If you have never ridden a long throw chopper, you should add it to your motorcycle bucket list. I have and it was an experience I never will forget!!
I put about 100 miles on one, back in the day, and I fully/totally respect those guys that ride them as daily rides or tour on them. Chopper riding is an acquired taste, it was not for me, but I can truly understand why some people love choppers.
Premiering November 3rd on ESPN’s 30 for 30 “Motorcycle Mary” documents the story of Mary McGee. Mary had a 30-year motorcycle racing career across multiple types of racing.
Mary was the first woman to race motorcycles in the United States.
As the first woman I am sure her stories of overcoming will be interesting and thought provoking.
I am looking forward to seeing this, make sure to set your DVR!
Recently the American Department of Commerce proposed a new rule that would impact CF Moto and possible a few other motorcycle manufacturers. Specifically, this rule comes from the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) which is a sub-unit of the Commerce Department.
This proposed rule would ban any vehicle that contains software and/or hardware that has links to China or Russia.
My Take: I find this a very interesting as it seems it is an extension of the Biden/Trump tariffs on Chinese vehicles by other means. But it also means that someone somewhere in our government determined that there is a security risk with software on motorcycles.
As a guy with a significant information technology security background, I can imagine some crazy scenarios where something crazy could happen. Yet I see a very low likelihood that any of those scenarios would actually happen.
This recall is due to a potential crash risk associated with a short circuit with the voltage regulator wires. The wire is rubbing on the crankcase removing the outer cover of the wire exposing wire to a short. This short circuit will cause the motorcycle to lose power with no warning.
The motorcycles impacted are
My Take: That is a bunch of motorcycles! Not a good look on top of everything else that has befallen the MoCo recently.
If you ride a motorcycle you need to add Skyline Drive to your Bucket List!
Skyline Drive, part of the Shenandoah National Park, is one of the jewels of the National Park system. It is 105 miles of vistas, twists, turns and occasional wildlife. It is possible you will see deer, turkeys, squirrels, or even bears!
This year we toured the entire length of Skyline Drive, south to north, a few weeks before peak fall color. Traffic was quite light, and the overlooks had few if any other travelers.
We stopped for lunch at the Loft Mountain Wayside. My wife and I shared a delish smash burger with a side of giant onion rings. We have traveled this road many times and have never had a bad meal at any of the restaurants.
I have said it before, Skyline Drive proves that riding in a car is like watching a movie, riding a motorcycle is being in the movie. Riding this road in the fall will prove that to anyone.
One thing everyone should know is that during fall, when the leaves are at their most colorful, the road become packed with “leaf peepers”.
The 35 MPH speed limit becomes difficult to reach due to all the vehicles. I would avoid the area unless you are ok with spending the entire day on the parkway (emphasis on park).
Riding Skyline in the spring or fall can be cool experience. By cool I mean that the temperature can be 10-15 degrees cooler than the valleys below. Throw an extra shirt on just to be safe. Also, the road is not cleared of leaves, ride carefully especially in the mornings when the leaves are damp from dew.
When you are at the northern terminus of the park you are in Front Royal, Virginia. There is a lot of great riding in that area as well, spend a couple days exploring the area and the town, Main Street is a must see.
When we arrived home, we had ridden about half the day and 251 miles. Another great day on a motorcycle.
Fort Valley Road Ride Thrill and Chill Ride
A couple months ago the wife and I had a lot of fun riding what we called our West Virginia Cryptid & Paranormal Motorcycle Tour (links to the posts below). It was a fun trip to a few of the more “weird and strange” spots in West Virgina.
In each of those posts I tagged the West Virgina Tourism Facebook and X/Twitter pages. I thought this is something that they might want to promote for “paranormal tourism”.
Well, well, well. The West Virginia Tourism office now have their own page promoting just that activity. They are calling it the West Virginia Paranormal Trail.
They are promoting paranormal sites and providing give aways with going to these places like stickers, bennies and posters. Not all the sites listed for the WV Paranormal Trail, align with our trip. We only had 3 days, and we picked spots that we wanted to visit.
