Go Courtney

 Just another title...

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About time!

A well deserved World Championship after a few very unlucky years.  Go Courtney!

http://www.bikesportnz.com/2019/09/courtney-duncan-world-champion/

Dogs generally have good taste

This little story is currently doing the rounds of Concours FB pages and forums...

https://nypost.com/2019/01/18/husky-spotted-riding-on-back-of-motorcycle-in-las-vegas/?fbclid=IwAR3EO58aM0O6pgG0rq0w8Lq6h10t48tSBZPls1XaEL_l9Kjy_VrA0PrF_tU

I'd better get back to my training...

You're joking right?

A quick trip South

Over the long weekend I made a wee decision which resulted in a very quick trip to Blenheim on Sunday afternoon followed by an early ferry home on Monday.  The trip started with a lift to Paraparam with my sister and her tribe and a short 25 minute hop over the straits to Blenheim.

I left in sunlight but arrived in Blenheim at dusk

And left Picton before the sun had really got its act together...

Yes, less than 24 hours in the fabulous South Island and not much riding...but there was a reason for this quick trip...

Phoar!  Look at that nice Nissan!

Yeah, I'd finally made a decision about my next Adv bike.  Rather than buy new I found this '13 Tenere on Trademe.  She had just under 24k when I met her and is very tidy.  The Givi luggage is a definite bonus.

My first ride took me around Blenheim for a bit - I got lost as I had incorrectly thought I knew where I was when I wasn't...A good thing Blenheim is considerably smaller than Auckland...

The ride over to Picton where I was staying was offered up the opportunity to test the headlights (pretty good) and to rediscover what riding an S10 is like, hint: pretty damn fine.  On arrival in Picton I checked in to my accommodation and then shot out again to secure some vittles.

With an 8am sailing to catch I was up and on my way down to the terminal before 7am.  There I met a guy from Motueka on his Beemer heading to work (in the 'naki).  We had a brekkie together on the boat and found plenty of stuff to yak about on the trip across.  Another nice highlight was spotting a couple of Orcas off the front of the boat - they look smaller from the ferry than from a 22' boat (my last experience of them in the wild).

Arriving in Wellington, I got off the ferry and then went to meet up with Julie and family again to show off the new toy.  It looked pretty good parked up on the waterfront while we chatted and enjoyed a drinkee.

Eventually it was time to say goodbye and make my way up to Feilding where another critical eye could be run over the new beast (he hasn't ridden it yet).  I was fairly happy with the economy on the way up - it was fairly slow going in the traffic but I still reckon I should be looking at a 400km range fairly easily.

Yes, it was in sports mode all the way too...

And now I have to look forward to getting used to the blue beast and of course the farkling (first farkle already on the way).  First up is going to be crash bars (and probably a bash pad) and a GPS mount.  There's also some other bits and pieces off the Vee to find their way onboard too.

Watch this space...

Hmmmmmmmm

Time to start getting excited...

New Africa Twin.

Your move Yamaha...

At a local dealer...

Onya Bruce!

http://www.bikesportnz.com/2015/01/well-done-bruce-anstey/

Pic pinched from:http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/

Drool...

I wonder what further evolution it'll get by the time I've finished with my one...

Go Bruce!

Time for a wee break in the BRR reporting...

Congrats to Bruce on his record breaking lap!

Good luck for the rest of the week and stay away from those stone walls!



Normal programming will resume shortly...

In lust...

...and officially drooling!

http://idratherberiding.com/2014/05/13/the-honda-africa-twin-is-back/

Let it be real!

Off to see a truck mechanic

Yep, heading over to Wanganui on Boxing day to see this character in action.  Got camera batteries charging and looking forward to it!

Hopefully plenty of this (although that straight is probably longer than the entire Wanganui circuit):

And none of this:

New Vee video review

Liking what they're saying about comfort and ridability.  Max torque at lower rpm is great and will make the bike a good relaxed tourer.  Really want to see what they're like on gravel...

Engine sounds very similar to old one...

The new Vee

One of the first write-ups I've come across on the new Vee: http://canadamotoguide.com/2013/12/02/suzuki-1000-v-strom-launch/

Hmmmmmmmm.....

The new Vee

The net is a-buzz - it looks like we have a new Vee coming!

More pics and information here on Motorcycle.comhttp://www.motorcycle.com/index.html.

So far I like the look - it's still "interesting" like my Vee but it needs a second muffler!  It appears to be slightly more road-oriented as seems to be the trend these days - I wonder if there will be a more off-road biased version too?

Good to see that they've fitted better brakes but will the radials be too much off-road?  I'd love my Vee to have better brakes on the tar but stay as they are for when I'm off road.  One slight touch off-road with radials and you might end up going down in a screaming heap.  Perhaps the ABS system has been designed so that it is usable (or has different modes) off road.

Panniers look small and the RHS one is smaller than the LHS (thanks for that idea BMW) but hug the bike a lot better than mine.  I guess the serious guys will still opt for the flash aluminium jobbies.

I do not need a new Vee, I do not need a new Vee...

I likee

Yes I do.  Perhaps one day when I'm finally done with the Connie (although there may be something better again then).  Should be a fantastic bike for NZ conditions.  Wouldn't want to go too far off the beaten track but it'd eat windy, bumpy roads in comfort...

2012 Wee-strom

Had a wee look at the new Wee today and it is a very nice looking bike and bound to be a load of fun.  It is a bit of a shame that they haven't been able to move the oil filter as it's still pretty vulnerable sticking out the front (just like on my Vee, although it at least has a bit of protection in the form of it's belly pan) although there is no oil cooler there as well like on the Vee.

Anyway, not ready for a change yet but here's some videos:

This next one needs to be watched from about the 2 min mark (although perhaps if you understand French you might get something out of the first bit)...

VFR Crosstourer

Finally the version of the VFR that makes sense...and it's got a reasonable tank on it...

650 V-Strom Test ride

Finally, a proper article on the new 650 Strom: http://www.twowheelsblog.com/post/6671/2012-suzuki-v-strom-test-ride

Interesting to see that Simon Crafar was along for the ride...