| Author | Message | ||
     Ourdee |
The welder may have to grind out a little then fill it back in. | ||
| Crusty |
No; I'm quite serious. Because I have a mechanical valve in my heart, I have to take a blood thinner to keep clots from forming and possibly causing a stroke. Green vegetables are high in vitamin K which aids in coagulation. Most Cardiologists prefer that their patients avoid all sources of coagulants. Mine also recognizes that it doesn't make sense to withhold the other beneficial aspects of green vegetables. Plus, I like most green veggies. If I had to avoid all of them, I'd short out one day and go on a major broccoli feed, or do something similar. By the way, the asparagus was delicious! (as was the steak and potato) | ||
| Zac4mac |
Go for it John. The best memories of a bad relationship include finding wild asparagus for dinner. Z | ||
| 86129squids |
Another good day on this side of the dirt. | ||
| Damnut |
John, I have a welder if needed. | ||
| Crusty |
Tramping, Or Just Talking Trips? As of right now, it looks like I won’t do the Vermont Ride until next week. I found a welder to fix my broken bag mount, but I won’t have that done until Saturday morning. I can’t believe how difficult it is to find a local welder. I had problems last spring, and now I was calling all over the place before I found one who’ll take on such a small job. I had a few tell me flat out that they weren’t interested, and a couple who wouldn’t return my phone call after I left a message on their voice mail. In the meantime, when I’m not looking at houses in Cincinnati, I’ve been looking at maps and plotting a route to Alaska. I posted on a thread on Adventure Rider, and got some interesting responses. The one that has me thinking suggested that instead of going to Fairbanks, I go up the Dempster Highway from Dawson City, Yukon. He said that the scenery is better. So that leaves me wondering if I should hit the Arctic Circle in Canada or in the USA. Of course, I could do both. Maybe I will; we’ll see. There’s a non-rally that takes place in Dawson City around the time of the Solstice. (I was told, It is not a rally and if you call it a rally, then angry, bad and cranky men and women will visit your home in the wee hours of the night and emasculate you.... and not in a good way). So I could go to Dawson City for the Solstice, then head up to the Arctic Circle. I think it will be kind of cool to experience a Midnight Sun. When I was in Jasper Nat’l Park, it was light until 11:00 PM, then it got light at 3:30 AM. 24 hours of Sun will be a new experience for me. On Badweb, there’s a thread suggesting that the Buelltoberfest Rally in Suches, Georgia be moved to November. I had pretty much resigned myself to not making it this year, but if it’s a month later, I just might be able to afford it. I really like Two Wheels of Suches. It’s pretty much my favorite campground. Plus, I really like the food at Jim’s Smokin’ BBQ. Plus, I could see all the Badwebbers I haven't seen since last time I was in Suches as well as the ones I have. I could stop in and visit with Grace and Steve in Fayetteville along the way. I’ve caught enough flack about traveling on a Sportster, and how it’s a “City Bike”; I want to find out what went wrong with the Real “Touring Bike” that caused it to be towed home after it died on the Interstate. (Steve and Grace never said anything detrimental about my Roadster, but there are people on Forums who have. The point I want to make is that all machines break down, even the Indestructible Touring behemoths. I still believe that the Sportster is the most under rated bike out there. In other news, along with an Ear Cannon horn, I think I want to fit a Daymaker LED headlight on the Roadster. Eagle Lights makes it, and they sell it for a lot less than H-D. It’s supposed to be an order of magnitude better than the stock headlight, and installation is “Plug & Play”. I’ve been reading about them, and everyone has rated it at five stars (out of 5). For under $150.00, that sounds worthwhile. Well, time to go. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I saw a friend of a friend on facebook advertising a rental property in Germantown Ohio (Dayton area, about an hour north of Cincinnati) with a two car garage, two bedrooms, and one bath for $850 a month and thought of you Crusty. Parts of Germantown are sketchy, but parts are probably little enclaves of good hard working people. No idea which this house was in, but it didn't look awful from the pictures. | ||
