| Author | Message | ||
     Jphish |
Well...I'm back. 57 days & 12,857 mi. Wont bore you will all the tales of adventure or woe - just a few general observations and perhaps helpful hints for long distance winter condition spring touring. WEATHER: make sure you plan for the best & the worst...you'll undoubtedly have bouts of both. We had probably some of the weirdest spring conditions recorded in recent history. Serious wind, torrential rains, tornados, extreme temp swings (32* @ 6AM & 98* by 2PM in Big bend nat'l Park - on same day!) cold, heat, etc. RIDING GEAR: (refer back to weather) Make sure its up to the task. In an effort to reduce the already significant load, left the rain gear behind & purchased a set of FirstGear TPG togs prior to departure. Good choice - never got wet inside, except when I left one of the vents open. Waterproof foot wear equally important. I wear Danner gore-tex Acadia's (doubles as rugged hiking boot as well) worked great - but any GOOD waterproof boot will do. You cannot survive cold, wet feet in 35-40* weather for very long. Ditto on the gloves. I had air gloves & *waterproof winter gloves (*which unfortunatly, were not) used both about 50/50. (101* in Texas, 27* in New Brunswick) I love cotton clothing - but it belongs home in the drawer for when you get back - took none on the trip - All synthetic. Better hot/cold modulation & drys quicker (as opposed to not at all) when wet...& retains thermal ability. Balaclava - a thin one is nice for added insulation - no modular helmet I have is completely windproof. Finally - @ 62 I've given up ANY vestiges of macho pretense & took a synergy heated vest. Saved my ass & any remnants of my battered body from further cold weather deterioration. Especially without a windshield. SPARE PARTS: Took belt, bearings, clutch cable, spare shifter & stock foot pegs. Also strap to close sidecase in event of latch failure. Needed none of em'. What I did need was spare windshield, turn signal and clutch master cyl. A 50 mph wind gust in Maine while parked, blew Uly over, narrowly missing the vital parts on my riding partners GS. Lesson here - always have kickstand pointing with wind direction - not against. Had a cache of parts left with wife, as well as those I took - but these were not among them. Other lesson - what might break maynot be within the parts inventory you have available. So for critical items, have a plan B. Master cyl & turn signal repaired with JB weld. Great stuff! - dont leave home without it. Rode without a windshield last 4K mi. TIRES: I spooned on a set of PR2s before departing - lasted entire trip with a few K still left on 'em. (thanks Dr Greg for suggestion) I'm favorably disposed to these tires for any long road trip that doesnt include lots of dirt or any mud. Though did fine on some dirt roaded camp grounds we stayed in. They handled the high speed tarmac admirably and sticky on the canyon roads as well. We did about half the trip on secondary roads and other half on interstates. Not sure they would be my choice for Dalton Hwy - but excellent for this kind of trip. At risk of causing an applied physics debate - I also tried 'Dynabeads' instead of wheel weights. I've gone from skeptic to believer. Had to use 1.5oz in front tire instead of recommended 1oz - but performed as promised. GENERAL IMPRESSIONS: I was in a quandry prior to departure as to Uly or Tiger making this trip. Both were ready to go. I stood in garage day before looking at both beasts side by side. Without all the excruciating detail of my convoluted logic - I obviously chose the Uly. She performed flawlessly...except for 1 hiccup in a most inconvenient place. Was tooling along on I-80/90 thru chicago going over bridge and all of sudden it went dead. No fire in either hole, no power & light cluster came on. Pulled over as best I could (fortunatly 9AM on weekend & traffic relatively light) - recycled key & kill switch - started right back up. I did not accidently hit killswitch or any other operator error involved - it just went Kaput. Not ever happened before or since. Just one of those unexplained phenomenon I guess. A bit over 27K miles on her now. Used a wee bit of oil on those extended 80-90 mph runs - mostly in states with the 75-80 posted limits of course. Only about 16oz in 5K miles - nothing to be concerned about. Cleaned the front rotor & changed out the pads (the 'gold' sold by American