responds with a blank look. At this point, all I am thinking is that either my A/F is way out of whack or my bike has just pulled some really pathetic numbers and they are trying to decide how to break it to me. Neither is the case and the brief exchange between the operator and Brad is due to the Fizzy just pulling 150hp! The look on Brad's face was actually surprise as he had just dynoed his bike at 133hp! Cool! See video below and then dyno chart below that.

Embedded video hint: Start video then hold down the CNTRL and ALT key and then click anywhere in the video window again. This will take you straight to the Youtube version where you have access to video info and High Quality setting.

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I'm Back!!

As I e-mailed Douglas Wednesday morning last week before heading into the office, I had gotten my ZRX fired up Tuesday night with it taking a little more effort than I thought it would. I don’t know why I thought she would fire right up as the fuel tank was almost empty when I parked her 4 months ago and with all the coil issues and misfiring I was going through just prior to putting her on the rear stand, I think a couple of the plugs had been wet-fouled and were marginal at best. In any case, after draining the battery trying to get her started, I put her on the charger and finally got her cranked up. After a few minutes of idling, she smoothed right out and although I wanted to take her out for a spin, it was late so I just put her on the trickle charger and closed the door to the garage with the sweet sound of the Kerker still ringing in my ears.

Waking up Wednesday morning, I had not intended to ride the ZRX to work as she was pretty dusty and I wanted to get her cleaned up, along with an oil and filter change, before taking her out on the streets but as I walked out into the garage to saddle up the Fizzy, she just seemed to beckon to me. Having a total lack of self-control, I asked myself “why not?”, dropped her off the rear stand, rolled her out onto the driveway and at the first push of the starter, she cranked right up. After gearing up and getting on the bike, I could immediately feel the difference in weight between the ZRX and the Fizzy as I rolled the bike around in the driveway. The ZRX is definitely more of a handful to maneuver around at rest but I managed to get her out into the street with no issues, got her pointed in the right direction, snicked her into first gear and off we went.

I have been off of the ZRX and riding the Fizzy for enough time that I had forgotten all the subtleties of my ZRX. First thing I notice is that my clutch setup with HD springs all the way around is a little absurd to pull. That combined with my shorty Pazzo clutch lever and it feels like I am setting a grizzly trap every time I grab for some clutch! Although I had been commenting on the smooth shifting on the Fizzy, the Armz’s shifter rod I have on the ZRX provides very accurate feel and minimal gearshift slop, much more precise than the Fizzy shifter. I now feel the shifting issues I have complained about on my ZRX are due to improper lever adjustment which I will address by dropping the lever a spline or two on the shaft. Also, I had the clutch set up on the ZRX to begin engaging almost instantly upon release whereas the Fizzy releases much later in the throw. A quick flip of the adjusters on the Pazzos and a nice compromise was found to bring the two clutch releases to a similar point. Another difference immediately noticed was the seating position between the ZRX and the Fizzy. Although subtle, when sitting astride the Fizzy, one feels encapsulated within the bike due to the lower seating position along with the wrap around fairing and gauge package. Sitting astride the ZRX is more like sitting on my dirt bike, you are sitting “on” the bike, not “in” the bike. Other than that, the ergonomics are comparable and I find both bikes equally comfortable.

Off and running and the first thing I notice is the sound! This thing sounds like a motorcycle should sound and the Kerker is everything the Akra on the Fizzy is not. It is crude, unrefined and screams "look this way NOW"! The second thing I notice is how it keeps wanting to fall over in every neighborhood corner I go around. Yikes! I had forgotten how much attention this bike requires at slow speed! Where the Fizzy has very light steering and almost seems on remote control at times, the ZRX has to be steered through the neighborhoods and needs constant attention. The third thing I notice is how bad the suspension on my Fizzy is in comparison to my ZRX suspension. The ZRX handling is taught but still soaks of the small road variations with ease whereas the Fizzy is like, to quote Douglas, “riding a go-kart”. It is that stiff and any decision of mine to keep the Fizzy would need to include addressing the suspension issues. In all fairness, I have not spent the time adjusting the Fizzy suspension to suit my weight but I am fairly certain it would never get to the level of the ZRX suspension.

