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Displaying items by tag: KISS Adventure
Displaying items by tag: KISS Adventure
Saturday, 21 June 2008 00:00
K.I.S.S. Adventure - Part 2
Sas report: T Minus 1
Took the kids out to the grandparents in Michigan's flat farmland Thumb. I told my mom that I brought enough food for the kids for six weeks "just in case." 
We said our goodbyes, snapped a farewell pic or two, hopped on the bike, sent the dog back up to the house a couple of times, and rolled out. So this begins the trip, actually. Kids are gone, a 45-minute ride back home for one last night's sleep in the casa and we're off, bright and early tomorrow morn.
I'm playing with the D300 on the back of the bike. Ohno's new toy for the trip is a Tokina 11-16 mm lens. Well, it's one of them. There are many that I know of, and more I don't know about I'm sure. Found out about one while we were fueling up and making final bike checks when we rolled back into town. The tire pressure gauge he pulled from The Killer Tool Roll started talking.
Anyway, Ohno wants me to practice shooting while we're riding to get that vista shot. I'm always game for something to occupy me when we ride two-up. The sun is starting to set and big clouds roll overhead.
We aren't 15 miles from my parents and we're clicking away, stopping and checking angles, clicking again. This is going to be a well documented trip.
A cadence taps on my helmet. Da dum da da dum, da dum dum dum. The dirty gray-yellow clouds above, backlit from the setting sun, have let a few raindrops slip down to earth. It is not raining hard enough to wet the road, just big heavy drops playing music on my head.
I look at the setting sun peeking over the shoulder of a blue-violet cloud. The orb is starting to golden as it heads toward the horizon. I look back up at the clouds above. Big globules of water splash on my face shield. Da da dum. I smile.
It's a baptism. An open welcome to this new adventure.
We're on our way.
We said our goodbyes, snapped a farewell pic or two, hopped on the bike, sent the dog back up to the house a couple of times, and rolled out. So this begins the trip, actually. Kids are gone, a 45-minute ride back home for one last night's sleep in the casa and we're off, bright and early tomorrow morn.
I'm playing with the D300 on the back of the bike. Ohno's new toy for the trip is a Tokina 11-16 mm lens. Well, it's one of them. There are many that I know of, and more I don't know about I'm sure. Found out about one while we were fueling up and making final bike checks when we rolled back into town. The tire pressure gauge he pulled from The Killer Tool Roll started talking.
Anyway, Ohno wants me to practice shooting while we're riding to get that vista shot. I'm always game for something to occupy me when we ride two-up. The sun is starting to set and big clouds roll overhead.
We aren't 15 miles from my parents and we're clicking away, stopping and checking angles, clicking again. This is going to be a well documented trip.
A cadence taps on my helmet. Da dum da da dum, da dum dum dum. The dirty gray-yellow clouds above, backlit from the setting sun, have let a few raindrops slip down to earth. It is not raining hard enough to wet the road, just big heavy drops playing music on my head.
I look at the setting sun peeking over the shoulder of a blue-violet cloud. The orb is starting to golden as it heads toward the horizon. I look back up at the clouds above. Big globules of water splash on my face shield. Da da dum. I smile.
It's a baptism. An open welcome to this new adventure.
We're on our way.
Dang
It's early ... Hope RNR brings some donuts.
Wingmen in the hangars
(RNR and Bark Sampler accompanied Ohno and Sas on the first leg of the mission this morning to St. Ignace for breakfast. NSA intercepts follow:)
"Uh, Ohno and Sas, this is Uly Wingman, in the barn at 19:32 hours after a 528 mile day, over."
"Happy to report M-119 smooth and well-packed."
"No battle damage to report. Audio warning bell went off near East Jordan vector, backed down from Mach 1, just in time for a skin-top blacked-out Charger with radar to come round the corner, over."
"Dodged showers, heavy weather most of the day, but only got wet once. Found a stealth two-lane route southbound, performed nap-of-the-earth manuevers. Top indicated speed 1-1-0, repeat, one-one-oh."
"RT Wingman dropped off at his Midland launch site about 1700 hours. Installed horn on RT. Rehydrated. Expect pics soon, over."
"Wingmen mission map attached. Call when inbound with route; Alert 1 and 2 on the cat launches.
"Enjoyed our morning rations. Safe trip and happy hunting. Out."
"Uh, Ohno and Sas, this is Uly Wingman, in the barn at 19:32 hours after a 528 mile day, over."
"Happy to report M-119 smooth and well-packed."
