Category Archives: Bikes

Ol’ Yeller to the rescue!

Leave a comment

That’s right, the old beast came through on the year’s biggest ride!

I had the Repi all prepped and ready for this year’s Friendship Ride… lines bled, parts lubed, and even some old parts replaced… followed up by a good scrub and polish. Well, “the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry”, and come Saturday morning the battery decided it was done. I guess nine years of starts was all it was able to take. Time was running out, didn’t know what to do. Should I continue on with the Repi, knowing that I would have to be push started after each stop and face the ridicule from all my battery tending friends? Oh, HELL NO!

I quickly pulled the cover off Ol’ Yeller, dusted off the parts that were dusty. Wiped down all the gruff from the previous rides, checked the tire pressure and when I went to start it up… nothing. Damn, I had unplugged the tender to use for some other, at the time “necessary” electric device and forgot to plug it back in. No worries, I knew that the battery was good so with a quick jump from the wife’s car, we were on our way.

That’s right, no prep, no fancy new parts, no clean and polish, just wake up, shake the bugs off and go. I did require a little help on my first stop/start, but after the first leg Ol’ Yeller was starting and stopping like the best of them. Still had to endure a day of ridicule and jabs from the mob, but I held my head up high with the fact that my oldest, slowest, most outdated bike still took care of business. I just love this thing, and I’m probably the most comfortable on the bike after owning and riding it for the past 21 years.

Here’s to old friendships that never let you down.

Bikes , , , ,

Could be a lot worse

Leave a comment

My ride for the week as my truck is awaiting some shop time… Not a bad position to be in and it seems ‘ol mother nature must have got the memo as she’s cooled down the heat this week which makes for a much more comfortable experience.

Thankfully I had just installed my new Galfer USA wave rotor and brake pads I picked up from FP Racing. I also went through and bled the brake and clutch lines with clean clear fluid and replaced the old worn out grips with new Pro Grip SCS grips. The bike is feeling better than ever.

I can’t believe this thing just turned 14 years old, it still gets my heart going like it did the day I brought it home.

Bikes , , ,

Well damn… this sucks!

Leave a comment

I had to replace the front tire after finding it flat this morning and now it looks like my radiator took a hit and sprung a leak. My weekend is officially done.

Had a great weekend though, the bike was feeling really good and I absolutely love this track.

Can’t wait to get back here and run some more laps. It may be a long drive to get here, but I’d definitely do it again.

Until next time… 

Bikes, Track , , ,

That’s it, I’m out!

Leave a comment

Well, at least for this year. Another great day at the track, the temperature was perfect and for the first time in recent years I was able to enjoy the day without rain, cold or blistering hot temps.

I was so happy to see Dave Moss there as I’ve been wanted to get his hands on Juicy to work out the kinks I’ve had since the git go. “Best 40 bucks you’ll spend on your bike”, so true. Dave is a genius at setting up bikes and after the first few session, he had the bike feeling so much better and I enjoyed the rest of the day working on the cornering tips he provided.

I’m quickly realizing that I need to work harder to get in better shape as these days really take their toll by the mid afternoon sessions.  Over winter I’m going to increasing my cardio program so next year I’ll have more endurance throughout the day.

Although I’m not planning any more track days for 2017, I can’t wait to get back out there.  I feel my progress has been slowed a bit as I adjust to the new bike, but with each new ride I feel more and more confident.  Looking forward to working harder in 2018 and maybe finally getting that knee on the ground.

Cali Photography was there to capture my moves, and Let’s Ride Trackdays put on another great event. We agreed as a group that we need to check out Chuckwalla Valley Raceway next year, and I’m hoping we can all work it out to ride together.

This will finish out the track pictures for the year. I need to get some street action going before the rain starts.

Bikes, Track , , ,

First trip hauling the gixxer

Leave a comment

All packed up for another great day at Buttonwillow Raceway Park with Let’s Ride Trackdays.

My buddy with the motovan decided to take a snooze so I had to get my bike to the track on my own.

No problem, with a long ramp, a tight grip on the bars, and a whole lot of prayers I got it up in the beast without breaking a sweat.

Now that I know I can do this on my own, I see more track days in my future. Here we go again, see you there.

Bikes, Track, Truck , , , , ,

Some photos from an awesome day at the track

Leave a comment

Thanks to Cali Photography for doing their absolute best to make me look fast.

Thanks to my buddy Alan for following me on occasion and letting me know what changes I could make to better my cornering. It was so helpful to get advice from a friend I truly trust and rider who continues to amaze me.

It was good to get back on the track and try to put to rest the demons I found here the last time. I was finally able to get some laps on the new bike and become more accustom to its grace and precision. This thing is truly built for the track and dissimilar to the street bike I previously brought to the track. I felt stronger and stronger every time I went out and I could feel my heart pounding with excitement after each session.

My new Janman Leathers were awesome. It was so nice riding for the first time in leathers that were made just for me. They matched the bike perfecting and I may have been the best looking slow guy out there.

Oh, but did I mention the heat? It was hot, but that wasn’t going to stop our fun. Although at track speeds the heat was fine, the time in between sessions is when I really felt the sheer force of the blazing temperature. We rode well into the afternoon but decided to call it quits when it was just too hot to enjoy the rest of the day.

Thanks to Let’s Ride Trackdays for putting on another great event at Buttonwillow Raceway. Always a pleasure to ride with this group and I look forward to many more days to come.

Bikes, Fun, Track , , ,
1 2 3