BMW OWNERS NEWS – A PUBLICATION OF THE BMW MOTORCYCLE OWNERS OF AMERICA
JUNE 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS www.bmwmoa.org
JUNE 2016
www.firstgear-usa.com
www.touratech-usa.com
Table of Contents features
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it took a community to get me up to speed By Marcia McGuire #206242 New rider Marcia McGuire had to navigate many obstacles before becoming confident with her motorcycle, but soon she was blazing a trail of her own.
army of darkness, part one By Sam Fleming #195185 The Army of Darkness finished the 2014 season by winning the last three races of the series, but will two fully-prepped S 1000 RRs sitting idle retirement was not an option.
shortcut to coban By Glenn Hamburger #57993 If living in Guatemala to study Spanish and supporting himself by teaching art wasn’t enough, one day Glenn Hamburger ventured off on a rented Honda looking for greater adventure.
journey to copper canyon, part one By Curt Stetter #205881, Photography by Chuck Feil #203990 Morning’s cold, dove-gray light illuminated riders and their machines in front of The Coffee Company in Bisbee, Arizona, the meeting place and beginning of their ride to Copper Canyon.
Greece, The Authentic Backcountry By Steve Kohler #205022 Greece, the ancient home of democracy — where Zeus proclaimed the center of the world to be — has had centuries to evolve into a captivatingly complicated mix for the visitor who chooses something more than the well-baked tourist experience.
ON THE COVER: Riding the wonderfully twisting roads near Fontana Dam, North Carolina. Photo by Bill Wiegand #180584
The BMW MOA and MOATM are trademarks of the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America.
the club 4 Owners News Contributors 8 Headlight Interpretation of Art, by Bill Wiegand 10 President's Column See you in Hamburg, by Chuck Manley 12 From the Board Election Changes, by Muriel Farrington 14 Shiny Side Up The Disease, by Ron Davis 14 Picture This On the Road 18 Rider to Rider Letters from the membership 22 2016 MOA Getaway planner
discovery 56 Adventure Trio Catching up with Sandy, Terry and Jack,
Member tested/ product news 24 Michelin Anakee Wild Adventure Tires, Watershed Drybag, Blue Highway
lifestyle 106 Flashback A look back at our MOA history 108 Jack the Riepe The Motoghost of Toms River, New Jersey,
Motorcycle Lodge.
34 H aynes repair manuals now available for R 1200 liquid-cooled twins, Jerry Elliott of Enterprise, Alabama, wins MOA Life membership at Fontana Dam Getaway, Have you registered for Das Rally! yet, BestRest Products releases CyclePump Expedition, Held Sereena gloves now available, Jim Keesee newest BMW MOA Regional Coordinator, 2017 BMW MOA Rally site announced, KOA gives MOA members trial Value Kard Rewards membership, BMW MOA offers Premier Getaway in Monterey, California, to celebrate 100 years of BMW.
tech 44 Keep ‘em Flying The Rest of the Mexico Trip, by Matthew Parkhouse
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I just needed an Oil Change, Part IV, by Wes Fleming
by Sandy Borden
skills 100 Ask a Pro Choosing the best class for you, by Lee Parks 102 Ride Well Protecting yourself against the Zika virus, by Marven Ewen
104 Foundation News A priest, a rabbi and Paul Thorn walk into a rally
by Jack Riepe
110 Chartered Clubbing
Why NorCal #9 decided to Adopta-Highway, by Richard Klain
112 First Bike
Two to turn 50, by Jim Blanchette
events 114 The 2016 BMW MOA Rally Charity Club Challenge, by Karol Patzer
116 BMW MOA Rally entertainment lineup featuring Paul Thorn, by Lee Harrelson
120 2016 BMW MOA Rally map 126 When and Where Places to go and things to see 135 Advertiser Index 136 Talelight
June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
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CONTRIBUTORS 1 . Terry, Sandy and Jack Borden, aka the “Adventure Trio”, are a family of three on two BMW GS motorcycles that have traveled across the states and beyond for almost ten years. They are currently on a speaking tour sharing stories from their journey to South America. 2. A writer of limited ability, Jack Riepe is confined by the absolute truth. Hobbled by arthritis, he types his stories by pounding a shot glass on a keyboard—with his foot, and rumors that he is in the Brazilian Witness Protection Program are only partially true. If you like his column, you’ll love his book, “Conversations With A Motorcycle,” an autobiographical account of his early years on a motorcycle, when women unleashed their passion—on everyone but him. Email jack. riepe@gmail.com for more information. 3. Steve Kohler is a relatively new member of MOA but has been riding motorcycles, off and on, for 50 years. He recently released an HP2 and a K 1600 GT and now rides an S 1000 R and an R 1200 GSLC as much as he can in the hills around his home in the Ozarks where the traffic is light and the roads are sinuous. With his wife, Peggy, he travels to ride in eye-opening environments elsewhere. A writer, editor and publisher, he often attempts to translate medical research into everyday English for his readers. His book, Two Ozark Rivers, is a natural and human history of the nations' first protected scenic rivers.
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
4. Wes Fleming tried being a rock star for 25 years, but gave all that up to focus on motorcycles. His mother still hasn’t forgiven him. The first new motorcycle he ever bought got run over by a car – with him still in the saddle. He discovered BMWs thanks to a friend in 2001 and has been riding trendy, not-so-trendy and sidecar-equipped BMWs ever since. Wes currently holds down multiple jobs, including motorcycle shop office boy and history professor, and when he’s not helping his teenage daughter with her homework, they’re out somewhere in their sidecar rig. 5. Matt Parkhouse acquired his first BMW in 1972, upon his return from Vietnam. He hired on at Doc's BMW of Colorado Springs in 1977. Since then, his life has been a mixture of travel (U.S., Mexico, Europe and North Africa), owning/working in various shops, working as a nurse, and being very involved in his local community. He has owned around fifteen airhead BMWs over the years, but his first bike, a 1972 R75/5, is parked by the front door with 423,000 miles on the odometer. 6. Marcia McGuire learned to ride a few years ago, and since then her mode of adventure has become the two wheels of her BMW G 650 GS. She loves how motorcycles expand engagement with the world, and her GS often accompanies her in her projects investigating and documenting social and environmental issues.
www.maxbmw.com
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BMW OWNERS NEWS  June 2016
Smoky Mountain Splendor
Ray Tubbs #58606 and Reece Mullins #143779 pause to take in the beauty of the Smoky Mountains while riding the roads near Fontana Dam, North Carolina. Photo by Bill Wiegand #180584
June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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headlight Magazine of the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America MANAGING EDITOR
Bill Wiegand bill@bmwmoa.org
Interpretation of Art By Bill Wiegand #180584
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Ron Davis • Wes Fleming • Joe Tatulli ART DIRECTOR
Karin Halker karin@bmwmoa.org CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
David Cwi • Marven Ewen • Deb Gasque Chris “Teach” McNeil • Lee Parks Matthew Parkhouse • Jack Riepe Shirley and Brian Rix • Shawn Thomas ADVERTISING
Advertising materials, including chartered club rally display advertising, should be sent to our Advertising Office. Please contact Chris Hughes for display rates, sizes and terms. Chris Hughes chris@bmwmoa.org 11030 North Forker Road, Spokane, WA 99217 509-921-2713 (p) 509-921-2713 (f ) BMW MOTORCYCLE OWNERS OF AMERICA
640 S. Main Street, Ste. 201 Greenville, SC 29601 864-438-0962 (p) 864-250-0038 (f )
Submissions should be sent to the BMW MOA office or editor@bmwmoa.org. Submissions accepted only from current members of the BMW MOA and assume granting of first serial publication rights within and on the BMW MOA website and use in any future compendium of articles. No payments will be made and submissions will not be returned. The BMW MOA reserves the right to refuse, edit or modify submissions. Opinions and positions stated in materials/articles herein are those of the authors and not by the fact of publication necessarily those of BMW MOA; publication of advertising material is not an endorsement by BMW MOA of the advertised product or service. The material is presented as information for the reader. BMW MOA does not perform independent research on submitted articles or advertising. Change of address notification and membership inquiries should be made to the BMW MOA office or membership@bmwmoa.org. BMW MOA membership is $40/yr. and includes the BMW Owners News, which is not available separately. Each additional family member is $10 without a subscription. Canadian members add $12 for postal surcharge. The BMW MOA and MOA™ are trademarks of the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America.
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WOW! WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
If you’re not a Facebook user, delight in knowing you’ve dodged a hailstorm that consumed much of the MOA’s Facebook page following the delivery of the May issue of BMW Owners News. Last month’s cover showed a woman sitting on a custom BMW R 100 built by Wunderlich; it will be raffled off by the MOA Foundation at our rally in Hamburg this July. I created the photograph. I chose to use the photograph. I received many emails. Some mentioned the woman was not wearing appropriate gear. The image was polarizing, in that some were appalled that Owners News would use such a sexist image, while others wrote to say they loved it and thought it was one of the best they’d seen on Owners News. More than a year ago, when we made a significant change in the way we use images in Owners News, the visual presentation of stories and individual images became more significant. We moved to covers intended to stand alone without necessarily being tied to a story or cluttered with type. We wanted our covers to simply be art and reflect the common bond that brings all of us to this wonderful organization and to share our passion of BMW motorcycles. Sometimes, art has no intended purpose. Other times, it’s created to teach, entertain, amuse, challenge, distract or stimulate thought. The image on our May cover was created to introduce the bike to be given away by the MOA Foundation. Regardless of its intended purpose, it provoked a storm of dialog by our members. Two Facebook posts representing the the polarity of opinions included: “While commercial art is a form of art and there are many amazing things about it, this image of a woman in heels and leopard skin tights is about women as sex objects rather than women as serious riders.” Another stated, “It’s a free world in which we can either choose to interpret what we wish from a visual artistic photo or we can be told how to interpret it. I choose to not be told. I choose to interpret it with my own open free mind and I wish that others had the freedom to do the same – otherwise we are constantly moving towards an artistically neutered society.” My intent in creating the image wasn’t to portray women as sex objects or diminish anyone’s accomplishments as a rider. Regardless, it struck a nerve in some of our members and stimulated a discussion, making us all step back for a moment to realize who we are and why we are here. Jack Riepe eloquently and succinctly stated, “No association can be all things to all people. Groups that attempt this impossible agenda implode with indecision, drown in amended by-laws, and choke with compromise. This is not a license to navigate around issues at are important to large segments of members, but it is a warning about letting the tail wag the dog.” The goal of Owners News will always be to represent the members of the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America, a place where we share our stories of adventure, learn from one another and laugh together. It’s the campfire that brings us together. We’ve got a big family and like most families, may not always share the same opinions, but we work together to make sure that our differences make us stronger instead of pulling us apart. Let’s ride!
www.bmwmotorcycles.com
PRESIDENTSCOLUMN
See you in Hamburg OUR MISSION
To foster communication and a sense of family among BMW motorcycle enthusiasts BMW MOA OFFICERS
Chuck Manley, President 309-825-8445; cmanley@bmwmoa.org Jackie Hughes, Vice President 509-928-3261; jhughes@bmwmoa.org Muriel Farrington, Secretary 802-295-6511; mfarrington@bmwmoa.org Wes Fitzer, Treasurer 918-441-2114; jwfitzer@yahoo.com BMW MOA DIRECTORS
Jean Excell 719-650-6215; jeanexcell@bmwmoa.org Greg Feeler 208-376-5137; gregf@e-moto.org Vance Harrelson 205-621-1682; weridebmw@bellsouth.net Stan Herman 719-250-4358; hermanhaus1@msn.com Bill Hooykaas 705-329-2683; hooykaas@bmwmoa.org BMW MOA VOLUNTEER STAFF
Steve Brunner, Mileage Contest Coordinator 910-822-4368, steveb@bmwmoa.org Jim Heberling, High Mileage Coordinator 309-530-1951, jheberling@bmwmoa.org Deb Lower, Ambassador Liaison 719-510-9452, ldeborah@comcast.net Dutch and Kate Lammers 2016 BMW MOA Rally Chairs 2016rallychair@bmwmoa.org BMW MOTORCYCLE OWNERS OF AMERICA
640 640 S. Main Street, Ste. 201 Greenville, SC 29601
Robert C. Aldridge, Executive Director bob@bmwmoa.org Ted Moyer, Director of Membership & Marketing tedm@bmwmoa.org Ken Engelman, Director of Business Development ken@bmwmoa.org Bill Wiegand, Managing Editor bill@bmwmoa.org Karin Halker, Art Director karin@bmwmoa.org Lesa Howard, Membership Services lesa@bmwmoa.org
By Chuck Manley #12106 GREETINGS EVERYONE! IT'S JUNE, AND THERE'S STILL TIME TO
make your plans for attending our 44th International Rally in Hamburg, New York! Our BMW MOA event is the world's largest BMW motorcycle rally. Part of what makes the rally an extraordinary event is that it is planned and hosted primarily with an all-volunteer work force. I first spoke with Rally Chairs Dutch and Kate Lammers in the fall of 2013 about the possibility of them being the 2016 Rally Chairs. They have attended and have been active volunteers on a variety of committees at the International Rally for many years. Upon their agreement to take on this giant responsibility, they began shadowing the 2015 Rally Chairs to learn the planning process from the beginning. Then, about eighteen months ago they began their planning for Das Rally. The MOA staff has a continued business role in the rally planning. Site contracts, event insurance, required licenses and permits, and a variety of other contracts including entertainment, golf carts, tents, etc. are handled by staff. These business items are required for every rally but are subject to change with every rally venue. The Rally Chairs are responsible for the "flavor" of the rally. Will there be a rally theme? What is there to see and do while traveling to and from the rally? Will the entertainment mix include Country, Blues and Rock? What will the rally logo look like? Is the rally shirt offered in mixed colors and designs? It takes hundreds of volunteers to make our event a success. The Rally Chairs oversee about 50 committees, each with a committee Chair and Co-Chair(s). Committees may require a few volunteers or hundreds of volunteers working two or three hour shifts. Registration, Security, and the Beer Garden require large numbers of volunteers. Volunteers write the many articles appearing in the Owners News and on the website promoting the rally. Onsite volunteers assist the Rally Chairs with the coordination of over 100 vendors attending the rally and with coordinating over 80 seminars that take place during the three day rally. Are you an early riser and need your coffee to get the day going? Volunteers start brewing the free MOA coffee every morning and serve hundreds of gallons during the rally. Other volunteers help with the MOA Gear Store, Door Prizes, Awards, and Sign Production and Placement. Some volunteers deliver water and supplies to other volunteers. Volunteers coordinate logistical issues. Some continually monitor the restrooms and notify grounds employees at the first sign of an issue. I don't have the space to review the responsibilities of every committee, but a complete list of committees can be viewed through the "Das Rally" link at www.bmwmoa.org. Why volunteer? Because it's your rally and because you will likely meet some folks that will become some of your best friends. Julie and I get to see many of the friends we camp with once a year, and that's during the rally. We met most of them as a result of volunteering, and they are some of our best friends. So, volunteer...who knows, maybe we'll be camping together at next year's rally. Julie and I look forward to seeing many of you in Hamburg or elsewhere on the road. Until then, ride safe and Thank You for Being a Member!
Amanda Faraj, Membership Services amanda@bmwmoa.org Ray Tubbs, Digital Marketing Manager ray@bmwmoa.org
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BMW OWNERS NEWS  June 2016
www.progressive.com
the club
fromtheboard
Proposed bylaw change change regarding the election process for the Board of Directors. This change complements and completes the process begun in 2013 where all elections are for director positions and the officers are elected by the board members.
Bylaws as follows: In the first of each three (3) years starting in 2013 four (4) Directors positions shall be filled by such election. In the second of each three (3) years five (5) Directors positions shall be filled by such election. In the third of each three (3) years there shall be no election.
Article V. Amendment of Bylaws
The new Bylaw shall read:
SECTION 1. BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS These Bylaws may be amended at any regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors by a vote of at least seven (7) of the nine (9) members of the Board, provided a motion to amend the Bylaws was made at a regular or special meeting of the Board not less than thirty (30) days prior to the meeting at which the vote is to be taken. The Secretary shall cause such a motion to be published in BMW Owners News not less than thirty (30) days prior to the meeting at which the vote is to be taken. Under the current Bylaws, elections are held two of every three years, electing four (4) positions in the first year, five (5) positions in the second year, and no positions the third year. The bylaw change would allow an election every year with three (3) Director positions eligible per election. This annual election process presents an opportunity for members to run for the Board each year while ensuring continuity for the organization. The following section of the current By-Law shall be removed:
There shall be an annual election to elect the members of the Board of Directors and to vote on other such matters as may be placed on the ballot in accordance with these Bylaws. Three (3) Director positions shall be filled by such election. The transition to annual elections shall occur as follows: Beginning with the 2017 election, two (2) Board positions shall be filled, and the remaining three (3) positions will be extended for one year. For the 2018 election, three (3) positions shall be filled. In the 2019 election, three (3) positions shall be filled, one (1) remaining position will be extended for one year. In the 2020 and subsequent elections thereafter, three (3) positions shall be filled by each annual election. If any Board member serving an extended term chooses not to complete said extension, the currently serving President of the Board will appoint a replacement to fulfill the extended term. Once the transition period has been completed (2020), the preceding verbiage regarding the transition shall be removed from the Bylaws.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS IS PROPOSING A BYLAW
Section 1. General There shall be an election in two (2) of each three (3) years to elect the members of the Board of Directors and to vote on other such matters as may be placed on the ballot in accordance with these
The Board of Directors will hold a special meeting the first week of July, thirty (30) days following publication of the above-proposed amendment to the Bylaws, to vote on this matter. This change will affect elections in 2017 – 2020. Muriel Farrington Secretary
www.bmca.com/moa
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www.heldusa.com
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shinysideup
“The Disease” By Ron Davis #111820 RIGHT ABOUT THE
time my desperate longing for a Schwinn Stingray started to wane, my fascination with anything that ran on gas began. Those rear wheel slicks, butterfly handlebars and swooping banana seats on Stingrays (and on the 20-inch bikes my buddies had commandeered from their little sisters) just couldn’t compete with the Hurst-shifter-ed, late ‘50s Chevys, rumbling GTOs and new Ford Mustangs that were perpetually taking laps up and down our little town’s main street. Though my own father had been showing symptoms for years, somehow I had been oblivious to his own enchantment with cars and his consequential addiction to buying new ones almost every year—the habit my family casually referred to as “The Disease.” I’m still not quite sure how he did it. We were a single income family of six, and though Dad may have been getting some deals as a result of managing the advertising in the local paper, I’ve got to think he was making ballooning car payments for all of his adult life. One day he might roll home for lunch in a lavender Chevrolet Malibu, a year later, a Volkswagon Karmann Ghia. The variety of makes and models I watched rotate through our dilapidated garage as I grew up had no limit: a bronze Impala with three on the column (my dad was a strict adherent of manual transmissions), an AMC Gremlin (two concrete blocks in the rear as optional accessories), an El Camino, a Blazer, a Pacer (rolling greenhouse), a Toyota Hi-Lux—by the time I was in college,
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
I fully expected to see a new vehicle every time I came home for break. When I would say, “New car?” my dad would answer with a shrug of surprise, as if to say, “What do you mean? Of course it’s a new car.” I don’t think my mother, the saint, actually approved of my father’s obsession, but I guess, with her characteristic sigh and a roll of her eyes, she had resigned herself to it as an incurable, if fairly harmless affliction.
Apparently susceptibility to “The Disease” is genetic. Both my brother and I seem powerless to resist the siren song of new vehicles, no matter how feeble the rationalization or how thin our wallets. Some milk was spilled in the back seat? We obviously needed a mini-van. The road is late getting plowed one day? Let’s go look at four-wheel drives. Tires and brakes need replacing? A trade-in would simply be “a wash,” right? Yes, I even once talked my wife into splurging on a new, gigantic crewcab pickup so our family could go camping. (We did. Twice.) This disorder I’ve inherited is not limited to cars. I’m now on my 12th motorcycle, even with an 18-year hiatus while I waited for my kids to grow up. Among those, I’ve had three BMWs—an old one (R65), a small one (Funduro), and a big one (R 1150
R). All of those bikes were purchased “preowned,” so, with the prospect for an end to my riding years no longer a distant abstraction, this year I went looking for something in the “New Inventory” realm. Buying a new BMW isn’t quite the exhilarating little dance I’ve come to expect when buying a new car or even a used bike. Pestering all the dealers within a 300 mile radius, I found salespersons basically have their hands tied on asking prices. There may be a promotion or some wiggle room on accessories—if a trade’s involved, possibly some room for haggling—but all of that finesse I’d picked up from years of negotiating car deals was of little use. Though the new bike bargaining process didn’t offer much excitement, the browsing and test rides did. I rode every model that seemed to fit into the narrow parameters of my inseam, riding habits, and checkbook. Having been away from new bikes for a while, I was in awe of features like self-canceling turn signals, steel braided brake lines, gear indicators, and tire pressure monitoring, and as salespersons rattled off strange new acronyms like DWA, ASC, ESA and TPC/RDC, I nodded knowingly, as if I had any clue what they were talking about. When I found the bike that seemed to fit me best, it seemed like suddenly I had passed the point of no return. My wife (another saint) was supportive, though her comment, “Well, it’s probably the last bike you’ll ever buy…” was a little troubling. My boss at Owners News, Bill Wiegand, sagely counseled, “Ron, if you don’t buy that bike, the terrorists win.” Though there were all kinds of valid reasons for walking away (a perfectly good V-Strom in the garage, an educator’s salary, a failing washing machine, and a looming tax payment) I pulled the trigger, this time on a 2016 Mineral Grey Metallic BMW F 700 GS. What can I say? It’s not a character flaw, it’s a disease.
www.tourmaster.com
Picturethis
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ON THE ROAD We asked our online readers to submit their photos showing
1. Happy Valley Road in Scottsdale, Arizona. John Hermann #202659 Phoenix, Arizona 2. G rand Teton National Park on the road to Yellowstone. Jorge De la Colina #204324 Brownsville, Texas 3. Me and my GS along Angeles Crest Highway in Angeles National Forest. Larry Stough #139489 Ballwin, Missouri
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4. On the road in the powdery sand on the dirt roads of Utah’s southern red sand dunes. Frank OK’Fearna #62372 San Antonio, Texas
6. A shot of my ’06 K 1200 S in the wild and winding roads of southern California in the Santa Monica Mountains. Eric Deyerl #158472 Culver City, California
5. A pproaching Monument Valley from the south. Dan Webster #189375 Saanichton, British Columbia
7. C rossing the Napo River in Atahualpa, Equador, on a rain-soaked metal bridge. Steve Barnhill #103656 Little Rock, Arkansas
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RIDERTORIDER Send your letters and comments to: editor@bmwmoa.org
Where's MacGyver?