"No battle damage to report. Audio warning bell went off near East Jordan vector, backed down from Mach 1, just in time for a skin-top blacked-out Charger with radar to come round the corner, over."
"Dodged showers, heavy weather most of the day, but only got wet once. Found a stealth two-lane route southbound, performed nap-of-the-earth manuevers. Top indicated speed 1-1-0, repeat, one-one-oh."
"RT Wingman dropped off at his Midland launch site about 1700 hours. Installed horn on RT. Rehydrated. Expect pics soon, over."
"Wingmen mission map attached. Call when inbound with route; Alert 1 and 2 on the cat launches.
"Enjoyed our morning rations. Safe trip and happy hunting. Out."
We're off to see the Wing
Ohno
The best way to pound out the miles is to wake up early and burn a tank or two.
Sas and I were up at 5 a.m. putting the finishing touches on packing. Coffee was brewing.
We headed out of the gate to accomplish the "mission" at 6:15 a.m. Bay City standard.
Sas was two up on the Uly to save her backside from the 1100R's seat. Plus she was going to fire off some photos of the 1100R at speed.
Dang that bike looks small with me aboard.
By 9:00 a.m. we were seated and had coffee in hand at the Hillside House in St. Ignace.
Breakfast was excellent and free. RNR is getting charitable in his old age. Maybe it the new stich that has him in such a good mood. That new jacket has taken him to new heights already.
So someone please explain this too me. Sas is afraid of cliffs but she dangles off the back of the bike shooting photos of Bark Sampler and RNR. In the rain. On the Mackinaw Bridge. While driving on the grate.
Dang women. Wish I had a dime for every time I couldn't figure them out.
We pushed across the UP and hit a flood of German iron heading home from the BMW RA rally up in Houghton. Very strange to see so many beemers at once.
Storm cells developed throughout the day and forced us to take a more southern route into the twin cities
But we still had some time to take a break or two.
By 9:30 p.m. whoops I mean 21:30 we rolled into our destination.
There she sat. The Wing ...
Kevin has done a nice job of putting the old girl back together. And she sounds purrfect.
Plus she has some really cool features:
• The ignition key pulls right out of the lock. Even if the bike is running.
• A new windshield! Oh yeah.
• A seat that had Sas purring
• New tires
• A full tank of gas
After a quick test ride Kevin asked what I thought.
All I could say is "Old School."
Ya got to remember this old girl is 26 years old. Wow.
But everything works. Well after a little wrenching everything works. She is even fitted with a hardwired GPS now.
Oh yeah the pull today was 700 miles. The longest day ever in the saddle for Sas.
The best way to pound out the miles is to wake up early and burn a tank or two.
Sas and I were up at 5 a.m. putting the finishing touches on packing. Coffee was brewing.
We headed out of the gate to accomplish the "mission" at 6:15 a.m. Bay City standard.
Sas was two up on the Uly to save her backside from the 1100R's seat. Plus she was going to fire off some photos of the 1100R at speed.
Dang that bike looks small with me aboard.
By 9:00 a.m. we were seated and had coffee in hand at the Hillside House in St. Ignace.
Breakfast was excellent and free. RNR is getting charitable in his old age. Maybe it the new stich that has him in such a good mood. That new jacket has taken him to new heights already.
So someone please explain this too me. Sas is afraid of cliffs but she dangles off the back of the bike shooting photos of Bark Sampler and RNR. In the rain. On the Mackinaw Bridge. While driving on the grate.
Dang women. Wish I had a dime for every time I couldn't figure them out.
We pushed across the UP and hit a flood of German iron heading home from the BMW RA rally up in Houghton. Very strange to see so many beemers at once.
Storm cells developed throughout the day and forced us to take a more southern route into the twin cities
But we still had some time to take a break or two.
By 9:30 p.m. whoops I mean 21:30 we rolled into our destination.
There she sat. The Wing ...
Kevin has done a nice job of putting the old girl back together. And she sounds purrfect.
Plus she has some really cool features:
• The ignition key pulls right out of the lock. Even if the bike is running.
• A new windshield! Oh yeah.
• A seat that had Sas purring
• New tires
• A full tank of gas
After a quick test ride Kevin asked what I thought.
All I could say is "Old School."
Ya got to remember this old girl is 26 years old. Wow.
But everything works. Well after a little wrenching everything works. She is even fitted with a hardwired GPS now.
Oh yeah the pull today was 700 miles. The longest day ever in the saddle for Sas.
Published in
KISS Adventure
Friday, 20 June 2008 00:00
K.I.S.S. Adventure - Part 1
Ohno's story:
The plan was simple, as in K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid)
Find a new bike located somewhere far, far away. Fly, buy, and ride through some great country. Point A to B via the scenic route.
