| Author | Message | ||
     Crusty |
Out For Delivery Yesterday, I thought a good bit about what to write in a Snippet about fleaBay. I was going to rant about how much they’ve gone down hill; kinda like the upper Mismanagement at HDI. Then this morning, I find that my front fender is “Out For Delivery” and I should get it today. For some reason I don’t know, there was no tracking between when the seller got a tracking number and when the package arrived at the CINCINNATI OH NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER last night at 7:44 PM. I also saw where the seller who was selling saddlebag brackets had canceled the shipment to me. It turns out that he had goofed and had gotten two tracking numbers for the same shipment, so he canceled one of them. The brackets are in the other package and it’s also on its way. So hopefully, by next week, my new Roadster will be capable of traveling down the road on. It still needs paint, and I have to get hold of Joe and see if & when he can modify the front fender bracket, and a few other major changes like a new seat, a sissy bar and Luggage rack, etc; but it’ll be good enough for the time being. I’m excited enough that I would go ahead and buy the seat; but because of the Wuhan virus, Mustang Seats has been shut down for a couple of months and nobody has a Wide Vintage seat in stock. I guess I’ll just have to wait. Oh well… I can still go on a rant about fleaBay, though. There are still scam artists out there who try to screw people over, but FleaBay is really good about getting a burned buyer’s money back. Like when I was looking for a parts manual for the 78. the “Seller” lied and evaded my e-mails, and once the proper amount of time had passed and I got no package, I lodged a complaint and left bad feedback. EBay refunded my money and I bought a manual from someone else. But I still lost a couple of weeks and it left me a good bit less trusting. Another thing I don’t care for is the number of Boneyards who sell on fleaBay. Now, I have nothing against Boneyards, I’ve bought many parts from them over the years; but it seems that most (but not all) of the boneyards who list parts on fleaBay are more than a little usurious. You have to know how much the part costs new, before you look for a used one. I know of one part that costs 10 bucks, brand new, at a dealership, but almost every used one on fleaBay is selling for at least 20 bucks plus $15.78 shipping. Shop Manuals sell for $130.00 new; I’ve seen some that were used for as much as $350.00. One more thing that I have a bug up my butt about is the number of sellers who list the same product dozens of times. I saw an entire page of Krator gas caps the other night. That’s 50 listings for the same freakin’ part. And I wasn’t even looking for gas caps, I was looking at used gas tanks for the 78. Still; sometimes you can find that part that nobody else has for a reasonable price. The 4.5 gallon gas tank that’s on the 05 (that Vern did such a magnificent job on) came from fleaBay at a very reasonable price. The trick is to be both vigilant and patient. So my fender is coming today; the saddlebag support brackets will be here next week and so will the LED Daymaker headlight. The Gentleman’s express is getting closer to becoming a Reality! | ||
| Tootal |
Next time you're looking for used parts check out Fallen Cycles in Dayton Beach. They're on Fleabay also but are great guys that really helped me out when I did my Carb to FI conversion. Reasonable prices too. | ||
| 1313 |
Shortly after the pandemic started USPS was actually beating their estimated arrival dates. Then, I'm chalking it up to the stupid antics (people standing on roadways, rioting and other BS...) some weird things ended up happening. OK, weirder than the normal weird. The normal weird for me was that sometimes my parcels ended up going to Winnabow, NC when they should have been sent my way. I chalked it up to someone with dyslexia sorting packages - 285 goes here, 287 goes here, and on and on. But nothing takes the cake like a parcel that I finally received today. Here's the history - from SC to NC via South Jersey: June 19, 2020, 2:21 pm Delivered, Front Door/Porch ERNUL, NC 28527 Your item was delivered at the front door or porch at 2:21 pm on June 19, 2020 in ERNUL, NC 28527. June 19, 2020, 12:35 pm Out for Delivery ERNUL, NC 28527 June 19, 2020, 12:24 pm Arrived at Post Office VANCEBORO, NC 28586 June 19, 2020, 6:19 am Departed USPS Regional Destination Facility FAYETTEVILLE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER ANNEX June 18, 2020, 10:37 pm Arrived at USPS Regional Facility FAYETTEVILLE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER ANNEX June 18, 2020, 10:30 pm Departed USPS Regional Facility FAYETTEVILLE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER ANNEX June 18, 2020, 6:49 pm Arrived at USPS Regional Facility CHARLOTTE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 18, 2020, 6:28 pm Departed USPS Regional Facility MID CAROLINA-CHARLOTTE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 18, 2020, 3:24 pm Arrived at USPS Regional Facility MID CAROLINA-CHARLOTTE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 18, 2020, 4:54 am Departed USPS Regional Facility PHILADELPHIA PA DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 