In just a week and a half I am finally making good on a promise to myself to do some traveling. I have a big chunk of time off and so I am going on an adventure in Australia. The first part of the trip will be 10 days spent on a 4WD camping trip from the Southern coast to the center of the country. We’ll be stopping at national parks, unique locales such as Coober Pedy, and geologic wonders like Uluru along the way. The second part of the trip will be about a week in Melbourne, with no definite plans other than to attend a match at the 2010 Australia Open. I’ll make up the rest of my time there as I go along, but you can be sure it will include sampling a few pubs and a beach or two. Hopefully I’ll also be able to catch up with my friend Ewen, who I haven’t seen very often since he moved back to Melbourne after working here in the States for a number of years. I’ll be taking a million pictures and posting them (or links to them) here whenever I can. I should be able to get internet access once I get back to civilization (Alice Springs or at the very latest, Melbourne). I may try and keep notes while traveling too, and transcribe any interesting bits here after I get home.
Countdown to Oz Trip
31 12 2009Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: Adelaide, Alice Springs, Australia, Australian Open, Ayers Rock, Coober Pedy, Melbourne, Outback, Uluru
Categories : Camping/Hiking, Travel
Metcalf Ride #2
15 11 2009I was disappointed this week to find that the Acerbis handguards I ordered did not fit because the used bike I bought has aftermarket Pro Taper handlebars that are a larger diameter. More disappointing than that was that my spark arrestor screen was shot (burned or corroded through). Without a USFS approved spark arrestor, you cannot ride in government land in CA. I figured I couldn’t get a replacement shipped in time to ride this weekend. But much to my happy surprise it showed up Friday! I decided to go for another spin down at Metcalf and get some seat time in. Like the YZ, it takes me a considerable amount of time to get “warmed up” and comfortable in the dirt still. But once I did some opening laps and trails the fun was starting again. I putted around the beginner trails and did some laps on the GP and ATV tracks, just feeling out corners, climbing, descending, and generally having fun. I think it had rained a little bit (I definitely drove through some sprinkles on my way down) so the dust was not bad. The trails are still pretty hard packed and dry, but that is probably how they always are. I took a little video to see how the GoPro works in the dirt. It’s pretty shaky because I stuck it to my front fender, so I’ll have to experiment with sticking it on my helmet. But who knows, maybe my head is just as shaky
The part of the day that was not so fun was when the banjo bolt on my front master cylinder came loose and it spat out a bunch of brake fluid. It went from the usual feel to completely dead between two pulls! Luckily it was in some single track (beginner single track anyways) and I was going slowly and could come to a stop with the rear brake. My touch with the rear brake still needs work, so I was really glad it didn’t happen on some fast downhill or something where I definitely would have been in trouble. My best guess is that a tree branch snagged the line or whacked the master cylinder and wiggled it loose enough to leak. If I had the handguards installed, I wonder if that would have happened? Luckily, the larger diameter mounting brackets should show up soon along with a skid plate, radiator braces, a shark fin, new grips, safety wire pliars, and safety wire. Notice a theme there? I’m going to try and make the YZ even more bullet proof as I’d like to continue abusing, I mean using, it for a while.
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Tags: Metcalf, Motorcycle, Yamaha, YZ250F
Categories : General
First Ride at Metcalf
1 11 2009All week long I was looking forward to taking the dirt bike out for another spin. I made plans to meet up with a guy named Raj from South Bay Riders. We went to Metcalf Motorcycle Park at 9am in order for him to show me around a bit and because we are both starting out and would be at similar skill levels in the dirt. This worked out great and we had a really good time. We each took some spills, including one in which I totally locked up the back tire in the pebbles, slid all the way up to the top of 8′ berm, flopped off the bike and slid on my back all the way down the berm like an overturned turtle for at least 20′!

O'Neal armor saved my back
Raj had to take off at 1:30 but I decided to hang around and get some more loops in. A nice guy named Brian was parked a couple of spots down from me and came over to say hi. We chatted for a bit and then he offered to take me for a spin and maybe show me a couple of trails I hadn’t done yet. We started off on trail 1, but he turned off into the GP track, which I hadn’t gone around before. It’s a really neat little track with some nice banked turns, but still more of an off road feel than a motocross track. Then we took off on down to some more trails. When we got to one particular junction, he pointed at a trail with a sign next to it with a black diamond on it. “Ignore that sign” he said, “it’s really not that hard. Just stay on the throttle, feather the clutch all the way up it, and let the bike follow the rut.” Sure. No problem. Well, I got about half way up it, finally got too squirrely and ended up stalling the bike. This was late in the day and with much of my energy sapped, it took me a few minutes to get out of the way, and get the bike kick started again. In the mean time, Brian had looped back around and come up alongside where I was on an adjacent trail. From there he offered some more coaching. When I complained that the back tire kept spinning he said “Go ahead and let the back tire spin, just put both feet down and let it spin, feather the clutch and you’ve got to give it more gas.” So I followed that advice to the best of my ability (clutch hand cramping and weakening as I went). I finally got up the climb and after some more rutted and tight single track we completed the loop. It really was a lot of fun and very challenging, for me at least. I’m glad he came by and offered to show me around. It was a great chance to see how an experienced rider does things