Sport Bike) started to pulse a bit by end of trip, but huge improvement from where I started. Runs fine on 89 octane @ higher altitudes or cold weather. No bearing or belt failures or any other issues...except wind induced tip over - but stuff happens. The Uly is a wonderful machine - she's a bit road weary & needs some maint (and a maybe a good washing?) Not that my experience will necessarily be your experience, but I would not hesitate to take her on another long jaunt anywhere. One of the reasons I chose her over Tiger was, after 2 years, I know most her quirks and can generally remedy all but the most catastrophic failures. The Tiger is still an unknown to me. DANGER: We only had about 5 cases total, where people were trying to kill us. Mostly younger folks on cell phones, one drunk driver / passenger in Quebec, (who rolled the car about 5 miles down the road) and a few "blue hairs" that (given the bottom of the steering wheel was obscuring their vision) probably should have a booster seat, or shouldnt be driving. One missed Randy the first time...but came back for him. Luckily missed again. (Accuracy seems to be impaired after 90 or so) We didnt generally ride after dark or before sunrise, so only had 2 deer, 1 racoon & a turkey that attempted to unseat us. Road conditions are highly variable across the country and worth paying attention to. For every 10 miles of road - about 8 of 'em are under construction - and LEOs fervently working the 45/55 construction zones where fines are doubled. Some places 10 over will get you a free ride in cop car. So be careful out there! SUMMATION: The trip was a great journey & experience. Wandered thru 32 States and reaquainted myself with our country we call USA. We are regionally, geographically & culturally distinct - so cant make simple generalizations about who thinks / believes what. It's more complicated than that. What I do know is it has wonderfull people with a few ass****s, just like Europe, SA, Australia, Russia & (fill in the blank_____) most other places. Because "where you stand sometimes depends on where you sit" I propose we abolish the 2 sides of the aisle and make congress sit alphabetically - like in class rooms - perhaps then the needless, counter productive polarization will diminish - and they can get on with the peoples business. In heading "back to the barn" we rediscovered the irony of Dorothy's immortal words - there's no place like home. While the rest of the country certainly has it's wonderful landscapes - the stretch on Hwy 12 from Naches to packwood Wa maybe the most varied & beautiful 60 miles of motorcycle road in the country. Basalt canyons to 14,500 ft Volcanos - only 100 mi from here. My riding partner spent his first 50 years of life in AK... and even he agrees. Anyway - thats all I got for now. In the weed choked meadows of my mind it's about all I can recall at the moment. Specific questions that might arise, relative to your specific interests, are welcomed. TTFN all, j | ||
| Mnrider |
Wow what a trip! Glad your home safe and Uly held up. | ||
| Nvr2old |
Great trip! I can understand your Uly puking in Chicago, it makes me sick too. | ||
| 4_pete_sake |
Any pictures to add my hungry imgination....???? Wonderful write up as is though.... Cheers-pete | ||
| Buellerxt |
Great report, Jphish! Thanks for taking the time. 12,900 miles and those Michelin's still have life left! Very cool. Much appreciated report and I'm glad you are back safe and sound. | ||
| Badrap |
Pics??? | ||
| Eryngium |
Yup, still jealous... | ||
| Idaho_buelly |
WOW! Great trip..  | ||
| Etennuly |
Good on you guys! I have plans..... | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
That's so great! I am copying and pasting this to a txt file for further notes  My 2008 stopped like you described when it had under 1000 miles on it. I cycled the kill switch without pulling in the clutch and it resumed running like nothing had happened. I complained to the dealer and they said "if it does it again, bring it in" It never did it again! Great to hear you got back safe and sound. | ||
| David_e |
How cool. Wish I could have joined you. I just love to ride. | ||
| Eulysses |
Reminds us we all made a good choice buying our Ulys. Sometimes reading the nigglies every time we open BWB our views skew. What you got for your next adventure? North? | ||
| Jphish |