18, 2020, 12:35 am Arrived at USPS Regional Facility PHILADELPHIA PA DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 18, 2020, 12:09 am Departed USPS Regional Facility SOUTH JERSEY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 17, 2020, 2:13 am Arrived at USPS Regional Facility SOUTH JERSEY NJ DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 16, 2020, 9:02 am Arrived at USPS Regional Facility FAYETTEVILLE NC DISTRIBUTION CENTER ANNEX June 16, 2020, 4:00 am Departed USPS Regional Facility GREENVILLE SC DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 15, 2020, 8:06 pm Arrived at USPS Regional Origin Facility GREENVILLE SC DISTRIBUTION CENTER June 15, 2020, 4:38 pm Departed Post Office SIMPSONVILLE, SC 29680 June 15, 2020, 12:03 pm USPS in possession of item SIMPSONVILLE, SC 29680 I wish I got the frequent flier miles that some of the packages I received have traveled... | ||
| Buellish |
What the hell???!!! | ||
| Crusty |
About two years ago, I had a gas cap that started out about 20 miles away in Hebron, KY. It went from there to Cincinnati to Greensboro, North Carolina, Fayetteville, NC, to Charleston, West Virginia, to Cincinnati to Cheviot. It took over a week to go 20 miles from origin to destination. A friend who used to work at the Post Office explained that sometimes a piece of loose tape on one package will stick to another and bring it with it; or sometimes a small package might get stuck in a bin, or it might even fall off the conveyor and fall into the wrong pile. Like Forrest Gump said, "Shit happens". Still; it sucks when it happens to something for me. | ||
| Crusty |
A Tomato, A Fender and Helpful Friends I went grocery shopping with my brother the other day. It’s convenient for me because I can buy lots of bulky items. When I’m on the bike, I have to restrict how much I buy. Also; when I go shopping with David, we hit two or three different stores so we can take advantage of the sale items. Plus, it gives us a chance to spend time together. We don’t discuss politics much; he and I are on opposite ends of the political spectrum. We do tolerate each other’s opinions, but he’s not going to change mine and I’m not going to change his. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. Anyway; the first supermarket we hit was Jungle Jim’s. While in the Produce department, I spotted some tomatoes grown in Tennessee. They were pricier than others, but they caught my eye, so I bought one. I just fixed a BLT for brunch and that tomato was the best tasting tomato I’ve had in years. It tasted like the tomatoes my grandmother used to grow in the garden. I’m going to have to go back and get some more; it was that good! My “new” front fender arrived yesterday afternoon. It’s from a 2011 XR 1200 and I bought it hoping it would be easy enough to modify so it would fit on the 16. Plus Joe had said he would be willing to try to make it fit. When I got it, I immediately went down to the garage to see how close it was to fitting like the stock band-aid sized fender. My hopes sank about like the Titanic. It doesn’t match up in the least. Still, I called Joe. He told me that he loves to bend, cut and weld and he thinks he can make it work. I have no skills in the bodywork area, so I’m in awe when I see what can be done. So, one Saturday in the next few weeks, I’ll ride up to Joe’s house and watch as he does his thing. I’m really fortunate that I’ve managed to have so many helpful friends. People who are willing to help me achieve a goal. Vern took a battered Custom tank and fixed it up and painted it for the Roadster. Greg machined the spacers so I could raise the handlebars on the 16. (He also brought me a free washer and dryer from St. Louis!) Joe painted the front fender and air cleaner for the 05 and he’s willing to do the Soul Red paint when it’s time. There are many others, as well. Roy has sent me a few helpful items over the past couple of years and R.D. helped me move into my house back in 17 and has brought me furniture, household items and tools in abundance. (He also gave me a beautiful double bladed hatchet!) Don came down from Buffalo and he helped a lot toward getting the plumbing sorted when I bought the house so it was livable. And there’s my brother David; without all the work he put in, I wouldn’t be living here. And he continues to be a huge assistance to me in many ways. I sometimes wonder what I’ve done to deserve having such helpful people in my life. I guess I’m just looking at my life and seeing just how Blessed I am. It’s a very humbling experience. That’s today’s Snippet. When I first started typing, I was only going to write about that wonderful Tomato; but one thing led to another and it wound up making me see how good I’ve got it. Thank you all! | ||
| Ourdee |
Living right I guess. | ||
| 86129squids |
