No eye deer.
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Just Ride.
- Thread starter Jim
- Start date
Greenrider79
XS650 Member
With nephew in town we decided to take a run up the lake shore 25 miles to an icecream stand. Nephew enjoyed the Tracker yesterday but decided to take his Dad's TZR250 today. The leaves are just starting to turn, the roads were mostly empty and we had beautiful weather. First stop is Hika Bay Park on Lake Michigan. The TZR250 is deceptively small though bigger than a TZ track bike
This ride is mixed agriculture and residential. The residential is largely between the road and the lake shore and includes some pretty nice shacks with acres of lawns and gardens. We get some sweeping turns on well paved roadways. Into Manitowoc we stopped for icecream. This place is a tourist magnet all summer but Mondays in October, we had the place to ourselves.
For the return loop west into the county I decided to ride the TZR250. I last rode this little rocket about 25 years and 40 lbs ago. I did a little carb work last year for my brother on this bike so I am a little familiar with it. Setting for only 20 minutes while we enjoyed ice cream it still needed a mile or two to warm sufficiently to run past 7k rpm and it is rather weak but driveable 4k -7k rpm. In the mean time I am bemoaning the fact that I missed my daily morning yoga since 1983. As the temp gets up and the engine eagerly swings through 7, 8, 9k rpm I find a new ergonomic factor most riders don't consider. The knee cap to adams apple clearance is very close on this bike. So, getting onto a county highway, zipping through 13k rpm through 5 gears I found a safe turnout to trade back. We continued to wander county roads and country lanes past fields and farms and dairies back south and had an enjoyable 2 hour excursion. My nephew who is 25 years younger and 40 lbs lighter was still ready to climb off that bike.
Man it’s been a long summer! It was still topping 100 degrees just a couple days ago. But a low pressure system just swept into Arizona, blowing away the heat. Woke up this morning to 58 degrees!
Went out to the garage and pulled the cover off my Suzuki, which has been parked since May and thumbed the starter and …..VROOM!! Had a great ride, it sure felt good to blow the cobwebs off,
Im looking forward to our winter riding season.
Went out to the garage and pulled the cover off my Suzuki, which has been parked since May and thumbed the starter and …..VROOM!! Had a great ride, it sure felt good to blow the cobwebs off,
Im looking forward to our winter riding season.
"Mailman rides again"... 
Wow I’m surprised you haven’t been riding since May. Is that because of the weather? That’s great you’re back at it!
Didn't snap any pics, but me and the beemer made the across town trip (Jimmy's "Crosstown Traffic" in the back of my head) for the dreaded safety inspection. Been holding off 'till I could make it fit me.... can't handle the tiptoe thing.
To lower the back you can get 1", 1.5" and 2" lowering links. Sprung for the 1" and they showed up this weekend. Installed 'em. I'd already dropped the front by raising the forks an inch... so back to level geometry.
Before lowering, it was one of the easiest center stands I've ever had. Now... not so much.
Took an inch out of the side stand and got new, shorter springs from Ace Hardware, so that's usable now at least... I'm ramblin'... anyway...
Passed the safety thing, spent a couple hours getting home and getting to know my new (to me) thumper. That thing's got some serious down low grunt to it. Pics on the next ride.. really.
To lower the back you can get 1", 1.5" and 2" lowering links. Sprung for the 1" and they showed up this weekend. Installed 'em. I'd already dropped the front by raising the forks an inch... so back to level geometry.
Before lowering, it was one of the easiest center stands I've ever had. Now... not so much.
Took an inch out of the side stand and got new, shorter springs from Ace Hardware, so that's usable now at least... I'm ramblin'... anyway...
Passed the safety thing, spent a couple hours getting home and getting to know my new (to me) thumper. That thing's got some serious down low grunt to it. Pics on the next ride.. really.
Yeah exactly, I always tell people from other regions that we treat our summers like people in cold country treat their winters…..we just kind of hole up inside. We do any errands, like shopping early in the morning and then get home. I mean I could go riding……but it’s just miserable. October thru May is our good riding season!
In service, MCAS Yuma in the 70s. We had an off base (15 miles out in the desert) Radar/Antiaircraft missile training area. We went to tropical hours May through Sept, 5 am to Noon work days. Rotational guard duty walking the perimeter 24/7 still sucked. Yuma is 50 to 80 miles south of Phoenix down on the Mexico border.Yeah exactly, I always tell people from other regions that we treat our summers like people in cold country treat their winters…..we just kind of hole up inside. We do any errands, like shopping early in the morning and then get home. I mean I could go riding……but it’s just miserable. October thru May is our good riding season!
I spent last week working at the 2023 Vintage Triumph Rally in Dillard, GA. I didn't bring my Triumphs for reasons so I rode the FJR. As a member of the host club, I worked the various events and was the Field Marshall for the Concours Show. While I was there, I took a group of Triumphs on a roundabout, twisty ride/drive to a great brewery in Clayton, GA called Currahee Brewing. Sidebar: My son did his Eagle Scout Project at the training camp at the base of Mount Currahee. Good times, Great People.
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I was in Clayton over the weekend for a reunion with a select few of my USMC shipmates. I saw plenty of Triumphs out and about. Nice!
I wish I would have known
I drove 8 hours out on Friday night. Returned to Mississippi on Sunday. Two of these guys I had not seen since 1981! My relationship with them is very special and that’s a bit of an understatement. There was just no time for anything else on this trip unfortunately.I wish I would have known
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This week's front porch
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Fit some straight thru turndowns on the FL (?) and two or three passes up your driveway will clear the leaves...and you get to claim you were doing yard work...
Back PORCH
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