[Lesblank]

Most of y'all know I post a lot of my rides. The wind therapy I get is one reason I started riding over 50 years ago legally on the street. The Monthly Mileage Challenge I had started sorta fizzled out. So how about some posts of rides. Pictures would be nice, but just a quick paragraph about where you road and was it enjoyable. Could be something as simple as getting fuel, going to local store, something that simple. Come on, let us enjoy your ride with you.

 

[Lesblank]

Wife needed a gallon of distilled water, being the nice wonderful husband I am, , I volunteered to go get it for her, of course had to take the bike. Was a tad warm at 90 degrees but not to bad. After a search for the 4H scavenger hunt target on another forum I was ready to head out. This retirement thing and getting to go for rides like this is really nice.

Relive '4H Scavenger Hunt'

View my motorcycle ride: 4H Scavenger Hunt

www.relive.cc

I'm still getting used to this dirt road stuff.

 

[Propnut]

My riding has stalled a bit. Firstly we were hit with the storm in KZN, In our area 462mm of rain fell in 48hrs. Our suburb was isolated from the rest of Durban. The deluge of water rushed down slopes and destroyed roads, electricity and water pipelines. That left us without any electricity or water for the first 10 days. When the electricity returned the water stayed off for another 19 days. You had to buy water or if you had plastic containers it meant standing in long lines at the water tankers. With the damage to the roads many cars (including mine) got wacked by stones on the roadway. I now have a chip on the windscreen and another on the bottom of the passenger door and one on the rear passenger window.

We were just recovering from this saga when my wife went in for a total right knee replacement. So riding the bike has been on the back burner for me.

Only yesterday I read that the Toyota plant which was badly hit with standing water right through the factory, were only able to save 12% of their stock for delivery to Toyota dealerships. 4,500 new Toyota vehicles have been sent for crushing.

So the last months have been a real eye-opener. One thing I have had to learn quickly is how to take a "bucket shower".

 

[Lesblank]

My riding has stalled a bit. Firstly we were hit with the storm in KZN, In our area 462mm of rain fell in 48hrs. Our suburb was isolated from the rest of Durban. The deluge of water rushed down slopes and destroyed roads, electricity and water pipelines. That left us without any electricity or water for the first 10 days. When the electricity returned the water stayed off for another 19 days. You had to buy water or if you had plastic containers it meant standing in long lines at the water tankers. With the damage to the roads many cars (including mine) got wacked by stones on the roadway. I now have a chip on the windscreen and another on the bottom of the passenger door and one on the rear passenger window.

We were just recovering from this saga when my wife went in for a total right knee replacement. So riding the bike has been on the back burner for me.

Only yesterday I read that the Toyota plant which was badly hit with standing water right through the factory, were only able to save 12% of their stock for delivery to Toyota dealerships. 4,500 new Toyota vehicles have been sent for crushing.

So the last months have been a real eye-opener. One thing I have had to learn quickly is how to take a "bucket shower".

Hopefully your wife will see a full recovery soon. Your ordeal sounds like our hurricane season as far as rain. In Houston we're so flat the water has no where to go. Where I moved is 4 hours inland so hopefully I won't have to endure the hurricane season again. Any damage to your house or bike?

 

[Propnut]

Hopefully your wife will see a full recovery soon. Your ordeal sounds like our hurricane season as far as rain. In Houston we're so flat the water has no where to go. Where I moved is 4 hours inland so hopefully I won't have to endure the hurricane season again. Any damage to your house or bike?

Thanks for the well wishes for my wife, I will pass it on as she needs the encouragement. At the time of the storm we were visiting my daughter in Pretoria, so the first we knew of something wrong was when we got a call from my son who was looking after the house while we were away. At first he said the wind is blowing and there has been some strong rain. It was only when we started looking at TV clips of the storm and devastation that I started to worry and calls to my son were on a daily basis.