I think this is great, but I would have appreciated a note saying thanks for the idea (and a sticker or poster). Sad face (LOL)
West Virginia Cryptid & Paranormal Motorcycle Ride Day 1
Day 2 West Virginia Cryptid & Paranormal Motorcycle Ride: Mothman We Are Coming
Be aware that this motorcycle recall list is for the United States for the last 30 days, there is no way I could cover the entire world. But in the world of global manufacturing, if a motorcycle is being recalled in one country there is a good chance it is under recall in others. So, safety first.
Also, (DISCLAIMER) this should not be considered a definitive list, check for yourself if you have any questions.
If you are US based, use the NHTSA website http://www.safercar.gov. Enter your VIN number to see if your motorcycle is affected by the recall.
If you are based outside the USA, use the appropriate website to locate recalls that may impact you.
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NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V572000
Components ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Potential Number of Units Affected 41,637
Summary: Harley-Davidson Motor Company (Harley-Davidson) is recalling certain 2024 FLHX, FLHXSE, FLTRX, FLTRXSE, and FLTRXSTSE motorcycles. The voltage regulator output wire may rub on the front corner of the crankcase, exposing the wire and causing an electrical short circuit. A short can result in a loss of electrical power and drive power.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and as necessary, repair the voltage regulator output wire harness, and install a secondary retention strap, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 23, 2024. Owners may contact Harley-Davidson customer service at 1-800-258-2464. Harley-Davidson’s number for this recall is 0186.
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NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V680000
Components ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Summary: Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (KMC) is recalling certain 2024 Z7 Hybrid ABS and Ninja 7 Hybrid ABS motorcycles. The electronic control unit (ECU) may cause the transmission to shift into neutral when the operator attempts to shift from first to second gear.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the ECM software, free of charge. The owner notification schedule has not been determined yet. Owners may contact KMC customer service at 1-866-802-9381. KMC’s number for this recall is MC24-13.
*****
Each month I display a few “old school”, or vintage motorcycles pictures based on some theme.
These are the one’s that I like the most, for whatever reason, … or… it’s my blog and I like these pictures or videos.
Ride On, Ride Safe
As I noted in a previous post, in August we attended the Wild and Wonderful Harley Owners Group (HOG) regional rally, centered in Charleston, West Virginia.
Across Harleydom many riders are not happy with the direction of the MoCo and their devotion to woke ideology. Many have debadged or are covering the logos on their motorcycles, others are discarding branded clothing. I have seen that on bikes rolling through my town of Front Royal heading to or from Skyline Drive. I did not see any debaging/masking at the HOG rally in West Virginia.
My question…. What do you think about all this?
At the rally, I asked many of the attendees their thoughts on this controversy engulfing Harley Davidson. That HD has gone full woke while also disregarding their customers’ feelings. Not too suprising, many had not heard of of the controversy.
Disappointment was the main feeling of almost all riders I spoke with. No one said that they were going to trade in their motorcycle today. A few stated that they would not buy anymore Harley clothing until this was resolved in a favorable manner.
Rethinking their loyalty. A majority of those I talked with did say that if Harley did not make a turn around that they would consider a new brand when it did come time to get a new bike
My thoughts after all this.
Harley really needs to get a new CEO and Board of Directors. How did this CEO even get appointed? He ran a tennis shoe company and proclaimed that he is the Taliban for promoting woke. Neither of which fit with the brand.
I fit in with many of the people I talked to at the rally. When I need a new bike, I will look at another brand unless this controversy is resolved in the manner the customers want.
In August we attended the Wild and Wonderful Harly Owners Group (HOG) regional rally centered in Charleston, West Virginia. If this was your first HOG rally, I am afraid it may have been your last as well. If it was not your first it was disappointing when compared to other HOG rallies.
Now do not get me wrong, the rides, the main reason you go to one of these events, were great. The guides, on the guided rides, were good and made changes on the fly to adjust to the group.
We participated in in 3 of the guided rides:
Black Mountain/Dragon Slayer – A 10-hour day and I loved it 90% ride. That 10% of nearly hate was when we got behind a DOT road painting crew on the down slope side of the mountain. We really missed out on some very twisty mountain roads fun.
