For Winnipeg and the surrounding area!

Believe it Les. There are some neanderthals out there.
I'm not much for religion\karma type stuff, but if it comes to pass, and this guy gets his comeuppance, so be it.
I don't hold it against Harley riders, just Jerks.
Cheers, Brian

Sorry about us farmers not looking...
We likely see more than you think but I know I catch myself missing things. As a fire fighter I've been to a few bad accidents at open intersections, they're not pretty.
As a farmer I spend so much time on the same roads that it becomes a blur. Add a few corn fields and lots of dust makes it pretty dangerous out there.
Still the best roads to ride though!

Sheesh, Brian - what kind of douchebag walks around life with a sense of entitlement to match his (obvious) ego?

I've helped people roadside, sometimes taking out the shop's floor jack (when I worked in a shop) in the back of my van to go change a tyre somewhere on the perimeter and, while I'd never gotten a tip, or paid for my time, I still got enough thanks to give me a warm blush and a good feeling.

yup - only a grade-A jerk spits on the hand that helps him.





Took mother down to Wildwood to look at scooters last night (she's got a bit of the bug too). Fellow there (I don't know his name - the other grey-haired chap) just looks at me with a bit of a grin and asks if I want to see my bike. I didn't think my motive for showing up there was THAT obvious
They've got it in the back now, ready for its 6 month nap. I was having some second thoughts again, because more than one buddy thinks I'm stupid for buying a (spendy) bike I've not ridden, but sitting on it again made everything all right.

One of those buddys, unless he's completely bullshitting me (he's known for that), might be buying that Victory Cross Country Tour that I took out last week. I had told him about it. I thought he was firmly a Motor Company man, but I guess not.

He's still keeping his Road King to take to Sturgis, though, which gave me a laugh - leave the cushy well appointed road burner at home and take the ....ah..... "character" bike on your one big trip of the season.

For some it is all about the image, and Sturgis definitely brings that out, but hey, if that is what makes it for him then thumbs up.

I bought my F800 late and left at Wildwood for the winter too. Finalized the sale (paid the balance) in the spring. I spent the entire winter watching you tube vids of the F800.

One advantage of leaving it there until spring is your warranty should not start until you register it with BMW.

Did that too and we ended up walking out with 2 bikes (F650 and F800). I think they have a nice 650 left in stock there don't they? Riding with your wife can be great. (you ride motorcycles and wake up with a beautiful babe every morning. Wasn't that the dream?) We have done a few long trips on ours and must say I have enjoyed every minute.

Oh I wasn't trying to slight the farmers, (backbone of our economy) just that this is harvest season and there is a lot of traffic out there where there normally isn't much!

Yeah, he's a good guy. Tells me I have to grow a beard for next year, though

I think I have to finalize things now, in order to get the free luggage, which is a september thing, so unfortunately the warranty might start ticking now. I'll have to talk to Morris about that next week.

They still have the yellow F650, along with a 2013 F700/800 (the F700GS being a rebranded F650). They've also got a farkled out used F800 that seems to have just about every option someone might want - bags, fog lights, big mofo skid plate, uprated hand guards, taller shield, etc etc... Someone put a pile of coin into that one.

Unfortunately I'm in the same position as our friend with the pattern-balding tyre and haven't got anyone to perch on the pillion. It really WAS my mother that I took scooter shopping - LOL

....$1600 for a used 50cc Yammer doesn't seem like a bad deal for getting a beginner into things, though. I'll have to give kijiji a look too.

No slight taken! I know exactly what your'e talking about as I see it ALL the time...

Sorry for the misunderstanding but cool that your Mom is looking for a ride.

....$1600 for a used 50cc Yammer doesn't seem like a bad deal for getting a beginner into things, though. I'll have to give kijiji a look too.[/QUOTE]


Hey Marc...Heads up on the Scooters...they have a short life span.. I over heard a mechanic at a dearlership comment about .... 6 or 7 K and they are baked.

Watch the mileage..cute is not the way to purchase a scooter...sorry girls.

Hey Marc...Heads up on the Scooters...they have a short life span.. I over heard a mechanic at a dearlership comment about .... 6 or 7 K and they are baked.

