Here you all go. In case you didn't get an email from me this link will take you to an electronic mapping software powered by google. It will update every ten minutes my position throughout my ride this week.
The page will remain open for 7 days starting now. Just click on the link and it should handle the rest. You can close the browser if you need to. Once you return it will automatically update everything.
Enjoy.
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0hyvWiDoKr29nl4NNFsepcKgvxdDUUWpL
-bryan
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Upcoming Ride and a couple updates...
Since school has been out I have been doing some riding. However, due to the weather not as much as I had hoped to be. A few weeks ago Josh and I made it out to the Asheville area to do some riding and check out a restaurant for a possible RTE with the MTF. We found some nice roads and even rode a few miles down a dirtroad and saw some really neat stuff. In addition to this I had a screw up and laid the FZ down. Luckily it was a slow drop and I made it to the dirt and never touched the asphalt. However I got extremely lucky and it could have been alot worse. More details on that stuff later.
Tomorrow morning the folks and I are planning on going out for a ride somewhere in the mtns. The weather looks like it should be nice, but there is no telling what it can do when I go riding with Mom and Dad. They have a curse, rain gear will be packed...
Wednesday morning Josh, Jon and I will be leaving first thing in the morning headed to Deals Gap. We will be meeting up with some members on the FZ6 forum that I am part of it. We will be staying through Sat night and heading home Sunday. As a birthday gift from Jordan you all will be able to track ours/my progress on the trip thanks to a spot device (GPS locator). I will be posting a link to the tracking map on here and emailing the link to those emails that I have with instructions.
Off to bed before Tippi tears it up ( she has already got a good start on it)
-bryan
Tomorrow morning the folks and I are planning on going out for a ride somewhere in the mtns. The weather looks like it should be nice, but there is no telling what it can do when I go riding with Mom and Dad. They have a curse, rain gear will be packed...
Wednesday morning Josh, Jon and I will be leaving first thing in the morning headed to Deals Gap. We will be meeting up with some members on the FZ6 forum that I am part of it. We will be staying through Sat night and heading home Sunday. As a birthday gift from Jordan you all will be able to track ours/my progress on the trip thanks to a spot device (GPS locator). I will be posting a link to the tracking map on here and emailing the link to those emails that I have with instructions.
Off to bed before Tippi tears it up ( she has already got a good start on it)
-bryan
Friday, May 8, 2009
Safe, Bike Safe That Is.
So not too long ago, Darryl Cannon, aka. Killboy from www.killboy.com made a post about a new program that the North Carolina State Highway Patrol is offering. The program is called Bike Safe NC and is modeled after Bike Safe London. Sgt. Brown, an avid rider and motorcycle officer for the NCSHP started the program here in NC after taking the class in London. This program in London has shown a 25% decrease in motorcycle fatalities since its launch and is only taught by a handful of officers. One can only hope that the numbers will be as substantial here.
Bike Safe NC, is taught once a month in three different locations, Raleigh, Wilmington and Camp Lejeune. The class is set up so that there are two rides throughout the day, with no more than two students per officer during the ride. In addition to the riding, there is some class room activity as well.
So here is how the day went:
The morning started with introductions from Sgt Brown and the other officers that would be riding along with us. Sgt Brown then started in with his PowerPoint presentation that included some videos and images of motorcycle crashes. While some of the images were a bit graphic, he got the point across! In addition to this we broke down the "evidence," skid marks, intersection traffic patters, etc to see what the driver of the car and/or rider did wrong to cause the crash. This was followed by some first aid information including the use of the Hats Off Device. After mentioning this to Dad this evening, I have a feeling these will be in our lids in the near future.
We were then assigned our officers that would being following us on our rides. Now I must admit I was looking forward to some technical cone drills taught by the NCSHP on the nice skid pad and track just outside the class room. However, this was not the case for this class. Sgt. Brown noted that no one is killed in cone practice, fatal crashes happen on the road and that is where we would be evaluated.