About halfway though, we stopped in Lynch, KY at the Dragon Slayer shop. The shop, with very friendly staff, has some neat souvenirs, a few of which we purchased.
Butcher Hollow Ride – Another day long but enjoyable ride. The destination for this ride was the childhood home of county singer Loretta Lynn, the coal miner’s daughter.
The visit to her home was very interesting, reminded both my wife and I of where we grew up.
Interesting side note: Loretta Lynn was big into motorcycling. So much so that when she made it big and bought her big money home, she bought enough land to create a motorcross racing facility. To this day amateur racers still compete at the “Loretta Lynn Amateur Championship. ALSO…. She is in the AMA Motorcycling Hall of Fame!
Moonshine Ride – This ride was only a high day. Hitting the back roads is goal was to visit the Appalachian Distillery and the Hatfield Family Distillery. As a guy that enjoys a good ‘Shine, commercial or not, I was pleased with both our destinations.
Interesting side note: The Hatfield Family Distillery is run by a descendant of “Devil Anse” Hatfield and uses the family recipe going back to the time of the “Hatfield’s and McCoy” feud.
I did not feel it was well organized. I never felt like I was at a rally, based on my previous HOG experiences. Why:
There was no central location/HQ for the event.
The opening night was on Brewer’s Row, you chose which Brewery to visit. No opening ceremony.
With one exception, there was no solid nightly get togethers.
The nearest dealership did not really have much going on, beyond demo’s, to lure us in. We visited twice, once it was closed and the other, we were in and out in 15 minutes.
The claim was that there were over 1000 bikes at the event and I have no reason to push back. But, I never got a feeling that there were more than a few hundred at most.
It was a motorcycle rally that just did not feel like a rally.
If this was your first HOG rally, please do not judge, most are a lot more fun.
Be aware that this motorcycle recall list is for the United States for the last 30 days, there is no way I could cover the entire world. But in the world of global manufacturing, if a motorcycle is being recalled in one country there is a good chance it is under recall in others. So, safety first.
Also, (DISCLAIMER) this should not be considered a definitive list, check for yourself if you have any questions.
If you are US based, use the NHTSA website http://www.safercar.gov. Enter your VIN number to see if your motorcycle is affected by the recall.
If you are based outside the USA, use the appropriate website to locate recalls that may impact you.
*****
Manufacturer CFMOTO Powersports, Inc.
Components VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Summary: CFMOTO Powersports, Inc. (CFMOTO) is recalling certain 2023 Ibex 800 S and Ibex 800 T motorcycles. The throttle wire may bend excessively and break, resulting in a loss of throttle response and an engine stall.
Remedy: Dealers will reposition the rubber claps, rerouting the throttle wire, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 2024. Owners may contact CFMOTO customer service at 1-763-398-2690. CFMOTO’s number for this recall is SAF-2024-03.
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Manufacturer Kido Sports Co., Ltd
Components EQUIPMENT
Summary: Kido Sports Co., Ltd. (Kido Sports) is recalling certain Scorpion EXO-C90 and Harley-Davidson HD-X06 helmets, sizes XS, S, M, L, XL, and 2XL. The helmets may not stay securely fastened during a crash. As such, these helmets fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 218, “Motorcycle Helmets.”
Remedy: Kido Sports will replace the helmet, free of charge. Owners may contact Kido Sports customer service at 1-888-672-6774.
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Manufacturer: LIVEWIRE EV, LLC
Components: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Summary: LiveWire EV, LLC (LiveWire) is recalling certain 2024 S2 Del Mar and S2 Mulholland motorcycles. The high voltage fuse may degrade and unexpectedly open, resulting in a loss of drive power.
Remedy: Dealers will install a high voltage fuse with an increased amperage rating, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 2024. Owners may contact LiveWire customer service at 1-855-387-4337. LiveWire’s number for this recall is 1003.
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Manufacturer BMW of North America, LLC
Components ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Summary: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2024 R 1300 GS motorcycles. The housing for the starter motor relay may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can result in a damaged relay that can overheat.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the starter relay and update the software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 16, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
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I JUST WANT 2 RIDE!! 