Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Scenes from a motorcycle trip.

Here was the situation. Last year my brother announces his plans to ride his motorcycle down to San Antone for the big AA convention here in 2010.

Now clearly I had something to do with this, as I had lived on motorcycles for some years,and ridden up to see my kin every years for several years running. But I hadn't thrown a leg over a bike for six years, and turns out my last road trip was back in '94, when I rode my then Beemer to the National Rally in Silverton, Colorado.

So anyhow, my brother's plans turned my attention to my long-neglected high-mileage '92 KLR650, which had sat in my garage unstarted and neglected since '04 (amazing how time flies), and not ridden much at all since '94 (marriage and all that).

Neglect had not been kind to my KLR, when last I rode it for a week in '04 it had serious carburetion problems. Turns out that was probably from developing rust inside the gas tank, this time around it was so rusted I had a hard time opening the cap. So, off went the fuel tank for cleaning and coating at a local radiator shop that does motorcycles too.

Two weeks later, tank and new battery in place, I hit the starter switch and she fired right up, a glimmer of the legendary reliabilty of these particular bikes. Still had serious carburetion problems though, and would cut out seriously over 3,000 rpm.

The first order of the day was a complete wheel to wheel service; new fluids, valves clearance, replacing a broke windshield the works. And of course a carb rebuild. I had picked up a new seat over the years, and ordered new fork boots put on to match. Needed a new Metzler Sahara enduro tire on the back. The front fork springs had to go too, those being the originals from eighteen years and 48,000 miles ago.

When the time came, I drained the old oil, put in new synthetic 20-50 for the ride over and rolled out the driveway at 5 in the morning towards the old dealership.

The reason for the early departure was that the dealership was 35 miles away down the loop and the tags on the plate were from '04. Weren't much point in renewing the tags before I knew she would run.

So we headed out, trailed by the missus in our car, in case she died on the way over (the bike I mean).

Did I say "died"?... Halfway there, with a sudden cough or two, she remembered her legs and roared to life, must be the rust had gotten blown out of the jets.

A week later she was back, a new old bike, firing up like clockwork at a touch of the button.



I rode the bike daily for a week or two before the trip, looking to see if problems developed, other than a slow oil drip from a leaking seal somewhere, there were none.

'Course, about like shooting black powder, actually having the bike was only half the battle, now I needed all the stuff to go with it. The theme of this trip was to do it for as little as possible, and I was already several hundred dollars into it just putting the bike back on the road again.

Here's some pics from the second morning of the trip, somewhere in Arkansas...

Note the brand new Metzler (story to follow)...



The helmet was my old Shoei, a fine helmet fifteen years ago. The only face shield the dealer had to fit was that amber one, good for southern afternoons in the sun but about like riding in the dark at night given the KLR's less-than-blinding stock headlight.

For gloves I bought black army surplus leather shells, as good as any of the purpose-built items on the market for less than half the price.

The improvement of inexpensive riding attire during my absence was a pleasant surprise. Leather always has been expensive, hot in the summer, and stretching when drenched, but back then synthetic riding gear weren't as protective. Now there is a wide array of inexpensive synthetic jackets incorportating functional armor, for less than $200, mine came from Firstgear.

The saddlebags set me back only $150 over the 'net, from Nelson-Rigg. The exaust pipe set 'em on fire on first trial, more about my wife's brilliant solution for that later.

On top sits an actual pack and frame. See, I really didn't know that the bike would just up and run for another 6,000 miles, and if something big broke and it wasn't worth fixing, I could walk to the bus station with the most critical stuff in my pack.

Holding the pack on... bungee nets.... STILL only about $7 per... the guy who came up with 'em shoulda won a Nobel Prize.

Footwear? My trusty Timberlands, which allus was too hot to wear down here. The Crocs on the top were for casual wear, and for holding sodas and water bottles.

More later.

Birdwatcher

Looks like fun!
I have heard great things about those KLRs.
The Kawis I have owned(KX 125, ZX-10R) have been very reliable, also.

I hear ya on the new syn. riding gear, I still use my old Firstgear leather jacket, but it is heavy and hot compared to the modern stuff.

Glad you are enjoying that bike once again, Birdy.

