What a Weekend!!!

It has been a good weekend. I got to spend some time with my wife, and got to do some other things to decompress from the last few weeks of work,work,work....

My bike came with Renthal bars. It vibrates as it is a single cylinder. Got this from www.barsnake.com to help alleviate with the vibes a bit...

Simple 1" rubber tube you slide in through the handlebars using a wire. Could'nt find it at the Blue Box, so ponied up $25.

Spent saturday morning in a class, and missed the Sabine Pass ride NB and Co. did http://f650.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=209735.

I made up for it by riding through Walker and Trinity counties with Mischelle. Went along Lake Livingston, up to Point Blank

Made a loop (literally) on FM 980 back to Huntsville, then back down to Conroe. It was a nice 4 hour afternoon/evening ride.

Last year, Bill Mallin on f650.com did a stint as motorcycle marshall on the MS 150 http://www.f650.us/ride_reports/ms150_2006.htm . Intrigued, I subsequently got to correspond with Jerry Irwin, the motorcycle marshall chairperson there. A small ride in Huntsville last year wet my appetite for more. As the opportunity arose recently to get on board with this, i jumped. Did the HAM cram a few weeks ago (communication is via HAM radio), and this weekend was the training for new volunteers. Did the classroom saturday morning, and then on sunday helped with the Continental Airlines Classic bicycle ride.

Meeting at 715 am in the fog. The ride there was no fun with zip for visibility.

Line up in Montgomery

The man in charge of the 'other' bikes, Jerry Irwin

There were bikes of all makes and sizes represented. The group of riders are very welcoming too.

Some of these bikes are really tricked out. This one has flashing yellow and clear LED lights for increased warning visibility. Very cool!

Some other BMW bikes, an LT here

An an immaculate R 1100 GS. Those foglights are BRIGHT...

Gentlemen, start your motors.....

Fellow Chain Gang inmate John Vegas was there as well

The ride started cold and foggy. I did not put the liner in my jacket, thinking it would warm up soon. That did not happen until late morning, so i was a bit on the cold side

Despite the soup, these 2 young ladies were out cheering on the riders

Finally, the fog cleared and temperatures rose. Makings of a stunning day...

Rest stops. There were 6 on the route altogether. Routes were 25, 47 and 67 miles long.

Our job is to ensure the welfare of the bicycle riders along the course. Help with flat tires, simple first aid, or just give them moral support to keep riding. In addition, we are the eyes and ears for the course/ride directors.

Making new friends along the way....

Whata day to do this, it was simply stunning. Nice route too. From Montgomery Texas into National Forest via FM 149 and FM 1097. Also ventured into Grimes county.

Social minute

Following the last few riders

It was a wonderful weekend riding, and stayed away from the phone and fire pager as much as possible. A welcome break, ready for the week ahead again...the barsnake does help with reducing vibrations by the way.

Maintenance Session and New Farkle

Rear sprocket was showing wear from frequent travels, got almost 10,000 miles out of it. So today I took the time to remedy this by replacing it.

Shadetree Garage

Old and New. New Sprocket courtesy of BMW Motorcycles North Houston

Yup, it was high time.....
All fixed up again. Looks better too i think.

I had been doing some research into GPS systems, as I am planning a trip to Utah. A few people at www.f650.com had gotten a deal on the Garmin Streetpilot 2610. Well, I found one on Ebay for an even better price and struck a deal.

It arrived today...

Is missing USB cable though. No biggie, found one on Ebay for cheap....

Ebay rocks, thats how i got the bike to begin with. Stay tuned for ride evaluation with GPS.