I Get Gasgas

Here are the photos of us picking up Scott’s bike at a Compton shipping warehouse. Scott bought the bike at Kauai Harley Davidson in Lihue, Hawaii. The bike is no Harley, it’s a 450cc dirt bike made by a Spanish company called GasGas. The bike is designated as a Gasgas EC450FSR. GasGas is known for making trials bikes, but the company also makes motocross, supermotard, quads and enduro bikes. Scott saw the bike while on vacation and was intrigued. The bike has fuel injection, which is just being introduced by the Japanese on their dirt bikes.

Modern computer controlled fuel injection is one of the best things that has happened to the gasoline engine. Fuel injection makes engines run better and last longer. The Gasgas Company has been putting fuel injection on dirt bikes since at least 2003. GasGas has a “no battery” system that runs the fuel injection and saves weight, all pretty cool.

Scott made a deal and the Harley dealer put the bike in a Harley Davidson shipping crate, the crate was then shipped to Long Beach and trucked to a warehouse in Compton where we picked it up. The big Harley box got a lot of attention on the road. The trip to pick it up was quick, one day down and one day back, so we didn’t even uncrate it when we got back. We are going on an annual camping trip next weekend and I’ll ride the bike then, take some photos and let you know what I think.

Click on the photo to see the carnage.

LA, LA, LA

Finally some excitement. I'm heading to Los Angeles with my friend Scott. We're going to pick up a dirt bike he bought in Hawaii. Got to be a story there, right? It came into Long Beach in a shipping container. Can't ride the bikes down but I am so happy to be going somewhere. Adventure!

Photos and Adventure Story When I Get Back, Promise.

He Wanted an Airplane

By now you should be able to tell that I like odd and unusual vehicles. Here's an escapee from Air Force custody. We saw this vehicle waiting to light the afterburner in San Rafael. We’re on you six, Maverick!

ll

nnnnnBut He Also Wanted a Motorcycle.

All God's Children Got Less Troubles

Back on March 17th I wrote about how my motorcycle had developed a serious vibration problem. The vibration then caused an annoying noise that was coming from the passenger seat. Marie and Lee both noticed it and complained that the backrest and passenger footboards had a high frequency vibration. Well the problem was a broken motor mount. So I fixed the problem and all is well.

I also checked the cam chain tension pads and they are half way through their life span. I’ll check them again in about a year.

Marie and I took off for a short ride just to make sure the vibration was gone. We rode out to Sebastopol on Gravenstein Hwy, came back by Hwy 12 and down Hwy 101. It’s a short loop but we had fun. We stopped in a little tea shop called "Infusions" and bought some loose tea for the homestead.

The day was cool but felt good. It was threatening to rain and did rain a little but the rain was more of a misty rain and we didn’t get wet.ddd
dddd
Fixed the Garage Door as Well.

Yea, I got a Beef

I just today posted The Unknown Collector; well I’ve got a bone to pick with collectors. Collectors are not often enthusiasts. Enthusiasts help promote and share a passion for what they do. You don’t even need to own a motorcycle to be a motorcycle enthusiast. Enthusiasts would find no pleasure in having something so that someone else could not have it.

The Unknown Collector

Inside this storefront in Morro Bay is a major motorcycle collection. I was passing by when I saw it and at first thought it was a motorcycle shop but when I looked closer, I saw that the bikes were all collectables and in great shape. There is no sign that might indicate who the collector might be and when I asked at neighboring stores no one knew anything.

The bikes against the left wall are all Triumphs. The ones at the front and middle are Ducatti and MV Agusta bikes. The bikes are all lined up but there is no real attempt to display them. Sure does bring a lot of questions to mind.

It's Called a Gizmo

I saw this little electric bike/trike/car in Cayucos, California. I don't know if it is a one off or a vehicle manufactured by a company either with a sense of humor or without one. It only holds one person. The driver would be protected from the rain and wind . I don't think the thing has a heater but it does have a windshield wiper.

Lee vs. The Taco Wagon

My daughter Lee and I were riding north to Clearlake. As we passed through Middletown we saw a scooter dealer, and I have a soft spot for scooters, so we stopped. The place had Chinese scooters at very seductive prices. Forget about repairs or parts the price was too good. After all, the owner said these scooters were made by Honda in Chinese factories. Honda didn’t put the Honda name on them for a real good reason.

