| Author | Message | ||
     Dr_greg |
1. THE RIDE I foolishly thought the New Mexico "spring" weather was gonna continue, so I didn't don/pack sweater (between Gerbing jacket liner and jacket) for my 323-mile ride to/from Carrizozo, NM... ...but the day warmed (a bit) and I persevered. Leaving Albuquerque, NM at 1006, out E on I-40, then S on "South 14" (now NM 337) towards Mountainair. Here is a view I always like...at 7,500 feet looking SE through the pinon pine country towards the "Eastern Plains" of New Mexico...  OK, here we are in the "Eastern Plain" themselves...  At the virtually nonexistent "town" of Claunch, NM, there is this cool church...  Huh!? Saw a large animal jump across a hundred yards in front of me! After "deer strike" I'm now more aware...it was this bunch...at least it was noon.  "Gas 'n Go" at the "Quickie-Mart" in Carrizozo, NM...  Speaking of Carrizozo...  New Mexico is full of history, all right. Full of a few other things, too. Note that our esteemed governor Bill "Bill" Richardson passed on Secretary of Commerce cuz of an um, "investigation" here at home. Now back to your regularly-scheduled programming... Carrizozo is my turn-around point. A few miles north NM 349 heads off to the NE through the Capitan Mountains (Lincoln Nat'l. Forest in spots) through the aforementioned "ghost town" of White Oaks, then 20 miles of dirt road. And it's perfect for the Uly (and a good test of my left arm/hand)...the dirt road is very good (one could ride a GoldWing on it, although it wouldn't be much fun).  About ten miles in, one comes to the townsite of "Jicarilla"...  This is all abandoned, BTW. Here are a couple more views...   Heading back through Claunch, NM, I couldn't pass the "Claunch Bean Elevator" by w/o a picture:  If you look carefully, apparently the "Bean Elevator" is available for parties. Woo-hoo! A few hundred yards further, there is this somber reminder of our mortality...  Finally, my attempt at a "self-portrait" at a rest stop at Ancho, New Mexico...BTW the BEARD is coming off soon. Don't worry, I'll publicize it...  2. THE AFTERMATH...FAN? After getting home and shutting the engine off, the fan sounded even raunchier than before. Now...the fan on my "old" '06 Uly always had a "clear" sound, if you can imagine that. But the "new" fan has always (er, for the few weeks I've owned it) had kind of a "cloudy" sound. In my garage after this ride, the fan (at low speed) every five seconds or so exhibited a pretty raunchy sound. I'm thinking it's a bad one. So...next weekend I've got two items on my calendar: 1. Swap the beautiful BLUE (but slightly scratched :-) exhaust headers from S/N 044 to S/N 564 2. Swap cooling fans likewise I have a NEW fan in my shop, but I'd rather save that for when I'm desperate. 3. CONCLUSION. I'm REALLY hoping the weather next weekend is lousy (not likely in NM) so I can do the aforementioned wrenching and not be tempted to ride. Then, the weekend after (BTW, the start of my "Spring Break"), I gotta consider doing: 1. "Dr. Greg's Shakedown Cruise II" That's right: the same route as "deer strike" of December 6, 2008. Almost 3 months to the day. We'll see. It's 540 miles. 2. A multi-day trip through the Southwest (?) --Doc | ||
| Xbimmer |
Great pics Doc, glad to see you're well recovered!  How are you liking the Sync/616 combo you're running there? | ||
| Cyclonedon |
great pics doc, keep them coming! I always enjoy reading about your rides! | ||
| Mnrider |
Those Antelope are fast-harder to hit. | ||
| Froggy |
Looks fun, let me join you next time!  | ||
| Froggy |
Oh yea since your going to be playing musical headers, here is a post in the wanted section looking for one: http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/21/ 438984.html?1235839768 | ||
| Geezer |
doc, i like reading of your adventures, i see you were in my neighborhood, carrizozo is about 45 miles north of la luz where i live. i also ride an 06 barricade orange uly #490. glad to see you are up and riding again. | ||
| Hooper |
Awesome, Doc...one of these days I'll post my pictures of a jaunt through Maryland and Virginia...you won't believe how green and tree-filled they are (in certain months)! Quick hijack (Geezer and others): what part of the VIN is my Uly's "number"? I got my '06 in July 2006, so I'm curious to know how "old" it is. Random snowstorm in the DC area tonight...just got my Uly back from its 12,000 mile service and a new front sync to go with my D616 rear. Getting rid of the FRONT D616 has been fantastic - no more shimmying on the highway. I took a short, muddy, country lane, and the Sync did fine. Still love the rear D616, though. Doc, looking forward to hearing your impressions of the alternating tire setup. Happy Sunday... | ||
