Whats new? Nothing!
December 11th, 2009
Autumn is not a good time of year for me. The weather is wet, the days are short and the British roads turn slippery with the mush of leaves and grease thats been locked away in the tarmac since the last rains… This time signals the end of the daily commute by bike and the return of the car journey.
I know, what type of biker am I becoming I hear you shout. Well I have to admit it Im going soft in my old age. I dont like the cold 5am starts and I dont like sitting on a train holding wet gear. My other problem is that I dont really want to trash the Buell now that its an endangered species. I’d love to get a maxi scooter or something like that. I could then leave my wet gear with the bike and I would not care so much about it getting trashed with road salt and grime.
Enough moaning, lets talk about the Buell and how its going… I’ll say now, its flying. I’m at approx 5000 miles now and the bike is relaxing nicely now. The ECM maps (currently 06z) as of writing is really smooth at commuting speeds. The 3000-4000 rpm range is full of torque and can now be used without feeling like you’re sitting on an expectant horse. As always Blackbear apply the latest ECM updates… Everything else on the bike is just perfect. Its really good in the wet and its even better in the dry. My 2nd rear tyre is now nicely scrubbed in and will se me right for another 3000 miles before changing both ends to something different. Saying that, I am getting on just fine with the Pirelli Corsa 111′s so maybe I wont change. We’ll see whats about when its time.
I’m thinking of purchasing all of the required parts to turn the front end of my bike in to a CR – naked model. This will give me a change of bike in a way AND force me to drive at a more relaxed speed if you know what I mean. I find it very easy to cruise on a long trip at the higher end of acceptability so could do with a change to make it uncomfortable when pushing on… Blackbear have approximated the parts cost at £600 plus a few hours labour to complete the change. It is a lot of money but will give me two bikes for the price of one…
My bike kit is holding out well and there have been no changes there with the exception of a rider branded neck gaitor. This is a fleece based neck tube with a wide cover around the shoulder area. It creates a nice warm gasket between jacket and neck line. Realy has improved cold weather comfort and for less than £20 I recommend everyone with a leather jacket gets one.
Apologies for the total silence recently. Autumn has taken its toll on my inspiration 