A hurricane lasts a day or two, in Durban the rain storm lasted 10 days non-stop. It was only when we got back and saw the shipping containers now beaches next to the national freeway and on the slopes of the glide off ramps that you begin to realise just how much water was around. These containers were from a container yard storing empty 40 foot containers. When the container stacks collapsed as the ground gave way they floated over the fences and onto the freeway where all 4 lanes were now a river. The official death toll is 435, with search and rescue still looking for the missing 89. 4,000 houses totally demolished with between 8-9,000 housed badly damaged. One report stated 40,000 people displaced and required shelter. It was a storm to remember as were the pictures of crocodiles being washed up on the beaches.

Our house is on the top of the hill, so run-off water was not a problem and house and bike all okay. What nailed the electricity was the coastal distribution sub-stations 375KW were submerged and took days afterwards to pump out and dry off before they could actually see what was damaged. Even this last week local streets in our suburb suddenly lost electrical power that has been blamed on the storm damage to infrastructure. In our country there are no pole mounted transformers to supply houses. All electricity from the main distribution is fed by underground cable to the feeder sub-station. Then the feeder sub will distribute to the local suburb sub-station. Finally I have an underground cable that feeds my house electricity.

Only in Africa!

 

[Lesblank]

Thanks for the well wishes for my wife, I will pass it on as she needs the encouragement. At the time of the storm we were visiting my daughter in Pretoria, so the first we knew of something wrong was when we got a call from my son who was looking after the house while we were away. At first he said the wind is blowing and there has been some strong rain. It was only when we started looking at TV clips of the storm and devastation that I started to worry and calls to my son were on a daily basis.

A hurricane lasts a day or two, in Durban the rain storm lasted 10 days non-stop. It was only when we got back and saw the shipping containers now beaches next to the national freeway and on the slopes of the glide off ramps that you begin to realise just how much water was around. These containers were from a container yard storing empty 40 foot containers. When the container stacks collapsed as the ground gave way they floated over the fences and onto the freeway where all 4 lanes were now a river. The official death toll is 435, with search and rescue still looking for the missing 89. 4,000 houses totally demolished with between 8-9,000 housed badly damaged. One report stated 40,000 people displaced and required shelter. It was a storm to remember as were the pictures of crocodiles being washed up on the beaches.

Our house is on the top of the hill, so run-off water was not a problem and house and bike all okay. What nailed the electricity was the coastal distribution sub-stations 375KW were submerged and took days afterwards to pump out and dry off before they could actually see what was damaged. Even this last week local streets in our suburb suddenly lost electrical power that has been blamed on the storm damage to infrastructure. In our country there are no pole mounted transformers to supply houses. All electricity from the main distribution is fed by underground cable to the feeder sub-station. Then the feeder sub will distribute to the local suburb sub-station. Finally I have an underground cable that feeds my house electricity.

Only in Africa!

The good thing, you and your love ones are ok. Been thru many hurricanes in my 50 years in Houston. The aftermath isn’t much better here.

 

[PugslyCat]

@Propnut - I do want to wish your wife well. Encourage her to keep on with whatever exercises the doctors and physical therapists recommend. My father has had both knees replaced. He didn't do the recommended exercises after the first one was done which has resulted in lasting problems.

I went through a similar flooding situation along the Missouri River in 2019. A "bomb cyclone" forced the upstream dams to do an emergency release of water which caused some local towns to be underwater or isolated from the outside for up to 1-6 months. Flood control structures collapsed, water wells were contaminated, and homes were wiped out. It was amazing how much of what kinds of stuff washed up everywhere, including shipping containers.

The local H-D dealership was flooded twice during that summer. They still sell a t-shirt with motorcycles loaded on Noah's ark to commemorate the event.

 

[PugslyCat]

I haven't been riding. I keep having events or weather that gets in the way of my first shakedown runs of the summer. I finally got on it last night and both bikes have dead batteries after having started just fine a couple of months ago when I let them idle in the garage.

I put the Street on the trickle charger overnight and still nothing today. I'm going to see if I can't get a regular charger on the battery in situ tonight. I'll pull it as a last resort. To be honest it's probably an old enough battery that it should be replaced. It's the factory battery in a 2016 bike.

 

[Propnut]

@Propnut - I do want to wish your wife well. Encourage her to keep on with whatever exercises the doctors and physical therapists recommend. My father has had both knees replaced. He didn't do the recommended exercises after the first one was done which has resulted in lasting problems.

