Oregon trip, Day 2 - Astoria.

After a much needed straight 8 hours of sleep, I was up at 8am, in time to chat with A.J. before he headed off to work. So we talked about it, and Jason and I would stop by the shop, and I would get a chance to test ride the new Ducati Multistrada 1200 (with the 1198 motor in it). Sweet. Jason and I cooked up some food, got our things together, and headed out the door. After getting lost a bit, we made it to Motocorsa in Portland.

The new Multi is something else. It is super fun to ride, and with the on-the-fly electronic adjustment between multiple settings, such as "Enduro", "Sport", "Urban"...the bike electronically adjusts the Horsepower, Traction Control and Suspension. Enduro has 100hp, and I switched to the Sport version and gained an instant 50 hp. A nice kick in the pants, and got the front wheel up just a bit. :D It was a fun test ride. I just can't walk out of a dealership at the moment with a 21k bike (OTD). Sigh, I'd have to do with the test ride for now.

A few shots while at Motocorsa. On the left, is a table that A.J. made from spare parts for the cafe in the shop. It is probably one of the top Ducati shops in the USA, and I don't trust my bike fully to anyone but A.J. The center photo is of a nice Desmosedici, and also when someone purchases a new bike, this is the photo room. :) last photo is of a trick full exhaust system for the new Ducati Superbikes.

After talking it over with Jason, and going over the Oregon motorcycle specific state map (free at your local Oregon motorcycle dealerships), we decided we'd go to Astoria, Or. for lunch and then ride back via Washington, while A.J. finished up his work day.

We rode up to Astoria, first by getting out of Portland on hwy 26 westbound, and cut off at Hwy 47 north. This would be a phenomenal road. I have a lengthy video of it, and will try and edit it down to a good 10 min video for some good on the fly scenery.

We turned west on hwy 242 directly into Astoria, which is also known for a few of the movies that have been filmed here, maybe you've heard of them (Kindergarde Cop, The Goonies)

We stopped by the cannery, and had a Salmon burger, with a wasabi mayo side and som chips. I have to say that this was the juiciest, tenderest salmon I'd eaten in forever. So freaking good. It didn't help that we'd been on the road for about 2.5 hours already. But it went down perfect.

After letting lunch settle, and grabbing an espresso to avoid the ill-fated food coma, we decided to make our way back to Portland for tonights bbq. First a stop and a photo at the Astoria Bridge on the Oregon side. [A few quick facts about the Astoria bridge: Completed in 1966, it is the longest continuous truss bridge in North America. No pedestrians are allowed on the bridge except for the annual "Great Columbia Crossing" October 3rd, 2010 this year. The bridge was the last segment of hwy 101 to be built to connect Olympia, Washington with Los Angeles, Ca.] We'd decided to go over the Columbia River to Washington state, and ride back to the IH-5 on the Lewis and Clark trail.

First me....the bridge is near the mouth of the Columbia River that feeds into the inland, from the Pacific Ocean.

...then Jason.

We rode across the 6.5 kilometer long bridge and stopped for a quick photo. The weather is amazing and warm, actually hot in some places....and Portland was to be having a heat wave this weekend, in the 90's.

The section of hwy we rode on back to the IH-5 was about 65 miles long, and an absolute treat to ride on. At a quick pace we made ground quickly, while at the same time enjoying the amazing scenery that was our background for this spirited run back to the city.

We arrived back at A.J.'s house about a half hour after him, and busted out the PBR. After making our way to the supermarket, we purchased some of the thickest ribeyes I've seen, and slowly cooked them up with some of A.J.'s friends over for a great barbecue. Another succesful day, and our mileage today was 245 miles total.

Oregon Trip, Day 1:

As mentioned before, I was up for a long time before making my run up to Portland. I was to meet Jason at A.J.'s house, and we'd be planning it to get there at about the same time.

Wednesday, I got up around noon, as I needed to find a new chain for the Ducati Multi, since the one on it right now is so stretched out, I can hear it clacking as I ride. No bueno!

