2 Wheels....

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2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Tue May 08, 2012 5:05 am

I've had this bike for 2 years now, a Yamaha TW 200 - and I'm still impressed at what a fun little bike it is - but even better, how reliable it is (as opposed to a Kawasaki KLX 250cc I owned that was the coldest starting bike ever). Even after sitting in the garage all winter, I charged the battery for a day, topped off the tires with about 3 PSI each, all the lights were working, fluids fine etc etc and fired it up and took it out this afternoon for the first run of the season - perfect bike for all the little country roads around here paved and unpaved. It tops out at about 55 mph so not so fun for highway commuting, that's where the Piaggio BV 500 comes in.

I couldn't have asked for a better after work ride conditions either...55 miles of mirror smooth glacier-fed lake, orchards blooming, no wind...Life is good.

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Who else is out and about on two wheels? Human powered or otherwise??? :-)
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby gnaruki » Tue May 08, 2012 6:07 am

Selling off my cbr600 squid death machine for something more tame. I'll probably end up with a dual-sport or an air cooled bmw in the next few months. Otherwise my bicycles are in storage with the exception of my rigid mountain bike with hybrid tires for getting around town.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby Woodsman » Tue May 08, 2012 2:13 pm

svizzerams wrote:I couldn't have asked for a better after work ride conditions either...55 miles of mirror smooth glacier-fed lake, orchards blooming, no wind...Life is good.


Well of course you know I'm running on 2 wheels any time it is practical for me to do so. The DL gets put on a trickle charger Fall-early spring. I have already had it out for a few hours this year. It's 6 years old this spring, has a little more than 40k miles on it since I bought it new. It still started rights up without missing a beat - I maintain it properly. I'm sure that doesn't hurt.

As for 55 miles of clear calm lake, it sounds like you need to find a trailer rig for that TW so you can tow your kayak! :)
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Tue May 08, 2012 3:52 pm

Woodsman wrote:
svizzerams wrote:I couldn't have asked for a better after work ride conditions either...55 miles of mirror smooth glacier-fed lake, orchards blooming, no wind...Life is good.


Well of course you know I'm running on 2 wheels any time it is practical for me to do so. The DL gets put on a trickle charger Fall-early spring. I have already had it out for a few hours this year. It's 6 years old this spring, has a little more than 40k miles on it since I bought it new. It still started rights up without missing a beat - I maintain it properly. I'm sure that doesn't hurt.

As for 55 miles of clear calm lake, it sounds like you need to find a trailer rig for that TW so you can tow your kayak! :)


I know it was a toss up - kayak? ..bike?...kayak? But I needed to get some petrol through the bike thus the decision point. Just a fun nimble critter. I try not to drive my car except on long trips to Seattle - still not keen on city freeway driving. I-5 is a nightmare. But the Piaggio is great for traveling on this side where it doesn't rain incessantly. So in town it's a bicycle for me unless there is ice.

Still remember your DL - nice bike. Still think it was gcool you came to PA meetup on it!
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Wed May 09, 2012 1:09 pm

gnaruki wrote:Selling off my cbr600 squid death machine for something more tame. I'll probably end up with a dual-sport or an air cooled bmw in the next few months. Otherwise my bicycles are in storage with the exception of my rigid mountain bike with hybrid tires for getting around town.


Since you live in the wonderous naturaleza that is the PNW you'd probably really appreciate a dual sport. I've never ridden a sport bike, but some of them look fast just sitting still and speed isn't my thing. Get a dual sport and then do a trip with these guys - one of the guides who does the Africa trip lives in my area. http://www.globeriders.com. Helge Pedersen lives in Seattle. You could do the Western Hemisphere motorbike holy grail: Dead Horse, AK to Usuhuaia, Argentina.

Image

Image

You can probably get a better cup ofcoffee in Usuhuia :-)
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby gnaruki » Wed May 09, 2012 11:07 pm

The crotch rocket machine was fun for a year. I played the game of acting like a track racer on the streets and only slightly bending traffic laws and focusing on high mpgs and defensive riding. Tucking and working the bike around corners smoothly and safely, avoiding the brakes as much as possible makes you look like a racer squid in slow'mo but it resulted in averaging 60-70 mpgs per gallon (most people get 40-50).

