[TrialsRider]

Very glad you were not discouraged to the point of giving up riding, as they say; if at first you don’t succeed…

I found myself riding in heavy rain twice so far today and your posting had me actually paying attention to what I do different when riding in the rain.
1) I put on my holey rain suit
2) I do tend to keep the bike more upright in the turns and shift my body weigh more than in the dry
But that’s the extent of my list !

I would like to report that I ride slower, but I don’t. I don’t actually leave any additional space in front, because I never tailgate to start with. I ride the same line, avoiding the oily lane center just as I would in the dry. I am extremely alert of what other vehicles are doing around me, as usual. My braking technique was completely unchanged in the wet, and my gear selection unlike on the Trials bike was no different either. ( on the Trials bike I usually cog it up one more gear when it’s wet and slimy )

When gearing down to engine brake, I always give the engine a little ‘blip’ so that engine rev’s match my road speed on engaging the clutch. ( difficult action to put into words, but I trust you do something similar when downshifting )

I discovered that I do love to spin the back tire a lot more under straight line acceleration, just because it’s fun, if not dangerous, and that also seems to be the safest way to test out traction limits.

I came to the conclusion as long as I am warm and dry, I totally love riding in the rain !
…sure hope you get to experience the same thing soon.

BTW: BMW’s are great bikes in the rain and the newer one’s than mine come with ABS, check em’ out. I passed a lot of motorcycles today and I know I was the only rider with a big smile on my face

[TrialsRider]

I totally see you on a bike with ABS (AntiSkid Braking System)

[TrialsRider]

One would think a dirt bike was required to suit a snow track conversion, but in fact variations on the snow conversion concept date back to at least the early 70’s. I recall seeing them on a 750 Norton Commando and a Kawasaki 750 triple. I think it’s a matter of more horsepower the better, because I imagine there is far more rolling resistance on a track drive and ski than on two tires. Newer designs are not as tall as their predecessors but it’s the price tag that keeps them in obscurity.

I usually pull the tank to replace any cables, but either way be most careful of the throttle cable routing or interference to the throttle cable operation by other cables. When working on anything in close proximity to the throttle cable, check the throttle action before you start it to make sure the carbs are snapping shut, and once it is running at idle, turn the bars both directions full lock to make sure the cable isn’t pulling the throttle open as the bars turn.
…if there is water in your cables they will freeze and break under lever pressure real easy, lubricate them with thin (honing stone type) oil to displace the water.

[TrialsRider]

I too am a little confused by Senzo’s description, I’ve never experienced rear wheel lock-up through engine braking, unless you rear brake way too hard and stall the engine out ???

I have experienced some serious rear wheel ‘hop’ when engine braking on rough pavement surfaces, which is why BMW redesigned their shaft drive on newer bikes than mine, and for rear brake designs many bikes feature a ‘full floating’ rear brake control arm.

If “use more break and no engine breaking” implies applying the clutch to brake ? I definitely don’t do that! To me engine braking is vital to scrubbing speed off a fast bike, (or heavy truck) in a controlled manor, wet or dry.

Munch said it right, in the wet ride as normal, just check your speed and leave some extra space, same as in a 4 (or more) wheeler.

…would love to hear some of the experienced roadracer recommendations on this topic !

[TrialsRider]

One of my favorite rocks
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/4979406208_c9f00633f5_z.jpg
…a nice series to see how the Experts do it
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4092/4978806157_8900e55f1a_z.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/4978808215_f7303e7628_z.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/4979282021_46d486df6f_z.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4979549424_04c38cdedb_z.jpg
…our youngest competitor
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4129/4979541886_0f953bf597_z.jpg
…our eldest competitior, 58 is his rider number and his age
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/4978822639_720aaf2dfd_z.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/4979889864_7e397d23dd_z.jpg

[TrialsRider]

Cable change is easy enough, just pay close attention to the routing when you take the old one off. Bikes in the great white north live longer because we ride em’ spring, summer and fall, then we get to work on them over the winter. Any time the snow crusts up hard enough, I take mine out and practice riding snow banks. If you are really into cold you should check out the snowtrax conversions;

http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/498/Motorcycle-Video/EXPLORER-Snow-Bike-Conversion.aspx

Cool addition for the Super Motard guys, take one of these out and beat the pants off the snowmobiles:)

Don’t let winter get you down, make fun of it.

[TrialsRider]

I’ve ridden Bultaco, BSA , Triumph and Royal Enfield bikes with the bass ackwards foot controls, but as Munch said these were all classic and vintage bikes. DOT compelled manufacturers to conform to the right brake rules in the mid 1970’s.
Now if they can just get rid of all those left foot kick starters ! …or am I the only guy old enough to know what a kick start is

[TrialsRider]

China is not world renowned for manufacturing state of the art quality products, nor are they in the habit of importing Austrian made motors and incorporating them into Chinese motorcycles for export. I read their motors are actually nock-off’s from a 90’s Honda design, so cloned sans credit to Honda that some parts are possibly interchangeable. Think of the CF Moto engine as a cheap third world reproduction of a twenty year old Honda, minus quality control, warranty and dealership support, purchase only with extreme caution.