After some phone calls, I find the chain, and also the sprockets, which come to find out...are more expensive than I thought.

On the Multi, the rear sprocket and sprocket carrier are 1 piece from Ducati. costing $251 bucks. holy hell! So after some talking, I found out I could buy a seperate sprocket carrier for $170, and a sprocket for $60 bucks....which is total of $230 dollars to replace the rear sprocket....and in the future, the only piece that I replace is the $60 dollar sprocket. So I chose this route.

After working all Wednesday night, I got home about 8am, put the chain on, and decided to wait on the sprockets till I got to Portland.

I threw the bags on the bike (this will be the first time I ride with hard bags on any bike), and headed out the door, about 10:20am. Start mileage: 22, 596

The plan is to bomb up the IH-5 and get to Portland as quickly as possible, and not fall asleep on the road. haha

The day was long, and even though I had my gas spots planned out, I was working with different readings on the dashboard to see how far I could go. The first gas stop was in Willows, Ca. at 144 miles. not to shabby. But I thought I could push it more. So on the next one, I was watching the "fuel remaining" reading on the dashboard....imagine my surprise when the bike said it had used 4.3 gallons of the 5.5 available, and suddenly sputtered just before cresting over a long uphill. Forcing me to dive across 2 lanes of traffic past some more than annoyed 18-wheeler drivers, I'm sure. haha

On the side of the road, I shook the bike, and kept getting it to turn on and go about a 1/10 of a mile at a time. I had run out of gas just before the sign that said, fuel = 1 mile. So I knew I was close. The bike finally wouldn't start, and I stood there for a bit, before beginning the arduous task of pushing my bike to the gas station. for shame. LOL

A guy on a harley stopped by, asked what was wrong, I simply said it was out of gas, and he told me about the next gas stop. Nice guy, but nothing he could do for me at the time, so we said our goodbyes. About 5 minutes later, a gentleman with his family stopped and asked if I was out of gas...I said yes, and he simply says "I got some you can have". Super awesome!!!! Sure enough, Dario had a 5 gallon tank in the trunk of his car. After grabbing a gallon, I shook his hand, he refused any money, and went along his way. There are still very cool people out there.

After fueling up at Hilt, Ca. I resumed my ride north. I didn't lose much time either, about 30 minutes total.

With the day getting long, and me getting tired, since I've been awake since the day before, around noon...I am ready to get off the bike. I make it into Portland, right after 6pm, and wind my way to my buddies house, by about 7pm. Jason had just arrived 20 minutes ealier, and A.J. had arrived from work, 5 minutes earlier. I don't think we could have planned it any better.

I arrived to a stout beer, and great friends. End mileage: 23,236 miles (total for today, 640 miles)

After getting the bikes settled in, we had more beer, a couple cheladas, and one of the best freaking burritos I've ever had from the local restaurant "Los Gorditos".

We ended up downtown somewhere, having a drink at a bar, where a friend of mine works, and I got to say hi to her as well. A great first day. I need sleep!!!

brand new bag(s)...baby

First I'll start with a couple of updated photos of the new ride. :D I recently had the suspension dialed in by Dave Moss at Catalyst Suspension in San Carlos. The bike used to push wide in curves, but now, it banks and turns and seems to float on a dime. Very good setup at the moment.

So a few months back, I scored some used hard luggage for the Multistrada for long distance trips, and so I don't have to haul my messenger bag everywhere I go (as it gets painful after about 500 miles).

Picked these up for about 300 bucks, used, scratched up, and had them prepped (sanded), as seen above with the old Ducati Red. I got them back the other day, and went to town with some primer and black gloss paint......

....and finally

some clear coat to match the bike. not to shabby for a garage rattle can job. The clear coat is about the best you can do with a rattle can, UPOL-#1 Clear. depending on how you spray it, you can give it a gloss look, or a wrinkled look.

Finally, I mounted the luggage rack and hardware to the bike (about 30 minutes of easy bolt on), and latched the bags on the bike to see how she stands.