We stopped and Lee wanted to take a test drive. The owner said that would be no problem. Lee was ready to go, but I know that first time riders often freeze up and can’t seem to turn off the throttle. They will run full steam ahead until they crash into something like a parked car or a fence or worse, unable to stop or turn. Take for instance, my friend Blair when he was selling his Harley Sportster. Blair met the prospective buyer at a nearby 7-11. The guy then took Blair’s bike for a test ride right through the glass door at the front of the store. The prospective buyer then proclaimed that there was something wrong with Blair’s bike and decided then and there not to buy.

Lee had ridden a minibike and had ridden a scooter, with me on the backseat. So I thought if I really impressed upon her that when you first ride a scooter you have to turn off throttle to stop, she would do so. I told her several times, “Look, Lee, when you first ride you have to shut off the throttle people tend to freeze up and forget to turn off the gas.” I told her several times and showed her the hand movements required. I told her to go slow and only give it a little gas.

So the moment came she cracked open the throttle put her feet on the floorboards and away she went. About 5 yards later I saw a disaster about to happen, she put her feet down and tried to stop Flintstone style, skidding her feet instead of using the brakes. The front wheel of the scooter came up into the air and she rocketed across the parking lot toward a taco wagon. I yelled, “Get off the gas, get off the gas!”

I yelled once more, “Get off the gas!” I saw it coming, she was going to crash into the taco wagon. She wasn’t slowing or turning she was accelerating. Then I saw it. I saw her change, she forced herself back under control, she overcame panic, she turned off the throttle, and she hit the brakes. She used her will to overcome panic. That’s My Girl. I ran across the parking lot. She had stopped with the front tire about 1/2 inch from the wall of the taco wagon.

Bikes I Have Loved, My Old Hardtail

Oh yea! My little walk on the wild side. This is my old hard tail with a late style Shovel Head motor built by S&S. It had dual plug heads and high compression. You may notice that the exhaust pipes are straight and short, they were loud. The compression ratio was so high that I could barely kick start the thing. The seat had springs under it but when you hit a big bump it would stand you straight up and take your breath away.

Radical is a term that has changed over the years. Now, radical means cool, as in "radical ride, Dude." But to old hot rodders radical meant that the thing vibrated so much that parts worked loose all the time. All the safety wire and Locktite in the world would barely hold things together. This bike was radical in the "non-dude" sense of the term.

This was a beast of a bike, fast and loud, with all the primative nature that got Harley Davidson its bad boy reputation in the first place. When you started this bike it was like two hammers pounding on an anvil. It leaked oil and didn't apoligize for it.

Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road

Ever ride by a road killed skunk, does it stink? Not for me. I'm about to impart some wisdom. Don't smell it.

It came to me to write about dead skunks and other noxious odors when my daughter and I were riding between Bodega Bay and Guerneville. We passed by a flattened skunk and Lee said something to the effect of "Wow, does that stink. I noticed that it did not stink, not at all and that was because I had not attempted to smell it. I guess the non-motorcyclist version would be someone at church leaning over and whispering, "boy somebody _____," fill in the blank. Immediately the non-rider would start sniffing to find out the volume and intensity.

Now one of the best things about riding a bike is that you get to smell things. If you are riding past a field of onions you smell fresh onions. New mown hay, fields of vegetables, orchards of fruit, and the Budwseier Brewery in Fairfield, all are real treats that only motorcyclists get to enjoy full force. I have also learned, and here's the point, when you first see the dead skunk, just stop sniffing. Slowly let out your breath through your nose until you are well past the offensive area.

No need to thank me, I just enjoy enlightening people.

All God's Children Got Troubles

We went for a little ride and while on the freeway Marie tells me she feels a vibration. She says she feels it through the passenger floorboards and the backrest. She says at about 80 mph it is so strong that the vibration of the backrest makes her back itch and she can barely stand to keep her feet on the floorboards. I of course feel nothing.