The short list of destinations was northwest, southwest and northeast.
Spring rolled around in Michigan and I got the bike itch, bad. I've put 45k on my current mount in the last three years. The BMW 1150GS has taken me to places I used to only dream about.
As a long touring mount, I don't think she can be beat.
But a year ago I rode a KTM 950 and it was really hard to get that bike out of my head. Plus, I had spent some quality time on Buell's Uly. So I started doing the flea market search. Back and forth I went Uly, KTM, Uly, KTM.
The more I read about the KTM in Orange Crush the more I wanted the 950. So when K7's 950 came up for sale I didn't hesitate.
It had all the right parts and pieces. One phone call later the deal was done. Phoenix here I come, or so I thought.
I couldn't get down there for a month and a half (the longest friggin month and a half of my life.)
Not a problem, K7 would store the bike for me till I got down there.
I started looking for tickets. Ride and fly baby! A simple plan.
The plan starts getting complicated right about now ....
I called some friends who live in Phoenix and told them the whole tale. Lo and behold they had a problem. They needed to get a bike from Minneapolis down to Phoenix. And since it's kind of on the way ...
You can see where this is going. Of course I said yes. Did I ask what kind of bike it was, nope. Did I realize how far Minneapolis was from Phoenix, nope.
The bike turned out to be a 1982 Honda Gold Wing standard. No fairing, no bags. It had been in a wreck, it was being rebuilt. This K.I.S.S. plan was turning into an "adventure."
And then there is the Sas factor ...
Sas's Story
The plan was simple.
Ohno was itching for a new bike. Find one somewhere we could fly out to and ride it home. Point 'somwhere else' to Point 'home.' I knew it'd probably be two-up, but it'd be riding, so the farther away the better in my book.
A Florida Buell came into question. Florida? Wellll... all right. The deal fell through. Whew. The 950 KTM came up. Where? Arizona. Well now, that's more like it. Go West, young motorcyclists! Yee-ha!! The K.I.S.S. plan ... fly out and ride home two-up.
This is where it gets a little complicated...
Me: Hon, what if we rode out two-up and come home solo?
He: Humph. (The google maps come out and the obsession begins.)
He: We need better gear that's a long trip. (The internet shopping begins.)
He: Guess what? There's a '82 Goldwing that needs to be delivered to Phoenix.
Me: That'd be fun. Quite an adventure.
He: We need better tools, you never know about older bikes. (Killer tool roll in the making begins.)
Me: So, if we're riding the 1100R two-up to Minneapolis can't I ride it from there?
He: Well there is this little issue of cliff phobia that you have.
Me: There is that.
He: How about riding it home from Minneapolis.
Me: Ok! How far is that?
Later ...
Me: I really want to ride. (Running fingers through his hair.)
He: How about riding from Minneapolis to a friend's in Souix Falls on the way out and then riding home from there on the way back?
Me: That's a little better.
Later ...
Me: Could I rent a bike in Arizona from AZride.com and do a couple days in New Mexico?
He: Give them a call and plan New Mexico, I'll give you New Mexico.
Me: OK!
Later ...
Me: I wonder if I could handle those cliffs.
He: How about riding out to Sturgis then home again from there? You can still rent in AZ if you want.
Me: OK!
To be continued I'm sure ...
Ohno was itching for a new bike. Find one somewhere we could fly out to and ride it home. Point 'somwhere else' to Point 'home.' I knew it'd probably be two-up, but it'd be riding, so the farther away the better in my book.
A Florida Buell came into question. Florida? Wellll... all right. The deal fell through. Whew. The 950 KTM came up. Where? Arizona. Well now, that's more like it. Go West, young motorcyclists! Yee-ha!! The K.I.S.S. plan ... fly out and ride home two-up.
This is where it gets a little complicated...
Me: Hon, what if we rode out two-up and come home solo?
He: Humph. (The google maps come out and the obsession begins.)
He: We need better gear that's a long trip. (The internet shopping begins.)
He: Guess what? There's a '82 Goldwing that needs to be delivered to Phoenix.
Me: That'd be fun. Quite an adventure.
He: We need better tools, you never know about older bikes. (Killer tool roll in the making begins.)
Me: So, if we're riding the 1100R two-up to Minneapolis can't I ride it from there?
He: Well there is this little issue of cliff phobia that you have.
Me: There is that.
He: How about riding it home from Minneapolis.
Me: Ok! How far is that?
Later ...
Me: I really want to ride. (Running fingers through his hair.)