Out of the neighborhood, I chortle my way along surface streets and take the long way to get to an entrance ramp I know I can hammer it on. I let the ramp clear, get the bike straightened up and hammer the throttle in first gear as I typically do on the same ramp on the Fizzy. It didn’t take me long to remember how bad an idea this is on the ZRX as the bike proceeded to launch itself straight up in the air. WOW!! The Fizzy is geared so much taller in first whereas it seems the ZRX is geared to pull stumps out of the ground. The rest of the ride to work was uneventful with the most significant difference on the freeway being the absolute butter smoothness of the Keihin CVK carbs, especially at very small throttle adjustments.

Trust me, I am aware of all the mystique the ZRX brings to the table when talking about torque but it is incredible how different the power delivery is on the ZRX versus the Fizzy. I realize I am overstating the obvious and preaching to the crowd but it was still stunning and I was grinning ear-to-ear all day at work! I had gotten a little taste of the ZRX torque riding Dick’s bike back from Mountain View but it was nice to be back in the saddle of my own ZRX again! When purchasing the Fizzy, I knew I needed to give myself enough time on the Fizzy to let the “new” wear off before I ever thought about making a decision that would separate me from my ZRX. I know now that I could never get rid of her, end of story, as the ZRX has too much character and too much of my blood, sweat and tears in her. This bike has a special place in my heart and will be with me until the end!

Pocket Biking "Under the Lights"

Hey all. I deleted the "Fan Noise" thread because it had served its purpose and I didn't need it taking up space.

I wanted to post this Youtube video up though. We raced "exhibition style" last Thursday night in a new location here in KC. It was at a local sports bar that has a bike night. It was cool as shit racing at night, something I had never done. We we're trying to drum up a little more support for the sport.

Also wanted to show off my new camera, which shoots video in HD. Enjoy. In order to get the full effect and resolution, make sure you click the "HQ" button in the bottom right of the view window.

My First Love

Here's a pic of the first car I ever owned. It's a 1974 Toyota Celica and obviously not the actual car I owned but an excellent example highlighting the beautiful lines of the car. I have been playing around with the idea of getting one to restore but fortunately I am too lazy for such an endeavor!

Finally!!

Well, I have had my iPhone for almost a week now and am completely disappointed in myself for having put off purchasing one for this long. You guys know I am a techie, love my computers and all of the latest A/V toys but I am not an early adopter of anything. I could bore you with a bunch of reasons why I have put it off for so long but the bottom line is I hate following the crowd and so many people were on the iPhone bandwagon.

Well let me tell you this, there is a reason there are so many people on the apple-cart as they have this smart phone thing figured out and the iPhone is as simple and easy a device to use as I have ever put my hands on. The user interface is intuitive and straight-forward with key user settings only 1 or 2 levels deep, not 6 levels deep like on my Samsung Blackjack! The “touch” interface is exquisite making navigation through the phone just plain fun!

After hammering on this thing for an entire week now, the only two things I see as issues are battery life and the digital keyboard. If hooked up to Wi-Fi, downloading/installing apps, watching YouTube videos and doing a lot of Facebook updates and e-mailing, the battery won’t get you through the day. If used as most regular adults use phones, I imagine 2 days before charging would be possible. As for the keyboard, to keep the form factor slim, Apple chose to go with a digital keyboard on the screen and this will take me some additional time to get used to.

As you have probably heard, the “Apps” are what this phone is all about and this unit has the power to deliver them running at 600 mhz with 256MB of dedicated RAM. For Christ’s sake, I have a running desktop with stats less than that! This power, coupled with an accelerometer and built-in GPS gives you a device that can do essentially anything. There are apps for everything from online banking to blogging to letting you know what’s going on in town to auto performance apps that give you ¼ mile times and horsepower as well as reading/clearing error codes. Anything you can think of and I mean anything!

For those of you wanting to get in on the cheap, the 2nd gen iPhone 3G is still available for $99 if you are eligible for an upgrade and sign a 2-year contract with AT&T. The final point of contention for me in getting the iPhone was that you have no choice but to opt for the $30/month Apple data package in addition to your standard calling plan. For me it wasn’t as big a deal as I already had a $15/month data package for my Samsung, but it was just the idea that AT&T and Apple had me over a barrel on this with no options. Given what I know now, I would do it in a heartbeat even at $30/month as the device is that frakin' convenient. I have just begun to scratch the surface of what this device can do and will keep everyone posted.

