| Author | Message | ||
     Court |
Jim: >>>>Bill snagged a nice helmet at 50% off Bad news....if it was what they call a "half helmet" it may not have been as good a deal as at first appears. I fell for that in my youth.  | ||
| Sparky |
I almost tripped over Ebear in his wheelchair Saturday at the Cycle World show bikes display. He looked like he was trying to have a good time albeit not overjoyed with the wheelchair thing. I wouldn't either. FB, we missed ya at Denny's. Did you demo the 9S & 9R? If so, waddya think? | ||
| Jim_Sb |
Court, it was a lovely brand new FF Shoei for $249... List price was about double that amount.. They had great deals on RF 900's as well, but the one's in my size (and preferred colors) were gone...  | ||
| Ferris |
Ferris, Did you take 5 north on sunday eve? affirmative Al, but i stopped and did major damage to a steak at the Outback in Santa Clarita on the way north, and I-5 was clear and 80-mph by the time i came thru. 405 northbound pissed me off with all the stop-and-go crap -- it REALLY jacks my jaw to come to a complete stop (repeatedly!) on a frikkin' freeway. FB, we missed ya at Denny's. Did you demo the 9S & 9R? If so, waddya think? Sparky, i wasn't at all sure of my timing and scheduling this weekend, so didn't want to commit in advance to making Denny's (and good thing i didn't). re: the XB's, i've now ridden a kitted Firebolt, and i demo'd a Lightning Saturday morning at the show, and i believe i'll be hanging onto my VFR for the time being. FB | ||
| Al_Lighton |
FMJ, I was in and out of Sunnyvale in no time flat. Dashed in, bought the bike, dashed home. Made the purchase decision mid day saturday, left for Sunnyvale 4AM sunday. No advance planning, and it was too long a day (13 hours straight on the road, and up early at 3:30 AM) to hang around up there and still be awake while driving home. Hopefully I'll be riding with ya'll again in July of next year. Not that I keep up all that well with ya anyways! Al | ||
| Firemanjim |
Ok,I understand those turn and burn runs to pick up a bike.Did one about 2 weeks ago to Bakersfield for a YZ-125 for the boy.How is the layoff forecast looking? | ||
| Al_Lighton |
Like I said over on Sacborg, it'd be a lot more efficient if I bought bikes down here and you bought bikes up there, rather than the other way around! Layoff is likely to happen. Ericsson has decided to keep some aspects of the CDMA product development unit here, and it's possible that they may try to retain me for longer than June. But it'll cost 'em big time if they do, and one of the things it will cost them is 2 weeks off in July for Splash no matter what!! But the likelier outcome is that I enter the ranks of the unemployed June 30th 2003. I'm looking forward to it. Got the better part of a year in severance based on years of service, house is paid off, so that year is for figuring out what I want to do when I grow up. The latest idea is to start a cycle salvage business, buying Insurance company salvages and repo's, making one good bike out of three, and selling the rest of the good parts on Ebay. I may be able to eek out a subsistence income from that. Or not. Don't know what I'm gonna do, and it is a remarkably liberating feeling. See you in July if not sooner! Al | ||
| Sarodude |
Uh, how come the SoCal section is always so dead? We must be one of the most populated sections of the country and it's one of the quetest Storm Front areas. -Saro | ||
| Sparky |
Either everyone's out ridin', workin' or havin' fun or... ? I can't speak for everyone who posts here but I ride to work every day rain, shine, fog, hot or cold. In my spare riding time I practice constraint & frustration as a Road Captain in probably the busiest HOG chapter around, LA #1 (Bartels). They average approx 50 ride activities yearly. Some Saturdays I'll take my car out for a short pleasure drive or take my son, who can't drive, somewhere. The rest of my time is for family unless there's a Buellish event happening that's reasonably close by. Bartels' Storm Riders Club broke up when Nelson V. left the area and couldn't find a new director. They had a few rides but they're history now. Glendale's Golden State BRAG Club is the active one in the area now and they've had a few rides this year. Matty, Ernie & Candice H. are doing a fine job with it and are continuing the club for next year. I'd like to see more of their activities posted here. BigJ is a leader type who seemed to have a handle on getting Buellers together. He, together with Tat, roused up interest in SoCal and started S.C.A.B. but he left for the Sacto area a few years ago. Scott P. is managing the SCAB activities these days and posts here occasionally. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it. Sparky | ||