He: How about riding from Minneapolis to a friend's in Souix Falls on the way out and then riding home from there on the way back?
Me: That's a little better.
Later ...
Me: Could I rent a bike in Arizona from AZride.com and do a couple days in New Mexico?
He: Give them a call and plan New Mexico, I'll give you New Mexico.
Me: OK!
Later ...
Me: I wonder if I could handle those cliffs.
He: How about riding out to Sturgis then home again from there? You can still rent in AZ if you want.
Me: OK!
To be continued I'm sure ...
Rolling in the tools ...
So I did get a little, tiny, wee bit obsessive about the tool roll. Damn adventure rider thread got me started.
So here is the short list from upper right:
• Metric allens
• Sawzall metal blade
• Crescent wrench
• Tin with electrical and bailing wire, foam pad sand paper and gloves
•*Tin with spare bolts and nuts and clamps
• Wipes
• Tow strap
• Bicycle pump
• Motion Pro tire irons (wrapped with electrical and duck tape)
• Motion Pro Chain Tool kit with spare links
• Radio Shack battery tester
• Flash light
• Shock adjuster
• Quick Steel and Quick Aluminum Epoxy
• Tie wraps
• Various sockets
• Various bits
• Leatherman Juice
• Versa Tool
• Microdriver
• Open end wrenches
• MSR 6 in 1 Tool
• Needle nose vice grips
• Lighter
• Stick loctite
• Tool roll from Aubuchon Hardware
The whole package is about 9 lbs
Also on board the bike is:
• Tire repair kit (Tube and tubeless)
• Battery jumper cables
• Dupont Teflon lubricant
• Tire downs
So here is the short list from upper right:
• Metric allens
• Sawzall metal blade
• Crescent wrench
• Tin with electrical and bailing wire, foam pad sand paper and gloves
•*Tin with spare bolts and nuts and clamps
• Wipes
• Tow strap
• Bicycle pump
• Motion Pro tire irons (wrapped with electrical and duck tape)
• Motion Pro Chain Tool kit with spare links
• Radio Shack battery tester
• Flash light
• Shock adjuster
• Quick Steel and Quick Aluminum Epoxy
• Tie wraps
• Various sockets
• Various bits
• Leatherman Juice
• Versa Tool
• Microdriver
• Open end wrenches
• MSR 6 in 1 Tool
• Needle nose vice grips
• Lighter
• Stick loctite
• Tool roll from Aubuchon Hardware
The whole package is about 9 lbs
Also on board the bike is:
• Tire repair kit (Tube and tubeless)
• Battery jumper cables
• Dupont Teflon lubricant
• Tire downs
The plan takes form ...
So an email to Minneapolis to find out more info about the Wing.
Here is the story ...
Kevin who loves motorcycles had found the Wing for his brother-in-law, who lives in Phoenix. It had been in a crash so all of the fairing and bags had been removed. It was an 1982 GL. It has 81,000 miles on it. But it purrs like a kitten he said.
By the time we pick up the bike on June 22nd he promises to have new tires, battery, fluids and most importantly a windshield on the bike.
The plan materializes ...
Leave from Bay City on June 22nd and ride straight through to Minneapolis. We would do this two up aboard Sas's BMW 1100R. (More on this bike later.)
From Minnesota I would pilot the Wing and Sas would ride her 1100R to Sturgis. This would give Sas some quality riding time in the Badlands and the Black Hills. In Sturgis we would drop off the Beemer at the BMW dealer and continue onward aboard the Wing.
From Sturgis we would head two-up to Yellowstone. Then turn south and head for Phoenix. In between we plan on hitting Arches National Park, the Grand Canyon to name a few.
Here is the story ...
Kevin who loves motorcycles had found the Wing for his brother-in-law, who lives in Phoenix. It had been in a crash so all of the fairing and bags had been removed. It was an 1982 GL. It has 81,000 miles on it. But it purrs like a kitten he said.
By the time we pick up the bike on June 22nd he promises to have new tires, battery, fluids and most importantly a windshield on the bike.
The plan materializes ...
Leave from Bay City on June 22nd and ride straight through to Minneapolis. We would do this two up aboard Sas's BMW 1100R. (More on this bike later.)
From Minnesota I would pilot the Wing and Sas would ride her 1100R to Sturgis. This would give Sas some quality riding time in the Badlands and the Black Hills. In Sturgis we would drop off the Beemer at the BMW dealer and continue onward aboard the Wing.
From Sturgis we would head two-up to Yellowstone. Then turn south and head for Phoenix. In between we plan on hitting Arches National Park, the Grand Canyon to name a few.
