dan shaw... the final report

[Scherer, Michael]

I just wheelie. (As long as I am sure someone is watching). -----Original Message----- From: k650dsn@... [mailto:k650dsn@...] Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2000 10:19 AM To: DSN_klr650@egroups.com Subject: Re: [DSN_klr650] Attachements NKLR In a message dated Thu, 13 Apr 2000 10:02:27 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Dash Weeks writes:

> Will wheelie for Virgin Oil > >

I'd wheelie for an oiled virgin. Gino ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 25% Off All Prints! Buy one today at Corbis.com http://click.egroups.com/1/3357/3/_/_/_/955635579/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Visit the KLR650 archives at http://www.listquest.com/lq/search.html?ln=klr650 Support Dual Sport News... dsneditor@... Let's keep this list SPAM free! Visit our site at http://www.egroups.com/group/DSN_klr650 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: DSN_klr650-unsubscribe@egroups.com

[Todd & Angel]

 

----- Original Message ----- [b]From:[/b] k650dsn@... [b]To:[/b] DSN_klr650@egroups.com [b]Sent:[/b] Thursday, April 13, 2000 8:19 AM [b]Subject:[/b] Re: [DSN_klr650] Attachements NKLR In a message dated Thu, 13 Apr 2000 10:02:27 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Dash Weeks writes: > Will wheelie for Virgin Oil > > I'd wheelie for an oiled virgin.   [i]Man, don't even go there.[/i] [i]Todd [/i] [i]A14 [/i]

[Arne Larsen]

-----Original Message----- From: dan shaw [mailto:dan_iss@...] Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2000 9:44 AM Subject: trip report- the final chapter well here i am, the trip is finally over. I made it to CT yesterday and all is well. this last report will be divided into several sections. in the first part i will give the details of the final leg from texas to connecticut. then i will give a sumary of the whole trip started back on sept 7th from phily. next i will describe what gear i used for the trip, what worked, what didnt work, what i wish i had and what i didnt need. and finally what i got out of the adventure.... after crossing the texas mexico border i camped out one night near laredo in one of the huge plots of oil company land after i stopped and one of the many pawn shops to sell a few things i no longer needed. while eating at a taco bell, this big tattoed guy walks up to me and asks me about where ive been. i tell him and he grins with admiration and says to me " i wish i had the guts to do that when i was younger man...here's something for you.." and he hands me 30 bucks! the next day i headed for alamo tx to see my long lost half uncle nelson. i had never met him before but my mother said he was a really nice guy and i would like him. it turned out that unlce nelson owned a motorcycle shop! about an hour before i arrived at alamo, my shift lever cracks of at the base. i had to continue the rest of the way in 1st gear. after i got there i got a welder to weld it back on. it was really great to meet him and, even though it was a harly shop, it was good to be around bikes. i stayed with his family for a few days and even got to change the oil in a harly while i was there. of course he couldnt resist to make some jokes about the klr. after alamo, i headed north to austin. a pretty city. from there i made a long long ride to new orleans. that day i spent about 10 hours on the bike. i didnt like new orleans that much. too many people making fun of the yankee on the big dirt bike. the next day i put anouther marathon ride in all the way to atlanta. that was a 14 hour ride and i didnt get to atlanta till after midnight. by this point i wanted to see how far i could go in one shot. i left atlanta on sunday moring and arrived in philadelphia monday afternoon! 30 hours of riding. that must be some kind of record. i stopped in my old place of work in phily and it was like " the legend has returned!" it was really cool to see how everyone reacted to my suprise visit after 7 months. i knew that almost everyone there wished they free to adventure after seeing what i had done. hopefuly i might have inspired some to actually go out and do something. i spent the day telling my tales and bringing wide eyed smiles to the faces of my old friends. it was really great. i spent the night at one of my friends house. my rear sprocket had gotten to the point of no return and the teeth looked like they were about to be bent over. i had tightened my chain to prvent it from skipping, but i think i did it too much and may have damaged the drive shfat bearing because now it makes a funny sound and leaks oil out of the drive shaft. but i continued on, and made the short 5 hour hope to CT without any problems. once in town i suprised some old friends and relatives. now im here and here for a while. its good though. i need a rest. but what a trips its been..... the gear: the bike: 1989 kawasaki klr 650...this bike has worked very well for me. i put almost 30,000 miles on it during the trip and have almost 40,000 total. this bike is great bike for adventure touring. it may not get you there in syle or comfort or speed...but it will get you there, and just about anywhere. it eats up highway miles without too much discomfort and can take on just about any road there is, not to mention you can load it to the max and even travel 2 up if you realy want to. the luggage: tim bernards su racks with 2 50mm military ammo cans bolted on. these worked great! they are sturdy as anything and took dozens of falls without much more then a few dents. they are waterproof and i rigged up a lock for the too. the main downside is that at 20 lbs a piece they are heavy. the su racks are sturdy and easy to attach. mine did break one where the rear brace attaches but only after some real abuse. i also had a cannoe bag which worked great and a courer bag. i finally found that the courier bag worked best when bunged to the top of the tank. the riding gear: i started out with a hjc lt12 full face helmet, a first gear kilimonjaro jacket and joe rocket ballistic pants and alpinestar cordura gloves and some sort of fabric military boots. the helmet was nice but drafty and noisy. it did survive several drops and even one the bike fell on it. the jacket was great. 100% waterproof. the vents worked well. it was a little hot in the jungle but i think a t shirt would have been hot too. the pants were waterproof but hot and didnt have any vents and boots had to be removed to put on. the gloves where just right to be worn in hot or cold weather. the tent: i used a eureka apex 2xt 2 man test. this tent was fine excpet that the poles eventually cracked. this was a big problem and i had to try to fix with wire and tape. tires: i went thru 3 sets of tires. one set of michaline siracs and 2 avon gripsters. these tires all seemed to work very well on the road. in the sand was not so good or the mud. electric vest: eclipse. worked great. made riding in cool weather comfortable and riding in cold weather survivable. stuff i whish i had: tank bag, first gear pants, helmet like the nolan n100 for talking to people with the helmet on, video recorder, and extra chain and sprokets. stuff i didnt need: water filter, mini stove. favorite place: san cristobal de las casas, chiapas MX worst place: hot hot coastal plains of guatemala best day: the day i got stuck in the salt flats in baja worst day: the day i got robbed while i camped on the beach things i wish i did differently: i wish i had spent less time in the states and more time in mexico and central america. i should have gotten the proper vacinations and everything to go where ever because that was a big reason i turned back. i would have like to learn spanish before i spent so much time in mexico and should have gone to spanish school longer then 2 weeks. well, what did i get out of this adventure? lots. this is by far my proudest accomplishment, and just knowing that i did it makes me happy. i learned how to put my mind to something and do it. i learned to apreciate what i have because there are always those with less...alot less. ok, i think thats all. i plan to rejoin the lists soon, so see you all then! dan shaw __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? 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