RogerTOWM

Randy needs practice?

El gato tacos! It’s not just for breakfast anymore.

Happy birthweek Mimi! Now go out the rest of the week for more fishing, riding and ice cream!

Happy birthday Tracy. Sorry I don’t have any girls for you.

I would be willing to help if I'm still around. (I've been looking for work out of state).

Bike Model? I have one. Oh wrong type of model. Sorry

Fixed it for you.

If I tried that with the Harley I would have a broken kickstand and a tipped over bike. Zina I know what you mean I have had similar problems. Forgeting I'm on a 600 + LBS touring bike and not a dirt bike.

Yeah but he has always been like that.

Why do I ever tease slut? You are a very good man Bob, I don’t care what Paul says about you. Most Americans use to help like this. I remember growing up stopping to help would have been normal. But that was the WWII generation, what happened to us?

Brad take this to Bob. He can help you. While you are there you can see the roadsters and off road buggies he makes.

Have you tried Bob’s shop in the grove? He is a member here (metal twister) and has welded up many of the bikes here. Jon used him the reinforce his Honda frame.

BB that bike looks like the Honda “step thru 110”, one of the first motorcycles I ever rode. I’m still not convinced that little is the way to go for an “adventure bike”. Yes I agree that they can “go anywhere”, but to go anywhere for any length of time you also need to have a degree of comfort. I have taken several 14 day road trips on motorcycles. If you are not comfortable about half way through, if your body is hurting, if you are not sleeping well, then you start reconsidering these trips. A smaller bike might have problems carrying much weight. I’m not thinking the engine so much as the suspension. When I was in the Marine Corps the heaviest I got was 152 lbs, I’m almost twice that now. So I need a bike designed for two people just to carry my fat donkey (or some other word meaning donkey). If I was a rich man I could stay in hotels / motels all the time. But alas I’m retarded and have a fixed income (along with unfixed bills). So I can not afford to rent rooms each night. I have to camp the major portion of my ride. This means that along with my fat burro I have to carry camping equipment. Basic requirements are to stay warm and dry and be well fed (although I guess I could go without the well fed for awhile). This means carrying a sleeping bag and some type of pad to stay warm. To stay dry I need to carry a tent or tarp ( tarps are not good in blood sucking bug country). I also need to carry food and some type of food preparation and eating devices (stove pans, plate, etc.) It is nice to stay clean, this means extra clothes and some way to clean your body. Then there is the normal riding gear and clothing to account for varying weather conditions. We must not forget water and camera, maybe the two most important items. All this extra stuff adds weight to the bikes suspension. It also means that I need a way to carry or attach the load to the bike. This requires some type of bags - rack system. Again adding more weight and needing greater space. Bigger adventure bikes have the suspension and extra space. Most adventure rides are not all single track. Much of the ride will be mile eating roads and fire roads. There may be a lot of two track as well. Bigger adventure bikes handle this very well. For most adventure rides I have seen only small portions are single track. An example of this is the recent CDT trip taken by three members here. This trip could be done by a small bike, even a step thru 110. But it would be easier and might be more enjoyable in a larger adventure bike. I’m not sold on the BMW 1200 or super tenere, or other large European adventure bikes either. I think maybe the best compromise might be a midsize bike. Something around 600 to 800 cc. Like the KTM LC4 or BMW 650 / 800, Honda 650l, DRZ 400, DR650, KLR 650, Husky TE 610/30 or even the KTM 950/90 adventure (a big bike that acts like a smaller one). These bikes are big enough to carry the weight but can still travel reasonably on the dirt.

Having a remote antenna adds another wire to worry about unless the radio is attached to the bike. I have been thinking about the new system from rugged radios allowing the radio to be mounted to the bike. But I still see one problem with that system. It is the same problem as with a spot being mounted to the bike instead of the rider. What if you are injured in a get off and can not get back to the bike to call for help? If the spot is attached to you , you still might be able to use it to call for help. The same with the Ham Radio. If the radio is attached to you , might you still be able to get to it and call for help? While this type of fall might be rare I think this is when it is most important to be able to use the radio. The rest of the time I just use the radio to hear a really bad voice singing. I keep my radio in my Ogio vest like many of you do with the antenna sticking straight up. While it hits my helmet sometimes I have not found it to be to big of a problem. I guess a antenna on top of the helmet would work if you could take care of the ground plain problem. Maybe tin foil? (would work to keep the space aliens from reading your mind too.) Either way you mount the radio I would suggest that you have a method to be able to remove it and be able to walk with it as well.

I still have the KTM 990 Adventure (for a while at least). http://www.yamaha-motor.com/sport/products/modelhome/651/0/home.aspx

It’s a little to avant-garde for me, but…it is black!

