Motorcycle Adventures

Well I picked up my bike from service today. I’m always a little worried whenever someone else works on my bike. Not everyone, OK, not most people, use the same kind of care that I would.

The bike looks good though, and I’m happy to have the fluids changed. There are a lot more of them on this bike. The engine, transmission, and final drive all have oil in them.

Tomorrow we are planning on a great ride together and I’m so looking forward to it.

Nicole took a little trip today to get some more KM on her bike before her service… She took a little trip to La Conner… Here is a photo she took with her Cell Phone… More to come…

I’m always nervous when one of my important possessions goes in for service under other people’s hands… It’s the only time I will let anyone ride my motorcycle… I can’t say it’s a comfortable situation, but there are few options… So, tomorrow I go in after work to pick her up again…. and then the fun really begins…

I shot this yesterday with my little Canon point and shoot… It worked quite well. Sadly YouTube makes it much worse quality than it originally was, but it’s going to work well for a couple quick videos when we go through some beautiful places on our trip…

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbrA01lb3EI

I just got notification that the last package we’ve been waiting for is now at the post office ready to be picked up.

My service is booked for Friday, Nicole’s is booked for the following Wednesday. We are almost completely set!

Yes! Finally… It arrived from the USA today… Nicely packaged in a huge box with lots of bubble wrap… Including a free T-shirt from HelmetHead Cycle Gear.com….

When I arrived at the post office, the very nice postal fellow we always deal with knew exactly what I was there for and got the box right away.

So, took it home, called a friend, and went right down to install. Now I’ve done this for my other bike as well, and it took a long time, and was a little frustrating. This time it was completely different. Just a few screws, and it was done… Took no time at all.

So, the verdict? It’s great. It’s MUCH wider, and MUCH taller than the old one. It works perfectly on the mechanism that moves the whole thing higher or lower, and I can see right through it. Testing it on the Highway, I had a wonderful quiet ride. There is a change in the air movement that is apparent… At high speeds I can feel air hitting me on my back, rather than from my front, which is interesting, and also expected from the research that I did. A small price to pay for such a peaceful ride though…

Here are some photos of the Old and the new…. The photos although help to compare the two screens, really don’t do the high difference any justice. The new one doesn’t look nearly as tall as it is… It’s quite a difference.

Today a couple packages arrived in the mail… The last little bits and pieces for our bikes are coming in.. I’m very excited to finally reinstall the RAM system back onto my bike. Read the rest of this entry »

Planning for our Camping trip is well under way. The idea is that we are going to have a very spur of the moment type trip, but I also wanted to make sure that although we won’t plan exactly where to go and when we go, that I have information ready, so I’ve put together maps of the towns we’ll be going through, as well as information about those towns so that if we want to stop, we’ll know what the options are. This give me a little peace of mind while still making it fun and free!

If the weather isn’t raining, we’ll be leaving on June 7th, in the am at some time. We’ll lead towards Nelson, and see how long we feel like riding before we want to stop.

We would like to stop off and explore as many of the little towns as possible, so we’ve decided that we’ll just Read the rest of this entry »

Oh now I”m so excited. If all goes as planned we’ll be going for our camping trip starting on June 7th.

Today I picked up the last bit of supples that we need for our camping trip. I also went to LD to pick up some batteries, some tooth paste, and some other small items that we can pack with us.

Ah what a wonderful surprise to wake up this morning to find the sun shinning and the air warm!  When I looked outside the window and saw how great the weather was, I was showered and dressed, fed and watered in no time – and out the door I went…. Only to find myself in heavy traffic for about 45 minutes as I slowely made my way out of my neighbourhood…

I went on the highway, taking the Mt. Leighman exit close to Abbotsford, and then making my way through some wonderful tranquil winding roads…  They weaved their way through the most beautiful countryside. It was nice to ride slowely and take in fields of grass and flowers.  There was a wonderful smell in the air – a sweet earthy smell.  It was wonderful.

Well Finally I’ve hit 1000km on my bike…  It’s now ready for it’s first service – already booked a week and a half ago for this coming Thursday.  I’m looking forward to being more free with my riding… It’s one more step closer to our Camping trip at the beginning of June….

Our wonderful friends Eryk and Michelle are bringing back to life a bike that hasn’t been ridden in a couple years… This last weekend, Eryk was able to get the bike running again – so although there is still many little things to be done to the bike before it’s ready, we are excited that they might soon be joining us in our adventures…

Stay Tuned…

So there are a few items still in the mail that I’m anxiously awaiting.

- RAM ball mount for the GPS – Then I can install this on the handlebars, and finally use my GP -Arrived May 26
- Powerlett Plug GPS Power Adapter – Arrived May 26
- Tire Pressure Gauge – this is a neat one that will let you see the pressure, and fill/bleed at the same time so you can get the pressure just right – Arrived May 26
- Cargo Net – for nicole, to help hold small items on her bike
- Bungee Hooks – These will be installed on my first service – they are really cheap and Suzuki has already ordered them for me for when I go on Friday.
- Kickstand Pucks - These will make sure we don’t sink into the pavement – although I haven’t seen this be an issue around here, I’m more concerned about the gravel that we might be on when we go camping, so I’ve ordered one for each of us. They are cute – shaped like a little foot
- Noise Filter - for Nicole’s StartCom1 System. This will clean up any remaining noise for Nicole. – Arrived May 26
- New Givi Windscreen – This is the really exciting piece… When I installed my last windscreen from Givi onto the 400, the difference was incredible… So I can’t wait to put this on. It will mean that I can ride so much more quietly and comfortably. It will be wonderful for our long trip. – Arrived May 27

I love to tinker… and when I get a chance to tinker in the way I get to tinker with out bikes, it’s the best. Not only do I get to buy new toys, but I get to install them, and make our riding experience better… What’s better than that! Read the rest of this entry »

Today I had some fun at MEC buying some small items for our camping trip… We needed things that were really small, rather than the huge stuff we take camping when we use the car.

After getting everything home, I wanted to see how well it would fit in and on my bike.. and was shocked to see how much I could get inside the bike under the seat.

You can see in the photo, the Sleeping Bag, he Tent, the Mattress, a small folding table, the Tent Poles, and a lot of little items fit.  On top of all this the Pots, the Stove, and the utensils all still fit inside… Fantastic!

This leaves only the clothes that need a home, and they will easily go on top where the passenger would normally sit.

Plus, when we both travel together, Nicole may have room for some of these things, making even more room for my clothes…

I can’t wait to go camping!

Oh another warm wonderful day, and a chance to put some Kms on my new Burgman… I have to be careful about my engine revs – they need to be kept below 4000rpm, and varied as much as possible to allow the engine to heat and cool down intermittently.

I didn’t hurry in any way, and found a wonderful route past a couple of lakes. The roads leading up to two lakes and a Hydro dam are really beautiful. Even with the warm day and the weekend, I was almost alone on the route. I stopped off several times to take photos and to enjoy the views… I did a big loop, at one point, connecting to Dewdney Trunk Road, and the detour took me probably 45 minutes. Next time I go I’d like to stop off at one, or both of those lakes and enjoy a little rest.