Bubba

Welcome. You are in a great location for some back road thrashing! There aren't quite as many folks from Cinti on OR as there are from the C-bus area, but we've some great roads, especially across the river in KY. There's a couple of local Cinti-based forums that you should join to hook up with riders: Assfault Junkies <http://www.assfaultjunkies.com/> is pretty active with a lot of young riders and racers that hit the backwoods every weekend, and LocalRiders <http://www.localriders.com/> that's not as large a forum and less active but also a great place to watch for posted rides and routes. Shit-load less drama than AFJ, too. Hope we get to hook up for some twisted fun this summer! ADD: In addition to what 3.504 mentioned below, there's also a weekly 8-12 Saturday morning gathering, kind'a informal, at Fuel Coffee on Eastern Ave. This time of year, it's mostly cars, but once the weather changes, bikes start to show up. Anything from moto to vintage can be found, and with warmer temps, a group ride frequently takes off after the meet breaks up. Fuel typically has spring and a fall bike-only meets on some Sundays, and there's usually at least one or two Mods 'n' Rockers meet through the year as well where you can hang out with scooter trash. Of course, there's always the QS&L Bike nights at either Milford or Colerain, but not much riding goes on at those.

If you're looking for a set for your DL (I presume) there's set of brand new factory Suzuki hard bags with the racks and all the hardware on sale in the StromTrooper forum.

Ummm, Steve, I think that's what I just said....

I'm sure there are a ton of folks on OR that have both the skill and the willingness to help with a chore here and there. Problem I see is two fold: first, it's winter, and unless you got a heated garage, working on YOUR OWN bike ain't much fun; and second, the maintenance items you're talking about doing are prolly not quite simple enough to get done in an evenings time, especially if it's being done by an inexperienced guy who wants it to be a learning session. So you'd be asking to impose on people to use both their garage space, their tools, and several hours of their evening free-time for at least a couple of days. If you were a good bud and lived close by and were bringing beer, I'd say "Hell yeah, come on over and we'll get drunk and fuck up your bike!" I applaud your desire to learn, but I'd say wait until the air gets a bit warmer and then see what shakes down.

Zach: Congrats on wanting to pick up some mechanical skills. It's fun sometimes, but you'll find that most modern bikes are a royal PITA to work on. That being said, if you're willing to dedicate the time, you can save a buttload of money. As for tools, unless you're gonna be a mechanic by trade and use them for your job on a daily basis, I' stick to using tools from the big box stores--Sears, Lowes, etc. Craftsman, Kobalt, any of the mid-price tool sets will last you 10-40 years. I've collected mostly Craftsman and I've got sockets and ratchets that are older than my kids....and they're both married! Mac and Snap-On are REAL nice, and they're OVER-priced accordingly. I'd start with a set of combination wrenches (open/box end), 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" drive socket sets (get both 12 pt and 6 pt if you can afford it) with at least one ratchet and a breaker bar each. Several sizes of flat and Phillips-head screw drivers (Note: For the bike, you will also need several of the JIS type--Japanese Industrial Standard), a set of Allen wrenches (T-handles are nice), and an inexpensive multi-meter for electrical issues. I've got these plus much more, but the other stuff in the box doesn't get used very often. Buy the stuff in sets rather than by the piece and you'll save a butt-load of money. Tools often go on sale around Christmas. Once you have the "normal" sizes of metric fasteners, you can slowly add the weird stuff like the 16-18-22 mm odd sizes by the piece. Oh, and have fun. Once you start buying shit like that, it becomes an obsession....kind'a like women and shoes!!! EDIT/ADD: If you don't go crazy, you should be able to get a decent start on all of the above for around $500-$600 bucks. Go slow at first and you'll be able to do it within a budget.

Not sure what kind'a response you're looking for on this post, but given the state of the job market and most companies aversion to bad rep, I'd say that he's getting a damn fair shot if he gets to keep his job. Tell him next time...take it out beyond the parking lot gate. Hope it works out for him.

Karl: Sent a PM. Lemeno your address via PM and I'll mail you the check. Thx--Bubba

Seems like a very fair price. I'll take it at $50. I'm in Cinti, so I'll PM ya with details on when I can pick it up.

Wish I could make this so I could meet some OR.net people, but.... ....I'm gonna be in the middle of a two week FL vaca on the beach. Have a beer for me and I'll have a G&T with a squeeze of lime for y'all.

I don't get it....Am I showing my age?