| Pwnzor |
John, I found that Daymaker on Amazon for $156.60 with free shipping... Let me know if you would like me to have that shipped to you, I'd be glad to use my Prime account if it saves you a few bucks https://www.amazon.com/Daymaker-Projection-Headlig ht-Davidson-Motorcycles/dp/B010BWSW5Q | ||
| 86129squids |
Not familiar with the Ear Cannon, but I highly recommend a Stebel Nautilus horn... I had one installed on my Triumph, and installed one myself on my GF's car. For $50ish, a great horn! | ||
| Damnut |
Brad the ear cannon is the Stebel Nautilis horn. http://www.aerostich.com/ear-cannon-air-horn.html They do go bad if you don't use them for a bit. I know the one in my XB12R shit the bad and the one in my S3 will sound like shit if I don't use it. | ||
| Pwnzor |
My horn sounds like somebody stepped on a crippled mouse. | ||
| Ourdee |
Crusty, You are a bad influence. I have been looking at sportsters and thinking I like them. I haven't did anything disgusting like sitting on one yet. But the HD shop is on my way to work and back. Just 3 miles away. I know I don't like the weight of the big boy bikes. That sportster just seams to make sense as a touring machine for me. | ||
| Etennuly |
Tramping, Or Just Talking Trips? What the hell man? Are you imposing a qualifying rule on your self? I don't see where it matters if you are on an epic cross country five month trip or a weekend hop, your snippets are interesting and inspiring. They worked to inspire me(or made me feel bad about not riding) to ride my Uly to town the other day(and the time before that). Oddly enough I cannot ride to town on it anymore without thinking about you at least once while I have it out. I do miss my long distance traveling on it. Who knows.....if you come down for what used to be Buelltoberfest you could maybe lay over here and if all is well I might ride down with you.   | ||
| Tootal |
If I am able to ride down from St. Louis then I will guilt you into riding a few miles! If not then I'll just stop by and drink your beer and verbally abuse you!  | ||
| 86129squids |
Whoops- never paid attention to the other moniker. If I could only figure out a way to put a real train horn on all my vehicles... | ||
| Crusty |
Vern; your question deserves a Snippet all by itself. Stay tuned... Brad; I absolutely love the description of the Ear Cannon in the Aerostich catalogue: If Ethel Merman, Sam Kinison and John Philip Sousa ever had a band, and played through a wall-of-sound amp rack, it would sound like this. | ||
| Crusty |
Welding. Tramping. Traveling. Tripping. My bag mount is fixed, finally. I found an old school type welder, and not only did he fix the bracket, we had a very good conversation while I was at his shop. Also, he charged me a very fair price for the work. I told him that I felt like I was stealing it. He’s a good guy and has a good attitude. I now have a new favorite Welder. I still can’t believe how tough it’s become to get something like my bracket welded. But now I’m set. I guess I ought to give him a plug here. His name is Lenny, and his shop is DC Welding on Felton St. in Waltham, Massachusetts. if you’re in this neck of the woods and you need something welded, I recommend him. Now I can start running the bags on my bike again! Maybe I’ll just have to go somewhere, just to use them. I know; Vermont! I posted my last Snippet on the usual forums, and got this in partial response: Tramping, Or Just Talking Trips? What the hell man? Are you imposing a qualifying rule on your self? I don't see where it matters if you are on an epic cross country five month trip or a weekend hop, your snippets are interesting and inspiring. They worked to inspire me(or made me feel bad about not riding) to ride my Uly to town the other day(and the time before that). Oddly enough I cannot ride to town on it anymore without thinking about you at least once while I have it out. I do miss my long distance traveling on it. I feel a need to respond. First, I try to title each of my Snippets and after writing several hundred, sometimes it gets tough to come up with a good title. Since the Snippet was about future trips, I felt that Talking Trips was a good description. I’m