500 Miler on Borrowed Cash

Yesterday was an epic ride. Some of you may have heard from Chuck that I had some issues making it home to Kansas City. I’ll give a mile by mile run down.

Mile 15. On Saturday, I had clicked over one thousand miles on my trip meter for this roadeo. So when I left Mountain View on Sunday, I had 15 miles on the clock. I followed Dick and Chuck to Yellville on HWY14. Crossed the ferry boat and headed up HWY 125 into Missouri. I took a few alphabet roads up to Hartville. That’s the small town where I stopped for a good lunch on Thursday so I decided to run back through there for another meal. After a tasty lunch, I headed east and north. From Roby, MO, I took HWY 17 all the way north to Interstate 44. Waynesville, MO to be exact. HWY 17 is a ridiculous road. It’s built right along the western side of Whiteman Air Force base. It has that “cleaned out” feel that HWY123 has. Lots of clearing on both sides of the road and very few driveways turning onto it. And there are some sweepers on that road that I took at a solid 90mph that felt like I could have hit them at 110mph.

Mile 260 or 270. I pulled into a busy gas station there at Waynesville sometime around 2:30 or 3pm. It’s right on the interstate, so lots of traffic. My credit card didn’t work at the pump and I still had a third of a tank of gas, so I suited back up and headed on up the road. Got to Richland, MO and realized I could not find my wallet. What a horrible feeling…like someone punched me in the stomach. Only 12 miles from my last stop in Waynesville, so I decided to back track….the whole time eagle eyeing the side of the road desperately searching for my wallet. By the way, every piece of shredded truck tire on the side of the road winds up looking like a back, velcro wallet. No luck finding it on the side of the road and no one had turned it in to any of the numerous gas station attendants working there. I called my wife and she looked up the credit card company phone numbers for me. I called and reported my cards as lost and they closed the account numbers so no one could use the cards. Finished this all at around 5:30pm.

Mile 300. After calling the credit card companies and getting that squared away, all that was left to do was figure out how to get home with no money. I had never thought to stash money somewhere on the bike, so I had less than a buck in change and I knew I was at least 150 miles from Kansas City. I was a little above the red on the gas gauge needle. I stood out at my bike at the edge of the parking lot for about 15 minutes. But being such a busy, faceless, interstate-access fuel stop, I didn’t get noticed in the least. Finally a dude on maybe an 80’s model FJR1200 rode up and I decided to make a move. When he exited the station, I approached him. I hadn’t even finished my sentence and he was cracking his wallet open handing me a $20 bill. I told him I didn’t think I needed that much, and so we went in to the store and got change. He gave me two five dollar bills and we chatted in the parking lot for about 20 minutes. Talked about how good of a rider he was and about God and Kirk Cameron. Nice enough guy, very talky and outgoing. He was convinced God had sent me there to ask him for money. So now I’m pissed God stole my friggin’ wallet. Anywho, I pulled out of the soul-less Waynesville Shell station at about 6:30pm….not completely sure how far I was from Kansas City.

Mile 375. I stopped in Stover, MO after having motored through some more twisties for a couple more hours. At that point, it was about 8:15pm and just about dusk. I put the other borrowed $5 bill into the tank and I spent 85 of my last 95 cents on a can of diet Dr.Pepper. I coked and joked with the gas station attendant, an ex-military man who was sympathetic to my plight. He told me to really watch out for deer on HWY135, my planned route. I took his warning and got behind the first vehicle I came to on HWY135 heading to Sedalia, MO. My thinking is that maybe the car could act as my cattle guard…like the ones they had on trains back in the day. What are those things called? I was on that back road for about 35 or 40 miles, typically riding at about 45mph. At this point, I couldn’t see through my dark shield enough to ride, so I switched over to my clear safety glasses. That kept my eyes safe, but I got a lot of bugs on my face. (The pic below is a barn I saw as I made my way north on HWY135. I came around the corner and saw this great sight.)

Mile 480. I breached the eastern limits of Kansas City and turned the petcock to reserve position….pretty confident I had enough gas to make it home.