I will pass on your observations. So far the exercises have been a priority and the physio she is seeing is very impressed with her progress. Yes the second knee will also have to be done, but as the surgeon says, only when you are physically able as well as mentally strong enough to go through a repeat operation.

 

[PugslyCat]

I'm going to see if I can't get a regular charger on the battery in situ tonight. I'll pull it as a last resort. To be honest it's probably an old enough battery that it should be replaced. It's the factory battery in a 2016 bike.

I picked up another trickle charger at Menards for $13 just in time to find the other trickle charger that I had lost. I put one on each bike for 24 hours and they both fired right up. I'm a little concerned about the six year old battery in the XG750 and the over three year old battery in the Sportster, so I'm ordering replacements. I am going to ride one of the bikes to work tomorrow, probably the Street 750.

 

[Lesblank]

Went for a nice ride today. This morning Wife says she's going to get hair cut and nails done. Turned to me and asked what my plans were. I told her I had a date with Twisted Sisters. At first she didn't know what I was talking about, then said have fun. Here's the Relive of the Twisted Sisters.

Relive '5/31/2022 Ride'

View my motorcycle ride: 5/31/2022 Ride

www.relive.cc

And a short video of the Leakey to Camp Wood section.

 

[Lesblank]

A few more videos, I'm loving living out here.

 

[Qubo84]

Hello guys!
Finally I have something to post too!
On June 16th I took a nice ride in our mountains. Departure from Padua, arrival in Verona and return again to Padua.
I'll post some photos and the Relive video!! 🏍

Relive video

Passo Xon (45.71708530731744, 11.216752490912627)

Altissimo (45.61475685723322, 11.250937002721685)

Passo del Branchetto (45.67931379437935, 11.070398285862602)

Rifugio Paparo Vecchio (45.652915733091476, 11.094028796766922)

Malga San Giorgio (45.68489553812009, 11.08404039906047)

 

[Lesblank]

Hello guys!
Finally I have something to post too!
On June 16th I took a nice ride in our mountains. Departure from Padua, arrival in Verona and return again to Padua.
I'll post some photos and the Relive video!! 🏍

Relive video

Passo Xon (45.71708530731744, 11.216752490912627)
View attachment 28537
View attachment 28538
View attachment 28539

Altissimo (45.61475685723322, 11.250937002721685)
View attachment 28540

Passo del Branchetto (45.67931379437935, 11.070398285862602)
View attachment 28541

Rifugio Paparo Vecchio (45.652915733091476, 11.094028796766922)
View attachment 28542

Malga San Giorgio (45.68489553812009, 11.08404039906047)
View attachment 28543

Very nice!! GREAT pictures.

 

[Lesblank]

Got a nice ride in today before it got too hot.

Relive 'Bridge Scavenger Hunt'

View my motorcycle ride: Bridge Scavenger Hunt

www.relive.cc

 

[Lesblank]

Just got home. Nice, but long day and very sad as trip was for a celebration of life. Service was good and spent some time with friends I hadn't seen for a while. The rain I caught lasted about 30 minutes and was a gully washer. It was just pull over and let it pass rather that putting rain suit on. I did get pretty wet, but was dry in about 5 minutes down the road. Don't tell the local police the top speed that's on the video, I had to make it home to feed the pups.

Relive 'Houston Run - July 28, 2022'

View my motorcycle ride: Houston Run - July 28, 2022

www.relive.cc

 

[Lesblank]

Got a nice ride in today.

 

[Propnut]

Well presented Les, almost feels like you want to do it yourself. I did note that your roads in the video are in good condition. Over here lack of maintenance on any secondary roads requires a good eye on the road with little time to take in scenery.

 

[Lesblank]

Thanks, most of the back roads are pretty well kept. Remember this is a motorcycle "tourist" spot and bikers won't come if roads get to bad. Biggest issue is gravel and rocks getting washed on roads after a thunderstorm, which hasn't been an issue this year with our low rain totals.

 

[Slow Superlow]

Absolutely, fortunately I don't mind riding at night but I'm looking forward to some day rides once it starts cooling back down.