| Dr_greg |
So far so good. I guess I'm not quite fully recovered, since I've not yet really hauled ass (can we say that?) through the corners like I used to (for an old geezer, at least). But, at say a slightly more moderate pace they seem fine. The front Sync is worn a bit, while the rear D616 is new (or was when I got the bike). It does seem that the front Sync "slithers" a little more on tar snakes than I recall from other tires (no worries; just look ahead and charge on through). I had a new rear Sync thrown in as part of my "deal" so when the D616 is gone I'll mount it. The dilemma will then be the front: another Sync? That's logical, but that will "lock" me into another rear Sync (figure 2 rears to 1 front, right?) My most recent Uly tires were Michelin Pilot Road 2s; those worked well on tarmac and the rear lasted an honest 10K miles! Woo-hoo! And for decent hardpack 2-track (the only thing poor old 5'-9" me is going to tackle on the Uly) they're fine. And...I have a new rear PR2 as well...decisions, decisions! However, my FAVORITE tires on the Uly are the Distanzias...got some tread for dirt and that SM compound lets you WAIL on the tarmac twisties. Dropped a SM bike once...side cases and all. So, to answer your initial question: so far so good. I get rather talkative since it's SO GOOD TO BE RIDING AGAIN!!!   | ||
| Dr_greg |
Whew! I'm glad someone does. I'm a little paranoid about taking up too much space here. --Doc | ||
| Dr_greg |
Hey, that's a bit of a sore point right now. Our department just lost a young faculty member (in my area of research, and now there's a hiring freeze) because his wife preferred "green" to "brown"...he's now at the University of Delaware. Humph. --Doc | ||
| Cyclonedon |
Doc, if my choices are looking at the pictures you take and writing about or all the political crap that is here on this motorcycle board, I would much rather follow your threads any day! Keep riding and the pictures coming! I also have a 2006 XB12X Ulysses (Black) but it only has a little over 24,000 miles on it. We don't have the weather to ride as much as you do. | ||
| Dr_greg |
Holy cow! Looking on the map I see "La Luz"...you are in an awesome area! The road from Alamagordo through Cloudcroft is amazing. Tell you what: I'm thinking of a long ride next weekend (injuries permitting). I was gonna do the loop from ABQ to TorC, then Silver City, back on 180 (old "deer strike" route). HOWEVER...I could ride to Carrizozo (for the 3rd straight weekend :-) then head S to Tularosa, maybe hook up with you, then back through "Ria Dosa" and whatever... Just let me know. Next weekend is a BIG DEAL for me...be cool to hook up w/another BadWeBber!! --Doc | ||
| Hooper |
Alamagordo?!?!?!? Sounds dangerous! | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Love the pictures. I miss that part of the country. Growing up, my family used to spend two weeks a year over the summer about 20 miles from Santa Fe. I really miss it. It's one of the places I would live to live. | ||
| Dr_greg |
It IS! You all best stay away... --Doc | ||
| Dr_greg |
Indeed. When I was finishing my schooling (circa 1976) my two primary job opportunities were: 1. Michigan Tech (UP: 200 inches of snow a year) 2. University of New Mexico (2 inches of snow a year) For this native SoCal guy, the choice was pretty simple. ...and Mrs. Greg agreed! (the important part) --Doc | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
It's hard to explain for folks who have never seen it. The pictures don't do it justice. At all. It's just a beautiful place | ||
| Crusty |
Alamagordo?!?!?!? Sounds dangerous! Why? Is this some sort of a test? | ||
| Xbimmer |
Test? Well, sort of:  (Message edited by xbimmer on March 02, 2009) | ||
| Crusty |
I bet someone got a real bang out of that! You might say it's da bomb! (Message edited by Crusty on March 02, 2009) | ||
| Fromroswell |
Dr greg, if you decide to ride down south let me know I live in roswell and ride a much faster 06 and would love to ride with you guys, also own a campground if you want to make it an overnighter. pm me for my contact info. | ||
| Geezer |
fromroswell' dr greg the weather down here is forcast to be vary windy 20+ blowing sand not a good weekend but lets do it soon | ||
| Fromroswell |
Sound good, lets see how it goes for next weekend? Let me know what you guys think. |
