Evan

Your update is appreciated Gary. Think you are getting some good advice from the gang. Progress is good, even if it is slower than you would like.

Great job and great post. Enjoy the ride!

Great day for a ride. Sorry I couldn't join the group. Had to ride to Guelph and then Woodstock today to see family. (Also did an 8 hour ride yesterday with Anne throughout the Muskoka area.)

Been offline with my grandkids so I am a bit late but that doesn't diminish my best wishes for a great year ahead. Happy birthday Bob. Hope you had lots of hugs from Becky.

Wishing you a safe and wonderful journey. Enjoy!

Would like to share this story. Recently I was pushing it hard (about 75 mph into a head wind) and was sure I could make it to a string of gas stations ahead. Turned out, I ran out a mile or so before the first one. So, I parked the bike and started walking along the shoulder of the four lane highway towards the gas station. Was pleasantly surprised when a guy on his way home from work stopped just ahead of me. He had a empty gas can in the back of his new pickup and offered to get me to the gas station and then back to my parked bike which was clearly out of his way as it was a divided highway. After I got back to my bike, I asked what I could do for him. He wouldn't consider that so I told him I would pay it forward. He smiled and drove on.

Thought I would mention this as it may help someone else someday. My riding mower kept stalling out. I recently replaced the fuel filter and noticed that the bowl never seemed to have as much gas in it as I thought it should. Every time I added gas, it seemed to run for a while, then stall out again when the gas level went down a bit. Decided it was becoming so annoying that I needed to check it out. Turned out that some spiders had entered the gas cap vent hole and plugged up the vent. Cleaned it out and sure enough, problem solved.

. Enjoy! I am still looking for the perfect boat. Problem is, it depends. It depends on how many people, weather conditions, fishing or running about, lake water level (our lake gets shallower later in the season), how much money I have for gas and how much money I am prepared to invest in something so easy to buy but hard to sell; etc, etc. Right now, that answer is not much. the result is that I own too many boats that all together are not worth much money. For example, I have an older 21 ft SeaRay in outstanding condition but it is to big for my circumstances; a 16 ft Doral with an older 140 hp Evindrude that I like best but isn't running right; a 16 ft Bayliner with a blown 70hp motor; a 15 ft Peterborough with a 30 hp Evinrude that gets a lot of use; a smaller cedar strip with a 9hp Yamaha and a 21 ft Serius sailboat that I haven't used for years (no time to sail - too busy fixing boats and bikes) but like it too much to sell. I probably couldn't get enough for all these boats combined (except the sailboat) to acquire a newer and good looking boat like you now have. Again, enjoy!

Hey Puc, the way I understand it is that the results are reported in a way that takes into account the number of bikes sold. But you may still be right depending on how they did the survey sample. Anyway, interesting results.

This might help!

Bought some Ride On last year but didn't use it when I changed my tire cause someone mentioned that after using Ride On, your rims are somehow fouled and future tire changes can be affected. From all the positive comments, it sound like that is not a real concern????

Glad your guardian angel was with you and thanks for sharing your lessons learned Mark. Good reminders for all of us.

From a friend who knows how old you are and can relate personally to that age. Have a great day Carl!!

Want to add my condolences Ray. I'm sure he is looking down on your and smiling.

Hey Rocket. Good to her from others that you are still on the go. Hope your journey is a good one! I have fond memories of our ride here in Ontario and our overnight ride with you to Tofino.

Hey Wahoo (Todd). Glad it wasn't worse for you. Also sorry to hear of the damage to your 87VR. I would be really pissed myself from it being dropped by the tow truck guy. Good luck with both your recovery and repairs. You are right - riding (or driving) the Gardiner Expressway nowadays with the 5 mile construction project and lane reductions is totally frustrating. Even though I'm retired, I ride it several times each week. Just got back from Marcarl's a short while ago and had to take the Gardiner to get home. Ugh!

Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts with us Mike. Sounds like it was an accident that should never have happened and the outcome could have been much worse were it not for your amazing reaction. I'm also thankful to be associated with the type of Venture riders that looked after you.

Yup. Many years ago, had a KZ650 that would occasionally miss a beat. Drove me crazy. Took it to a couple shops that were not able to figure out the source of the problem. Turned out that the coils looked normal but every now and then, one would arc from the side of the coil to the frame. Found out one day when I was on the ground checking out something else and noticed the arc.

Ed, I sort of stumbled on this forum when checking out an 8VR that I also sort of stumbled on about 6 years ago. Like you, I got lucky as both this site (including the people involved) and the VR's are truly amazing. Enjoy your good luck!!

May be totally off base here but when I checked out what I think was a similar type of battery and found that they can't take cold (freezing)weather. Think I started a thread about them sometime last fall.

I have two full covers but don't use them cause I like my Nelson Riggs half cover so much. It fits both 1st and 2nd gens quite well. Here is a picture of both covered by a Nelson Riggs half cover.

As long as have owned my 88, it has not liked to be power washed. Only had a misfire problem once from heavy rain, but many times from power washing. Have been told that this is fairly common.

Recently replaced my 88VR starter with one from a 2nd gen. Amazing performance. Did it when I had my headers off for some exhaust work and it was a simple bolt on job as the casing and bolt pattern is identical to the original starter.

Love my LED headlight so far. It was a simple plug in deal and while I don't have the specs with me, it is much brighter than the PIAA bulb that it replaced. It came from a supplier in Montreal (bought it at the Toronto Bike Show) and was apparently manufactured for motorcycle use.

Mine came loose also last week but at the top end. When that happens, you are unlikely to lose anything and as long as your hand is not too large, you can reach up into the headlight area (after you remove the headlight) to reconnect the cable.