Just a beautiful day to ride

Well, the end of the riding season is sneaking up on us here in Canada but it was such a beautiful day for a ride today.

Great photo, your bike looks in fantastic condition

Very nice, yes here the colors are at their peak and in a couple weeks the trees will be bare but when that happens I pick the next nice day and do a rock ride.

Enjoy while you can! Our season here is just beginning as it has been in the 110+ degrees for several months, so not much riding get done. But now? Yay.

I'm glad I live in Hawaii. Riding season is all year long. Got to wash the bike today.

Lenny wrote:

Great photo, your bike looks in fantastic condition

Thanks, Lenny.

oldwingguy wrote:

Very nice, yes here the colors are at their peak and in a couple weeks the trees will be bare but when that happens I pick the next nice day and do a rock ride.

I also hope that I can do a couple of more runs before the weather turns.

GHM-PM wrote:

Enjoy while you can! Our season here is just beginning as it has been in the 110+ degrees for several months, so not much riding get done. But now? Yay.

Woo-hoo!

Easyrider wrote:

I'm glad I live in Hawaii. Riding season is all year long.

Wow. That must be awesome.

Nice colour Silver Wing, we never got that in the UK, only a dirty maroon colour in the first year or so then the usual black, silver, and blue until they were discontinued. But what really caught my attention were those white socks and slip on shoes.

Which got me thinking now that winter isn't too far away, there's never been much discussion on here over the years about the riding gear we choose to wear.

There's been from the odd topic from members saying that they do or don't wear ATGATT, posts about hi-vis, and a few mentions of using what are basically golfing waterproofs as motorcycle rain gear.

I seem to recall that motorcyclists here are required to wear boots which cover the ankles.
I may have dreamt it, though.

MikeO wrote:

I seem to recall that motorcyclists here are required to wear boots which cover the ankles.
I may have dreamt it, though.

That may well have been a dream you had about doing the sensible thing, Mike. We see young 'uns round here riding in trainers, sandals, even flip flops/slides. That said, there is a thing called freedom of choice!

If you think you don't need 'proper' footwear, you should see some of the sights in A&E departments(trauma rooms to our friends over there) We had a lad brought in one night, came off his 'ped', as he called it, in trainers, de-gloved the skin on his foot from toe to instep. Lucky not to lose his foot.

Just one of the sights I don't miss post-retirement!

You are right, of course.

On reflection, I realise my recollection was about the requirements for taking/attending the CBT.

It's in this link:

https://www.gov.uk/motorcycle-cbt/what-to-take

That exercised my brain!

Beautiful bike.

We are still waiting for temps to drop to the 80's here, in AZ.

Howard

I got a 90 miler in today, absolutely beautiful weather started out it was 60 deg. ended up at 78, the trees were slendiforus colors outstanding, the yellows of the Tulip Poplar almost hurt your eyes, reds purples oranges, even better some were set in among the pine and spruce and hemlocks.

We lost a few weeks this summer due to forest fires in the area. The two towns right next to Medford, OR., Talent and Phoenix were just about wiped out, many homes and stores burned out. The Harley Davidson and BMW bike shops were totally lost. With that and several forest fires in the are mostly due to lightning strikes it's been a very smokey summer. Now the air is clear, the skies are visible again and it's the beginning of a beautiful fall season. Except for the China virus which has put some small businesses out of business hereabouts. Here's hoping next year with be a better one than the last couple.

Oh yeah, AGATT for me. Been riding too long, seen too many accidents not to.

Medford was one of our stops on the big trip years back, many years.

Today was a good day to ride here in PA. about 250 miles. 58F at 10AM and 74F later haven't been out for a month so it was nice. Not much traffic and many bikes on the road getting the last rides of season around these parts.

The forecast is absolutely perfect and probably the last we'll see mid 70's around the great lakes for 4-6 months. You gotta love solar cycle 25 and sunspot 2781 for all that global warming activity the past few days. Gonna get the scoot out for a 2nd day today and hit the streets.

As will I, getting ready ASAP.

Had a couple of days out in the country and along the coast over the weekend. Wore my heated gloves but didn't need them. Green fields and blue sky and sea. The main bonus was the lack of traffic due to the second lockdown.

I'm already itching for a trip mainland Europe and get some serious riding in

Due to Coronavirus, Brexit has taken a back seat this year and we leave the EC for good at the end of next month, and we still have no idea what the changes are for 2021.

Will we now need to buy some sort of visa to for EC countries? I've read that we may also need International Driving Permits again. The reciprocal medical treatment we can get in EC countries using EHIC scheme also ends at the same time.

Once off the ferry and through what may become much slower Passport Control, can we still move through EC countries with the open border Schengen Agreement, or will there be some type of border control Brits will now have to go through. What's happening when we get back to the UK at a ferry port, do we have go through the current Green or Red channels at Customs. How much stuff can we buy in EC countries without having to pay Import Duty and VAT. 