not imposing any qualifiers on myself. I’m delighted that my Snippets inspire someone to go out on their bike, but the intent of all my Snippets is to put down my mad perceptions about being a die hard motorcyclist. I admit and accept that I’m a hard core motorcyclist. Hell, I’m proud of it; but I also realize that in being so, I’m a bit of a nut case. That’s OK. Yes, I don’t really enjoy riding in temperatures below freezing, but I’d rather do that than sell my bike and get a car. On occasion, I’ve been able to afford both a car and a bike, but when I can’t have both, it’s the car that goes. Motorcycles are an addiction for me, and I react to not having one the same way any addict reacts to having his drug of choice withheld. Not only am I addicted to riding; I love doing it. I try to share my love of riding through my Snippets, and it looks like I’m somewhat successful in that. If reading what I write inspires somebody to get out on their bike and it reawakens their love for riding, then I consider that to be Wonderful. I wrote a successful Snippet. I also write Snippets to sort out my own thoughts and feelings. One of the more significant phone calls I made this past summer was to my friend Dondi who asked me if my focus had shifted from being wandering oriented to being focused on my destination. It made me sit back and think. Eventually, I realized she was right. I was doing “Point & Shoot” traveling, and I was missing out on seeing and experiencing what was all around me. Writing about it helped me get it sorted out in my head. The specific Snippet that brought such a response was, I thought, focused on rides in the future. Riding to Alaska is going to be a huge undertaking for me. It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for decades. I’m feeling a bit of trepidation, but at the same time, I feel really pumped about finally getting to take the trip. I know that there are thousands who’ve done it, but to me it’s going to be a Major Event. I’ll be writing quite a few Snippets about it, I’m sure as the months pass and the departure gets closer. Kind of like I did when I started this bout of Tramping last year. There are things I’ll need to get sorted out and I’ll be passing my experience, strength and hope along to anyone who cares to read about it. Well; I’ve got to go out to the garage and put a coat of wax on the Roadster before I put the bags back on. I wish I could find a set of 30 Liter H&B Juniors for cheap (once I get my check). They’d be better for close to home riding, and the bike would look better, too. Oh; the title of this Snippet is Welding. Tramping. Traveling. Tripping. To me, Traveling, Tramping and Tripping are synonyms. They all mean what I love to do. No; not that kind of Tripping; I gave that up a long time ago. | ||
| Etennuly |
To clarify my " what the hell man!" statement, it should have been followed immediately by a "  " and possibly even followed up with "in the voice of Hank Hill". For some stupid reason I have taken to saying that to myself and folks around me when a humorous/stupid/or silly thing has been said, or is about to happen. Sometimes I work alone too often. But it was meant totally in a humorous fashion with no serious intent. Keep on keeping on! Enjoying what you do!  | ||
| Crusty |
Rider’s Block We all know what Writer’s Block is. Hell; I experience it constantly. I can be riding along, and come up with a great topic, and compose a magnificent Snippet in my mind in great detail; then, as soon as I stop and pull out the laptop, I can’t think of a single thing to write about. Most of my best writing never got to be typed out; it dissipated as soon as I turned the ignition key off. I don’t like it, but I’ve come to accept it. I have done things like written down possible topics, but I can never recapture the proper frame of mind to put it down on paper. Plus, most of the time, I can’t even put the topic down on paper; I think of things while I’m riding. Sometimes, however, I do remember and I’ll hack out a Snippet about whatever it was. That’s Writer’s Block; right now I’m experiencing Rider’s Block. I don’t have a lot of enthusiasm for riding. I still ride every day; my bike is my only transportation, but I’m not enthused about traveling. I’m finding excuses to not go places. I’ve put off the Vermont Ride a couple of times. I like