Back from my annual trip...2,400 miles

[Chuey]

Hi all. Rolled in last night. I am still trying to learn how to ride across the desert. By that, I mean Las Vegas desert. Baker, California, hottest scorcher place on the map, maybe. Pocatello, hotter than it has a right to be and no soaker vests in stock at the Honda dealer. Hydrate if you can, grasshopper, but you can't. Not enough for what this desert has to give. I drank so much iced tea that normally I'd be peeing every five minutes and I didn't have to pee much at all. My shirt had crusty salt from perspirationi...That's Italian for sweat.

Anyway, desert heat aside, I had a good trip. Didn't burn a blister on my leg this time. I still have sore shoulders, legs (!) and feet and a tender throttle thumb. I'm an old guy so I expect some of this but I'm trying to mitigate as much as I can.

I want to thank Boxerworks for the help in getting my bike together. In the past, I had ridden my 1984 R100RS, a very clean bike that you all have helped me to get into stellar condition. The RS has made three of these trips and several more 350 mile plus trips. It has never broken down.

This year, I took a bike I had been building up for the last year or more from parts. Without the help of Boxerworks, I think I would still be trying to get it on the road. Now it is a veteran of a long trip. The bike is an amalgam of parts, being pretty much the equivalent of a 1983 R100CS. The engine is one from a wrecked bike I bought. It had 34,000 miles on it and was in the kind of condition you would expect if the PO had no empathy whatsoever for a machine. I had the heads reconditioned and rebuilt the carbs. I put in a known good clutch and new tires and front brake plunger assembly.

I'm pretty sure the front brake master cylinder is one size smaller than stock because it feels different from my known to be stock '84 RS' brakes. The brakes feel a tiny bit softer at the lever but it stops quite a bit better. Me likey.

The snowflake wheels were taken apart for powder coating and I learned how to install and adjust the bearings from this site and from Snowbum's site.

The engine pulls very strongly on this bike. There was never a traffic situation that was even close to taxing the power of the bike. I feel grateful to Boxerworks for helping me to build up this bike. I had no trouble at all.

First day's ride, 752 miles. Second day, 335 miles. Return trip: First day, 567miles. Second day 519 miles.

One thing I don't like about the bike is the side stand. It is just beyond me why a side stand should not be deploy-able from the seat. Also, it is necessary to lean the bike to the right in order for the side stand to be brought into position. Further, the side stand has so much slop in it that it's hard to believe BMW would design it so poorly sloppily. I prefer the Brown side stand even though I don't like the way it looks.

My trip was from Vista, Calif. to Gardiner, Montana. Gardiner is the North entrance to Yellowstone park. I'm 62 now and for ten buckaroos, the nice man, who was older even than me, gave me a lifetime pass to any National Park. Now, I can ride through the park for free.

The "S" bars on this bike made me more comfortable than I was on the RS bars. Not having the fairing was better in the heat. I had decided that if I was to take the RS again, I would take off the lowers. That's where I cooked my leg last year and got a blister.

A highlight of the trip was that I helped teach my 4 year old grandson how to ride a bicycle. He was really cooking and takes the turns on his gravelly dirt road as if there was no chance of him sliding out. He must have overheard a adult, as he told his father, "Hey Dad, I can really move on this thing."

Well, that's my trip report. Thanks again to Boxerworks for the help!

Chuey

[ME 109]

Great report Chuey, doesn't it make you feel invincible when you get back home.

[Chuey]

Two pictures of the bike at the North entrance to Yellowstone National Park:





Chuey

[Chuey]

Great report Chuey, doesn't it make you feel invincible when you get back home.

Do you mean like "I own the desert!"? No, I feel so owned.

I really am kind of proud that this bike that I put together from various parts worked as well as it did. I mean, it didn't miss a beat and was a pleasure to ride.

Chuey

[dwerbil]

Glad you made it home ok, Chuey. Post more pics of your trip when you can.

[ME 109]

Great report Chuey, doesn't it make you feel invincible when you get back home.

Do you mean like "I own the desert!"? No, I feel so owned.

I really am kind of proud that this bike that I put together from various parts worked as well as it did. I mean, it didn't miss a beat and was a pleasure to ride.

Chuey

No, I mean like you feel you can take on anything after completing a big adventure.

The bike looks neato Chuey, a job really well done. Yes, more pics please.

[Duane Ausherman]

Thanks for the story of your trip on your own hand built bike. Feels good, doesn't it?

[melville]

Sweet! Glad to hear the bike worked out.

Even sweeter, teaching the grandson to ride. It all starts somewhere.

[Motorhead]

I'l just add my to celerbrate your good job on the bike and safe return

[Major Softie]

Great job, Chuey. I'm such a pussy, I only did 1000 miles in that week (going up to Seattle and back from Crescent City, with a Bend detour - wifey and I traveled to Crescent City together with the bike in the back. Plus, I did it on an Oilhead.

So, it's a good week: you own the world, and I'm the pussy.