Not actually today but yesterday I had a cracking ride out on the S1000R to the Elan Valley in Wales. Brilliant weather for it and cos a Friday, pretty quiet out there. Stopped for a brew at the visitor centre and joined by a very friendly little Robin
Wow, very much a close up, unless you have a fancy camera We have a few fresh Robins in the garden, note no red breast when their young, wife's a birdwatcher
Nice, often Robins turn up to humans out of nowhere and seen plenty miles away from civilisation. Here's a Red Kite taking tidbits out of our back garden
Thank you @Sandi T and @Eldon , I’m considering myself very lucky to have timed a day off work for biking in conjunction with a cracking good weather day. Was my birthday too!! And no proper camera Eldon, that was taken with my phone- yes he was that close. Nice shot of a Red Kite in your garden, you’re very lucky to have them so close. I'd love to have them for a garden visitor! A few years ago only place I saw them was mid Wales but they’re doing really well in lots of other areas too. Occasionally see them round here too nowadays. Lovely birds to see. Don’t know if I’d class myself as a birdwatcher but I’m very interested in them particularly birds of prey and owls. As for the ride the Elan Valley is from Rhayder in Mid Wales, B4518 and then the B4574 to Aberystwyth. They’re not fast roads but a good ride to enjoy a beautiful area. Usual Welsh B Road hazards of sheep in the roads so take your time! I’ve been a few times and mostly avoided weekends, it can get busy but I’m recommending it
Maybe not so obvious @FellZebra , but the kite pics are taken out of a video so as to get the right shot. Heres more... not the same day as wind direction dictates approach direction.
That’s brilliant @Eldon , must be a pleasure seeing them come in so close. Your Red Kite pictures definitely beat my Robin picture!
Took this demo bike on a nice ride though many twisty roads and a bit of highway Once moving it does everything my Tiger 900 does but better, more stable, more comfortable, more power, better brakes , better air protection, similar fuel efficiency It is taller and heavier, getting it upright needs some technic, stopping needs a lot of attention from my part, if this starts to go there is simply no way I'll be able to keep it from dropping, the tiger is way more forgiving. Edit: also the engine sounds absolutely horrible in the GS, like a can with marbles
Our weather was so beautiful this past Sunday that after getting back home after our Sunday group motorcycle ride I decided to turn around and go back out solo and continue to enjoy the sun and mild temperatures! All told I got in about 150 miles--90 or so with the group then another 60 on my own. This was taken while I was sitting at a Minute Market gas station and quick mart drinking an energy drink enjoying the deep blue of the sky. Same spot I stopped briefly to take this as I headed back south towards Tucson. These mountains are part of the Santa Catalina Mountain range. A bit warmer than yesterday but still lovely! I think the temperatures in the Sonoran Desert usually feel about 10ºF less than what the thermometer reads because of the dryness. So my brain has come to interpret this as feeling more like 77ºF. But I have to say, that theory doesn't really seem to hold when the summer temperatures his 110+ºF! Then is feels about 10ºF hotter! Or as hot as the surface of the sun on some days.......
And there's me getting up this morning and thinking I must put all my thermal liners in my jacket and trousers. And not forgetting to swap seats to the heated one, ready for our rideout this Saturday to Whitby. I envy you. To top it off the weather person says chance off a slight frost. I envy you.
Yesterday I went for a little ride in the afternoon and convinced our friend, Russell, to join me. That was a wee bit easier said than done since the temps have been WAY above normal! I'd have ridden in the morning but Steve and I went for a bicycle ride while it was still "cool" (around 85ºF). Had an errand after that so I didn't get out the door until about 1:00pm. Just in time for this... Still, a ride in the heat is better than no ride. So with white Shoei helmet and white H-D mesh riding jacket, off I went to meet Russell at the QT near his house. Oh, yeah, I did invite Steve to join me but he had little (read, ZERO) interest in, as he puts it, "riding around in the heat on purpose". My Street Glide and Russell's Heritage Classic. At least gas prices aren't as high these days as the ambient temperatures! We wound up with a bit under 50 miles on the afternoon. We did a nice loop north of Tucson on our way to an air-conditioned Starbucks that we sometimes ride to where spent an hour solving the world's problems. We did manage to find a shady spot to park the bikes while we drank our coffee---thank goodness! Because it certainly didn't get any cooler as the afternoon wore on. Here's the temperature my bike reported when I pulled back into the garage. And at one point during the ride home, the temperature display read 110ºF! But as I was riding, I thought to myself that our heat, though dangerous if not taken seriously, is merely uncomfortable for the most part. Nothing like the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Helene.
Thanks for struggling through that heat, to bring us a nice ride report.. Your bike does look really good, of that there's no doubt. Chucking it down over here now. .
So "Dad's Recovery" takes a trip out last night to get Boy Wonders machine. A prod of the kickstart early this morning before work said a compression check might be a good call tonight . Tonight; Plug out and let's see what we have here..... Obviously special plugs in these scooters "Cancel the compression test, engine out!"