They paired us up according the bike type and years of riding experience. The instructors included mostly NCSHP officers, while a few Raleigh and Cary bike officers showed up to assist as well. I was paired with a gentleman on a BMW tourer and our officer was state trooper Conwell.
The rides are set up so that they put the students through a series of hazards and different road types. Each student gets to take point and be evaluated. This is done by having the officer in the middle with a student in front of and behind him. While a map is given showing the direction of the route, the officers mix it up a bit by giving you directions from their bike to ensure you are using your mirrors. About half way through the ride, the students change positions so that the officer can evaluate the other student.
We ended the short ride at the cafeteria and we ate with our officer so that he could review the ride with us. In addition to this we talked about other things including why the NCSHP decided to get rid of the Harley's. *Snicker*
After lunch the class room lecture started up again. This time we went over some riding techniques which included reading road signs, other than the ones the DOT puts out. With this information covered we watched a few more crash videos and evaluated what signs the rider missed or ignored.
From there we went back out but on a much longer loop around the Raleigh area practicing what we had gone over in the class earlier. This time the traffic was a bit heaver as it was approaching the rush hour mark and school was letting out.
The class concluded with some closing remarks and the certificate presentations. In all we rode about 60 miles with the officers on the 5 worst roads in the Raleigh area. It was a neat feeling riding along with the people we normally tend to avoid.
In addition, the certificates were given so that we could fax a copy along with the web page to our insurance agents. Geico, for sure offers a discount for attending the class while others are still up in the air. In fact a Geico representative actually attended the class at one point during the pilot program and reported back to HQ to push the discount.
Now, I realize no one is perfect and I am no exception. So here is what advice officer Conwell gave me. (Oh and I forgot to mention that this class is set up so that it does not force your do change your riding style, but simply offer suggestions to improve. Also, the ticket books are left in the saddlebags, lol.)
-To leave my left foot on the peg at intersections and put my right down. This way I am covering the shifter in the event the bike slips out of gear or if I need to move quickly. I feel most comfortable with my right foot up and left foot down, or both down. But I am working on the change.
-Secondly, to accelerate quicker from the intersections. Most accidents in the city happen at intersections. So officer Conwell suggested that I accelerate more rapidly away from the intersection so that I do not spend more time that necessary in it. I.E. if I was making a right turn on red, to check to make sure it is clear, then quickly get away. Also, if I am crossing the intersection, straight, to ease into the intersection watching all directions, and once across the halfway point, accel out of and remain accelerating until completely clear. Now don't get me wrong I don't exactly crawl around on my bike, but I am not one to doing alot of hard accel, after all I am on a "sport bike" it looks fast sitting still.
-One thing that I did take from the class was an improvement of corner set up. In that for a blind left hander, ride the the out side line to increase visibility and to apex the corner late to avoid possible impact if an on coming vehicle happens to swing wide out of the corner which is typically in the center apex of the corner.
Overall the class was still abit elementary as it was geared for those riders who have come out of the MSF and been riding a year or so. This allows them to ride with officers and be offered advice on how the improve there road skills. While I said it was a bit elementary, it was still use full and walked away with knowledge that I would have other wise never learned. It is a great class and is open ended to a point, in that the students have alot of input as to what material can be covered in the class.
A+++++ to all those officers that volunteer their time and efforts to ensure the safety of other riders!
It is a definite must do class and will only remain free for a short time. However, the govt has recognized this class as a benefit and has picked it up. In 2010 it will start becoming available in other states across the country. Look for it soon in your area!
Bike Safe NC, is taught once a month in three different locations, Raleigh, Wilmington and Camp Lejeune. The class is set up so that there are two rides throughout the day, with no more than two students per officer during the ride. In addition to the riding, there is some class room activity as well.