| Sarodude |
Sparky- I actually registered for Golden State BRAG last weekend and regularly talk to Matty and Ernie. I hope to do some events with 'em - but the first few may be on the FXD... I know Ernie had to do some convincing to get a BRAG group happening there. I'm really not so sure how it'll work out, though. Not knowing the details, it would SEEM like BRAG is at least slightly patterened after HOG. I don't know how much that would appeal to a Buell nut. I do hear ya on the 'constraint and frustration' thing. I went on ONE WHOLE HOG RIDE. I was going OUT OF MY MIND. Typically, a 'Cruisers Only' type asks me something like 'How come you ride that Harley like a Ducati?' I just ride it like a motorcycle. I dunno. I'm just looking for some 2 wheeled folks I can hang with. -Saro | ||
| Jim_Sb |
Saro, Depends on what you mean by 'hang with'. The folks at SoCalSportsters (you met some of us at Long Beach) are a pretty eclectic group and they have a monthly coffee/dinner gathering in Long Beach and schedule rides occasionally. The folks involved all met because of Sportster ownership, although many now own Buells, BMW's, Dyna's, etc. No one cares what you ride. Being a family man I don't do dinners in LA very often, but I do like riding if the roads are worthwhile. Perhaps we can suggest/schedule Sat. or Sun. morning rides - it would be fun to try to have one regularly scheduled ride each month - although I prefer informal rides (no Ride Captain duties for Sparky! Just a thought. | ||
| Timbo |
I've been watching here since I got my bike in mid October. I noticed how quiet it is too, but figured things were winding down cause the time of year. Hopefully things will liven up after the rain and cold. So, Glendale has a Brag club? I didn't know, and I bought my Buell from them! Matty! Pipe up, whould'ya? Maybe they are still recovering from the love ride. I'll try to post here about any rides that the SoCal Sportsters or even the Cafe group get together on. Because Buellers are always welcome on those rides. Timbo | ||
| Sparky |
Happy New Year everyone! What's say we start off the new year properly by listing recurring local BRAG & others (SCAB, Sportster) club meeting places, dates & times. I seem to get confused lately on who is having a meeting & when (must be old age creepin' up, yeah, that's it). Emails help but if you have to search through more than one computer, well, this BBS is better, IMO. I think it would be cool for someone who has had a great ride, if they could post it here. Maybe give the route & highlights of the ride. When planning a future ride, it's always fun to look over all the possible rides and pick one to fit the occasion. I finally had a chance to ride down & up Balcom Canyon again after 4 years. Down's more fun. It's got to be the most exciting 2 miles around. Extremely steep with a posted 10 mph kink in the middle. Sorta like the backside of 18 leaving Big Bear for Lucerne. Fun, fun, fun! Sparky | ||
| Sarodude |
Sparky- Don't you know the NOBODY is supposed to post on the SoCal board? Actually, I did have a kinda cool ride yesterday. Every few weeks I need to trek to West LA from Woodland Hills. Nothing special. I ride Topanga simply because it gets me where I need to get faster than the freeway traffic. Well, for some odd miraculous few minutes, I had a CLEAR AND WIDE OPEN Topanga as I headed south! Sometimes it's hard to see Topanga as the fun, challenging road that it is because of all the traffic. Man, when you get to ride it properly you really need to thread things properly - moslty because of all the decreasing radius turns. Fun... -Saro | ||
| Lornce |
Hey So. Cal. Buellers, If I lived where you guys lived, I wouldn't be tap tap tappin on a keyboard either: I'd be out ridin! Come March John "99X1" and a beemer buddy and I plan to trailer our bikes to Encinitas to begin a two week California riding holiday. Can we tug on yer coats a minute for some riding information? Anza Borega area and PCH are must do's. What's the Crest and 33 north of Ojai like in March? Snow, salt, sand? I've only been on them as late as December in the past, and encountered no mess. Was I lucky?  Was thinking to spend a few days camped up on the Crest and take in some of the LA canyon scene: Mullholland, Latigo etc. and yea even Topanga. Onward north up the PCH, camping as we go. Plan is to spend a few days at a time camped at some of the hot spots to afford unladen day rides in the area. Big Sur Pfieffer, Big Basin area, Mendocino etc. Would love to hear any local travel/road condition/route tips from California riders. And hey, if you've got the time and want to just SHOW us yer favourite ride... knock yerself out! best, Lornce | ||
