Early last month on one of the first nice riding days of the year I took the bike out for a spin.  I road until every bump felt like it was going straight to my bones.  When I arrived home the first thing I did was give a call to Corbin.

I had already decided what seat style I wanted, but I had questions about the coloring of the cords.  The customer service representative was very helpful, answered all of my questions and took my order right on the phone.  She told me that the standard order processing and manufacturing time was six weeks but because it was their slow season it arrive much sooner.  Two weeks later I had a package waiting for me when I arrived home from Corbin. 

Installing the seat was pretty easy, but still took some pushing and pulling to get all of the wholes to line up.  The new seat pan is a very different shape, but still fit nicely. 

On the short ride I took the seat seems really good.  Corbin is correct when they say the design seats for riding not standing.  The seat is awkward for standing around and could become uncomfortable if you had to stand for an extended length of time.  But as soon as you put your feet on the pegs it becomes worth it.  The seat gives a much more even support exactly as advertised.

There is only one thing the concerns me at this point.  Because of the different shape of the seat the seat top is closer to the pegs–meaning your legs are bent a little tighter.  I don’t know yet if this is going to matter.

All and all I’m happy with the Corbin seats fit and finish and I am eager to try it on a longer ride.

As spring comes in southwest Michigan, I’ve decided that it’s time to take the blog off blocks and get ready for riding season. I’ve started this riding season with a couple of short cold rides and a stop at the Suzuki dealer to find out how much an oil change would be–$110. After screwing my jaw back on I decided this would be the spring I did it myself.

What it takes to change the oil…
1 )   Oil
2 )   Filter
3 )   Stand
4 )   Spools
5 )   Oil filter wrench
6 )   Metric wrench for oil plug
7 )   Something to drain the old oil in.
8 )   Paper towels
9 )   More towels.

A quick trip to one of my favorite Suzuki shops in Plymoth, IN supplied me with the oil and filters. As an added bonus I had fun looking at all of the new and used bikes they have on the showroom floor.

The stand presented a small challenge. I did not want to spend an arm and a leg on a stand that I only use once and a while. I’m not making my living with this stand so I don’t feel I need the best stand on the market. That being said I also did not want a stand that would fall apart or damage the bike. I settled on a stand by Haul-Master purchased at Harbor Freight. It is nothing fancy but is constructed well. (I also purchased the paddles)

Unfortunately none of the shops around here had spools for the SV so I had to make do with the paddles on the new stand. They work great. No problems with slipping or anything like that.

With another trip to the store I was able to procure a filter wrench. Beyond that the changing of the oil was uneventful. I now have a bike with fresh oil that is ready for the riding season to begin.

Coming up this season…
Corbin Makes Butts Happy
Katy’s New Bike
Riding Plans

I have never seen a bike that is this ugly or cool (I have not decided).  This is Honda’s DN-01.  Inside this odd bike there is a 680cc liquid-cooled engine with a HFT continuously variable, hydromechanical two-mode automatic transmission.  The transmission also has a six-speed manual mode that I can picture it being clunky like an automatic transmission in a car. 

 

This motorcycle appears to be new for 2009.  I’m looking forward to seeing this bike in person.  From the picture it looks like this bike could be quite comfortable to ride while still giving the sporty bike appearance.  The handle pars appear to be raised and allow the rider to sit fairly upright.  However the windshield does not look like it will do much for a ride who is sitting up.

 

I can see this bike as being a fairly good motorcycle for touring.

 

While looking at riding gear at motorcycle superstore, I stumbled upon this Icon backpack.  It is unlike anything I have ever seen before.  The overall concept of having a highly visible riding backpack is a great idea.  I’m going to try to track one of these down in a store where I can take a close look at it, but I’m afraid that Icon did not spend enough time looking into the organization beyond the helmet and face-shield compartments.  When I’m commuting I typically have a computer, pens, paper, power supplies, extra computer cables, phone, books and or files.  I am waiting for someone to make a good riding bag with places for all of that.  I hope this one comes close.  I’ll let you know if I find one in a store.

 

 

 

 

 

Sun

day KT and I enjoyed a nice escorted ride through the back roads of southwest-lower Michigan.  The ride was the first annual benefit ride for my college alma mater.  For $25 we received a shirt, free lunch and a nice escorted ride.  And it all the proceeds went to a good cause–architecture missions project fund.

