Don’t Call Us A Gang

December 17th, 2018
CB750 Custom with Cherry Creek Reservoir in the background.

Looking out over Cherry Creek Reservoir.

The thermometer on Sunday read 59 degrees, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and only the faintest breeze was blowing. To ride or not to ride was not an issue. The only choice I had was which bike to ride. I chose the Honda, mainly because getting it out was the least effort.

I started off, as I so often do, across the dam to pick up Parker Road. On such a great day there were a lot of bikes on the road.

As I neared and then crossed over Arapahoe Road there were two bikes coming up on the on-ramp. As the traffic flowed one of them merged ahead of me and the other behind me. We cruised like that for a while and I was a little puzzled when the guy behind me did not take advantage of opportunities to pull ahead of me and rejoin his buddy. When we came to a traffic light I made sure to leave him plenty of room to pull past.

But he didn’t. He stopped behind and it dawned on me this was not his buddy ahead of me, we were just three solo riders who all happened to be in the same place at the same time.

I have often had the fantasy of getting mingled with some bikers who had been up to something nefarious and having all of us get scooped up the police. How to convince the cops that I really didn’t know these guys and I was not involved in whatever they had been doing. The obvious line of persuasion would be that hey, just because you see two people in cars you don’t assume they’re together. Well, just because we’re on bikes doesn’t mean we’re together either.

Judy summed it up pretty well, though, when I mentioned this to her: People in multiple cars generally do not travel together; people on multiple bikes frequently do. And if you see a bunch together it’s normal to assume they are in fact together. See, even I made that assumption.

So I peeled off from my “buds” in Parker, heading west on Main Street. This is a developing area so even though I had been on this road not that long ago there was new stuff to see. The southern suburbs keep creeping. Just before reaching I-25 I turned north on Peoria and was surprised to see, at Lincoln Avenue, the University of Colorado South Denver Campus. What? Really? This growth just amazes me at times.

Continuing north I passed under C-470 and ran up into the south end of Arapahoe County Airport. That required a jog over onto Potomac and from there I meandered my way on home. Not a long ride but very nice of a terrific day.

Biker Quote for Today

There are two kinds of people . . . motorcycle owners and sad people.

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Comparing Chaps And Riding Pants

December 13th, 2018

It has gotten fairly cold lately but that doesn’t stop me from riding. Only icy streets and snow stop me from riding. So it makes sense that I have gear to keep my legs warm.

fleece-lined chaps

My fleece-lined chaps

My legs actually get short shrift compared to the rest of my body. I have boots on my feet and electric gloves for my hands. I have an electric vest for my torso, and a helmet for my head. And of all this, the stuff I wear least often is the stuff for my legs. I don’t know why; maybe this year I’ll make more of a point of using these things. Anyway, lately I’ve made a point of wearing everything just to do a comparison.

My earliest acquisition was leather chaps. These don’t have any insulating properties and there is no armor but they stop the wind. Often that’s all you need. But when it’s really cold, your butt is going to get a bit chilly. And your legs, too, after a long enough while. But they’re quick and easy to put on and do offer protection in case you go down.

Later on I got a pair of fleece-lined CORDURA®︎ chaps from Colorado Chaps and these were really meant for colder weather. They stop the wind, and they provide insulation, but there is no armor and they probably offer less protection than the leathers. They are chaps, however, so once again, your butt can feel the cold. And after awhile you’re going to get cold just the same. In fact, that’s the case with all three of these things and the only way to get around that is electrics. That’s something I don’t have yet, electric pants liners. Maybe that’s next on my list.

For overall (non-electric) warmth, my Vapor 2 riding pants by REV’IT! are the winner. They have armor, they cover my butt, and with the liner and long underwear they are the warmest of the three. They’re also the most awkward to get on. (The fleece-lined chaps are the easiest to get on.)

So what’s my preference? I guess for really cold weather I’ll choose the Vapor 2s. When it’s cold but not so much, I think I’ll start wearing the fleece-lined chaps more. And I will probably continue not to wear the leathers very much. I never have worn them much, even though they’re the ones I’ve had the longest.

