NinjaDoc

2 hours ago, Tonik said:

Based on the recommendation of an OR member that isn't a dumbass (amazingly there really is one), I just ordered some 'Bike Bright'. He uses it for just this purpose and swears by it.

I like bike bright, always used it on the shiny parts, was a little hesitant to use on the black engine components due to urban myth about it causing some fading , have any experience in use on painted or powder coated areas? 

Following, I have few bits  baked in to the naked engine parts from the “wetacious” gap trip. Can’t seem to get it off. D

Punky I think I still have your number,  will try to text you next time I /we are out. Good rides still happen here and there. I think you will be kept entertained in most clean roads. But haven’t rode with you in a looong time, Don’t know with that new beast whtr your “goals for satisfaction” has gone up considerably more? 

Also durk my man right here I think is perfect fit for you, he is like a friendlier happier version of old school Mach R riders you can never go wrong with him. 

Now regarding msta rode with them 5 yrs ago while in Michigan, was an okay evening fun relaxing ride not exhilarating. Problem might be the crappy atrocious horrendous horrible boring straight roads in crap hole Michigan. But considering the overall set up of msta rides, they are well structured and organized and will be more akin to the bmw group you went with. Again, don’t take my word for this. This is based on my experience from half a decade ago in a boring state. 

19 hours ago, max power said:

Stopped at the pony to look at IXS jackets to match the cheap ixs pants I bough a few weeks ago.  Ended up with a 3 season textile jacket ($79), 2 sets of nice ixs rain gear ($23/ea) and a new Nolan N104 Absolute Helmet ($69) for da wife for a a touch over $200!

Max which IXS  jacket you bought? 

12 hours ago, SpecialEd said:

Ninja, WTF kinda food is that on the white plate? The photo is cool, but . . .

Just chicken and fries  

@Tonik @tall_tracy found the little gem. Price little higher for the quality of food. But ambience makes up for it. Very nice destination ride. May be can take the central Ohio folks to explore the north east roads and end here as a short 2 up friendly group ride. 

On 7/3/2019 at 11:39 AM, Pauly said:

315 miles on the Yamaha & 300 miles on the Voyager, Saturday & Sunday.

810 miles on the Voyager Monday to right meow. I just walked in the door from a service trip to Harrisburg, PA. Got a little wet last night, but hotel'd up in Somerset before the real shit hit the fan. Finished the last stretch this morning. 

I am absolutely infatuated with the Voyager. I was contemplating swapping the FZ6 for a FJR, but that is completely out the window as of this moment. What a fantastic motorcycle. I am not even slightly sore or road fatigued. I am tired from the lack of sleep that hotel hopping does to me, but none of that lies with the bike. I just can't sleep when I travel unless I self-medicate. 

The saddle could be better, but it is far from terrible. I can go a whole tank without stopping, no problem. It just could be a little firmer. I can feel the pan in my upper thighs after about 100 miles, or so. If I switch leg positions I can deal with it, but I would also like a bit of lumbar support. That will be the only major change I do to it that I can see. Suspension is what it is. I was 2-up, ripping up and down OH-800, on Sunday and it did very well. 

So, many thanks to @Tonik for the smashing deal on a mile chewing maniac of a bike. I promise to take good care of her. (I even bought a mitt and chamois to keep in the saddlebag. I washed it twice this week, already.)

I can’t even imagine how good the wing is when the dude who rode this bike says the wing is 20x better than this wonderful bike. 👍

That explains, Was wondering why the weather looked crappy for next week,   

watching thread for some great info, waiting for  @Bubba to drop bombs in here 

Beautiful machine. 👍

Glad you doing okay, you know what they gear and bike easy to replace, but underwear is much more easier 👍 

how about some good examples of water proof pants and jackets? any suggestions 

need some modifications for 2020 gap trip  

🤣 path to boxer is laden with lowballing ball buster. It’s the engine I am referring to 

😡 summer, peak riding season they said. 

