Just posing, had a testride, swapped engine (twice), bike all good now

Bit of a contrast to my last ride of the year yesterday. Dry, hot and lots of windblown dust. Following my friend on an older Gold Wing, it was picking up dust from a tarmac road as though it were a dirt road.

In the big bushfire season we are still in, there was a small fire just a kilometre from home, and a bigger one 30km towards Sydney. Both dealt with fairly promptly. Nothing like the devastation that has happened further away, with lives lost, homes destroyed and large areas of land devastated. By last night, smoke from nearby and further away limited visibility to less than 100 metres.

First ride of the new year planned for tomorrow. Just a short one with a couple of friends, if the smoke has cleared enough to be safe for our lungs.

Arlina, even though it is doubtless much colder where you are, I would prefer your version of the last ride of the year. 

Bill

Bit foggy here, about zero Celcius

(Who cares, I got a K....)
(Even if it's from a customer   )

No last day of the year ride for me within the 8 or so hours left of 2019. It's warm enough - about 7 or 8c - but the sideways rain and wind speeds of up to 70 kph bending the pine and fruit trees in my backyard convinced me to toss another oak slab on the wood burning stove and tuck into a good book, glass of single malt to hand. 

Happy New Year to all, but at this difficult time I'm especially thinking of my mates Down Under who are enduring a terrible bushfire season. Let's hope 'Scotty from marketing' begins to take it more seriously sooner rather than later.

Although in no particular danger just yet where I live, it's been so hot and smoky just haven't been able to get out.
The fires are awesome, a Fire truck weighing 8 tonnes was tipped over from the rear and flipped completely over end to end, costing a life and serious burns. Just imagine what sort of wind that must have been.
So I'm hoping to get out today as it is a bit cooler.

Wish everyone safe riding this year, and take care
RT

indian036 wrote:Bit of a contrast to my last ride of the year yesterday. Dry, hot and lots of windblown dust.

Bill

Putting a number to it, “hot” = 40 degrees C, ~104F. 

Bill

I went out Monday and came home to a water issue....took me the whole of Tuesday to replace the pipe in a most inaccessible place....not installed by me.......

Last ride of the year was New Years Eve and got home 17:45...bike covered ready for a vintage outing tomorrow...my RS is now 37 years old....

My last ride of the year (on the K) was Dec.19th when I just about managed to get it home with a hole in the back tyre. Last actual ride was on the Bandit to work on Dec.23rd. First known ride of the New Year will be Feb.3rd on the Bandit carrying the K's back wheel for tyre replacement.

After eight years of doing late shifts I decided I'd had enough. Of course, getting my official Old Man's Card (bus pass) had nothing to do with it...

I've rides scheduled so far this year for tomorrow (Thursday), Saturday, Monday and again the following Saturday. The weather guessers are saying rain, with temps in the single digits (40's F), the usual for this region and time of year. I can take that. I don't go out when there's snow or black ice, but often it can be below zero, so I just rug up, switch on the heated jacket liner, seat and hand grips, and off I go. They pay me, and that makes it a bit nicer, but a job where I'm riding doesn't suck very much at all.

The first ride of the year went to the owner of the bike.
He was very satisfied with the work I done, bike sounds better than it did before.

My year started very well