riding through Vermont. I went up to the Wilson House on Labor Day weekend, and intentionally stayed away from the route I use when I do the Ride, so it wouldn’t be “More of the Same”, yet I just don’t feel like going. I don’t feel like camping, and I don’t want to get a motel room. If I push myself, I’d probably enjoy the ride, but I just don’t feel like pushing myself. I was going to go last week, but I had to get the bag mount welded, so I didn’t go. Since then, I’ve been watching the weather, and I figured that if I left either yesterday or today, I’d have beautiful weather for the ride; mid 70s to mid 80s during the day and mid 50s at night and a 10% chance of rain. It sounds close to perfect. But I need to wash my sleeping bag and I can’t push myself to get to the Laundromat. I’m searching for reasons to not go. Plus, I’m not sure if I trust the Roadster. I haven’t recovered from the bike destroying its engine. I don’t know if I can get over it. I remember reading a magazine article about a guy who’d had an accident on his Norton. Even though the bike was repaired, it never felt right to him afterwards. He finally sold the bike, and the guy who bought it loved it and had no problems with how it felt. Maybe if I rebuild the original engine using only the best parts (XR 1200 crank, newest oil pump, bronze gear, S&S lifters, etc), I’ll regain some trust in the bike. Then again, that would be expensive, and I really think there’s an 1190 on my horizon. I’m pretty sure I’d trust an 1190. I haven’t heard of any catastrophic failures (other than the race team, and I won’t be stressing the engine nearly as much as they did). Maybe what I need to do is take another Demo ride. Mike K. offered me a ride on his SX, and I didn’t take him up on it. Maybe I should have. I’ll just have to find a dealer who does offer demo rides and take one. Hmmm; maybe if Froggy brings his SX to Buellvemberfest, he’ll let me take it out for a short run. I’ll have to ask him. Anyhow, that’s all in the future. I think I’ll just get off my dead ass and take a ride North. I bet tomorrow would be a good day to head out. | ||
| 86129squids |
RoadCrust- IIRC you recently had a donor motor installed, even DIY... why don't you trust your steed now? I kinda get it, but not really... in my experience, most Sportster Evo motors, if treated right, are pretty reliable. To me it sounds like a good, long scenic ride with some proper grub stops would help clear your mind. On that note, let's see if I can clear my schedule for a weekend in November... | ||
| Crusty |
The Rain, The Bike And Everything We’re getting some much needed rain. It’s pouring right now, but it should quit shortly. I just looked at the radar and there’s more coming, but it shouldn’t get here for a few hours. All the cities and towns around here have had Water Bans in effect for a while, so I guess it’s a good thing. Personally, I kinda like the dry conditions we’ve had. I could wash and wax the bike and it kept it’s shine for a long while. I got caught in a brief shower, yesterday, and after the road phlegm got all over the bike, it needs to make another trip to the car wash. Oh well; she was getting to the point where I was going to wash her and put another coat of wax on, anyway. The other day, I started thinking about how beautiful it is around here. Sometimes, I get so caught up in thinking about far away places that I don’t see the beauty that’s all around me. It hit me as I was riding over to Fitchburg; I’m not seeing what’s really here. I ride these roads pretty frequently, so I tune out most of what’s there, but there’s a whole lot of really neat stuff packed into a half hour ride. Last summer, I had people telling me to go somewhere in Michigan so I could ride through a “Tunnel of Trees”. That’s common around New England. I ride through miles of it each time I go more than two miles from my apartment. I tried to take a picture on Rt. 117 in Bolton, but, as usual, it didn’t translate well. Still, I’ll attach it. There’s a pond on a farm in Lancaster where every year, Canadian Geese come to lay their eggs and raise the goslings. Now that the little fuzzballs have grown, there’s a huge crowd there quite often when I pass by. There’s a building near there that used to be Cully’s Snowmobile Ranch; now it’ a grocery store called Kalon Farm. They advertise grass fed