So here is how the day went:
The morning started with introductions from Sgt Brown and the other officers that would be riding along with us. Sgt Brown then started in with his PowerPoint presentation that included some videos and images of motorcycle crashes. While some of the images were a bit graphic, he got the point across! In addition to this we broke down the "evidence," skid marks, intersection traffic patters, etc to see what the driver of the car and/or rider did wrong to cause the crash. This was followed by some first aid information including the use of the Hats Off Device. After mentioning this to Dad this evening, I have a feeling these will be in our lids in the near future.
We were then assigned our officers that would being following us on our rides. Now I must admit I was looking forward to some technical cone drills taught by the NCSHP on the nice skid pad and track just outside the class room. However, this was not the case for this class. Sgt. Brown noted that no one is killed in cone practice, fatal crashes happen on the road and that is where we would be evaluated.
They paired us up according the bike type and years of riding experience. The instructors included mostly NCSHP officers, while a few Raleigh and Cary bike officers showed up to assist as well. I was paired with a gentleman on a BMW tourer and our officer was state trooper Conwell.
The rides are set up so that they put the students through a series of hazards and different road types. Each student gets to take point and be evaluated. This is done by having the officer in the middle with a student in front of and behind him. While a map is given showing the direction of the route, the officers mix it up a bit by giving you directions from their bike to ensure you are using your mirrors. About half way through the ride, the students change positions so that the officer can evaluate the other student.
We ended the short ride at the cafeteria and we ate with our officer so that he could review the ride with us. In addition to this we talked about other things including why the NCSHP decided to get rid of the Harley's. *Snicker*
After lunch the class room lecture started up again. This time we went over some riding techniques which included reading road signs, other than the ones the DOT puts out. With this information covered we watched a few more crash videos and evaluated what signs the rider missed or ignored.
From there we went back out but on a much longer loop around the Raleigh area practicing what we had gone over in the class earlier. This time the traffic was a bit heaver as it was approaching the rush hour mark and school was letting out.
The class concluded with some closing remarks and the certificate presentations. In all we rode about 60 miles with the officers on the 5 worst roads in the Raleigh area. It was a neat feeling riding along with the people we normally tend to avoid.
In addition, the certificates were given so that we could fax a copy along with the web page to our insurance agents. Geico, for sure offers a discount for attending the class while others are still up in the air. In fact a Geico representative actually attended the class at one point during the pilot program and reported back to HQ to push the discount.
Now, I realize no one is perfect and I am no exception. So here is what advice officer Conwell gave me. (Oh and I forgot to mention that this class is set up so that it does not force your do change your riding style, but simply offer suggestions to improve. Also, the ticket books are left in the saddlebags, lol.)
-To leave my left foot on the peg at intersections and put my right down. This way I am covering the shifter in the event the bike slips out of gear or if I need to move quickly. I feel most comfortable with my right foot up and left foot down, or both down. But I am working on the change.
-Secondly, to accelerate quicker from the intersections. Most accidents in the city happen at intersections. So officer Conwell suggested that I accelerate more rapidly away from the intersection so that I do not spend more time that necessary in it. I.E. if I was making a right turn on red, to check to make sure it is clear, then quickly get away. Also, if I am crossing the intersection, straight, to ease into the intersection watching all directions, and once across the halfway point, accel out of and remain accelerating until completely clear. Now don't get me wrong I don't exactly crawl around on my bike, but I am not one to doing alot of hard accel, after all I am on a "sport bike" it looks fast sitting still.
-One thing that I did take from the class was an improvement of corner set up. In that for a blind left hander, ride the the out side line to increase visibility and to apex the corner late to avoid possible impact if an on coming vehicle happens to swing wide out of the corner which is typically in the center apex of the corner.
Overall the class was still abit elementary as it was geared for those riders who have come out of the MSF and been riding a year or so. This allows them to ride with officers and be offered advice on how the improve there road skills. While I said it was a bit elementary, it was still use full and walked away with knowledge that I would have other wise never learned. It is a great class and is open ended to a point, in that the students have alot of input as to what material can be covered in the class.
