Doesn't quite have the same ring as "The Russians are coming", but it made me VERY happy.
What are Tobinators you ask.... they are a wonderful piece of bracketry that allow my fixed windshield to adjust to an infinite(might have to check with the math dad on that) number of heights and angles. It allows you to find the sweet spot that you need to ride in a calm wash of air, instead of a buffeting maelstrom that causes migraines, blurred vision etc....
The reason I was so happy was I ordered them from a guy in Waco Texas on the 11th of April. According to the wonderful folks at Canada Post's website I determined the package arrived in the Mississauga customs office on the 19th, and is still there! Fortunately the website was wrong, and the package arrived with two days to spare.
So having made the rounds at the office today saying at least a temporary good bye, it is finally starting to feel like the beginning is near.
Monday 29 April 2013
Sunday 28 April 2013
BMWGSEH????
So I have had a couple of people ask what BMWGSEH stands for, not being up to date on BMW nomenclature and my sense of humor. The BMW part is obvious. The GS an acronym for the German Gelände Strasse, off road/on road, or all roads. The upgraded version of a BMW GS is the Adventure model, which adds all sorts of upgrades: suspension, crash bars, fog lights, 30L gas tank, one piece seat, larger windshield etc.... The GS Adventure is commonly called a GSA, or in my case the Canadian version GS Eh! It should probably be called a GSA eh, but even the toque heads would find that a bit redundant.
To make the bike even more Canadian I just attached a hockey puck to the bottom of the side stand!!!
(to mitigate the lean angle a bit).
To make the bike even more Canadian I just attached a hockey puck to the bottom of the side stand!!!
(to mitigate the lean angle a bit).
Friday 26 April 2013
End of April.
I did a motorcycle trip 3 summers ago on a Triumph Tiger. During the trip I wrote a blog:
http://tigertrippin.blogspot.ca/
My closing comments at the end of the 5 week, 15,000km trip were:
"I absolutely enjoyed it! Minus the Prairies, it was fantastic, and a once in a lifetime experience. Which answers my next question... I absolutely would not do it again. I am glad I did it once, but I just can't see going through all that again."
Followed later on by my farewell comments:
"So I have come to the end of my journey, maybe my next one will be with my bike maybe not... but I do know there will be a next one.... :-)"
Well the stars lined up to offer me another journey, and enough timed has passed that I am looking forward to 4 weeks on the road on another motorcycle. I sold my last project house in Toronto, so for family reasons have decided to try and work in Vancouver. My work has agreed to a three month trial of me working in our head office in downtown Vancouver. So with no mortgage, once again, I have the opportunity to take a month, give or take, and ride from Toronto to Vancouver.
My Triumph Tiger is long gone, eventually replaced with my current bike: a 2004 BMW 1150GS Adventure, that used to belong to George Stroumboulopoulos. The motorcycle coincidentally, and fortuitously, I LOVE!! It is a monsterously huge, off road capable, touring bike, that I have upgraded with all the farkles that you need to travel in comfort and carry everything you need to be self sufficient. Just so you get a sense of scale, the top of the windshield is nearly six feet tall!!
So I am currently, patiently, waiting for the end of the month, and warmer weather. So give or take a day or so May 1st I should be heading out. My route is ethereal and mutable. I have certain places along the way that I want to see, but how and when I get there, and where I stay along the way is unknown. My muse for my route is a map, ironically.
I have a large decal on one of my aluminum panniers, it is a map of North America, with all of the provinces and states in outline. When you drive through a state or province you can fill in the decal. So having done all of the provinces west of Quebec, and most of the northern and western states, I will start my travels to the West coast by heading east!! I will head into Quebec, then south into the USA and over to the east coast, following the coast line down to North Carolina before I start heading west.
So one last weekend in Toronto, after 20 years of living here.....
http://tigertrippin.blogspot.ca/
My closing comments at the end of the 5 week, 15,000km trip were:
"I absolutely enjoyed it! Minus the Prairies, it was fantastic, and a once in a lifetime experience. Which answers my next question... I absolutely would not do it again. I am glad I did it once, but I just can't see going through all that again."
Followed later on by my farewell comments:
"So I have come to the end of my journey, maybe my next one will be with my bike maybe not... but I do know there will be a next one.... :-)"
Well the stars lined up to offer me another journey, and enough timed has passed that I am looking forward to 4 weeks on the road on another motorcycle. I sold my last project house in Toronto, so for family reasons have decided to try and work in Vancouver. My work has agreed to a three month trial of me working in our head office in downtown Vancouver. So with no mortgage, once again, I have the opportunity to take a month, give or take, and ride from Toronto to Vancouver.
My Triumph Tiger is long gone, eventually replaced with my current bike: a 2004 BMW 1150GS Adventure, that used to belong to George Stroumboulopoulos. The motorcycle coincidentally, and fortuitously, I LOVE!! It is a monsterously huge, off road capable, touring bike, that I have upgraded with all the farkles that you need to travel in comfort and carry everything you need to be self sufficient. Just so you get a sense of scale, the top of the windshield is nearly six feet tall!!
So I am currently, patiently, waiting for the end of the month, and warmer weather. So give or take a day or so May 1st I should be heading out. My route is ethereal and mutable. I have certain places along the way that I want to see, but how and when I get there, and where I stay along the way is unknown. My muse for my route is a map, ironically.
I have a large decal on one of my aluminum panniers, it is a map of North America, with all of the provinces and states in outline. When you drive through a state or province you can fill in the decal. So having done all of the provinces west of Quebec, and most of the northern and western states, I will start my travels to the West coast by heading east!! I will head into Quebec, then south into the USA and over to the east coast, following the coast line down to North Carolina before I start heading west.
So one last weekend in Toronto, after 20 years of living here.....
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