A bridge by any other name, is still a bridge.

Citicom 300i and of course, the Confederation Bridge, longest over ice road bridge in the world so I'm told.

I love to cook, almost as much as eating!

SUNNY days, warm nights, cooling breezes, good food,  beautiful scenery, inviting vistas, lots of corners, paved or otherwise, and a garage full of bikes.








BLISS!

Typical of the trails I look for here on the Island.

How can a dirt biker resist a mud hole...

We've been enjoying the longest straight, hot period I can remember on the Island since I moved back here in 2012.  I'm not talking Phoenix Arizona type heat but certainly warm enough for moi.

My Traveling V Strom or the Swiss Army knife of bikes 

Although at one time I would ride snowmobiles or race a studded tired MX bike around an ice oval or fish for, well... fish... at twenty below zero, certainly in my old age, I prefer to be a wee bit hot than a wee bit cold.



I try to rotate my street legal bikes so all of them get use during the summer months.  Unlike some people that can rack up tens of thousands of kilometers during a season, I spread out my mileage between several bikes (and cars for that matter) 

Yes, that would be highway 97... in British Columbia

Many people wonder why I don't have a Harley or Wing in my garage.  Simply because I have always enjoyed small, lighter bikes, both on and off road.  Don't get me wrong, in my early days when I would travel great distances, I had a BMW opposed twin, then later a 1976 full dress Yamaha Triple followed by another in 850 size.

I even rode a Yamaha YSR 50 (yup 49 cc) from the Island to Toronto for the '89 Yamaha dealer conference or a DT 50 (yup 49cc) for hundreds of miles in Baja!

Then later there was the Yamaha Venture Royale, and even a decked out Honda Gold Wing Aspencade.  Those bikes are fabulous for putting on miles solo or two up and I even had a Velorex sidecar to drag my kids around when they were young!

Never know where I may turn up!  Shore feels like my first marriage!!

As I get older I've developed some physical issues. As a result I've gravitated more and more towards smaller bikes.  Another reason I don't have an 1800 Wing, well simply... cost.  Having worked in the MC industry where everybody in it knows, enthusiasts work in the biz for the perks and love of the sport, not to get rich.  Instead of shelling out for a new Gold Wing or HD dresser, I can buy and ride a half dozen bikes and to me every bike does something different than the next.

Case in point...

Ron's (since sold) DL 650, back roads of B.C.

Mid week after servicing my 29 year old XT 600, Big Blue... I embarked on a trip to New Brunswick, headed for the north side of the Bay of Fundy. (highest tides in the world) I was specifically looking for a thread of a road that if you patiently zoom in far enough on Google Maps... you'll eventually find.

The total day's mileage I calculated would be about 275-300 km.  Of course about a third of that would be on gravel roads and some of it on what amounted to "tracks" with no signage and no clue which path  (there were several) I should be taking.

Even my GPS girl Candy, had no clue.  At one point the deeper I got in the woods the more insistent she was in having me turn around when possible.

I'm even pretty darn sure she eventually signed off by saying

"Sayonara baby... you're on your own!"

And here I was thinking... I didn't even know she spoke Japanese!

There was a reason the road was closed...

As it turned out my eventuall tally for the day was 458 kilometers!  Just a little more than I thought.

Even a Suzuki Savage can do the duty, it's all in your head.

I've covered a lot of ground on a huge variety of bikes and will continue as long as I can.

I meet a lot of riders that are in there seventies and even a few that are still twisting throttle in their 80's!!

We're finally beginning to see more smaller displacement bike coming down the pipe and it's about time.

I love going fast like many people but am smart enough to know the difference between a 'road' and a 'road race course'!

Hey... it's got a two stroke motor... nice!

Yesterday, Trevor (the revver) took me for an Island trail ride along a local utility line and right of way.  From there we puttered our four stroke singles (his a KLR 650, and mine an XT 225) pretty much everywhere that wasn't posted as closed!

Moral of the story here, as a long time good buddy often blurts out... "Ride Baby Ride!" 