Mile 495. 11pm. I rolled into the driveway at home. I rode the last 135 miles without taking my helmet off and only stopping for stop lights. That was about two and a half hours of riding. That’s about a 13 or 14-hour day in the saddle. And as far as I am concerned, 495 is close enough to 500 for me to say I did a 500-mile day.

With the Rex in the garage, I drew a hot bath and drank a cup of coffee while I soaked in the tub. With nuts un-frozen, I passed out on the couch at about midnight.

Got up at 9am this morning and started prioritizing how to replace the items lost in my wallet. At 10am, I got a call from my insurance agent. A man from Waynesville, MO had called them saying he had found my wallet on the interstate on-ramp. He used my insurance cards to track me down. The money was still in the wallet. Turns out he’s a Goldwing rider. Older guy, retired age. Very nice guy. I gave him $4 to ship the wallet back to me and $20 as a finder’s fee.

One hell of a Roadeo, fellas!

Squiddin' it Up!!!

This video is two minutes of Arkansas fun. Made it from Chuck's footage.

On a related note, I was thinking it might be interesting to name our Roadeos. Here are some options I was considering.
1. We could go with something simple like Roadeo One, Roadeo Two, and so forth and so on.
2. We could name them like hurricanes. Start with the alphabet and work our way down. So our first one might be Roadeo Anna, the next Roadeo Betty, and so on and so forth. All hot, sexy, womanly names, of course.
3. Any other suggestions? Let's discuss it BLOG STYLE! Hit "comments" below.

They're here, they're here!!

Well, I got my order from Motorcycle Superstore today and was extremely impressed with the entire transaction. Tons of choices, great prices, free 3-day shipping, awesome packaging and they even through in a complimentary issue MotoUSA magazine. I ended up buying the Shift Racing Lodown jeans and their Fuel street shoes. Both items fit true to size and the shoes are extremely light. On the other hand, the jeans are exceptionally heavy denim and with the sewn in Kevlar panes, I don't imagine they will ventilate very well. Oh well, they will be lighter than any of my textile pants and give me a little more protection than regular jeans. The way things are going this week, it is going to be an absolute scorcher next week so prepare to the extent you can. The more I think about it, the more I think Joe, Jody, Dick and myself should try and pick Douglas up somewhere north in Missouri. I'll start coordinating with Douglas and see if we can't map something out. Hope you guys are staying cool and I am really looking forward to next week!

The Appalachian Mountains

Here's the route I took Tuesday. If they look twisty from this distance, zoom in on them and it gets even better.

Most people know the Smoky Mountains as Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Air brush t-shirts, go-cart tracks, water boggans, Dollywood, and buttloads of congested traffic that makes Branson look like a ghost town. However, if you get just slightly off the beaten path, and I mean just slightly, there's a smorgasbord of absolutely delectable roads in this part of the world.

The pic above is a crude stitch together of two pictures I took sitting in one spot shooting one corner and then the other. Highway 32 between Cosby, TN and Waterville, NC is absolutely ridiculous. And like some of the best AR roads, it goes no where. It ends in a gravel road at the Appalachian trail. I passed maybe 2 cars on that road and then took the gravel road for another 15 miles or so.


I called Chuck last night and was talking to him about it. Would be worth whatever it takes to get the bikes here....just shy of disassembling the Rex and bringing it in the Corobra.
If you look at those pics I sent, there are just tons and tons and tons of twisty roads on the map. It's insane. And there are tons of little connecting roads. Everything I was on yesterday was similar to HWY 9....but.....and I know you're going to do a collective spit take on your computer screens....better than HWY9. I said it and I mean it. Some a little tighter, like the switchbacks on HWY74 between Ponca and Mt.Sherman.