I’m normally not one to grumble and complain, but I have to take exception with the response that Lee Parks offered in April’s “Ask A Pro.” The question was one that I too have been wondering about: Without the time to dedicate to formal mechanical training, where’s a good place to begin building up “MacGyver-like” knowledge that will serve one when embarking on longer adventure trips (when self-sufficiency is a must)? Rather than answering the question directly, Lee (in my opinion) wasted the potential of his 750-word platform by recounting a story of a time when he didn’t properly reattach his brakes after a repair. From my own experience, three years ago I had the good fortune of riding the (Lawrence Hacking) Overland Adventure Rally with a group that included a world-famous adventure rider. One of our group was riding a vintage Ural, and at the first fuel stop we discovered that the key to his gas cap was over 100 kilometers away. Our options were definitely limited after the bike’s owner balked at the idea of punching-out the cap’s lock. What to do? One brilliant rider had the knowledge to save the day. He got me to pull my GSA alongside the Ural, reached into the right side of my bike and—without looking— disconnected some portion of the fuel system (a return line, perhaps?) knowing that my bike would continue to run with the hose off. In effect, he had just created a gas pump. We disconnected the fuel line from the bottom of the Ural’s gas tank and (with a short section of borrowed hose) proceeded to pump gas from my bike into the Ural, bottom-up. Voila! Problem solved, but that certainly wasn’t any solution that I would’ve known about. The real value of Owners News for an Average Joe like me is that I read the magazine to learn from experts, pros and those who’ve blazed the (adventure) trail before me. I tuck tidbits of technical
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information away in my brain, I dog-ear pages of ridden routes, and I put Post-It notes on other pages, all in an effort to build up my knowledge for the days when I’m going to be out for weeks at a time. April’s question would have been the perfect opportunity for Lee to have shared his pro wisdom and responded with something like, “Here are the top 10 things that will likely happen to your bike on an adventure trip and how best to respond.” I, for one, look forward to the day when a resource like that is available, and if it already is, somebody please let me know where to find it. Andrew Rourke #199725 Kitchener, Ontario
say with confidence that BMW is a very trusted brand to me. However, it concerns me that BMW is receiving negative feedback from an "extensive" Consumer Reports survey. I have not seen this survey, but assume Bud McIntire has, based on his comments in April 2016 BMW Owners News. His comments are spot on. BMW Corporate needs to address these issues and quickly, or it will tarnish their hard earned reputation for reliability. The marketplace is far too competitive for BMW to falter while hoping to maintain or expand its market share. Paul Goulding #125603 Devils Lake, North Dakota
Dear Lee Parks,
PTSD and therapy
Thank you so much for your informative and educational column in April's Owners News. It takes a big man to tell others about a screw-up, but it makes you a much bigger man to share it and pass along cautions as you have done. I never miss your writings and thank you once again. Len Lipton #198918 Norwalk, Connecticut
BMW reliability
I feel compelled to comment on the question of BMW reliability. I have been riding for more than 50 years and have ridden a wide variety of motorcycles including Bridgestones, Pentons, Hondas, Harleys and BMWs. Now, while my experiences are only mine, I am very confident in the overall reliability of BMWs. Last August, I traveled to Alaska and back on a 2013 R 1200 GS, riding approximately 10,000 miles, including some side trips. The only services needed were oil changes and tires, and I experienced zero mechanical or electrical issues. So, I can
This article titled “My Therapist’s Initials are GS” by Tom Larson in the March issue hit home for me in more than one way. First, I was ecstatic that someone had moved forward and put into motion what I had only been talking of doing, since I was unable to connect with the right partners to make it a reality. As a 26-year and still serving veteran I can completely relate to the article. When I came back from an Iraq tour in 2008, my peace was found on my then new 2009 F 800 GS. I quickly learned that time on my GS provided me a source of stress relief, one that was also noticeable from my wife's perspective. It took a few years, but I finally realized that what I was experiencing could benefit others as well, which ignited my original idea. Our veterans who carry the invisible wounds of PTSD and TBI need the help and support just as much as those who suffer physical and viewable wounds. We as a country and society can't afford to continue to lose our nation’s most precious resources to these invisible wounds at the current rates. We have lost more veterans at home than on the battle field,
and it is all preventable. I only ask that we as an association, a club, and as fellow riders do what we can to support Tom's efforts today, at our rallies and into the future. Unfortunately, these kinds of resources will be needed for years to come as the fight continues and more personnel are conducting new, stressful missions that have high suicide rates. As a fellow veteran, GS therapy patient, and the father of a special operator, Tom has my complete and unwavering support. Brian Dutcher #160860 Des Moines, Iowa
GS Owners News
Having owned several bikes over the years, I can say it’s great to be back on a BMW. Of course, one of those reasons is to receive Owners News, but here’s the rub: I don’t own a GS. I owned an ‘04 GS Adventure several years ago, and it just wasn’t for me. I have little opportunity to go off-road and quite frankly, it’s a bike that is beyond my ability to pick up if it goes over in deep sand. I prefer to ride alone and enjoy nothing more than paved mountain roads, twisties, gentle sweepers and the sublime performance of my machine. I was excited to see an article in the March issue entitled, “Determining the Best Bike for You.” I had to chuckle when it was “which GS is the best bike for you, 650, 800, 1200, GS or GSA?” Among the bikes that have graced my garage, I had a 2008 K 1200 S. Wow, just wow. I loved that bike. It fit like a glove, met my needs and had power, refinement, wind protection with no buffeting (can’t say that for my ‘04 GSA!). Well, my fickle side took hold, and I sold it and went “off-brand.” A short year later, I found a nice ‘07 tri-color K 1200 S and was back on my perfect mount. A couple years later, that fickle side took hold again and away she went. Well, I’m pleased to say that after a short stint on an S 1000 R, I’m back on a new 2015 K 1300 S Motorsport. Oh my God! I guess no one has ever said this before, but this one will be with me for a long time. With its quick shifter, looks, handling, power, quality, reliability and…well, I could go on.
But, as in previous times, I still feel the Owners News should be called GS Owners News. I have three kids, including two in college and a demanding job. Simply put, I will never tour Andalusia or camp the back roads of Russia. When I can fit them in, my rides are mostly measured in hours, not days—one hundred miles here, two hundred there, and frequent 30 mile runs to simply blow out the cobwebs between my ears. Now, I know the K 1300 S is the redheaded step child, as ‘15 was its last year, but I’m not alone in believing that it’s probably the most perfect sport tourer ever to grace the planet. But BMW makes several bikes for many different riders. It would be great to see a little more balance in the Owners News. BMW wants to attract younger riders or those of us with lives which don’t take us on extended trips to exotic locations. It’s great to read stories about trips like that, of course, but high-mileage contests and retiree adventures only meet the needs of part of your constituency. This is just my opinion, of course, but thought I’d share. Mike Feinstein #206492 Fayetteville, Georgia
Never been stranded
I recently read in Owners News where a reader was quoting BMW reliability issues based on a Consumer Reports article. Good Grief! The internet is full of erroneous calls done by Consumer Reports. If you want to educate yourself about a brand of motorcycles, talk to owners and read evaluations done by professionals. Every brand has its problems and recalls, and every playing field is not level. Certain brands offer up very few models loaded with technology, while some offer technology on most models. A simple nuts and bolts motorcycle is going to be more reliable overall and less prone to small glitches than a high-tech model, thus skewing the overall numbers of the brand. It seems if you take your BMW to the shop for a simple, electronic fix, the brand is dinged as if it was a major failure. By the way, I own two BMWs, and by the time you read this I will have logged
200,000 miles on four BMWs since 2002. I've never been left stranded on the side of the road. Ken Bowen #104748 Dallas, Texas
Why I ride BMW
I have been following the recent articles in the “Rider to Rider” section about the reliability issues of the BMW brand with some amusement. I have been riding since I was 15,and I’m now 61. During that time, my wife and I have had most brands in our garage: Hondas, Yamahas, Suzukis, Kawasakis and Harleys, finally settling on BMWs. My first one, picked out by my wife, was a new 1996 K 1100 RS, which I just sold with 251,000 miles on it. I hated to part with it but had too many BMWs in my garage and needed the room for new GSA. Since 1996, we have had no fewer than eight BMWs, ranging in size from a 650 to a K 1200 LT. In all that time, I have had nothing out of the ordinary happen on any of our bikes. The BMW crowd rides, and they tend to ride hard and fast, at least I do. Nothing is more satisfying than leaving work and taking the long way home, blasting through the mountains. I also travel for work and take the BMW all the time. As long as you stay on top of your maintenance, your BMW WILL last a long time and give you lots of trouble-free miles. Have I had final drive failures? Yes, I have, but it was more from my abuse than anything else. We settled on buying only BMWs early on because we are a high mileage couple and had heard about the reputation of the bikes going the distance. We will not own anything else. Yes, they are a little more expensive to own and operate, but the choice is yours, either a thoroughbred or just another run-of-the-mill copy. They both will get you there, but one is a keeper and one is a throw away. Just my two cents worth on my way to 500,000 miles on BMWs. Bryan Holladay #138157 Sanger, California
June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
www.bmwmotorcycles.com/gearup
2016 MOA S
everal years ago, the MOA Getaway idea was introduced to provide a smaller event where members and friends could gather at great locations all over North America. The events are designed to be smaller than
a traditional rally setting and are typically hotel based with no need to pack your ThermaRest and tent. Because MOA Getaway events are typically designed for approximately 100 attendees, they are sure to sell out. We have a fantastic line up for 2016 already and are working to add more. Visit bmwmoa.org and click on the Events tab for details and registration information. See you soon at an MOA Getaway!
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BMW OWNERS NEWS  June 2016
entucky. We will re utheastern K so f o esort, t ar p great tate Park R S in ta n u o M dations at the Pine f accommo o ty e ri va cabthere are a e rooms and g d lo g in d u cl e this available, in whole lodg e th n e iv g n is one ins. We bee to book th t an w ill w year, so you sell quickly! early‌it will
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member teste 24
BMW OWNERS NEWS  June 2016
PRoductreviews
Michelin's Anakee Wild tires for on and off-road performance By Ian Schmeisser #50592 Distanzias, Conti TKC80s, Heidenaus, Maxxis Detours, Metzeler Karoos, Mitas contested segments of the moto marketE-07s, MEFO Explorers, and Pirelli Scorpiplace, Michelin has introduced its new Anaons & MT-21s serve to demonstrate kee Wild 50/50 tire with a host of new Michelin’s accomplishment. I tested technologies designed to take on the the Anakee Wild tires in SoCal’s high well-entrenched competitors. The desert and in the twisties and slick red tires were launched in the American mud of North Georgia Mountains, market during a press event in Southboth on an R 1200 GS and on my HP2 ern California on March 31, 2016. In Enduro (For which I have a set of GS full disclosure, my company managed wheels—the Anakee Wild tires will this launch; however, my 20+ years of not be available in the 21” size until product reviews in BMW Owners later this season), and they handled it News is your assurance of objectivity. all with complete composure. In fact, in the late ‘90s I was asked Pavement performance is impresto review the Anakee Wild’s chief sive. Steering is precise and stable, competitor when it was introduced— even at steep lean angles or over tar the Continental TKC80. At that time, snakes and paint lines. The outer row heavy enduro, “adventure” riding was of the rear tire’s tread features “bridge a small market segment, and there blocks” that connect the knobs to the were few choices of tires offering serinext inside row, increasing stability at ous traction and pavement capabilisteep lean angles. Twisties were railed ties. Today, in addition to the TKC80, and chicken strips were erased. The there is a plethora of options. HowAnakee Wilds are not quite as nimble ever, none have been proven to meet as a more street-oriented tire in that it every one of riders’ needs. TKC80s takes a little more effort to steer and are good on and off-pavement but directional changes take just slightly wear rapidly, rarely lasting more than longer (Think about what it’s like to 3,000 miles. Heidenau tires offer lonsteer a truck with “mud” tires). While ger life, but their hard rubber comyou’re thinking of mud tires on pound and lack of knobby tread trucks, think also about the noise they compromise both paved and unpaved make while rolling down the road. It’s performance. Off-pavement traction much the same with the Wilds; they or on-pavement handling and longevity? Adventure riders have been The tread features and overall construction are not something just “sing” noticeably from about 35-60 forced to make this compromise with any manufacturer can deliver. The Michelin Anakee Wild tires mph. If you ride with ear plugs, you won’t notice this. They’re about as bad all other currently available tires… represent a significant step up relative to competitive products. as Heidenaus and worse than TKC80s. The until now. tires represent a true step up in all-around only negative comment about pavement capability. They do everything well and performance is that the tires could lose a have proven to last twice as long as what No compromises tiny bit of composure when hitting big most riders have accepted as the “usual” In 2015, five GS Giants riders (an internapavement fractures while heeled well over. mileage from competitive tires. tional club that is chartered with the BMW Off-pavement performance is equally And for sure, Michelin’s competition is MOA) were asked to test the Michelin Anaimpressive, as good or better than any other very capable here. My hundreds of thoukee Wild tires prior to final production. tire I’ve ridden outside of Pirelli MT21s, sands of miles riding Avon Gripsters and Reports were all-around positive then, and ENTERING ONE OF THE MOST HOTLY
in 2016, after my 750 miles of test-riding on sand, rocks, mud, moss, gravel and dirt, as well as a healthy dose of paved twisties and expressways, I have to say the Anakee Wild
June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
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member tested
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which are true DOT knobs with limited pavement capabilities. There is a lot of innovative technology on the Anakee Wilds, starting with the complex shapes found in the molding of the tread. The trapezoidal shape of the knobs is complemented by their reverse orientation between front and rear, an arrangement that improves the transfer of longitudinal forces to the ground. Complex sentence, I
know, so more simply stated: the tread shape and pattern digs in better under acceleration, braking and steering than a tire with square knobs arranged in a grid. Further, there are features molded into the sides of the knobs and a curved intersection as the knobs meet the tire’s carcass that enhance the tires’ self-cleaning ability by ejecting mud and gravel chunks as the tire rolls and the tread compresses. And the staggered pattern of the knobs along the
tire’s edges works exceptionally well when transiting a muddy sidehill, slippery tree roots or climbing out of deep ruts. Another piece of technology that I think makes a difference both on road and off is radial construction, which provides significant flexibility in the tire’s sidewall. The result is a tire with superior traction because it conforms more completely to the ground surface and its irregularities. The tires rode noticeably more smoothly over big, sharpedged rocks and road objects like railroad tracks, cattle crossings and potholes. On the highway, they tracked true and ignored rain grooves. And while Michelin officially recommends the motorcycle manufacturer’s street pressure specification, I found the radial construction meant they performed even better in challenging off-road sections with inflation in the 25psi range. No, you’re not supposed to do that, so this is not my recommendation either! Two important traits that I did not get to test are longevity and wet pavement performance. Across the internet, longevity claims range from a high of over 6k miles to a low of 2. Of course, this number varies according to rider weight, luggage weight, surface characteristics, speed and acceleration rates. Two friends who have tested these tires in the rain or at least on wet pavement have reported satisfactory results. What else? Well, they’re premium-priced, like all Michelin tires. But considering their handling and longevity, it’s money well spent. To me, speaking as an adventure tourist, the Michelin Anakee Wild’s best benefit is the ability they give me to ride on a long trip, taking on all kinds of terrain, all on one set of tires. PROS
• Radial construction • Innovative features in the tread pattern • Longer wear than competitive tires (YMMV) CONS
• Rolling noise on pavement (wear earplugs) • Premium price (but they last longer) Test riders in the SoCal high desert found superior traction in all conditions, a true do-it-all tire.
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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member teste
PRoductreviews
Watershed Drybag By Michael Anthonijsz #146759 THIS PAST SUMMER, FOUR MOA
members tackled Asia on their own and rode from London to Vladivostok and back to London again, hugging the Hindu Kush mountains along the Afghan and Chinese frontiers. A couple of companies asked us to field test and comment on new products for the adventure rider. One of these was Watershed Drybags of Asheville, North Carolina. Watershed focuses on the camping, hunting, sailing, canoeing and military markets, but this will probably change as these bags are excellent for motorcycle use. Three of the guys used two Colorado dry bags for the top of each pannier, and one used a Maritime Utility Pouch as an addition to his backpack. The other fellow used his trusty Ortlieb bags, so we had a good opportunity over the course of a few months and 24,000 kilometers of difficult roads to test these bags.
Watershed’s Chattooga bags were loaded on top of each pannier. Brando Gritti and I filled ours with clothes, so that if we needed something, it afforded us quick and easy access without opening our Zega and Metal Mule bags. Bill Hooykaas kept his AlpineStar jacket, heated jacket, evaporative cooling vest, Tilley hat and sneakers in his so he could switch up quickly as the weather dictated without opening his Metal Mules. The bag has a Zipdry triple press seal over the whole length and an optional relief valve to purge excess air, using the two attached compression straps. This is a good feature, making it the most compact size possible once all the air is expelled. The attention to detail is evident, as even the relief valve is partly protected so it will not get hung up. All other waterproof bags that I have come across come with a zipper, but they all lack 100 percent water tightness. These bags have buoyancy and simply will not let moisture in or air out. We dropped the bikes many times while
riding in the desert, and I can attest that the bags are tough as nails. They have to be, since they are also marketed as maritime tactical gear in MilSpec grade, meaning they are made of military-grade materials, from the bag itself to the triple ZipDry seal closure to the rugged lash points and the carrying straps. I used the Maritime Utility Pouch with webbing on the back of my backpack, relying on its 100 percent waterproofness to contain all my important papers. This pouch came from the military line and is a grade stronger than the regular, which is already super tough. Bill used the larger Colorado bag as checked baggage; he put his helmet, boots and bike clothing for the flight to Europe and back in it, and it proved to be perfect as a tough piece of luggage that folds up for easy storage. All the bags come in various bright and subdued colors; Watershed makes a whole range of bags to suit every need, and each one has six tie-down points.
Since 1997
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According to the manufacturer, the bags need some maintenance over time as the triple seal must be kept clean and silicon grease (comes with each bag) must be applied occasionally. We only did this at the beginning of the trip, and they worked as designed for the duration of the trip. I was very happy with the functionality and high quality. Unfortunately, someone else is enjoying the quality right now since my GSA (and all my gear) was stolen on the return ride at a campground in Poland. The only improvements I would like to see are making two carrying straps detachable so they can be stowed away and adding retro-reflective material on the bags to enhance them for motorcycle use. Watershed bags are not inexpensive but are well worth the cost for Made-in-theUSA products. MSRP for the valved Chattooga is $145, the valved Colorado is $200, and the Military Utility Pouch is $142. They are available online at drybags.com or at outdoor stores across the USA. They are also available in Canada through outbackmotortek.com.
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With a solid closure system and sturdy straps, the Watershed dry bags, though expensive, are well worth the cost.
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June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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member tested
PRoductreviews
Blue Highway Motorcycle Lodge exclusively for riders LOCATED
IN
THE
HEART
OF
southwest Wisconsin’s top motorcycling roads, The Blue Highway Motorcycle Lodge is now offering a five percent discount to any card-carrying member of the BMW MOA. Blue Highway is Wisconsin’s (and possibly the Midwest’s) only lodging catering exclusively to riders. Paved paths lead to each of the lodge’s six cabins which feature all the amenities of a four star hotel and a “motorcycleport” to keep bikes out of the weather. The lodge grounds cover 40 acres with walking trails, private fire pits, an interesting collection of animals,
and a covered “clubhouse” where groups can gather at the end of the day, complete with picnic tables, large fire pit, camp chairs, and a cooler. Just a few miles from Hillsboro, Wisconsin, the lodge is close to microbreweries, Amish communities, and great opportunities for fishing, canoeing, hiking, and camping, not to mention riding “coulee country” routes nationally renowned for twisties and spectacular scenery. The MOA Blue Highway Motor Lodge discount can be used for one or two night stays. Guests receive a 25 percent discount for any nights past two (must
www.mortonsbmw.com
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
be consecutive). For more information, visit bluehighwaymotorcyclelodge.net/.
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Used Oil‐Head, K‐Bike & Hex‐Head Parts – 50% of New or Less New Maintenance Parts & Tools – WAY BELOW Retail Prices NO BACKORDERS – ORDERS SHIP IN 24 HOURS
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Enter code BMWMOA in source code box @ checkout & click “apply” Liqui‐Molyoil ‐ oil, fuel & air filters – 12/24K maintenance kits – brake pads & rotors – fuel pumps – Hall sensors – repair manuals & dvds–tools – fuel line disconnect sets – fuel injection controllers – exhausts – batteries & chargers – master cylinders & rebuild kits – starters – spark plugs & wires – cables – radiator fans – alt belts – fender extenders – Carbtune carb/TB synchronizers
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
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tourbikes.com www.tourbikes.com
Colorado Tourbike Rentals 720-231-6349
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June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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new
PRoductnews Haynes Repair Manuals now available for R 1200 liquid-cooled models
Haynes’ newest release offers extensive coverage for BMW R 1200 liquid-cooled twins from 2013 through 2016 and is available in both print and online formats. The new Haynes R 1200 manual is the latest addition to their motorcycle series and includes step-by-step instructions, as well as hundreds of photographs to help guide the reader through many repairs. Also included are full color sections on model history, preride checks, spark plug charts, a “Tools and Workshop Tips” section, and full color wiring diagrams for the R 1200 GS, GS Adventure, RT, RS and R models. As with all Haynes manuals, the new BMW R 1200 liquid-cooled twins manual is based on a complete disassembly and reassembly of the machine to allow Haynes to achieve a high level of detail, accuracy and clarity. All Haynes repair manuals can be found at powersport dealers nationwide or at www.haynes.com.
Registered for Das Rally yet?
Registration for the 44th BMW MOA Rally is open. Visit bmwmoa.org and click on the DAS RALLY! link at the top of the page. See you in Hamburg this summer!
Lifetime memberships at the Getaways
Jerry Elliot #105235 of Enterprise, Alabama, is congratulated by BMW MOA Director of Membership and Marketing Ted Moyer as the winner of a MOA Lifetime membership, which was given away as the big prize at the Fontana Dam Getaway in April. An MOA Lifetime membership will be given away at each of the MOA Getaways this year as each event’s grand prize.
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l 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS June
CyclePump Expedition
Building the CyclePump tire inflator since 2002 and selling more than 30,000 units around the world, BestRest Products recently released their newest version, the “CyclePump Expedition.” The Expedition is housed in an aluminum case featuring rubber armor to protect the unit from shock and abuse and keep dirt out. The new unit features an 18” air hose with two brass chuck options, an 8’ power cord with four connection options, and fused alligator clips that connect to any 12-volt battery. All of this is stored in a Cordura pouch. The CyclePump Expedition is built in the USA, includes a lifetime warranty and carries an MSRP of $115-$130, depending on air chuck chosen. For more information, visit www.cyclepump.com.
Held's new Sereena gloves for women
Properly fitting gear is of the utmost importance to any motorcyclist, and that’s why Held designs a wide range of riding gear specifically for women, the newest of which is the Sereena glove. The Sereena’s goatskin exterior and SAS-TEC® knuckle reinforcements offer protection while remaining tactile. Inside, the OUTLAST® lining, interior step seam construction and stretch fabric panels offer a comfortable, flexible fit and make the glove a good choice for a wide range of motorcyclists, including daily commuters and long distance tourers. Offered in a wide range of women’s sizes, including long or short sizes by special order, Held’s Sereena gloves are now available through Held USA dealers. For more information, visit www.HeldUSA.com.
Meet Jim Keesee, BMW MOA Regional Coordinator
The BMW MOA’s newest Regional Coordinator is Jim Keesee #29436 of Spokane Valley, Washington. Keesee joined the MOA and his first chartered club, The Left Lane, in 1982 when he bought a 1974 R 90/6 while serving in the United States Air Force. The Left Lane was made up of civilians and multi-national military members stationed throughout Europe. Following his Air Force retirement, Keesee worked as a healthcare project manager while raising his two children with his wife Debbie. Recently retired, Keesee says he now has the time to pursue his passions for spending time with his family, travel riding and volunteering. “I’m honored to have been selected as the MOA’s Regional Coordinator for the Pacific Northwest and look forward to serving the riders, chartered clubs and dealers in my area,” he said.
June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
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news
news
'17 MOA Rally site revealed THE BMW MOTORCYCLE OWNERS OF AMERICA IS
pleased to announce that our 45th Sapphire Anniversary International Rally will be held at the Utah State Fairpark in Salt Lake City, Utah, July 13 through 16, 2017. Salt Lake City is located between the Great Salt Lake and the west side of the spectacular Wasatch Mountains. About 530 miles west of Denver, 765 miles east of Portland, and 425 miles northeast of Las Vega, it is often called “The Crossroads of the West.” Hosting the 2002 Winter Olympic Games infused the city with an international flavor, while still maintaining a friendly, “small city” feel. The rally site is over 65 acres and is close to the intersection of I-15 and I-80 for easy access. A light rail system terminal just outside the grounds provides easy transportation to thousands of hotel rooms, hundreds of restaurants, and numerous quality microbreweries. Utah is a rider’s wonderland with 21 National Parks and Monuments, 40 State Parks, and 7 national forests. Easy day rides from the Fairpark will take you into the mountains to Park City, the Utah Olympic Park, and the year-round resorts of Alta, Solitude, and Snowbird. To find out more about this great state, check out the book Ride Utah! by Dave Magdiel. At over 300 pages, it lists suggested routes and places to stay and
eat, and it provides a great appreciation of your riding opportunities going to, and returning from, the rally. Information about the Utah State Fairpark can be found at this link: www.utahstatefairpark.com, and information about the greater Salt Lake area can be found at “Visit Salt Lake” on their web site at: www.visitsaltlake. com. This area is located in the MOA’s Rally Zone 2. For those wanting to know more about these zones and about our rally site selection requirements, please follow the links to more information on our web site. More information and FAQs about the rally will be published starting later this fall. As you ride to our 2016 Rally in Hamburg, New York, this July, rest assured that in 2017 Salt Lake will offer you not only all the fun and features you’ve come to expect, but also some additional things you won’t want to miss!
www.iliumworks.com
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
www.cortech.net
news
NEWS
KOA gives MOA members trial Value Kard Rewards membership THE LATEST MONEY-SAVING BEN-
efit for BMW MOA members is a free one-year trial membership in the KOA Value Kard Rewards program, compliments of Kampgrounds of America (KOA). Since 1962, KOAs have been the place to create unforgettable moments – relaxing with family or friends, enjoying the great outdoors or gathering around a campfire. Travelers and vacationers seek out KOA as a trusted, welcoming, family-friendly stopover and vacation destination. With your membership to Value Kard Rewards, MOA members receive 10%* off the daily registration rate at any of the nearly 500 KOA campgrounds in North America. In addition, you’ll earn Value Kard points that are redeemable towards dollars off your future stays and you will have access to KOA Value Kard Rewards member-only offers.** A KOA Campground can be just
what the travelling MOA members ordered after a full day on the road. Every KOA campground has a camp store. Don’t worry if you forgot an essential item, you can pack light and purchase what you need on-site. Even groceries. And, all KOA Campgrounds have restrooms and shower facilities. Many KOA’s also feature outdoor kitchens! If you prefer a little luxury when you camp, Photo courtesy of KOA try a KOA Camping Cabin. KOA Cabins are your home away from home, complete with a comfy bed, a roof overhead and a porch swing on the deck. Plus, many of the deluxe cabins feature heat, air conditioning, gas grills, private bathrooms and kitchens. Some even have flat-screen TVs. There are over 6,000 cabin sites across America
and more economical than hotels during extended motorcycle travel. Plus, your bike stays right outside your door! Whether you roll in with your BMW and tent, stay in a cabin or relax in a luxury motorhome, you’ll always find clean, comfortable, up-to-date sites, great amenities and friendly smiles. From classic comforts to fully equipped patio sites, KOA has got you covered. Campfire included! To claim your free Value Kard Rewards one-year trial membership, you will need your KOA Promotion PIN Number from your BMW MOA member profile. Go to bmwmoa.org, login and find your PIN. Next, visit valuekard.com/BMWMOA and follow the steps to register for your free one-year trial membership using your PIN number. Finally, start camping and enjoy the savings. Still not sure? Call the membership team at (864) 438-0962 or send an email to koakard@bmwmoa.org. Rules and restrictions do apply. * 10% off applies to daily registration rate. Promotional terms & conditions will apply. ** Trial memberships do not include the SaveAround coupon benefit.
