TICKED!

So I drive to Jackson today, a little burg outside of Lansing, someplace I have always wanted to go just to see what it's like. I get there no problem, make good time, and make it back Then I notice something rather alarming.

MY LICENSE PLATE IS GONE.

Vanished. Just like that. I find it hard to believe it just fell off, because I just recently tightened it up (for fear of this very thing happening). Could someone have stolen it? I don't know. I do know that now I am going to have to wait til Tuesday to ride it (that's as soon as I can get down to the SoS to "buy" a new license.) which really irks me because I wanted to put some serious miles on the bike this weekend.

Now, I have no choice but to wait.

..sigh..

I guess I can do some cleaning up on the bike, paint the engine black (at least the parts that need it) and some other cosmetic things.

Well, I took the saddlebags off, and I must say, I like the way it looks without them. Of course, I'll still use them for long trips and whatnot, but in the meantime.

When I get my new plate, that is.

I drove back out to Jackson today, doing about 45mph looking along the roadside just in case the plates had fallen off, but nothing. I didn't really expect to find them anyway. I know I just recently tightened those, so it's unlikely they vibrated loose on such a short trip. I actually drive to Grand Rapids today, hoping to get into the SoS office located there, but of course, they were closed for the holiday as well. I wrote a pretty lengthy email to the secretary about that. I mean, they could have at least posted the fact that they were going to be closed in an obvious place, but no. It was hidden away on some other page. I guess I'm more angry that I have to wait to ride it.

I have gotten some cleaning done, and a little painting on some of the more obvious areas on the engine.

More cleaning tomorrow. I should have planned better. I could have gotten my tank painted this weekend. Patience...

Shopping spree...

I took the bike to the mall today. Now, normally, that's not a big issue. Add a major university (MSU) and a plethora of distracted drivers to the mix, and you have the potential for an accident. I happened to take the main thouroughfare through town, right past the campus, and people were out in droves. I can't really blame them, the weather was beautiful. I'm really learning to look ahead on the road, evaluating potential threats and eliminating my interaction with them before I even get close. I don't want to drive like that again though. I was gripping the handlebars so hard my hands cramped up.

I got to the mall (needed to buy some new clothes for a clinical) and went to Steve and Barry's. Great deals. Spent about $50 on clothing, 3 pairs of pants, 3 shirts and a sweatshirt (which has a flaming skull on it) and I was very pleased with myself. As I strolled back out to my bike, it began to dawn on me that my space on the bike is limited. I mean, it's not like I could carry the bag on my lap, nor did I have anything to strap it to the seat behind me. I ended up wearing the sweatshirt and stuffing the rest into my saddlebags. It all fit, but the stuff was sticking out of the top of the saddlebag. It held though. I'll have to keep that in mind on my next shopping trip.

Good ride today. Bike is running wonderfully. I'm finding that quality of pavement makes a big difference in the ride. Smooth asphalt feels best, but it seems too easy to speed. Concrete is good too, but watch out for potholes. Pretty unforgiving on a bike.

I'm very happy that the bike no longer stalls at stoplights. I think that once I get the carbs tuned it'll be running even better. I notice a few little hitches here and there, almost what seems like tiny backfires from the pipes. The ticking sound is still there, but I haven't had a chance to check the front pipes to see if they are the culprit. I plan to do a fluid change soon, including brake lines and radiator. Still need to find that radiator bolt. Not quite sure how to change the brake fluid either. I'm sure most of this stuff will be on the XJCD, but am not sure whether I will have it before I go to Canada.

Taking the bike to clinical tomorrow. I am trying to get as much experience on it as I possibly can. When I finally take off for Canada, I want to be ready. I'm going to have to map things out. I don't want to get stuck out in the middle of nowhere... although I'm not exactly going to the unexplored regions of Canada. I have to start getting things together.

More tomorrow...

Highway flying...

It's been a couple of days since I posted here, but here I am. Had another close call. This time with someone slamming on their brakes in front of me and making a left hand turn. One of those last minute choices that could have spilled me on the road. As it was I hit my brakes and skidded to a stop, the back end of the bike fishtailing a bit. I controlled the skid well, just as I was taught, and everything was fine. That's twice in two days someone nearly hit me or forced me into a skid. What is it with drivers and the "all about me" mentality? Whatever happened to civility to your fellow drivers?

Took a long trip today, all the way to Grand Rapids, the town where I did a lot of growing up. It still looks like a slum, especially the old neighborhood and I'm glad I don't live there anymore. I didn't even stop, just kind of drove past the old homestead, taking a quick glance and speeding away. The highway was fun, although there is a strange sensation like floating on the highway when I get up to 73mph. Weird, but it could be because I am tired. I stopped off at rest stops a couple times just to stretch my legs. That knee bent posture is a killer. I can't wait to see what the Canada trip does to me.

It actually got a little chilly on the road there a few times, so later this fall I am going to have to be very careful to dress in layers. Plus the gloves. I think those are important.

I went through one whole tank of gas. Luckily, gas prices are coming down, but it's still 2.87 for premium. I burned up the rest of the seafoam, so I think I can hold of on that for a while.

That's it for now. More later. Drive safe out there.

Respect the bike...