Squid Squad Ride Report, June 19-21

About a week after the rally, Chuck suggested a “quickie”, a short weekend trip to Arkansas. It would be a first for Ivan and a return trip for Ryan. Like a true minute man, I quickly ordered parts to do my forks and bearings and got at least the bearings done. Exactly one month after hitting the road for the Spring Rally, and one day after turning 35 years old, I was on the road again headed back to Arkansas.
If you slab down, Eureka Springs is 240 miles from KC. But I always like the scenic route when I have the time. I made a decent 8-hour day of it. 331 miles on Friday. I lunched on 12oz of prunes from the Amish, where my faithful steed had just turned 33,333 miles.
I arrived in Eureka just before 5pm and checked into the HoJo Eureka. What a pleasant surprise that place is at $55 a night. Cold A/C, clean carpet, new fixtures, good beds, etc. I watched Nascar qualifying at Sanoma on Speed for a couple of hours. Chuck and the Squid Squad arrived at around 8:30 that evening and we rendezvoused at our usual Mexican joint for some grub. The huevos rancheros were better than I remembered. After-dinner beer and jokes out under the gazebo in back of the hotel.
Saturday morning found us at the Smokehouse with the karaoke lady and the “big-ass” biscuits. Neither failed to deliver on this hot June morning. Some jokes and speculation about me carrying Chuck up the look-out tower until we realize it’s pay to play. So it’s off on the bikes we go.

We get about 20 minutes south on HWY23 and Chuck has to pull over to tell the kids to pick up the pace. “Ride your own ride…..as long as it’s at my pace.” Huntsville and we’re stopping for energy drinks. This is looking like it might be a long day.

We made our way down the Pig Trail and stopped shy of Turner Bend and headed East on HWY215. That’s the video I sent you guys a link to. That’s me, yours truly, Mr. Mid-Corner Braking, Mr. Timid Entry Speeds. At the end of HWY215, with Chuck at my side, I took my helmet off, got a cool drink of water, and caught my breath for a bit in the shade. But then suited up as soon as I heard pipes approaching in the distance…. effectively robbing Ryan and Ivan of their much-needed break. “I feel bad,” I said to Chuck, with maybe a semblance of remorse. “We used to do that to you,” he said matter-of-factly.
Headed south on HWY 103, Chuck goaded me into a drag race on one of those long straights. It was a rolling street start, and by god I had him for what seemed like 100 yards. But then I experienced a loss of power that allowed Chuck to pass me easily. I immediately looked down at the instruments, only to realize I had bounced it off the rev limiter. In 27k miles, that’s the first time I’ve ever done that. How cool!
We used I-40 as a quick connect to HWY 7, which took us over to HWY 27. We’ve all been on the upper part of HWY27, but not often have we ridden that southern-most leg. And boy is it a doozey. Good road. Chuck blasts past a State Trooper’s Dodge Charger that was hiding in a bush. The Trooper settled for second best and lit me up. But oddly he lectured me for about 30 seconds and then sent me on my way. I’ve kept bluegill out of water longer than that and let them go. It was the quickest riot act I’d ever been read, a hodge podge of all the clichés we’ve heard before….quick reference to body bags and bikes being towed. I didn’t even take my helmet off and he didn’t even ask to see my license. I stayed on the lead lap even! Of course Chuck was long gone. We caught up with him about half an hour later. That’s where this pic was taken.


After 250 miles of riding on Saturday, we finally made it into Mountain View at around 6pm. In 90 plus degree heat and pure sun, we were all “cat-licked out.” Chuck decided he and the boys would eschew their drinking seeing as how it was going to be another 50 mile round trip to get a case of beer. Chuck in flip flops and NONE of us wearing helmets or any gear of any kind, we went and had Mexican food at the usual place. Afterward, we partook of the wondrous mountain music that Mountain View is known for. The heat and humidity didn’t seem to keep anyone away. What great atmosphere and charm that town has.
Sunday, we had breakfast at Hardees and parted ways. Ryan and Ivan both did quite well considering the oppressive heat and some of the difficult switch-backs they maneuvered on HWY23 and HWY103. They’re good fellas and I really enjoyed my weekend with the Squid Squad. 975 miles traveled when I got back to KC Sunday afternoon.

Home from the Northern Frontier

I wish I could say 'It's great to be back!' and mean it but the family and I just returned from the trip of a lifetime. I won't bore you with too many details but I truly wish everyone could experience what Alaska has to offer. I am still stunned by the beauty and grandeur. A word about the Hoonah Ziprider-5,300 feet long, drops almost 2000 ft, 60 mph and 90 seconds of screaming sphincter clenching heart pounding terror as you plummet into the mist and emerge with a beautiful ocean view. Once back on terra firma, some tourists told me they could hear me screaming 'This is Fu**ING AWESOME!!!' as I flew overhead. I'm treating this as pure speculation of course. First see Capt Colton returning from a dangerous mission over the Arctic:

Summer 2009 Squid Squad Outing - Teaser

The clip below needs no explanation other than giving you an opportunity to meet Ivan and Ryan, friends of mine who joined us on our Arkansas excursion. More posts to come...