Photo courtesy of KOA
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
www.bobsbmw.com
NEW
NEWS
Join us for a Monterey Getaway To celebrate 100 years of BMW TO CELEBRATE 100 YEARS OF
BMW, the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America will host a special Premier Getaway this August in beautiful Monterey, California. This special event exclusively for BMW MOA members will take place on August 26-28, 2016, at the newly remodeled and luxurious Monterey Tides, a beachfront hotel located on Monterey Bay just minutes from Old Fisherman’s Warf and Cannery Row. Join us for this special event and explore the Monterey Peninsula or the breathtaking views of the ocean while riding the Pacific Coast Highway, California Route 1, then come back and visit life under the sea at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Experience the wineries and tasting rooms along the Carmel Valley Road, the shopping opportunities in nearby in Carmelby-the-Sea and Pacific Grove and much more. Whatever you do, make
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BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
this your Getaway, and at the end of the day return to the Monterey Tides’ private beach where you can feel the cool sand beneath your feet and dip your toes in water of the Pacific Ocean. BMW MOA Getaway attendees will enjoy a special Beach Party bonfire and barbecue on Friday night and a formal dinner on Saturday evening. They will also receive a commemorative Premier Event polo shirt marking BMW’s 100th birthday and welcome bags as well as a special gift pack from BMW, all for an event fee of $149. Special room rates for the Monterey Tides Hotel of $189 per night can be reserved by calling the hotel directly at 831-372-2945 and using the Group Reservation Code “BMWMOA.” Visit the events page at BMWMOA.org for more information and to register. Registration is limited. See you in Monterey!
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The rest of the Mexico trip By Matthew Parkhouse #13272 my room. When I went to move the bike close to the room, the tire was completely Five carried me the flat! I gingerly rode it over to the room, put rest of the way to it on the center stand and stripped off all of the Yucatan and the gear. I quickly pulled all of the tools I’d back home again need and the spare tube from one of my with no major “parts & tool bags” . problems except a Because I was using Susanna’s one-piece few loosened fasbag mount, it was much easier teners due to the rough to take off the gas tank (to minroads. imize spillage) and lay the bike One of those fasteners, over as I pulled out the flat rear however, was a backedwheel. After the wheel was out, off fork stem nut, and I tipped the bike back upright. that, combined with During the time the bike was repeated blows to the on its side, I lost perhaps a teafront end, knocked the spoon of gear oil through the fork leg out of plumb. hollow breather bolt where the The right-hand fork tube speedo cable is attached. After was sitting about two the offending nail was millimeters proud to the removed, the spare tube was left side. This allowed the inserted and the tire headlight “ears” to rattle remounted. I laid the bike on as the assembly was no its side one more time. The tire longer compressed was quickly inflated with my 12 together. The fix was to volt electric air pump. loosen all the fasteners The wheel was replaced after on the fork tubes and replace the backed-off The hotel in Merida where we have now stayed for two years running. Simple clean the brake surfaces were cleaned and pleasant, it was a good place to base our week together from. A kitchenetteup and some new grease fork stem nut. As I style room ran $20 a night. applied to the rear drive bounced the front end, I splines. I figure I spent perhaps 45 minutes nut came from a roadside hardware store. tightened the fasteners, starting with rectifying the flat tire. I patched the two nail I had one flat tire and it was perhaps the those at the wheel axle and working most “convenient” flat I’ve ever had. On my my way up. At the same time, I spun way back north, I found myself back in down the stem nut and tightened it Top Right: Some of the bulls are truly massive, requiring a team of people to push it around Zacatecas, and as the evening approached, I with a tool provided in the bike’s tool town and then into the square. was looking for the same hotel I had used kit. I had previously ground this tool when I was going south. I finally located it a bit thinner to make it easier to slip Bottom Right: Some of the decorated bulls are (Zacatecas is a pretty confusing town), between the stem nut and the real works of art. All to be burned and blown up pulled in, parked at the office and paid for handlebars. in the next few hours. THE OLD SLASH
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By the time I was tightening the last top fasteners, the sheet metal “ears” were equally mounted and nice and tight in place. I had no recurrence of that problem! I did, however, continue to lose a couple of fasteners, one off a bag mount and another off one of the shock mounts. I found a new nut at a small repair shop, and the bolt and
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holes in the tube and folded it up to become part of the gear “for next time,” if there is a next time, On my first trip down here back in the 1980s, I suffered 11 flats as I rode across the country. I did lose my taillight, as the glass bulb was shaken out of the base, so no brake or running lights from behind. I carried a spare but ended up buying a slightly more powerful one in an Auto Zone. Auto Zone has really made some inroads into the auto parts industry in Mexico, and I could count on seeing one or two as I rode through the larger cities. That, along with the loose electrical connection I tracked down and fixed (after REALLY tuning up everything in the ignition system) was the sum total of issues with the bike. It just cruised along between 65 and 70 mph much of the time. I remembered to use sunblock, since for the first couple of weeks I had the winter sun in my face all day long as I rode south, and I managed to contain the peeling nose problem to a very low level. Mexico continues to modernize; I see changes each time I go down there. There are more hotels available, both true travelers’ lodging and the by-the-hour “no-tell motels,” and more American fast food chain places like McDonalds and Burger King. One saving grace for those places was that they usually had Wi-Fi set up in the restaurant. I saw more support for computer service. When I was at the cyber-café where I sent in the last part of last month’s article, their computers did not have access ports to accept the memory card from my digital camera. I jumped on the bike, ran down the street about a mile and looked in at a computer accessories store I had passed a few times. For about $13, I was able to purchase an adapter that allowed me to send about nine photos to our editor, Bill. When the charging cord for my iPad
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
One of the 75 or so bulls being set off in the square. The crowd of "participants," almost entirely young men, just kept getting closer and closer as the evening wore on.
broke, it was no problem to walk to the OXXO store (like our 7/11s) by my hotel and pick up a replacement. I rarely had to worry about getting gas; there seems to be more PEMEX stations every time I am down in Mexico. The couple of times I did start to worry, I was on new stretches of toll road where the “gasolinarias” had yet to be built. In such cases, I have found that if gas is scarce, small shops and repair places will sell gas at marked-up prices. For this trip, the cost of premium gas was $13.94 pesos a liter. This works out to around $3.60 a gallon. The alternative, the unleaded regular (magna) ran slightly less. I encountered perhaps four stations that were out of premium, and one of those was completely out of gas. Most of these were encountered during the week-long holiday of Semana Santa (Holy Week) when many Mexicans are off work and are travelling. The gas station bathrooms, once legendary in their funkiness, are now maintained at a pretty high standard. Just be prepared to hand five pesos to the attendant or put it in the “propina” jar. Like the natives, you always want to carry your own supply of “papel saniterio.” Other improvements? Well, just about every hotel now has Wi-Fi. You might have to stand in the parking lot to make it work, but it is there. I encountered a bit of rain. After leaving
the fireworks fiesta at Tultepec, as I was running around Mexico City on mountain highways, the storm began. After 50 miles or so, even with all the gear on, I was soaked and could feel hypothermia creeping in. I dove off the road into the next town and found a room. The next day, I took one look outside and paid for another night’s lodging. That afternoon, things started clearing up, and I left the next morning, looking at the snow that had fallen on the mountains I had just ridden through. Two days of riding and I was in the true tropics, warm and humid. I landed in Merida, and this time I knew where I wanted to end up. I easily located the same hotel we stayed at the previous year, and the owner remembered me. I rented a kitchenette room for the equivalent of $200 for the next ten days. The next day I rode the 200 miles to Cancun in plenty of time to locate the hotel where Susanna had reserved a room, check in and then get to the aeropuerto to collect the wife. A quick 15 miles back up the coast road and we were in for the evening. We were in an IBIS hotel, a sort of business class place for around $70 a night. The next morning, we set out back to Merida, In Merida it was hot! We hung out at the hotel, walked or rode to several nice restaurants, and did a lot of window shopping. We
didn’t buy much; after twelve trips south, I have enough shirts, hammocks and Panama hats to last the rest of my life. One day we ran out to the seaside village of Progresso and rode along the Gulf Coast a short ways. All too soon, it was time to return to Cancun and put Susanna on a plane back home. We left early in the morning to allow some time for a stop at Chichen Itza. I’d been there a couple of times earlier, but Susanna never had. The grounds were well groomed, and the various edifices are now roped off, so no more climbing up the pyramids. Vendors were all around, and it was pretty crowded—again, the Semana Santa holiday brought out a lot of Mexicans to visit the site. After a few hours there, we rode on to Cancun, This time the place Susanna reserved, much to her surprise, turned out to be sort of a hostel. We had a tiny room with bath and a common kitchen. The hotel was clearly targeting the backpacking crowd. After a peaceful night, off to the airport before sunrise. We got there in time, said our goodbyes, and I headed back to Merida. As things worked out, it took Susanna three full days to get home due to weather delays here in Colorado. I spent one more night in Merida, took one last walk around the area, and turned to the north the next morning. I ended up getting back home in seven riding days, tying my old record for returning from the Yucatan. It feels a little different after all these trips to know that there is a good hotel in the next town and how to get to it. I just rode steadily up the Gulf Coast, came inland a bit and ran toward Mexico City. I’m even getting a little used to navigating the highways in and near that huge city. It appears they are close to completing a ring road around the city. I actually ended up at the hotel I use for the Tultepec fireworks fiesta for my “near Mexico City” night. I did not see anything that gave me pause as far as crime and violence in the country. I encountered a few roadblocks manned by troops but was waved through almost all of them. The one exception was a permanent
I may not be welcomed but at least I am tolerated! Outside of many large Mexican cities is the "Tolerance Zone". This one is outside of Campeche, on the Gulf Coast. The shady nightclubs, houses of ill repute and a motel or two are all grouped in one spot, away from the "respectable" part of town and where the authorities can keep an eye on things. Cancun's Tolerance Zone, at KM21 of the highway, has been shut down for a while and looks like the perfect set for a zombie movie!.
I ran into this group at a toll plaza as I neared Mexico City on my way North. They were from Guatenala, Michoacan and the Mexico City area. I encountered a number of Mexican riders on fairly late model BMWs. I never encountered any gringos on tour or any other airhead BMWs.
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“check point” that has been built at the main highway turn-off where you start up the road to Palenque (a town with some of the best Mayan ruins which has become quite a tourist attraction). Both times I visited Palenque, coming and going on this trip, I had to open one of the saddle bags and show my bike papers and passport. I gather that this is related to a long history of unrest in the Chiapas area. Mexico is no longer what I would consider to be a “cheap place to go.” The higher cost of gas and the toll roads added up to higher travelling costs as I moved around. Hotels ran from $9 to $30 a night, with a couple of exceptions in both directions. Food was a little less than here in the U.S. but still cost a fair amount. I was constantly buying water and other drinks to stay hydrated, and those are
a bit less expensive below the border. I am quite sure there are still small beach towns where one can camp on or near the shore or rent a palapa for a few dollars. Tulum used to be that way when Susanna and I stayed there in 1995; now it is the “Mayan Riviera” and crowded with big hotels. I would pull three to five thousand pesos from a banco “caja automatico” every three to five days, using my at-home debit card. We did alert our issuing bank here before I left to avoid them cancelling the card when Mexican withdrawals started appearing in our account. I have been home ten days now and still feel a bit beaten up from the trip. Both coming and going, it was one of the colder Mexico runs I have done, and of course, I’m older every time I head south. I’ve changed the oil in the “Mexico Bike” and swapped Susanna’s bag mounts back to her bike. I also installed a two-piece set of mounts that came with some bags I purchased recently
www.beemershop.com
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on eBay. Now I have to hunt up the tail piece that bolts onto the rear of those mounts. It WAS very handy to have the extra place to tie gear on. The bike needs a new timing chain rather badly. I’m reasonably sure that the bike is running the original timing chain. It runs just fine, but there sure is a lot of rattling and clattering when the bike is idling. I really want to quiet things down and have a nice smooth idle. After all, that is part of the “airhead experience.” Two of Susanna’s grandsons are coming out from Connecticut to spend their spring break with us. While actually riding the bikes is out of the discussion (per both mom and grand mom), I plan on showing the 12- and 14-year-olds the basics of caring for airhead BMWs. I had to wait until I was 18 and had a job before I could buy my first motorcycle. So can they, if they are inclined to do so, and I will help with that decision making process.
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oil change
I just needed an
By Wes Fleming #87301
A multi-part saga
Part Four: Schmutz on the Air Box and Clutch Output Cylinder MY FRUSTRATIONS WITH MY 2005 R 1200 GS CONTINUED
to compound. It felt like every time I touched something, I found a problem or discovered an issue with something else. It got so bad that one day, all I did was clean and oil a reusable air filter and put that on my bike—and it was a major accomplishment that I didn’t break anything. At the end of Part Three, I noticed that the left side of the air box was covered with greasy schmutz. Two seconds with a flashlight saw George diagnose a new problem that may or may not have contributed to said schmutz, but certainly was the cause of a bunch of grime buildup on the back of the transmission case. The clutch slave cylinder was going bad—not enough to affect operation of the clutch (yet), but enough to leak clutch fluid.
From a distance, the grime coating the back of the transmission looks daunting. It was pretty nasty close up as well.
This is a K&N reusable air filter meant for an HP2 Enduro; it took some wiggling to get in but fits perfectly.
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Commonly called the slave cylinder, BMW calls this unit the clutch output cylinder. (p/n 21 52 7 724 542, retail $143.32) It’s a simple device containing a spring and a piston behind a circlip. You squeeze the clutch lever and it forces hydraulic fluid through the line into the clutch output cylinder. The fluid pushes against the piston, which compresses the spring and forces a long pushrod into the clutch assembly. The pushrod separates the clutch plate (which has the friction material on it) from the pressure plate, allowing you to shift gears. BMW specifies 250 milliliters of Vitamol V10 in the system, and like the brakes, it should be bled at the output cylinder. According to a Castrol data sheet, Vitamol V10 is a biodegradable synthetic hydraulic oil used in shock absorbers, elevators, machine tools and copiers. Its high flashpoint of 338° Fahrenheit (170° Celsius) gives some clue that it is a stable fluid. A fluid’s flashpoint is the lowest temperature at which it can ignite, provided a source of ignition is present. For comparison, gasoline’s flashpoint is -45° F (-43° C). Since clutch fluid is in a closed system, ignition is highly unlikely. BMW wants the clutch system inspected every 12,000 miles, but
After a bit of cleaning, the components on the back of the transmission are more easily identifiable. The clutch output (or slave) cylinder is at top, the end of the transmission output shaft is at right, and the gear position potentiometer (still dirty in this photo) is between and below them. The potentiometer is a $160 part, so it’s worth removing it to check it over and clean it.
doesn’t have a specification for changing, flushing or bleeding the clutch fluid. Viewed from behind the rear shock, the back of my transmission was a gooey black mess. The up close view wasn’t much better. The output cylinder leak got fluid everywhere, and that fluid attracted dirt and road grit, but some attention with a brush and a little cleaning solvent, followed up by a rag and a toothbrush to get into the crevices, soon had the transmission housing looking good again. While I was there, I took the time to clean and inspect the transmission output shaft splines. The exhaust (which was still off after my cylinder head adventure in Part Three), swing arm, drive shaft and final drive don’t have to come off to replace the output cylinder, but taking them off makes everything a lot easier. Doing so makes it a snap to clean and lubricate the output shaft splines. Removing the clutch output cylinder was surprisingly easy. The clutch hose fitting comes off with a 13mm box-end wrench; a gush of blue oil will come out, so have a drip pan in place. Unless they are damaged, there’s no need to replace the banjo bolt (p/n 34 32 7 667 316, retail $5.71) or bleeder plug (p/n 34 32 8 548 982, retail
The transmission output shaft splines before cleaning.
$13.75) and cap (p/n 34 21 2 314 001, retail $5.23). You’ll need two new copper crush washers for the banjo bolt, though (Gasket ring – A10X13.5-CU; p/n 07 11 9 963 072, retail $0.50 each), to put it all back together. Once the clutch hose is off, there are two T30 bolts holding the output cylinder in place. They shouldn’t be on there super tight, the spec is only 8 Newton-meters of torque. Loosen both of them a little, and then push the output cylinder towards the front of the bike as you remove them. The spring inside the cylinder and the pushrod going into the clutch will try to pop the cylinder out of your hand, and more of that blue fluid will come out as you disengage it. You can use circlip pliers to disassemble the output cylinder, but the piston can’t be rebuilt or bought separately, so the only reason to disassemble it is for recycling purposes—the piston and the spring are steel, but the housing is aluminum. My clutch output cylinder hadn’t failed completely, but it was well on its way to doing so. I worried my clutch might need replacing even though there wasn’t much fluid outside the piston, so the only thing left to do was extract the pushrod. I held my breath, closed one eye and pulled it out in one smooth motion. Dry. Totally, completely and entirely dry. This meant I didn’t need a clutch! If the output cylinder fails completely, clutch fluid will flow right down along the pushrod, getting into the clutch itself, contaminating the clutch plate (sometimes called the friction disc) and
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TEC Above: New output cylinder on the left, failing cylinder on the right. Below: Internal parts from the output cylinder. The spring fits into a hollow on the end of the piston and the circlip holds it all inside the cylinder housing. The gasket on the piston is near the circlip.
Transmission all cleaned up and output cylinder in place. The potentiometer got its bath after this photo.
making a full clutch replacement necessary. While some folks will try to reuse some clutch components, I’m of the mind that if you’re already in there, you may as well replace them all. Then you have peace of mind from knowing the parts (all $900 worth), plus the rear main seal (which probably doesn’t need replacing yet, but it’s RIGHT THERE!) are all new and freshly installed. Pleased I didn’t need a new clutch, I put the pushrod back in place and installed the new output cylinder, hooking up the
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clutch line complete with new crush washers on either side of the banjo bolt. After I flushed the system with fresh fluid and bled the line, a sense of calm washed over me. In the back of my mind though, a nagging little voice told me I wasn’t out of the woods yet. For one thing, that morning when I disconnected the battery charger from the port under the left side of the seat, the insides of the port came apart. Water had gotten in there at some point and rusted the cylinder and everything inside it. Two steps forward, one step back—again.
www.ztechnik.com
discovery
adventuretrio
Back after two years! By Sandy Borden #188051
It’s been nearly two years since Sandy Borden’s Adventure Trio articles last regularly appeared within the pages of BMW Owners News. It’s been two years? I’d better get to work! I do miss the ON audience. What a cool bunch you all are! Sandy, from what I’ve heard, you’ve been traveling. Tell us where you’ve been. Traveling may be a bit of an understatement! But yes, Terry, Jack and I took off in September of 2014 for a 15-month journey through Mexico, Central and South America. We made the decision on our way back from Overland Expo in May 2013. We knew the time had come for such an adventure when Terry posed just this one question: “If we don’t do this now, will
we regret it in 10 years?” Jack and I answered with a resounding “Yes.” We shook hands, knowing that we couldn’t go back on our decision. Aside from starting a family, that was one of the scariest, most life-changing decisions Terry and I had ever made. No joke. Tell us about your trip. When did you leave? What countries did you visit? How many miles did you travel? When did you get back? Wow, where to begin? We gave ourselves a year and a half to prepare and save for the journey. Originally, we had planned to be on the road for 18 months, but some unforeseen costs (i.e. Jack’s broken arm in Costa Rica) forced us to scale the journey back as the budget dictated. We put the garage door down at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, September 13, 2014, watching our “known” world fade into the distance as we headed south into the unknown. Our adventure became very real once we crossed the border into mainland Mexico. It’s amazing how just a line in the sand changes the language, the culture and all things in between. We had planned on spending
roughly three weeks in Mexico, but we found ourselves falling in love with the country and its people. And, the food! Nothing beats freshly prepared roadside Mexican food. We ended up staying seven weeks, even posing a question at the border into Guatemala: “Now, if we leave Mexico, we can’t return for 90 days. Are we POSITIVE we want to leave?” Yes, the boys and I enjoyed it that much! We rode through a total of 15 countries, spending five weeks in Guatemala, two weeks in El Salvador and so on. We began to slow our pace in Central America, eventually making the decision to take Ushuaia off the plate. Why? We were rushing ourselves just to tag the “base,” meaning the southernmost tip of South America, but we were okay with that. Had we continued at a quick pace, we would’ve missed much along the way. Our total mileage was 28,716, door to door. We rolled back up our snowy driveway on Saturday, December 5, right before the next major snowstorm was about to hit. As you know, there are two things that will always dictate your two-wheel schedule, weather and politics, and the latter took us on quite a journey through South America. Our campsite in the Andes.
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How long did it take you and Terry to believe this was what you wanted to do? For years, we half-joked about changing our direction in life and just taking off on two wheels. We also knew that that meant a COMPLETE life change. It took our handshake deal to seal the deal. We’re pretty fortunate to have an amazing circle of travel friends that for years had been urging us to take to the road. They said things like, “It will be the best education for Jack” and “You’ll never have enough time/money, so what are you waiting for?” It was the summer of 2012 at our old home in Davis, California, that started to get us thinking beyond our suburban lifestyle. Our house was filled with travelers from all points on the globe: Simon and Lisa Thomas, originally from the U.K.; Ken and Carol Duval from Australia; and Alison DeLapp from the states. At night, we would all gather for food and spirits, swapping stories from Brazil to Mongolia to Africa. Terry, Jack and I had yet to take the plunge into long-term travel, knowing that our time was coming soon. It was that week of close friends and conversation that stirred us closer to making the decision to cut it and ride. How did you prepare for a journey of this magnitude? That was probably the hardest chapter in our story. We knew that in order to do such a journey, we had to completely change our lives. Not just our spending habits, we had to go BIG. It was time to downsize our entire lives. What brought this girl to tears was seeing the “For Sale” sign stuck in the front lawn of our home of 15 years. It was the sale of this home that was going to allow us to fund our trip as well as a new home upon our return. So we sold the big house in the suburbs, purchased a much smaller home in the small town of McCloud in Northern California, sold our Chevy Suburban, reevaluated our “needs” vs. “wants,” and sold or donated everything beyond that. Our new home held everything we actually needed, thus affording us the savings to put the kickstands up.
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What were your greatest fears as you embarked on this journey? Did they materialize? There’s always the fear of the unknown and, all too often, the feardriven media. Too many friends and family members were so concerned for our safety as we entered Mexico. “Aren’t you going to carry a gun?” asked one of our close friends. We just chuckled and held close all the advice our international travel community kept giving us: “Don’t listen to the media. There is more good than bad in the world.” Many people also feared for Jack’s safety because he was a teen. The funny thing is that none of our fears, real or imagined, ever came into fruition. It was up to us as foreigners to make the first move—helmets flipped up, smiles on faces, outstretched hands ready to welcome all who approached the bikes. With each country, our smiles and handshakes were always returned and always with the same questions: “Why did you travel to my country? Are you enjoying my country? Is there anything I can do for you?” Every. Single. Time.
Camping on Lake Atitlan.
Your son, Jack. Tell us the impact you believe this adventure had on him. As I have mentioned, many friends and family members were worried that we were taking a minor out of the country, and on motorcycles no less. Please know that any decisions we make are made as a family. If one member is hesitant, we take that into consideration and plan accordingly. It was very important that Jack was on board with this from the start. While some worried about his education on the road (“He will miss so much, not being in a classroom!”), we knew that he wasn’t going to have any problems. Fortunately, Jack is fluent in
Sandy and Jack with Peruvian kids in the Andes.