Watch the mileage..cute is not the way to purchase a scooter...sorry girls.[/QUOTE]


Greg - I could see that for a 49cc scooter that's led a hard life in the city, especially with a heavier rider... but, from what I've read of the bigger scooters, 150cc, and particularly 250cc (and larger) scooters (Honda Helix or the newer Reflex & Silverwing for example), apparently they have excellent longevity. So many variables, maintenance (if any!)... the way they're driven, etc. I'd stick with a Honda or Yamaha scooter (we have a Vino actually) myself. Vespas are so expensive, and the Korean/Taiwan/Chinese scooters just seem like a risky proposition IMO. I didn't mention Suzuki, but I think the world of their super scooter (Bergmanns). BTW, I stumbled across this great scooter site anyone thinking about buying a scooter might find useful: http://www.motorscooterguide.net/

Hey Marc...Heads up on the Scooters...they have a short life span.. I over heard a mechanic at a dearlership comment about .... 6 or 7 K and they are baked.

My brother has a Yamaha scooter with almost 20,000K and a friend has one with over 30,000K. Both are untouched originals with only the speed restricter removed. Both are still running strong.

I am about 1100 k shy of rolling over to 50,000k - achieved since I put the Burgie on the road in April of 2010....I anticipate putting her to bed with somewhere around 51-52,000 by the end of the riding season - with 20,000+ kms put on this season alone.... The Wooly Mammoth is going strong, and I am hoping to put another 50,000 on her before I am looking for a new scooter.

The new BMW scooters look pretty sweet, to be sure, but this is the first year of production (if i am not mistaken, they have just been released now) - an earlier version apparently failed abysmally and things had to be re-engineered...I am guessing that by the time the Burgie is ready to be put out to pasture - say another 2-3 years, perhaps the BMW scooters will have all their bugs worked out....

My bad...I assumed the discussion about scooters was about maxi-scooters, and so jumped on the thread with a ringing endorsement for the Suzuki Burgman...I stand by the endorsement, but realized that Mark II's mom might be looking at something smaller than I was thinking of....

Karen had a 49cc Yammy and had 8500km when she traded it for a 125 scoot. The 49 was still going strong.....as strong as 49cc's can be that is.

As Lee stated Karen's Burgie is a beast, very smooth power.

Well, I figure *I'd* certainly burn out a 49cc scooter pretty fast

It's a pity that they don't have a few scooters available for the Class 6 course. When I went through I know there was at least one older lady who was going through just to get into a scooter in the 150cc range, and she ended up on one of those Kawi Eliminators. She passed fine. The point being that they already try to cater to a broad spectrum of what a potential rider sees themselves getting into: cruisers, sport bikes, standards, and now I understand they have some small dual sports. Having a few scooters would be a natural progression for the crowd who have no intention of ever having to deal with a clutch and foot controls.

It's about learning how to ride and pick up basic survival skills, after all. The operational stuff becomes muscle memory with time.

John, are these tires the type that require air pressure exceeding 4 lbs. ??

Lee - I think the failed BMW scooter you're referring to is the C1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_C1

I saw one up close in Cologne (Koln) Germany... thought it was kind of neat actually. Their new super scooters look amazing! http://www.bmw-motorrad.ca/urbanMobility/ http://www.motorcycle.com/manufacturer/bmw/2012-bmw-c-600-sport-review-91244.html

From the stone-headed President state. Mark and I arrived in Keystone at 6pm and are just out of the hot tub where there where no hot babes! Looking forward to some excellent riding Saturday and Sunday before Jing and Jack arrive. Keystone is an awesome place! Will take pictures as the adventure unfolds, so far I29 did not warrant any space on my camera card.

Do you have wifi where you are staying?

I didn't make it out to St Andrews yesterday to check on the garburator situation for tech day, as the battery on the RT was flat.
Some stupid bastard had left a couple of USB devices plugged in for two days.
Of course the extensions I had planned to put on the battery leads so I don't have to pull the plastics to access the terminals aren't installed. Grrr.

Going out this AM (0830) to retorque the head bolts on John Fry's KLR and will check then on garburator situation. If anyone is in the neighborhood, feel free to pop in for a visit.

Cheers, Brian