Blind Squirrels...or in this case an alleged "imbecile"

I'm sure you are all on the edge of your seats about how the bike turned out over the past weekend. I went to John's shop on Saturday morning. I've included some pics of the undisclosed location I like to call the Fortress of Solitude. I took the lower triple over there and he ground the bottom bearings off and then used a hydraulic press to put the new ones on. Much better than the "hammer and socket" method I read about on the board. John has everything at his shop. And what he doesn't have, he makes. Bing - bang - boom!!! In the last pic, you can see the tool he has made for pressing the new outer races into the neck of the frame. No energy wasted hurling a 5-pound sledge at your bike.




Did this fix your death wobble, you ask? Unfortunately, it did not. Upon taking the bike out for a test ride, I discovered that the death wobble had morphed into a accelerating death wobble. It was at a much faster tempo and actually built in intensity instead of diminishing in intensity. In a word, it was actually MORE scary than the original Death Wobble of Doom Crashyness. You like that name? Anywho.
At this point, the next logical step....and only remaining suspect, was the front tire. And if you will remember, I had told Chuck I would change the tire AFTER replacing the bearings just to see what actually fixed the Death Wobble of Doom Crashyness and Widow-Making Scariness. Chuck has speculated it was a bad tire all along. Well, after a couple of days of worrying, I finally got the new tire mounted and on the bike. The verdict is......no more Death Wobble of Doom Crashyness and Shit-My-Pants-itude.
I humbly submit my sincere apology to the all-knowing, non-imbecilic Chuck Hickl.

The World's A Different Place

Check this kid out! I believe he is only 13 and ran across him today in a tech podcast I listen to. He is absolutely on top of his game and knows his stuff! In the video below, he is interviewing a top Apple Exec but you might browse through his other material as it is all interesting. I can only imagine how cool it would be to talk to him in 30 years as he is in for a hell of a ride!

Unfortunatley, I noticed the blog is cutting off the video and I can't seem to fix the problem. You can check the youngster out at http://www.livingdigitally.tv/!

Car Talk

I've been listening to Car Talk on NPR for years. Recently I was listening to a podcast of the show and I heard one call in particular that really made me chuckle. So, I "cropped" it out of the podcast and put a photo on it so I could post it here. In case you're not familiar with the show, these two guys from Boston are brothers and they just seem to have so much fun together.

The Rubicon and How to Cross It...

Most of you are probably already aware I had some crazy headshake on decel while at the last rally. I put the bike up on the stand when I got back an could feel a notch in the center. That small "notch" at center was much more noticeable once the front wheel and forks came off tonight. I have acquired all new OEM parts, including parts needed to rebuild the forks. John assured me he would help me with the important stuff. So we have plans to do that on Saturday. It would be a major understatement to say that I am a little intimidated by all of this. It's very odd to have the bike broken so far down. But I'm taking extensive notes, snapping tons of pics and labeling every fricking thing in sight. Mountain View calls.....from across the Rubicon.

Great Pic!

What a great picture of JoeB and the beautiful Arkansas scenery! Can't wait to get back next weekend, not that I want to rub it in or anything. Mountain View, here we come!

HOAME Motorcycle show in Kansas City

Can you think of a better place for a vintage motorcycle show? This one was held this past weekend in the Aviation Museum hangar of the downtown airport here in KC. It was quite a doozy. John and I chose not to pocket bike in a 90-degree parking lot for five hours and to instead mill around in a cool shaded hangar looking at some kick ass bikes. And there was free gourmet coffee to boot. All for $5. Here's some moto porn for your viewing pleasure. Oh, yeah, and it gave me a chance to try and wrap my head around a cut-away of a radial engine.

The world, changed forever...

Wolfram Alpha. Click here to explore and let me know what you think. Not quite a "Search" engine like Google, more like an "Answer" engine.

Livin' the Life...

Definitely not as exciting as running two wheels down the lower third of 103 but not too bad for just relaxing! We've rented our own cabana for the day with stocked fridge, TV, and free wireless access. Nice, very nice. Looking forward to getting together with you guys later in the summer so get your dates out there!