Motorcycle reviews slammed the CF Moto for having dismal suspension performance, bad foot board placement and a poor quality MP3 player. Lots of great aftermarket upgrades do exist, since almost everything is an improvement over original equipment …just what every motorcycle needs; a crap radio, cruiser boards, spring holders and a centrifugal clutch. (Ya gets whats ya paid fer)

If you bolt a chain saw to a bicycle, it could be called the cheapest auto transmission motorcycle in the world, but I wouldn’t want to throw a leg over one

A majority of motorcycles have gear shifter on left and brake on right, except for a few British and Spanish rides. Most upsetting when you switch ride between the two.

Apologies for all my tongue in cheek comments, but I am sincere when I say the Toyota pick-up truck looks great with a 250 dirt bike in the back

[TrialsRider]

How about car full of drunks attempt to run you into an oncoming streetcar and when they fail, several blocks later the same bunch chuck a nearly full bottle of beer at you, which smashes on impact with your engine casing. In another incident I got shot in the leg by a pellet gun riding in downtown Toronto, kid shot me right from his front porch. I would love to have meet up with any of these guys on my home turf instead of while riding the street. About a year ago I was traveling eastbound on 401 highway and passed 6 Holstein’s traveling westbound, at night. …lol, even for around here this is unusual.

[TrialsRider]

whether I deserve that or not ! But now get this straight; you ranted all around where I said; ” if dirt is totally impractical and you must learn on the pavement, the 250 Ninja IS an ideal sportbike motorcycle to start out.”

As to my being ‘the definition of spoiled’ or that I don’t know how privileged I am. Bullshit !
Riding dirtbikes was an ‘option’ Get real ! I worked damn hard ever inch of the way to make it happen. I paid for every bike, bolt, fuel and truck to haul em, I do more for sponsoring access to riding areas and encouraging ridership than anyone you ever heard of. I spend my holidays clearing brush in bug infested woods and knee deep in poison ivy, so that others can come for a day or a weekend and ride, then I clean up afterwards. BTW: I was born and raised in Toronto, a little city of 2 or 3 million people, where I’ve ridden parking lots, green belts, gravel pits, hydro cuts, river beds and garbage dumps when I had no place better to ride. Through Trials I’ve made dozens of friends and frequently been offered property access to ride or host events, events numbering nearly 100 since I’ve been riding Trials, half of those on my own property but the rest on borrowed land, you don’t get that kind of cooperation if you are on a motocrosser ! I’ve gone to wrecking yards and building supplies and convinced the proprietors to tow cars or vans or culverts or septic tanks to some fairground or race track, then taxied a truck load of talented riders too young to drive plus their bikes, just so that we could put on a demonstration for the fun of it. It’s not unusual for me to carry spare boots, helmet and a fully fueled Trials Bike, just incase some kid wants to buy it cheap or just trash it for the day. I’ve hauled riders their bike and even their girlfriend, hundreds of miles to accompany me to some distant event. donated parts, tools, fuel, food, camp equipment, coached them to ride and helped fix their bike, just so I had someone to ride with.

Privileged possibly, fortunate to live in Canada, you’re Damn right, but don’t tag me ‘spoiled’, you don’t know me well enough. /response to rant

[TrialsRider]

People with Asperger’s often display intense interests !

[TrialsRider]

I see you 1 stone church

and raise you 1 Army Tank, or other Artilery piece.

…mine is even sitting on an old abandoned bridge, and I rode across a metal grate bridge to get here

[TrialsRider]

Remove all non-essential bits including the entire wiring harnesses and store in a box, where eventually the entire motorcycle will end up, prior to restoration by the next owner. Zip ties are standard equipment spares and should be carried on all motorcycles, all the time. With a Swiss Army Knife reamer & zip ties a cracked fender or body part can be ‘stitched’ together, until proper medical attention can be obtained.

[TrialsRider]

Here is an example of an intake restrictor plate from a 250cc intake, the penny is shown for comparison. The exhaust restrictor rings of which mine had 3, were of a similarly reduced dimension (same inside dimension as a size 8 finger ring)
The restricted performance and sound was roughly the same as a 125cc or smaller engine.

[TrialsRider]

When I bought my Montesa it came with the restrictors in and foolishly I rode it that way for all of 30 minutes, 4 hours of dismantling to remove the restrictors and a week or more to sort out the EFI and it started to run as it was originally designed. Imagine your GS500 with one carb completely blocked off, tons of brake, but no less weight than it has now and that is what a restricted bike is like to ride.

[Author]

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