Spanish, thanks to a Spanish-immersion elementary school in our former town. This absolutely made our time much easier with regards to translating and relations. What Jack experienced and learned as a pillion exceeded any classroom experience. He released baby turtles into the Pacific in El Salvador, lived with a Mayan family in Guatemala, learned how to budget and negotiate prices for hostels. His education from his time on the road exceeded anything we could’ve ever imagined. Seriously, how many 14-year-olds are able to say they negotiated borders in South America or learned to ride a 1200 GS Adventure in Argentina? As our time in South America started to come to a close, there was one moment that told Terry and me that we had made the right decision. Jack and Terry were walking back to our camp in Peru after purchasing bottled water in the little town nearby. Jack turned to Terry and said, “Daddy, I bet none of the kids back home would understand what it’s like to have to walk a mile into town to get fresh water.” You know what, Jack? I bet you were right. What were the most difficult obstacles you encountered and had to overcome? I think that it was our own personal obstacles that were the hardest to overcome. Here we had made this HUGE life change right before we left, not really adjusting to a slower pace until we actually hit the road. Terry and I learned to slow down, take it all
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in and leave our usual pace back at the border. Seriously, it took a good four months for us to step up and really take a good look at how we were traveling. Were we enjoying ourselves? Was Jack getting the most out of our travels? It wasn’t easy, but it was necessary in order to enjoy the adventure. Also, I will say that the change from Spanish to Portuguese was no easy task! E-gads! Just when you’re told that it’s a lot like Spanish, you learn very quickly that you were being lied to all these years. Jack pretty much shut down on the language front, leaving Terry and I to pick up the slack. Honestly, it was Terry that tackled the Portuguese like a champ! I was just along for the ride. One of the biggest lessons though, came with Terry and I having to learn to trust. I don’t mean just trusting in others, but trusting in ourselves to be open to the experiences and let go of any preconceived horror stories of life abroad. We learned to trust the older gentleman that wanted to offer directions and the little lady who wanted us to come in her home and enjoy some homemade goat meat soup. What’s even better is that we brought those lessons home, sharing only stories of friendship and camaraderie instead of fear and distrust. That was a big one. Below: Peru shoreline.
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What did you discover about yourself and your family during this trip? How to answer this without sounding preachy… As a family, we needed this time without careers or agendas to learn about ourselves—how to communicate better with each other, how to respect each other, and how to have fun. Terry and I learned to be better parents and partners, as well as learning to listen to Jack instead of always talking to him. I can’t even try to convey how much Jack matured over the months. He decided early on to take over the border crossings as he knew the language and as he had the process down pat. And, we let him. I especially had to learn to let go and not try to always be “right.” I know, I know, it was time for me to learn that lesson. It was these intimate, personal journeys that kept us sane over the course of the trip. What advice would you offer anyone else considering an adventure of this magnitude? Include every member of the family in every decision you make! Learn to communicate without anger. Listen to your kiddos, no matter how young. Their opinion matters just as much as yours. You must have respect for everyone in your tribe, including yourself, if you expect to make it out alive. The last bit of advice? Slow down, enjoy your family, try new foods, take chances, turn off the news, learn to speak another language…I think you get the idea.
What lies ahead for the Bordens? Besides figuring out our next chapter in life? Currently, we’re settling back into somewhat of a routine, though it does NOT include a 90-hour workweek and running from commitment to commitment. Jack will get his motorcycle permit next year, meaning a whole new chapter in our travel adventures. It will be bittersweet to see him swing a leg over his own ride, though it will be a bit of salvation that he gets to carry his share of the load, being a man-child and all. Many ask where the road will take us next. While Terry is vying for Africa and I for a tour through Europe, we may just stay close to home and travel the states for a summer. After seeing so much natural beauty abroad, we realized just how much natural beauty we have in the states. Honestly, how many of us would drop what we’re doing right now to ride to Utah for a weekend of camping in Zion National Park? I know I would.
See what she looks like with her clothes on.
Will we hear from you again? You’re not getting rid of me just yet! Funny thing is that with every BMW dealer we visited along our ride from Florida to California, I met at least one person who stopped and asked, “Aren’t you the one who writes that family column in the Owners News?” Needless to say, now that I’m back home, I need to get to writing. I have too many stories NOT to share with the ON readers. Like that time when a friend hid Jack in the bathroom at the nightclub in Bolivia that was being raided by the police…
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IT TOOK A COMMUNITY TO GET ME UP TO SPEED By Marcia McGuire #206242 June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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later, a guy I was dating got his license for facilitators and not barriers, there were “You look terrified.” the first time after growing up on dirt bikes. plenty of other obstacles I had to get We had barely started watching my video He took me out on his motorcycle, and I through to move from acquainted to intidiary of the riding class portion of the could not stop smiling. It was he who sugmate with motorcycles, such as being Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) gested the MSF course. For a couple hunintimidated by the concept and dangers of course, and my video self, driving to the dred dollars, I could try riding and see if I riding, learning how to ride for the first class, hadn’t yet spoken. Trembling, I evenliked it, and if I passed, I could move on to time in my late 20s, and figuring out how to tually said, “I’m really nervous.” I reiterated getting my license. handle a large, heavy motorcycle. that several times, then asked, “Why did During one of the breaks in the class, I The smell of pine and the feel of the crisp you convince me to do this?” He laughed. A found myself questioning whether this was mountain air are what I remember of my couple videos later, I had a grin of incredua good idea. I spent the morning stalling my first ride on the back of a friend’s bike. It lity: “I passed, apparently!” trainer bike because I had never really was awesome, and more tangible and expeMy entry and continuing involvement in learned how to use a clutch before. The riential than traveling by car. That experithe world of motorcycling can both be instructor came over to me and said he had ence inspired my notion of doing a attributed to the coaching and encourageheard I wanted to do a motorbike road trip motorbike road trip through Asia, but it ment I‘ve received from men. Maybe I have through Asia one day. He gave me some tips didn’t cross my mind that maybe I could just been lucky in whom I’ve met, but as a on books and websites and suggested the actually do it on my own bike. A few years woman, I have not really come up against BMW 650 GS. I wrote an “old boys’ club” mentality in the motorcycling THERE WERE PLENTY OF OTHER OBSTACLES I HAD TO this all down, and so did community; if anything, GET THROUGH TO MOVE FROM ACQUAINTED TO he, on the back of the business card he gave me men seem to be especially INTIMATE WITH MOTORCYCLES, SUCH AS BEING in case I had further supportive of women riders. Even if men were INTIMIDATED BY THE CONCEPT AND DANGERS OF questions.
RIDING, LEARNING HOW TO RIDE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LATE 20S, AND FIGURING OUT HOW TO HANDLE A LARGE, HEAVY MOTORCYCLE.
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Two years after learning how to ride a motorcycle, I embarked on a solo 23-day, 4,000-plus-mile motorcycle camping road trip into the Canadian Rockies.
After I got my motorcycle license, I started doing homework on motorcycles. I knew I wanted to do road trips and camping, and that I liked going down dirt roads. I knew products I liked best were designs that could do everything or at the very least, were multifunctional. That BMW 650 GS was on my radar, as were little 250cc enduros. Sitting on a few dual sports, I realized there was another challenge: I couldn’t touch the ground on a lot of them or even get the bike off of the kickstand. I am 5 foot, 6 inches, but am only a few pounds over 100. My mass isn’t enough to weigh a motorcycle down on its shocks, and I wanted to be able to stand mostly flatfooted on both feet at stoplights on my starter bike. While I deliberated on this, the stars aligned. I went in to a local BMW dealership for a second time to look at helmets. A salesman said a trade-in had arrived the night before, and it was exactly
what I wanted: a G 650 GS with panniers, and it was one of the low seat versions. Lacking confidence in my skills, I slowly and awkwardly rode a couple of loops around the dealership’s parking lot, did some price comparisons and bought it. A friend rode it home for me. I practiced riding around my neighborhood. I tipped over a lot, which made me quite impressed with the hardiness of the GS. I emailed my MSF instructor a photo of me with my new motorcycle, thanked him for his advice on the BMW and told him I had not yet graduated from the neighborhood. His response was that he was coming over the next day, and we were going to ride beyond my neighborhood. That weekend he led me onto freeways and through a winding canyon. I did just fine! My ambitious self planned to go camping at Joshua Tree National Park, where I rock climbed fairly often. Being a newer rider, I
was not aware of the different factors one needs to pay attention to when riding versus driving, and it had not at all crossed my mind that maybe I should look at the predicted wind speed through the section with the giant wind turbine farm. I was riding alone at night and despite leaning hard into the wind, the wind kept shoving me over half a lane. Scared, I pulled off of the highway onto a side street. I was too shaken to ride further, either forward or back. I called a guy who had seen my awkwardness on the GS, and he asked me if I intended on riding off-road; when I said yes, he offered to teach me some dirt bike technique. He had a vehicle that could pick up me and my motorcycle. The next day he rode with me down some dirt forest roads. That was exactly the vision I had for myself and my GS! I was beaming—until I tipped over. He took that opportunity to teach me a skill I have had to
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use a few times since: how to pick up a motorcycle that weighs four times my weight unladen, and with gear, closer to five times my weight—by myself. Once we figured out the correct angles, I could lift the bike as long as there were panniers on the motorcycle to help raise it a few inches off of the ground. I started riding more, both with others and alone. I did a four-night, five-day road trip with a guy who coached me through some of the tightest hairpin turns I had ever done. We went through the fairy tale-like golden hills and gnarled willows of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains. My riding experiences on that trip greatly increased my confidence and affirmed for me that I could indeed handle a motorbike road trip. Soon after, I moved to the Pacific Northwest. The motorcycle was great for exploring my new area—the forests, the farmland, and the Northern Cascades with their teal
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blue lakes. To gain a better understanding of the Northwest, I decided to learn more about the logging industry. I rode my GS to tree farms and clear-cuts where I could smell the freshness before I was even upon them. I also rode through national forest land and to the Olympic Peninsula to do a logging and lumber mill tour in Forks. During autumn as the leaves were changing colors, I discovered a state park with narrow, wandering roads where the tree canopy overhead filtered the sunlight. I am drawn to the open road, but my lack of confidence on dirt roads put limits on which roads I would go down with my motorcycle. I still found my big GS intimidating, so to alleviate some of my concerns, I signed up for the RawHyde introductory course and trip. Once again my coaches were male, but there were a few other women as students. Even though I felt like I spent a good portion of my time sprawled on the ground next to my rented 700 GS,
my body started learning how to balance and move with the heavy BMW. I achieved flow in the trail riding trip. Most importantly, I left with confidence, skills and increased comfort on my motorcycle. Two years after learning how to ride a motorcycle, I embarked on a solo 23-day, 4,000-plus-mile motorbike camping road trip. I launched from Seattle, ran up to the mining ghost town of Barkerville, British Columbia, and then over to Jasper, Alberta. The Canadian Rockies were a humbling experience, riding down the narrow corridor of tall, rugged mountains walling me in on both sides. I felt the chill of the Columbia ice fields before I saw them. It was there I paused for a few days, to do a mountaineering course with Yamnuska Mountain Adventures guides, where we trekked and climbed with ice axes and crampons across the glaciers and among the incredible blue crevasses, streams and other unique glacial formations.
It was at that base camp where I met a BMW MOA member who happened to set up his tent at the site adjacent to mine. When we were chatting, I realized the one thing I forgot to pack was chain lube! He pulled some out of his bag and helped me lube my chain. I had not been aware of the BMW MOA, but here he was, helping me out, and the next day he served as my tour guide as we rode together for a couple of hours. I continued on through Banff, and to see the contrast of how humans use nature, I went from recreating in the mountains to an open-pit coal mine tour in the mountains of southeastern British Columbia. The huge trucks there looked like miniature toys moving across the landscape, but their tires were twice as tall as me. I continued on to Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, where a First Nations elder who worked at the UNESCO World Heritage Site took me aside and said a prayer over me in his native
Blackfoot language. He closed by looking at me, and positioning his hands as if riding a motorcycle, he solemnly said, “You are making your own path.” I headed south through Waterton Lakes National Park and rode the winding Beartooth Highway 212 on the border of Montana and Wyoming into Yellowstone National Park. I made my way back to Seattle via the Northern Cascades. Most of my time leading up to the trip, I had tapped the knowledge of others, benefiting from the advice of those I randomly met and from the (usually male) folks who worked at my local BMW shop (South Sound Motorcycles), Touratech, and Puget Sound Safety through their motorcycle maintenance course. Right around the midpoint of my motorcycle road trip, there was a shift in reliances. Other motorcyclists, some of whom had been on the road a long time, started asking me for advice, and after seeing the equipment and creative camping
meals I had, inquired and took notes. I transitioned to a position where I could now offer tips, ideas or even solutions. Women observed me and considered that it might actually be possible for them to ride, too. That friend who first introduced me to motorcycles is now asking my advice as he packs and plans for his big trip. Me, the newbie female rider. Maybe it’s my academic background that makes me think it is important to remember and try to cite the sources of the information I utilize. Maybe giving credit is my expression of gratitude. Regardless, I think there are a fair number of men out there who help women realize their potential on motorcycles. You may not always know the progress of those you encourage or coach, but I am one of those. We do take off—and we make our own paths. Gazing across the seemingly end-of-the world landscape on the winding Beartooth Highway 212 between Montana and Wyoming.
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Y M R A
S S E N K R A OF D PART
1
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#195185
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Ben uses the Michelin rear tire to full effect to drive down NOLA’s long front straight.
T
he Army of Darkness finished the 2014 WERA National Endurance season in strong form by winning the last three races of the season and, as it was, the last three races of the series. After decades of continuity, the evolving socio-economic climate of motorcycle racing overtook WERA’s national endurance series, and there would be no endurance events in 2015. Since our team had “officially retired” from racing a decade prior in 2005, we probably should have taken the elimination of our favorite series as a strong hint that the AOD should hang it up. However, we still had two fully-prepped S 1000 RRs, and although we had a tumultuous relationship with Brunhilde and Eva, their transmissions were not chipped, their cam chain tensioners had not dissolved, their valves had not dropped onto the pistons and their steering head frame welds were uncracked. We had a trailer full of potential in search of a venue for expression. Some of my less fiscally-minded teammates suggested international contests, which I rationally declined by diplomatically pointing out that they were delusional. The Central Motorcycling Association (CMRA), defying the gravity of the collapse of motorcycle racing, teamed up with WERA in 2014 to field events under the U.S., National Endurance (USNE) banner. Although late in announcing, the CMRA continued the USNE series for 2015, but as the races would all be held in conjunction with CMRA rounds,
Kyle pulling
ce.
te in the ra out a lead la
all the events were at CMRA tracks. CMRA tracks are by and large far from Washington, D.C., and don’t make the top 20 list of tracks in the U.S. unless you sort by “biggest pothole on a race track.” Due to scheduling conflicts created by most of the team being on a dive boat in the Galapagos Islands and a general lack of interest in racing at Texas World Speedway, we skipped the first round entirely. Apparently we missed eight hours of rain. Although the BMWs are plenty fast, they are not particularly enjoyable to ride. The chassis are stiff and uncompromising, which makes it really tough to relax into a bumpy turn. This being the U.S. and CMRA, there were going to be a lot of bumps in the track. We decided to try out some fork cartridges from K-Tech in a good-natured attempt to get some sort of feel out of the front end. Steve Breckenridge, one of our old competitors from ten years ago, was now doing suspension work and built up the forks for us. We loaded up the bikes and headed off to a track day in New Jersey. New Jersey Motorsports Park has two racetracks, Thunderbolt and Lightning. Thunderbolt is the unremarkable AMA racetrack, and Lightning is wholly inappropriate for motorcycles at speed as it is surrounded by unprotected Armco barriers positioned close to the track. It didn’t dawn on me that the track day would be at the crappy track and worse yet, we would be sharing the track with leaky
amateur track day cars—and we would be running it backwards. I ignored my own little voice and told myself, “It's just testing, and I’ve ridden far worse bikes in far more dangerous environments.” I rode a few laps to figure out which way the track went, and we determined that the forks were low on oil. That fixed, in the second session I trailed the front brake into the last turn at about 80 mph. I blew through the fork springs, bottomed the forks, and the front tire tucked. I let out the brake and tried to hold it on my knee, but the relatively slick pavement was not going to give it back to me, and for the first time in a dozen years, I was going to eat dirt. I balled up my fingers into fists and crossed my arms across my chest, but gravity was too strong for me to pull my knees to my chest. My fateful apex was at the top of a hill so the track and grass fell away from me, which meant I would have been slowing down gradually if the track designers hadn’t lined the track with Armco barriers and if the track day organizers had put the air fence in the right place. As it was, I tumbled straight into the unprotected metal guardrail. Fortunately, the bike did not follow me in. Lucky would have been having the front tire regain traction and making it through the turn, but if we start counting after I was on the ground, I was lucky to escape without bones poking through my leathers and with
of n & the Art udents of Ze St W . n BM io a at mmetry of try of Inform ate the sy kness Minis ci ar D re p . of al ap y et Arm ce will of scrap m Maintenan ith a piece Motorcycle g enacted w n ei b r ai p re motorcycle
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my cognitive functions more or less intact. I stood up to wave to my crew and knew then my right knee was pretty jacked up. My teammate Ben Walters pulled over and gave me Eva to ride back to the pits while he picked up Brunhilde. Those were the last steps I took for three weeks. Hilde survived remarkably well considering the violence of the crash—some bodywork, a radiator, a clip-on tube, a new front stand receiver. Over the next couple of weeks Tim and Melissa fixed her up while I hobbled around and felt sorry for myself.
/
USNE CMRA
New Orleans, Louisiana June
20, 2015
The AOD has, with scant exception, been a pretty scrappy operation, staffed, crewed and ridden by folks that all have day jobs. That meant rolling up to the track the morning of the practice day after an allnight, swing shift-driven interstate blitz. Departure times from D.C. are established by the number of hours of travel required to arrive at the track, rounded up to the
nearest non-rush hour afternoon or evening time. All the races in 2015 were full day drives (24-28 hours), and we tried to make the best of it with dinner in the French Quarter. Friday morning was disheartening. Chris Peris had acute food poisoning and couldn’t stand up, so that left us with Ben Walters as our sole rider, as I still couldn’t put weight on my right leg. Brunhilde was back to her old tricks and handling poorly. To top that off, it was very hot with violent thunderstorms and an infestation of cadaver millipedes. Slowly we resolved our issues. Our Michelin representative, David Hirsch, put forth Kyle Ohnsorg as a rider. Kyle was fast and earnest, and charmingly, was so young that he had never heard of Army of Darkness. He just saw a bunch of old guys with a trailer full of beat up pit equipment. Chris was able to join us at the race track on Saturday morning, but he was still pretty weak and couldn’t ride. Ben pronounced the bike good enough to race after the morning warm-up. Kyle went out on his 600 and took a convincing win in the solo endurance race.
We had to adapt to CMRA rules, such as speed limits in the pits. That makes each pit stop a longer event. Unlike WERA, CMRA does not allow parallel processing of refueling and tire changes. Fueling has to be done without anyone else working on the bike. We can usually change a rear tire as fast as we can refuel the bike; however, if we are not allowed to do these at the same time, we pay a 25-second penalty for changing tires, and we pretty much have to change tires at every stop because 186 rear wheel horsepower plays hell with tire life. Also, even though our tank holds over seven gallons, those big engines drink fuel, so we need to pit for fuel at about an hour. CMRA bikes have been adapted to the rules so they mainly run 600s, big tanks, and hard tires. That setup allows them to skip as many pit stops as possible. Due to the pit rules, liter bikes do not generally do very well in CMRA, and the 600 team Village Idiots has dominated the series for years. I figured each of our pit stops would be longer than the Village Idiots’ due to tire changes, and we would need to make one
Ben Walters and Brunhilde lead a group of frustrated 600 riders early in the race at NOLA. We become what we hate.
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more stop over the course of the race. We needed to consistently run at least two seconds a lap faster to win. In the asymptotic nature of race lap times, two seconds a lap is almost an impossibility. Ben was still not up to speed in the last practice and needed to drop four seconds into the race. He knew the 600s would carry better speed through the many tight turns, so his plan was to get out front, attack on the straights and then block the 600s through the turns. The grid was based on points, and we gridded last since we skipped the first race. It didn’t matter. Ben used his drag racing chops to go from last on the grid to the lead on the first lap. Three fast 600 teams swarmed around him like angry bees, and the racing was axle to axle for the first hour. Periodically, one of the 600s would squeeze through an impossibly small door, but Ben responded by retaking the spot on the next straight. Eventually the pace started taking a toll. One team fell out with a broken shift linkage. Another fell off the pace. At the end of the first hour it was just AOD and Village Idiots up front, just as we anticipated. Michelin brought some leftover, fancy European endurance tires for us to try, and they were giving us a full hour of performance and still looking great. We rolled out from our pit stop behind Village Idiots, but after their pit stop, we were in the lead and pulling away. We needed a big lead for the closing stages of the race; Kyle got it done by stretching out a 1.5-second-a-lap lead. A red flag reset the grid and our 30-second lead
vanished. We jumped out front at the restart, but the Idiots (who were also pitted next to us) wouldn’t let us go without a fight. We stayed out front, but not by enough to cover the extra pit stop we knew we would have to make. The heat was oppressive, and all the riders on all the teams were starting to fade with dehydration under the unrelenting Louisiana humidity.
Kyle’s clinically annotated x-ray.
Finally, the rear tire on the Idiots’ bike started slowing them down, and they stopped to change it. Their pit stop was long enough for us to get a full lap up—probably all we needed to come out in front at the end of the race. The Idiots had no challengers behind them to defend from, so either they decided to put it in cruise mode or the heat was too much for their package, and we started pulling out three seconds a lap for the next hour. Running that pace in the heat with our big, heavy, fast bike wore Ben and Kyle down. Chris roused himself from his sick bed to step in. He had not ridden the bike at all for six months. He hadn't eaten any food for 36 hours. His last vomiting episode was only six hours prior. The Idiots put their fastest rider back out to finish the race, so I knew their pace and the extent of our lead. I told Chris he needed to run a pace of 1:52 or better, but that he had to immediately get down to it. Sometimes there is just no substitution for innate talent, and Chris hit the pace on his second lap despite being as weak as a kitten. He took the checkered flag with a stand-up wheelie and a two lap lead! Kyle thanked us sweetly during the podium celebration, saying, “These guys don’t look like much, but they run a tight race!” We departed late on Saturday night for the 1,200-mile drive home. Just before we got home Melissa announced that Kyle had crashed twice during his Sunday races. In the second crash, he totaled his R6 and broke his leg.
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www.motorex.com
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www.rawhyde-offroad.com
Shortcut to Coban By Glenn Hamburger #57993
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I RECENTLY STUDIED SPANISH AND
lived with a family on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. With a duffle bag full of donated art supplies, I also taught an art class. One day I ventured off on a rented, beat-up and poorly maintained 2009 Honda Toronado to attempt to ride some muddy dirt roads that I thought existed. I hoped there would be bridges over the jungle rivers I needed to cross. I carried a bit of food, water purification tablets and extra clothes with me in case I needed to bivouac by the side of the road; I was uncertain whether or not there would be a hotel in the next town at the end of the day. On the first day out, the rain was light and intermittent, leaving behind multihued emerald fields that glowed when the sun broke through the clouds. Along the roadside were bright yellow flowers and purple morning glories blooming in the fog. Some pendulous, large red trumpetshaped flowers looked like the tips of their petals had been dipped in pale yellow paint. The cornfields, the lifeblood of the Mayans, on the steep hillsides had turned to a golden brown, waiting to be harvested. Riding uphill out of the beautiful colonial town of Antigua on El Toro, the gentle drizzle on my face shield meant nothing to me, so I delayed putting on my raingear until another rider stopped under a large tree in front of me. By then I was thoroughly soaked, not realizing that it would take my shoes four days to dry in this humid climate. Nor did I know that this rain, which caused only two deaths, would be a rain that people would talk about, as it was unusual to have such heavy flooding so late in the rainy season. Because I was on a dual-purpose motorcycle, it seemed appropriate to take a shortcut to the town of Coban. My shortcut would take off about 50 kilometers but increase the time from less than five hours to, as I later found out, two days. It wasn’t the rains that slowed me down, it was the combination of very tight turns along with unpredictable road conditions, including manhole cover-sized potholes six inches deep that could bend the front rim. The worst part however, was the heavy gray fog that would only allow me to see two or three yellow stripes on the road in front of me as I climbed higher into the lush cloud forest. All the while, of course, I was trying to catch a glimpse of the giant deep green
My Honda Toronado.
leaves or the huge purple clusters of flowers on plants that I had never seen before. Despite his flaws, the little Toronado— which I’d taken to calling El Toro Poderoso, or the powerful bull—was a wonderful way to travel through the countryside. The worn-out tires, especially the rear one, had cracks in the tread that threatened to split open. Days later, I found out the air pressure was less than half of what it should be. I carried no spare tubes or patches. The suspension had worn out years ago, leaving behind a slow springy sensation that reduced traction. Its rear brake was marginally better than dragging my feet. I never once got the back tire to lock up, even on loose gravel. The front brake lever was almost completely broken off, which forced me to squeeze it as hard as I could to convince the bike to eventually slow down. However, as the roads were wet, sometimes the front tire locked up and slide sideways, threatening to quickly drop me onto the road and possibly into an oncoming dump truck—or worse, off the road down into my final resting place. The chain was dry, sticky and made a popping sound at low speeds. I often thought it might break and leave me stranded. A few times, I actually thought of turning around and abandoning the whole idea of riding alone and unsupported on muddy roads through unknown country. Later I thought, "If you’re afraid, then don’t ever get off of the front porch. Stay home, live with (a false sense of) security. Live to
be old. That’s not my style at all. If I break down and get stuck somewhere, I’ll figure it out. I’ve been stuck and broken down before and will probably get stuck and broken down again. No sense in worrying about something that MIGHT happen. What will probably happen is something that I didn’t even think of, and after that happens, I’ll figure out what to do. The foggy shortcut that I chose was like a country lane between two minor roads. It only appeared on a few maps and took me on some very curvy and hilly roads. I could rarely ride faster than 35 miles an hour. However, even at that speed, I could pass just about everything else on the road – heavy overloaded buses, dump trucks spewing thick black smoke, quite a few motorcycles and most cars. This was a lot of fun for a while, climbing higher and higher into the cloud forest. Eventually the fog became thicker and the rains grew heavy, creating severely reduced visibility. It became dangerous. After about ten minutes of water trickling down into my crotch, the journey began to lose its allure. With the toes of my left foot squishing the rainwater now trapped in my shoe, I reluctantly decided to stop at the next big town. Rarely do I ever turn around, but this time I did to commiserate with a fellow rider waiting out the torrential rains. I’m not sure why it began raining so hard again. This town was built on a hillside, and some
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of the streets were so steep that I was afraid to attempt going down them for fear that El Toro’s front and only brake might cause me to skid and fall. There were brown waterfalls spewing over the curbs and down the cement block streets leading to the market below. Even the scraggly market mutts had temporarily disappeared to avoid this pounding rainstorm. I pretended like my raincoat and pants were protecting me as I dumped a bit of water out of my shoe and removed my sock to squeeze out as much water as I could. We riders huddled together under the overhang of an abandoned storefront with a peeling red door. My companion told me that the road I was riding on was going to get very bad soon and to go through town and take the other road out. He described how to get out of town, but I forgot most of his directions and while riding through the sodden town (looking for a bus or truck to guide me out) was relieved that I only went down one one-way street the wrong way. Later, breathing in the thick black fumes of success, I passed the bus that
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guided me out of town. Half an hour or an hour later I didn’t even care, nor did I notice, that the rains had been letting up. I arrived in a large, muddy town around 5 p.m. Hungry, tired and slightly disappointed that my shortcut didn’t take me closer to the cloud forest
town of Coban, I found the market. Knowing that in about an hour it would be dark, I was looking forward to eating, drying off and a good sleep in a cheap hotel.
