BMW R65 Info: Mods/Maintenance on My Bike : On Nails and Monster Lust
On Nails and Monster Lust
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 1999 17:49:00 -0700
From: Kathy Gill
To: Northwest Bikers Social Mailing List
First, The Nail.
Headed to work ~9 am ... 405/520 exit. The bike Feels Funny. I pull
over prior to exit and look at Front End ... nothing strange. Shrug,
get back on (stop and go). Still think it's weird; maybe it's my head.
Start to accelerate to get onto 520 ... and NO, this is NOT my head.
Something's off.
I think: I can get off at 148th and ride down to Cascade. But I get Off
going south, not north. Sigh. Pull into BP station, up to air pumps.
Check front tire again - it's OK. Back tire? Well, duh, it as a HUGE
nail sticking out the sidewall.
Call Cascade: "Dave, I have a nail in my (new) back tire." "You want us
to send the truck for you?" "Yes, thank you." Get coffee, donut, paper.
Chat with the women who work there. Sit in shade. Wait. 30-40 minutes
later, I think "Hey, they're only 10 minutes from here ..."
Call back. "Paul has the truck. We can't come get you and I've been
trying to call you without success." (It seems the gas station is
listed under grocery stores because the owner doesn't like phone
calls).
Dave tells me to try to put air in the tire and get to Bell. Kawasaki
or Bell Suz-Duc. OK. I try. I don't have the damn 90-degree extension,
and I feel like I"m getting nowhere. I'll ride thru Freddy Meyer lot to
the Firestone guys. Their air hose fits better -- Watch the tire Fill
Up. Remove air hose. Watch the tire Sink. Well, ride slowly.
Bellevue Kawasaki does not have my tire. They call BSD. They have the
one that "matches" my front tire (which apparantly my existing rear
tire did not do). Fine. Two more LONG blocks.
Service manager is not keen on this -- 'we're backed up.' "IT's a flat
tire!" "OK."
Sam, the sales guy, gives me the Keys to a Red 900 Monster. It's now
11:15. I have a lunch meeting at 11:30. Eeekkk. Make lunch. Run by
Cascade to show off the Duc. <g> Head back to BSD, since the service
guy SAID the bike would be ready at 1pm. It's now 2 pm.
Not Ready. Just pulled into back. I wait 30 minutes .. they're making
no progress and I"m spending WAY too much time trying on Held Gloves.
"Can I take the Monster and go back to work," I ask Sam. "Sure, he
says. SO I do.
OH - and Michael Bain used my new camera to record this event. ;-)
Monster Lust:
This bike is sweet! I seem to be shifting a bit from 2nd/3rd/2nd but
that may just be cause I don't know the bike (yet). Light. Quick.
Torquey. FUN! The Fun factor here is Off the Charts. Riding position
Fits Me. No adjustments needed, in fact I think I touch better than on
the modified R65.
Get her up to indicated 90 mph on 405 (briefly) ... I'd have to get
used to all this Wind (I have a Rifle fairing on the beemer) ... but
boy this bike is Fun!
BTW - they just took receipt of a Gran Canyon -- and yes, Jon, its WAY
too tall for moi at this stage of my career.
I'm going back now -- hopefully my bike is finished. If not, Sam will
just have to let me take this one Home for the evening!
Kathy
Subject: a few more Monster Thoughts ...
900 Monster compared to R850R (wow, two new bikes in 8 days ...
course, i can't take the cost of the shop bills that are affording me
this pleasure)
a) turn signals where god intended they be, at left thumb
b) bars where god intended they be, for forward lean
c) a kickstand that works for my foot, even if it is springloaded
(which turned out to be not nearly so horrible as i expected)
d) Torque. ;-)
e) light
f) stylish
g) RED
h) neither seat particularly fits my butt
RE Beth's comments earlier this week about "spec seat height" v real world.
I sat an SV650 while not trying on Held Gloves. I had to Muscle the bike off
the kickstand. It Felt Heavy (~~400 pounds). The Duc - I sit on the bike and
it's 'square' - it wants to be upright. I have to 'push' the R65, but not
like the SV650. It's been moved "off" the list, even though it's less $
(outfront and ongoing).
And one more thing. This flat footing stuff? What's the big deal? About
the fourth or fifth time I stopped this morning, I realized that I was
flatfooting the bike with a flat back tire. I went, "oh ... " <shrug>.
still grinning,
Kathy
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