smccrory

Far different levels of effort, and most crime is opportunistic. i.e. If someone wants in your house, they'll get in, so why do you own door locks? I may stand corrected on criminal negligence and don't have time to look up the cases, but I believe you'd still be vulnerable to civil (aka financial) liability if a victim's family convinced a court you put them at risk by not securing a gun. Maybe more likely in California than Ohio, but still...

I do, but with the gun in a small holster to protect the trigger during my draw from the safe. It's quick enough for me while balancing my safety concerns. I also prefer longer-pull actions over something like a Glock trigger. What about her friends? Even the ones who drop by when they're old enough to drive? Mine is 18 and believe me, friends will happen. But even before then, what about theft? If your house is robbed of your guns and they cause injury or death, you very well may be held civilly liable or even criminally negligent for not securing your guns. How would you feel about your speed-to-draw then?

Here's my list in case it's helpful. I never bring everything, but I use it as a checklist to see what I do want to pack: Campsite items: Tent and tarp (2-person for just me, 3-person if two-up) Sleeping bag (and sheet if warm) Sleeping pad Alite Monarch folding chair Cooking items: For short trips or where civilized food is available, just: Water / hydration pack Energy bars, trail mix, fresh fruit Cup, spork and napkins Flask, filled (pre-mixed Old Fashions, thank you) For longer trips, add: Stove (dual-fuel; white gas or unleaded) Coffee (Starbuck instant packs are nice) Cooking pot Plate, bowl, cup and plastic silverware Folding cooler (for daily shopping trip) Cutting board (the knife is in my pocket) Cooking supplies (spices, oil, utensils) Cleaning supplies (soap, sponge) Collapsible water jug Recipes/menu plan for x days (ideas for those shopping trips) Personal items: Clothes for x days (re-use, wash-and-wear, less is better): Pants, socks, underwear, belt, shirts Riding gear: armored jacket, gloves, balaclava, pants, long-johns and boots Vitamins and meds Shoes for walking and/or hiking Flashlight and batteries Cell phone, ear buds, camera, mounts and chargers Extra cash Hat Spare glasses Pen, paper and business cards Travel kit (toothbrush, comb, razor, etc.) Toilet paper and wet wipes Small camp towel Swimming suit & towel Bug spray Sunscreen Normal pocket stuff (wallet with extra cash, keys, knife, etc.) Motorcycle items: Full tank of fuel, tire check, fluids check, chain lubed, maintenance up to date Map(s) in a handy location Tools, tire repair and first aid kits (always on board, but I'll list them anyway) Jumper adapter cable Air compressor, especially if letting out air for dirt riding

Ditto to what Pokey said. I just need to replenish my tent and I'll be up for motocamping again in the spring.

Bummer! Hope it's something simple.

That's the exact model I have. Works great for me. By the way the reason why Lithiums are probably better for these is because they hold standing charges far better than nicads or even carbon batteries.

Because RPG range practice is expensive, duh! :-)

No problems with my 4-digit model. It opens by battery every time and I've had it for over a year. Be sure to use the best batteries you can afford. I think I put lithiums in mine.

You beat me to it, and I'm sure he'll school us all. In the meanwhile, I can tell you that I've been one of those people awakened at 3am from violent shouting and gunfire outside a ground-floor inner-east-side slumlord apartment window. I rolled to the floor even before I woke up and covered a loaded, revolver with my right hand. Adrenaline pumping, seeing flashing red lights both inside and outside my eyeballs, not knowing whether the sound was coming from perps or cops or who else, I did manage to quickly sort out enough of what was going on, stayed low and stayed as silent as a rabbit until things were diffused. I didn't run out to save anyone, but I also didn't make the problem worse. From that point I've never regretted owning a gun and I grew to trust my instincts and self-control. As such, I don't have a problem keeping a loaded pistol in a secure and quickly-assessable location. Anyway, Ben wanted product recommendations.

Hmm, I have a much bigger TV in front of MY couch... ;-P

Note that if you have an Android phone, you might be able to replace the battery for really cheap. It's a little tougher with an Apple phone, but is also doable if you're handy with small screwdrivers or take it to a "phone doctor" place in town.

I charge my phone on the bike, but I also take a portable charger with me on weekend camping trips. I have an "Ion 10" from Octopod (a buddy and fellow motorcyclist owns the Hilliard-based company) and it'll charge my iPhone 6 a couple times over, which is all I need between access to AC. It'll fit easily into a pocket and keep your phone charged through a long day of riding.

I keep hearing fabulous things about the Russell Day Long but I just can't bring myself to destroy the lines of my V-Strom with a saddle seat. Vanity, I know. So, I'll likely go with a Corbin in the Spring. My only worry is about its hardness - I've had great luck with a softer Mustang on a cruiser - but just about everyone I know who's bought a Corbin says they're like a good pair of boots or work shoes - you need to break them in to take on your butt's shape before they're ideally supportive. I may also look at the Saddleman Adventure Track for, um, undercarriage airflow. FYI another option is a Seat Concepts foam and cover. I put one on my CRF230L and it doubled the number of miles I can ride. Looks fantastic too, and was very reasonably priced.