Cool trip! The KLR is an excellent machine. Have seen more than a few on the "Haul Road" up here. They have a great reputation.

Jeff

Ya 340, the irony is that I quit riding the KLR in '94, in favor of a BMW, "a bike that I could own and rebuild forever". Turns out the KLR has been in production for so long (and still is) that there is a huge aftermarket, and yes, if/when it dies, I could rebuild it forever, or at least for the rest of my natural life time.

Anyhoo... Sunday morning the 13th, the time came for me to leave. Seemed like a big deal at the time, like an adventure, truth be told the bike still felt alien to me, tho I had ridden so many miles on 'em years back. Loaded up, the bike looked like this, this pic taken later in New York State...



..and here was the odometer the morning I left...




My wife followed me to a restaurant outside of town and we stopped to east breakfast. I have been exceeding fortunate, I have not wanted to take a trip without her, the only reason this one was happening at all was the first grandchild is due in September, and she is taking her vacation time then.

After breakfast I rolled on alone 100 miles up to Austin, where I stopped in to see my ol buddy Tommygs and gloat (he ain't ridden in years either )

After that came the serious business of putting on miles. First day out, in the old days I always aimed for an even 1,000 . That was years back, I didn't know how I would do now.

North out of Austin towards Dallas I found myself running with droves of Harleys; turns out there had been a big rally that weekend. We was all running fast, 80 - 90 mph, but we had a tailwind. I have always been amazed at the performance Kawasaki wrung out out the simple carbureted thumper on the KLR. It will torque at low RPM through the dirt on the one hand, yet happily hammer along all day on the Superslab, smoothed out by a chain-driven internal counterweight.

It redlines at 7,500 rpm, but peak power is at 6,000 rpm, which is about 85 mph in top gear. It has useful acceleration all the way to that point, but ordinarily tops out and runs out of gears in the mid nineties. Fast enough for what it is.

I stopped to gas up just south of Dallas, made better than 50 miles per gallon despite the fast pace, probably due to the tailwind.

Heading east from Dallas on I 40, I arrived at near to Texarkana about 3pm, where I stopped for gas again.

This is where the trouble began.

Pulling up to the pump, my back tire, the new one, was almost flat. I rolled it over to the pump, fed in the quarters and put in air, but could hear air hissing out... damn....

No nails or screws in the tire, had to be the tube... damn again...

So I topped off the tire and parked the bike outside a restaurant and went in to eat, watching the bike to see how long till the tire went flat. About fifteen minutes. Put in a can of Fix-a-Flat, tried it again, no difference.

Hookay.... twenty miles outside of Texarkana... ten minutes of riding time per fill up. Ten dollars in quarters from an obliging cashier and off I went, exit to exit, putting in air at each.

Made it all the way through Texarkana that way, looking for motorcycle shops. There was a Harley dealer, but this was Sunday and it was closed. Got directions to a Honda shop across town, but it weren't gonna be open until 10am on Tuesday.... damn.....

Meanwhile the tire had gotten worse, now it was flat ALL the time, so I rode-walked it up the side of the road back to the interstate, looking for a motel I didn't want to stay in. Two nights 'till Tuesday.... damn....

First motel, like a crack house, the sort of place they raid on "Cops", "thirty-five dollars a night" says the clerk, "wait, is that too much? I can cut you a deal" he says as I leave.

Ninety-something heat, full Arkansas sun, off down the side of the access road to a Holiday Inn maybe a half-mile away. Except there ain't an access road, just construction on the interstate where a bridge takes it over a railroad track. No way for me to advance.

I seen a road running along the tracks and walked/rode the bike down an embankment to reach it, then started making my way up the road, looking for a crossover so I can get back to the Holiday Inn I dont want to stay at.

Took forever, maybe two miles before I reached a crossing over the tracks. At one point a well-meaning lady pulls up and shouts "Hey Mister, do you know you have a flat tire?"....

OK, this all started around three, now its seven pm, four hours later. I'm getting close to the Inn at last, except the bike finally gets close to overheating, a thing which I have heard can happen to KLR's.

So I shut it off and wait, hot, tired, dehydrated. Not stranded really, just delayed.

