Venturous

Yes, 70 is a nice ride Randy. Rt 66 is also a great ride in this area. You can also pick it up in Rogersville and run it north. Some sections make the Dragon look like childs play.

To err is human! To some... you should have received a life sentence because you had the audacity to have had an accident with a motorcycle. I have many thousand miles on my motorcycles, but still almost pulled out in front of a rider this summer. I seen him in time... but another few feet and

On the calendar.

Lisa and I set out for a short ride since it was so warm and sunny today. Well, 350 miles later we finally got home. After riding river road, we figured might as well ride over the Smokys. Then at the top, we figured might as well ride to Cherokee. Then... what the heck.... lets run Moonshiner 28 and Tail of the Dragon. Fall colors were awesome almost the whole ride except above 4500' in the Smokys where they already dropped. A few pics...

What a fun project that could be. Love old school!

Lowes and Walmart both sell little 5000 BTU window AC's for just over $100 that weigh about 40lbs. You could either buy a stand from http://www.timeouttrailers.org/Pages/TimeOutCampers.aspx or probably make one.

Awesome! Great deal too! Congrats.

Yes, I was referring to the gaskets between the engine and the exhaust. And I tried the starter fluid method first and that did not indicate any leaks. But once I put that lit grill lighter around the exhaust... it did not take long to visually see where the leaks were.

One saddlebag stays full of the following: First aid kit Rain gear for 2 Mini umbrella CyclePump air compressor mushroom tire plug kit two used but good spark plugs tool kit and leatherman brand new set of front and rear brake pads (I pull a trailer a lot) progressive hand pump quart of oil mini jumper cables complete set of fuses Trunk always has: Owners manual Pen and notepaper Maps pf9 Alleve GermX cell charger

With bike running, take a propane grill lighter and run it slowly around all your exhaust system joints. If you see it blowing the flame or sucking it in... you have a leak. This is how I found that my rear exhaust gaskets were shot and why my bike was backfiring. New gaskets and all backfiring stopped. You can also do same to check for vacuum leaks around the carbs, but be careful you don't have any wet gas first. A vacuum leak could also maybe effect throttle response. Another thought beside the carb sync (which is a good idea) is to run some Seafoam though the carbs. Maybe you have something sticking in the carbs from being a little dirty.

No, because my next new bike will have ABS brakes.

I can't hammock camp either. Sleep apnea. But as as scout leader... I see a lot who do. If the fellow comes up with some sort of cover tent... that thing might work OK for a single rider.

A backpacking hammock would take far less room and provide about as much protection as this thing or more. I'll pass.

That picture looks vaguely familiar Leo.. That was a fun trip! Really wish I could make it up Joe, but have other plans that weekend.

I protect mine with 9mm when in sight... insurance when not. Both alarms and caliper locks seem to me to be an annoyance to deal with. I just make sure I have adequate accessory insurance cover and not stress over it. My thoughts on both... Alarms - How many times have you heard car alarms go off and just keep walking because we hear so many false alarms? Caliper lock - First. PITA, second... I know sooner or later I would forget it and pull off with it attached. Some years ago during MB Bike Week, bad guys were getting bikes by driving around with a mattress towed behind a truck. They would pull up to a locked bike, tip it over on mattress, then drive away a few blocks where they could take their time to cut locks etc. Point is... if they want it.. they'll get it. Have insurance.

For me... no. If I liked the 1st gen, I would have kept the one I had. But that is simply a matter of preference. I echo the concern of others that some parts are already getting scarce and I suspect it will be getting worse.

Still like my Hagon I put on last year. As for the front end... check head bearings and be sure your air shocks are evenly aired up. Have you replaced your fork oil ever?

Sorry about thinking to big. When you mentioned a trailer... my Bushtec came to mind so I was in another zip code on the price range.. But... I still think the gas card would be a good idea maybe... just within whatever budget you decide. I know a lot of folks already have the GPS, helmet and other gear they want/need. But I can always think of a way to use gas.. (or beer )

No matter what item or gadget you pick... there will be a certain percentage of members who already have it or don't want/need it. Hard to find something "most" members could use. One thing we could all use is a Shell Gas Card preloaded with $4375 worth of gas... I just picked Shell as an example. Not sure which is the most widely available brand?? It could be advertised as.... "Win 5 Years of Free Gas" Fine print: 5 years based on an estimate of 10,000 miles per year, average motorcycle fuel economy of 40 mpg, and a gasoline price of $3.50 per gallon. Please call a doctor or sell your bike if it lasts more than 5 years....