That's a really good question and I think it depends on a bunch of stuff, including your seat, peg options, personal health and so on. Here are my 2 cents, having been thrown out of the nest several times last year. Early last spring I went from 3-4 hour rides/day with breaks, to an 8-hour group ride across some slab but mostly twisty biways into WV (thank you again Pokey!). I was in full gear on a stock V-Strom 650 seat, and the group was kind enough to take short breaks every 90 minutes. I was in marginal shape and suffered (still do) from a bad neck and lower back, so the day was rough at times, but I hung in there and made it work. I was a wet noodle when we arrived and made full use of stretching, ibuprofin and whiskey to ease the pain :-P. That night, I got some excellent advice. Stand on the pegs from time to time if your bike allows it. Be in decent shape and stretch before, during and after a ride. Ibuprofin helps a little. Flapping your arms helps to avoid "cricks in the neck and shoulders". Keep shifting positions during the ride to avoid over-stressing any one group of muscles or joints. Stay hydrated and fueled with food to avoid cramps. The next 8-hour day went much easier because I took their advice, plus I had worked out "riding muscles" the day before, and the following 8-hour ride back was even more doable for the same reasons, and a couple long rides later in the season were similar, though I'm pretty sure I'll upgrade the stock seat before spring, probably with a Corbin. Anyway, 10 hours is pretty long for me, even in the car. I did a 12-hour car trip in icy snow from Columbus to DC two years ago and it sucked a lot, but I got it done. I imagine it would be similar to a 10-hour day on interesting roads on a motorcycle, and as such, I'd personally probably break the trip up just to keep the enjoyment level up and the risk level down.

Why? Isn't the fun of a Grom self-obvious?

I hope Honda does it. Their dirt bikes are solid, so I'd expect their ADV to be compelling. And Yamaha's FJ-09 is interesting. Lots of great competition in the ADV style space for $8-13k, or $16k if you stretch way up to a Beemer or KTM. I love my DL650 but if I was shopping, this would be a fun time.

Fair points. I guess I was raised by a couple teachers, so I default to the "more instruction is better than less" camp. Plus I see how good folks can be imprisoned by not being prepared for the event and the aftermath. I don't want to be one of them, nor do I want one of my CHL friends to jail up either.

I'm sure he or she was, but that's not what I'm saying. Chain stores get their dogs from massive breeder farms in Missouri, Michigan, Illinois and Ohio, and the conditions at those breeders would quite frankly sicken you. Think "just a shade or two better than an SPCA commercial." They spend so little on puppy care because even at $500-1500, the profits are thin at best, which is also why the puppy mills are so huge - they make it up in volume. Until recently, Petland corporate did not even require buyers to register their dog's chips in case they're lost, or to spay/neuter their animal. I myself rescued an Old English Sheepdog a few years ago that hadn't been registered and I had to take 3 days off from work to track down the owner. Had I given up, that dog probably would have been destroyed. And of course non-neutered pets make more pets which make more pets, all whom need homes, and if not, they're destroyed or are eaten by predators or starve or are run over or become wild and aggressive. When folks buy animals at pet stores, no matter how well-meaning and often with great outcomes, that slot is closed up to a rescue, guaranteeing another destroyed dog. The action also sustains demand on the pet stores to supply market demand, thus perpetuating the cycle. I'm not saying that anyone who buys a pet at a store is bad, or that those animals are bad, but that it fails to solve the abandoned animal problem. Having rescued several over the years, I know they're no less worthy of life than a pure-bred, store-bought animal, and it breaks my heart to hear what my rescue friends have to deal with.

Thank you thank you thank you thank you. Sorry NRA and the Ohio legislature, it was stupid, stupid, stupid to reduce the training requirements. I sure hope no citizen is left legally vulnerable due to an aftermath, based on info cut from the curriculum of lesser classes. Looking forward to more post-CHL training in the spring!

Alas it's not a place to pick up milfs, sorry bro.

Bubba you are spot on, and kudos to you for trying to do something about it, but yea, pets have very little legal standing in Ohio, so a lot of times all we have is education, naming and shaming left to help those animals, and organizations like the SPCA and rescue groups to re-home neglected animals. Truly the measure of a man is in how he treats animals. Get that loud and clear Ringokid?

I'm on mobile Tapatalk most of the time now, which I don't think links into the chat. Rarely do I have time for real-time chat anyway.

What I'm trying to say is that it sounds like the dog is now happy and that hopefully you're fulfilling your ethical obligation to that animal. Hopefully it's not penned up 23 hours a day.

It's beyond that. Stores and breeders are one thing (PLEASE don't ever buy a bred pet from a store, and PLEASE always consider a rescue first), but that's not the real reason RESCUES charge a fee. It's to make sure new owners are serious and not just trying to turn the animals for profit to fighting, breeding and experimentation markets. It's to pay for medical expenses for that animal as well as others with more serious injuries and maladies that are treated because it's the right thing to do even if the shelter can never pay for those procedures from just adoption fees. It's to pay for spaying/neutering of that animal and often 1-2 others to make at least some dent in the numbers of discarded pets. It's to help defray the costs of flyers, adoption web listings, fuel, heat, electricity and so many more expenses incurred just in operating a shelter. I have a good friend who operates a shelter in Columbus and others who foster dogs out of the kindness of their hearts. You would not believe what they have to see every week - the tragedy of human carelessness and pettiness and immaturity on these animals who are left outside in in lament weather, malnourished, unexercised, diseased and/or rarely experience the pack/family life a pack animal deserves.

Sexy bike, excellent reputation.