A+++++ to all those officers that volunteer their time and efforts to ensure the safety of other riders!
It is a definite must do class and will only remain free for a short time. However, the govt has recognized this class as a benefit and has picked it up. In 2010 it will start becoming available in other states across the country. Look for it soon in your area!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Virginia Run: Squirrel Hunting!
So with the Avons being fitting on Saturday in Winston, I figured I might as well take advantage of the weather and get some riding in. Being close to VA, I decided to do some research on roads up that way and plan a route.
I had been hearing alot of good stuff on a road called "Squirrel Spur." Many riders have mentioned its tight corners, great scenery and wide shoulders. So I spent a couple hours on Friday night, waiting on paint to dry, playing on S&T planning a route. Keeping in mind that I wouldn't be on the road till lunch time at best, I kept the route short. I found another road online called, Willis Mountain Rd, that looked to be alot of fun as well so I did what I could to tie it in.
Here is what I came up with. This is a copy of my tank map.
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So before I headed up to Va, I made a run down to Salisbury and back to pick up a kick stand for one of the mechanics there at the shop. This gave me an opportunity to get some miles and heat in the tires to get rid of those dreaded oils and release agents.
The trip took me up Hwy 66, which one of my old roommates had told me about. He warned me that it was a bit rough but still a nice road. He was correct, it was beat up in many places, but with a resurfacing and some shoulder work, this road could be a hoot. It wound its way up to Hwy 89 which turned out to be a great road. Full of twists of varying degree, some sweepers some tight, a bit of everything really. I wouldn't mind finding my way on to that road again.
From 89 I ended up on 103 and I decided to pull over at a gas station for a soda to perk up a bit. I stopped at a "Neighbors" gas station inside this small town. Went inside looking for a Cheerwine, and to my surprise they had it in glass bottles! Went up to the register and handed the lady my card. She quickly ran it through and the machine beeped at her. She complained about the "antique" equipment and said she needed to slow down for it. I laughed and then said said that the computer was running Windows 95 and their Internet was still on dial-up! No sooner than she got that out, I heard the machine dialing out! I haven't heard that sound in years. Then she told me that the two islands (4 pumps), credit card machine and phone line in the store are all on the same line! That store desperately needs an update.
I took my glass bottled Cheerwine outside, checked my bags and cleaned my visor and windshield. One of the locals was looking at the bike and commented about something. Hard to understand a 80 year old man with a mouth full of chew. I laughed and smiled, having no idea what he said. Finished my Cheerwine and headed on.
Off of 103, I made a left onto Unity Church Rd. which led to Squirrel Spur. Unity was a small farm road back in the rolling hills of Mt. Airy. It was a rather nice ride, and I wish I would have stopped for some pictures. Off in the distance you could see the mountain range coming up. A few miles later I came up to the intersection at Squirrel Spur. The road was narrow, the shoulder was busted up and the road was rough. I was bit confused. I eased my way up and to my surprise the pavement changed, there was a fresh asphalt and new guard rails and the corners got tight! It turned out to be one heck of a road. I was really enjoying it and I would love to get back there soon.
The road went back to crap again and the shoulder disappeared. A few more miles of this and I was up to the parkway. I rode the parkway up to hwy 58, which was all too familiar from a ride earlier this year. From 58 I took Hwy 8 north to Tuggle's Gap. I pushed the bike a bit in the corners here to see how the Avons felt. I was honestly too darn worried about the slick stuff and didn't get a good judgement of the tire condition to make an honest call on them. But they did well, and the bike never slid. Transition from corner to corner felt a bit different from M3's but other than that, they did well. A quick stop at Tuggle's to clean my visor again, the bugs were out in full force, and I was off back down the parkway to 58 again. This time I headed west on 58 to catch 52 South. I stopped for a quick picture, as the sun was not as harsh any more.