Just then a white delivery van pulls up, "I can help you" the driver calls out "get to that parking lot". God Hisself had sent Archie.

Archie (never did catch his last name) had just finished a 100-mile enduro in Arkansas and was headed back to Dallas when he seen my predicament and turned around.

He rolls open the back of his van.... there sits his race bike and all his tools, a rolling shop. All I did was hold the bike, meanwhile he pulled the wheel, took the tire off with a set of big honking tire irons, pulled the tube, replaced it with a much heavier one like he used, and put the wheel back on. Meanwhile I drank about a gallon of his bottled waters and didn't even have to pee afterwards, dry as I was.

Took maybe a hour, and all he would take fer saving the trip was $20 for the tube

By this time it was 9pm and getting dark, it had been a long day but I was pumped. So I pushed on that night on through Little Rock towards Memphis.

Slight problem with the bike... headlight flickering, going brighter and dimmer. I put it down to old wiring and hoped the alternator wasn't on the way out. It was still ridable and was running, so I rode it.

I finally quit around 11pm, I weren't all that tired but at the pace I was going I would pass through Memphis around 1 am, not a good thing.

In the old days I would have slept out, or maybe not, Eastern Arkansas 'skeeters are a force to be reckoned with, so I looked for a motel.

The little motel at the exit I got off at was clean and safe, and only $55 for a night.

The next morning the odometer read like this....



674 miles, not bad considering. If I hadn't lost them six hours with a flat it might have been 1,000.

I ain't complaining. Thank you God for sending Archie....

tho if I was to pick nits ya could have sent him along about five hours earlier...

Birdwatcher

My [bleep]! Great write up, good for you!

My Klr 650 ran noticeably cooler on premium gas.Give it a try if it starts to run warm.
Also,my headlight flickered and such also,dealership found out the battery connections were loose.Maybe yours is ,too.

Thanks for the wright up,man to be "In the Wind" again.

Glad there are Archie's in the world. Also a good reminder to be "Archie", when someone else needs a hand. Great story!

Jeff

You, sir, are a certifiable old school bikie. Cool pics, and good on you.

BTW, the AA you referred to: the anti-booze one? If so, whatever works for people I have no problem with, but I will opine that AA is for QUITTERS!

The AA referred to is indeed the alchoholic one, my kin being littered with the same. I regard me and my brother as living proof that the affliction is genetic; we both drank heavy growing up, he craved it, I never did.

AA ain't the worst organization to be in, and it ain't bad having 150,000 friendly people running around downtown (AA only does this national thing once every five years, this time its here ). Having hit rock bottom sure seems to give folks perspective. From what I've seen, its like having family everywhere, and its a good place to meet women too.

Anyhoo... I was somewhere in Arkansas.

Not many pics from that day. The day began with a chain adjustment. The bike was still wearing the same "o" ring chain it had on when I brung it back to life. Hard to tell with a chain how much life they have left. Typically they last and last, but then start stretching big time on the way out.

I was slow getting started, and stopped at the next exit fer coffee and breakfast. Here's the bike that morning, note the newspaper bungeed on, a sure sign I was going just down the street, it would never have survived the interstate.



And then after breakfast, lubing the chain with spray-on lube. This always seems a pointless and messy exercise, yer not actually lubing the chain, the o-rings keep the lubricant in, mostly you are trying to keep the o-rings oily.

Finally I was on the road about 9:30am, seeing Arkansas and the world in an amber, high contrast version through the tinted visor, the southern sun already hot. One thing about starting late; I missed rush hour in Memphis, and crossed the Mississippi and ran through that city no problem.

Then along that long stretch of I 40 through Tennesse to Nashville.

One thing I noticed is that the motorcycling demographic had changed in my absence. I didn't see any other low-rent, bungeed-on wonders on mid-sized bikes like in the old days. Mostly I was seeing retirees on big "dressers". Used to be that demographic was all Gold Wings, now there's any number of big Japanese V-twins, as well as Harleys of course.

Bikers, I mean real bikers, ain't changed much: Harleys and hostility and exposed skin, riding in close packs.

I already pointed out on another thread my acquired aversion to the sun from the old days. Long sleeves for me thank you. Also helmets on a road trip.