C'mon, boys. I did it last fall on a WeeStrom with a group from LocalRiders here in Cinti. And I'm 62. Different groups rode down on Tues-Wed-Thur. Rode +/- 250 miles each day Thur-Fri-Sat, got stupid drunk Sat night (not real proud of that....just sort'a happened accidentally) and then hit the twisties on the way back. Didn't hit slab until London, KY. Even if you just form up in groups of 2 or 3 for the trip, it's a blast. Here's the link from last year's trip: 2012 (adventure starts about p6-7): http://www.localriders.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17006 Do eet!

If, as you state, you have had at least had some contact with this neighbor, I'd advise going to him/her right off the bat and bring it out in the open. I would certainly hope that most dog owners/neighbors would do the responsible thing and fix the situation. Worst case, the guy turns out to be a complete douche, and you're gonna have to try one of the fall-back options. Again, I would urge you to go with the 'mature'--and legal--route and simply call animal control. Please don't blame the dog; a poorly trained and controlled animal isn't to blame--it's a bad owner who needs his/her ass 'trained'....

Yup. Buddy's was a KZ650. Mine was a '73 Z1 900 that I'd done a complete strip down to the frame and redo. Not a restoration 'cause even back then OEM parts were hard to find and stupid expensive. Wish I still had that one...

Seems very coincidental that your specific unit was hit so quickly after acquiring several new bikes--your Honda and your Dad's new Strom. I suppose it could have been another renter that saw you going in and out, but I'd seriously suspect one of the caretakers/managers/office staff putting out 'hot tips' to some of their unsavory friends. Good luck with your situation--theives suck!!!

I was there in '93. Not a bad time if you don't actually want to do anything as far as motorcycling goes. It was a zoo back then and I doubt if it's gotten any better since. Spent a night in the city lockup 'appropriating' this from over Main Street. Remember, ATGATT all the time! Spend some time relaxing on the beach. Take a quiet ride around on some of the deserted rural back roads. ...and for Christ sake, try to fit in with the locals....

Same thing happened to me many years ago. State Farm insisted I accept aftermarket parts instead of OEM. Bottom line, I took the car to a very reputable shop that I had used before and talked to the owner. He said that he'd make sure that the parts would work, and when they weren't an exact match, he ran interference with my claims adjuster who eventually OK'd OEM parts. 'Course, this meant the job took another 10-14 days longer, but SF was comping me a rental car. Find a good body shop with a quality rep and have a heart-to-heart with the shop owner and let him know you want it to be indistinguishable from new.

PM sent.

Here's one that's close and prolly within yer talking price... http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/mcy/3580632553.html

BTD: I might be interested in the Cats and/or the RWs. 1) What's width on these? 2) You know I'm way south of you, so not economical to drive long time to pickup. Can you guess on shipping costs?

True that trail design is of great importance for sustainability, but truth is the soil in the Midwest just plain sucks for drainage. I've been involved in helping to build trails around here (Cincinnati/NKY) for years and no matter how well they're designed, our mucky clay is a problem after a rain and especially during our freeze-thaw cycles. The soils out west are much better at draining water quickly and thus, offer better traction and stand up better to year-round traffic. I've ridden MTB and MX in CO, NM and UT and it's a whole different game out there.

Should be able to lurk on CL and get yourself a decent hardtail for $300-400. Not gonna be a race mobile, but would allow an ample amount of trail goodness.

Yer on, dude! I don't get out to SE OH much 'cause it's easier and shorter for me to head south. I've got a 2+ hour drive just to get to the good stuff out there, but I know there's a bunch of roads that are beggin' to be ridden. I'll have my people get with your people.

If you like BC, stop in at Versailles SP on 50W. Definitely closer than BC and certainly as good, altho without the total mileage. Even closer to you is MOMBA @ Huffman Park. Very neat trail system and worth a visit. EDIT: Caesar Creek and East Fork are good trail systems, too.

Sorry our paths didn't cross today, dude. You missed a great ride on awesome roads. Maybe we can hook up again later in the spring. Hope you got out and enjoyed the weather anyway.

Well, I was right. God DID want me to ride today. Good weather, great roads, tolerable companions.... Dice, Zach (Bitani) and I met up at the AA Speedway and rode toward Mt Olivet on 915/10, then jogged onto 62/1504 and railed toward Cynthiana --what a great road that is. We ate lunch at Bianchi's and headed west on 356, ending up in Williamstown. Gassed up and rode more west on 36 and then hit up some of Dice's FAVORITE goat paths like Ford's Mill and 1942. Ran out'a time, so we jumped on 71/75N at Walton/Verona and blew north, scattering the cagers as we went. Thanks for the good time, guys. I ended up with just under 210 miles on the day, but Zach must be the big winner with at least another 75-85 more miles. It looks like it's gonna be 'hunker down time' for a few days. Stay warm!