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Hi,

In my efforts to help pass along good deals when I find them, this good deal cropped up into my e-mail box today from ridenow.com

Seems our friends at Dunlop are getting rid of their D208ZR tires (These are not the sticky D208GP Trackday tires and BTW, the D208GP tires are being replaced by SportMax GP Tires) so that they can sell the new Dunlop Qualifiers Now I know the Dunlop Qualifiers are said to be as grippy as the D208GP tires with life of about twice of the old D208ZR tires. But when someone offers you a set of tires to fit a late model sport bike at $169.99 you just can’t

As I sit here safely in Montrose, CO I have to reflect on the driving conditions today.  We drove from Albuquerque, NM to Montrose, CO which included two mountain passes along HWY 550 (Coal Bank and the section between Silverton & Ouray).  Things got ugly quick with regard to percipitation.

I was drafted as one of the drivers through these passes since I was the closest thing to being a local.  The conditions were bad enough that I much preferred o drive than be a passenger.  I’m not a control freak, but I am a smart driver. 

Anyway, as we made the ascent up to Coal Bank, we got more and more snow.  So much that there were points that visibility was

My job has taken me on the road for the remainder of the week…literally.  I am on a ‘Ride & Drive’ for brakes on a soon-to-be launched product that started in Phoenix and will end in Denver, CO the long way.  Tonight I am in Albuquerque, NM and drove through some pretty crappy weather to get here (it rained from Phoenix to Gallup, NM).

I noticed a couple things today as a cager who rides motorcyles:

Phoenix riders are not prepared for foul weather.  That goes without saying, but I have to admit that we just ended a record setting 140+ days without rain last weekend.  Well, it rained again today and the HD guys seemed to either be caught off guard

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a show for the first time called Pinks.  The premise of the show is in their tag line “lose the race…lose your ride”.  The winner is determined by a best out of five series at a local dragstrip.  The rules are set beforehand and both participants must sign over their respective vehicle titles to the show, and then the show awwards both vehicles to the winner.

The drivers negotiate the terms of each race.  The first race is usually to feel each other out and usually goes head-to-head.  After the first race, then the negotiating begins for the remaining races.  This is where the fastest car doesn’t always win.  there is tact in

Ever since the ninth grade, shears (high power shears that dim the lights) have been used to cut my hair.  See, I have what has been called “kinda hair” - the kinda hair you don’t want (rim shot please).  Imagine white kid with an afro, but knappy.  It was knappy enough that I was solicited to be part of an “Ebony & Ivory” haircut promo in college, but they specialized in the ebony.  I have also been asked by a black guy in a titty bar long, long ago “How did your hair get so knappy?”, as if he wanted to try and go for my look.  I didn’t have the heart to tell him that I hadn’t showered after

My buddy Terry recently asked my take on when it’s appropriate to wear your helmet when you’re not on your bike. The following is my response. While I don’t feel that I’ve considered every possibility, I offer this as a general guide. I’d be interested to hear what our readers think???

Terry -

Let me ask you something. My fellow riders here in Bingo were talking the other day. Is it OK to park one’s bike and walk to one’s desk without removing the helmet from one’s head? Is this cool? Uncool? Dorky? I never really thought about it. Is there are “correct” etiquette?

Rhino -

My personal opinion (and that’s all it is) is that anytime you start to walk away from

Its late so here’s a direct theft from the AMA website:
Interior Secretary nominee knows motorcycling

AMA Editor’s note: President Bush has nominated Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne as Interior Secretary, to manage the nation’s vast tracts of public land. Kempthorne was a U.S. senator from 1993-98 and has been governor since 1998. But of particular interest to motorcyclists is the fact that Kempthorne became an avid rider during his first term as governor.

In 2001, AMA Director of Communications Bill Wood sat down with Kempthorne and discovered that there’s an enthusiastic but serious and safety-minded motorcyclist in the Idaho governor’s office.

Here’s his interview from 2001:

“Recently, I realized there’s a fascination I have when I look at these

It does for the enrichening cycle after startup, but not afterwards.  This emissions failure has turned out to be quite the experience - both good and bad. 

NOTE:  I read my original CO reading wrong.  I thought the maximum allowable was 5% and I put out 5.5%.  Not so.  Those were the maximum allowable amounts for the first and second readings respectively.  My actual CO output was 8.1% and 7.5%.  There - correction made and demerits issued.

After failure, I could not imagine how a custom-mapped bike out of the People’s Republic of Kalifornia be that far off.  It likely wouldn’t idle smooth being that high.  So here is the rest of the story in chronological order…

1. Start the discussion about “what exactly is
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The Seattle Times (it’s about the 4th article down) is reporting today that the state Tariff Policy Committee, in response to concerns from motorcyclists, will limit the motorcycle fare increase on Washington State Ferries to 6% instead of the 14% originally proposed.
The state Tariff Policy Committee, which has been holding hearings on the rate proposal, is recommending that there be no change for motorcycles, other than the 6 percent increase everyone will pay.

Motorcyclists had complained that the proposed increase was unfair.

Sometimes the ride home is the most dangerous part of the job. This according to two recent studies of motorcycle officers in the California Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies.

For the period covering 2002-2005, the CHP study found that 37% of the motorcycle accidents involving CHP officers in the division covering Los Angeles occurred during the officer’s commute. Nationally 25% of police motorcycle accidents occurred during the officer’s commute to or from work, according to motorcops.com.

The injuries sustained in these accidents were more severe than those occuring during regular patrols. One quarter of the accidents resulted in major injuries compared to 14% during regular patrols. In addition, the commuting accidents are more costly, averaging $7564 per collision vs.