| Author | Message | ||
     Etennuly |
Crusty, after an accident with injury on a bike, to consider no longer riding is a sign of intelligence. The ignorance of youth is behind you. You know..... Where one might crash, break several ribs and sprain your ankles then ride over 700 miles home within 14 hours. At our age we have the patience and time to let our intellect kick in, to actually think about what we are doing and the risks we are taking. Ah bullshit! You will be back on that thing as soon as the knees and hips will allow you to throw a leg over and hold it up! It is who we as riders are.....it is what will keep us out of the nursing home ..... or asylum! | ||
| Ourdee |
John, If for some crazy reason it is not healed well enough for Springfield, I will drive over and haul your carcass to and from the weekend festivities. | ||
| Adrenaline_junkie |
Not if I get there first Ourdee! | ||
| Ourdee |
You won't. (Message edited by ourdee on April 03, 2019) | ||
| Crusty |
Ah bullshit! You will be back on that thing as soon as the knees and hips will allow you to throw a leg over and hold it up! It is who we as riders are.....it is what will keep us out of the nursing home ..... or asylum! Truth. In 1997, a Jersey Barrier fell over on me at work and crushed my ankle. When I was in the hospital, I thought that if my leg was amputated, I'd either get a trike or a sidecar rig. Fortunately, I didn't lose my leg. I'm still going to ride again. I'm almost positive (over 99%) I'll be riding to Springfield for Memorial Day weekend. I don't think I'll be quite as fast as I used to be, but I could be wrong. I really wasn't that fast to begin with. However, at 68 years old, I think it's OK to slow down a little bit. I know that my healing processes have. | ||
| Court |
Frankly, I don't ride near as much as I used to . . . in fact, it's pretty rare these days. I used to ride pretty well and, when I started riding Buells . . . about 32 years ago . . . I had much better eyesight, reaction times and had the general reaction, perception and skill set of a person 32 years my junior. One of the key "skills" to riding as age advances is to respect the natural, unavoidable and inevitable degradation of some of these skills. When I do ride now . . . I am less aggressive, take fewer risks, plan better, have elevated respect for weather, fatigue, dark and things that wouldn't have phased me years ago. One of the keys . . . and, I speak only for my own perspective, of enjoying riding . . . at this age . . . is recognizing all the elements that it takes to be a skilled rider and being the best you can. I don't race 22 year olds on sport bikes . . . although I wish I still could. I was tempted to remind Erik Buell of this on his birthday, yesterday, but didn't want to have my ass kicked by an older person. :-) | ||
| 86129squids |
Did that jackass get pooted out of his momma's belly just the other day? WTF?! Erik, be sure to head to Vintage Days at Barber, this year or the next several. Happy BDay, friend. | ||
| Crusty |
Old and New Here's the helmet I was wearing when I went down. the face shield is obviously scratched, but what isn't visible is whatever damage happened when my head was slammed against the pavement.  Considering how hard my head hit, I won't take a chance with that helmet again. I bought a new Schuberth C3 Lite to replace my old C3. I was afraid that Schuberth might have changed something important and it wouldn't fit as nicely as the old C3, but the new hat fits me as snugly as the old one. Here's a picture of the two helmets together:  As soon as my legs heal, I'll get out on the Roadster and give the new hat a break-in ride. | ||
| Buellish |
Joe West (the cowboy shooter with the Roadster you met down here),Joe Alberts and I were talking about how much we missed you in Suches this past weekend.I hope you continue to heal quickly John. Mike | ||
| Etennuly |
Oh heck, I would have buffed that shield and put a couple layer wrap of duct tape around that helmet and run it another 10 years! | ||
| Crusty |
Vern; I know how hard my head slammed the ground, and I was hospitalized in 1994 when I was hit on the head by a drill steel while mining in a hard rock tunnel. Sometimes, I may act like I don't have much for brains, but I like the few I do have. As my brother David put it, my head is easily worth the price of a new helmet. It would cost a lot more in hospital expenses that that paltry sum, if the helmet hadn't done its job. Besides, it would have cost almost as much just to replace the shield and pinlock. My head is worth a good helmet. | ||
| Ourdee |
How is the bike healing? | ||
| Etennuly |