What RD said. Great Snippet, Brother Crusticle. I'm sitting here typing, also smelling the "kitchen sink" frittata my honey's got in the oven. A month into my new job, I've read gobs of articles about the restaurant industry, none of them good. As much as I enjoyed that work, I've resolved that I can never go back. My biggest blessing lately was that message from my best buddy asking if I was working... that essentially was my parachute out of career free-fall. That big weekly unemployment money was tough to give up, but I had no future after it ended. In these times we should all be mindful of our blessings, and strive to bring blessings to all our own. Re: Tennessee Tomatoes. Grainger county is known for theirs, but any good farmer's market nowadays will have unbelievably good homegrown 'maters. My garden is doing great, gonna have a huge crop this year of all kinds of heirloom tomatoes and peppers. John, et al, youn's should check out Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds- they're my go-to for superb, crazy stuff you'd likely never imagined. I'm growing a tomato that finishes looking like a tie-dyed T-shirt. I could easily see a Crusty garden... https://www.rareseeds.com/ https://www.rareseeds.com/store/vegetables/tomatoe s/wild-boar-farms/berkeley-tie-dye-green-tomato One could spend a good bit of time scanning all their amazing stuff. Makes me want a bigger garden... | ||
| Ourdee |
I look for lumpy odd shape maters. | ||
| 86129squids |
https://www.rareseeds.com/store/vegetables/tomatoe s/red/reisetomate-tomato https://www.rareseeds.com/store/vegetables/tomatoe s/red/costoluto-genovese-tomato | ||
| Ourdee |
I picked this one out of the garden this morning.  | ||
| Tpehak |
The flag? What is it, flint corn? That probably took some time to sort all those seeds to make the flag  (Message edited by TPEHAK on June 22, 2020) | ||
| Crusty |
If It Was Easy… Nothing is going smoothly in converting the 16 into the Gentleman’s Express. Well; that’s not completely true; Changing the headlight, headlight ring and gas cap were easy and went smoothly. But changing the bars was an expensive and very frustrating experience. Now, installing the saddlebag brackets is being a pain in the butt. I have two longer bolts coming from McMaster-Carr for the shock along with two spacers for the rear mounting point. That means that by tonight I hope to have two simple bent pieces of steel rod attached to my bike. That’s what I hope. But if something jumps out of the woodpile and prevents that, I really wouldn’t be surprised. I’m thinking about getting a set of dry bags for the 16. Nelson-Rigg has a set that looks pretty good and I can get them from Amazon for about $150. They’ve gotten good reviews and if I’m going to be using soft bags for a while, a set that keeps water out makes sense. Going grocery shopping in the rain would no longer mean having soggy rolls for my burger. A hundred and fifty bucks, though is something I’d have to plan on. Before I get them, I need to get a decent seat. I’ve decided to get a Mustang Vintage Wide Solo. I’ll get the passenger seat later. I hope that Mustang makes them available quickly. They were shut down due to the Wuhan Virus and they’re just getting started back up again. Nobody has one in stock; I’ll put one on the 16 as soon as I can get my hands on one, even if it means running the card up. I really don’t want to ride to Springfield for the Mile, then up to Massachusetts and back to Cheviot on the painful stock board of a seat. One thing I’ll say is that although every modification I’m making to the 16 seems to be a struggle, when I’m done, I’ll appreciate the bike all the more because of all the headaches. She’ll be a unique, but functional, piece of Motorcycle Art; as opposed to being close to the opposite in its stock form. She’ll be the Roadster I think the MoFoCo should be building. | ||
| Tootal |
One of the largest selling machines right now is the ADV/Sport Touring segment. What you're building is a Sport Touring machine. You set up better suspension along with a solid engine and good rubber but make it comfortable for a long day. Hello!! That's what the old FXRD and FXRT were all about. Great bikes in their day but it wasn't such a popular segment back then. | ||
| Crusty |
If Adventure Touring automobiles are known as an SUVs, then why aren't Adventure Touring motorcycles known as SUCs? | ||
| Ourdee |
Some of them are. | ||
| Tootal |
Since SUV stands for Sport Utility Vehicle you could technically use it for both 4 and 2 wheels vehicles!  | ||
| Crusty |
A Replay From My Past Back in the early 90s, I rode down to Hagerstown, Maryland to see the 1/2 mile with George, my riding partner. It was a miserable ride in the rain that included riding through some of the worst fog I’ve ever experienced. Of course; when we got there, the race had been rained out; so we spent the night in a motel and rode home the next day. The following year, the weather forecasts were full of dire predictions of heavy rains all the way down the East Coast. We went as far as Danbury, Connecticut on Friday evening and put up in a motel, thinking that it would make Saturday’s ride that much shorter. After watching the Weather Channel, we decided to turn around and head back home. That whole area of the Mid-Atlantic was shaded in red. We got home and called the motel in Hagerstown to cancel our reservations and the clerk told us that it was sunny and dry. It turned out that the race was a good one with Larry Pegram winning his first National. I had let the fear of another rain cancellation stop me from seeing a good race. This week, Joe (Gravydog) let me know that he would be able to work on my front fender today. The hitch was that the forecast was for rain. I was a bit worried about riding almost 250 