The young man by the market conferred with his older companion and told me there were no hotels in this town. I couldn’t believe it! It looked like such a big town on the map. He assured me that in El Chol there were hotels. He also said this road will go to El Chol, but pero no hay paso – you can t drive through. Both bridges are out. Motorcycles can get through, but you can’t take the road. I was wet, tired, hungry and now confused. I thought if the bridges were out, how could a motorcycle get through? Just then three riders went by and he said, “I know them – they’re going to Chol.” Since I couldn't stay there, I chased after them. Riding fast downhill through the cloud forest, the front tire only skidded a few times. The rear brake slowed me more psychologically than physically, a gentle reminder to slow down. I couldn't lose these guys, nor could I see them. Spying a motorcycle out of the corner of my eye, parked by a house, it occurred to me that they could have stopped somewhere for a minute.
With no warning, we left the paved road for a muddy, slippery track leading down to the Rio Motagua. It was a steep trail with rivulets and puddles strategically placed so I could not maintain any sort of a line.
The rains tapered off to nothing, as did the fog. I breathed in the clean smell of the moist, dark soil, rainwater on the leaves and the occasional whiff of tropical wood smoke seeping through the cracks of the plank houses hidden back in the gently sloping hills of the cloud forest. There were a few birds and the occasional sound of droplets of water slowly oozing downhill, falling from leaf to leaf. The powerful river below, Rio Motagua, is the largest in the country and had already taken out two bridges. Its power continued to grow.
The Motagua Valley is the largest drainage basin in Guatemala. It marks the tectonic boundary between the North American and Caribbean Plates, which explains the numerous earthquakes in the region. It also has the only known source of jade in Mesoamerica, which was very important in trade during pre-colonial times. It begins in the dense pine and cloud forests near the highland market town of Chichicastenango. Farther downstream, ironically, is one of the driest areas in Central America.
You wouldn't know it by the splashes the riders in front of me were making with their rear tires. I backed off a little bit so I wouldn’t muddy up my visor. Eventually, they noticed me and stopped. I asked if I could ride to El Chol with them. The oldest and possibly the best rider said, “Si.” He was “Mister Cool” in his black jacket, riding along as if it was nothing. Other than the rain, the ride was just a walk in the park for him. He’d probably done it a hundred times before, maybe even under worse conditions. The rider in front of me was doubled up on some kind of a hot red and white motocross-style bike. He would occasionally nail the throttle just for fun, throwing mud all over. The third rider was tripled up and seemed to be riding along just fine. These punks were in their element. With no warning, we left the paved road for a muddy, slippery track leading down to the Rio Motagua. It was a steep trail with rivulets and puddles strategically placed so I could not maintain any sort of a nice line. Here and there were a few rocks varying in size from a tennis ball to a cantaloupe to throw me off course or dump my sorry ass in the bush. They made me wish that I had never gotten off the bus. At my age, just a little bit of adventure goes a long way. Loosely holding on to El Toro’s handlebars, I slid on down to the valley floor, dodging most of the rocks and even a few of the bigger mud puddles. I rode much faster than usual, because I had no rear brake and grabbing the front brake would’ve dumped me into a puddle. I don’t like to lie too much, but would you believe that I didn’t drop it? I was glad that was over! Since the rains had stopped, riding on the flat floodplain of the river was pure joy, a welcome relief from the unusually heavy fall rains we had earlier. There were even a few blue patches in the sky. The small yellow flowers had six ovoid petals that lit up in the sunshine. It's a whole different biome here. The bluish purple flowers looked like a lupine of some sort from a distance, but I was fooled again. The red ones might have been orchids. I'd seen an unusual tree by the side of the road and wouldn't see another one like it for a half an hour. Earlier, I’d read that three acres of cloud forest may have over 750 different kinds of trees. It was so cool riding along at a moderate pace…until I caught up with them. I couldn’t believe it. The first rider, “Mister
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Cool,” was already riding up the ramp of the longest footbridge I had ever seen. Then he slipped and spun out a bit at the top. I was scared and excited at the same time. I thought how cool it was that I was about to ride across a big hanging footbridge that was only about a foot wider on each side than El Toro’s handlebars. Years ago, while riding home in the darkness at 80 miles an hour, I learned that to stay on the white fog line of the interstate, I
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needed to look well ahead and to let the motorcycle be loose and move under me. Riding on the footbridge was a lot like that. I looked well ahead as both the motorcycle and the bridge moved, swaying from left to right. It also gently sagged up and down while I rode across it, which was a very pleasant, but slightly frightening experience. I caught a few quick glances at the raging Motagua River and parts of the destroyed bridge before it was over and I
was back on solid ground. Climbing up and out of the valley floor on the wide muddy road, the rear tire spun out if I accelerated too hard, and the engine bogged down if I didn't. I tried to find a balance, just a little spin now and then. The front end was very light and bounced along as I steered more with my feet than the handlebars. One rider, then another, and another said adios. “Mister Cool” infrequently wiped his head and shook the water
off his hand as we rode along another 20 minutes or so before he stopped. As darkness crept in, “Mister Cool” told me to go left, then later right uphill, then left at a junction. I couldn’t believe it, El Chol was still 40 minutes away. Riding into a light drizzle, I would stop about every ten minutes asking for directions. I confessed to a young girl motorcyclist that I was scared, as I’d read of bandits, and thieves coming out at night. She
reassured me and said, “Confianza, aqui no pasa nada” confidence, nothing happens here. I rode away with my weak headlight into the darkness, thinking, maybe I can put on all my clothes and raingear and just sleep by the side of the road. Just before a junction, I saw a light. The smoke was seeping through the boards of a wood plank house, so I parked and crossed a bridge. However, dogs began to bark fiercely, so I continued on in the drizzle. Later, many
lights appeared to the left. Yes, El Chol! I walk past the night vendors glowing lights, upstairs to the hotel. It is closed. Stunned, I walk uphill into the darkness and under a balcony find a dry sidewalk to sleep on. But, two men point to another hotel, it has a big upstairs room with three queen beds, a hot shower. Listening to the drizzle, I drift off to sleep.
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JOURNEY TO THE
PART ONE
Beginning of the ride on the road to Batopilas.
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Written by: Curt Stetter #205881 Photography by: Chuck Feil #203990
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MORNING’S COLD, DOVE-GRAY LIGHT
cast upon Bisbee’s century-old downtown buildings shifted to soft gold as the illuminated riders backed their motorbikes perpendicular to the curb in front of the Coffee Company, the meeting place to begin our five-day journey south into the Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua. Eventually 10 riders gathered, checking paperwork and passports to travel to their ultimate destination, Barrancas del Cobra – the Copper Canyon. The riders exchanged greetings, savored their first cup of joe, then kitted up, checked their fuel, started their engines and within minutes, pointed the packed-up machines south to ride six miles to the border town of Naco. This small town is an easy border crossing because it lacks the commercial traffic other border towns incur. Traveling into Mexico is simple and safe as long as you follow the rules. Here are some facts regarding riding bikes into Mexico. Most parts of Sonora and the Baja are “Free Zone” or as the Mexicans say, “Hassle Free Zone,” meaning vehicles are permit exempt. Since we are going deep into the states of Sonora and Chihuahua, we’re required first to get a tourist visa using a passport at the local Mexican immigration office. Then, we take the visa to the Banjercito (government bank) to procure a vehicle permit. The permit requires possession of a current registration, current driver’s license, and $200-400 deposit (depending on the value of your motorcycle), which will be returned to you when you bring your bike back to a Banjercito office after your trip. They will photograph the stamped VIN on the motorcycle frame. You must hand in the vehicle permit before it expires or you forfeit the deposit – plus you won’t be able to bring in another vehicle in the future. The exception is the “Free Zone” area. Permits and deposits can be paid in cash or credit card. Because of the liability laws in Mexico, it is strongly advised you obtain Mexican vehicle insurance. Not only does it cover you if you do some damage or cause injury, but most policies have roadside and legal assistance as well. I’m unsure how well it works, but it’s better than being arrested on the spot for having no insurance. One last word of warning regarding insurance: if you don’t have a vehicle permit outside of the Free Zone (half of Sonora and all of the
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Riders crossing one of three river crossings on the Ruta de Sonora.
Baja Peninsula) and you’re involved in an accident, there is a good chance the insurance company will consider your policy void and deny any claims. My advice is to always play it safe. Riders experienced in crossing into Mexico usually get all the above paperwork requirements done a few days in advance because small crossings such as Naco have limited hours and days the Banjercito is open. Best advice is to check before you go! The final step is a short ride to the Mexican customs agents’ area for the cursory checking of bags for narcotics and guns.
The officers will ask you your destination and check your papers while someone searches your bags. Don’t take guns or ammunition with you to Mexico unless you’re itching for a different kind of lengthy adventure. Most officers are polite but serious, so it’s best not to fool around. One of the most asked questions before riders take a trip into Mexico is regarding communication. I don’t speak or understand Spanish. That doesn’t mean I don’t try to learn some simple phrases other than cervesa or buenos dias. If you are patient, courteous and try, you can always get your
Basket girl divisidero.
needs met. Many Mexicans do speak some English, but may be embarrassed to try out their grade school English on you, just like I am with my Spanish. Just try – and smile. You’re not the first unilingual tourist they’ve met. Please don’t think speaking louder in English will make you more understood. Our first overnight was at the Los Arcos Hotel in the small ranching town of Banamichi. We rode 30 miles west of a larger town, Cananea, then headed south on the Ruta de Sonora in the Sonora River Valley. Our group stretched out along the two lane road running parallel to open fields leading us up to the sharp mountains in the distance. Within an hour the gentle hills are supplemented with arroyos and drivable river crossings. During the dry season, the crossings are easy, but they become challenging during monsoon season (July and August). The shallow rivers can have surprise pot holes or as Mark, one of our riders discovered, slime on the broken pavement that is slicker than snot. Entering the river, he twisted the throttle too much and his bike went down quicker than the 2008 stock market. Several riders rushed to his assistance and got his unscathed machine upright for remounting. Once we all crossed safely, the steep narrow mountain roads threading through small villages provided a long, twisty end to our day’s ride, and we finally crossed the long concrete bridge leading into Banamichi. Owners Lynn and Tom Matthews greeted us with smiles at the doorway of the Los Arcos Hotel’s beautiful courtyard. Lynn and Tom both ride, so they understand the needs of adventure riders
and have created a welcoming oasis. Like most Mexican small towns, Banamichi is an unassuming village where families have been getting by with nothing much more than their basic needs from ranching, farming, mining or shop-keeping since 1639. The zocalo (town square) is a great place to relax and take in the local community activity. After a hot shower and a change in attire, we met in the courtyard for libations, to review the day’s ride and to discuss the next day’s continuing southern journey along a mountainous, untraveled route in lieu of the well-traveled route toward Hermosillo. Finishing our drinks, we walked a block to Tacos de Martin. The wonderful thing about eating at Martin’s is when you’re brain dead from riding all day, Martin simplifies choosing what to eat. Martin prepares only one item, Tacos de Carne Asada, grilled over a mesquite fire and served with shredded green cabbage, pico de gallo, brined onions, avocado and cucumber, plus a caramelized onion roasted whole, proving that if you are only going to do one thing, do it really well! After dinner, we agreed to rise at dawn; Tom wanted to join us for the ride to the canyon, and perhaps Lynn saw an opportunity for some peace and quiet. Shafts of light found their way through
the spaces of the blackout curtains in the morning, alerting me to the fact that I needed to move quickly to catch up with the others. Tom prepared breakfast while others nursed coffee and talked over a map. With everyone packed up and fed, we all topped off our fuel at the Pemex station. Pemex, the state-owned oil company, has done a very good job of providing stations usually every 100 miles throughout Mexico, so keeping the tank topped off isn’t a problem. With the clear, bright morning sun still low on the horizon, breaks through the trees dividing the farm fields made for a peaceful beginning to our day. The only interruptions on the smooth two-lane country roads were passing farm machinery, speed bumps called topos, and the occasional pothole, sometimes a lot more often than occasional. Topos deserve an extra word when it comes to riding, as they are there to warn the rider of a congested pedestrian area or town. Topos range from being mild to aggressive enough to make your teeth slam together and upset the bike if you’re caught gazing at the scenery. We followed the tarmac down Highway 89, then took M-14 northeast towards Moctezuma for a short time until we made the fated turn south on Sonora 117, a steep, winding single-lane road that we weren’t sure was passable. Tom gave us the most up-to-date info, telling us he had traveled over the pass a few weeks earlier with a group. The major hazards would be oncoming traffic and rock slides – for 200 miles! Before reaching the steep mountain climb,
Adventure riding is all about the adventures of break downs and fixing problems on the road.
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Riders regroup after an incident.
Digging a bike out of the weeds after misjudging a curve.
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we rested at the beautiful town cemetery in Tepache. I wasn’t sure what Tom intended by stopping there, but just in case I said a little prayer after taking some photos and mounting back up on Old Yeller. Twisties in Mexico are a bit different than in the U.S. because the roads are not as wide, the pavement is not reliable, and when making that 300-degree blind turn, you can be surprised by a group of boulders in the middle of the road, a bus, or a combination of both. Just keep a steady hand on the throttle, foot on the brake and hold back the panicked look in your eyes. Now pointed south, within the hour the topos appeared for the village of Sahuaripa, our temporary respite for lunch before beginning the major climb. Tom warned me earlier about a severely rutted section in the road, so I was extra careful from the beginning. The relentless winding road lulled my attention as the road surface appeared to be taken back by the heavily wooded forest. Between the low-hanging branches and the saplings growing up through the asphalt, I felt confident about conquering
this stretch of roadway. I was leaned into a left hand bend, quickly applying my brakes, when I saw a couple bikes in our group on their side stands and a couple on their sides in the bushes on the downhill side of the road. All the riders were up walking about and surveying the situation. Apparently one rider overshot the turn while the other bike was parked, and another rider wasn’t looking and bumped the stationary bike, toppling it onto its side. Four eager helpers pulled the first bike from the bushes as two others uprighted the other bike. Very little damage was done to either bike, and the riders were totally unscathed. This reinforced my confidence that maybe all the bad luck was behind us. About a half-hour later we came upon the area of missing pavement and deep ruts. I worked myself around the saplings and quickly spied a deep rut in front of me. I picked my route on the ridge of two caverns and gave it the throttle, but my wheel slid right down into the sharp drop, which forced my throttle hand to propel my bike up into the air towards a group of bushes on the downhill side. I exited Old Yeller halfway to the bushes and landed on my back. There’s that moment you’re happy everything has stopped, and after a quick selfassessment, I felt obligated to jump up and yell to the other riders “I’m fine!” The next piece of business was extracting my machine from the bushes and getting it upright. Within minutes our now experienced rescue crew had my bike between my legs and powering out of the rough shoulder on my way to San Nicolas, where we all stopped to regroup before getting onto the wide M-16 to Basaseachic. The last couple riders pulled up, but one came too close to the rider on my left, bumped side bags with the rider on his left, and next thing I saw was the last rider on the pavement with his bike pinning him down. It happened so slowly, but once again the rescue team came running over. Our laughter slowed the extraction process, but we got the bike lifted, the rider safely freed, and the exhausted group motored down the road, smiling at the calamity of events. Creel was too far to reach before dark, so we stopped at the El Rey Motel in Yecora to rest after a day’s dose of 200 miles of mountainous navigation with spills and thrills. I couldn’t find the bed quick enough.
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Greece M otivation is different for each of us. For some it’s money, while for others it’s the pursuit of glory. For Carl Reese, motivation grew from the desire to leave his mark on this world and have his name listed in the Guinness Book of World Records. Growing up in a poor coal mining town in western Pennsylvania, Reese learned early what it takes to get ahead and that hard work and determination will get you to where you want to go in life—or get you your first motorcycle.
He was 12 when he first saw his cousin’s 70cc Suzuki. He knew he had to have it, and after two years of working at his grandfather’s gas station, shoveling snow and mowing lawns, he was able to scrape together the $300 to buy it. It wasn’t a dream machine by any means, but just like anyone who finds his or her passion through twisting a throttle, he treasured his first bike. That 70cc Suzuki took Reese further than he had ever gone before, and he rode the wheels off that bike until he simply grew out of it. A few years passed, and while working on a prison construction project in upstate
New York, another motorcycle caught his eye. Every day, an envious Reese saw his coworker ride the bike to work until finally he got enough nerve ask if he could take it for a ride. “You ever ride before?” the friend asked. The Sportster was a big step up from his little Suzuki, but with the appropriate reply, Reese was soon cruising the streets in the local town. In his mind that ride only lasted a few minutes, but it was dark several hours later when he brought the bike back to its worried owner.
The Authentic Backcountry
Switchbacks, Dancing Bears and Party Boats
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By Steve Kohler #205022
The entrance from this ouzo-clear bay in the Diros sea caves is barely two feet in diameter, but more than nine miles of cave passages have been charted. Guides paddle visitors through part of the labyrinth. June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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Time goes by and everything grows more complicated: Your taxes are increasingly difficult, Grandpa becomes a bigger enigma, and figuring out new technology takes longer. This basic principle applies to cultures, too; take Greece as the prime example. The ancient home of democracy — where Zeus proclaimed the center of the world to be and the Oracle of Delphi is said to have predicted the coming of Jesus Christ — has had centuries to evolve into a captivatingly complicated mix for the visitor who chooses something more than the well-baked tourist experience. Most who haven’t visited (and many who have) think Greece is its beaches and a sunny few of its 6,000 islands. For an adventurous motorcyclist, it has mountain riding that rivals the Alps and the Pyrenees. It is day upon day of switchbacks so tight and sweepers so fast the GPS screen looks like
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kitty’s old yarn toy. Between blasts to passes as high as 5,800 feet (complete with ski resorts) lie lush agricultural valleys packed tight with tomatoes, lime and olive trees, grapes and cotton, each one contributing its particular scent to the overriding aroma of eucalyptus. A high-speed run down to the sea is a fine antidote to all the trail braking and gear changing required up high. Greece also has one huge advantage over most of Europe: almost no traffic despite 18 million international visitors per year. While tourists sizzle on the Aegean, you can ride for hours in thin mountain air without seeing another vehicle. Not a tour bus, not a cop – nobody. Overall, the population density in Greece is about 86 people per square kilometer, roughly 2.5 times as dense as the U.S., but they’re mostly in snarled, gray Athens and down by the shore. During two weeks of riding, my wife
and I did not encounter another North American outside of those at the requisite antiquity stops. Except for omnipresent Coke, westernization is minimal — no McDonald’s, no SUVs and just one sad, empty KFC in Athens. Unnamed, unnumbered roads run everywhere, connecting towns whose names you can’t pronounce and are full of signs you can’t read. The Greek language is at the root of English and many others, but tough nonetheless, and if you get past hello (yassas), thank you (efharisto) and you’re welcome (parakalo), you’ll earn big props. Even the most basic attempt is genuinely appreciated, and the smallest town has at least one English speaker ready to help out – but you may have to wait for her to arrive! Greeks are the warmest people. We were hugged and euro-kissed by strangers, welcomed into private homes and offered
coffee, made to sit and talk while being served raki (take what’s left after grapes are pressed for wine and distill it —twice), brought cakes and cognac after we had paid for our meal, and generally overwhelmed with sincere kindness. It’s like being in the deep South squared, but everybody speaks Greek. If riders have a minor concern, it’s the backroads pavement. Choose to venture deep into authentic Greece and there will be grooved shell grip at many apexes. There may be very little wildlife to hit and no bugs, but you will share the open-range road with goats, sheep and cattle. If you’re lucky, they’ll announce themselves with fresh droppings before you actually come up on them at speed. Thank Hermes, the god of travelers, for our R 1200 GS. Two up and fully loaded with gear, it handled as if it were stripped to the frame.
To the visiting eye, Greece seems to be doing fine economically. Wi-fi is everywhere, high-speed superhighways are available and cafés are packed, but too many business buildings stand abandoned and the Greek debt crisis might be limiting the number of Mythos beers or caffe freddos the average person chooses to order. Because Greeks are self-respecting and proud, careful not to display any suffering, it’s impossible for the short-term visitor to get a complete read on the complex situation. However, to a chronic worrier, the restrained approach is refreshingly upbeat. After our first long day of mountain riding, we found optimism personified in Christos and Georgia, who run Oixalia, a jewel-like hotel above Kremasta Lake, Greece’s largest man-made reservoir. Like many, Chris left home during the Junta, a coup d’état in 1967 followed by punishing
right-wing military rule until 1974. He landed in upstate New York, where he made pizza and became successful. When he returned to his beloved homeland, he put his life’s savings and a scary big loan into this new place in the mountains. The fuzzy future doesn’t faze him, and he says (in Brooklynese), “Doan wurry aboud it.” We were the only visitors — and something of a sensation — high above old town Kastoria in the stone village of Nymfaio, which could as easily be in Switzerland except that the European brown bear replaces the Saint Bernard as the featured animal. The wildlife group Arcturos cares for a dozen bruins, rehabilitating them after their mistreatment as Greek dancing bears, a remnant of a less enlightened day. When they arrive, the bears have never been allowed to experience hibernation. Arcturos remedies that, providing man-made
We were invited into a Kastoria home to enjoy this view, coffee and conversation. The bear-rescue operation Arcturos and the stone village of Nymfaio are situated high in the mountains in the background.
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“kilometer eaters,” a real compliment. Finally, we hustled across the Corinthos dens until they learn to build their own. Going on, he told me I was a bit of a fraud, canal separating the Peloponnese from the Aiming for Lake Plastira and the remote because I took a shortcut. Then he gave us a rest of Greece and into Athens at 140 kph on but elegant Hotel Nevros, we wheeled in at trophy he had made with a plaque that says big roads, then navigated through the city’s a fog-draped mountain bike shop on the we conquered Greece on two wheels. It was sea of scooters. Diamandis and Erin, the theory that friendly people around the a typically Greek exchange — honest and folks at MotoVoyager who made our world gather in motorcycle and bicycle thought-provoking, contradictory shops. With little shared language, but hugely pleasant. Our straightwe sat with Dimitrios, Dimitrios forward American response was to and Katerina, who poured us cognac take the MotoVoyager crew out for and brought us Turkish halvah to spicy pizza and icy beer. taste while we laughed our way To get there, fly to Athens, of through a faltering discussion. Like course. Many flights will be overmost of their countrymen, the three night. Make your arrangements were completely done with politithrough MotoVoyager (moto-voycians. They were drinking the day ager.gr). They can accommodate away while rain fell outside, and we escorted groups of up to about six had to leave while I could still ride people for anything from one to 14 safely. nights. Seriously consider the selfOff to the south, we rolled onto guided option if you are at all advenLefkada Island, where the GPS temturous. Diamandis and Erin will ask porarily lost its mind and sent us for your preferences and use them down a pedestrian promenade to a to carefully customize accommodastop 10 feet above the Ionian Sea, smack in the middle of the lunch Left, Remnants of Delphi, home to the famous oracle, cling to the tions, restaurants and even routes. crowd. A five-point U-turn and a mountain above olive groves. Above, Athens is one of world's most They sincerely want you to enjoy first-gear crawl past shops and bars cosmopolitan cities – witness this display of flags, banners and textiles. Greece and they know the country well. Trust the GPS and Diamandis’ put it right, but the flop sweat flowed coordinates. Avoid June, July and August. arrangements and took exceptional care to like one of the thousands of Greek springs. Recommended: for 1 rider, the F 800 GS, see that we had first-class accommodations, At Hotel Santa Marina, we dined outdoors and for two-up, the R 1200 GS. Have your greeted us with relief, happy we were safely high above the sea, relaxing over spicy skills well honed. off adventure road. Diamandis named us tzatziki and rusks, Greek salad lush with feta and the world’s best tomatoes, herbgrilled chicken and cold beer. A little further south, Porto Katsiki beach – literally “port of goats” – is tiny, a cliffbacked bowl that catches and holds the sun. 34 YEARS OF GREAT At what some call Europe’s best beach, the FOOD morning crowd was small, and the heartAND FUN 34th ANNUAL breaking beauty and water as blue as a Bessie Smith set-list made us all feel connected, children of the same compassionate earth, washed by a perfect sea. Until 11:30, which Omaha is when three party boats steamed in on us, Lincoln running their specially engineered prows Kearney I-80 Exit 272 South up on the pebble beach, dropping ladders Location: and disgorging 200-plus crazed party peoFranklin County Fairgrounds ple each. We hurried to leave before we had Franklin, Nebraska to fully confront the desecration. Across the big bridge and now on the Contact: Peloponnese, we stopped to take in ancient Jayney Solo 3608 S 87th Ave Omaha NE 68124 Olympia, where the sun’s rays ignite the 402-393-1297, 403-676-1739 • bmwnightriders@cox.net Olympic torch every four years, then twisted through more mountains to CAMPING, LOTS OF GOOD SHADE, HOT SHOWERS, FRIDAY STEW POTS, SATURDAY Gytheio, old Sparta’s seaport and the MORNING BREAKFAST, SATURDAY NIGHT SUPPER, MUSIC FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT, Aktaion Resort, a luxe spa offering both CHILDREN’S FIELD EVENTS. AIR CONDITIONED ENCLOSED DINING AND MEETING AREAS!!! pool and ocean swimming within 100 yards RALLY PINS TO THE FIRST 200 IN ATTENDANCE. of one another.