But then as we ride, I notice that the engine does not sound quite right. I can see vibration in the fairing. When we get home I checked the plugs and they looked alright. Clean and a good tan color, which shows they are working alright. I'm pretty good with plugs after having all those two stroke bikes over the years. It's not plugs.

Tomorrow I will check the motor mounts and pull the timing cover and check the pads that tension the cam chain. The photo shows the pads. I have heard that they often wear out at the 25-30k mileage area. If its not one of these two things, I don't have a clue.

Strange But Somehow Compelling

Marie and I were at Santa Rosa V-Twin the other day and saw the new Victory Vision. You have to hand it to the Victory Motorcycle Company; the Vision is not a Harley clone. The big Japanese motorcycle manufacturers all make Harley clones, it’s blatant, obvious and obnoxious. The Vision is something else, the Vision is something very different.

Bikes I Have Loved, 1970 Sportster

This is my first Harley. I really like the look, althought it is old school. Notice the front brake is from a Bultaco dirt bike. Although you can't see it in this picture it is a stepped design which has longer spokes on one side. This reduces weight and increases strength. Looks cool, but it won't stop this bike at all. In fact that front brake won't even hold this bike on a hill.

The rear tire is Goodyear. I can't even remember when Goodyear made motorcycle tires. The tire has a very car like tread. The front tire is as skinny as a bicycle tire, it's a 21" but is only 1 1/2" wide. This bike has a lot of chrome in just the right spots and the flame job is just right. I really like the drag bars, they are comfortable and give the bike the right attitude. The bike is a kicker with a Delordo carb but it starts easy.

I might someday redo the front end and make it a little more modern, but then again no.

Not Exactly the Wild Bunch

I know spring is just around the corner when my buddies call and want to go for a ride. Here we are at Busters Barbeque in Calistoga. I hadn’t eaten at Busters before, but it was very good. A couple of the guys like it hot and the hot sauce at Busters is hot.

This Man is Not Having a Heart Attack

Marie thinks this is really funny. When I’m concentrating really hard on tightening a really inaccessible bolt and she thinks it’s time a fun time for a photo.

There’s one thing I like about working on a motorcycle as opposed to working on a car, you can sit on a box and massage the motorcycle into shape. On a car you are usually contorted beyond all comfort, working to loosen a nut that is tight beyond any torque spec known to mortal man and barely within reach.

Nuts and bolts are really strange things, they have minds of their own, it doesn’t matter if you are working on a motorcycle or a car, they tend to wander off. If you drop one it will roll and bounce like a ping pong ball. Like water, which will seek the lowest point, a dropped nut or bolt will find the most inaccessible point to make its new home.

But once again the exception proves the rule and here I am trying to tighten a really inaccessible bolt in a contorted position, and its on a motorcycle.

Mendo for Me

Saturday I rode to the town of Mendocino. As I was headed north on Hwy 101, I saw some dark clouds at the north end of the Anderson Valley. Sure enough as I pulled off into Cloverdale, it started to rain. It rained from the freeway to Booneville, where I stopped for lunch and to dry out. I stopped just after lunch and I headed out.

Hwy 128, west of Booneville enters the redwood forest. There is little traffic, which makes you feel like you are really far from civilization. Mendocino is a few miles north of Hwy 128 on Hwy 1.

In Mendocino I stopped at Dick’s Bar for a beer. The place was crowded and the bartender who dropped a tray of glasses in the middle of the floor provided entertainment. Dick’s has a lot of dick inspired wiseacre sayings posted around the bar, such as, “there are few Richards, but a lot of Dick’s,” etc.

After leaving Dick’s, I headed south on Hwy 1. It was now clear and sunny, with the afternoon sun turning the water turquoise then hazel and the hours went by. This is truly one of the most beautiful parts of the California Coast; I prefer it to the area between Carmel and Morro Bay. I was especially impressed by the town of Elk. Each house and business looked like there was not one blade of grass out of place.

It was a glorious ride, every time I looked at the ocean I saw something that I wanted to stop and explore. I saw several roads heading inland that I would like to come back and see where they would go. It was very cold and I had my electric jacket turned up, but the cold added to the exhilaration. When I reached Jenner and turned inland it had just turned dark

This was a great ride. There is a lot to see and do around Mendocino, which explains the number of bed and breakfasts in the area. Hmmmm bed and breakfast, Marie, Me and HD, there’s an idea.