miles each way in the rain. Yesterday, I had a brainstorm; I would book a cheap motel room and ride up in the afternoon. That way, I wouldn’t have to ride in the rain in one direction, at least. So I grabbed a good sized bag and put the fender, some tools, clothes, my laptop and my rain gear in it. I’m not used to packing a gym type bag and I had things in and out several times while trying to get everything organized. Unfortunately, the final time I rearranged everything, I left out my rain gear. I got about 45 minutes north when it started to rain, so I pulled off to put my gear on. That was when I discovered my mistake. So I figured I’d just ride home and grab the gear and put it on; then set out again. Two minutes south of where I had stopped, the rain quit and the pavement was dry. That lifted my spirits for a few minutes. But then, I found the heavy rain. If I could have seen a weather radar map, I’m sure I would have been in a large red area. Traffic on the highway was down to 35 MPH and I was having trouble seeing. I was getting close to home when I realized that I was almost where I crashed last year. That’s a stretch of road I won’t ride in the rain, so I got off and took surface streets. It was raining so hard, the water in the street was up over the curb. I missed a turn and managed to get lost for a while, but I finally found a familiar place and made my way home. Everything I was wearing was completely soaked. I took a hot shower and threw my soggy clothes in the washer, set my boots and gloves and other gear under the ceiling fan and decided that I’d just revert to my original plan. Get up early and ride up to Canton. But the weather forecast at 4:30 AM just bothered me. I looked at the radar and there was a big area of red that was heading toward Canton and I just didn’t want to ride in that much rain again. Especially as the forecast was calling for the rain to get worse as the day went on. My boots and gloves were still really wet and I just chickened out. I sent Joe an e-mail apologizing that I wasn’t going to make it and went back to bed. The heavy downpours never materialized. I’ve looked at the radar several times during the day and all the heavy areas went away before they got where I would have been; either in Canton, or along the route I would have taken. If I had gone, I most likely wouldn’t have gotten wet and the 16 would be wearing a much better front fender. I’ve said it many times in the past, usually in reference to predictions of good weather; If you believe the weather forecast, then you deserve what you get. I believed the forecast; I get to suffer the consequences. The good news is that Joe responded to my cancellation message, saying he understood and we can reschedule for July 11th. I'm still kicking myself, though. On a slightly better note, Joe from Houston is going to come by tomorrow. It’ll be good to see him again. I have a story about him that ties into something I did a while back, but I think I’ll save that for another Snippet. | ||
| 86129squids |
I watch the NWS radar every day, depend on that. Whatever the talking heads say, I just add that to my own take on reading the radar. I know how things break over the land around here and the state in general. Soggy and safe aint a bad turnout, BTW.  | ||
| Crusty |
Again??!? I’ve got Writer’s Block again. There are several things I could write about, but each time I try it comes out garbled. So I’m going to try and just be basic. maybe I’ll loosen up once I start typing. Joe from Houston came by on Sunday. he wound up not getting here until about 7:30. He had planned to be here around 3:30, but his GPS routed him through every little settlement on gray routes (as opposed to Blue Highways or Interstates); plus, it was raining. He wound up staying here for the night and we had a lot of good conversation. We talked about bikes and the house and his job (which he just retired from) and bikes. We talked about Sportsters, both old and new and Harleys, in general. We talked about Suzukis and Hondas, Australia, Traveling, National Parks, memorable trips, all kinds of different things. And we talked about bikes. It was a great visit. Joe had been hoping to eat dinner at Velvet Smoke. He likes good BBQ. But he got here too late and they were closed. He had gone by TWoS on his ride, and he rode the 6 Gap ride, but he didn’t know where Jim’s was. When I told him they have some of the best ribs I’ve ever eaten, he was sorry he missed it. I told him to stop at Missouri Hick BBQ in Cuba, MO on his way home. This morning, he sent me an e-mail thanking me for the tip. He really enjoyed the food there. Next time he comes by, I hope it’s when Velvet Smoke is open. He’ll get to experience some Great burnt ends. And I hope he manages to get back to Blairsville to try ribs from Jim’s. (Come to think of it, I need to get back to Blairsville and have some Ribs from Jim’s, followed by camping at TWoS. That’s still my all time favorite campground.) Joe had dropped his bike while making a slow speed U-turn and had broken his front brake lever on Friday. It turns out that the front brake lever is proprietary to the Gold Wing. Not only that, there are only two dealers in the entire country who have one in stock. One is in Pennsylvania, and the other was Honda of Houston. When Joe