On the other hand, I’m looking forward to the summer now when I’ll be able to really try out the Vapor 2s as summer riding gear. Without the liner and without jeans, and with vents, they should be very cool and comfortable to wear while still offering serious protection. And that will be another update, in maybe six or seven months.

Biker Quote for Today

Try to remember the reason you started riding a motorcycle in the first place. For me, it was a couple of things but mostly rebellion. — Sonny Barger

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Further Experience With New Riding Pants

December 10th, 2018

I mentioned previously that I bought a new pair of riding pants and now I’ve had more chance to try them out. This is an update.

REV'IT Vapor 2 pants

My REV’IT Vapor 2 pants

As you may recall, the pants I bought were the REV’IT! Vapor 2s. Fact is, my primary interest was for some summertime pants that would offer protection and make packing easier because I would only need to pack pants to wear in the evening, after wearing the riding pants all day while on the bike. Nevertheless, I also wanted to see how they would do as winter pants, offering both warmth and protection. I actually see protection as a bigger issue in winter than in summer because in winter there is the possibility of ice or else sand laid down to counter the ice.

So it’s winter, or at least late fall if you go by the official season dates, so my testing has been to see how they do on cold days. First I rode with jeans on underneath and no liner, then with both jeans and the liner, and thirdly with the liner but no jeans, along with long underwear.

The first time, with jeans, I was comfortable but noticed some coolness on the backs of my legs. The fronts have armor so that does a great job of stopping the wind.

The second time, with jeans and the liner, my biggest problem was getting them on. It probably took me 10 minutes, and in order to snap the waist I had to remove my belt because the buckle was just too much. You might argue that I should have bought a size larger but if I had gone that route I probably would have needed to go to a different brand of pants. And who knows, maybe I should have. I went with a smaller size because the legs were so long and even then I had to special order the shorter legs option. If I had gone with a larger waist the legs would probably have been just too long. But with what I got, Judy made the very good point that I better not gain weight or the pants won’t fit.

Anyway, riding with both jeans and liner was totally warm. Really nice. Along with my heated gear it was just as comfortable as riding in much warmer weather.

The third time seems to have been the charm, though. Thermal long underwear made up for the lack of jeans and they fit better in the pants with liner.

I’m still getting used to the pants in that they restrict my movement a bit, but I just step onto the peg and raise myself up before swinging my leg over. On the Honda I don’t even need to do that because the seat height on that bike is so low. Once I settle onto the seat all is fine.

Overlooked in all this is the fact that I already had other things to wear on my legs for warmth. For many, many years I have had a pair of leather chaps and for a somewhat shorter period of time I have had some fleece-lined chaps. The leathers are meant for all-year riding while the fleece ones are specifically winter oriented. Just for a comparison I have been wearing them lately, too, and will discuss how they all compare in my next post.

Biker Quote for Today

Animals travel on all fours. Mankind on two. Motorcycling is not a means of transport but an ideology, a nomadic way of life. — Amit Reddy

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Don’t Need No Stinkin’ License (?!)

December 6th, 2018
motorcycle racer

Just because you buy a sportbike doesn’t make you Valentino Rossi, or even John Kuo.

If you ride a motorcycle you need accreditation on your driver’s license, right? Oh dude, that’s so last century!

Or at least that is apparently how some young hotshots on sportbikes see it.

This was an interesting discussion we had at the ABATE District 17 meeting last month. ABATE of Colorado is one of a number of outfits offering rider training courses, and the best way to get your initial accreditation is to take a Beginning Rider Course (BRC). At the end, presuming you pass the riding part of the test, all you then need to do is go to Motor Vehicle and take the written test. Boom, you’re licensed.

What one D-17 member brought up, however, is that he is a member of a few Facebook motorcycle groups, and among those who are active in that group, the general opinion is that hey, we don’t need no stinkin’ license. If a member posts that he/she got busted for riding without a license the common response is, “You should have outrun the cops!” Truth is, if you are a skilled rider of a high-powered sportbike, you probably can outrun the cops pretty easily. Unlike you, they are not going to risk the public safety trying to chase you down.

