Moto Journal Entry - Summer 2016

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When I think of riding Reno to Tahoe my mind is filed with memories of dusty high desert roads with long sweepers, rocky hill climbs, air thinning to a crisp sierra summit, lake views with golden grasses dried from the summer sun.

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Until of course, the battery falls out. Crap... never mind that. Where was I? Yes, the geometry, the air pressure? Hmm.... How is the rising rate working with the terrain today? Well, actually kinda bad. Its probably time to quit these shocks and try the other pair.

 

Go back to plan b. There, much better! Dampening is better matched to the spring rate on these. Man, data acquisition would be so helpful right now. Or a chase cam to film with like the trophy truck guys use. Oh well, too bad, just twist throttle and grin ear to ear.

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This wide open landscape can't be too different than it was 50, 60 years ago when the old timers were making it up as they went along. There was no precedent set for suspension tuning - they were just literally flying by the seat of their pants. A good seat was at least as valuable as "good" shocks, Hmm... I wonder.... Maybe they were addressing the symptom rather than the cause....?

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Anyways, men were made of iron, just like their cylinders. When you think about it, they took showroom daily driver bikes. Like actual, respectable machines that genuinely qualified as transportation, and then fully manhandled them over deserts and mountains wearing the same gloves that mowed the lawn or chopped the wood pile. It was the wild west of motorcycling back then.

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Interesting, people still want to do bad things to good bikes ;)