As far as bikes go there was a fairly diverse selection of motorcycles there.  Everything from the Road King, Sportster, Shadow, and Rebel to sport bikes like the GSXR, Hibusa, R6, Katana and CBRs to name a few.  The Kawasaki Ninjas were probably the most popular motorcycle there.  I think of the 25 motorcycles that went there were probably four or five different Ninjas.

The Sheriffs department escorted the ride through the back roads of southwest Michigan.  The rout took us around small inland lakes, through wonderful ripe vineyards, past apple orchards being picked and into corn growing farm country.  We stopped at an ice cream shop called the Hayloft.  Fitting being it was in the middle of farm country.  Good ice cream and a nice place to eat it. 

Returning the sheriffs department lead us buy the Cancer Society’s ride to support cancer research.  That was a larger group of people, probably 100 bikes.  It was fun having the groups going opposing directions on the same road.  There was a lot of waving and honking.

I think you will see another blog post about this ride next year.  The feedback from alumni, students and other community people that went was very positive. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just wanted to let everyone know I have not abandoned my blog.  I have been very busy at work and have not done anything motorcycle related in several weeks until yesterday–I rode my bike to work.  I know–­a fascinating, insightful piece of information that I’m sure you could not live with out.  On the upside I have plans for the weekend. 

My college alma mater is holding it’s first annual fundraising ride.  This should be an interesting experience.  KT wants to ride it and it’s for a good cause so if everything works out Sunday evening I should pictures to share.  The proceeds are going to support an orphanage in South America.

 

That was exactly my reaction while riding on some nice curvy roads in southwest Michigan.  Three small deer crossed my path causing me to slam on the breaks.  Naturally I thought, “Hmm…I’m glad I did not hit them that would hurt.”  Then I wondered how many people actually hit deer.  It turns out that the deer population is growing.  Every eight minutes someone in Michigan hits a deer.  Ouch.  While looking for some information on deer related accidents I found this clip:  www.metacafe.com/watch/2011/deer_vs_motorcycle.   I hope I never end up hitting a deer or any other animal. 

Today’s ride was wonderful despite my pondering the deer.  I suppose it is a good reminder to always wear the protective gear.

 

I just want to take a moment to encourage everyone riding this holiday weekend to be careful and have a great time.  I hope to get a few miles in, but I’m afraid most of them will be in a car.

I went into bike shop to look at some saddlebags for my bike.  As I was walking in a red bike caught my eye.  It was the Ducati Hypermotard 1100 S.  I’ve seen pictures of this bike before, but it looked so much better in person.

What attracted me to this bike was the cross between an off-road styling and a sport bike.  It has an aggressive, mean look to it and with an 1100 cc engine to back it up I’m sure it’s a great ride. 

If you have ever ridden this bike let us know how you like it.

 

Over the weekend I had an opportunity to put a few bugs on my new Shoei RF-1000.  Here are some of my observations and opinions. 

What I like…

The RF-1000 is very comfortable.  It is soft and light weight.  The cheek pads are removable for changing and washing.  The quality of the assembly seems to be very good with a lot of attention paid to the details.

While riding the RF-1000 is quite quiet.  I normally ride with earplugs, but around town I don’t feel the same need for earplugs with this helmet.  On the freeway I still prefer the earplugs because wind noise becomes much louder at higher speeds.  I think the noise level of this helmet is largely due to the tight seal that is made when the visor is in the down position. 

The visor is simple to remove and replace.  Shoei sells several visors to fit this helmet.  I’m particular to the silver mirrored visor, but for now I’ll stick with the clear visor.

The chinstrap is padded, a nice feature, but I find that the padding eventually moves to the side of the strap.  I may remove the chinstrap padding if I continue to find that it is always to the side.  I have not experienced any discomfort as a result of the chinstrap padding being off to the side.

The chin curtain and breath guard were both easy to install and latched in nicely.  Once installed, they share a similar fit and finish to the rest of the helmet. 

The bad…

For speeds up to 65 mph this helmet is just fine.  While I was riding at freeway speeds, 70+ mph, I found that this helmet buffeted around allot when I turning my head to the side.  It was even bad enough that I felt I needed to tighten my chinstrap to make sure this helmet was not going to come off.  I could feel lifting of the helmet when I was looking behind and to the side.  While facing forward this helmet was as smooth as I would expect from a good helmet. 

For the most par this helmet is very nice.  I think that buying helmets is a lot like buying a new pair of shoes.  Just as you get them to the perfect fit and comfort it will be time for a new pair.