58 west to 52 south was rather uneventful. I was watching the skies closely as looked as though I might be getting wet. Which would be perfect since I didn't pack the rain gear... Once on 52 I was found my way back to the parkway to head north looking for Willis Mtn Rd. Several miles in I was starting to think I might have missed it so I found a wide spot at an intersection to turn around. Turns out that was the intersection was for Willis! The lighting was rather dark, but the woods looked pretty cool, so I stopped to get some more pictures.
Jordan's response to the last picture. "Would it kill you to smile or were you trying to be tough?"
I am sure I was rather amusing to the people that passed by as I was stacking rocks to set the camera on. I had to get the camera up about 6 inches so that the road was not half of the shot.
Willis Road was nice, it was a bit rough and too populated to really feel comfortable on, in my opinion. Some nice small houses off this road with a good sized trucking company at the end. The road didn't put me out where I thought I would be, so I 'winged it' and just went right. Some how I got lucky and went the right direction which put me on 104 which led to 103 and 52. There at the intersection of 104 and 103 there was some huge play ground. I mean this thing was massive! I am sure if Jordan was with me, we would have stopped, lol.
I found my way back to 52 and set a path home. It was getting late and I was hungry. ~360 miles later I was back in Lexington. This included the ride from Lexington to Winston, and then from Winston to Salisbury and back to Winston. I am planning on getting back up that way soon to do some more exploring.
-bryan
I had been hearing alot of good stuff on a road called "Squirrel Spur." Many riders have mentioned its tight corners, great scenery and wide shoulders. So I spent a couple hours on Friday night, waiting on paint to dry, playing on S&T planning a route. Keeping in mind that I wouldn't be on the road till lunch time at best, I kept the route short. I found another road online called, Willis Mountain Rd, that looked to be alot of fun as well so I did what I could to tie it in.
Here is what I came up with. This is a copy of my tank map.
So before I headed up to Va, I made a run down to Salisbury and back to pick up a kick stand for one of the mechanics there at the shop. This gave me an opportunity to get some miles and heat in the tires to get rid of those dreaded oils and release agents.The trip took me up Hwy 66, which one of my old roommates had told me about. He warned me that it was a bit rough but still a nice road. He was correct, it was beat up in many places, but with a resurfacing and some shoulder work, this road could be a hoot. It wound its way up to Hwy 89 which turned out to be a great road. Full of twists of varying degree, some sweepers some tight, a bit of everything really. I wouldn't mind finding my way on to that road again.
From 89 I ended up on 103 and I decided to pull over at a gas station for a soda to perk up a bit. I stopped at a "Neighbors" gas station inside this small town. Went inside looking for a Cheerwine, and to my surprise they had it in glass bottles! Went up to the register and handed the lady my card. She quickly ran it through and the machine beeped at her. She complained about the "antique" equipment and said she needed to slow down for it. I laughed and then said said that the computer was running Windows 95 and their Internet was still on dial-up! No sooner than she got that out, I heard the machine dialing out! I haven't heard that sound in years. Then she told me that the two islands (4 pumps), credit card machine and phone line in the store are all on the same line! That store desperately needs an update.
I took my glass bottled Cheerwine outside, checked my bags and cleaned my visor and windshield. One of the locals was looking at the bike and commented about something. Hard to understand a 80 year old man with a mouth full of chew. I laughed and smiled, having no idea what he said. Finished my Cheerwine and headed on.
Off of 103, I made a left onto Unity Church Rd. which led to Squirrel Spur. Unity was a small farm road back in the rolling hills of Mt. Airy. It was a rather nice ride, and I wish I would have stopped for some pictures. Off in the distance you could see the mountain range coming up. A few miles later I came up to the intersection at Squirrel Spur. The road was narrow, the shoulder was busted up and the road was rough. I was bit confused. I eased my way up and to my surprise the pavement changed, there was a fresh asphalt and new guard rails and the corners got tight! It turned out to be one heck of a road. I was really enjoying it and I would love to get back there soon.
