Tourance - First Real Test

[Arbey Canuck]

Last Friday afternoon we had our first real snowfall of the year. It snowed heavily from about 2pm to 8pm ... perfect timing for the rush hour scene outta the big city!!!

Of course I had my bike ... and against everyone's advise (what they thought to be sound council) I drove it home!!! Yah baby!!!

I'm not going to suffer through almost 2 hrs of public transportation when I got a GS / Tourance combo parked downstairs ... dammit ... let's roll !!!!!

Torontonians panic at the first sight of damp roads ... let alone snow. Were talking gridlock, minor accidents everywhere and a snails pace at the best of times.

I got out on the roads just after 4pm ... peak snowfall, peak traffic ... with just about every combination of light to heavy snow ... to slush ... to water.

The GS / Tourance combo in all these elements was awesome!!! On the same roads as a co worker (in his cage) going to the same area ... I was home in under 90 minutes ... he took around 2 and a half hrs.

Not once did I ever get an 'outta control' feeling. Hit every dicy spot straight up and off the throttle ... and just cruised through. Once out of the inner city an on the open highway ... the outside lane was fairly free of traffic ... because the timid (okay ... safe) drivers were all following each others tracks in lanes 1 & 2. All to say ... nothing but faint tracks in the outside lane.

So I get out there and start rolling ... ensuring to just stay in the little tracks there are. Start getting the hang of things and feeling more relax as the miles go by. Next thing ya know ... I look down at the speedo ... 130 km per hr!!!!! FERCRISSAKES 80+ mph ... no wonder I'm zipping by folks!!!! I did slow down ... though comfortable to cruise ... gotta be able to stop TOO!!!!

All to say ... the bike and tires were marvelous. When going 80+ in the middle of a snowstorm and not one single hair is standing up on the back of your neck ... their doing their job!!!!! Also getting out of the inner city ... stopping, starting, zipping here and there ... wow ... they were great!!!

The combo passed their 1st major test with flying colours!!!! Me ... I could of been a tad more responsible!!!!!!!!!

[drholm]

Arbey...you set the bar pretty high for the rest of us...cheers!

[Arbey Canuck]

Originally posted by drholm
Arbey...you set the bar pretty high for the rest of us...cheers!

Dave ... cheers to you too!!!! I wouldn't worry about any standards being set ... I thought I mentioned I could of been a tad more responsible!!!!

While I love to explore the boundaries of one's self with their trusty steed ... I surely advocate responsible decision making during the experience!!!!

That's the bar we all need to be pushing!!!!

Me ... learning to infringe less on the 'not being responsible enough' side of things ... while exploring 'all that my bike can be' ... is what I've been trying to work on most over the last ten years!!!!

I can specifically count 4 times over the last 6 months ... when I was way over top ... 2 from poor choices ... 2 from a false sense of security!!!! 4 tooooo many ... but still an improvement from the previous 6 months ... and so forth and so forth.

As 'adventurous riders' I'm sure we can all identify with this ... to greater or lesser degrees ... we've all been there ... and fortunately remain unscathed!!!

Over 33 yrs of riding I've seen/experienced more than I care to remember ... in terms of good riders who weren't so fortunate. Some never even got one chance ... to get wiser!!!!

May we all continue to explore the fullest dimensions of our riding experiences ... yet continue to push the bar regarding ... 'responsible decision making' !!!!!!

That's the domain I would rather be leading the pack in ... but clearly I have a ways to go!!!!!!!!!

[drholm]

yet continue to push the bar regarding ... 'responsible decision making' !!!!!!

My "high bar" comment was directed at your willingness to evaluate a situation, make a reasoned judgement and follow through. I admire your sheer love of the ride...regardless of conditions. Your glass is always half full when it comes to the GS. I like that attitude and am trying to follow in your footsteps (with a long way to go...experience wise). Also, "responsible decision making" is one hell of a problem for an awful lot of cagers...just watch what happens around here when we get an inch or two of snow...bumper car mania!
:1zhelp

[Arbey Canuck]

Thanks Dave … willingness I do have. Your absolutely bang on … responsible decision making is global … when involved in any form of propelling one’s self forward.

I read the other day about a young lad who now faces imprisonment for reckless skiing. He hit and hurt a lady bad … something that is becoming more and more common. It seems now … that whether on the ski hill or on the water (another great example) there’s more traffic than ever before!!! Thus tons of accidents just waiting to happen!!!

Fortunately for us … there are still loads of open roads … yet even we feel the onslaught of ‘outsiders’ intruding in our domain!!! Thus the need for us to keep on our toes !!!!

Keep riding Dave … we still all have much to learn and much to experience.