found that out, he called the dealer and bought the lever over the phone. It’s just waiting for him to get back. There’s still a nub of a lever left that he can use, so hopefully he’ll get home without any problem. In other matters; I’m getting two recliners gifted to me! I’m not sure when; it depends when the wife of the donor decides on what she wants to replace them with, but hopefully it’ll be soon. I’ve decided to put both recliners in the living room. The broken recliner can go out in the trash and the stuffed chair can go into the bedroom. That’s exciting, for me! Almost all my furniture has been gifts; it sure is nice to know generous people! They have made my life considerably better than if I had to get by on my own efforts and accomplishments. One last tidbit; I bought a set of Nelson-Rigg Dry Bag saddlebags. I bought them Saturday after riding through that intense rainstorm and they were delivered last night around 8:00. Amazon came through again! I put the stiffeners in the bags, so they’ll hold their shape. In a little while, I’ll go down to the garage and get them fitted to the 16. I shouldn’t have bought them yet, but I was in a mood on Saturday that I didn’t care if I ran the card balance up a bit. The 16 is progressing towards being the Gentleman’s Express. It’s almost ready to travel on. It does need more, but even without the bigger tank and better fenders and other improvements, it’s getting closer all the time. The next Big Ticket item is going to be a seat. That’s going to have to wait until after I get my next SS deposit. I don’t want to let the card balance run up too much. Well; this has turned out to be a fairly reasonably sized Snippet, in spite of my having trouble with writing it. I think I’ll fix myself a BLT for brunch, then go fit the new bags. (Message edited by Crusty on June 30, 2020) | ||
| Crusty |
Back To The Twilight Zone I’m a zombie, this morning. I didn’t sleep well. I was wide awake from 3:30 to 5:00 AM and when I fell back to sleep, I had nothing but really bizarre dreams. I don’t feel awake and I don’t think my thinking is all that, um, Logical (are you there Spock?). However; I don’t feel like playing games or reading about politics or even reading a book. Maybe I should do something productive, like polish the bikes or mow the lawn, but not just yet. The Distributer (the truck that sprays oil) just made a couple of passes down the street spraying oil on the stones that got put down the other day. I guess they’re going to do another coat in the paving process. Paving sure has changed since I worked for a paving company back in the mid 80s (1985, to be exact). I’m hoping the finished job will be as good as what we did at E.C. Murray, but I feel pretty skeptical. Paving this way uses less oil, but I wonder if it’s as durable and if the finished job will be as smooth. After hearing about Joe dropping his bike, I went back to Wild Guzzi and found the post I wrote about dropping my Norge back in 2010. I’ll paste it to the end of this Snippet. The recliners are coming on Friday! I’ll actually have two things that match! Well, that’s not true; the end tables and coffee table all match. They were gifts from the same people, as well. Once again, it’s all the help I get from others that makes my life so much better than it would otherwise be. I think I’ll do a True American Meal for July 4th. A 12 oz. Ribeye cooked over charcoal with Corn on the cob, sliced tomatoes in a vinaigrette dressing and watermelon for dessert. When I was a kid, we used to have corn on the cob as a dessert. Having it as a side dish took a bit of adjustment when I grew up. When I lived in Leominster, Massachusetts, there was a local farm (Gove Farm) that grew the absolute best tasting corn I ever ate. Part of me wants to do baked Yukon Gold potatoes with beef gravy, but I really don’t want to fire up the oven. Then again; I could do the steak and potato for the meal and have the corn for dessert. Then the watermelon as a snack, later on. That’s a lot of food; I’d better do some thinking. I’m very tempted to go buy some fireworks to celebrate the Fourth. I’d enjoy adding to all the explosions that will be occurring that night. I tend to like those 100 shot salvos. 100 bottle rocket sized missiles being launched from a “Cake” in rapid succession. Complete with whistles and bangs. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of days, I’ll look at my (very thin) finances and make a decision tomorrow or Friday. The workmen are using a regular paver and they’re putting down a very pretty coat of asphalt. They’ve come down the hill and they’re almost to my driveway. The fresh asphalt looks really nice. The crew seems pretty competent. This show is a wonderful distraction; I’m torn between writing this Snippet and watching them work. I guess this is a good place to stop for now. Here’s the post about my Guzzi from 2010: Yesterday, I had to get out and ride by myself for a while. I’ve got a lot on my mind, right now, and I needed to put things in perspective. Usually a day long ride helps me to sort things out. I just ended my job that I hated. Even though I hated that job, I felt bad about leaving, and it was weighing heavily on my mind. I had accomplished a lot there, and I have quite a few friends there and leaving was a very