I am vehemently opposed to helmet laws and used to ride about half the time without one. But what a full-face helmet does do on a 700 mile day is keep the wind and sun off of your face and head. You can sit all day in a 70 - 80 mph gale at 100+ F if ya want, I've been there, done that, many times. Under such circumstances, I'll opt for a helmet.

The bike was running hotter than I recall from the old days. Not hot, just warmer. KLR owners have a temperature gage and needle to tell them what the motor is doing. As per a previous suggestion, I was already running high octane. KLR's come jetted lean, and especially when lugging off-road, detonation can be a problem.

I even stopped at a gas station and hosed out the radiator. No difference, finally I concluded that the big, square saddlebags in back might have been slowing up the slipstream around the radiator.

Short of Nashville at about 800 miles out total she was down half a quart so I added oil. Half a quart in 800 miles weren't bad, plus I dunno how much was lost through the continuing oil seep, a drop or two under the bike at every gas stop. The downside of full synthetic in a big thumper is that it seeps by the rings, and is real good at seeping past aging seals and gaskets.

At Nashville I picked up I65 and ran north towards Kentucky. In the heat and sun, drowsiness became a problem and I stopped once or twice. Also, it was amazing how much one dehydrated just riding in the hot sun. Gassed up again outside of Elizabethtown...





At stops I had been observing the chain with some concern. If ya look close you can see the chain drooping off of the sprocket. Plus it was easy to pull the links almost clear of the sprocket teeth, a sure sign of a worn-out chain. The chain was dying and going down fast, I would be needing one pretty quick, but today was Monday when most dealers were closed.



The shadows were growing long when I made it to Louisville, here I picked up I 71 towards Cincinatti, through surprisingly pretty, rolling country along the Ohio. As the heat faded, my energy picked up. I rolled through Cincinatti just as I was losing the last of the light, and rolled on through the dark to Columbus, dodging thunderstorms on the way.

Hard to see through that amber face shield, so I opted for the usual trick, falling in behind a suitable car or truck going about the same speed, and using their headlights to see on down the road.

Ten oclock that night I stopped for gas at a truck stop about 30 miles north of the Columbus city limits. I was on a roll, but I was going to have to stop somewhere or else ride all night. At the truck stop it occurred to me that here was everything I needed: It was out in the country and there were no shady characters visible, some travellers were parked, sleeping in their cars. The parking area was well-lit, and there was a quiet stretch of well-kept grass at the far end. Far off enough to be quiet, lit up enough to be visible. The whole visible to whoever was working the 24 hour drive-through window at the fast food part. This was a concern because I wasn't actually carrying any defensive firearms, thanks to the laws in %&$+#W@& New York State, my destination.

Taking a page from my past, I drove over to the far edge of the lot, pulled out my motorcycle cover from inside the backpack, lay down inside it, and quickly fell asleep.

Birdwatcher

Great story as usual BW. Looking forward to the rest of it (Im waiting for the chain to go!)

Thumbs up from me for taking the time. I'm almost on my way to a couple dealers to see what KLR's run(grin).

I paid about $5,000 back in 1992 for mine. In '09 they re-did the front end, front brakes, and headlight (always a weak spot on the original), they also added heavier spokes and a bigger fairing offering wind protection to the legs (for the Alaska crowd). They lowered it an inch too.

Here's a pic from an outfit that does diesel conversions, happens to be the best pic I could find of a new one. Personally I liked the looks of the old one better tho' I expect this one is a better bike...




The price for this new, improved KLR? About $5,000. Now is a great time to be buying a motorcycle, my local dealer has an new '09 KLR in stock for $4,500.

Speaking of diesel KLR's, that same outfit also sells 'em to the Marine Corps, based on the older version. I dunno how many motorcycles besides the KLR are currently in service with our military arms. Looks like a lot of the parts on mine would drop right in, or else seems like I could retrofit mine to look like that, I'll bet someone sells a kit.



On the military version they went clear back to the pre-'87 KLR for the smaller fairing, needing a headlight mount that turned with the handlebar, the bike having both conventional and night vision lights. Note the stock KLR exaust, stock KLR's are real quiet, a feature I prefer when off road, something the Marines want too apparently.

Back to the trip.