I intend to!

Can you guess where/what this is?

Now this... is about as perfect as it gets.

BEING a long time motorcyclist and sometimes racer... I am familiar with being horizontal at times. 

Fortunately it's usually something minor like my leg is too short, or I'm doing a tight circle in a parking lot, the engine coughs and stalls and I step off, not so gallantly.  Generally it's a low speed and soft surfaces get off.  I don't usually take photos of such times, being conscious of the fact that my engine is hot, the bikes is laying on it's side and gas is spilling from the overflow, and the adrenaline is pumping!

NB is criss crossed with rivers and streams

The first thing is some expletive deletive from my lips which thankfully has gotten fewer and fewer over the years as I've mellowed. 

I'll usually stand and stare for a second or two and then depending on where I may be at the time, (parking lot/dry wash/in front of my house) I'll quickly surmise the situation and right the bike. 

Typically.   

A few years ago in the Bradshaw mountains north of Phoenix Arizona, I was crawling up this narrow and steep dry wash that was only about 3 yards wide, lamenting on the fact that my latest gearing ratio choice was one bridge too far... for off roading and the 6 speed gearbox was spending a lot of time in low gear while the clutch was taking a beating. I had lost momentum in the deep sand and large boulders ranging from golf ball to basket sized and I stalled.  This was one of those times that my left leg was too short, in fact 6" too short and over we went, XT and I.  Bang Glang!  Fortunately I had my soft bags on which cushioned the blow and because of the rocks I was able to wiggle my way from under the bike without too much difficulty.  All the while I am doing this, the gas is leaking from the overflow to my inner left thigh! 

This is almost a freeway compared to some

Once extricated from underneath the bike and the saddlebags now a hindrance as I struggled for a place to grip the something solid with both hands and the fact I was on the downhill side with little grip on my Icon's in the deep sand, I decided I would try lifting the bike in two actions.  Because I was on the low side with the front wheel more or less pointed upstream and there were heap big boulders all around, I would lift the bike to my thighs, change grip (hopefully) and then push the bike fully upright.  I didn't have time to think this through and the handicaps were great, but I gripped the left side of the bar and with right hand under the seat onto the rear sub frame as best I could with the bag there.  There was no point in counting to three, after all I was alone (as per usual) and I knew it was best to do this when I still felt the affects of said adrenaline!

I got the bike more or less up half way before re gripping and pushing it up the remainder.  There it was, XT sandwiched between the two boulders the front tire get snagged on and me on the downhill side lunging the bike upright.

Just out for a little trail ride enjoying the southern weather.

Well guess what... over it went the other way with me sprawled out on top of her!  (All my bikes have been she models and believe me the position I was now in was akin to a bad porno movie on VHS... so I've been told)  Having not been hurt in the fall nor the first lift, I felt my body mentally to see if anything was broken/bruised/scraped.  There wasn't. 

The good news, I could now lift the bike from the uphill side and that was much easier than the former.  Holding the bike by the front fender I crawled over to the downward side and wedged a rock under the side stand.

The Adventure 150 on tour for the day

Once I believed the bike was secure, I immediately removed my helmet, gloves, light weight jacket, vented jersey, boots and pants and found some shade under some stunted cholla.  You see, the outside temperature that day in Phx was around 95F.  Where I was it must have been 110 or more and the exertion of the past 15 minutes had come very close to overheating me.  This had only happened to me twice in my riding career if memory served, once in Baja where a simple fall resulted in a fractured ankle and a very long and painful ride out the way I had come in and this day.  Both occasions I came within a whisker of tossing my cookies!

ANYWAY... getting back to why I am so happy today, the sun is shining, there is a slight breeze, the rains that came yesterday are just enough for me to put off mowing the lawn today and I am prepping my 225 for a day ride tomorrow. Nothing spectacular, just a dual sport ride on some of the back roads and trails of Queen's County. (We're big on Royalty hence the Prince, Queens and Kings county's.)