bittersweet experience. Although I interviewed at two different places, and one interviewer told me they would hire me, I don’t know if they will. I’ve seen many promised jobs disappear over the years, for one reason or another. I also have a hard time with job interviews. They really stress me out Also, our 19 year old daughter had her tonsils out last Tuesday, and she’s been suffering with the pain; and that’s distressing to be around. My wife took the week off to care for her, but it’s emotionally tough on her watching her baby suffer. Then, there is the T-shirt fiasco. What started as a fun project turned into one of those nightmares where you try to run, but even at maximum effort, you can barely move? The capper was when we finally got the shirts from the printer, after a month of delays, unreturned calls and revisions, we were short a few sizes, and had extra of others. So I had to send out e-mails telling a few folks they wouldn’t get what they ordered. So yesterday morning, I got on the Norge and headed west on Rt. 2. I decided to ride up to Vermont and visit the graves of Bill and Lois Wilson. That usually helps me to put things in order, and gives me a solid starting point to focus on. I saw a lot of BMWs on Rt. 2, probably returning from the Heath Rally, and I also saw one group of five Guzzis. I recognized two 1200 Sports and a red Eldorado, but I couldn’t make out what the others were. I felt a little regret that I hadn’t made it to the rally, but sometimes life is what happens while you were busy making other plans. I was busy mailing shirts, buying groceries and doing other errands on Saturday, and couldn’t get away. Anyway, after I missed Vermont Rt. 30 and went almost 50 miles out of my way (in Vermont, this can be a good thing – they build beautiful roads), I got to the graveyard. I said a short prayer, talked about my situation (it always helps to talk it out) and inspected some of the medallions that folks had left behind. Then I decided to get some lunch. I rode down to Bennington and ate at the Blue Benn Diner. It’s one of my favorite spots. They make great everything. I was in a Comfort Food frame of mind, so I kept it simple. A cheeseburger with fried onions and mushrooms and a side of fries with gravy on them, and coffee to drink. After the ride, the Visit and the lunch, I was starting to unwind. Since it was only early afternoon, and I was close to North Adams, I decided that I would try to find the West Portal of the Hoosac Tunnel. I’ve been casually looking for it for a couple of years, and I had a good idea where it was at, so I went where I thought it would be. I turned off Rt.8, and went up a narrow dirt road, and a short distance in, I saw Railroad tracks. I have a bad ankle that really hurts a lot when I walk over broken ground, so rather than park the bike and walk along the tracks, I decided to follow the dirt road and see if I could get closer. The road turned into a very rocky track within 100 feet and I figured I’d better turn around and get out of there before I got in trouble. It was when I tried to turn around that I dropped the bike. It was lying on its left side, and the (full) gas tank was lower than the tires. I tried picking it up using the MSF recommended method, but I could only get it up about a foot, and then my feet would lose traction. I tried everything I could think of for a half hour, but all I succeeded in doing was exhausting myself in the heat. Finally, I had to admit defeat, and walked away to find help. There was a family walking up the road as I was walking down, and they helped me pick up the bike, and after thanking them, rode it back down the track to where I could assess the damage. The fairing is gouged pretty badly, the saddlebag lid was cratered in about three inches, and scarred to hell, but incredibly, the plastic returned to its proper shape by itself. However, the metal mounting bracket that the front of the bag locks to is bent. The only way to keep the bag on the bike was to use a Roc strap. It was a bad idea to go up that trail on a road bike; and I know better than to do such a dumb thing, but my thinking processes haven’t been functioning as well as they might, lately. Stress does that to me. Now, I’ll have to give Liberty Mutual a call and find out what I need to do to put in a claim. The good news is that now I know exactly where to go to find the West Portal of the Hoosac Tunnel. The bad news is my stress level is every bit as high as it was before the ride. | ||
| Crusty |
A Visit From A Friend R.D. drove down to Cheviot today for a visit. He helped me move some furniture around and we sat and talked for a few hours. Like most conversations I’ve had lately, we talked a lot about motorcycles and things related to them. When he first called and said he was coming down, we had discussed going to a local Mexican Restaurant for lunch. We went there for lunch when I first moved to Cheviot, and he really liked the food there. When we talked yesterday, he let me know that he was more interested in having some Burnt Ends from Velvet Smoke. So after we sat and shot the bull and drank a couple of cups of Kenya coffee, we drove over to Velvet Smoke and picked up Lunch and brought it back to Chez Crusty. The food was as wonderfully tasty as always. R.D. had brought some Coca Cola