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St. Stephen

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Everything posted by St. Stephen

  1. You didn't mention if you stayed upright. 😎
  2. "Gaslight" directed by George Cukor in 1944 and starring Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer. Basically the bad guy husband in the 1880's in London tries to drive his wife crazy, including turning down the gaslights and then pretending nothing was wrong. Not a bad film for its era. I'm pretty sure this key bit of information will solve your rear shock issue immediately! 😎
  3. Hey Philois, as bmart has pointed out, here in the states the motogp app is available on my AppleTV device, but the WSBK app is not available in the Apple app store. I too just use the website for my euro 69.90 subscription and it works well enough. When I want to see WSBK on the TV I mirror my (Mac) laptop, which works fine. It sounds like they just made the app for phones? Anyway, while I can't say with certainty what works in Queensland, just use the website on your laptop/computer.
  4. Nine inches of rain here so far this month. True, no snow, but still. So this ride will be nothing but CA sunshine, I'm sure. Here's a good weather shot of the usual suspects not too long ago. Of course they've purchased new bikes since then.
  5. Nice bike Paul, exhaust particularly. Is that a sea of rocks? Perhaps a feature of Wales I am unaware of?
  6. Yeah, "Powersports" is the word for many motorcycle dealers now, particularly the non-cruiser ones. But hey, Honda still creates some cool bikes! Johann Zarco's LCR Honda bike was just revealed, and as an RC-51 rider I just love the livery. (apologies for the hijack)
  7. I've always felt there might be a Hawk in my future. It would join the two other V-twins in my garage. Simple, light and good looking. But...Triumph is bringing back the Daytona, the 675cc engine I believe. Whenever I've been behind a Daytona I just loved the sound of the triple. The 2024 Daytona is I believe under $10K. It doesn't have sophisticated suspension adjustability, or a lot of other bells and whistles, but it's around 430 lbs. and has lots of opportunity to modify into a great track day bike. Looking forward to seeing one in person. (I too have never owned an inline four)
  8. Apologies to Skids who just wanted to research a good bike video system. This has turned into a cager rant. But if we're honest, 90% of us are cagers at least part of the time, right? Anyway, early covid--2020-ish--the number of cars on the road here dropped maybe 75%. And the number of speeding tickets went up about 100%. All those guys in their muscle cars (and in Marin especially the Turbo Carreras, 7 series BMW's, Ferraris...) saw the open road and took out their frustration of 20 years of commuting on highway 101 at 10 mph, in the absence of, well, almost everyone else on the road except the CHP. One the one hand, on my bike approaching a left turn I know well when a 70's-era 911 comes through the other direction, sideways and all over the double yellow, was rather fun to watch once I braked, swerved, and realized I would not die. But it sure was a lesson that a seemingly empty road isn't a safe road.
  9. Well, after a few months on the smart charger, in the garage (I have friends who think garages are for cars, go figure), and not moving an inch, the RC of course started immediately, manual fast idle aka choke pulled out. It's a Honda. Barely over 40 miles but far enough to get rid of the moisture in the crankcase, and get my arms and knees used to the sportbike position again. Around here this time of year the back roads that aren't well travelled get a bit of moss or other plant life growing in the middle of the lane where car tires don't go, so I took it easy. Mostly. I moved the odometer! 😀 PCH today just south of Tomales:
  10. No sympathy from those of you parked for the winter, but the heavy rains here may back off tomorrow and the RC wants to go out first:
  11. Also very cool that it mentions my favorite racer from the early/mid '80's, Mike Baldwin. Mike was a top AMA Superbike racer, international gp racer, Honda Interceptor racer...and he was from New England, where I mostly grew up. Saw him race many times at Loudon and Pocono, as well as the 1988 Laguna Seca gp, always on a Honda. Probably one of the reasons I bought my first VFR, er, VF, er, I mean Interceptor... 😎
  12. Skids, at least you ride on the left at home! I've driven cars in the UK, Ireland and Australia, but never a bike. Really had to focus in roundabouts and when making u-turns the first couple of days! OK, one more...
  13. Well, in that case I can't resist posting a few more NZ photos. Sorry, I was on an RT, not a VFR, but not that different from your ST. I'm sure you know this tunnel: IPA! And you know this mountain: The walking birds were actually very polite: Scenic, every day: Keep posting those ride photos Terry.
  14. Great photos Terry. You got me to look up Cape Reinga too! Really cold here also, only a high of 55, brrrr. 😉 Thanks for the great photos. I did 10 days of riding in NZ in 2015 but all south island, never got further north than Auckland--so here's the other end of your country:
  15. That sucks Bren, hope your 2024 is better. Hang in there! House and two kids for me too, but fortunately not that wife part. Early days we moved for my job and my ratty GS400 got stolen at work, couldn't afford a replacement. After my only four adult years w/o a bike we went out to eat, told her I just had to get another bike (VF of course). She was fine with it. 😊 BTW, she was six months pregnant.
