A Good Ride

Ride to Lucindale

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:35:58 -0700

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Flowerdale

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:59:00 -0800

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On a ride to Flowerdale this afternoon. It's a perfect day for it, and King Parrot Road is very popular with bikes.

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Maldon

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:48:01 -0800

Went for a ride to Maldon this afternoon. From Daylesford I went up the Midland Highway to Castlemaine, and up to Maldon. On the way back I went through Newstead.

These roads are great; hardly any cars, landscape that varies between bush and open rolling plains, and mostly good quality road surface. What more could you need?

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Ride to Geelong via Meredith

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 19:49:55 -0800

My Location (Sunday, 14 February 2010 9:44:56 AM AET).

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An All-American Sportbike Goes Electric

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 01:29:51 -0800

via wired.com

All we need now is one that runs on a Hydrogen fuel cell instead of batteries.

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Wombat State Forest

Sun, 03 Jan 2010 02:04:07 -0800

I went for a ride through the Wombat State Forest today. The area had really heavy rainfall a couple of days ago, so the dirt roads were a bit damp and well-packed down. Still, the bike was bucking and tossing from side to side as I rode over the chunky rocks on the tracks. What a great bike is the 1200GS; really stable and confidence-inspiring. It felt like I was flying through it, but in fact it was only about 60 kph :-). Not too bad for someone who doesn't venture onto loose gravel very often though.

No photo today - I was too busy having fun to stop.

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First ride of the year

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:45:00 -0800

My Location (Saturday, 2 January 2010 4:40:48 PM AET).

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Trentham

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:42:27 -0800

Great village atmosphere. The food at the Cosmo hotel was good, until the hotel burned down. Perhaps a new owner will rebuild it one day.

My Location (Sunday, 22 November 2009 5:39:22 PM AET).

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Long Ride 2010 - the route from Melbourne

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 20:38:43 -0700

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Here's a little animated map showing the route the riders from Melbourne will be taking on Long Ride 2010.

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Night Vision Comes to Motorcycling

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:45:49 -0700

via wired.com

This is a prototype night vision system for motorcycles. It's still in the R&D phase, but it looks interesting. As the developer mentions, it's useful for when you're blinded by the headlights of an oncoming car. It might also be useful for spotting native animals intent on running into you. The final system would need to give the rider a wide angle of vision though, if they're going to take their eyes off the road a lot.

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Long Ride 2010

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:58:00 -0700

In May 2010 I'll be joining other riders from around Australia in a ride from Melbourne to Darwin to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA). Other riders will be joining from Adelaide, Perth, Townsville, Brisbane, and Sydney for a huge ride into Darwin. I decided to join the ride because it will combine my urge to ride across the continent with wanting to contribute to an important cause. I'll be posting live updates from the ride here, with photos and our location.

It would be great if you could make a contribution to benefit the PCFA on my fundraising page for Long Ride 2010.

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Wash day

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 00:00:44 -0700

My Location (Sunday, 11 October 2009 5:56:41 PM AET).

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Washed my bike today, and it is such a nice day I just had to go out and mash some insects into the windscreen again.

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Two extremes of motorcycling

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 21:47:59 -0700

I came across two interesting articles today, one at each end of the motorcycling spectrum. The first was an electric BMW concept, based on the C1 scooter. I saw one of the original C1s in the street the other day. I didn't think BMW scooters made it to Australia, but at least one did. Imagine riding around on a scooter with a rollbar, wearing a seatbelt and no helmet. No wonder several EU countries grappled with vehicle law exemptions.

The other article was to draw my attention to the 2010 line-up at Harley Davidson. Even though I love the technology and engineering of my BMW, there's something appealing about the simplicity and sound of a HD. Not much good for my aspiration to explore dirt roads though, I suspect.

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A few essential BMW 1200GS add-ons for off-tarmac rides

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 03:47:08 -0700

When I was ordering my 1200GS, I thought about whether or not to get the Adventure or the standard model. I went for the standard model, reasoning it was better suited to everyday riding, and that 98% of the time I wouldn't need the extra features of the Adventure (such as the 33l fuel tank, lower gear ratio in first, longer travel for the suspension, and metal frames for the panniers).

Two years later, my reasoning is still sound for the type of riding I have time for. Even so, most of the roads around where I live are dirt or gravel, so it makes sense to add a bit more protection to the standard GS, just in case. It was time to open the Touratech catalog, which contains way too many 1200GS add-ons for the continuing reasonable health of my credit card.

I started with an oil cooler guard. Apart from serving the purpose of deflecting a stone that might get thrown up, it looks good!

A similar stone could instead find its way to the headlight, which I'm told is an expensive item to replace. Touratech have a clear protector, but I reckoned that would get dirty fairly easily and reduce the effectiveness of the headlight at night. So I went for the steel mesh version. Sure, a small stone could still sneak through, but I think the mesh would deflect most of it.

Then there was the essential throttle potentiometer cover. I'm told that it's really easy to break the throttle potentiometer with your boot, and then it would be the end of that ride. So this cover screws on over the top and is designed to take the brunt of the impact.

I could keep going and going, but that's what I've done for now.

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Long Way Down

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 02:16:57 -0700

via lwdstore.com

I've been watching the LWD DVD again a bit lately. I love the shots of the bikes and all the gear. They don't do things in half measures. It's a bit of a fantasy world though, because the rest of us can't and don't go on trips with support convoys and fixers at the borders to make things easier. Maybe that's why I enjoy watching it, and I'm looking forward to the next instalment. My journeys (as will most of yours, perhaps?) will always be a bit simpler.

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Earplugs

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 01:31:33 -0700

Something I've been trying to get right with my riding gear is countering wind noise; it is deafening.

I tried switching helmets from a Shoei to a BMW System 5. That made it a little worse, if anything. Still, flip-tops are not known for their quietness, and the System 5 is possibly one of the quietest. I must say I like the convenience of the flip-top though.

I tried increasing the height of the 1200GS's stock screen, by adding a Touratech windscreen spoiler. That was a good improvement, as more wind goes over my head. It's a great design, and a nice addition to the bike. I can also easily remove the spoiler when I'm doing more off-road riding.

I used custom ear mold plugs for a couple of years. Eventually they hardened and lost their effectiveness, but they were good for some decent mileage.

After lots of research, I replaced them with a pair of Alpine MotoSafes. These are great earplugs as long as you're able to insert them properly and get a good seal. I only managed to get a good seal some of the time, and I'd be constantly stopping on the side of the road and trying to get a better fit. After a while I'd get tired of stopping and just keep riding, putting up with the noise.

Today I went back to basics and tried some silicon ear putty, of the type swimmers wear to keep water out of their ears. They are rated at 21db noise reduction, so they should be good for riding as well, but I didn't manage to get a seal against my ear. It looked easy in the instructions though.

I decided it was time for serious action, and dropped by the local chemist. These looked promising (the pink cone-looking things), and at a mere AUD$10 for 4 pairs, worth a try. I managed to get a good fit first time, which is a good sign, and with a promised 33db noise reduction, they seem to drop the wind noise quite a lot. I rode for a couple of hours, and they were just as comfortable at the end. I'll let you know if the experience changes after a day's riding.

Now I can hear the engine tone and not worry (worry less?) about what my riding is doing to my hearing. Seems like a good solution.

By the way, I have no stake in any of the products I mention in my musings.

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