beef. They’re a farm from a couple of towns over, and they have two stores. The one I pass by is the newest. I think I’ll stop in and get my birthday steak there. Oh, yeah; my Birthday is this week. I’m going to fix my usual Birthday Dinner. I’m going to have a 12 - 14 oz. Delmonico Steak, asparagus and either a nice baked Yukon Gold potato, or, if it’s still available, a couple of ears of sweet corn from Gove Farm. For my Birthday Cake, I’m going to have an Alden-Merrill Chambord Torte. It’s rich, Devil’s Food Cake with a layer of cheesecake that’s got 2 very thin layers of raspberry syrup (one on the cheesecake and one just below the super rich chocolate ganache. I lack the words to describe just how good it is, but my taste buds know and I start drooling just thinking about it Well; the rain has stopped and so has the clothes dryer. I guess I’ll go fold some clothes.  | ||
| Pwnzor |
Great snippet, thanks for sharing. Here's a fun fact about those "Canadian Geese": They are properly referred to as "Canada Goose" or "Canada Geese" for the plural. They are not Canadian, although they do exist there in large populations, but they are found in parts of Europe and New Zealand. | ||
| Etennuly |
Well happy birthday John! Congrats on having another one! Yep, it is beautiful there. Same with here. Got to take time to smell the 'local' roses now and again. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Happy Birthday, John! That dinner sounds pretty awesome! Don't forget to have something appropriate to wash it down.  | ||
| Crusty |
Happy Birthday, John! That dinner sounds pretty awesome! Don't forget to have something appropriate to wash it down. Fresh ground Kenya whole bean with light cream. | ||
| Pwnzor |
The happiest of birthdays to you, sir! The Delmonico steak is a fine choice to treat yourself with. Salt, pepper, fire and a bit of smoke. One of God's finer gifts to his creation. Bon apetit! | ||
| Etennuly |
Dammit! ya done gone an made me hungry again! Stop that! | ||
| Ourdee |
Happy Birthday! | ||
| Court |
Crusty: Happy Birthday . . . and enjoy that meal . . . I like your taste(s) ! Court | ||
| Crusty |
Babblings I just put a spit shine on the Roadster. Damned if she ain’t a beautiful bike; I mean, she’s pretty when she’s filthy, but when she’s all spiffed up, she’s downright gorgeous. She needed a spit shine; two days of rain and road phlegm left her looking a bit tough. It’s funny, but when I’m on the road, I don’t mind a bit if she’s dirty; but when I’m sitting still I want her looking pristine. Oh well, I was always weird; even in High School. I have a friend of a friend who’s drop dead beautiful. She’s quite attractive, seems reasonably intelligent and I find myself drawn to her and she seems to like me. There’s only one problem; she doesn’t like motorcycles. She won’t ride on one. Motorcycles are my life, so I don’t see any hope in pursuing her. Hell, I can’t even take her out to dinner; my bike is my only transportation. Oh well… As I was heading toward home after washing the Roadster at the quarter car wash in Leominster, I observed a woman in a car run two red lights. The first one, I just made it through on a yellow. She was a solid two seconds behind me and just rolled through the light. We both caught the red light at the next signal, and when I looked over, she was holding her phone and yakking away. About five miles later, she ran the red light again. This time she was at least four seconds behind me, and the light had been red for three of those. When I see crap like that, I wish I had a cell phone jammer with me. Some idiots should not be allowed to drive. Everything’s on order or purchased for my Birthday Dinner. The steak I got was a bit bigger than I had wanted. I’ll just eat 12 ounces and save the rest for the next day (Yeah, right.) The cake is on order; I have to pick it up at 10:00 AM on Thursday. I bought the asparagus. Gove Farm assured me they’d have lots of fresh picked corn on Thursday. Just to be safe, I bought a 1 pound Yukon Gold potato. I can always bake it for Friday night’s dinner. I can have the left over steak, and left over asparagus with it. And maybe another slice of that Chambord Torte. A birthday meal two nights in a row? Why not? The sun has come out and the temp is up around 80º F (26.6º C). I’m feeling antsy, so I think I’ll go for a ride. |
