How I Nearly Killed My Friends In Baja

Geez! This is more dangerous than feeding ravenous coyotes in Baja.

The plan is "one day per day" so Jon & Nicole get an opportunity to defend themselves

Friday, April 3rd

The Plan: Leave Friday after work, get a couple hours down the road.

We failed.

Since I am a semiprofessional slacker, I spent the previous night at my girlfriend's house in Santa Cruz. Jon took the day off work and met me there that afternoon. Nicole is the only one of us with any sense of professional responsibility, so she didn't make it out of SF until around 7pm. Our plan was to meet on the road near Salinas.

Some time around 8pm we get a call from Nicole. Her KLR stopped running in San Jose and was electrically dead. We all carry basic tools but I'm the only one packing a multimeter so Jon and I speed off to meet her.



One hour into the trip and we've already had a major failure. This is not a good sign.

Nicole has the shop manual for the bike but the information is thin. In addition, the bike isn't stock - it took some hunting just to find the main bus fuse (popped, of course). A new fuse popped instantly. We're dealing with a short. The manual doesn't have a wiring diagram. After a couple hours of tracing the wiring harness in the dark, we gave up.

KLR 1, Team 0



The new plan: Go back to Santa Cruz, spend the night. Find a proper wiring diagram. Get a 12v bulb with two wires - essential kit for hunting down shorts, especially since my multimeter has an inductive current detector.

This will not be the first time "effing KLR" is uttered on this trip

It will be tomorrow here in 32 minutes, can I ask for the next installment in advance?

Hahaha....a MOSTLY dead KLR and you haven't even reached the border yet...this should be "fun"!

In.

Big balls + busted KLR + potential danger = I'm in.

Just perused your Flikr set from this ride. I'll have to say, I'm highly disappointed. :ddog

You take a girl to the sunny climate of Baja and we get not one... nada... zilch... bikini shot.

I'd almost ask if it were because you all are :ymca, but then I remember "Freckles".

You got a keeper in that one dude. Hang on to her.

In for the ride.

Hey, that first day of yours was really only half a day.
Lion

I'm with M.J. on this one....what's the deal with the KLR, is it D.O.A.?
Here's to a safe trip, keep us posted (pun intended)

I'm in.

I wouldn't worry about how you nearly killed your friends in Baja if you can't get that stinken short fixed.

That's a major bummer but a least this happened at the begining of your trip while you all were still in the states where you can get some help.

By the way I kept blownin fuses in my KLR until I changed out the glass bussman fuse holders and replaced them with the blade type fuse holders. You can buy those at any local Autozone for couple bucks.

Me too!

bring it!
crap start but hang in!

HAHA! One trip with a buddy on a KLR and I know exactly what you mean!

Please share the rest of your story!

Plenty of time to kill here, waiting for more.

Time for the next installment!

I am just wondering if killing a KLR in the first hour is a record? I can't wait to hear what happened once you got rolling again. Sweet.:eek1

Subscribed. This is an inauspicious beginning. And I might have to rethink buying a KLR.