Cool link, i'll look into it. I might have to buy some maps and such and start getting a feel for a american top to bottom. Even in stages that is a big endeavor.

My dad and some of his friends and me and some of my friends might get together and do a San Diego to Cabo run down the Baja sometime in the next year or so.

Once I get me a dual sport (more on road than off) i'll stat doing weekend trips around the PNW when nothing else is planned for the weekend. Funny how I've ended up visiting more countries than states and haven't seen all of my own home state.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Thu May 10, 2012 5:53 pm

gnaruki wrote:The crotch rocket machine was fun for a year. I played the game of acting like a track racer on the streets and only slightly bending traffic laws and focusing on high mpgs and defensive riding. Tucking and working the bike around corners smoothly and safely, avoiding the brakes as much as possible makes you look like a racer squid in slow'mo but it resulted in averaging 60-70 mpgs per gallon (most people get 40-50).

Cool link, i'll look into it. I might have to buy some maps and such and start getting a feel for a american top to bottom. Even in stages that is a big endeavor.

My dad and some of his friends and me and some of my friends might get together and do a San Diego to Cabo run down the Baja sometime in the next year or so.

Once I get me a dual sport (more on road than off) i'll stat doing weekend trips around the PNW when nothing else is planned for the weekend. Funny how I've ended up visiting more countries than states and haven't seen all of my own home state.


I'm trying to keep that in mind with my future travels - to see some of my own region. Still haven't made it to the Olympic Pennisula, seen the redwoods etc. Want to go back to Crater Lake and spend some time in So. Utah (Moab, Canyonlands, ARches, Zion etc etc). Have a short trip in the planning stages for Tahoe area (Echo Lakes / Desolation area) and Yosemite in July.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby gnaruki » Fri May 11, 2012 12:01 am

Southern Utah is beatiful, so is SW Colorado. Tahoe is always good.

Personally I would hit up Yosemite in sept/oct to avoid the crowds.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Fri May 11, 2012 5:43 am

gnaruki wrote:Southern Utah is beatiful, so is SW Colorado. Tahoe is always good.

Personally I would hit up Yosemite in sept/oct to avoid the crowds.


Fortunately my friend who I am going with her daughters are both rangers in Yosemite (researchers), so we can have access to areas less overrun - but I agree with you, I hear that it can be like a suburb of LA in the summer.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby HockeyGuy » Fri May 11, 2012 2:59 pm

svizzerams wrote:
gnaruki wrote:Southern Utah is beatiful, so is SW Colorado. Tahoe is always good.

Personally I would hit up Yosemite in sept/oct to avoid the crowds.


Fortunately my friend who I am going with her daughters are both rangers in Yosemite (researchers), so we can have access to areas less overrun - but I agree with you, I hear that it can be like a suburb of LA in the summer.

I rode through Yosemite. Gorgeous...late may before the tourists came. Also, a CBR f4i...one thing that was a drag is that the soft bags are just not secure.

I'm curious... what are the Rangers researching, if you don't mind me asking?
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby marie-angelique » Fri May 11, 2012 8:59 pm

i like the valley in the winter.

and stick to tuolumne meadows the rest of the year.

southern yosemite has some good climbing too.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby svizzerams » Sat May 12, 2012 4:19 pm

HockeyGuy wrote:
svizzerams wrote:
gnaruki wrote:Southern Utah is beatiful, so is SW Colorado. Tahoe is always good.

Personally I would hit up Yosemite in sept/oct to avoid the crowds.


Fortunately my friend who I am going with her daughters are both rangers in Yosemite (researchers), so we can have access to areas less overrun - but I agree with you, I hear that it can be like a suburb of LA in the summer.

I rode through Yosemite. Gorgeous...late may before the tourists came. Also, a CBR f4i...one thing that was a drag is that the soft bags are just not secure.

I'm curious... what are the Rangers researching, if you don't mind me asking?


One is a botanist and the other is conservation biologist who studies reptiles and amphibians.
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Re: 2 Wheels....

Postby cheers2wine » Fri Aug 03, 2012 2:52 am

Yosemite is beautiful any time of the year. The coast of California is also a great choice. I'd recommend heading south from San Francisco down to Santa Barbara. It's gorgeous and much less crowded than other parts of California. North of California all the way up through Oregon is hard to beat as well!

Have fun.
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