  16. (Disclaimer: you won't learn anything about VFR's in this post. I don't even provide an opinion on motor oil) I was shocked! I knew that 2023 was my worst mileage year in a decade or two. But I had a bunch of reasons: About 10 months ago the surgeons at UCSF repaired the mitral valve in my heart. Surgery and recovery rehab pretty much eliminated riding for the spring. A simmering, ongoing consulting gig of maybe 10 billable hours/month suddenly and unintentionally took over my life starting in July. Ironically--because of my own personnel recommendations--I became the acting head of operations for a regional movie theatre chain. Fortunately I was able to find my permanent replacement in November. And...my wife and I now have a grandson, currently 22 months, and we have pretty much been commuting to our son and DIL's place in San Diego. 😊 Where was I? Oh yeah, I was shocked. Yesterday I took a look at the odometer on the Ducati. I then compared it to last year, and...400 was the difference. 400 effing miles in 2023!! That's pathetic. Even if I generously add in another 400 on the RC-51 that's less than 1000 miles in a year. Wow. So I checked my photos on this laptop, and it was another shock. For the first year in the history of digital photography I had not taken a single bike picture! This was the most recent pic I could find, probably my final ride of 2022, December 23rd: As JZH said in his recent build thread, I really just had a lot of excuses. Unlike Darryl I was physically and legally able to ride by May. If something is important to you, you don't just drop that activity to do other things no matter how important they may also be. I live in one of the great motorcycle riding regions in North America--we can ride pretty much year-round, the roads are fantastic and plentiful, and there's an abundance of natural beauty only a day or two's ride away. And I own two bikes--2017 Multistrada Tour S, 2003 RC-51--that I love, are incredibly reliable, and are really tons of fun to ride. So. Time to get off my ass and behind the bars. Trip planning time! Up to Oregon. A trip through the Sierra, into AZ, the four corners and the Rockies? My favorite Eureka/Yreka/Fortuna loop (aka 299-96-3-36)? San Diego of course. And just hitting the PCH/128/253 etc. when the right day opens up. Anyway, if you're still reading this diatribe you probably understand the self-induced frustration. No excuses in 2024: More to follow...
  17. Good luck JZH! I look forward to seeing you on the finished bike after a long and exhilarating ride.
  18. The AGV "exceeds the ECE standard by a large margin" according to the AGV website, as well as U.S. DOT. This is definitely one of the reasons it was on my list. And it may not mean much to say you protect the heads of Rossi, Miller, Mir etc. but it means something. Lab tests only roughly replicate actual crashes. There's not a lot of public funding for motorcycle safety, at least not here in North America, but I have read that manufacturers are now testing side impact and glancing blows in addition to simple direct impact. So ECE, Snell, DOT is what we've got to go by. A manufacturer that's been around for a while and has a rep for quality is an important factor also--I continue to believe that Arai is the gold standard here. You may get a safe helmet that's cheap, but as Dutchy and Captain mentioned, fit and comfort are safety factors too. And I won't lie, I care how it looks! This hasn't turn into an oil thread but it was drifting in that direction. Since this is VFRD at least no one chimed in with "you're safer without a helmet." 😎
  19. For many years a series of Arai Signets have been my every day helmet. But as the price has approached $1000 (yikes!) I've looked around for something with just as much protection for less money. I ended up buying an AGV K6S in August for $630 plus tax. Not cheap, but definitely less! Plus: - Significantly better field of vision, both top/bottom (85 degrees) and left/right (190 degrees). I noticed this immediately, a big difference. - A lot lighter! I weighed my size large at exactly three pounds. - It has a much simpler, faster, easier face shield removal mechanism. If you've ever replaced an Arai face shield you will appreciate how much better this one is. Minus: - I always wear glasses while riding. So far the fit is tight enough that it takes a little work to get the arms of the glasses through the foam interior to my ears. Hopefully this will loosen up with use. - Not really minus but the AGVs seem to run a bit small. My fat head fit in a medium Arai but my AGV is a large, and fits very well. So far I'm very happy with the K6S and I recommend it. Side note: for years I've avoided the Cycle Gear stores--my impression was that they just sold low-end house brands with not much selection. If I was going to buy at a bricks-and-mortar I'd spend at my dealer. But I wanted to try the helmet on first, so I visited the CG store in Santa Rosa, and was pleasantly surprised. Lance the manager was an ex-club racer, passionate about bikes, and knowledgeable. And they carried real brands like Alpinestars, Sidi, Michelin, Arai, etc. Who knew?
  20. I'm guessing he means the top case? So, a cover for the structure that attaches and supports the top case? Like a cowl over the passenger seat on 6th/5th etc.?
  21. Hey Darryl, if you need help with grunt work moving Lance's things or just clearing stuff out let me know. I'm going back and forth often between here in the north bay and north county San Diego where we have family, so would be happy to stop and help. I think you have my contact info. Rough year for you, hang in there.
  22. Damn. RC1237V just texted me with the news. Sucks. A great guy. I only rode with him a few times, but some random memories: Breakfast in Kernville, maybe 2016, ready for Brian, TC, and Duc2V4 to lead us north through the Sierra. Lance arrives...in a 'Stitch! I'm not alone! Random stop somewhere before arriving Shaver Lake. "You guys sure get going fast, I didn't get my gloves on in time!" Smart, great rider, lover of 5th gens. I didn't know him well, but I'm really happy that I knew him.
  23. My confidence in Captain 80's limitless expertise has been shaken to the core. Everyone knows the courtesy phone is white. 😉
  24. Keep those updates coming Smitty, you're getting close. Lots of fun following your progress, and admiring all the stuff I am not skilled enough to accomplish myself.
  25. Welcome back to your 8th gen Grum! Great to hear you are riding again, and with purpose(wine)! Stay healthy and ride more.
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