The foot bone is connected to the ankle bone,.... is connected to my wallet.

Most bikers learn early on, that just about the time you try to do one thing custom to your ride, that you rarely can do just “one thing” without it directly affecting something else. For me anyway, it usually amounts to about two to three times the cost I initially thought I was going to end up spending for just the one thing. Thus, my title the foot bone is connected to the ankle bone, ....is connected to my wallet.

I've been doing a lot of bodywork and painting on motorcycles lately. I used to custom paint for a living, but I've scaled back to doing it as a side job and or hobby. I am currently doing my 3rd bike now for about the 3rd or 4th time. I suppose you can say I'm never content with one paint job for very long, as I have the ability to do bodywork and paint myself. Plus, this way it’s a little easier to swallow the cost of the new paint. However, it never comes without a price. There is still a lot of expense and time involved. I usually end up picking up another paint job for a paying customer to help pay for my habit. So needless to say I've been busy lately. I must thank my wife and kids for putting up with my lack of being around lately as I have spent many hours away in the shop.

The cause of the problem to start with was that I put in a larger motor, which decreased clearances that I used to have with the smaller motor. I ended up "having" to do my bike again because I had a crack in a gas tank weld, caused by one of my lower gas tank brackets hitting one of the rocker box covers, which was caused by the motor heating and expanding the jugs under the rocker box cover, thus pushing it upwards into the bracket. This caused a lot of unwanted vibration on the gas tank, thus cracking a weld. (Bracket bent upward, clearance given, welded crack, problem averted). Since I cracked the weld in the gas tank, bodywork and paint was necessary. I also broke my drive belt due to having a small weak stock belt that was not suited for the larger motor. Since I am doing bodywork and paint, and need a new belt, this means the rear fender needs to come off to. Since I'm doing the gas tank and rear fender, I'm already painting two thirds of the main painted parts, so why not paint the front fender and change out the custom paint to a whole new paint job. While it is apart and in the shop, why not change the fluids. I also have easier clearance to change brake pads now, so I may as well do them too.

The larger motor is connected to the gas tank, is connected to the belt, is connected to the rear fender, is connected to the front fender, is connected to the brakes, is connected to the fluids.
Thus "the foot bone is connected to the ankle bone,...is connected to my wallet."

I’m getting that spring fever thing goin on here, since we’re climbing into high thirties. Did I mention I’m in Minnesota? Hopefully, soon it’ll all be over and I'll be happily picking bugs out of my teeth again.

81 Years of BMW: A Gallery

BMW began selling motorcycles in 1923, long before any BMW automobiles were even thought of.

I have re-created a gallery of BMWs that I had on the old site. I take a look at BMW models from the first model in 1923 to the present as provided in pictures submitted by members of the old site and some new members from my Motorcycle Views site. A gallery called "81 Years of BMW" is provided that gives a picture and description for each model year from 1923 to 2003.

I want to update this gallery with new pictures of BMWs. If you own a BMW motorcycle, please consider submitting a picture and description of it for the gallery.

Take a look at 81 Years of BMW.

29 Years of Honda Gold Wing - A Gallery

Honda began selling the Super Cub motorcycle internationally in 1958. In 1975, Honda introduced the Gold Wing. It has continued in production ever since.

I have re-created a gallery of Gold Wings that I had on the old site. I take a look at Honda Gold Wing models from the first model in 1975 to the present as provided in pictures submitted by members of the old site and some new members from my Motorcycle Views site. A gallery called "29 Years of Gold Wing" is provided that gives a picture and description for each model year from 1975 to 2003.

I want to update this gallery with new pictures of Gold Wings. If you own a Gold Wing, please consider submitting a picture and description of it for the gallery.

Take a look at 29 Years of Honda Gold Wing.

Bikes and Beetles in Unsnowy New Jersey

I joined the Polar Bear Grand Tour back in 1992. I wanted to continue riding my motorcycle through the winter and this tour was my way to achieve my goal. Originally, I thought I'd be doing it alone as I didn't think my wife would be the least bit interested in riding in 20 degree temperatures with even lower wind chills. I was wrong. She couldn't wait to get started.

That was at about the same time we both took up skiing. Jane's brother-in-law, Jack, got us started skiing and even came out from Illinois to supervise our first steps down the hill on skis. Jack was also the first to push us in the direction of learning to ride a motorcycle.

We went out skiing about a dozen times that first year. But when the motorcycle bug struck and we started doing winter motorcycle riding, the skis were put away, permanently.