Yeah John I know. When I bought my first new bike, 1979 Honda CB 750 F, the dealer was running a free helmet promotion. My sales guy held up an all plastic helmet and a Hondaline helmet. He said this $10 plastic one is free, the $160 Honda helmet comes with $10 off. He looked me in the eyes and asked " what is your head worth?" Of course I took the cheap helmet.  I had my good Bell helmet out in the car. Used that cheap helmet for years for passengers on dirt bikes and snowmobiles. I always rode slower and smarter when loaded down with a passenger(who would not let me go fast anyways.) | ||
| Ourdee |
Crusty, I found something for you.   What do you think? | ||
| 86129squids |
Mr. Canfield, thanks for what you know, what you remembered, and everything you share. FWIW, just got back in from seeing Willie. It has been a fine day. | ||
| Crusty |
Ourdee; Those look to be in fine shape. Unfortunately, I don't think they'll fit my bike. The MoFoCo changed wheel bearing and axle sizes right around the time my bike was made and they probably wouldn't fit. The good news is that my wheels are not in need of replacement. | ||
| Ourdee |
If you get me measurements, I can check. My neighbor sold his bike and these were early removals. He was talking about finding a re-cycler to give them to. I raised my hand. The tires look good, but we know that rubber is old. | ||
| Crusty |
R.D.; If they're going to be junked, I'll take them! I hate to see perfectly good parts get scrapped. | ||
| Ourdee |
Now, that is the spirit. They are in great shape. | ||
| Crusty |
Road Music and Cramping Feet My brother has an enormous music collection and every so often, I compile a list of songs that all have a common theme. David will then put them all on one disc for me. Since I consider myself a bit of a Tramp, I tend to favor music that has traveling as a theme, and I’ve come up with a couple of collections that are comprised of songs that fit into that category. One was compiled during the summer of 2015 when I was living on the road. I covered thousands of miles singing various songs in my helmet. I made a list of the songs and performing artists while I was in Australia, and David put together a disc that was magnificent. He added a couple of songs that fit really well with my choices to use up the available time on the disc, and his choices were perfect. Anyway, one of the discs that I had been slowly compiling tunes for had a theme of being strictly instrumental. It wasn’t strictly Road Music, but I really liked everything on the list. There was one flaw, however; a couple of pieces that were included had vocals. The computer picked the song version rather than the instrumental and neither David nor I caught it until the disc was done. I liked them, so rather than do a complete remake, I just changed the title of the disc from Speechless to Almost Speechless. It turned out pretty well, and I’m happy with the results. I think that David was getting near the end of his patience when we were compiling the songs, but it really came out well. I bring that up because I’ve been listening to it while I ate dinner and while I’ve been hacking this out. The weather today was flawless; it was 76 F and mostly sunny. I have windows open throughout the house to let the fresh air in and I really want to get on the Roadster and put a few miles on. I would love to ride up to Springfield (Ohio) and have lunch at Rudy’s Smokehouse. But I can’t, yet. The healing process is being particularly slow. Lately I’ve had problems with the toes and ball of my foot cramping up. My legs are swollen enough that my calves and feet look like sausages. I think that the cramping in my feet is being caused by the swelling and injury to my thighs and calves. All the muscles in my legs feel tight, and close to 50% of the visible skin is discolored; mostly black and blue. I think that the muscles and tendons are pulling on the toes and that’s what’s causing the cramping. To be honest, even though my knees still hurt, if it wasn’t for the cramping, I’d probably be walking around a lot better and I’m about 90% sure that I’d be riding. Well, tomorrow, I see the Orthopedic Specialist, and I’ll get his opinion on what’s wrong. I hope he isn’t one of those quacks who hates motorcycles. I’ve run into way too many medical personnel who don’t want anyone to ride. When I was about to have my heart surgery, I met with the Cardiac Surgeon. I was wearing a Moto Guzzi sweatshirt, and he told me that when he was a poor medical student, he always wanted a Guzzi. I felt pretty good knowing that the guy who was going to cut up my heart had a positive attitude about bikes. He was an exception to the rule, however. Most medical professionals hate bikes and won’t hesitate to tell me why I shouldn’t ride. I have two words for them and the words aren’t Merry Christmas. In the movie The World’s Fastest Indian, after Burt Munro has had a Heart Attack, the Doctor tells him that his riding days are over. He responds, “Like Hell, they are.” That’s the right attitude, as far as I’m concerned. I hope that by this time tomorrow night, I feel like dancing from the good news I heard and I’m not swearing at another jackass of a quack. | ||