September 11, 2001, is one of those days we all remember where we were when... I was working a 7am - 3pm shift at the Washington Air Route Traffic Control Center. The day started out like most. We worked the early morning rush into the Charlotte, NC hub. Then I took a break. I headed to the 'crack shack'. That is what we smokers (I quit in 2006) nicknamed the outpost the FAA gave us. Basically a 12 X 14 shed with electric, nicotine stained furniture and a TV. As I entered I noticed all my fellow smoking controllers glued to the TV which was showing the WTC bellowing smoke. As we all speculated whether it was a small aircraft accident or what, we all watched in horror with the rest of the world as the second jet flew into the second tower. It was clear.. America was under attack. The page system came on with a manager ordering all controllers to the control room immediately. I ended up working Sector 32 which is a high altitude sector covering an area from north of Charlottesville, VA to Greensboro, NC at altitudes from 24,000' to 33,000' The first order that came down was to divert any aircraft inbound to the New York area to an alternate airport. So we took care of that. Next we were ordered to broadcast 'ATTENTION ALL AIRCRAFT. COCKPIT DOOR SECURITY PARAMOUNT' Then, the young woman controller working the sector beside me began to sob. She was just told over the radio by one of her flights that an aircraft just crashed into the Pentagon. Shortly after, we were ordered to divert all air traffic headed to the Washington DC metro area to alternate airports. That included IAD, DCA, and BWI. We then took care of diverting those flights. At one point many of us heard a supervisor come down the isle exclaiming ' We just shot one down over Pennsylvania' I have no idea if that was just bad info or what. But it has been a burning question in my mind ever since. Then, the decision was made at FAA headquarters to ground ALL flights. This was the first time in aviation history that this decision was made. After I was issued the order, I started clearing flights into RIC, GSO, ROA, and RDU. I tried my best to split them up evenly so not to overwhelm any one airport. Within a few minutes, that seemed like hours, my radar scope was completely blank. That feeling was so unexplainable! Afterward, all sectors were combined to one radar scope and I took another break. The only flights left in the air at this point were fighter jets assigned to fly combat air patrol over Washington DC and New York. At one point after all flights had been grounded, John Ashcroft, the US Atty General was in Ohio. He took off in his G4 and headed for DC. We all listened as that G4 tried to get permission to enter DC. The fighter pilots who were flying a combat air patrol over Washington DC assured his pilot that if he entered the CAP he would be engaged. Ashcroft apparently ordered his pilot to ignore the fighter pilots warning relayed by the controller and continue on.. You could hear the stress in that pilots voice as he was stuck in middle. Finally, approval was received and Ashcrofts G4 was escorted by fighter jets through the CAP and allowed to land in DC. Since our facility was so critical, we had double backups for power. A huge room full of batteries that are charged by massive diesel generators. When they fired up the generators, a huge plume of black smoke came from the exhaust pipe. Apparently a neighbor saw this and called CNN to report that our FAA facility was just bombed. The idiots at CNN reported this without confirmation. My wife had just picked up my sons from school after hearing the news. As she returned she found our neighbor there to consul her as he had seen the CNN report. We at the center heard about the CNN report and we all tried to call home to reassure our families all was OK. But it took forever to get a line to work. I finally got word to Lisa that we were just fine. When I first walked outside, I could not believe my eyes. In that short time, they had put jersey barriers in front of our main entrance. And the rooftops were full of Leesburg SWAT in full gear. More police were swarming the facility with bomb sniffing dogs. I am proud of how my coworkers all handled themselves during this time. We later learned that many things by the FAA and other agencies could have been done better. But this type of attack was unprecedented. I am also proud of how we all as Americans seemed to put our differences aside long enough to make sure these bastards did not bring our nation down. They did cause much hardship for many years, but they could not break the spirit of Americans. And never will. Never Forget!

Truth is he pulled me over to ask me how I like the Venture since he was looking at one on Craigslist.

So in this case do you.... A. Bring bike to sceeching halt... jump off bike... throw helmet to ground... pull your 9 and yell WTF do YOU want... Or.. B. Put on turn signal... pull far right to give him room... turn off bike... place both hands clearly on grips... and 'yes sir' and 'no sir' your way out... I chose wisely.

Keeping the highways safe from out of control senior citizens... hahaha

... +1

I have used it for years. I add it with each tire change. I do not balance tires as this stuff takes care of that. The first time I used it was years ago. I got a flat tire caused by a picked up a nail in a rear tire. Had heard of Ride-On but never tried it. So I got a bottle. Added the Ride-On, aired up tire. Rode for 5 miles. Came back pulled nail and rode for a few more miles. I ended up wearing that tire out with no leak issues. The stuff works great as near as I can tell. I do not think it would help any for a sidewall puncture as it stays in the center of tire... but I would never ride on a punctured sidewall anyway.