Excellent riding in the back roads of NB

I have been laving a lot of psychical issues this year.  Some may stem back the the Calgary rear end collision, some to my hip and shoulder problems, some maybe age...

So when I see a decent weather report I get excited.

This spring and summer I have spent quite a bit of seat time riding the southern parts of New Brunswick and naturally enjoying myself with covered wooded road bridges, old style gas stations that didn't have slots for credit cards, where you had to interact with a human to pay the gas bill.

Just like the old days!

I was making great use of the free ferry system, good food (like Kredl's outside Hampton) little traveled local roads some of which aren't even numbered, with names like "Lover's Lane" or Wharf road.



All of the Maritime provinces offer superb riding opportunities and heck... if you have a valid passport, Maine is a stone's throw away with the White mountains just beyond.

There are days when I am laying stiff as a 2x6 and looking outdoors from within, stuck in bed cuddled up to a heating pad, Coco usually right next to me.

I used to tell people that questioned why I wasn't working my rear off so I could have more money at retirement as I was heading once again to Playa Los Cocos in Baja CA and not so gingerly point out that when I hit 65... I may nor have what it takes to ride the desert any longer!

Does it get any better...?

I'm 63 now... we shall soon see :)

Oh... Just stuff.

SUMMER is in full swing. 

Sometimes I am the motor!

It's easy to forget the east coast gets an actual 4 seasons.  We get cold winters, sometimes with lots of snow, a brilliant spring with the odd storm to remind us who's the Boss.  There's golden, blazing colorful fall, most favorite for many and of course there is a 2 and a half month summer, where you can count on mostly sunny days, warm winds and some heat and humidity.  We are in the heat and humidity period at the moment.  Riding with full gear including boots on, can be stifling.  For longer trips I often take along a light jacket.  I'm not one of those people that hesitates wearing lighter gear when the temps get higher. 

Cabot Park beach

If you've ever ridden through a hot summer day be it Baja, Arizona or PEI, once the thermometer approaches 30 C or about 90 F and especially when we hit triple digits down in the desert, I  give up some safety, by wearing less padded gear in order to remain cool enough to ride.  What's the point of having a bunch of body armor if you pass out from heat exhaustion, and you fall off your bike?

When I am down south, and the scale reaches 35 and above, I often will not ride at all.  My last trip to PHX there were temperatures reaching 110 F in the city and could easily exceed that in the outback, I'd rather be lazing in the pool or standing in a cold shower.







EVERY year I take an old filing folder (real one made of paper) and set down some goals for the year.  Nothing earth shattering like reading War and Peace in 3 days, or getting a make over or a sex change, just simple stuff like keeping my weight under 150 lbs or riding all my bikes before the season ends. 


Today, the Pelican 15.5 model (feet btw) was in the water out near French river.  Brenda and I did a short paddle hindered by dropping water levels which meant a long carry back to the launch point in water only a few inches deep.

New Brunswick coastline

Friday I rode my DL 650, known as the V Strom, to Ellerslie PEI to Dennis Motors, the Yamaha dealer at that end of the Island.  I test rode a 2009 Suzuki GS500F.  This is a fairly small, light and compact "sports/touring" kind of bike.  Not a radical sitting crouch just a slight forward lean, a simple one piece seat, about 40 horsepower at the wheel from a claimed 51 at the crank, six gears, a large 20 L fuel tank giving the bike about a 450 k range as compared to the V Strom's 550 and the T Birds 250 km. 

GSF 500 DOHC 487cc 2 valve with air oil cooling and 6 speed trans.

There is a rather full fairing to deflect the worst of the wind, a slightly taller Zero Gravity windshield on it that gives better wind protection and supplies a place to mount the GPS unit.

It is an air-cooled simple 2 valve DOHC engine with dual carbs and shows about 18000 km in total. 

Tyne Valley PEI off route 12

Why, my friends are asking would I give up my versatile DL for what amounts to an older design, dated MC

Just another DL kinda day!