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hit the links sporting MOA gear
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June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
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skills
askapro
Choosing the best class for you By Lee Parks #162125
Q:
I have been riding for around five years and want to get better, so I’ve been thinking about taking another class. The only training I’ve had was my basic course. Looking at all the street motorcycle training classes out there, there seems to be three basic camps: low-speed precision courses, high-speed racetrack courses and over-the-road courses. How do I choose the best type of course for me?
A:
Fortunately, I have experience teaching all three types of courses, so I can possibly shed some light on this very important and somewhat confusing topic. Let me start by saying that one type is not better, per se, than another. There is much to learn from each type of training, and I believe that riders benefit from all of them. If you think of your riding as a life-long project, each course is like an additional tool that can help you with your project. As Robert Pirsig said in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, “The real cycle you’re working on is a cycle called yourself.” To make it easier to understand, let’s use the same nomenclature that is used in the military for motorcycle training: Levels 1, 2 and 3. Level 1 training is strictly for novices who want to learn how to ride, and in America, it is always done on a paved pad, usually a parking lot. These types of courses include the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Basic RiderCourse (MSF BRC), Idaho STAR Basic 1, TEAM Oregon Basic Rider Training (BRT), and my own Total Control Beginner Riding Clinic (TC BRC),
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also known as the state-specific California Motorcyclist Safety Program Motorcyclist Training Course (CMSP MTC). These courses are typically done on “trainer” motorcycles such as the Honda Rebel 250, Suzuki TU250, Kawasaki Ninja 300, Star 250, etc. Since you already know how to ride, suffice to say that all of these courses can be an introduction to riding for a non-rider. Level 2 is considered intermediate training. It includes the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Basic RiderCourse2 (MSF BRC2), Advanced RiderCourse (MSF ARC)/Military Sportbike RiderCourse (MSF MSRC), Idaho STAR Basic II and Experienced courses, TEAM Oregon Intermediate Rider Training and Total Control Intermediate Riding Clinic (TC IRC). These courses are done on the students’ own motorcycles and are also done on a paved parking lot. The highest military motorcycle training category for personally owned vehicles is Level 3 training. Parking lot courses in this category include the Total Control Advanced Riding Clinic (TC ARC) and MotoMark 1 Maximum Control Course. High-speed, track courses in Level 3 include California Superbike School (CSS), Cornerspeed, Yamaha Champion’s Riding School (YCRS), STAR School and Total Control Track Clinic (TCTC). There are also dirt-oriented schools in at the third level such as American Supercamp, and MotoVentures Dirt First. Depending on the branch of service, there are additional courses that are approved for each level. As far as deciding between a “low-speed” or “high-speed” advanced course, both have their pros and cons. In the Japanese rider training community, instructors call slow riding the “Dread Zone.” This is where many riders have a lot of fear of controlling their bikes because of the lack of stability caused by so little gyroscopic forces available to stabilize the bike. On the other hand,
Japanese instructors also talk about what they call the “5 Fasts.” The 5 Fasts are “Going,” “Slowing,” “Rolling,” “Yawing” and “Pitching.” Low-speed, advanced courses are able to train you to make the 5 Fasts faster. After all, the slower you go, the faster the others can be. The faster you go, the slower the others have to be. That is why we are so impressed watching YouTube videos of Moto Gymkhana competitors in Japan doing incredibly fast turns/directional changes at relatively low speeds. This is also true with Motorcop competitions popular in the U.S. By contrast, high-speed courses allow us to practice at real road speeds (or greater!). These are thrilling to participate in, but many folks find those kinds of speeds intimidating for learning because of the associated risk of a high-speed crash. Remember, speed doesn’t kill, rapid deceleration kills. My advice is to start with a low-speed advanced course before moving on to a higher-speed one. I’d also like to point out that there is never a bad time to do off-road training. While the riding technique (especially body position) is very different, the overall balance and ability to deal with a sliding motorcycle are critical skills every rider should possess. They are also a hell of a lot of fun. Over-the-road courses are also cool but very rare in the U.S. due to the high cost of insurance and litigious nature of this nation. Stayin’ Safe Advanced Skills Tours and WMST’s On-Street Courses are some of the best out there. The benefit of being on actual roads with instructor-to-rider communications is real-world, real-time observation and feedback. Of course this comes with real traffic hazards to boot. So be careful, as there be dragons out there. Ultimately, the purpose of training can be summed up in my English friend Duncan Mackillop’s Rider’s Job Description: “In order to guarantee a successful riding journey, the rider must be able to predict what is going to
www.guarddogmoly.com happen next with 100 percent certainty.” In other words, it’s all about successful prediction. Part of making a decision on which school to attend will depend on how much “education” you want with your training. Some schools provide more education than training and vice versa. If you’re wondering what I mean by that, let’s define the difference between education and training. Education is the process of facilitating learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, values, beliefs and habits. Training is about motor-skill-based behavioral performance. To understand the subtle difference between them, remember that you received “sex education” in school but you did not receive “sex training” in school. Both types of schools are valuable. It really depends on what combination would most benefit your current riding issues. Only you can make that call. Education-heavy schools give you more “tools” for self-improvement, which you can practice after you leave the course, whereas training-heavy schools give you more improvement during the actual time of the course. Of course, let’s not forget the large price differences in various offerings. They can range from free to thousands of dollars. Like most things in life, you often get what you pay for. Decide how important your skills are and spend accordingly. As the famous Bell Helmet ad from the 1970s use to say, “If you have a $10 head, buy a $10 helmet.”
Lee Parks (#162125) has been riding and racing motorcycles over 33 years. He has edited both consumer and trade motorcycle magazines, manufacturers his own line of motorcycle gloves and is a WERA national endurance champion. His riding skills book Total Control has sold over 100,000 copies in five languages around the world. Lee’s Total Control Training company manages—and is the curriculum vendor for—the California Motorcyclist Safety Program as well as several large military contracts. If you have a question you’d like to him to answer in this column, send him an email at lee@totalcontroltraining.net.
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skills
RIDEWELL
Protecting yourself against Zika, the new threat south of the border By Marven Ewen #150506 IF YOU ARE PLAN-
ning a trip south of the border you should be aware of a new threat. I am not talking about drug cartels or the bad water, but something very tiny: the Zika virus. Active transmission of the virus by mosquito has been found in Mexico, Central America and South America all the way down to Paraguay. The only South American countries that have not had active transmission reported so far are Peru, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay, although this may change; so check with your travel clinic or CDC website before you go. Zika was actually first discovered in Uganda, Africa, in 1947. Outbreaks in humans were first reported in 1952. More recently, in May of 2015 the first case of local transmission from mosquito was found in Brazil. Since then, the outbreak has quickly spread to other countries. It is transmitted by the Aedes species mosquito that seems to like a warm tropical climate, so it is unlikely to be found above 6,500 feet elevation. If people are infected by this virus, the symptoms can include fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis (pink eyes). These symptoms are generally mild and self-limiting. Many people
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don’t even know they have been infected; however, in rare cases some of those infected have also developed Guillain Barre Syndrome. This is a condition where the patient’s immune system is tricked into attacking his or her own nervous system, causing tingling, weakness, and if untreated, paralysis and death. In addition to infection from mosquitoes, the Zika virus can be transmitted sexually by men during acute infection and for
some time after infection. It is not yet known how long a man can carry the virus and remain infectious. The chief concern about this virus is the devastating impact it can have on a developing fetus if a pregnant woman gets infected. There has been a rash of babies born in South America with Microcephaly, and it is thought to be the result of Zika infection. Microcephaly is a type of congenital abnormality resulting in a very small brain, which causes severe neurologic impairment. The infection has also been seen in most states throughout the U.S. but not directly from mosquitos yet. The cases of disease in the U.S. have been in returning travelers or
acquired through sex with men who have been traveling. Although there are no vaccines or medications for this disease, there are some steps you can take to avoid catching the virus or transmitting it. If traveling in areas known to have active transmission from mosquitoes, be sure to wear long sleeve shirts and pants. Preferably treat the clothing with Permethrin or buy clothing that has been treated. Cover exposed skin with an EPAapproved insect repellant such as DEET, and follow the label instructions for reapplication and apply over your sunscreen. Stay where you don’t have to leave a window open at night, or if that is not possible, sleep under netting. Pregnant women should not travel to or through countries of active transmission if the altitude is less than 6,500 feet. At this time, until more is known about the virus, men returning from mosquito transmission countries should assume they have acquired the infection and take steps to prevent sexual transmission to their partners. The recommendation is condoms or abstinence for period of six months. Also, returning travelers, both men and women, should take steps for the first three weeks to avoid bites from mosquitos at home, so the infection doesn’t get spread to local mosquitos. Following the guidelines to reduce your Zika risk also reduces your risk for other mosquito-borne diseases such as Malaria, West Nile and Dengue, so the need to avoid mosquito bites should be a familiar precaution to world travelers.
www.ceebaileys.com/cycle
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foundationnews
A priest, a rabbi and Paul Thorn walk into a rally THAT
IS
PROBABLY
A
GREAT
opener to a fantastic joke; however, the news from the Foundation is no joke. It does have a lot to do with religion, Paul Thorn and Das Rally! although it’s about the religion of motorcycle safety. The priest and the rabbi were just extras. If you haven’t heard, Paul Thorn is playing the Saturday night concert at Das Rally! in Hamburg. The Brothers Landreth will be opening for Paul, and my guess is Saturday will be one rocking good time. Paul’s mix of gritty vocals, hard-hitting lyrics and and cool musicianship are likely just the thing to close out our three-day celebration. What you might not know is that Paul is doing a solid for MOA members in the name of rider training. The Foundation and Paul Thorn got together a few months ago and decided to take his involvement with the MOA to the next level. Along with Paul’s Saturday performance, he offered the Foundation exclusive license to a greatest hits CD of his
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
work. Tupelo Blue at Niagara Falls features ten of Paul Thorn’s best recordings that are sure to delight any music fan. The CD is on sale now at bmwmoa.org for $25, and all the proceeds benefit GEARS Training. If you buy your CD before the Rally, we even have a couple of Das Rally! stickers for your side case. Paul and his management team have been more than gracious to the MOA Foundation and our effort to support motorcycle safety, especially GEARS Training. If you know a young person that would like to learn how to ride or improve his or her skills, GEARS Training will be offered in Hamburg at no cost to the participant. You read that correctly—FREE. Training will take place Tuesday and Wednesday, July 12 and 13, on the Rally grounds. Participants need proper riding gear, including boots, long pants, long sleeves, gloves, eye protection and helmets, but motorcycles and professional instructors are supplied as well as admission to the Rally. Riders can register online at the Das Rally! webpage or call (864) 438-0962 and register over the phone. Space is limited to 24 students and a $50 deposit is required to
guarantee the space; however, the deposit will be refunded at the end of the training. It is a great opportunity for our youngest members to ride the right path for a safe motorcycling journey. The news doesn’t end there. The Foundation will be giving away the Wunderlich Custom Classic R 100 Saturday night between sets! The R 100 was featured on the cover of the May issue and you can win it. Tickets to win the motorcycle are $25 each or five for $100 and can be purchased online at bmwmoaf.org. Who knows? We might even convince Paul to pull the winning ticket or autograph someone’s new bike. Tickets are on sale through June 30, and proceeds benefit the Foundation’s rider safety efforts, including GEARS Training, the Paul B. Scholarship fund and Rider Performance University events at the Rally. There’s more to come, but we’ll save those announcements for Das Rally!; it should be a great time. Hats off to Paul Thorn for lending his talents and charitable spirit to MOA members. As always, we encourage you to ride safe and with a priest or rabbi if at all possible.
www.bmwmoa.org/paulthorn www.bmwmoa.org/paulthorn
June 2016  BMW OWNERS NEWS
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flashback
25 years ago
AS WE PREPARE TO CELEBRATE
100 years of BMW later this summer, it’s interesting to note the June 1991 issue of BMW Owners News, which carried a news story highlighting excerpts from an address by Eberhard Von Kuenheim, the chairman of the board of BMW AG. He spoke on the occasion marking production of 1,000,000 BMW motorcycles at the BMW factory in Berlin. “Our company stated out in Munich producing aero engines in 1916. In the initial period of our 75-year corporate history, these engines were a constant challenge in terms of innovation, performance, endurance and reliability. Since the foundation of our company, 75 years have now passed, and we will be celebrating an important anniversary this year in 1991. “BMW motorcycles can look back at a history of legendary success. Even back in 1929, just a few years after the first BMW saw the light of day, a BMW became the fastest motorcycle in the world. And, in an exciting competition with British motorcyclists, BMW regained this world record, time and again until 1937. Incidentally, the record we set back then remained untouched until the 1950s. This was followed by Sidecar World Championships for BMW sidecar motorcycles 20 years in a row. In the 1980s, BMW boxer machines still based on the design principle conceived back in 1923 won the toughest rally in the world from Paris to Dakar no less than four times. “In 1990 we became the world’s first manufacturer to introduce the
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
catalytic converter for the motorcycle. The Digital Motor Electronics of our four-cylinder, 16-valve engines offer ideal conditions for this environmentally friendly technology. To this day no other manufacturer is able to offer motorcycles featuring both ABS and the catalytic converter. “Most of our motorcycle exports go straight from here to the United States, the country which has been our largest foreign market for a long time now. As a manufacturer of cars and motorcycles, we have loyal friends and supporters in the United States, just as the Americans have always been loyal friends and supporters of this city and the people living here.” Closer to home, final preparations were under way for the 1991 BMW MOA Rally set for Flagstaff, Arizona. In an area full of bucket-list destinations, that year’s rally was titled “The Grand Canyon Rally.” Walnut Canyon National Monument and Meteor Crater, Sedona, Mormon Lake, Happy Jack and Prescott were just a few of the spectacular riding opportunities available in the area. Two BMW motorcycles, a 1991 R 100/7 and a 1991 Paris-Dakar were the grand prizes given away that year and hundreds of door prizes donated by MOA supporters were also available. As times and technology changes, some basic human behaviors do not. In the “Letters to the Editor” pages of the 1991 issue, a member wrote, “I bought my first BMW two and a half years ago and have been a member of BMW MOA for two years. I really enjoy the BMW Owners News and read it from cover to cover. Ninety-eight percent of the magazine is good, positive, entertaining reading. The one thing that irks me is reading articles from members bickering back and forth at each other, i.e., the article in the February Owners News about one member calling the other a “quitter.” Who cares?!? We hear enough griping in our everyday lives other than this. I am happy to be a member of a great group of motorcyclists. Keep up the great job on the Owners News.
Another member wrote, “I want to thank you for the expedient service in processing my renewal in the BMW MOA for my 11th year. I must say, however, I almost did not renew and would like to outline a few reasons: (1.) For many years, a patch or decal was included each year with your renewal. It was then discontinued unless you wrote and requested one…Please send me a decal ASAP! (2.) In the past most rallies offered a patch or pin and many offered both. I personally won’t attend a rally that offers neither, as I am an avid pin and patch collector. The Kansas Rally last year did not advertise that they offered a pin, so I did not attend and found out later it was still included. Nebraska Husker didn’t advertise all the food you could eat as they had in the past either, so I didn’t attend as in years past. “The BMW MOA is getting just a little too big for its britches in my opinion. Sure you offer the anonymous listing and now take credit cards, but let’s get back to the grassroots level of food, pins and patches at rallies and when renewing membership. If these things don’t improve, I will likely not renew when my dues come due next year. The MOA is losing its flavor like most things due to size and the almighty dollar ruling supreme…Let’s improve these things before it’s too late.”
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jacktheriepe
The moto ghost of Toms River By Jack Riepe #116117 TOMS
RIVER
IS
the sixth largest city in New Jersey and the gateway to Seaside Heights, the painted lady of the Jersey shore. Technically, it is a shore town itself, cuddling up to Barnegat Bay, a stretch of water 42 miles long. Barnegat Bay is a serious extension of the Atlantic that occasionally gets up to dance, as it did during Hurricane Katrina. The bay did hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to posh shore palaces and bungalows alike. (A bungalow at the Jersey Shore, like the ones you can find in the historic part of Seaside Park, costs as much as an eight-room house in the Midwest.) Toms River is roughly divided by the Garden State Parkway, which is the world’s second longest parking lot.* On a typical summer weekend, traffic backs up from the Toms River exit (83A & B) and extends north to the rings of Saturn. Men and women headed for the barrier island communities of Seaside Heights and Seaside Park have been known to devour their whiny children while sitting in traffic. Riders of air-cooled motorcycles can be viewed broiling ribs or lamb chops on their engines while creeping forward at speeds of 20 to 30 centimeters per hour. (This does not include oilhead “R” bike riders, as the whale oil coolant of their machines adds a peculiar taste to milder foods.) The half of Toms River east of the GSP is home to all the cool shore people. The women are perfectly tanned and beautiful. They wear bathing suits that do not have enough material to wipe a dipstick. (I checked.) The men are thin, drive shiny Jeeps or
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
Ford trucks, and all of them have boats. Every dog wears prescription sunglasses and a designer bandana while hanging out of a shiny Jeep or Ford truck. The highway to the water is local Route 37, and it is lined with strip malls, burger joints, sushi places, great Mexican food, two bike dealerships, and some boatyards. This is the part of town that listens to Springsteen and the Beach Boys cranked loud. The western half of Toms River is home to some of the world’s largest retirement communities. Two of the most popular are “Seizure Village” and “God’s Waiting Room.” (For the attorneys waiting to pounce on me, this is not their real names.) Less cool people live here. I live here, in a modest house designed for folks who are a bad risk for green bananas. There is a landline in my kitchen that has direct dial to the local undertaker. (It is cheaper if you can call yourself in and lurch out to the curb.) I have yet to bring a woman to this house. What the hell would I say? “Don’t use the phone in the kitchen?” From here, local Route 37 runs west to the spooky Pine Barrens, which is one of my favorite places. There are great dirt bike events held here once or twice a year. The sand roads through the pines are endless. Yet every conceivable motorcycle—from the most lupine Harley Davidson to the highest Eurotech BMW—generally heads east to the ocean. Therein lies the crux of this story. I live far enough from the ocean so I cannot hear the waves. My house is far enough from the boardwalk so I cannot hear the whoosh and music from the great amusement rides. My bedroom is angled away from the beach, so I cannot even hear a woman’s laugh in the moonlight. However, I am close enough to Route 37 to hear the tortured scream of motorcycle engines being revved to the threshold of hell—between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m.—throughout the summer. Route 37 is
pretty much a straight shot in this part of town and the SQUIDs (So Quick Until I Die) are like velociraptors with a 14,000 rpm mating call. This bugs the hell out of me partly because I am an obsequious BMW rider and mostly because I am a brontosaurus with a direct line to the undertaker. It got so bad one night that I rolled out of bed and made my way to the intersection at Route 37. I got there just as a mob of Skittles-colored motorcycles, with back tires wider than my former mother-in-law’s butt, exploded in high-rev madness and headed east at about 300 miles per hour. Each rider’s head was enshrouded in a full-faced helmet bearing a fantastic design and a smoked face-shield. The rest of their uniforms consisted of bike logo shirts, shorts, and flip-flops. They were invincible. A deafening silence filled the vacuum of sound, and I thought I’d kill 15 minutes by lighting a cigar. I had no sooner put the stogie to my lips than a sole headlight headed up Route 37. “A straggler,” I thought. But there was something oddly familiar about the headlamp. It had a jerky focus to the beam. And it was a softer, more silvery light than the high intensity LEDs around today. The revving engine had the unmistakable sound of a two-stroke, three-cylinder bar fight, commonly associated with a 1975 Kawasaki H2. I hadn’t heard that sound in 42 years. The hair stood up on the back of my neck. As the bike got closer, I realized that more than the headlamp was silvery. The whole Kawasaki H2 was moonbeam white and shimmering. The rider pulled up and asked, “Hey Fat Boy... Didn’t you ever see a ghost before?” “You can kiss my pillion, Casper.” I replied, with traditional BMW warmth. “Don’t take it personally,” the Ghost said. “What the hell is that? A water buffalo?” The spirit gestured to my K75, the 1986 blue
bike with the Sprint Fairing, known to my readers as “Blue B@lls.” I started to explain, but he cut me off. “Today is the 40th anniversary of my demise on this bike,” the Ghost droned. “I have to explain to someone, specifically a biker, what happened or another two hundred years will be added onto the curse.” He launched into a story that involved a beautiful woman, a cheerleader at his high school, who wouldn’t give him the time of day. Then he got the Kawasaki H2, and she treated him like real dirt. (I know this routine.) They had one date that turned out badly. He was a tormented soul and told her the worst thing he could think of: he went out with her to get close to her younger sister, who had a mustache longer than his. The cheerleader smacked him, damned him and wished him a terrible end. He found it ten minutes later. And now he must ride up and down Route 37 in the dark forever—unless she lifts the curse. “And the worst part of it is that two of the plugs on this damned thing are fouled. I can’t get it over 40 miles per hour,” he wailed. “All because of Janice Balcraken.” That was the name on my aged neighbor’s mailbox. I’d met her only once, when she knocked on my door to borrow a quart of gin. (Over the course of 40 years, her physical appearance had taken on the look of her attitude toward men, which was a kind of imperious contempt.) I told him I knew her. He begged me to return with the lady the next night, so he could apologize and tell her he loved her,
or whatever it would take to get the damned plugs changed. I knocked on her door. I told her the story. I told her what he said. I told her about his ghostly tears whenever he whispered, “Balcraken.” She met me at the intersection at 3 a.m., wearing the cheerleader outfit she’d had on the last time she saw him. This would not have been my first choice for reunion gear as time had not been kind to Janice Balcraken. To be honest, the cheerleader outfit would have looked better on me. “Give him this,” I said, “as a token of forgiveness.” She shot me a puzzled look and I explained, “It’s a spark plug wrench.” The biker arrived on cue and asked, “Where is she?” “Right here,” I said, with a grand flourish. “Where? Behind the old bat in the Halloween costume?” Even I winced at this one. “Willie,” she said. “It’s me.” “Janice you used to be beautiful,” said the Ghost, whose real name turned out to be Wilbert Zazznewski. He was known as “Zazz” in high school. She had a nickname in high school, too. Likewise, it had something to do with her last name. “What happened?” They were fighting like feral cats in Fish House Alley when I pulled away. It seemed Janice managed to extend the curse for another thousand years when the third plug fouled. I could hear his scream over the SQUIDs’ revving engines on Route 37.
They fought until the sun rose and he faded. It was dawn when she rang the doorbell. “Do you have any gin?” she asked. “The cat got the last of it,” I replied. “Zazz told me he had a fling with my sister,” said Janice. “I want to call her, but my cell is dead. Can I borrow your phone?” “Use the one in the kitchen,” I replied.** Author’s notes: * The world’s longest parking lot is the Long Island Expressway (LIE) in New York. Women have given birth in stalled traffic, raised families, and sent kids off to college, all before reaching Ronkonkoma. Source: Riepe’s Book of Indisputable Moto Facts ** Not all of my stories have a happy ending.