Complications
There was one tiny problem with this whole adventure. Not much luggage space. Matter of fact we might not be taking underwear on this trip. You see the 1100R just has the standard factory bags. Who ever designed those should be shot. The Gold Wing had no hard bags. I found an some old Eclipse Sport saddle bags in the basement. That might work. And I had a Marsee tail bag that would fit on rack on the Wing. No rack on the 1100R. Hmmm ...
Sas thought it'd be fun to camp. So I ordered new Big Agnes sleeping bags and pads. The laptop would have to stay home for lack of space. That's ok, I have a little thingy called an iPhone.
The following weekend up at Sleeping Bear Dunes we tested out the sleeping bags on a 40° night. Sas wasn't very happy the next morning. She couldn't imagine pulling the miles that we needed to after the night's sleep she got. Hmmm!
When I told RNR (the other half of Teamboxer) that I wasn't taking a laptop I thought he would cry. This was one of the few times he was speechless.
After he recovered from the shock and awe he let forth with a torrent of disbelief.
How are you going to post pictures? You are taking a camera? This is the ride of your life and I won't be able to follow along? After several minutes of this I started to realize he really wanted me to post along the way. Friggin web partners.
Well since we decided to ditch the camping idea. That did leave a little bit more room. Maybe the laptop could tag along.
Sas thought it'd be fun to camp. So I ordered new Big Agnes sleeping bags and pads. The laptop would have to stay home for lack of space. That's ok, I have a little thingy called an iPhone.
The following weekend up at Sleeping Bear Dunes we tested out the sleeping bags on a 40° night. Sas wasn't very happy the next morning. She couldn't imagine pulling the miles that we needed to after the night's sleep she got. Hmmm!
When I told RNR (the other half of Teamboxer) that I wasn't taking a laptop I thought he would cry. This was one of the few times he was speechless.
After he recovered from the shock and awe he let forth with a torrent of disbelief.How are you going to post pictures? You are taking a camera? This is the ride of your life and I won't be able to follow along? After several minutes of this I started to realize he really wanted me to post along the way. Friggin web partners.
Well since we decided to ditch the camping idea. That did leave a little bit more room. Maybe the laptop could tag along.
The pain of packing
About a week and a half ago we starting figuring out exactly how much gear we could take along. The problem was that everything had to fit on the Wing. Yeah the bike with no hard luggage.
So I spread everything out: Old Eclipse sport touring bags, 44 liter Marsee luggage rack bag and a 20 liter tank bag.
Everything had to fit inside all of this. Dang we are in trouble.
Thankfully Sas is a size 4. Her pile of cloths was half the size of mine and we were taking the same amount of clothing.
Plus we have the laptop and the camera gear (D300, 18-200mm, 11-16mm). Dang we are in trouble.
Sas mentioned that we could leave the tool roll home.
Right.
That night I got up and search high and low on the World Wide Web. I had been thinking about getting some tank panniers. But I didn't want to put out the bucks for the Aerostich ones. Yeah, I'm a cheap bastard.
So a post pointed me to the ones sold by whitehorsegear. They looked to be the same thing. Sold.
Three days later they were on my doorstep. Nicely made and they hold a ton of stuff.
Time to test them out. Houston we have a problem.
My dang knees bump right into them. Not good.
I don't think this will be a problem on the Wing but the haul out to Minneapolis would be a pain.
A couple of minutes later and ...
They are secure. Sas can get into them while riding. Yee ha!
So I spread everything out: Old Eclipse sport touring bags, 44 liter Marsee luggage rack bag and a 20 liter tank bag.
Everything had to fit inside all of this. Dang we are in trouble.
Thankfully Sas is a size 4. Her pile of cloths was half the size of mine and we were taking the same amount of clothing.
Plus we have the laptop and the camera gear (D300, 18-200mm, 11-16mm). Dang we are in trouble.
Sas mentioned that we could leave the tool roll home.
Right.That night I got up and search high and low on the World Wide Web. I had been thinking about getting some tank panniers. But I didn't want to put out the bucks for the Aerostich ones. Yeah, I'm a cheap bastard.
So a post pointed me to the ones sold by whitehorsegear. They looked to be the same thing. Sold.
Three days later they were on my doorstep. Nicely made and they hold a ton of stuff.
Time to test them out. Houston we have a problem.
My dang knees bump right into them. Not good.
I don't think this will be a problem on the Wing but the haul out to Minneapolis would be a pain.
A couple of minutes later and ...
They are secure. Sas can get into them while riding. Yee ha!
Published in
KISS Adventure