made with Real Sugar, and I had Pepsi (also made with Real Sugar) and we gorged on chunks of animal flesh with some really good BBQ Baked Beans. After that, we sat in out separate food comas and talked some more until I realized that I was getting close to nodding off. So we went down to the garage where I showed off the 16 a bit. He agreed that it’s getting more comfortable. With the dry bags, it’s almost ready for the road. Once I buy the seat next month and Joe works his magic on the front fender, she’ll be good enough to travel on, though not as good as she will be once everything’s done. I’ll be riding the 16 to the Springfield Mile for Labor Day weekend and up to Massachusetts from there. That’ll be my one long trip this year. I can't count the WVBR as a long trip, it’s only 235 miles each way. Nor is Buelltoberfest in early October a long ride; it’s exactly 400 miles from my house to TWoS. The trip to the Mile and up to Mass and home is something that will test the mettle of the bike. As good as she feels now, I really think we’re going to get along nicely. Anyhow; I showed off the 16 and I showed R.D. the fireworks I bought to celebrate the 4th - two batteries (cakes? salvos?) of 250 shots. I don’t buy fireworks often, but this year, I really felt the urge to. Last night was an ideal summer evening; the temp was in the low 80s and the humidity was tolerable. I jumped on the 16 and took a half hour ride into Indiana and hit Phantom Fireworks. The place was full of people and their stock was seriously depleted. I couldn’t find what I was looking for, so I settled for a 250 shot Saturn missile battery which was way more than what I had originally planned. The store was doing a BOGO free, so I got two. I guess I’ll light one off this evening and the other tomorrow night. Back to the narrative - After that, R.D. headed out for home. He was hoping to make it home for dinner and if he stayed any longer, he’d get caught in Rush Hour traffic and he’d be late. I did what any self respecting old fart who’s fighting off a food coma would do. I took a nap. R.D. took a picture of the Burnt Ends and sent it to Matthew when we got back to the house with lunch. I think it made him jealous. Then again; Matthew lives close to Jim’s Smokin’ Que. He can get those wonderful ribs a lot more often than we can. I guess it balances out. No matter where you go, there’s someplace accessible that has a really good specialty. In the Southwest, there’s remarkably good Mexican food and in the Northeast you can find the best Pizza. But the best Burnt Ends are only a couple of miles away. I can live with that. Anyway; here's the picture R.D. took:  It really was a Good Day! | ||
| Crusty |
Food For Thought I’m sitting here eating a Tina’s Red Hot Beef BIG BURRITO. It’s the same as a regular Tina’s Burrito; just three times the size. As soon as I saw it at the supermarket, I had to get one. I think that every Cardiologist in a three state radius is having a heart attack, but I don’t care. I know it’s bad for me, but it’s just one of those foods that I’m addicted to. I slather it with Newman’s Own Medium Salsa and slice it into bite sized chunks and my taste buds go into their happy dance. White Castle Sliders are in the same category. I just know they have to be bad for me, but they taste so good/bad, I can’t resist them. With White Castles, I get their #1 combo. 4 White Castles with Cheese and Onion Chips instead of Fries. I guess the good news is that I don’t get either Tina’s Burritos or White Castles too often. When I consider what they do to my digestive tract and the amount of methane they generate, it’s a very good thing. I know that I’m not alone in liking those gut bombs. There are White Castles everywhere in the midwest and I can find Tina’s burritos in supermarkets from Boston to Californica. If nobody bought them, the companies would go out of business. People like them, but nobody wants to admit it, for some strange reason. I think that we’re not supposed to like Junk Food, because the Heap Big Medicine Men have decreed that it’s bad for us. You know what’s really bad for us? Not eating at all. If you don’t eat, you’ll starve to death. That’s a lot worse than emitting copious amounts of smelly gas. I have nothing against eating healthy food. I enjoy a bowl of Quaker Maple and Brown Sugar oatmeal for breakfast, on occasion. I also enjoy a BLT made with three slices of Wright’s thick sliced bacon with lettuce and tomato on a toasted Brioche roll that’s coated with mayonnaise. I’m sure that somebody will jump up and tell me that that BLT isn’t healthy; there are a lot of people who just don’t have the capacity to enjoy food and they love to proselytize their erroneous opinions. I remember listening to a Back-To-Nature freak expound on the joy of eating a whole wheat English Muffin with Organic Peanut Butter and bean sprouts for breakfast. When I told him that I liked a grilled English Muffin overloaded with melted butter and grape jelly and a glass of Tang to drink with it, I thought he was going to have a stroke just contemplating it. I enjoy food. Sometimes, I enjoy it too much. I didn’t get this round by not enjoying what I eat. Tonight, for dinner, I enjoyed a huge burrito and it tasted just as good as I was hoping. I hope you enjoyed your dinner as much as I enjoyed mine. | ||