A very important lesson was learned today: ALWAYS respect the bike. I was travelling about 25 miles an hour on a highway when a weiner drive up quickly behind me. Nearly tailgating me, I sped up, too late realizing I was heading into a curve. Even though the posted speed limit was 30 mph around the curve, on a bike the dynamics are far different. The weiner was still behind me, too close, but I put on my brakes anyway and pressed the handlebars, as I was taught in the BMRC. My front wheel kissed the curb. The combination of braking, swerving and pressing saved me from hitting the curb. If I had not had that training, I would have certainly hit the curb and flew over the handlebars. I can see how a large majority of bike crashes are caused by high speeds into curves and the rider not being able to handle the G forces.

It angers me that some people treat motorcycles on the road with such disrespect. It's almost as if they feel it's an oversized bicycle, and that they should be able to do whatever they like. The tailgating was plain stupid, and could have resulted in a crash (which it nearly did.) Couple that with the curve, and you have the recipe for disaster. BMRC says if you are being tailgated, slow down and encourage the tailgater to pass. This guy wasn't interested. Perhaps he was showing off the the rest of his college buddies in the car with him; more likely, he was an idiot.

I went out and picked up some more seafoam as well as some antifreeze SILICANT FREE!. I drove around a bit too, but didn't go too far. Looks like rain.

I stopped into a shop called XTREME Motors, a Harley Davidson oriented scoot shop. They had a ton of mods for Harley's. Jackets, hats, boots, gloves, chaps, beanies, skull caps, and more. They also had a lot of lids, little mini helmets that aren't DOT approved, and MAN were they expensive. What's the point? I can understand wanting to feel the wind in one's hair, the freedom sans helmet. It's dangerous to look cool. However, even wearing a full helmet and body armor and travelling at 70mph, it's unlikely that someone would survive a headon collision or even a wipe-out.

Part of the fun is in the risk, I guess. Me? Speed limit or slightly under. Not that driving safely has any affect on other drivers, but it does make me feel better.

Anti-freeze... in summer?

Sometimes the irony is hilarious. I could have made a serious mistake by adding regular antifreeze to my bike. Anti-freeze... at the end of August! The resevoir showed the fluid level to be low, so I added a fair amount of antifreeze I had laying around. I figured, it's antifreeze. So what?

Big what. Apparently, if you put the wrong type of antifreeze in your radiator, you can damage the water pump (the silicates clog it up). This is one of those things I never would have known, not in a million years. Thanks again, XJ list, for saving my bike. So, tomorrow, I am going up to Murrays to pick up some more Seafoam and also a bottle of non silicate antifreeze.

I rode the bike tonight, very nice ride home, although I noticed my front brakes are squeaking. Now, I know their OK because the guy at the bike shop looked at them and proclaimed them sound. I am learning, however, that bike shops can't be trusted. As someone wise said, "They have no vested interest in the bike." That's very true. So, tomorrow, I am going to check the brakes and make sure they are all up to snuff. I still stop ok, but boy, is that squeaking annoying.

I'm a little disappointed in the horn situation, what with the one side not working at all, even after the sanding I did on the contacts. I guess new wiring is in the cards. I'm happy that the one horn is working, however, although it sounds like one of those little clown cars with the "honk hoooonk" when the button is depressed.

Looking for a new helmet tomorrow. I found several on the web that seemed pretty good, even DOT/SNELL certified. 54.99 for one helmet, full face with a shield. That's a pretty good deal. But the words "how much is your ass worth?" keep reverberating in my ears. You get what you pay for.

I had ordered a copy of the Yamaha parts catalog from an ebay seller and finally got it. I should have waited and gotten the XJCD, but of course I didn't know about it then. I also ordered a tank bag, a pretty nice one that will fit nicely on my tank.

Looking forward to a good ride tomorrow.

Rainy mornings...

I decided not to ride my bike yesterday due to some heavy rain and weird Michigan weather conditions. Of course, it didn't rain, and was a beautiful night to ride. I love driving home in the morning on the bike. There's something very peaceful about how quiet it is, being the only vehicle on the road and puttering along at or below posted speed limits. Sure, I could speed home, but where's the joy in that?

That's the whole thing about riding. I don't know how to explain it, but there is this sense of euphoria that comes over me. Sure the jacket is hot and heavy, I always seem to have an itch on my face somewhere after I'm all buttoned up and driving and the helmet is secured to my noggin, but I wouldn't trade that feeling for anything in the world. I'm just sorry I waited so long to get things rolling.

No sense in crying over spilt motorcycles. I am finding many very helpful people on the XJ list and to be honest, every day I learn something new about the bike, about the people who love the bike and their love of riding, and all of this experience has already helped me avoid several costly mistakes.

The pics here are of my gas tank, the one I plan on re-doing this winter. While the dents and dings are not functionally limiting, cosmetically, they cause me no small amount of concern. The first thing people look at when they see your bike, usually, is the gas tank. Thus, all the little dents and dings, scratches and blemish jump out and steal the bike's thunder.

My plan is to ride to Canada and hang out with the fella's from the list on the weekend of the 30th of Sept. It's about 268miles, will take approximately 4.5 hours to get their, but the trip itself will be fantastic. This will be the longest I have ever been on the bike. Perusing some of the pics from the last get together the guys had, it looks to be a great time. Plus, any problem you may be having with your bike, someone from the list invariably has dealt with at some point, and they seem more than happy to help out with getting your bike tip top.

I am going to start planning the trip now, including what to bring (hopefully fitting everything into the sadllebags and a small duffel on the back). There are several resources to help out with this, people that have been there, done that.

I'm not sure what I would do without the help of the people on the XJ list. Well, actually, I would probably learn, but there would be a lot of trial and error, a lot of fumbling about until I came across the right sequence.

Off to ride...