| Griffmeister |
Hey, some doctors are okay. After I had my back fusion I kept asking the surgeon when I could ride again. He held me off for about two months then said okay as long as I didn’t meet him back at the ER. The best part is you’re looking forward to getting back in the saddle, just stay away from that damn highway. | ||
| Ourdee |
Let us know what the news is tomorrow. | ||
| Zac4mac |
I came close to buying a Ducati from my spinal surgeon. He saved me from being a quadriplegic. He backed out , saying his wife wanted it. So I bought a shoveled wide-glide. Two years later, I bought my first Buell, a 2003 XB9R. Z | ||
| Crusty |
Boots Again I’m not a shoe freak; at least, I don’t think I am. I have three pairs of boots. A pair of Chippewa Rally boots that I lusted after for years, a pair of Thorogood side zip Jump boots that I use for daily wear and an old pair of Thorogood Deuce boots that are really scuffed up that I use for yard work. I should throw them out, but the soles don’t pick up as much mud as the Jump boots and if I’m kneeling on the garage floor working on the bike, it doesn’t matter if the toes get scuffed up. I used to be really into Engineer Boots, but after my ankle got crushed, it hurt too much to wear them, so I got into Italian motorcycle boots. They were lighter and didn’t hurt my ankle. They also didn’t last very long (I used them for daily wear) and were expensive. Time has passed and once I got the Chippewas, I realized that I probably could wear Engineer style boots again. The Rally boots are very well made, but they have a few flaws that fit into the annoying area. They’re not water proof. Hell, they’re held closed by a couple of straps with Velcro. When my foot is on the pegs, there is an open area along the seam that forms a small scoop if I didn’t quite get the straps tight enough. That’s OK in hot, dry weather, but it sucks in the rain. Also, the heel and sole are shaped more like cowboy boots. That means that they’re shaped right for riding, but they aren’t so comfortable for walking around. Don’t get me wrong; they’re not bad boots, but they just aren’t perfect. I still use them when I’m putting miles on the Roadster. A while back, I was looking at an e-mail from New Enough.com (now Motorcycle Gear) and they were showing a pair of TCX Fuel boots. They’re waterproof and have a side zipper and they look like a boot that I’d love. TCX makes good boots, so it started me thinking, but the price was almost 280 bucks. The Chippewas are still in good enough shape that I can’t justify spending that kind of money on a pair of new boots. Hell; it took me several years of lusting after the Chippewas before I bit the bullet and bought a pair. I never regretted buying them, though. Now, I just shelled out the dough for a new helmet. Even when they’re a bargain, Schuberth helmets aren’t cheap. My checking account is down to a hundred bucks and I don’t get my next deposit for another two weeks. I have enough food in the freezer to get by. I’ll have to buy bread and milk (and it isn’t even going to snow!) and maybe a couple of side items, but I’ll be OK. However, I’m broke. So why is the obsession to buy a pair of Fuel boots haunting me? I refuse to use the plastic. I will get it paid down come hell or high water. I don’t need the boots. It’s not like the helmet. The old helmet was compromised and it saved me from serious head injury. I really don’t need boots, from a safety standpoint. I have both the Jump boots and the Rally boots, and they both offer decent protection. I guess that it’s just the old desire looking for an opportunity. I will get a pair of Distressed Brown Fuel boots sometime in the future. Once that happens, I’ll be happy for a while until I get obsessed about something else. In the meantime, there’s a dealer who’s got a pair in my size for only $219.00 with free shipping from the U.K. I guess I’ll just avoid fleaBay for a while. Then, maybe I’ll get over it. | ||
| 86129squids |
Hey RoadCrust- given your all too recent get-off, I found this article extremely interesting this AM... http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2019/04/bontrager-w avecel-did-trek-just-revolutionize-safety-helmet-d esign/ Videos are very cool. Hope to see some MC brainbuckets made with this tech. | ||
| Crusty |
Just got back from seeing the Orthopedic $peciali$t. There's nothing permanently screwed up. It's just taking a longer while to heal because I'm an old fart. If I wasn't hurting so much, I'd be dancing a Tarantella right now. If this magnificent weather holds, I think I'll wash the Roadster tomorrow! | ||
| Adrenaline_junkie |
That's very good news John! | ||
| Adrenaline_junkie |
I'd dance s jig for you but I'm in an insurance office. They might up my premiums if they decide I'm nuts. | ||
| Etennuly |
Yeah haw! Good news. I'd dance for ya, but I'm better at napping. So.......  ...... | ||
| Ourdee |
I'll nap to that. |