| 86129squids |
Being a native Nashvillian, I grew up with Krystals. I've grown to realize that White Castle does a better job. They assemble the sliders where you don't lose half the cheese or pickle, much more consistent. Tennessee only has them around Nashville now, wish they'd open a franchise in E. TN. At least I can buy them frozen from the grocery... really not too bad out of the microwave. Makes a great snack. I've always believed that one should eat right in general, healthy, but some meals/foods, despite their grease/fat/calories/gluten/cholesterol yaddayadda, they just nourish your spirit and soul. You're so happy having eaten them! | ||
| Pwnzor |
I've been eating Grippo's BBQ chips for breakfast almost every day for the last couple of weeks. That's all I have to say on this subject. If I continue, I'll only implicate myself. My labs came back from the cardiologist and apparently I'm about to keel over from cholesterol or some such nonsense. | ||
| 86129squids |
Just ordered these today, some may remember me bringing them to TWoS... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000UPFWW6/ref=p px_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 NOMNOM! Although I respect folks that can't have pork for religious or medical reasons, I always feel very sad for them when I have 'cue, Benton's anything, bacon, or the above product. Especially a visit to Jim's... there should be a prayer stall for BBQ apostates there, made out of an old smoker. God exists simply because he/she made BBQ, Beer, whiskey, Aunt Martha, and microwave chicharonnes.    | ||
| H0gwash |
I eat Tina's burritos when I run into scheduling problems and have 10 minutes to deal with lunch or dinner. The sodium in them makes them taste good. I used to deep fry them and serve with salsa. I do the cooking and have to count sodium or else the other half will return to 200/100 blood pressure. I thought the machine was broken, went out bought a new one, same result. The other half was having all sorts of occasional brain problems, hallucinations, disorientation, difficulty with his own signature, followed by the house fire. Those problems have since gone away with additional meds, low sodium diet, and less smoking. It has been a ton of work I would not wish on anyone. So, yeah, I am a wet blanket on the topic, but let it be known, if you choose to follow your doctor's advice on the topic, there are options out there. To end on a happy note, the house is nearly move in ready and I have to start ordering furniture from the insurance settlement. | ||
| Crusty |
Collusion Collusion is an ugly word for an ugly practice. It’s ugly in politics, but it’s even uglier in other areas. For instance, While the price of oil has dropped to ridiculously low levels, the price of gasoline has climbed significantly. The part where collusion comes in is when the price of gas rises by the exact same amount on the same day at every gas station in the area. It doesn’t matter if it’s the local convenience store, the major oil company station or the dirty, poorly maintained discount independent gas station; they all have the same price plastered on their signs. and the price increases happen simultaneously. I’m still trying to figure out why gas is a buck a gallon more than it was just a month ago. Yesterday, I picked up a nail in my back tire on the 16. I got home and put a plug in it and it’s holding air, but I keep hearing how I shouldn’t trust a plug. So I went online to see who had the best price on a Pirelli Scorpion 2. I looked at Dennis Kirk, American Moto Tire and 2Wheel. All three want $195.47. I had bought the Pirellis from 2Wheel because they had the best price, but now, they want $40.00 more for a set of the same tires. What’s up with that? Is having competitive prices a bad thing? I guess we’re supposed to just take it in the shorts and be happy that they didn’t mix sand in the Vaseline. The good news is that Shinko is now offering a set of “Adventure” tires that will fit the 16 at prices that are about $172.00 less. I think my next set of tires will be Shinkos. I’ve always preferred to buy premium tires, but my butt is hurting from buying gasoline. I really like the Pirellis, but for that much money, I’ll try the Shinko 705s when I buy my next set of tires. I always thought price fixing was illegal, but obviously, it’s become a common practice. Oh well; that’s enough whining for today. The plug in my tire is holding. I’ve run plugged tires for thousands of miles without problems in the past. I’m going to run this tire for a while. If it does start to leak, I’ll have my plug kit with me to fix the leak and then I’ll buy the Shinkos. The greed by the price fixers may push me into discovering a good tire for a more reasonable price. That would be the best possible outcome. | ||
| 86129squids |
Research the Shinkos. IIRC I'd read/heard that they're actually pretty decent rubber. Plugged rear tire? Obviously you know what you're doing, buddy. I once plugged a rear on my CityX- the tire had lots of life yet, and I rode with that tire until it was simply worn out. Of course a sidewall puncture or a front plug should be for only getting you home. | ||
| Ourdee |
I run a mushroom plug in a rear tire on the jeep. It has been just fine for 1,000s of miles. |