Seeing those beautiful ladies In Italy riding Vespas in high heels was a fond memory of mine

I'm not really bothered what the new EU agreement brings. I just love riding and driving on the continent. The UK's roads are overcrowded. I need a bit of space...

Loosemarbles wrote:

The UK's roads are overcrowded. I need a bit of space...

I wouldn't say that's entirely true, here in North Yorkshire I can head out in all directions and find plenty of quiet roads and varying terrain. It was pretty much the same when I lived in Cumbria, lots of space as long as I kept out of The Lakes and the tourist honey pots at certain times of the year. Scotland's border counties were also easily reached and they offer lots of good quiet roads.

Over in Europe I regularly used to go touring in Germany's Harz Mountains, and got to know the area and the great riding roads of this bikers playground. 

But to get there I had come off an overnight ferry and ride well over 300 miles of busy autobahns and overtake dozens of trucks before I got on the quieter roads taking me to my favourite spa town.

What a difference a day makes todays ride was made even better now that the weekenders have gone home, a good mix of state county and township roads and perfect weather to top it off. The color is almost gone but the lack of leaves makes for longer views over the valleys.

Amazing it's even warmer today than yesterday. I'm not quite use to riding in near 80 degree weather in November. Out of all the negatives over the last 11 months, this is greater impact on feeling some healing time b4 for the coup.

I think the riding season is over for me until next spring. So far since sunset around 5ish we've gotten about 4" of snow and it's still coming down.

On a more happy note (NOT) my brand new snowblower that I bought last December took a dump on me this fall when I was getting it out of my shed. I backed it out and turned on the gas while I was putting my lawn mowers away only to find out it was leaking gas. I shut the gas off and wheeled it to the garage and called the hardware store where I bought it from. They came out and picked it up and took it to their shop. It's supposed to have a 3 year warranty but I guess it doesn't cover the carburetor. The mechanic looked at it and said it would take about two weeks to get it back to me. He called today and said it was done. I hooked up the trailer and went to pick it up. Guess what? He called me instead of the person who actually owned the "fixed" snowblower. Mine was still waiting on the carburetor to arrive. Needless to say I will have to do my very very favorite job and SHOVEL the driveway tomorrow... YIIPEEE

I had a two stage, tracked snowblower in Juneau, AK so I know the sore back that comes with a breakdown. Mine bent the auger screw shaft trying to eat a big chunk of ice in the berm across the end of my driveway. I had one day of heavy snow the next day added to the new snow added to the snow plow putting a another three foot high icy berm across my drive way. That was enough for me to take the intake auger off the machine and using my acetylene managed to straighten the shaft and the screw blades.

Soon after that I put a blade on my 4x4 Dodge diesel 3/4 ton. That and backing it into the garage sure simplified clearing my short driveway in any snow conditions.

There have been 2 very warm and beautiful days in a row here in New Mexico. Fired the Swing up and went for a 50 mile ride in the mountains around Los Alamos. Stopped to pick up some bagels at a local bagel restaurant. Day was absolutely beautiful. Weather in the high 60’s with super dry roads. Just a great day!

PeteP wrote:

There have been 2 very warm and beautiful days in a row here in New Mexico. Fired the Swing up and went for a 50 mile ride in the mountains around Los Alamos. Stopped to pick up some bagels at a local bagel restaurant. Day was absolutely beautiful. Weather in the high 60’s with super dry roads. Just a great day!

I hate you. We’re headed into another lock down, I’m freez’n my tookus off here —and now you gotta brag about another warm riding day. Well at least I’m not up there in the GWN with BugJr.

It was a bit chilly today never made it out of 30's. A bit of snow flying up this way.
Friday and Saturday 58-60F no rain you can get a ride in for sure. I think I'm done for the year but who knows? Covid summer has been a good one for me over 8K. Lock downs don't work only prolongs things.

This was another beautful day to ride, last Saturday, 22C and fine and calm.

Had another fun spin on the bike today, here's a little video. Sorry about the sound quality, the microphone just catches wind noise.

Enjoyed watching that. I’ve always been impressed with the way the SW handles. I’ve scraped both sides of mine on the road over the years. However, those smooth gentle curves make the SW feel like it’s in its element. That comfy seat, nice sitting position, adequate power when needed…of course…a smooth road surface always helps

Thanks Terry, that was good to watch. It'll keep me going till mine comes back out of hibernation - which in theory is spring but I bet I don't last that long

Loosemarbles wrote:

Enjoyed watching that. I’ve always been impressed with the way the SW handles. I’ve scraped both sides of mine on the road over the years. However, those smooth gentle curves make the SW feel like it’s in its element. That comfy seat, nice sitting position, adequate power when needed…of course…a smooth road surface always helps

You're quite right about the smooth surface helping, I do enjoy the way the SWing turns in and holds a steady line, however my front suspension remains a work in progress to try and cure some of the OEM ills when pressing on around bumpy bends.