Well it's a numbers game,about 2 1/2 inches lower, narrower through the tank area and comes in around 450 lbs fueled up.  Those numbers mean better control for me, less chance of tipping over and at this stage in my life, do I (or anyone) really need a 200 horsepower engine...? With a right hip that is giving me less stability and more pain year by year, and a left shoulder that has been giving me trouble for 16 years now, I find the DL somewhat hard to handle especially when two up. 


As I have proven the last couple of years, I can ride the Island or the Maritime provinces and even New England quite happily on a smaller, easier to handle bike. 

Anyone that knows me, knows I have done some wild and crazy things on smaller displacement bikes like a fire season in BC on my DT 50, or Baja on the XT 225.  My pleasure kinds in multiple displacements !

New Brunswick coastline

Early in the week I spent three days in Rothesay visiting Lisa and family, rode my V Strom , lots of fun.


So this week has seen me considering a step down if I may say that, but not in fun, that would be a step up being in better control.  I've been up to my ankles in sandy muddy water, and earlier in the week, did 18 km on bicycle over the 400 k plus "Confederation Trail"

Confederation Trail

What more can a guy ask for...

Head to the woods!

yeah... never know what you'll find.

It was a wonderfully sunny day, and hot! 

Well not Death Valley in July hot, and maybe not exploding angry Hawaiian throwing virgins into a volcano hot, and not even me naked in the shower hot... but hot enough that I think I lost 2 pounds in sweat alone today!

Trails and woods

I've been very busy cutting grass, running to and fro, fulfilling my "manly" duties and running into Kensington to pick up 12 V light bulbs, deposit a US$ check (always appreciated) and pick up medication for my kidney stones, which if I may say... don't seem to be "rolling"... more like scraping the Rocky Mountain valleys after the last glaciation period!

Agony defined!

All I can say, must have been a wicked high tide!

I have heard giving birth to stones is a lot like giving birth.  If that is the case, I certainly don't envy expectant Mom's!

As many of my regular readers know, I have several street legal "trail" bikes.  Having not ridden my Serow 225 much this year, I decided on riding it.  Of course this meant I wouldn't be taking the highway, well at least not all the way, but I would be detouring onto the local dirt/sand roads.  Light as the 225 is at under 250 lbs as compared to the big bro XT 600 at about 340 lbs I can throw around the smaller bike and the sandy roads don't pose as much of a problem,  Usually I am standing in any case (lowers the CG) and leaned back slightly with a little throttle, or sometimes lots of throttle, depending on the depth of the sand and of course, my mood!

Peaceful and 10 degrees cooler

It's basically a 10 minute drive into K'ton but today I could stretch that out to three times that and likewise on the return.  I checked out my secret trout hole on route and even did a backwoods trail I haven't used for several years. 

The shale pit a short ride from my place

Light at the end of the tunnel!

Even though it was rather warm especially standing with my gear on in the sun, I had enough forest cover available that I could cut that exposure in half.  Unlike PHX AZ... PEI has trees and lots of them. 

Once geared up with the engine running, as I am putting on my helmet and gloves and after having checked the brake light operation, signal lights and a general walk about round the bike, I headed out.  For most of the year I have two choices for leaving my home... I can turn right at the driveway and head toward the highway, or I can turn left and climb the seasonal road giving me a fabulous view from atop or I can even take some trails before I have to pick up pavement.

Things are mighty green!

No, I didn't put a lot of miles on the little bike today, but I tend to measure my day and my F U N reader in smiles... not miles!

 Today... I was almost all the former and not the latter!  That's the way I like it :) :) :)

In another life...

Smelling the lupines *

I lived on the Island named for Prince Edward, during a previous life. 

Dennis Motors Ellerslie PEI 

It was not near as pretty then as it is today.

Or... it could be that I have more leisure time and less time spent running a Motorcycle Recreational business and raising kids, and building MX tracks, racing YSR's and running CSC** MC training courses generally.