The winters in New Jersey are totally unpredictable. There were some years with heavy snows that almost shut down our winter riding. Then there were years like this one where snowstorms were rare and the temperatures just high enough that we got rain and wind instead.

In this state, we seem to have two distinct climates. North Jersey usually gets snow while South Jersey either gets rain or nothing at all. That makes our Sunday winter rides quite interesting considering that we often traverse the state from south to north.

This last polar bear ride was to Long Valley, New Jersey, about 52 miles north of our house. On Saturday, the entire east coast had a massive coastal rain and wind storm that was never-ending. It dumped huge amounts of rain everywhere, saturating the ground. Then the winds approaching 60 mph at times blew against the trees, uprooting many and causing numerous power failures. We were continuously watching the weather reports trying to determine what the weather would be like for Sunday. Of course, to add more confusion, Saturday night was also the time change to Daylight Saving Time.

On Sunday, I got up early to check the weather and it seemed to be OK but there were some road closings and high winds were anticipated. I was going alone since Jane had one of those nasty colds going around and was in no condition to brave the cold and wind.

I tried to program my GPS but it wouldn't accept the address where I would be going. I could go many ways and I didn't know what path I'd take until I got on the road. I wanted to see how bad the wind was. Turns out it wasn't bad at low speeds but at 65+ mph, it tossed me around a lot. That made me leery to try to go over the Driscoll Bridge on the Garden State Parkway. I opted to head north via Route 18 through New Brunswick. That route was uneventful except for all the potholes and construction. When I finally got to I287, I had the option to head west on I78 and traverse country roads in a northerly manner until I got to Long Valley. However, I might encounter streams that had overflowed their banks or possibly trees across the roads. I decided to continue north on I287 and pick up Route 206. That turned out well as the speeds were lower and the winds less objectionable.

The last 10 miles were enjoyable as I climbed in elevation and the temperature lowered. The mountains and trees were all around me and I was comfortable in my electrics nestled behind my full windshield. It was a good polar bear day.

As usual, I arrived and immediately started taking my pictures and short videos that I place on the Polar Bear Grand Tour Web site each week. You'll find them on the Long Valley page.

While taking pictures I saw a nice 1974 Volkswagen Beetle in the middle of the motorcycles. It had a "QQ" plate. Here in New Jersey, the "QQ" plate designates a car at least 25 years old. I had a 1933 Chevrolet once with a "QQ" plate. I couldn't just drive the car anywhere. It had to have limited mileage and be used for educational purposes. The 1974 I saw was the same year VW I once owned. The owner, a polar bear rider, had recently bought it completely restored. He had driven the car today instead of riding his bike since he had a bad cold. It was my good fortune. He showed me the car. It was beautiful. I took pictures and a couple of videos. You'll find them on the link above. I once wrote an article about the three VW Bugs that I owned including my own white 1974. That article was written when I was the Motorcycles Guide at About.com. I had joined with all the car Guides to write about the VW after the last VW came off the assembly line in Mexico.

On the way home, I decided to ride through Princeton, New Jersey. The trip was stop-and-go down Route 206 but I was in no hurry. After I got to the Route 1 traffic circle, I found the road closed. There was some storm damage beyond. I quickly turned around the circle and headed north on Route 1. When I saw a familiar crossroad, I turned off, pulled over to the side of the road, and switched the GPS to "Home" to get myself un-lost. Thank God for the Home button. It gave me a neat country ride over a road I had never been on and then suddenly pointed me to a familiar road that took me home without a hitch.

All in all, it was a good riding day. I survived the wind and cold another day even though I only saw a couple of clumps of snow over the 104 mile route.

I'm hoping the remaining winter is kind to me. I don't expect to see any more snow, in keeping with the way things are this year. On the other hand...

Yamaha Nouvo 2008

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Yamaha Nouvo Elegance (True Picture)

This motorcycle picture Yamaha Nouvo Elegance (True Picture) to begin in date 2 February 2008 this , at Bangkok , which , staff , Motorcycle Thailand , will pick a picture in the work comes to see [ praise ] during 18.00 times from now on.

Airplanes and Motorcycles

Today was the Polar Bear Grand Tour visit to the Flying "W" Airport in Medford, New Jersey. It was a really cold day with temperatures around 25 degrees and a biting wind. Not many riders standing around outside today. They were all standing on line inside waiting for the sign-in to open at 11:30 a.m.

The Flying "A" is a real operating airport for small planes. It was the first time that the Polar Bears had visited this intriguing site. While we were there, I observed several takeoffs and landings of small airplanes and I intently watched a small helicopter doing maneuvers right in front of me.

Take a look at pictures and videos I took today to document our visit.