Jack Riepe’s revised version of Conversations With A Motorcycle is now again in print through a new publisher, Mason Erliche Books. The new version retains much of the character of the original edition, with the addition of several chapters. To order an autographed copy of the revised edition, email your name, address, and telephone number to jack.riepe@gmail.com. Want to give this book as a Christmas gift? Order it now, as Riepe is considered a bad risk for green bananas. Look up the author at the beer garden at the MOA Rally in Hamburg, New York, this summer.
www.parabellum.com
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CHARTEREDCLUBBING
NorCal club adopts and cleans stretch of US 101 By Richard Klain #22237 MAYBE THE “EMPTY NEST SYN-
drome” explains why an otherwise sane person would adopt a two-mile stretch of highway that looked like the kids had just trashed it. And Maybe that’s why the NorCal Club decided to Adopt-A-Highway. Ed Perry, NorCal Club’s Historian, had retired and had more time to travel the world, often by motorcycle. As he travelled around California, his home state, he started noticing the increasingly littered highways. To Ed, California was looking like many of the littered third world countries he had visited. Something had to be done, and Ed was starting to also notice the Adopt-A-Highway signs with an 800 number to call. He became determined to do something about it, even if he couldn’t convince others to help. Ed can be pretty persuasive, and the San Francisco Bay Area NorCal club agreed to Adopt-A-Highway, as long as Ed handled the details. But, first a little history about this particular voluntary way of performing community service. US 101, when it was established in 1926, was one of the original national routes, running through California, north-south, from the Oregon border down to San Diego on the Mexican border. Over time, 101 has been dissected in places, superseded by other highways, yet remains the longest highway of any kind in California. North-south will do that in a state that’s 770 miles long and 250 miles wide. The Adopt-a-Highway program, also known as Sponsor-A-Highway, got its start in the 1980s in Texas. The
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
program began in California in 1989. The difference between the two names is that Adopt-AHighway, now in 49 states, means that a sponsoring organization’s members volunteer to pick up trash along a highway. Sponsor-AHighway means a sponsoring organization pays someone else to pick up the trash, but still gets their name on a sign. A year ago Ed got the go-ahead to contact the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to get the ball rolling. Each state and each bureaucracy has its own application process, which normally takes from one to three months to complete. At the end of the process, one of our club members, Ted Crum, who’s also our club’s Tour Captain, designed the graphics which had to meet specifications. Caltrans then gave us a blank white panel that was taken to a recommended sign NorCal’s three Adopt-A-Highway Safety Officers in front of sign. Left to maker who charged about right: Fred Montaño, Ed Perry and Steve Kesinger. (Photo by Author) $150 to make our sign. Kesinger and Fred Montaño, who attended The completed panel was a safety training class at a nearby Caltrans returned to Caltrans for installation on one maintenance station. They were issued of their Adopt-A-Highway signs. twelve sets of safety equipment (no charge), Then there’s the safety orientation trainwhich included colorful safety vests (color ing for a minimum of two designated Safety coordinated with the sign), hard hats, Officers. We had three: Ed Perry, Steve
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gloves, safety glasses, trash pickers, and lots of trash bags. Club members who participated also had to go online for a shorter version of the safety training. Some documentation also has to be carried by each group when doing a cleanup. Now that NorCal Club has been out on its first cleanup, what was it like? Twelve club members met for breakfast, geared up, teamed up in groups of three or four, then drove to their 100-200 yard section and did their thing. Once a section was cleaned, we moved to the next section. About three hours and about 80 full trash bags later, the deed was done. Then a month or so later it repeats. Inquiring minds want to know what kind of weird trash did we find? Well, no guns, needles or dead bodies, though I suppose that’s possible. Mostly paper, cardboard and plastic trash, intermixed with the occasional stuffed toy animal, pieces of wood, plastic bottles and cans. And I even found a rotary saw blade… Would we do it again? Heck yeah! To keep the club interest up we’ve made our little piece of clean highway a waypoint on some of our weekend group rides, yet another way to cope with Empty Nest Syndrome.
Is Adopt-A-Highway available in your area?
Finding Adopt-A-Highway where you live may take some research. If there’s a sign with contact info in your area, good. Otherwise, Google on the keywords, “Adopt-AHighway” plus your state and county. Sometimes Adopt-A-Highway is confused with “Sponsor-A-Highway,” where you can pay others to pick up the litter in exchange for a sign along the road.
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1.866.495.2774
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August 19 – 21, 2016 The Loonie-Tic BMW Riders of Quinte West invite you to our 14th Anniversary
RETURN TO TRENTON RALLY Join us in Centennial Park, located on the shores of Lake Ontario in Trenton, Ontario, Canada. This was the site of the highly successful 2002 BMW MOA International Rally. Situated right in town, the park is right next door to accommodations, great restaurants, and scenic roads nearby. Pre-registration by midnight July 31/16 is $55.00. At the gate the cost will be $65.00. Registration includes a rally pin and a rally mug, 2 nights of camping, hot showers, 50/50 draws, seminars and tech sessions, flea market, self-guided geocache event and great door prizes. Friday night hamburgers or tube steaks, along with movies and popcorn. Saturday night steak dinner with all the trimmings. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate are also included and available throughout the day. While in the area tour the National Air Force Museum or check out some of the numerous local wineries. Don’t miss the music and dancing on Saturday night. And if any other BMW clubs are interested in holding a reunion at our rally, just contact us to set it up ! Send pre-registration to The Loonie-Tic BMW Riders, c/o Chris Beck, Treasurer, 88 Riverside Blvd, RR # 1, Campbellford, ON. K0L 1L0. Canada. For pre-registration form and more rally info see our website at www.ltbmwr.ca www.ltbmwr.ca.
lifestyl
firstbike
Two to turn 50 By Jim Blanchette #130385 ONE OF THE ADVANTAGES OF
buying a new home is having a garage large enough to take on a project such as rebuilding a classic car. GBut given the cost of any of the vintage cars that I grew up with, I knew that such a project was out of my budget. Instead, I turned to restoring a classic motorcycle. My search for a pre-1970’s BMW began, fueled by a 1992 BMW R 100 R I bought two years ago. At the time it was in the need for some serious care, and I enjoyed bringing it back to life. It is now a fun weekend bike.
During a weekly motorcycle get together at a friend’s house, my friend Larry asked meI was asked by my friend Larry if I had found a bike yet. Although I had looked, I hadn’t found anything yet. Larry let me know that one of his co-workers was selling a 1966 BMW. He had my attention. I grilled him with a series of questions, and he never faltered. He described the motorcycle as “being all there” and “looks like it was stored in a shed for many years.” My interest was piqued. It was a classic BMW, and as chance would have it, 1966 was my birth year.
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Within days I contacted the owner and arranged to see the bike. It was “all there,” but it had also “been stored in a shed” – and as stated. And the shed was not kind to it. There were many small dents on the tank and rear fender from objects falling on it, and exposure to the weather had caused some rusting. I knew immediately it would not make a good survivor and would need to be fully restored. The owner, who restores classic American iron got the bike with hopes of restoring it, but but found out the German machines were not the same. We negotiated a price and then loaded my 1966 R 50/2 onto the trailer. Driving home, I made a plan to have it road worthy for “Our” 50thth birthday.” Upon getting it home
and into the garage, I performed the basic checks. The spark, compression and the carburetors were not bad, but the tank and petcock had more varnish than a 1950’s Chris-Craft. I made a short list of everything that needed to be done. Everything. Less than 2 years may not be enough time to finish the project; and it wouldn’t fall within my budget.I had less than two years to complete the project and a limited budget, so I armed myself with two2 full cans of Kroil and, jumped right into, and started the disassembly. After a couple of weeks and amazingly only one broken bolt, the only thing on my lift was the frame. Besides the varnish in the fuel system, the only thing I found that might have sidelined the old girl was a loose drive shaft. Out of the four bolts, two were finger tight, one was barely holding on, and the other was
missing. I later found it in the drive shaft housing during the tear down. I knew the extent of the work that needed to be done with the running gear to restore it to like new, but I did not have the tools or experience needed to get it done. I chose to contract that work out to Scottie’s Workshop in CaliforniaA. Scottie’s did a fantastic job on everything, and as a bonus, he kept me within my budget. With the hard work out of the way, it was now time to figure out what I wanted to do with the paint. I love the Crystal Grey paint of my 2007 K 1600 GT, the Silver Fox, but all my friends vetoed that idea. I caved to the pressure and painted it back to its original black; instead of the white pin stripes however, I had them done in a metallic silver. John, a friend of a friend who paints some of the nicest hot rods around, tackled the body work and paint. There is only one description for his work: you’ve got to see it to believe it. It is that good! As the time passed, the parts started to roll back into the garage. Slowly a motorcycle emergedwas emerging. Throughout the process, there were areas I took the liberty to make it not just a restored BMW, but my BMW R 50/2. The paint is slightly different and RK Polishing gave all the aluminum was polished by RK polishing to a mirror finish. I upgraded the electrical system from 6 voltsV to 12V and added muchneeded fuses to protect the old girl. I switched tThe hand controls were switched over to those of a /5 to add a front brake light switch and turn signals for safety. The old bench seat needed to be recovered, but I never liked the look of it, so I installed a solo seatinstead a solo seat was installed. During the rebuild I learned that Massachusetts allows the use ofI could use a “year of manufacture” license plate here in Massachusetts. After a short time searching, I was able to find one and I now have a road legal 1966 motorcycle plate to finish off the build. The final part of this adventure is for our 50thth birthday to take a trip to the BMW MOA rally in New York. Hope to see you there.
www.cyclepump.com
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www.westcobattery.com
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The 2016 Charity Club Challenge By Karol Patzer #27994 National Charity Chair EACH YEAR, THE BMW MOTORCY-
cle Club of Port Washington challenges all chartered clubs to donate $100 for our National Charity. This summer, the charity we will be supporting is the Pioneer Camp & Retreat Center located in Angola, New York, about 13 miles from Hamburg. Funds raised at the rally will support Project Purple, the National Military Family Association’s camp open to military children with a parent or guardian from any service branch, and “Operation STAR” (Survivors Together Always Remembered), a camp for children who have lost a loved who was serving in the U.S. military. Operation Purple is for children who have a parent or guardian who incurred service-connected injuries or illness on or after 9/11 or who will have a parent or guardian deployed during a 15-month window. The camp gives military kids an
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
opportunity to have fun and make friends, acknowledging that they serve, too. While providing a fun, carefree experience for military kids, the camp also aims to teach them about coping skills to help deal with deployment-related stress and to foster relationships with other children who know exactly what they are going through. Operation STAR Camp brings surviving children together to let them know that their departed members of the military will always be remembered. Attendees will be equipped with long-term and immediate emotional help, hope, and healing that will aid in their grieving for their loved ones who once served our beloved country. Challenge your members to save some change between now and the rally. Consider contributing at least $100. One dollar or more per member would help, and we could make a difference. A check for the total amount collected will be presented to a Pioneer Camp representative on Saturday at the closing ceremony. Let’s see what we can do to make some child’s camping
experience the best ever! Additionally, during the rally be on the lookout for the roving 50/50 ticket sales people, as Britta and her team of volunteers will be on the rally grounds selling tickets. You’ll have an opportunity to win some spending money while helping our charity. Your donations made at the cyber-café, sewing booth, charging station, coffee station and other volunteer areas will also help fund this year’s worthy causes. If you or your club would like to donate money in advance, write a check payable to the “BMW MOA,” indicating “National Charity” in the memo section, and send to Karol Patzer, BMW MOA Charity, P.O. Box 21187, Eagan, MN, 55121. Remember….. kids serve, too! Thanks for your help…and we’ll see you at Das Rally!
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Das Rally!
What a Line-up of great Entertainment By Lee Harrelson #145612, Entertainment Chair WELL,
HERE
WE
ARE
AGAIN,
anticipating all the things our yearly gathering brings: all the friends we will see, the vendors, the seminars, the bikes, the food…ahhh…and don’t miss hanging out in the cool breezes of the shady Hamburg Fairgrounds, listening to some great music and enjoying a cold beverage! If that is part of your plan, you are in for a treat! Your Rally Chairs Kate and Dutch Lammers have worked hard, toiling hours in pubs, bars and concert halls and listening to tons of
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music to bring you only the best. When you see them, thank them! If you are planning on volunteering for rally set up and are on site early, you can catch a unique show from “The Sauce Boss” Wednesday night. Bill “Sauce Boss” Wharton brings his own hot sauce to every gig, and he cooks a big pot of gumbo while smoking on his slide guitar. At the end of the show, everyone gets a bowl. Sauce Boss not only plays slide, sings his tamales off, makes gumbo, and feeds everybody… he also plays a drum kit with his feet. As the Sauce Boss says, “You take that ‘53 Telecaster, pump it through that ‘48 Fender amp, add a bass rig, mix in some drums, all simmered down over some funky swamp blues and smothered with gumbo, and you got a recipe for the largest one-man band on the planet.” Visit www.sauceboss.com/ to hear him play. Das Rally! really gets rolling when the gates open Thursday. As the clamber of activity from finding your way around, setting up camp and greeting almost
everyone you see dies down, at 3 p.m. you’ll be treated to beautiful steel drum music by The Carnival Kids Steel Drum Orchestra from the Lancaster Schools. For more information, visit www.ckso.50webs.org/ index.htm, and to see and hear them in action, visit www.youtube.com/ watch?v=A1IXqTcZKQ8. After you have pitched your tent and settled in with some friends, old or new, make your way toward the outdoor stage right next to the refreshment garden. There’s plenty space to find a spot with a great view of the nightly acts on the main stage beginning at 7 p.m. The Midnights are Niagara’s premier dance band. The band’s The Sauce Boss
huge song list features a variety of classic rock, funk, disco, and other Billboardcharted radio favorites. These are “triedand-true, fill-up-the-dance-floor” selections that will get everybody moving. See their songlist at www.sandyvine.com. After a short break and stage change, get ready to take a trip back to a time when four lads from Liverpool made it big in the music business and changed the way we looked at the world. Since 1994, The Caverners Beatles Tribute have been exciting audiences with their perfect note-for-note portrayal of The Beatles. With authentic instruments, costumes and stellar vocals, this band delivers an incredible performance, leaving audiences screaming, stamping their feet and shouting for more. All the great songs are there too, everything from “She Loves You” to “Day Tripper,” from “Yesterday,” “Help,” and “A Hard Day’s Night” to “Get Back” and my favorite, “Hey Jude.” It’s a ride into the past you won’t want to miss. For a sneak peek (and a listen), visit, www.caverners.com. On Friday, with Das Rally! running at full force, you can again hear the sweet sounds of steel drums with the Carnival Kids Steel Drum Orchestra at 3 p.m. What a nice break for your sore legs! With plenty of wonderful food vendors and a refreshments right in the center of it all, we will begin Friday night with Sean Patrick McGraw. This American country music singer is a former Nashville Star semi-finalist who leads a prominent touring act. Following the 2005 release of his CD “Songs for Saturday Night,” McGraw
and his band went on tour and continue to be on the road today. Describing his music as “something like Lyle Lovett singing Bruce Springsteen songs while wearing Dwight Yoakam’s hat,” McGraw has earned respect among songwriters as well. His song “Fiona” won top honors at the 2007 Independent Music Awards. Following a tour with Toby Keith and Trace Adkins, McGraw headlined his own show at the Hard Rock Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee. Critics claimed that the show “bubbled over with the Zietgeisty brand of country-rock that Sean Patrick McGraw has become known for.” McGraw also took part in Nashville’s annual CMA Music Festival in 2010 and joined several popular country acts like Cowboy Troy, The McClymonts, and Sarah Buxton among others to perform on the Hard Rock Cafe stage. In June 2010, two of Sean Patrick McGraw’s singles were featured in episodes of the HBO vampire series “True Blood:” “Drink with Hank” and “Anyone but Me.” A New York native living the country life in Nashville, McGraw has agreed to come to Hamburg just for us for a country beginning that will have you kicking off your boots. For more information about Sean McGraw, visit seanpatrickmc-
graw.com/ Three words can best describe Friday’s headline act: Powerful, Soulful and Distinctive. With an incredible voice and natural allure, Meghan Linsey uses her voice and overall presence, along with the songs she so carefully crafts, to tell the stories she wants, or more accurately, “needs” to tell. At age 14, Meghan started playing shows with her own band, and a short year later she was opening for acts such as Brad Paisley and Blake Shelton at events around Louisiana and Texas. She also began to make regular trips to Nashville to play at the legendary Bluebird Cafe. “I played the early slot, but I would always stay for the late show because that’s when so many of the great songwriters I loved would play,” she says. It wasn’t long before she began writing with many of those same songwriters. In 2015, Meghan took her musical journey to a national level as a contestant on Sean Patrick McGraw
The Midnights
The Caverners
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NBC’s The Voice. She also sang the National Anthem before the NBC Sunday Night Football game between the Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints while dressed in pink to help kick-off the NFL’s support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month last year. She is currently touring with a “big bad” Nashville band, singing all of her original songs and capturing audiences all over the country. We are VERY fortunate to have her perform for our event. Visit www.meghanlinsey.com/ for more information and to hear four of Meghan’s tracks. Saturday will be filled with great rides, sites and tours, not to mention that last chance to run to that vendor for that farkle you have been eyeing all weekend! Make your day full and fun, but be back in time to get something to eat/drink and to get your spot picked out for the evening because the MOA Foundation AND Camp GEARS will be bringing you an upclose evening with two of the hottest bands around! First we have Canadian sensation The Brothers Landreth. Twenty-seven years. Four bandmates. Two brothers. One album. Let It Lie, the debut release from Canadian roots-rockers the Brothers Landreth is proof that there’s strength in numbers. Anchored by the bluesy wail of electric guitars, the swell of B3 organ, and the harmonized swoon of two voices that were born to mesh as you listen you might call it Americana. Dig deeper, though, and you’ll hear the nuances that separate
Meghan Linsey
BMW OWNERS NEWS June 2016
The Brothers Landreth. Let It Lie was recorded in a straw bale house in southern Manitoba, during one of the coldest winters in recent memory. Working with producer Murray Pulver, the Brothers Landreth found warmth in the songs that Joey and David had written at home, brewing up an earthy, earnest sound that has since drawn comparisons to the Eagles, the Allman Brothers and Jackson Browne. www.thebroslandreth.com/ Then one of our favorite rally performers is back! The Paul Thorn Band has come on board as a strong supporter of the MOA Foundation, Camp GEARS and all of the important
The Brothers Landreth
Diffie, Tanya Tucker, Ronnie Milsap, and Carole King, to name a few. It helps that those big vocal hooks are being reinforced by the sound of Thorn’s dynamic band. During their two decades in the club, theater and festival trenches, the four-piece band and their frontman have garnered a reputation for shows that ricochet from humor to poignancy to knock-
AN UNRELEASED COLLECTION OF PAUL THORN TUNES WILL BE SOLD AT THE RALLY, WITH PROCEEDS GOING DIRECTLY TO THE BMW MOA FOUNDATION! motorcycle safety and public outreach programs supported by the MOA. Paul has selected a special list of his favorite songs just for his BMW MOA friends. An UNRELEASED collection of Paul Thorn tunes on a CD only available through the BMW MOA will be sold at the rally, with proceeds going directly to the BMW MOA Foundation! Yes, really! Now you have your chance to own the very best of Paul Thorn AND support our Foundation! “In the past, I’ve told stories that were mostly inspired by my own life,” the former prizefighter and “son of a preacher man” offers. “This time, I’ve written 10 songs that express more universal truths, and I’ve done it with a purpose: to make people feel good.” Hailing from Tupelo, Mississippi, Paul Thorn was a prizefighter and skydiver before becoming a singer/songwriter. As a boxer, Thorn once fought against Roberto Duran, and as a musician he has toured and collaborated with Sting, Paul Carrack, Joe
out rock ‘n’ roll. Guitarist Bill Hinds is the perfect, edgy foil for Thorn’s warm, laconic salt o’ the earth delivery – a veritable living library of glowing tones, sultry slide and sonic invention. Keyboardist Michael “Dr. Love” Graham displays a gift for melody that reinforces Thorn’s hooks while creating his own impact and expanding the group’s rhythmic force. Meanwhile, drummer Jeffrey Perkins and bassist Ralph Friedrichsen are a driving force, propelling every tune with just the right amount of up-tempo power or deep-in-the-groove restraint. There are only three words in my vocabulary that adequately describe this band: Killer, Killer, Killer! And on a personal note, they are just plain good people. Visit www.paulthorn. com/ for more information about Paul and his band.
The Paul Thorn Band
June 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS
119 Discount for orders placed during and at the rally – refer to this ad.
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Have you registered for Das Rally yet? Registration for the 44th BMW MOA Rally is open. Visit bmwmoa.org and click on the DAS RALLY! link at the top of the page.
See you in Hamburg this summer!
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You rode through a construction site on a brand new set of tires! This could definitely ruin your ride. But not if you have the MOA’s new Platinum Roadside Assistance and Tire Protection membership. With 24/7 Roadside Assistance, you could be towed to a repair facility and have your tire replaced for free! All for only $79 a year, including your MOA membership. Join online at www.bmwmoa.org bmwmoa.org or convert your current BMW MOA membership by calling 864-438-0962. BMW MOA Platinum Roadside and Tire Protection. Another great benefit of your BMW MOA membership.
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June 1
6/3/2016 – 6/5/2016
40th Annual Hiawatha Rally
Location: Money Creek, Minnesota Contact: hiawatharally2016@gmail.com or visit www.bmwmocm.com Join the BMW Motorcycle Owners Club of Minnesota for the 40th Annual Hiawatha Rally for camping, food and great riding.
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Mighty 190 Rendezvous
6/3/2016 – 6/5/2016
2016 Land of Oz Rally
Location: Atchinson, Kansas Contact: Don Hamblin, bmwscooter@ gmail.com or call 256-479-5606 or 816-600-2475 Join us for the 2016 Land of Oz Rally at our new location at Warnock Lake Park in Atchinson, Kansas, for an even better weekend of history, mystery and entertainment!
Detailed information for all events is available online at: bmwmoa.org
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Adv in Oz
Location: Springville, California Contact: Jeff Jackson jjackson@birnsandsawyer.com Join the Airheads Beemer Club for a civilized camping weekend in the heart of beautiful Camp Nelson, CA. We’ll be in a privately owned campground with flush toilets, showers, etc.
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6/3/2016 – 6/5/2016
Location: Warnock Lake, Kansas Contact: Karen Mans neraksr@gmail.com Hold on to your Toto! This event is free with your admission to the Kansas City Club’s Land of Oz rally. More info and register at www.gsgiants.com.
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6/9/2016 – 6/12/2016
40th Annual Iowa Rally
Location: Middle Amana, Iowa Website: purestodge.org or email psta. rally@gmail.com or call 319-930-0051 Join the Pure Stodge Touring Association for our special 40th Annual Iowa Rall, located in the heart of the historical Amana Colonies, for the best food, music and camping ever!
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6/10/2016 – 6/12/2016
24th Gathering of the Clans
Location: Ferguson, North Carolina Contact: Charlie Smith 276-628-3251 bmwcharlie@embarqmail.com Airheads, those who ride airheads, and other esteemed members of the motorcycling community are invited for a weekend of friends, fun and fantastic roads.
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6/10/2016 – 6/12/2016
14th Laurel Highlands BMW Riders Campout Location: Somerset, Pennsylvania Contact: Jason Kaplitz gsjay@ kaplitz.com or call 814-615-9138 Join the Laurel Highlands BMW Riders for some great riding, great campground, great food and friends in the scenic Laurel Highlands of Somerset County, PA.
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6/10/2016 – 6/12/2016
Pemi River Rally
Location: Thornton, New Hampshire Contact: Bob Blethen tnkdriver@ gmail.com Our Toy Box will be there, a blazing campfire, an excellent Saturday Pig Roast and canopy tent, and of course some of the finest BMW riders in the land. Twisty roads in every direction, and a lot of great off road riding.
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6/16/2016 – 6/19/2016
16th Annual Red Rock Rendezvous Rally Location: Panguitch, Utah Contact: Jeff Thurmond 801-243-0660 jeffthurmond@hotmail.com or visit beehivebeemers.org Beehive Beemers Motorcycle Club of Utah – invites all to Utah’s color country featuring day rides to Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Grand Canyon National Parks and more.
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6/17/2016 – 6/19/2016
Chief Joseph Rally
Location: John Day, Oregon Contact: bmwro.cjrrallymaster@ gmail.com or call 541-689-2822
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There is lots of green grass for tent camping and plenty of RV spots with motels and restaurants just three blocks away. Meet old friends and make new friends with dinner provided on Friday and Saturday nights.
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6/17/2016 – 6/19/2016
2016 MotoMo Rally
Location: Crane, Missouri Contact: Steve Kronberger kronie12@gmail. com or call (801) 597-1678 Join us for camping along a spring-fed creek, with plenty of shade and grass to pitch your tent and park your bike. Great riding in the area with lots of curves. GS ride and day ride to Bentonville on Saturday.
July 12
7/3/2016 – 7/24/2016
Sisters Centennial Motorcycle Ride
Location: Brooklyn, New York Contact: Alisa Clickenger alisa@womensmotorcycletours.com Starts in Brooklyn, NY and ends across the country in San Francisco, CA following the route of the Van Buren Sisters.
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7/7/2016 – 7/9/2016
Bighorn Stampede
Location: Burgess Junction, Wyoming Contact: ederdg1@gmail.com If you missed it last year and can’t make the National, be sure to be at the Bear Lodge for another big time. More info and register at www.gsgiants.com.