Soon after I lay down it commenced to raining, heavy at times, with distant thunder and lightning. You would be mistaken though if you reckoned this a hardship, I'm a connoseur of rainfall. I miss the Northeast, the rain feels different up there, and there ain't no fire ants. By morning everything I had on was damp. I had a good wool blanket though, a replica, bought two years ago at the Ticonderoga 250th. The thing about wool is, it keeps you warm even when damp.

Up at dawn to the songs of catbirds and robins, rolled up the cover and 18th Century-style blanket and put 'em back damp. No matter, a couple of hours of sunshine further down the road would suffice, or else in 48 hours I'd be at my cousin's place. Here's my accomodations, free of charge, though if this had been the 18th Century, that Huron war party on my trail would see that I had slept there....



Grabbed a change of clothes and a toothbrush out of the saddlebags and headed in for coffee, breakfast, newspaper, and a $10 truckstop shower with clean towels and all the hot water I could handle.

Back at the bike afterwards it was time to take up the slack on the chain again. It was loose since yesterday. I weren't real worried, I've ridden bikes with chains so slack they jumped the teeth on the sprockets. Still, I needed to change it at first opportunity.

For those out of the loop, this is what adjusting a chain looks like.



Ya just pull the cotter pin and loosen the axle bolts on each side, then sticking out the end of each swingarm is a threaded rod, you just tighten up the nut on each, shifting the rear wheel back by increments. Doesn't take much to take up a lot of slack, then you lock the nut in place with a second nut over the first, tighten the axle nuts, put the cotter pin back and yer ready to roll.

Note the rear brake too, I switched out both front and rear brake pads on this trip, a ten-minute operation each time. The beauty of a bike like the KLR being there ain't any place to hide anything, so pretty much anything you need to fix is hanging right out there where you can get at it.

And a word on the saddlebags. When I ordered them I paid $154 for the bags plus and extra $20 for "heat shields", the heat shield on that side being the part that caught fire during the trial run. After that I was in a fix, running to Home Depot looking for sheet metal or anything I might cut to shape and use to support the bag and keep it from sagging into the pipe.

It was my wife who came up with the solution, she went to the dollar store and came home with two wire grill oven racks. It was like they were custom made for the purpose.

Chain adjusted, everything packed, it was time to roll. Here's the odometer reading before starting out that morning.



1,403 miles from my front door, but only 709 miles over the previous 24 hours. The latter figure a bit disappointing, attributable to a late start and a couple of long stops in the afternoon prompted by sleepiness.

Birdwatcher

Wow, 674 (or is it 709) miles in one day on that bike! Impressive endurance. Some aggressive looking tires for highway use. How well did they stand up to the miles?

excellent excellent thread, thanks

No insult nor offense intended on my AA wisecrack, Birdy. AA and NA has helped save a couple people I hold dear from killing themselves or otherwise ending in destruction, of that I'm sure. That said, I was twice upon a time strongly advised to attend (actually, it was court ordered during my misguided donkey years as a youth, truth be told). What they were doing was perfectly OK and productive, IMO, and clearly it helped some folks that otherwise couldn't--or wouldn't--help themselves.

One thing I had issues with was the religious thing they pushed along with the sobriety stuff. But then I guess as that angry young adolescent I had issues with everything from how candy bars were wrapped to the day's temperature. Carry on. Thanks again for sharing. I get my baby back next week, and I can't wait to have some fun carving up some twisties.

Best,

L

No offense taken Honda. Prob'ly like me, you never felt powerless against alchohol, though I'll admit it near killed me a few times, one way or another. As for AA, I just picked my brother up from downtown amid the hordes. Recalling the crowd, I'll say it again, were I a single man, joining AA might be my first move.

Mac....

700 miles in a day is about average for all-day interstate droning in motorcycle circles, provided one has a bike comfortable enough to do it on. The KLR notably shines in that regard, being both smooth-running and roomy. Often I would hook my boot heels onto the passenger pegs, throwing my weight forward a bit, and ride like that for a while.

My tire choices were from fifteen years back, though probably still relevant as both are still on the market. On back I had a Metzler Sahara, known to be hard-wearing on the street yet still functional in moderate dirt. Mine has more than 6,000 miles on it now, and looks to be about half gone.