She's looking pretty good...even with a nice wide ass. hahaha junk in the trunk. :D

Soon, heated grips, and a custom seat, so it doesn't feel like a plank after 200 miles.

Had to purchase new tires recently, with 6,000 miles on the current ones, after finding a screw in the rear tire when I got home from Nevada. Can't say enough great things about the Michellin Pilot Road 2 tires.

Aluminum swing arm repaired

So a few weeks ago I put up some photos of my faithful steed. I've ridden across the U.S. on her, especially the west coast. So I'm a little bit attached to her. So it was my dismay when she was damaged due to my carelesness. I called a friend of mine in Reno who welds and I figured I'd just take the swingarm off and have him repair it. So right before going to Reno, I decided to remove the swingarm. hahahaha 5 hours later, I had the swingarm off (doh!, a little longer than I expected), and was enroute to Reno in traffic (exactly what I was trying to avoid) hahaha
Before: After:

I took the entire rear of the M900 apart.

...and cleaned the hell out of everything. hmmm, don't think I've seen that part of the engine be any other color, other than black (covered in oil) haha

and in the end, she's all back together. I had barely gotten a little over 100 miles of scrub in time on my new tires, so I was itching to go out and ride.

I called Dave Moss at Catalyst Suspension, and rode down so he could dial in the bikes front forks, and rear shock. He made some measurements, and he dialed it in. Holy crap, the bike handles so much better now...it doesn't wallow on hard acceleration, and it tracks perfectly through corners under heavy acceleration. So I promptly rode home and got my other bike and came back to get that one dialed in. :D

aluminum swingarm damage.

So what does a $24.57 bolt do when it snaps?
Well, funny you should ask. If loosened, said bolt will allow the end cap of the chain adjusters to slip back and spin....consequently hitting the rear sprocket and chucking it into traffic somewhere....while at the same time ripping a chunk of the aluminum swingarm, outwardly with it.

Didn't even feel it happen while out riding. Was scrubbing in new tires, took a 111 mile quick trip here in the bay area shoreline area, and came home to this.

bummer. already lining up an Aluminum welder to repair it, and just need to get the parts. unbelievable that that 2 sided bolt is over $20 bucks.

It's PBR time.

Ducati M900 aluminum swingarm damage

IAH 2011 or bust!!!

Well, I made the executive decision to sign up for the IAH 2011 in Savannah, Georgia.
It's been too long (2005) since my last long distance ride to a hashing event, and this sounds about right. Clear across the country, with many awesome way points to stop at. The event is in mid-October, so not so sure how far north I will travel, but I will for certain get to ride some areas I have never ridden in the south east.

There are a few Knuckledraggers signed up so far, and we'll be converging on Savannah from all points on the map. Should be awesome. My last few trips to IAH (Costa Rica 2003) and (Toronto 2005) were amazing and super fun. I unfortunately missed Puerto Vallarta in 2007 due to some injuries from a motorcycle race crash....so I followed it up with a ride out and around the same areas, later the following year.

This should be a good time, and I'm looking forward to it. I have heard great things about Savannah.

The Wall, Oakland Hills, Ca. 3-20-10

So this past weekend was great. 3 days off, the weather was sunny and mid 60's to low 70's all weekend long. What better than to spend a few days exploring and getting outside. With a few runs over the weekend, I put in some miles and was happy about that. Saturday we rode out to "The Wall" in the Oakland Hills for some scenery and to run into a few friends.

Ran into Ben, Katia, Kurt and Jeff up there, as 2 of them were out riding and stopped in, and the other 2 were riding home from work, the long way. Good times, I enjoyed a nice chelada, great conversation, weather, and scenery. The ride home was spirited, as well as the jaunt across the bay bridge. :D as per usual.

A shot of the bike, right off the edge of "the wall", overlooking Oakland, the bay and SF.