That's my guess!

I’m sorry but I find it hard to believe that those guys would not talk to you because they are LDS. Yes the population of Utah is mostly white but they have sizeable minority populations as well. Most LDS men go on a mission soon after they graduate high school. There is a strong connection between the LDS church and pacific islanders. The big cultural center in Hawaii was started by the Mormons. Because of this history I don’t think they would be frightened of talking to you. My mother’s side of the family is LDS and yes I found the men don’t talk much. But I think it is because the women will not let them get a word in edgewise! Unlike Islam there is nothing in the religion that I know of that tells them not to talk to women or minorities. The LDS church does stress strong family values though. Being a woman you might be something new to them riding a dualsport, this was a rural area and most women don’t ride bikes even in big cities. Just look at the numbers in the club. These guys may feel awkward around you and a bit in awe of you. I think we need to do more research on this subject. Lets go back and conduct more field tests. I’m ready are you?

Zina forgot to mention that this day was not all pavement and fire roads. We stopped at a great view point and took some photos. Steve (Boat440) & Justin at the overlook. The rest of the gang. We then went through a gate and down an ATV trail. It was an interesting ride for the less skilled riders (me). Nice little rolly polly rocks and steep switchbacks with various ruts thrown in for fun. Nothing too hard, just interesting! The trail took us down to submarine mans stream where Justin tried to hide in a wake. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Steve, I'm still trying to figure out why I fell in the middle of the road that way much less how I was injuried! I dont know how but I did sprain the right wrist and left ankle. I wanted to jump right back up but thats when I found I bent my left knee a bit too much in the wrong direction. That was why I was still on the ground when Zina pulled up to take photos. All of my injuries were minor and are mostly healed now. Zina on the other hand jumps back up and lifts her own bike by herself when she goes down. She has real marks to show for it and doesnt whine like me.

So nobody asks if Im ok. I could have died you know! But I didnt so there. Just a sprained wrist, sprained ankle and hyper extended knee. Thanks for asking! Anyway Im not letting a few get offs stop me from continuing on this trip. Just to add some photos from the other group on the Freemont trail for this day. We had a nice little ride with pleasant scenery We found a great place for a break under a cliff. The only hard part of the Freemont Trail was a dry streambed where Bikesluts DRZ decided to take a nap (no photo of the nap) But then we rode on. Until we meet Zina at the motel and locked the Bikes together by their wheels. (makes a nice star that way).

Oh come on guys. That dog dances better then I do.

I have trailer, truck and the phone is on. Call if there is anything you need.

There are lots of opinions and stories here so I will add mine. I have a ford diesel 1 ton truck that I paired up with a 5th wheel 36 ‘ toybox. I carried my jeep in it for several years and went to many of my jeep club events. Sometimes we just went to superstition, other times we went to MOAB or Colorado for a week or two. The toybox worked just fine, it pulled well and I had the truck to drive around town afterwards. But there were drawbacks as well. On multiday trips I would not use the stove because I was concerned about the gas from the jeep catching fire. The interior of the toybox smelled of Jeep, oil and gas afterwards. The toybox got very dirty from the jeep and had to be swept out as soon as I got the jeep out. While on the road, I had to get out of the truck and walk outside to the trailer to use the toilet. Many times it would be raining, snowing or blowing cold wind. It would have been nice to just pull over and walk to the back without going outside. With the wife and daughter it seemed we had to pull over every 50 miles with the trailer. When ever we were done for the weekend it seemed my friends would be able to break down camp and get on the road much faster. They would roll up their awnings, lower the stabilizing jacks, throw the jeeps on the flat bed trailers and roll down the road. I would still be trying to hook up the 5th wheel to the truck and load my jeep up as they drove off. I also had to make sure the Jeep would not shift position and hit something inside the trailer. I now have a Motorhome. While I no longer have a wife the daughter and granddaughters can walk back to use the toilet whenever they want. I can run the generator and the grandkids can watch movies while their Mom pops popcorn in the microwave. They can play cards at the table or eat lunch while I drive down the road. When I get tired I can pull into a rest stop and take a nap without worrying about someone breaking into the truck. Both toyboxes and motorhomes have their strong and weak points. When buying a used trailer or motorhome check everything to insure that it works. Most motorhomes are low mileage for their age. Make sure that the rubber is not rotted, that includes tires, hoses and belts. The rubber gets rotten on motorhomes because it sits for long periods without being used. Make sure the tanks work and that they can be drained. Get underneath and check the wiring. Check for rotted floors. Get whatever works best for your family and enjoy. Ride early and often!

Awesome!!!......look forward to seeing more pics......better yet, look forward to riding it myself at some point..... IN!