Brett

Yes indeedy. Been wanting to check out that area since I saw those pics a long time ago. Fantabulous sunset! SY does not get many of those ...

RATFLMAO

Great point Craig!Another simple yet effective tip we used at the Jimmy Lewis School was "Leap-Frog". 1) Always wait for the rider behind you at every turn 2) When they're approaching waive at them & wait for them to waive back No one gets lost that way and it's one method for occasionally ensuring everyone is all right. The "waiving" also lets you know the rider sees you at the turn, allowing you to take off early & him not eat as much dust. If the "waive" is not returned then he either hasn't seen you or needs to regroup. Perhaps someone went down & he's coming for help. So if he doesn't waive, you don't go.

Yeah, I remember that ride, & you're right. Until then, SDAR participation was minimal. Thanks to great local riders who have kept things going, & to the Rad Man, who started & kept plugging along with what he knew was needed in SD & would become a valuable contribution to our riding community.This remains one of the original classics, the lava plateau during the "Striking Viking" ride

From one Brett to another, welcome to SDAR. I noticed it was your first post, yet have been "lurking" long enough to know of and ride the Dash. "Best rid of my life" are big words! ... and we're glad you said them about our 4th annual "Dash".Stick around these message boards the rest of the year, too. Lots of informal local rides.

Great night! You rode mine the prior weekend at Ocotillo Wells. I still have the video of your exlamatories after riding. Within a week you had one ...Here's my quick story in chronological order: Dad bought me a '69 Yamaha 125 'oil-pumper' when I was a wee lad. Saw this one at Willow Springs Raceway : Bought a new 1982 KDX 450 (first year of Uni Track for KDX). I just recently donated it to Malcolm Smith for his vintage motorcycle collection My "Dune Days" were fun-filled on the KDX w/ a paddle & this Quadzilla Bought this '88 Honda NX used (rare / odd bike). Heather & I had lots of fun on it. Now an employee has it This '04 FJR 1300 was tons of two-up fun. Not enough lean angle, so we recently sold it My True love to this day. The KTM 950 Adventure is great at lots of stuff , including two-up street blasting My most recent dual-sport toy is this '03 KTM 525 MXC Looking into the future to the Triumph Tiger ...

That's funny

To be more specific, the test did not include the GS, but the GS Adventure, an entirely different animal. The so called "test" was a short-story, not a real comparison, and was heavily biases toward the million pound BMW. With a 100 gallon fuel tank and lots of comfort, it's "the best way to get there", but certainly not the funnest and certainly hardly at all dirt capable.Concerning Buell / Harley's reliability, Kevin's view is as old as his Triumph view. Although I'm NOT a Harley kinda guy, their engine and drive train are reliable. The Buell uses hydraulic valves that NEVER need adjusting. The rear wheel gets power through a patetned belt system that others would use if they could. Change the oil ... That's it! Unfortunately, it only has a 5 speed gear box, so not good. With a cast 17" front wheel and a rotor that is attached to it, that thing is NOT doing dirt / hitting rocks, etc!

The new Tiger is dirt capable to only one very small degree, it has slightly longer suspension than most street bikes. Buy it as a street bike or don't buy it.Triumph used a pre-delivery-program similar to that used by Yamaha for the FJR known by the acronym PDP. Although bike orders for 07 ceases Dec 31, the program is more flexible than Yamaha's. So dealers will be getting bikes that they themselves ordered, not just that customers ordered. I see little chance of a test ride under theses circumstances. The bike at Rocket was ordered by a customer who now may not be picking it up. Rocket has not even put oil or a battery in it & I doubt they will.

The Capanord is really in a different class. It's a longer. lower powered bike with a twin that does SOME off roading. Not true sport forks, brakes, power, etc. Kinda like the OLD tiger (ending in 2006). As I mentioned, Triumph has gone COMPLETELY backwards on that attempt, at their own admission, opting for a 100% street bike. As such, the components are as close to pure sport as you can get, but with an upright riding position suitable for around town, two up touring or track blasting.Are you referring to the GS & DL? Then much of same applies. However, if I had to own only one motorcycle, it would be the GS. I shoulda known, since it's not called the BMW Tiger Be careful when you say that something new is not good. Just remember how old you are & how long ago you bought the Dakar Have you seen the 2007 Tiger, read all the road tests, & know all the differences? It's a street bike now, Kevin. It's also got the world renown Speed Triple engine! New frame & swing arm - fully adjustable USD forks - Radial brakes - 17" sport sizes for & aft - etc. etc. So based on actual knowledge of this 2007 model, your problems with it are what? Unfortunately, this sign belongs to someone else

Yeah, I know that I already posted this under 'write-ups & stories', but I didn't see this spot. Guess I should get to know this site better -------------------------------------------------------------- Another local dual-sport site that focuses on the KLR & DR, asked me to write an article on the KTM 950 Adventure, so I did. As many here know, Randy & I both ride this particular bike. Being that many dual-sporters are not that familiar with this much heavier bike and what it can do, the site wanted to provide some information. http://multisurfacemotorcycling.com/ As a new article, it's currently listed on the front page. Later (as well as now), it can also be seen under "Articles". Brett

I know everything about this bike ... well maybe I'd have one in my stable now, but have a pending property purchase. Anyway, it's my next street bike, so I have done LOTS of research so I think I can tell you what's up: First, you can read a lot about it here: http://www.triumph.co.uk/usa/4506.aspx Not to mention that there are quite a few road tests out now. All with GLOWING reviews! Triumph went completely backwards on their "Adventure" attempt since it never really hit the mark anyway. They changed just about everything but the name, so now it's basically a street rod with the Seed Triple engine (115 HP, or uncorked with their other can = 125 HP). Tall suspension for a street bike, USD forks, remote pre-load rear, radially mounted Nissin calipers, new frame & swing arm, upright riding position, luggage (now sold separately) Nutshell: Relaxed riding position one up or two. Commuter, tourer, track-terror. This is my kind of motorcycle!