That was such a different life, I was young, ambitious, full of zest.  I still have those traits but now they are more subdued and I smell the cafe and roses or lupines more often.*

Last Friday I went to Dennis Motors in Ellerslie, to take part in the Yamaha National test ride program.  There were a number of machines I wanted to ride.  Unfortunately the weather was wet and windy for much of the morning and didn't begin to clear off until early afternoon. There were a dedicated group of riders sandwiched between Sean (?) as leader and followed up by Kathy (?) (making sure we were safe and didn't get lost), two of the company's employees.  They had a 23 km course that followed a great mixture of quiet country back lanes and a wee bit of highway 2 for a faster pace.  We rode hill and dale, just enough to give us a pretty good handle on what a machine's capability was like.

The Yamaha van and bikes.

I first rode the R3.

Back in my day, the RD/RZ line of sports machines were great overachievers and the little four stroke twin, although not quite living up to that era... didn't disappoint either.  It's nimble, light and capable of highway speeds.  The seating position is sports standard, easy to adapt to, but not race style with the clip on's under the triple clamp.

I could see myself taking a multi day ride with soft luggage but only after I altered the final drive ratio's some.

The little twin needs an extra tooth or two on the front or 5 less on the rear to make it more versatile, which these smaller bikes that we are being offered today, need. The bike has plenty of "grunt" surprisingly but I was searching for another gear several times.  I saw an indicated 147 kph at one stretch but am quite certain it would pull three figures with taller gearing.  It's not so much the speed factor as it is the comfort level.  Now before you say anything let me add, the engine pulling minimal weight on a windy day, could easily have pulled a taller  gear.  That would have kept the revs down and given the bike a little less buzz. 

The other thing the R3 needs are rear view mirrors that you can actually use.  I quickly got into the habit of pulling in the shoulder I was looking into, to get a glimpse of Kathy riding shot gun.  Would I buy one?  You bet.  I'm somewhat noted as a fond proponent of smaller bikes, after all I have ridden a DT 50 Yamaha throughout the Rocky mountains of B.C. and even Baja, yes, that Baja!

I wish I have had more time to ride them all.

Next up was the MT-07, a bit of a "hooligan" bike really.  Nothing at all like the British twins I lusted after in the 60's but kind of along the same lines.  Although I never lived in Jolly Old nor rode bikes over there, I read a lot of the written literature of leather clad Rockers with their pudding bowls (I did have one of these as my first helmet) pushing the "TON" from one cafe to the other on twisty back lanes.  The 07's engine was a little raspy, certainly gutsy enough and with decent road manners even though it is biased to a price point.  I would immediately alter it's longer ride features by putting on a small chest sized windshield to cut down the fatigue factor.  I would also look at a taller gear for this one as well.  For screwing around on the Island, the shorter gears are more "fun" but in the bigger picture, limiting.

I know it's built for that but I want my bikes to be able to perform across a wider spectrum.  Now for a guy that has 7 motorcycles that are road registered, you may say I'm spoiled but in any case, I look at bikes especially those bikes as having a broader spectrum of capabilities.

On the other hand, unless someone brings out a luggage system, the bike is limited. 

For sheer fun the '07 would rank about 8.9 on the F U N scale.

My third ride was on the "Tracer 900".

Cathy and "Scott" :) on the left. Stop in and say Hi, the Dr sent you!

Unfortunately it was cut short as in my position as the last test rider, I had seen in my rear view mirror the shop's follow up rider (a young woman my own height), tipped over at the T intersection.  I did a very quick 180, but by the time I arrived and put the stand down on the 900, a fisheries (woman) had given Kathy a hand in picking up the bike.

No major damage but again, the bike is tip toe for me and I have been riding twice as long as she has lived :)  It can be a very fine line balancing such a tall bike.

In my short ride on the 900, I can say it too has lots of grunt, is smooth and there is no need to spin up the punchy triple to the red line (but do it anyway, they rip and sound great) For myself I would have to lower the bike but that's the case for most of the bikes I like. 

I wanted to thank Brian and the Dennis Motors team for bringing the van over for us Islanders to try some Yamaha's out.  Good on ya!

DL 650 on rte 12.

 **Canada Safety Council