| Sparky |
Hi Lornce, You are in for a treat & a ride you'll never forget. Some of the roads you mentioned were included in the All Calif BRAG Tour last year. That was the best motorcycle trip I've been on -- day after day of the best twisties Calif has to offer with fellow Buelligans. Must do it again! An idea: I have several different route sheets made up by Jerry Johnson, Buell Sales Southern Calif Buell in Oceanside, for Mt. Palomar (Don't forget Palomar!) and Anza Borrego rides you're welcome to. The Crest has a 'Winter Closure' in effect now thru whenever the snow melts, usually March or April depending on winter's severity. So I always check CalTrans Mountain Road Conditions first to check the Crest (Hwy 33)'s status. And for any numbered Calif road, Calif Hwy Condition is useful. There are several other interesting/renown sporting roads that come to mind, but my mind is reeling over the possibilities to the point of keyboard interlock. Perhaps Ferris could step in & save the day like he did on Day 3 of the BRAG ride. An idea: the next epic BRAG ride in the area is the Southwest Tour in Arizona, Oct 3 - 5. If your Calif 2 wk adventure doesn't pan out, maybe you could shoot for this one instead? I think a good number of Calif riders will attend this one. Sparky | ||
| Jim_Sb |
Hi Lornce, Angeles Crest Highway is Route 2. The "Crest" is a wonderful road but snow, ice and frost can be issues that time of year. The 33 North of Ojai is at a lower altitude and generally will be warmer all year around and may be rideable when the Crest is not. Of course it's hotter in the summer. I was up there on New Year's Day and it was perfect... Check www.pashnit.com for info. on great CA roads. PCH up to Big Sur is a fun ride. When you get to Big Sur though the good roads are limited. Carmel Valley comes to mind as a fun one. In the Bay Area riding Skyline and stopping at Alice's are both a must. Ferris reports incredible roads near Kernville, although weather will be iffy that time of year. The mountains East of Sandy Eggo (near Julian?) are reported to be wonderful for riding. Lots of good roads near Yosemite, again, weather issues that time of year. In March, your best bet would be to keep your plans flexible. At times storms hit the Bay Area and skip SoCal completely. Occasionally vice versa. You won't have trouble finding camping accommodations that time of year. I'd follow the sun and good weather, but realize that in March your best bet will be Sandy Eggo, then SoCal, then the Coast. Further North and inland you go (as in Kernville or Yosemite) the more dependent upon weather you will be. | ||
| Firemanjim |
Lornce,how far north are you headed?Lots of great riding around bay area,only weather has not been cooperating lately.I have lots of odd days off as my schedule is not the average.Any excuse for a ride. | ||
| Al_Lighton |
Lornce, I live in Carlsbad, but really more like Encinitas. Let me know the details of when you'll be here and heading out to Anza Borrego, I might be able to be your tour guide if it's a weekend ride, or maybe even a weekday (cough cough, I think I feel a cold coming on that day...). There's some fun roads just getting to Palomar Mountain (some were on the All Cali ride), then up the west side and down the east, grab a bite to eat at the Hideout, maybe do a quick blast on Mesa Grande, then on towards Warner Springs, east on S22 down to Borrego springs, over past Scissors Crossing and up banner grade into Julian, down to Lake Cuymaca and a blast down Engineer road, down to Ramona, then Highland Valley road to 15, wind back to Encinitas on Harmony grove. It's a good days ride, lots of great roads, reasonable temps in March if it doesn't rain/snow up on Palomar. Al | ||
| Ferris |
And hey, if you've got the time and want to just SHOW us yer favourite ride... knock yerself out! Death Valley should be a treat in March, comfortable temps, more twisty roads than the maps would have you believe. providing you're in my general vicinity (Lake Isabella, CA) on a Sunday, i'd be glad to break trail for you guys. FB |