Still Cool After All These Years

This is my buddy Scott’s bike, cool huh? But Scotty is pissed off. Why is Scotty so PO’ed? Look a little closer, Scott’s bike looks just like a Harley Davidson Street Glide. Wrong! And that is why he’s pissed.

Scott’s bike does not look like a Street Glide, a Street Glide looks just like Scott’s bike. Therein is the tale. Scott’s bike is a 1996 Electra Glide Standard. A 1996 has an Evolution motor. The Street Glide was not “invented” by Harley Davidson till 2006 and has a Twin Cam motor.
Scott’s bike was at the vanguard of the “bagger” revolution. The bagger revolution was when the collective consciousness of the biker world changed. Before Scotty finished building his bike all Electra Glides were known as Geezer Glides. Old men rode them, and customizing them meant adding all the chrome and running lights that could be fitted. This type of bike was called a Dresser or more appropriately a Full Dresser.
With the Evolution motor Harley moved a giant step forward. Harley knew the motor had to be completely reliable and absolutely leak proof. They succeeded. Former chopper guys began to realize the utility of saddle bags and a windshield. But every hot rodder has to customize, it’s in their blood. So where would these guys find fulfillment. Not in the gaudy, over chromed, over lighted and overdone full dresser. These guys dechromed, lowered and simplified the lines of the Electra Glide to make what I call an art deco masterpiece.
Look closely at Scott’s bike, you will see that he got rid of the over stuffed seat, chopped down the windshield and put on a front fender without chrome. There are dozens of custom changes that Scotty did to his bike and that brings us back to why Scotty is not happy. Scotty’s bike was very cool and very unique, you rarely saw anything like it. I was so impressed that when I bought my Electra Glide Standard that was the direction I wanted to take my bike. But I wasn’t the only one, and Harley soon recognized this and now Scotty’s bike is just like a zillion others. Do you understand why he’s not too happy?

You Meet the Nicest People on a Harley

The weather has turned warmer and Marie and I decided to take one of our favorite rides. We rode to Healdsburg where we took Alexander Valley to Calistoga. Near the Russian River Bridge, we stopped to take a picture of an old barn that has the big flood levels painted on the side. That’s when I met Roberta. She was just getting her mail and asked if I would like to come onto the property for a better shot. What a nice lady.
At Calistoga we went through town and hit The Silverado Trail. This is a beautiful road that winds on the east side of the Napa Valley. There are dozens of wineries along the road. The vines had not begun to leaf out yet, but the grass was green and all the fruit trees were in full bloom.
The weather was warm and we cruised slowly as there was little traffic. We cut through Napa and headed for Sonoma. We did a little shopping in Sonoma and had a snack at the Basque Café on the square.
When we headed home it was starting to cool off a little but we enjoyed the ride. The loop is about 120 miles long. There is plentyto do and see, especially in summer.

Picu' Freaks Della Natura

I like a little scooter. I could even see me buying a little Piaggio 50 or 150cc scooter. I can imagine Marie and I scooting around the wine country with a picnic basket and a bottle of wine. Just like Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. Ray and Marie in Sonoma Holiday we would be laughing and riding……hey! Wait just a minute.

That’s no scooter, that’s a Suzuki Bergman 650. Hepburn and Peck must be spinning in their graves. Not cute, not mean, not fast, what the heck?
Then just when I think things could not be any freakier, I see the Piaggio MP3. It’s made by Piaggio, the makers of the cute little ones. But it has all the freak qualities of the Bergman and two front tires to boot. It's heavy and slow, but it does have two wheels up front.
Freaks della natura!