But sometimes they get nailed. And often that means, in order to get their bike back–which is often impounded–they have to get licensed. And as I said, there’s no better way to get licensed than taking a BRC. So rider coaches are accustomed to having students in their classes moaning that they have to take this course. They don’t want to, but they want their bike back.

I don’t know about you, but I consider this attitude a problem. For one thing, people die because of it. Just because you buy a sportbike and learn to ride it reasonably well does not make you Valentino Rossi. Unfortunately, that’s the last lesson some people learn just before they shuffle off this mortal coil.

So, ABATE offers rider training, and the discussion was on the question, how do we persuade more people to get training? Obviously, the more students, the more ABATE makes in fees, but the fees were not the focus of the conversation. We all just really believe people should get trained. It makes you a better rider. But how do you reach people?

One obvious thought is to try to engage them on the Facebook groups, but doesn’t seem particularly promising. Nobody responds well to a public scolding. Meanwhile cultivating relationships and gradually trying to point people in a certain direction is very time-consuming, with no guarantees even then.

It’s hard. And no, we didn’t come up with any silver bullets. If you’ve got one, or even just a copper .BB, fire it my way. In the meantime, if you know anyone riding without a license, do them a favor and try to talk some sense to them. The life you save may be theirs.

Biker Quote for Today

I learned one thing from jumping motorcycles that was of great value on the golf course, the putting green especially: Whatever you do, don’t come up short. — Evel Knievel

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Calling On Roadside Assistance — When You Don’t Have It

December 3rd, 2018
pushing motorcycle

The kind of roadside assistance you really appreciate having.

For years I have spread the word about how your membership in the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) can provide you with good roadside assistance coverage at no additional cost. I have used it several times and I still recommend it.

But I had an issue recently that I think bears passing along.

Earlier this year I received a notice that I had been an AMA member long enough that I was now accorded Life Member status, which means I no longer have to pay annual dues. Of course, it is only logical that if they are cutting off a source of revenue–my dues–that they are also cutting some expenses on their end. I’m sure this is all explained in the information sent to me but, like most people, I probably didn’t read it carefully.

The first idea I had that things were different was when I got a notice that if I wanted to continue receiving the organization’s magazine in hard copy I would need to pay for that. Otherwise, I could read it online. OK, I get way too many magazines anyway, so not getting American Motorcyclist in hard copy was OK with me. Heck, we read the Denver Post online so I can read American Motorcyclist online, too.

But then, we were up in Loveland over Thanksgiving weekend seeing my nephew and family and my car died. The battery had not been showing any signs of weakness or impending death, and the fuses were all OK. I concluded I would need to have it towed to the local dealer to have the problem diagnosed.

So, the coverage the AMA provides is good for your car as well as your motorcycles. But then it dawned on me: with my Life Member status, was I still covered for roadside assistance? No. I checked and the answer was no. That requires that I sign up for AMA’s Life Member Plus program, which costs less than standard membership, so it’s not like they’re taking back all the benefits of life membership.

I concluded I would need to sign up for Life Member Plus but this was a holiday weekend and no one would be in the office until Monday. We had no intentions of hanging out in Loveland till late in the day on Monday. (Plus, when I did sign up I was told that the roadside assistance benefit would not kick in for 72 hours. I’m sure this is to ensure that people don’t sign up only when they need the service.)

Judy has AAA so she called them and we got towed. The problem was fixed and we were on the road again. But the point is, I was without roadside assistance coverage for some months and didn’t know it. That could have been a real issue if I had needed it. So I’m just passing this along so you don’t find yourself in that situation. And I do still recommend the AMA coverage. Their coverage pays for 29 miles of towing (if I remember correctly). Judy’s basic AAA coverage only paid for 6 miles of towing so we still had to pay for 3 miles. Not breaking the bank but free all the way would have been better.

Biker Quote for Today

Ever since the young men have owned motorcycles, incest has been dying out. — Max Frisch (OK, yeah, that’s a bizarre quote. You’ll have to google Max Frisch to get some idea what the heck he’s talking about.)