The road went back to crap again and the shoulder disappeared. A few more miles of this and I was up to the parkway. I rode the parkway up to hwy 58, which was all too familiar from a ride earlier this year. From 58 I took Hwy 8 north to Tuggle's Gap. I pushed the bike a bit in the corners here to see how the Avons felt. I was honestly too darn worried about the slick stuff and didn't get a good judgement of the tire condition to make an honest call on them. But they did well, and the bike never slid. Transition from corner to corner felt a bit different from M3's but other than that, they did well. A quick stop at Tuggle's to clean my visor again, the bugs were out in full force, and I was off back down the parkway to 58 again. This time I headed west on 58 to catch 52 South. I stopped for a quick picture, as the sun was not as harsh any more.
58 west to 52 south was rather uneventful. I was watching the skies closely as looked as though I might be getting wet. Which would be perfect since I didn't pack the rain gear... Once on 52 I was found my way back to the parkway to head north looking for Willis Mtn Rd. Several miles in I was starting to think I might have missed it so I found a wide spot at an intersection to turn around. Turns out that was the intersection was for Willis! The lighting was rather dark, but the woods looked pretty cool, so I stopped to get some more pictures.Jordan's response to the last picture. "Would it kill you to smile or were you trying to be tough?"I am sure I was rather amusing to the people that passed by as I was stacking rocks to set the camera on. I had to get the camera up about 6 inches so that the road was not half of the shot.
Willis Road was nice, it was a bit rough and too populated to really feel comfortable on, in my opinion. Some nice small houses off this road with a good sized trucking company at the end. The road didn't put me out where I thought I would be, so I 'winged it' and just went right. Some how I got lucky and went the right direction which put me on 104 which led to 103 and 52. There at the intersection of 104 and 103 there was some huge play ground. I mean this thing was massive! I am sure if Jordan was with me, we would have stopped, lol.
I found my way back to 52 and set a path home. It was getting late and I was hungry. ~360 miles later I was back in Lexington. This included the ride from Lexington to Winston, and then from Winston to Salisbury and back to Winston. I am planning on getting back up that way soon to do some more exploring.
-bryan
Friday, April 17, 2009
New Tires: A Comparison
When I first got the FZ6, Dad put a set of Metzler M3's on. The bike has a 5.5 inch wide rear wheel, which calls for a 180. The previous owner had a 160 on there when he traded it in, so in order to fill up the rear end of the bike, a 190 was put on. While there seems to be a big issue on one of the forums about running the 190 vs. the 180, I didn't feel that the handling was slow or sluggish. However with that peaky tire that the M3's seem to be it was hard to get that last half inch of the tire on the pavement.
I have gone through one rear M3, which was replaced this past summer and one front M3 which was replaced in October. I am coming up on needing a new rear which currently has roughly 5500 miles on it. The first rear M3 got roughly 6600 miles out of it and the front M3 I think I had around 10,000 miles on it. However, it was really low on tread, chords were not showing though.
At first I was planning on putting a new 180 M3 on the rear so that I could get the "goody" out of the front as well. However, judging by the previous tires, it looks as though I will need new front and rear tires in late summer/early fall. Seeing that could be a bad time, Dad and I decided to go ahead and put new rubber on all the way around. This time, a set of Avon Storms will fitted onto the FZ.
Some info on the M3's:
The M3's were really good tires and I have nothing really to complain about them. They had awesome wet weather traction and really moved the water. One day on the way home from class, a large thunderstorm had moved in and put down alot of water. So much so that a few local streets were underwater. When making my way through the pools on one particular street, I could feel the sheets of water being thrown up on my legs as the tread moved it away from the contact patch! As for the traction, it was outstanding for my slightly aggressive riding. In one case, which I mentioned on another blog entry. [See "Labor Day Ride"] The roads were wet heading up 181, and I decided to see at what point the tires would let go in the rain. It wasn't the smartest idea, but I found out where the tires let go, which was well past where I was comfortable in the rain! The only down fall I can point about the tires was that when they were cold, they really did not work well. In that they would dart off uneven pavement, such as repair patches in the road. Those slight edges would make the front end dart around. My only reason for switching is that I want to get some more miles of a set of tires... I would love to see 10,000 miles, but we shall see.