I will second the recommendation for Alex. I didn't know he had moved on from Rocket, but is factory trained ON 950s & has worked on mine.Anyone know if Kon-Tiki is taking on KTM & KTM 950 work? Their shop rate is ... ?

It depends on whether or not you insist on buying & servicing at the same location. People feel differently on this. I think AA in Ramona is a 950 /990 dealer NOW, so that's your call. It's just that our group (me, Rad, Roger, Tony, Eric ...) embrace that "don't' lie to me" principle to what we feel is a healthy extreme Do you mean North County Motorsports (previously NC Yamaha) or Motoworld of El Cajon? NC is a dealer but for all I know still doesn't have a 950 mechanic ... that might have changed. Motoworld is pretty much complete as 950 dealers but won't have bikes until May / June. That would be my #1 choice for purchase. But possibly Quince will give you a better deal since they are still dealers. I would just never have my bike worked on there. For me, I would pay a tad more than perhaps a rock-bottom Quincy price to buy from Motoworld & I have confidence that they'll make sure their service dept. comes up to speed quickly to be proficient on the 950s. Currently, the best 950 mechanics in San Diego, hands down, are at Rocket Motorcycles off Morena. However, they charge top dollar for everything. Their service is expensive if it's not a menu item (10K service, etc). Other shops, like Malcolm Smith Motosports use a factory book-rate that often comes out much less $. Also, Rocket charges full boat for their bikes. List + freight + Doc + Set-up + Tax + Lic ... Until just recently, the main showroom contact at Rocket was Greg, a full blown A hole, rude, pompous, insulting SOB. Since he's gone, Rocket might get some of my business. I'll be Tiger shopping soon (my next street bike) and they are dealers. I ramble ... sorry.

Our group of six 950s liked them at first but never got over a few things they said and did. They wanted to get our 950 repair business so lied about being 950 dealers, which they were not. I found this out at KTM corporate, who was very upset at what we were being told. Each of us who used their shop have horror stories.They refused to perform the head bolt & other service bulletins on my bike. A head gasket later failed & KTM paid for the entire repair, as well as other issues resulting from their mispractice. My front axle nut (aluminum) with a factory torque value of 44 lbs was tightened at over 135 lbs. That's just two of my stories. Roger's rear axle nut was on so tight that it would have literally been impossible to effect a tube repair in the field, not to mention they badly scarred his rim installing rubber. He had to go back three times once, & finally gave up. Their's no excuse for the multiple serious shop errors that occurred. But even if I had cut them 100% slack in that department, it doesn't matter, because when you lie to me, your toast! I am SO relieved that Motoworld is now KTM & will be a 950 dealer soon.

Welcome to San Diego Adventure Riders. The easiest way to get "connected" to what's happening & what's happened is the "Ride Write-ups ..." & "Informal Local Rides ..." topics on the main forum page. "View New Posts" at the top shows the recent activity if you want to see who's chatting.Visit the "Organized Rides" forum, you're just in time for the 4the annual Desert Dash: http://www.dualsport-sd.com/forums/index.php?showforum=7

My wife took this pic of me on the 950 at a recent Streets of Willow track-day:

Here's Ed Seeber on the way into Sanfrancisquito

Don't forget to keep me apprised just in case my family Super Bowl party plans get done early. I need to get the 525 out for a little exercise What time tomorrow can you and the wifey poo make it to dinner?

Yes, yes, yes ... Thanks so much Rad for the help with this. I think that when anyone replies we really DO want others to know exactly what it is we're replying to.Two more tips: 1) When you hit "Reply" below a post, the "Quote" button's default is on. You need to click the "Quote" button to change it from + to - if you do not wish to quote part of the previous post. Otherwise, use the "Add Reply" button at the very bottom of the page & no quote will be included. 2) When cutting out the part of the post you don't want quoted, sometime it's difficult to know if we left the proper starting and ending quote markers in the right place. Use the "Preview Post" option to view your post before submitting to ensure the quote is in the white box, rather that just starting and ending with the word "quote". Brett

Here's an article on the other models getting the new engine:http://www.motorcycledaily.com/04april06_bmw_f800st.htm I too heard similarly the new GS is coming. Unfortunately it will likely be way too heavy with poor suspension, just like my friend Eddie say about the 650, right Kevin? Who's yer buddy? Brett

My wife & I stopped by two-up on the KTM 950 to say howdy, but had just missed ya'll at Ocotillo. Chatted with the injured Craig for a bit, then headed up S2, Banner, Cuyamaca, Japatul, Dehesa. It was street-duty day with the misses, but great fun nonetheless. Sorry to hear about the two injuries. Hope all heals well ... Brett

Bosman - Thanks for the complement on my 950 article. Glad you enjoyed it & found it somewhat helpful.Also, congratulations on your upcoming purchase. After doing the research you should know what to expect from the 950 / 990. For your hammer-repair leanings as well as the terrain you will be riding, I would lean toward the 990 fulie. Let me know if you need any mod or accessory advice. Brett

As Randy said, the Kodak is better that you would think due to the German Schneider lens, which is 12X on the new model. I also believe the new one is either 5 or 6 megapixels rather than the 4 that Randy and I have. Has other new and improved features as well. Costco carried it for around $300 The higher the pixels, the better the image is recorded. So a 10 megapixel camera will record whatever image you give it very well. Give it a poor image, and you'll have a perfectly recorded poor image. The lens and image quality are more important than the pixels. Brett

Nice job! That shirt tells the whole story, I think. Also is catchy enough for people to ask about the event if you wear it around town. I like! Brett