Yep - we made choices that were right for us, thus the right choice. The Uly is a highly underrated machine. I don't get defensive about the Uly anymore - she is what she is, and others don't have to like the beast. However - my wife thinks among all my toys (which really IS just stuff) i have an unnatural relationship with this one. Cant account for it entirely but the uly must just speak to my latent hooligan side. No big trips planned for this summer - but when the monsoon season finally gives way to summer, I do plan a few week long excursions to somewhere. I'm a vagabond at heart, so tough for me to stay planted for too long. I'm also retired, which the lack of work responsibilities merely exacerbates an already serious wonderlust disposition. I could live on the road - just need a dry shed to work on the bike, a few select dead birds and rodents to tie some flies, get out of the rain a spell... and then be off again. (My very patient, understanding & Lovely wife doesnt necessarily share that "dream" however - that would better describe her nightmare) Which is very antithetical of my former life of being stationary, reliable, accountable, trustworthy, raising 2 daughters, working long hours etc...maybe latent rebellion - I dunno. I just know the uly fits me and is a great fellow traveler on whatever road I happen to be on. she's one mo-tatin' do all machine, with just a hint of unreliable independence - perhaps thats why i feel a kinship with her. It aint rational, I know, but what really is? Conversed with a fellow rider from Wales the other day - he lusted after & bought a 1050 Tiger last year to replace his Uly... is now looking for another Buell in the UK to replace the Tiger. I like my tiger - but the Uly is just a different animal - kinda like the odd looking stray mutt that wanders into the garage, and ends up part of the family. Anyway... One of these days I gotta change the fork oil. Really! Only 18K overdue. This summer for sure. TTFN, j | ||
| Bienhoabob |
I think I've gone blind. How about some paragraphs next time?  | ||
| Jphish |
Paragraphs ??? I used to get ROS proudly displayed on all my school papers.  | ||
| Buellerxt |
Very cool post, John. I understand, which is kind of scary! | ||
| Debueller |
John, Thanks for sharing here, John. That is very interesting what you said about HWY 12 and how much you appreciated it's beauty and diversity after more than 12,000 miles of travel. I guess after living and riding here all my life it is easy to take our local "playground" for granted. I"m glad you had a great trip with minimal mishaps. See ya' on the road sometime........ | ||
| Jphish |
Hey Bueller Debueller - That IS scarry...no one should think like me on purpose  Jerry - yeah, 12 is pretty fine road. We should get the group out for a ride if it ever stops raining here. I got some overdue maint to do on Uly - then she'll be ready to fall over again in some ditch.  Hows your 08 holding up ? j | ||
| Liv2 |
"then she'll be ready to fall over again in some ditch Hey I resemble that comment  | ||
| Debueller |
John, Darren, Tracy (on her new Versys!) and I will be going to Hell's Canyon next month for an advrider campout: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53 6523 There are stellar riding opportunities in that area. You guys might consider joining us. Hopefully there will not be any road closures that require any ditch crossings.  My '08 is doing great. 27,000 miles on her and about 5000 miles of trips planned for this summer. Nothing that compaires to your 12K mile adventure.  (Message edited by debueller on May 26, 2010) | ||
| Jphish |
Tracy got a Versys ? Great! Rode my friends last year - nice machine & pretty bullet proof. Oh...I dont know. Was reflecting on the 12+K trip & came to realize that I've had the most fun on my 2 week adventures. Longer aint necessarily better...but more frequent is. Man - that hells canyon trip looks like a hoot. I'd love to go, but got Granddaughter that week. Is it a yearly event ?? I'd put it on calendar for next year. Lets stay in touch pal. Hi to that delightful lady tracy. j | ||
| Pnw_uly |
John - Great write-up and good info all around. Everyone knows you never break the part that you carry spares for...  Agree we should set a date for the Puget Sounders to drive Highway 12. Paul | ||
| Jphish |
Hey Paul - Yeah. lets discuss next week. Be good to do a group ride when Jerry / Tracy get back from Hell's Canyon. j |