On Saturday I will be taking the bike up to Winston to Forsyth Motosports to have the new tires fitted. From there I plan on taking a nice little ride up into Virginia to put some miles on them. While these roads are mostly twisty, I do not plan on pushing it at all as the tires will be slick. I just want to get some heat in them and get some miles on the bike while the sun is out this weekend. Sunday looks to be a wash out...
Ok, so with the help of the mechanics at the shop I was able to mount the Avons on Saturday. Once this was completed I rode the bike from Winston to Salisbury to pick up an adjustable kick stand for a customers bike, and then rode back to Winston. This was a good a way to get some heat in the tires and get them scuffed a bit.
I have gone through one rear M3, which was replaced this past summer and one front M3 which was replaced in October. I am coming up on needing a new rear which currently has roughly 5500 miles on it. The first rear M3 got roughly 6600 miles out of it and the front M3 I think I had around 10,000 miles on it. However, it was really low on tread, chords were not showing though.
At first I was planning on putting a new 180 M3 on the rear so that I could get the "goody" out of the front as well. However, judging by the previous tires, it looks as though I will need new front and rear tires in late summer/early fall. Seeing that could be a bad time, Dad and I decided to go ahead and put new rubber on all the way around. This time, a set of Avon Storms will fitted onto the FZ.
Some info on the M3's:
The M3's were really good tires and I have nothing really to complain about them. They had awesome wet weather traction and really moved the water. One day on the way home from class, a large thunderstorm had moved in and put down alot of water. So much so that a few local streets were underwater. When making my way through the pools on one particular street, I could feel the sheets of water being thrown up on my legs as the tread moved it away from the contact patch! As for the traction, it was outstanding for my slightly aggressive riding. In one case, which I mentioned on another blog entry. [See "Labor Day Ride"] The roads were wet heading up 181, and I decided to see at what point the tires would let go in the rain. It wasn't the smartest idea, but I found out where the tires let go, which was well past where I was comfortable in the rain! The only down fall I can point about the tires was that when they were cold, they really did not work well. In that they would dart off uneven pavement, such as repair patches in the road. Those slight edges would make the front end dart around. My only reason for switching is that I want to get some more miles of a set of tires... I would love to see 10,000 miles, but we shall see.
On Saturday I will be taking the bike up to Winston to Forsyth Motosports to have the new tires fitted. From there I plan on taking a nice little ride up into Virginia to put some miles on them. While these roads are mostly twisty, I do not plan on pushing it at all as the tires will be slick. I just want to get some heat in them and get some miles on the bike while the sun is out this weekend. Sunday looks to be a wash out...
Ok, so with the help of the mechanics at the shop I was able to mount the Avons on Saturday. Once this was completed I rode the bike from Winston to Salisbury to pick up an adjustable kick stand for a customers bike, and then rode back to Winston. This was a good a way to get some heat in the tires and get them scuffed a bit.
Side note: Those Avons were some kinda slick from the factory! I mean extreamly shinny!
Once I got back to Winston, I headed north into Virgina to put some miles on the tires. I never really pushed the bike hard because I was too worried about the slick edges and such on the tires. So subconsiously I felt as though the tires werent holding as well as the M3's did, but that really isnt a fair statement. I will wait an make the final call on that on my next ride.
I put a little over 300 miles on the tires Saturday and they rode really well. They rode well, and under an emergency stopping situation they seemed to do very well. I am impressed at this point with them . We will see how they hold up for the long haul as the summer goes on.
A great looking rear tire! It seems to be just as wide as my 190 M3 was, but not near as tall. This picture was taken at the shopafter I came back from Salisbury.
-bryan
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