BBQ

After a few errands and washing clothes, I decided to go out for a quick ride around the area. Decided that I wanted to try out a new BBQ joint in Lockhart. I've been here before, but it's been too long.

Kreuz Market (Since 1900) is one of the first ones you come across when you first roll into Lockhart from the North. Distinguishable by the huge red barn building that it is housed in.

This sign is particularly helpful. LOL

80,000 miles!!!

Hit another marker on the Monster. 80,000 miles. :D

Had some service done on my girl, and she is running like a champ.

Fortunately had the service done since Scott at Desmoto found two seized cam belt bearings. Luckily the belt hadn't snapped yet...but was about to. Ha!

Then had the forks redone.

The rebuild is coming soon, once I get the Multistrada out to California.

4 days off!!! (2 weeks ago)

So with my first stretch of 4 days off in a row, in a long time, I decided to go visit a couple places and get a ride in. The weather has been shitty cold lately, but it was supposed to clear up by Saturday. They lied. : hahaha

A nice cruise around Texas to see some friends, catch a hash, and explore a little.

First start was Royers Roundtop Cafe in Roundtop, Tx.

A nice looking Studebaker truck in Roundtop, along with the Multi. A row of pies so damned good, I walked out of this joint stuffed to the gills.

A nice "buddism" written on the cooler at the entrance to the cafe. hahaha

The cafe was featured on the CBS morning show, and on a few food network shows, mostly for their pies. JB was grilling (my co-workers husband) and came out to say hi. After which the waitress asked what I wanted, and I said, let JB decide on the best meal here.

I started off with the stuffed Jalapenos (with crab meat, cream cheese and breaded, and huge).

JB brought out the next plate, pork tenderloin in a peach and pepper glaze...with dirty mashed potatos and black eyed peas with bacon strips.

Rounding out desert with a slice of freshly made Pecan Pie a la mode.

F'ing delicious.

A couple shots inside the cafe. It is plastered with all kinds of random stuff throughout, dating back the almost 46 years that the cafe has been in operation. 23 years in the Royer family hands. Great place, and I'll be back for more pie. :D

Well, after warming up in the cafe, I knew I had about 175 miles to go. It's flippin' cold outside, so I'm layered and wearing the gortex riding jacket....only problem is that I don't have my winter gloves. My hands are frozen, and I pull into the gas stations to fill up and drink hot chocolate to warm up my hands. I think my last stop was somewhere near Ganado, Tx.

I arrived at Dr. Rockits Blues Bar where all the hashers were waiting and just in time to change and grab some chalk to hare this run. :D

After the obligatory misdirections down by the sacred whore (where all the BALH3 runs start)...I'm off. It was a marvelous trail, with three beer stops, in the span of 1 mile. I even heard the ever popular phrase and motto of the Bay Area Larrikins H3 "What would Chemo do?!" (which is usually followed up by diving into a random bar and making their own beer stops. LOL

The next morning I woke up to gray skies and drizzle. F it. I have all day to make it to the Woodlands as DTR and co. are all working today. So I got some breakfast at the local diner....even though I was craving some barbacoa and off I went.

A quick shot of me outside the hotel, and then down by the U.S.S. Lexington (The Blue Ghost), A couple of photos and then north on hwy 35. The headwinds were very strong, and that was ruining my gas mileage. I think I only got 30 mpg the whole way.

A quick stop on the side of the road near Gonzaga Bay as I made my way north. and to warm up my hands.

I finally made it to DTR's house and he decided to work from home for the rest of the day, and we went and got some Popeye's chicken since I was starving and a bit hungover.

Chanuka started and Spork lit the menorah, and we drank and played Kings Cup for hours. That is until Donnie decided to get hammered and wrestle me...much to his failure. LOL I gotta find those pics.

Spork got the wrapping that he wanted, and a very cool framed map of the U.S.A. made out of license plates that are from each state, and cut/bent/folded into the shape of their state.

Donnie just got that Kansas City Chiefs Jacket, but he was SOOOOOOOO HAPPY!!!! :D