You Warmed My Heart

As you may guess, I have a lot of old motorcycle equipment. I have an old Widder electric vest. It works great, it kept me warm for many years, but as with much of my clothing, it has shrunk over time. I wore it last a couple of summers ago on a ride to Canada. I came back down Hwy 1, along the coast, and while it was about 105 degrees on the inland Hwy 5, it was bitter cold along the coast. I could not zip the vest so I just wore it unzipped. It kept me warm. My bike has heated grips so with the grips and the vest I was OK.
My wife wore the Widder vest when she rode with me until today, when we bought her a new Gerbing liner jacket. I bought the same liner right after the Canada trip. I just liked the material of the Gerbing jacket a little better. It seemed that the Widder was a little dated.
Dated though it may have been that Widder vest worked and it worked for many years. While at the motorcycle shop, I picked up a copy of City Bike and read that this will be the last year that Widder will be in business. The owners are retiring. I am sad, as I’m sure the Widder’s are, to see the company go. I remember when my Dad decided to close his business and retire. I felt a sense of loss, a sense that life is short and that even though retirement will be fun and allow my Dad to do many of the things he had been dreaming about and working toward, it is the beginning of the twilight of his life.

Bikes I Have Loved, YZ-250E

This may be the only photo of me riding my YZ-250E. The photo and bike are 1978 vintage. This photo was taken at an enduro at Red Mountain in the Mohave Desert. I can’t remember the name of the enduro. An enduro is like a car rally in the desert, there are checkpoints and you have to arrive on time at the checkpoints.
The photo was taken by one of those trackside photographers that try to sell you copies and send you a little teaser photo. Well this is the teaser photo.
This bike was a true motocross bike. In 1978 the professional motocross riders, like Bob Hanna, rode stock YZ’s and the bikes were raffled off to the crowd after the race. The bike was tall and fast. The power band was like a light switch, full on or full off. The bike was so tall, I could barely tiptoe the ground. I put on a speedometer from a Yamaha IT, which was a slug compared to the YZ.
In enduro riding of the time you used a roll chart to keep on time. The roll chart was a scroll of paper in an aluminum holder on the handlebars with the time in minutes on one side and where you should be on the other.
0800-----start
0805-----1.3mi
0810-----2.6,
Etc.
As you rode you would check your watch against your speedometer to tell where you should be in time and space.
This was all fine and should be simple, but, and there’s always one isn’t there? Digital watches were just coming out at the time; it was almost impossible to see the second hand on a regular watch. Digital displays were small and very hard to read while you were bouncing along a desert trail at speed. The speedometer was small and hard to read for the same reasons. The paper in the roll chart was also problematic. More than once it tore or got wet and went to pieces.
It was easy to stay on time when the trail was easy and the speeds low. When speeds were higher and the terrain harder it was almost impossible to stay on time. The Yamaha was the perfect bike. Fast and agile with long travel, the suspension soaked up huge bumps with the, then new, monoshock suspension.
I also used the bike for motocross until I had a bad crash and broke my collarbone, but that’s another story.

Freaks O' Nature

Here is a photo of a bike that I saw in London. It is a BMW C1. BMW what were you thinking? This is supposed to be a safer motorcycle that you can ride with out a helmet because you are so strapped in that your head could not hit the pavement. That’s right, seat belts and rollcage, a little car on two wheels.
We have been having so much rain here in Northern California lately that my brain began to wander, motorcycle rain/rain motorcycle, that’s when I remembered seeing the mighty C1. It might not be too bad riding with a windshield and roof. Put some side curtains on the thing and Viola.
In 2001, the first year of manufacture BMW produced 10,000 C1’s. In 2002 BMW produced only 2000 and production ceased the same year. What happened? I think people had a revelation. They woke up one morning, walked out to their scooter and said, “Whoa, this thing has got to be right up there with Lamas, and miniature horses, it’s a freak of nature."

How Did It All Go So Wrong?

How could my shifter rod drift apart? I was just riding a long and when I went to downshift into the town of Hopland and the shifter was on the floorboard. The ball and socket had parted ways. No big arguments just a separation and quicky divorce. While installing the new rod, HD does not sell just the rod end, no surprises there, I think I figured out how there were grounds for separation.
There was another man involved!
I remember when I bought this bike, the previous owner had mentioned that he couldn't adjust the height of the shift pedal. I think that he was trying to take the jamb nut loose and when it popped loose and the other wrench shot upward and that twisted the rod end off the ball. Oops, better pop it back on before admitting that it's broken. Better that the new owner shell out for a new one than the present owner, right?
So here we are 25k miles later in the middle of a nasty divorce.