This rear tire needs replacing!
The majority of the trails were very hard-packed and dry, but it ranged from the equivalent of dusty concrete to jagged rocks to loose pebbly stuff. My rear tire is pretty much toast (it was when I bought the bike) so I’ll be replacing it soon, but I’m not sure a new tire would have made much difference in traction in those conditions. Dirt bike tires definitely appear to be less expensive than street tires, but maybe its because they probably don’t last as long? I should be able to pick up a new one on sale from Cycle Gear for less than $80.
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Tags: Metcalf, Motorcycle, YZ250F
Categories : Motorcycles
Valentino Rossi, MotoGP Champion 2009
29 10 2009When you look at Rossi’s list of records and accomplishments, it’s not hard to see why so many people consider him the GOAT. No he has clinched the 2009 title ahead of stiff competition from teammate Jorge Lorenzo, Ducati’s Casey Stoner, and Honda’s Dani Pedrosa. He is an incredible competitor.
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Tags: MotoGP, Motorcycle, Racing
Categories : Motorcycles, Sports
Ben Spies, WSBK Champion 2009
28 10 2009Ben Spies has taken the first ever World Superbike championship for Yamaha! We knew he’d do great things in WSBK, but there were times during the season when it looked like he would be denied by some outstanding performances by Noriyuki Haga and some bad luck (running out of gas on the last lap while leading race one in Italy, being taken out by Michel Fabrizio, being taken out by Max Biaggi, being taken out by Jonathan Rea, etc.)
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Tags: Motorcycle, Racing, Superbike
Categories : Motorcycles, Sports
Practice Run
26 10 2009Unloading was easy since there are a couple of different height concrete ramps I could easily back my pickup to and unload the bike myself. Once I was ready and had all my gear on it was time to fire it up. I kicked and kicked and the thing didn’t want to start. “Those four strokes are coldhearted, ain’t they?” quipped a guy relaxing in the shade. The trouble is the choke plunger is worn out and wouldn’t stay “choked” so I had to try and hold it out while also kicking. Even at 6′2″ straddling the bike holding the plunger out, keeping it upright with the other hand, and kicking it over is a struggle. Finally it started to sound like it was firing and then eventually it burbled to a stuttering idle. I let it warm up while I cooled down. And then I put my helmet and goggles on, straddled the blue demon and dropped it into gear.
I took off for a lap around the perimeter of the park, attempting to shift up through the gears and listening for anything suspect. I think I just expect with a used bike the thing could explode into metal fragments at any time, but it was sounding and running well. I struggled to interpret any feedback from the shift lever with my new boots and motocross boots are like big armored leggings and take some getting used to. My first dump of the day happened in a corner when I accidentally downshifted into 1st gear instead of 2nd and the back end got loose and I didn’t save it. No harm done, I hit the dirt and the bike stalled, but I was fully protected. After that I got more and more used to riding, especially standing up. I am so much more comfortable on this bike than the little 125 that I took the MSF dirt bike school on. This size bike suits me much better and is actually quite comfortable to ride standing up on.
All in all it was pretty much everything I had hoped for in a test run. I just picked different paths and turns and directions each run and tested out braking and throttle and shifting. Just getting a feel for the bike and being in the dirt basically. I hope to go to some more interesting places in the near future, and try out some more interesting trail type riding. But I wouldn’t mind going back to the San Luis SRA just for some more practice and fun in the dirt.
Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: Motorcycle, San Luis SRA, Yamaha, YZ250F
Categories : General
It’s Time To Get Dirty
16 10 2009I have wanted a dirt bike since I was a little kid. I don’t recall now how or why exactly I fell in love with them, I just know that I obsessed over every Dirt Bike magazine I could get my hands on. Growing up on a farm in somewhat rural central New York state, you would think that I had a little dirt bike on the farm then. No. No I had a bmx bike that I rode and made revving “brrraaap! brrraaaaaaap!!” noises on, but I never had a dirt bike. Today, I took a step back into my childhood.
I still have gear to get (helmet, goggles, gloves, pants, jersey, knee and elbow pads, roost deflector, boots), but with the money I saved buying a used bike I’m feeling pretty damn good about it overall. I secretly hope to get enough gear tonight and tomorrow to take a quick ride this weekend! Stay tuned.
- New To Me 2005 YZ250f
- New To Me 2005 YZ250f
- New To Me 2005 YZ250f
Comments : 3 Comments »
Tags: dirt bike, Motorcycle, Yamaha, YZ250F
Categories : Motorcycles
Alice In Chains @ The Fillmore
29 09 2009
Alice In Chains Performs at the Fillmore in San Francisco
Went to see Alice In Chains at the Fillmore last night with my good friend Shawn. It was a pretty good show, decent crowd, and they sound every bit as good live as one could hope. I hadn’t been out to see a show since I saw Opeth at the Regency Ballroom in May, so it was a good way to spend a Monday night.
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Categories : General
Beautiful Day for a Ride
26 09 2009Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: 1, lighthouse, Motorcycle
Categories : Bay Area, Motorcycles
New Exhaust, Power Commander
2 09 2009I just ordered a new M4 full exhaust system for my SV650s and a DynoJet Power Commander III usb! I can’t wait until they show up so I can install them and check out the new performance and sound. I debated for quite a while about which exhaust to get. In the end I think I would have been happy with any of them, but the M4 system seemed to be a good balance between performance and price. Plus I think the carbon can is going to look awesome (anything looks better than the stock can)! I’ll be sure to take pictures and post them during/after the install. Nothing like dropping a G on your hobby before 9am.
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Tags: DynoJet, exhaust, M4, Motorcycle, power commander
Categories : Motorcycles








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