Delayed gap trip summary since i never got time to sit down at a desk top to type out this big wall of crappy text : 

Looking back, even though it was a slightly less exciting trip but a very worthy fun trip. Almost the last few days before the start i was literally ready to abandon the plan and not go. Thought of staying away from the young one was difficult, I bet most of the guys here are currently a "new dad" or been a "that new dad" at one time. I decided to take it one day at a time and set off and every day of riding was fun and exciting. By evening i would be filled with happiness of escaping without "an oh shit" moment, ton of adrenaline and endorphins and to cap it off little bit guilt of staying away from family and missing them the most. Glad at least to have done at least 3 days, and by friday morning i couldnt stay away any longer and  decided to just do one whole straight trip back home. It was a real bad idea, riding almost 6 hrs out of 12 though heavy downpour. The more i got wet the more i was determined to just finish this crap in one day and not let mother nature beat me. And hence not stops or taking a break etc , just gas up and just kept going and got home late night. 

few positive learning points i take away 

i think the max i can only do is a 2 max 3 day trip away from home as of now. I am thinking by next year or two,  once he is more grown up i will be more than willing to get the heck out of house and stay away longer as every one says  

i really need to go out and hang out with other people more, as i was sitting down with the gang to eat i realized this is the first time in many years i am eating out with others other than my immediate family. As in i even try to avoid work related friends social group dinner etc. Which explains my awkwardness and lack of understanding proper etiquette it takes me quite a while before realizing whats the right thing to say and do haha At this point i would like to thank the gang of misfits @Pauly @Skinny guy @Blitz and @tonik for letting me tag along and tolerating my ambivalent decision making and poor social company lol The whole group had nothing in common if you ask me other than love for motorcycling. But it worked out well with no one shooting anybody despite all these days together

I finally got to do the OR gap hang out and infamous camp fire. I was always afraid of that part being the part introvert guy and being among big crowd of people. But it turned out to be fun and easy going, esp since i was well camouflaged int he dark lol It was fun just to sit there and hear stories and do nothing for one night.  I guess @max power and @2talltim deserves some praise for taking up the reigns and making this trip happen this year from a shambles of confusion. 

Extra appreciation points for @Tonik for taking all the effort to plan and haul us around all these days. This was the first ever bike trip, or even just any ride where i was going out without any idea of route or   of the iteniery etc. And for once it was really refreshing, no anxiety or needing to remember anything and no time crunch to make it happen, zero stress, well rested and good riding. And all day just following a great pace, and not having to lead or watch out for stuff etc makes it literally only half as tiring as leading a group. So thx again my man. My only advise for you to at least one day in the middle of the trip to take it easy and let some one else haul the train while you get to relax by just following the tail lights. But then again i guess you love this job too much. 

Lastly,  before starting the trip i had made up my mind to list the bike after this trip and call it quits again as i was prolly not going to  enjoy these like i used to,  but it ends up being awesome despite the shitty weather. This thing is so dayum fun and addictive i dont think i can ever quit. Need to slow down 2 more notches and take up more exploration than express mail delivery. I guess you guys might keep seeing the skinny brown guy more and more at least this year. 

 the age old saying, dont ride for the camera in the gap is true. The day i returned from fontana through gap it was still pretty wet, but when i saw them photo peeps just couldnt help bu try to pose a little bit until i almost low sided and lot of blessing fortunately saved it lol after that all the way home for 12 hrs the bike never saw more than 5 degree lean    The tires were not at all suitable for this trip as well, thats topic for another thread. 

obligatory gap trip signature photo, wish it was dry and clean. Wanted a really flashy picture with flashy gear and clean helmet and stuff to keep aside so my little man can be some what proud of it i suppose 20 years from now. dont know, at that time his friends will be like "what kind of mode of transportation is that thing? " 

Any suggestions for small popmom  place to grab a bit in seo east of 77 and south of 70 

OR quintessential muskiness 

Already cleaned the rain mud goop of crappy weather ,but dirty again today from bugs of great weather. 

What a beautiful day to ride, hope some of you get to get out. 

29 minutes ago, B-Mac said:

Your left foot is pointed outward. Just saying.🐄

I have same trouble as well on weird motorcycles. The Tracer I have no place to lock in the knee on the counter side. 

Where’s everybody at?

Even though it rained half the day the last half was worth it, after two days of awesome ride I feel content. Couple of slips here and there in rain but overall risk vs benefit am on the winning side now. Half my mind is telling me to just go home and half my brain is feeling like there is more fun around the corner  but the whole heart is already missing home and my little guy. Gonna sleep on it and decide in AM to just take 16 north or head south. 

Yesterday was perfect day, and I think I sealed the deal with weather gods for today when I washed the bike last night lol 😂 

I am not coming,  I am already going 😆