Bikes I Have Loved, DT-1

Everyone has a favorite motorcycle, mine is the Yamaha DT-1B. Made in 1969, it was my first real motorcycle. I loved that bike; I was so greatly influenced by that motorcycle that its vibrations still resonate in my life.
I can still remember the first time I saw a DT-1. It was 1968, I was in Crestline in the San Bernardino Mountains, and I saw it, it was so tall and the lines so right. The sight of that bike made such an impression on me that I remember everything about the moment 40 years later.
My Dad bought the 1969 Yamaha DT-1B from K&N Motorcycles on La Cadena Dr, in Riverside, California. Malcolm Smith was the head of the service department and K&N Motorcycles later became K&N Air Filters. My Dad had been saving lead pennies, which were made during the war years out of zinc to save copper for bullets. My Dad had saved up $300 worth of the lead pennies and sold them to a dealer for 3 cents apiece. Coincidentally that was the price of the Yamaha $900.
My Dad found the Dt-1 to be too tall and bought a Yamaha 125 AT-1, which he liked better because not only was it shorter, it had an electric starter. Dad was the same age as I am now and I can see how he appreciated the electric starter.
I took over the 250. I was 15 years old, I could not ride on the streets, but we lived near the Santa Ana River and I could coast down the hill and ride to the river bottom which was like a sand highway to the hills at North Main St. My Dad, my brother and I would load up the bikes and go to the Canyon Crest area and ride all day on weekends. My Dad and I once road the bikes to Bodie, California. The bike was a great piece of machinery. It never broke, it rode great and it looked great, what more could a kid want.
When I graduated from High School, I decided to take a motorcycle trip. I loaded a sleeping bag on the DT-1 and headed off. I toured around California and parts of Nevada. I lost my student deferment and got drafted. That changed the direction of my life.
I would not change one iota, not one molecule not one breath taken of the time I spent with that bike.

Tin-ah-see Ernie

Greg and I are sitting at Ernie’s, I am enjoying the warm sun and the cold beer, when a guy starts unloading large sacks of peanuts and pistachios and pretzels behind the bar. Somebody at the other end of the bar says, “Hey Ernie.”
I say, “Are you the Ernie, the Ernie’s Tin Roof Ernie?”
He says,”Yeah.”
I say, “Can I take your picture for my blog.”
Ernie says, “I’m not posing.”
I take that for permission.

I'm HD You're Desmo

This is my buddy Greg, he's Desmodromic. Sexy and Italian, not Greg the motorcycle. Greg is, well, Greg. The motorcycle is a Ducati Monster. Desmodromic is the name given to Ducati motorcycles valve train. The valve train is not like other non-Italian drive trains. It is a system of levers that teeter totter the valves up and down. No springs here!

Ducati claims that when the engine valves are levered open and then levered closed the action is much more percise than when the valves are pushed open and then left to the vagaries of a spring to snap them closed. This allows much more precise adjustment of the engine timing.

Timing is everything be you a comedian or an engine. Timing is important in most everything we do, but I digress. Everything that happens in an engine as it runs is not digital like on/off, one or zero. Each part of the engine has tolerances that are taken up as the engine runs through a cycle. The spark needs to go off slightly before the piston is at the top of the chamber because by the time the mixture of gasoline and air starts to burn the piston will be at TDC (top dead center). Immagine as the engine speeds up and slows down the timing of the spark needs to be changed accordingly. There is a mechanism for this, it's the spark advance in the distributor or some computer thingy, but again I digress.

But a spring can only close so fast. Bigger springs will close quicker but will also take more force to open, enter Desmodromic. The Desmodromic valve system is a mechanism that will open and close the valves as the engine spins faster in perfect timing, a mechanism. Anyway it works, Ducati engines will rev like there is no limit.

As I mentioned before Greg's bike is Ducati Monster. It has no fairing, you can see all the engine and all the parts. Greg owned a Ducati 999, a beautiful fully faired, bright red, Italian speed freak. The bike not Greg. Greg sold the 999 and got the current ride, a Monster.

I think Ducati should have named the 999 the 666, that way they would have the Monster and the Beast. Greg sees no humor in this.