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7/10/2016 – 7/13/2016
GS Giant’s Gypsy Tour Back to the BIGinning Location: Siegel, Pennsylvania Contact: Tracy Novacich tracy@novacich.com Join us as we go back to the BIGinning - back to our roots in the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania! This is where the trail magic started, back in 2011 when seventy five people took a chance on a brand new event, showing up without knowing anyone in advance. By the end of the week, life-long friendships were formed and the GS Giants charter club was
born. More info and register at www.gsgiants.com.
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7/12/2016 – 7/13/2016
GEARS Training at Das Rally
Location: Hamburg, New York Contact: Peter Perrin peterpldma@4000e.com GEARS Training returns for the MOA’s youngest members. The BMW MOA Foundation will offer free riding instruction for 24 students at the Erie County Fairgrounds.
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7/13/2016
Ambassador Dinner at Das Rally
Location: Hamburg, New York Contact: ldeborah@comcast.net The annual gathering of BMW MOA Ambassadors. Cash bar begins at 5pm. Buffet dinner at 6pm. $25 per person must be paid in advance.
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7/14/2016 – 7/17/2016
2016 BMW MOA International Rally
Location: Hamburg, New York Contact: Kate and Dutch Lammers, 2016rallychairs@bmwmoa.org There is so much to see and do in the Western New York and the Great Lakes Regions. A short ride in any direction will net a wonderful destination. To the west, beautiful Woodlawn beach on the shores of Lake Erie beckons. To the north is Niagara Falls (need we say more?) and the revitalized city of Buffalo with its beautiful new waterfront, theatre district, renowned dining and fabulous architecture. Venture east and visit the charming village of East Aurora on your way to the scenic Finger Lakes region and Letchworth State Park. Just to the south are roads that will take you through the picturesque ski areas of Ellicottville and Springville.
18
7/21/2016 – 7/24/2016
44th Annual Cascade Country Rendezvous Location: Republic, Washington Contact: www.wsbmwr.org Held at the Ferry County Fairgrounds in Republic Washington, we have fabulous paved and off-pavement riding, great camping, good food and camaraderie.
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Rally
7/21/2016 – 7/24/2016
45th Annual Top O’ the Rockies
Location: Paonia, Colorado Contact: Matthew Baroody - Rally Master BMWMCC topotherockies@bmwmcc.org (720) 560-3784 Riding is why we come, and some of the best roads in the state are nearby including, Hwys. 133, 65 and 92, rated as the most technical in Colorado. Enjoy hundreds of miles of adventure riding as well as three nearby National Parks. There are wine tours, hiking, a beer garden, vendors and live music.
20
7/22/2016 – 7/24/2016
Rocky Bow BMW Riders Rally
Location: Turner Valley, Alberta Canada Contact: Ekke A. G. Kok bmwlunaticfringe@hotmail.com Located in the centre of historic Turner Valley and within walking distance to stores and restaurants, historical land marks and even a distillery with many good riding roads nearby.
www.compassexpeditions.com
August 21
8/5/2016 – 8/7/2016
21st Annual Damn Yankees Rally
Location: Heath, Massachusetts Contact: Bill Cusack, bcusack@comcast.net Join us for our annual flagship event, where all proceeds are donated to local charities. Located in beautiful Heath, MA, the 21st annual Damn Yankees Rally is rustic camping at one of New England’s oldest operating fairgrounds.
22
8/6/2016
17th Annual 100,000 Foot Ride
Location: Morrison, Colorado Contact: Carl Thomte rcarloski@msn.com The 100,000 Foot Ride combines some of the best motorcycle roads and stunning scenery Colorado has to offer and includes both paved and dirt routes with the total mileage for either route being less than 500 miles. For more information and to register online visit www.bmwmcc.org. www.carolinasbmwmoa.org/annual-boone-rally
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www.alaskaleather.com
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8/11/2016 – 8/14/2016
2016 Stanley Stomp
Location: Grandjean, Idaho Contact: Mark Whaley registrar@coolpaw.net Grandjean is at the gateway to the Sawtooth Wilderness Area with incredible riding destinations in every direction. There are some backwoods amenities – the site is located at the Sawtooth Lodge which features a heated pool, shower houses, several bathrooms with flush toilets, two meadows for camping, cabins available and natural hot springs within walking distance.
24
8/12/2016 – 8/14/2016
34th Annual Huskerally
Location: Franklin, Nebraska Contact: Jayney Solo jayneysolo@ cox.net or call 402-676-1739 Nestled in the beautiful Republican Valley of south central Nebraska, the Nightriders offer a weekend of great food and fun. Meet others who share your love of the open road, good company, shaded camping, hot showers and the best rally food.
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Rally
8/12/2016 – 8/14/2016
39th Annual Daniel Boone
Location: Boone, North Carolina Contact: John Olsakovsky rally@carolinasbmwmoa.org The Carolina BMW Motorcycle Owners Association invites you to join us again for great roads, hospitality and camaraderie in the cool North Carolina mountain air.
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8/18/2016 – 8/21/2016
17th Beartooth Rendezvous
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8/19/2016 – 8/21/2016
Rockmor - The Rocky Mountain Oyster Rally
MOA Getaway Eureka Springs, Arkansas
Location: Buena Vista, Colorado Contact: Bex Becker bexxer@mac.com You’ll have a top box load of happy braaaping, laughing, challenging, cavorting, mindbending, tasting, illuminating, aerobraking, fishtailing, exhilarating, storytelling, fellowshipping and comradering! (ok we just made up that last word!) More info and register at www.gsgiants.com
Location: Eureka Springs, Arkansas Contact: Melissa Coller or Steve Kronberger mlcrn5358@gmail.com There’s a reason people love to come here! The Eureka Springs story began well over 100 years ago with tales of miraculous healing from 63 mineral springs gushing from a rocky wilderness. Today, Eureka Springs will refresh you as the authentic “America’s Victorian Village.”
8/18/2016 – 8/21/2016
28 Nakusp Hotsprings Rally Location: Nakusp, British Columbia Contact: Grant Fengstad at grant@ fengstad.ca or visit nakusprally2016@ beeceebeemers.com Reconnect with old friends and ride some of the most scenic twisties in the northwest at our 15th visit to Nakusp, British Columbia. Enjoy the hospitality of the nicest small town in BC. 8/19/2016 – 8/21/2016
29 Four Winds 50th Anniversary
Rally, Pennsylvania
Location: Fairmount City, Pennsylvania Contact: www.4windsbmw.org Join us as we celebrate our 50th Annual Rally, the longest consecutive BMW rally in North America, in Scenic Western, Pennsylvania. 8/19/2016 – 8/21/2016
30 14th Annual Return to Trenton Rally Location: Trenton, Ontario Contact: Cheryl Gzik, prez@ltbmwr.ca Come to Centennial Park on the shores of Lake Ontario in Trenton, Ontario, for the 14th Annual Return to Trenton Rally!
8/18/2016 – 8/21/2016
Location: Red Lodge, Montana Contact: Gary Smith, registrar@ beartoothbeemers.org or call 406-259-4927. Join us at the Lions Camp, ten miles south of Red Lodge, Montana. Ample camping and cabins available with a mountain stream nearby.
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8/19/2016 – 8/21/2016
Lime Rockz Rally
Location: Lakeville, Connecticut Contact: John Shields jjshields01@cox.net Rally on a Racetrack! Camp out under a canopy of trees overlooking one of the most beautiful race courses in the East and arise to the hum of the Skip Barber Race Series Formula cars on the track.
33
8/30/2016 – 9/3/2016
Curve Cowboy Reunion
Location: Monterey, California Contact: www.curvecowboyreunion.com Want an opportunity to check off some boxes: The Pacific Coast Highway? Big Sur? Carmel? Hearst Castle? Cannery Row? The Monterey Bay Aquarium? CCR 2016 is Monterey’s Hyatt Regency, a full service hotel.
September 34
9/2/2016 – 9/5/2016
42nd Finger Lakes Rally
Location: Watkins Glen, New York Contact: rally@fingerlakesbmw.org www.fingerlakesbmw.org Located 3 miles west of Watkins Glen, NY just off Route 329 in Watkins Glen State Park, it is the perfect base to come and experience the many touring opportunities in one of the most scenic areas of New York State.
35
9/8/2016 – 9/11/2016
Wailin’ Wayne Weekend
Location: New Straitsville, Ohio Contact: Chad Warner thewigllc@gmail.com The three W’s stand for Wowie Wow Wow! That’s what the riding is like in the Wayne Forest. More info and register at www. gsgiants.com.
36
9/9/2016 – 9/11/2016
34th Green Mountain Rally
Location: Goshen, Vermont Contact: Dan Walton rally@vtbmwmov.org
In the midst of the Green Mountains, once again enjoy the best home cooking, great Vermont self-guided tours, live bluegrass music, door prizes and more. For more information, visit www.vtbmwmov.org.
37
9/9/2016 – 9/11/2016
MOA Getaway Pineville, Kentucky
Location: Pineville, Kentucky Contact: Vance Harrelson alabeemer@gmail.com The MOA will host another great MOA Getaway at the Pine Mountain State Resort Park on Sept. 9-11, 2016. This beautiful state park will be the base of operations for all the amazing riding and great exploring to be done in the area.
38
9/9/2016 – 9/11/2016
Bavarian Mountain Weekend
Location: Sipapu, New Mexico Contact: David Hudson rally@loebmwr.org or call 505-890-8972 Join us for the 32nd Bavarian Mountain Weekend Rally sponsored by the Land of Enchantment BMW Riders in Sipapu, NM, located 25 miles SE of Taos, NM on state highway 518.
39
9/9/2016 – 9/11/2016
Wisconsin Dells Rally
Location: Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin Contact: Sharon Ernest or Brian Manke, 2016dellsrally@gmail.com The Wisconsin BMW Club invites you to RALLY FOR A REASON, at our new location Camp Wawbeek , an Easter Seals Camp located on HWY 13 Wisconsin Dells WI.
40
Rally
9/9/2016 – 9/11/2016
40th Anniversary R100RS Rider’s
Location: Three Rivers, California Contact: Jim Wilson, vinceotter@prodigy.net Come ride California’s fine Sierra. Honoring the famed BMW R100RS on it’s 40th Anniversary to be held in Central Calif., Sept 9 – 11, 2016 in conjunction with the Sequoia Rally of the Sierra. ALL interested in Airheads are welcome to attend this rally. Beautiful riding near Kings Canyon and Yosemite NP.
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9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
Klassic K Kampout IX
Location: Cruso, North Carolina Contact: Greg Hunt klassickbmw@gmail.com or call 864-357-8896 Come and enjoy the great riding around the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Very close to “The Dragon”, Cherohala Skyway, Shady Valley and too many other great roads to list. The rally is also very close to the Wheels Through Time Museum. For over 30 years the K bikes have been a reliable mainstay of the BMW motorcycle experience. 9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
42 7th Annual Ride the Blue
Ridge
Location: Morgantown, North Carolina Contact: Gene Smith rallymaster@knobbies.org or call 828-439-9754 We are happy to invite you to the 7th Annual RIDE the BLUE RIDGE with the Knob Mountain NC Motorcycle Chapter (Knobbies). The rally site is Catawba Meadows Park in Morganton, NC. There is easy access to Interstate 40, and the best riding in the southeastern United States, including the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Snake, the Dragon, and many more roads that have not yet been “named”.
43
9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
MOA Getaway Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Location: Coeur d’Alene, Idaho Contact: Jackie Hughes galuprider@yahoo.com Located in northern Idaho, this lakefront resort offers five-star amenities in a beautifully rugged setting. Join us in the beautiful Red Lion Templin’s Hotel on the River, where comfortable luxury meets outdoor adventure and guests enjoy premium ACCOMMODATIONS and plush AMENITIES in a beautifully scenic location.
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9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
Autumn Beemer Bash
Location: Quincy, California Contact: bashinfo@comcast.net or call 925-443-2070 Famous CCBR coffee, beer garden, two nights camping w/early camping available, Saturday night BBQ, two continental breakfasts, GS ride, poker run, vendors, and speakers. 9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
45 Twin Valley Rally
Location: Meadows of Dan, Virginia Contact: Seth Pagani twinvalleyrally@gmail.com Willville is located right in the middle of some of the finest motorcycle roads in the state. In the seven years that we have been putting on this rally, we believe it has earned the reputation for being one of the best anywhere.
46
9/16/2016 – 9/18/2016
Dinky Dozen BMW Motorcycle Club Campout Location: Pontiac, Illinois Contact: Sharon Fulks myers.sharon@comcast.net or call (309) 828-0918 Camp, ride and fellowship with the Dinks. Check out more details and any updates on the Dinky Dozen Facebook page
47
9/23/2016 – 9/25/2016
Whackey Hat Campout
Location: Jamaica, Vermont Contact: John Van Hook jvanhook@comcast.net This year we are returning to our roots by returning to Jamaica State Park in Jamaica, Vermont. The Whackey Hat is the last official Yankee Beemer campout of the season. In its first year the YBs didn’t let a bit of rain spoil the fun so in a fit of PMS (parked motorcycle syndrome) the attendees started crafting hats out of whatever they could find. Soon judges were recruited to decide the “best” hat.
9/23/2016 – 9/25/2016
48 30th Annual Hoosier Beemer Rally Location: North Vernon, Indiana Contact: Jeff Kernen jrkernen@yahoo.com Come ride southeastern Indiana and experience some of the best roads in the Midwest!
49
9/23/2016 – 9/25/2016
13th Annual Thunder Mountain Rendezvous Location: Hotchkiss, Colorado Contact: Gary Campbell gcampbell44@ yahoo.com or call 970-210-2604 Come join us at the Delta County Fairgrounds in downtown Hotchkiss on Color weekend on the Western Slope of Colorado.
50
9/23/2016 – 9/25/2016
34th Annual Last Chance Rally
Location: Buena, New Jersey Contact: Peter J. Lisko Jr. pjliskojr@verizon. net or call 856-589-7015 Shaded camp sites, cabins and local hotels to accommodate your travel preference. Enjoy a relaxing weekend of field events, riding destinations, awards, comradery and sumptuous food.
51
9/23/2016 – 9/25/2016
MOA Getaway St. George, Utah
Location: St. George, Utah Contact: Jackie Hughes, jhughes@ bmwmoa.org St. George is located about 40 miles south of Cedar City, slightly closer to the Grand Canyon and even closer to Zion than Cedar City is. It offers more options for dining and shopping for those who so desire. There is still easy access to the other National Parks in the area.
52
9/30/2016 – 10/2/2016
2016 Rams Rally
Location: Parker’s Crossroads, Tennessee Contact: www.bmwrams.com/the-rams-rally The Rider’s Association of The Mid-South (The RAMS) invites you to join us for the RAMS Rally in Parker’s Crossroads, Tennessee.
www.motoelekt.com
www.gotournz.com
www.4windsbmw.org www.aeroflowscreens.com
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9/30/2016 – 10/2/2016
MOA Getaway Black River Falls, Wisconsin
Location: Black River Ralls, Wisconsin Contact: Sue Rihn sue@beemerhill.com Early Fall means beautiful color in the western edge of Wisconsin. The air turns slightly cooler, the days get a little shorter and the fun is just beginning. Join us for the inaugural Getaway Weekend in Black River Falls.
54
9/30/2016 – 10/2/2016
MOA Getaway Colorado Springs, Colorado
Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado Contact: Stan Herman hermanhaus1@ msn.com or call (719) 250-4358 Come visit one of America’s greatest towns with Pikes Peak and spectacular riding at your door step. Colorado Springs is a motorcyclist’s dream town.
55
October 57
10/7/2016 – 10/9/2016
Colonial Virginia Rally
Location: Lenexa, Virginia Contact: Carol Beals cebeals@gmail.com or call 757-287-5594 Tour rally site is the Rockahock Campground just a little north of Williamsburg and just outside of the Historical Triangle of VA. Many wonderful historical sites (Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown) are close by with great riding roads.
58
10/7/2016 – 10/9/2016
41st Falling Leaf Rally
Location: Potosi, Missouri Contact: bmwfallingleaf@yahoo.com Experience the spectacular roads and beautiful scenery of the Missouri Ozarks at the 41st Falling Leaf Rally. Join the Gateway Riders at the Washington County Fairgrounds for one of the last weekends of the season. Good friends, unmatched riding, great rally.
9/30/2016 – 10/2/2016
Tellico Mountain Rally
Location: Tellico Plains, Tennessee Contact: Greg Crays gsgrog@gmail.com 727-418-5452 Rally includes dinner on Friday and Saturday nights, bonfires both nights and numerous door prizes. Advance registration is $40 ($45 at the rally). Contact registrar Larry Myers at LDMYERS365@HUGHES.NET or 423-309-5929. Rally registration form may be downloaded at: www.bmwroc.com.
10/13/2016 – 10/16/2016
59 AIM EXPO USA
Location: Orlando, Florida Contact: AIMExpo (949) 517-7501 Don’t miss the fun! AIMExpo is a one-of-akind motorcycling experience that brings together enthusiasts and industry insiders in one arena! Demo the latest models at the innovative AIMExpo Outdoors!, see and purchase the newest motorcycling products directly on the show floor, meet celebrities, learn tips and tricks from the pros and much more.
9/30/2016 – 10/2/2016
56 24th Annual Purity Springs
Rally
Location: New Hampshire Contact: Tim Tregea ttregea@comcast.net You’re invited to join us for our “do nothing” rally in the White Mountains of NH where you can ride, share some laughs, make new friends and continue to dazzle your old friends with tales of your riding expertise. Visit our website at www.gsbmwr.org.
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10/13/2016 – 10/16/2016
ADV Ribfest
Location: Centerville, Tennessee Contact: Jim Bean tnfrijole@gmail.com All the trails you can ride, all the ribs you can eat… none better! More info and register at www.gsgiants.com.
November 61
11/4/2016 – 11/6/2016
46th Annual South Central BMW Owners Reunion Location: Fayetteville, Texas Contact: Nick Bell vp@bmwclubofhouston.com 713-818-0134 Enjoy guided road rides, social events, and dinners on Friday and Saturday night, breakfasts Saturday and Sunday. For details see the event web page at bmwclubofhouston. com/cms/club-rally
62
11/11/2016 – 11/13/2016
15th Annual Cajun Swamp Scooter Rally Location: Lafayette, Louisiana Contact: swampscooters.net Come have a good time with us. Great food with great music. Kick some tires and tell some lies. The roads are not great, but the food is the best.
63
11/18/2016 – 11/20/2016
MOA Getaway Marble Falls, Texas
Location: Marble Falls, Texas Contact: Paul Mulhern pmulhern@swbell.net This year’s weekend getaway in Marble Falls, Texas is centered in the heart of the highland lakes region of the state and the host hotel will be right on the water. This area has something for everyone.
advertiserindex Abus Security............................................... 20 Action Stations/Bohn Armor..... 101, 131 Adaptive Technologies..........................121 Adriatic Moto Tours................................... 62 Adventure Designs.................................... 91 Adventure New Zealand Tours...........133 AeroFlow.....................................................133 Aerostich-RiderWearHouse.................... 64 Alaska Leather...........................................129 Alaska Motorcycle Adventures...........121 ALTRider......................................................... 62 Ayres Adventures....................................... 33 Beach’s Motorcycle Adventures........... 12 BeadRider...................................................... 64 Beemer Boneyard...................................... 32 Beemer Shop, The...................................... 48 Best Rest Products...................................113 Bike Log......................................................... 42 Bill Mayer Saddles...................................... 65 Bing Agency...............................................125 BMW MOA Foundation..........................105 BMW Motorcycle Magazine.................122 BMW Motorrad................................9, 21, 31 BMW of Pensacola..................................... 90 BMW of Southeast Michigan................. 91 BMW Performance Center...................... 50 Bob’s BMW.................................................... 39 Bombar’s Beemers..................................... 59 Boxer Works Service.................................. 29 British Motorcycle Gear........................... 50 BullRack......................................................... 64 California Motorcycle Rental................. 20 Cee Baileys Aircraft Plastic.............63, 103 Colorado Motorcycle Adventures.....113 Colorado Tourbike Rentals..................... 33 Compass Expeditions.............................129 Corbin Pacific.............................................115 Cortech (Helmet House).......................... 37 Country Rode Motowerks.....................101 Crampbuster/Throttle Rocker.............101 CruzTools....................................................... 99 Cyclenutz....................................................... 29 Daniel Boone Rally..................................129 DMC Sidecars.............................................121 Don’t Want a Pickle.................................... 62 Dubbelju Motorcycle Rentals..............111
Dyna Beads................................................... 20 Eaglerider Pittsburgh.............................125 Edelweiss Bike Travel................................ 57 EPM Hyper Pro..........................................119 Euro Moto Electrics.................................122 First Gear......................................................IBC Four Winds Rally.......................................133 Franks Motorcycle Sales.......................... 89 Geza Gear...................................................... 59 Giant Loop.................................................... 33 Global Rescue.............................................. 63 GS-911 Diagnostic Tool............................ 64 GSM Motorent....................................42, 101 Guard Dog Moly.......................................101 Hawks Products.......................................... 42 Held USA....................................................... 13 Helmet Sun Blocker................................... 50 Husker Rally.................................................. 97 Ilium Works................................................... 36 Illinois BMW Club Campout................... 90 IMTBIKE TOURS................................... 29, 59 Kermit Chair Company............................. 64 Kinekt Gear Ring......................................... 42 LD Comfort.................................................124 Legal Speeding Enterprises................... 62 M4Moto-psa.......................................33, 122 MachineartMoto........................................ 91 Max BMW Motorcycles...............................5 MC Wheel Repair......................................125 Michelin Tire................................................. 41 MOA Gear Shop.......................................... 98 MOA Member Benefits..........................107 MOA Platinum Roadside Assistance...123 Morton’s BMW Motorcycles................... 30 Moto-Bins...................................................... 64 Motohansa Tools (The Beemer Shop).121 MotoMo Rally.............................................. 90 Motonation..................................................BC Motorcycle Releif Project - psa...........124 Motorcycle Travel Network..................125 Motorex USA................................................ 76 Motorrad Elektrik.....................................133 Motorworks - UK........................................ 89 Motoskiveez................................................. 99 MotoStays..................................................... 50 Mountain Master Truck Equipment...... 62
MTA Distributing/Olympia Moto Sports..IFC Next Adventure Wealth Advisors......... 89 No-Mar Enterprises................................... 42 N’Vision Creative........................................ 59 Overseas Speedometer.........................121 Palo Alto Speedometer............................ 62 Pandora’s European Motorsports......... 43 Parabellum.................................................109 Paradise Motorcycle Tours....................121 Paris Corp./My Weego.............................. 29 Peru Motors.................................................. 99 Pirate’s Lair.................................................... 64 Progressive Insurance.............................. 11 RawHyde Adventures............................... 77 Ray Atwood Cycles..................................101 Redverz.......................................................... 32 Remus USA................................................... 51 Re-Psycle BMW Parts..............................125 Return to Trenton Rally..........................111 Rich Phillips Leather.................................. 32 Rider Magazine..........................................124 RoadRUNNER Magazine........................121 Russel Cycle Products............................... 32 S100 (Brookside Imports)....................... 76 Sargent Cycle Products............................ 90 Schuberth Helmets................................... 49 Seat Concepts............................................. 91 Side Kicker (AKS Engineering)............... 33 Sisters Centenial Ride.............................115 Spiegler........................................................125 Stop ‘n Go...................................................... 42 Street Eagle Motorcycle Rentals............. 62 StrongBilt (StrongRak)...........................111 Suburban Machinery................................ 20 Throttlemeister........................................... 64 Touratech.........................................................1 Tourmaster (Helmet House)................... 15 Twisted Throttle................................... 60, 61 Two Wheels of Suches.............................. 64 Venture Heat................................................ 59 Visit Virginia.................................................. 42 Westco Battery..........................................113 Wilbers USA................................................111 Wolfman Luggage..................................... 62 Wunderlich................................................... 99 Ztechnik......................................................... 55
BMW ON (ISSN:1080-5729) (USPS: 735-590) (BMW Owners News) is published monthly by BMW Motorcycle Owners of America Inc., 640 S. Main Street, Suite 201, Greenville, SC 29601. Periodicals postage paid at Pewaukee, Wisconsin and additional mailing offices. Opinions and positions stated in materials/articles herein are those of the authors and not by the fact of publication necessarily those of BMW MOA; publication of advertising material is not an endorsement by BMW MOA of the advertised product or service. The material is presented as information for the reader. BMW MOA does not perform independent research on submitted articles or advertising. POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO BMW ON, 640 S. Main Street, Suite 201, Greenville, SC 29601 © 2016 by BMW Motorcycle Owners of America Inc. All information furnished herein is provided by and for the members of BMW Motorcycle Owners of America, Inc. Unless otherwise stated, none of the information (including technical material) printed herein necessarily bears endorsement or approval by BMW MOA, BMW NA, the factory or the editors. The editors and publisher cannot be held liable for its accuracy. Printed in the USA. Volume 46, Number 6.
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talelight
Another German boxer A two-stroke boxer motor powered this 1956 MZ “Motorenwerke Zschopau” BK350, built in East Germany. Photo by Bill Wiegand #180584
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