I found the forks really sensitive to any bumps, which transmitted too much shock back into the chassis and bars. I have fitted better springs and cartridge emulators which have taken 90% of that away. I have had some "moments" when hitting a decent dip while leaned over which can send the front end into an unpleasant weave, which i think is a combination of the small wheel/fast steering/bar leverage and a lack of rebound damping. A lighter grip on the bars helps, and I'm waiting on new piston rings for the damper rod as I suspect the lack of rebound may be due to wear/too much clearance here. I've already got 20W oil in there.

Unlike my ST1300, I doubt I'll ever touch the Swing down in bends as it is sitting quite tall on the fork springs and Hagon shocks.

A bumpy front end seems to be a 'thing' with the SW. There's a particular pot hole in town which I hit during darkness. How my bike is still in one piece is a miracle. I thought it might have cracked the wheel bearing at least, but all seems to be well.

I know what you mean about the weave and it scared me at first but I guess I've gotten used to it and even anticipate it and can smooth it out with the throttle.

The rear end can be modified without limits (I have yss eco-shocks on the rear which I think made an improvement over the OEMs) but the front end seems to be more complicated. If I had the cash I'd probably invest in some front end work but I take the OEM as a SW idiosyncracy. I find riding with my better-half on the back makes for a softer ride and I miss her when I'm on my own.

Generally, I find more pros than cons and I'm firmly 'attached' to my SW.

'A lighter grip on the bars helps ... '

Known in cricketing circles as 'soft hands'.

This has been said before.
I have found that if I do just that, the bike looks after itself on rough roads, raised white lines and in cross-winds.

For me this is ideal time of year to refine my cold weather riding gear and try out old and new stuff in a variety of combinations on rides before winter really kicks in.

Thankfully I stopped 'working for the man' years ago, and anytime I do get the gear on it'll be of my choosing.

Saturday the temp was 10*C and it probably was the last day for picking up leaves, cutting the grass and finishing the gardens for winter preparation.  Sunday morning it started snowing ... ended up with about 15cm (6 inches) of heavy wet snow to clear by dusk.  I decided since it was only a little bit, I used the small Honda HS 621 snowthrower and shovelled the rest.  Supposed to go back up to 10*C and rain by Thursday.

Below is a pic of our backyard ... got most of the leaves off just in time.



Below is a picture of our street.  We usually wait anywhere from 1-3 days for a plow to come by because we are considered a tertiary street.  This is why we don't/can't ride in the "winter".  Luckily we have an AWD SUV and 4WD pickup truck to help us get around.  



The good news is daytime temperatures are hovering around freezing right now so that's pretty easy to deal with.  All said, it's been a very good Autumn and  we've had some gloriusly warmer days in the past few weeks.  Time to hunker down for the winter weather business though. It's coming ... always does!

I agree.....on getting gear ready and tested prior to real cold/wet winger riding---- Have 3 helmets, all tested for comfortable winter use---my sole outer jacket=Aerostich yellow Darien, at 81,, should last the rest of my riding days (my second Darian) for pant I could use my Joe Rocket Big rain pant---but after 15 years or so they can leak after all day in the rain. For cold, my Darian pant work fine, either with big jeans and long underwear or just the long under wear----these pant do not leak and can be quite warm with jean/long underwear inside For me they are not the most all day comfortable....but you do not get wet.
Boots---Right now Wolverine waterproof Wellingtons work. My Aero Kombat Lites work, too, but they are not waterproof for more than a one day trip. I have Tinghly rubber overboots for another pair of Wolverine work boots I have---but at 81, I find the dance of getting them on, on the side of the road no longer fun!

To line the Darien Jacket, I use a feather jacket bought in the north (stuff bought in the US south just ain't warm!!) Extra cold another feather vest helps, too. I do not trust electrics.

But each year nice to have all of the stuff for winter, tested or thrown out. Gloves/mitts=I have quite a collection.

Terry,
Really enjoyed watching your video. I was going to say that you’re driving on the wrong side of the road (Ha-Ha).

PeteP wrote:

Terry,
Really enjoyed watching your video. I was going to say that you’re driving on the wrong side of the road (Ha-Ha).

Quite a few countries do mate, we also dive on the left and proper side of the road here in the UK. It's no big deal driving on the right in mainland Europe either, along with speed limits and distances shown in kilometres, using the Euro, different languages etc.

Imagine, countries where you just pay the amount it says on the label for an item without extra sales taxes being added on, and better still not having to tip everyone.

I used to struggle with tipping in restaurant's etc. So I decided not to tip anybody, ever, for anything. That way it doesn't play on my conscience. Simple.

However, if somebody goes out of their normal line of duty to help me then I'll buy them a drink..or whatever.

BTW, today was a beautiful day to ride. Sadly I was too busy!