[Rich Moran]

Eduar,

Having the same problem as you, saferty gear and hot weather, somehow, the mix seems not to go together.

Yesterday, at the dealership I picked up the latest Thunder Press mag, Jan 04, and lo and behold, there is a gal out of Las Vegas who manufactures a vest from a material you can wet, wear it without getting wet, and it acts like an air conditioner. I bought one today, and it is to be shipped to me in the next few days.

Since I distribute stuff to all types of retailers, if this sucker works, it will be a welcome addition to our product mix.

The vest was 85 bucks, and it seems the gal who makes these things might have developed something that might hit the target. In their article, they talk about wearing the vest for hours without having to rewet them, and riding in the desert, they feel like they are in a cool comfortable outfit.

The name of the outfit is Chill Out and their number in Vegas is 702.480.9297

There's a link in the mag for a web site www.chilloutdesigns.net

Tell Terry, Rich, the guy in Hawaii sent ya if you decide to get one.

I'll be wearing their vest below my Joe Rocket black and silver jacket, so I am looking forward to seeing how all this works.

 

[Rich Moran]

Now, back to the subject at hand, speed rating and tires, and safety while traveling at speeds above the normal speed limits.

While in Vegas, last year in Feb, it was tough to do the speed limit with everyone on my ass. i was doing 90 on a Road King, and being passed by construction workers in pickups with ladders and junk hanging out of their trucks. In Hawaii, going 70 sees me getting passed, and people wanting to get a sclose as possible for a look at the bike too, which causes me to nail it to get away from these jerks.

I am not too worried with safety of the bike, as i follow what MoCo puts out, and then some with my own checks. I found that each bike has its own charecteristics, and certain things tend to occur that can be found through torque checks and eye inspection.

Tires should never be left to doubt in any check, especially after a hard or long ride. Hitting potholes and road debris takes its toll on tires, and if pressure should be checked often, like every 3 tankfuls if your not traveling cross country and allowing the bike to sit a few days between rides and fill-ups.

If traveling, checking every other day will give you the tires eye view of whats going on, and once learned, a rythm can be established for knowing when to do checks. Cold weather to warm weather changes also throw a curve in too, so its best to check again if passing in temperature changes. And that is also for
torque checks for suspension. if in doubt, check it.

There is obviously more to do than what i am writing, but definitely :thumb to the motorcycle classes.

One thing is missing in them though, and that is wet pavement handling and panic stops and what occurs with the bike you are on. They show the video of the guy with the bike and the outrigger wheel set up, but I think it would be worth the bucks to actually experience it to gain the smarts about just when the control of th ebike gives out to uncontrol.

I also have been victim to high performance out of the box. What we are riding today, was not available years ago in the form of shovel heads or panheads. The V-rod is fast, and its way of moving on the street makes me feel like I can get away with a lot. But at the same time, i am not dumb enough to think I can, because the littlest mistake can cost in a major way.

If any of us has not develped a healthy respect for what can happen when mistakes do occur, the price will be paid in raw skin, broken bones and worst case death. Those that have been down before and lived to ride another day are probablly a little more aware of how fast things can go wrong, and those that have not been down yet, I hope it does not happen to you.

They say there are 2 types of riders, those that have gone down, and those that have not...yet.

Knowing that, think about it when the urge hits to twist the throttle just a bit more.