Up front I had on an Avon Gripster. Gripsters are soft tires, but as the name implies stick well on pavement, like when that skinny front contact patch is pushed hard into corners. They do wear out quick, and are noisy.

I prob'ly should have replaced the front before I left, as there was ozone cracking all along the thread. It wore out quick (brittle rubber?) and was positively howling as I rode by the time I got to Ohio. The wear pattern by then was typical for a front tire, which bears a sort of a reverse load from braking. If you look at this pic of it you can see alernating tread blocks worn out, a washboard pattern, sometimes manifested as "cupping", usual in worn out front tires. This tire and its tube had probably been on that bike since 1995.





The only photo I have of what the new one looks like also has some old guy who resembles my late father in it, but he is dressed exactly like me and thats my bike parked at my brother's place right before we headed out so we will go with it.




The kerchief I bought at a BMW rally years ago, it is actually purpose-built and can hold water if you soak it. Mostly it is useful for keeping the sun off of your neck and preventing chafing, just as they were for cowboys back in the days.

The whole front of that Firstgear jacket is codura mesh, essential in Texas heat. Plus, unlike leather, it is easily washed. Most importantly, it incorporates armor into the forearms, elbows, shoulders and back. The removable lining that came with it is actually a rain jacket. Not all that good at keeping you dry but since the real value of rain gear lies in its proclivity for keeping you warm rather than the often problematic task of keeping you dry, that doesn't matter a whole lot.

My brother has normal-looking jeans with kevlar inserts, I plan to buy a pair. The snake leggings are a recent affectation. I wore 'em while riding the bike to go count birds back in May, and they made so much sense on a bike I brought 'em along. The boots are just plain ol' Timberlands.

Anyhow... it weren't even seven yet when I rolled out from the truck stop, heading north towards Cleveland, and keeping an eye out for dealerships. Sure enough, 40 minutes later one showed up on cue right by the I71/I271 interchange. It wouldn't open for more than two hours yet so I rolled out the motorcycle cover and took a nap.

The owner rolled up about an hour later, and did not seem to find it strange at all that some guy was stretched out next to a loaded up bike next to his store. Turns out he was a habitual motorcycle trekker hisself, and we drank coffee and talked about bikes while his crew opened up their various departments.

Though they were busy back in the service bay, they fit me into the schedule and fixed me up with a new chain. This is what a new chain looks like with me pulling on it.... almost no play at all. I didn't need to adjust it again the whole rest of the trip.



I was back on the road by noon, and headed out east on 271 around Cleveland, picking up I90 towards Erie, Pa. My first destination was a little place called Indian Falls maybe thirty miles east of Buffalo. Suddenly all the distances were compressed; Erie wasn't very far and neither was Buffalo very far beyond that.

On the way I stopped at a gas station and had a good conversation with two Honda Gold Wing guys heading west from a rally at Lake George. We spoke of destinations and distances and places to see. I suggested the September Gold Wing rally in Ruidoso, New Mexico, two or three days hard riding to the West.

I think it was in Pennsylvania I looked to the left and saw this, the whole Northern horizon was blue...



The Lake of the Eries of course, it shouldn't have surprised me but it did.

I'm pretty sure this wasn't in #$%&! New York, because #$%&! New York, not wasting any time, greets you with signs saying "Welcome to New York" and "Stop and Pay Toll Ahead". Ya sure I know other states got tolls, but on this trip ALL the tolls were in #$%&! New York, and it ain't just about the tolls, more about a whole philosophy of governance.

Birdwatcher

I'm missing my right lung, several teeth, a few weeks of my freedom and more other nightmarish episodes I care not to relate here over the years, thanks to dancing with the old bottle over a couple decades. You and I understand each other on this well, I assure you. Thanks for the enjoyable pics and words. Keep it up, have fun and be safe out there, huh, and here's hoping your brother keeps on keeping on.

When it comes to BW's trips, I have an easy rule to follow. If he writes it, I read it, with great appreciation and enjoyment.

Keep on keeping on, BW, and thanks.

Steve

Great travelogue so far, Birdy! And great pics, too. Looking forward to reading the next installments.