swingset

Spray your bike off when you get home if you ride a garage queen. Sure beats sitting there looking at in the garage, paying insurance on it, and missing riding through days like today. I don't even worry about it myself. If it's real cold the salt doesn't affect it, when it's warm enough to wash it I wash it. No corrosion on my bike, not even the fasteners....not that it matters, my bikes are ugly to start with.

Did about 120 miles of backroads today. A few layers and I was very comfortable, even my hands stayed comfy without the grips turned on. There's some MEGA cinder collections in the corners out there...and potholes something fierce, but still a good ride.

I'll be out.

I can't keep the rear plate on my dual sport...I've lost it 3 times. Last time it took a flight, an OHP asked me in a gas station if my bike was plated. I said yeah, looked back and figured out why he asked me....no plate. I told him I left that day with one on the back. He was nice enough not to ticket me, but warned me most of his coworkers would.

I seldom wash my bike, it's lost riding time.

Don't forget the extra $1500 for the leaky final drive, and the $10k in Touratech shit you have to bolt onto it. It's the law. hehe. They're cool bikes tho. Did you see the new Yamaha Super Tenere? Might give the GS a run for its money, and it's likely coming to the states.

White will attract bugs & grime, and will require more care. Looks great, but gets nasty quicker. I don't think there's a huge difference in quality amongst the brands you listed - all are mid-pack jackets and will probably perform as good as one another for wear and in an accident. I have some Fieldsheer stuff and have owned A-star and some shift-offroad. It's all about as good as each other. Look hard at the stitching, the size and quality of it, and how exposed it is. That's the tale of the tape with leather. Even in the same brand two different jackets can be two very different qualities. Don't forget pants too....if you've had to endure the road-rash scrub in the ER, you'll cover it all up!

I don't go, but only because I ride a Vstrom....you wouldn't take your ugly wife to the strip club would ya? No, didn't think so.

I didn't get emotionally involved in LWD or any of the subsequent adventures. It was entertainment, two guys who are NOT world travelers making a TV show about traveling the world. So, whatever they encountered as relative new adventure riders was just for me fun to watch. I didn't really judge their decisions or riding partners or consider their few complaints to be incessant whining. They rode it, and I watched it, and enjoyed all of them for what they are - a rare TV event about the kind of riding I enjoy.

I didn't mention mounting because along the way all the different models had a slightly different method. My Nuvi has a top/bottom slot, the TT720 is a sliding gizmo that sucks...I replaced it with a Ram Cradle, and luckily there are alternatives for almost any model if you find the OEM mount lacking...and none I've seen are really appropriate for a motorcycle anyway.

Ghost Rider is a pussy.

I have a few GPS units, I primarily use a TomTom720 (same specs as a Rider, only not moto-specific). I don't care about the waterproofness...$.10 plastic baggie and a zip tie fixes that on the occasions it rains. I also have a Nuvi 6xx series, and a Garmin 60Cx, that I use for either bike or car travel. IMHO, here's the pro's cons of the two brands, at least for street travel (TomTom doesn't have anything for offroad use really) TomTom Pro's: Better interface, better routing, more aftermarket stuff you can do to it (modding, apps, etc), cheaper, more features than similar Garmins. Cons: Screens aren't as bright, customer service isn't quite as good. Garmin Pro's: The standard, everyone seems to use them. Great customer service, bright screens, reliable units, lots of warez options if you don't like paying for maps (this means you will burn in hell). Cons: More expensive, clunkier interface for some options, harder to mod or change features, routing isn't as customizable or as intuitive on the fly. That's my tooth hence, anyway.

I learned a loophole to get out of the fee (from my helpful DMV worker, a girl I went to school with). She said just ditch your plate and apply for a new one with your title in hand (not your registration), and you get out of the fee. They're not supposed to tell ya that, btw, but I did it and it works.

Some of my family were giving me grief at Christmas a couple years ago when I bought my bike, "It's dangerous don't get killed on it" stuff. I said "How do you know I'm not suicidal"? They didn't think it was funny, but nobody talked about bikes after that. Eh, gives Gladys Kravitz something to focus on, while I enjoy myself.

If you like LWD-LWR, definitely check out Charley Boorman's other two projects...."Race To Dakar", where he attempts to race in the Lisbon-Dakar rally (my favorite of all), and "By Any Means" where he travels around the world by whatever means he can (bike, boat, camel, you name it). Both are excellent.....torrents out there for both.

I got back into bikes long after my need for speed had abated...pretty much just wanted to explore and go everywhere, whether it was on or offroad. So, adventure & dual sport bikes just suited me...best tool for the job. I tried out a few, have owned several in the last few years but I'm very happy with my current rides, there's no kind of riding I can't do. I can sport-tour, cruise, hit the twisties, travel, go dirt roads, fire trails, single track, you name it. With a limited budget, I have my needs well taken care of.

Yup, sounds incredibly simple but almost everywhere you go there's a driveway slope or grade that makes this simple with even a short ramp. I do it whenever I load a big bike in my truck....sure helps when you're by yourself.

Yup, been since issue #1. Great folks that publish it, btw.

If you're trail riding, and not trying Nitro-Circus shit, you're probably safer than riding on track day. When you wreck on the dirt, your speeds are low, the dirt is softer than asphalt, and generally it's just you falling over and not an impact with someone else. If you have good gear, and are riding even remotely within your limits, it's pretty hard to kill yourself. I feel MUCH safer on the trail than at high speed on a track.

Post 121 Psycho1 posted a tag of the Annie Oakley gravestone after nabbing the covered bridge on post 115. Post 127 dustinsn3485 got the Annie Oakley cemetary tag, and simultaneously posted the next one of Hussey's restaurant. Seems right to me.

I'm like that on the beastiality porn sites....post a donkey and I know who's bangin it.

Saw two bikes on 161 during the commute today...one was a Stelvio and the other was a Wing. Nice to see some guys giving winter and salted roads the finger. Tomorrow I'm riding.

Good point, I ride all year and it can be a nasty surprise finding the deep ledge of a pothole.

If it's up to the quality of the rest of Icon gear, it's insanely overpriced. For the same $$, you could have an Arai XD, or get an Airoh S4 from Europe that's twice the lid for 1/2 the dough. But, it looks snazzy...if that's yer thing.