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More Close Encounters Of The Motorcycle Kind

November 29th, 2018
motorcycles on bridge in Florida

One kind of hill in Florida.

It has been a long time since I did one of these posts. Here you are, direct from the Adventure Riders forum, 10 more reports on close encounters on the road.

1. Hit birds (like a baseball hitting you), black cat during Halloween (shattered the 89 GSXR750 fairing), and a big dog trying to bite my front wheel. The latter knocked the bike (07 750) out from under me at about 60mph. Killed him, and broke my collarbone, ribs, both rotator cuffs torn. Didn’t do the bike any good either.

2. I was headed north on I-5 when the top of an RV peeled off like a tuna can lid. A wall about twelve feet tall of aluminum and interior stood erect and on end, like a wall, in the middle lane and the piece was sliding at about eighty miles an hour. Sparks were spitting out from under it. I was lucky that I was riding the inside lane because a diesel was in the outside lane and he was jack-knifing his trailer in order to avoid it. I only had enough time to see it coming in the center lane.

3. Man, I wish I had a picture of this one. Making my last left turn on my 86 mile commute home, 5 mile zone of death and am paying extra attention. I have a green, catch movement from the right, it’s 11 o’clock at night, bicycle riding against traffic runs the light, process and wait for him to go by, then fireworks thrown into intersection by bicyclist, ok I’m too tired for this, start to go, wait what? Bicycle is towing a 12 foot canoe and I almost rode right through it. This.Is.California.

4. A chicken, on my 2010 Ultra….chicken did not survive…the guy that was riding next to my right saddlebag was covered in feathers and chicken parts…..

5. If any of you have ever been near the Mississippi River (northern part) in the spring, you know all about May flies. Those things FILL the air to the point that after just a few miles, you are literally covered in dead bug juice….the Iowa DOT goes as far as to put signs up showing a mayfly on the road, with the word “Slippery”…and it CAN be….absolutely disgusting cleaning cooked bug guts off your pipes and radiator.

6. How about a 3 foot alligator, in Idaho! Was playing on the ST1100 at work, call it playing because I just patrol to be visible, going through an area along the river with a bunch of hot springs. Came around a curve and saw what looked like a log in the road, but one end moved and had two reflective dots. Got stopped and saw what was and tried to back pedal. It turned and scooted back into brush. Turned out to be an attempted theft from a private farm by high school kids. For years didn’t know why they called that place a gator farm, do now. Raises them to about 3 feet for boots.

7. A month ago, riding in the N. California coastal hills with a buddy, I pulled over and my buddy came alongside saying he had to clean off his jacket. What? Turns out about a mile back a buzzard had lifted off ahead of him carrying a huge load of purified road kill. It flew low over my pal and suddenly dropped his load like a precision bomb, a direct hit. It was about the consistency of jelly and so putrid I almost puked while helping wipe it off his jacket. We rode on a couple miles further to a small lake where we were able to wash off the worst of it while flies buzzed around us.

8. Downhill, country road twisty at a high rate of speed. Not one but TWO peacocks in full plumage centered in my lane! They flew up and I drove under them!

9. Narrowly missed a mirror off of the car in front me when an oncoming car sideswiped it at highway speeds. Dodged oncoming, ducked under flying mirror, dodged car in front of me after they locked up their brakes.

10. Riding along a dirt lane to a campground in Steelevile MO, what I thought was a mass of about 40 to 50 dragonflies hovering and darting around over the middle of the road turned out to actually be a mass of humming birds. I never slowed down since bug guts never really bothered me. But I recognized what they were as I rode through the cloud of birds. Never touched a one of them as they simply just parted enough to let me through. It didn’t even faze them and they returned to their buzzing over the middle of the road as if nothing ever happened.

Wow–totally cool about the hummingbirds. I’m sure he would have hated massacring a bunch of those little guys. So there you have it. Ride carefully, it’s dangerous out there!

Biker Quote for Today

When people talk about how many times I’ve gone down . . . yeah, but did I die?

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