Cold weather riding gear.

Temperatures are dropping.
I'll ride my motorcycle unless there's a threat of ice on the road. But I don't like hypothermia.

I recently bought a "pair" of Dickies thermal bib overalls for about 60 bucks. They are black, warm, comfortable and easy to get on and off over boots and jeans. They fold easily, making storage simple. I've worn them while riding in temps in the low 40s F and have been perfectly comfortable. I think the bibs will be sufficient for all but prolonged near-freezing exposure.

To keep my upper torso warm I wear as many layers as the temperature requires: T-shirt, heavy long-sleeve work shirt, large sweatshirt, XL sweatshirt, XXL sweatshirt, "perfecto" jacket, wool scarf and full-coverage helmet.

I deliberately purchased an oversized jacket and removed the liner and pocket bags so that I could wear it in temps up to 80F and so that I could pile on multiple layers in cooler weather. (In temps above 80F I wear a mesh jacket.)

Depending on temps I wear mesh gloves, unlined leather gloves or lined leather gloves.

Helmet visor fogging is a problem at low temps. I've been advised to buy a product that snowmobile riders use. I'll be searching for some soon.

I don't plan on any long or high-speed rides at near freezing temperatures but it's wonderful to be able to ride around town for an hour after being snowed in for a week. Fortunately, I'm back in St. Louis where winters are usually mild and snow seldom lasts for long. "Indian Summer" warm spells in mid winter are common in St. Louis.

Electrically-heated riding gear is available but it's expensive and makes the pre and post-ride rituals more complex. If we ever move to Wisconsin I'll think about it. Or if I ever have enough spare money to afford a Ural Patrol. Then I'll be out riding IN the snow!

St. John's Gildehaus

Gateway Riders and Shadow Riders both had a sausage-fest at St. John's Gildehaus on their ride calendars. I don't ride with groups but thought it would be fun to see a bunch of bikes. The weather forecast was T-storms but the radar was clear so I headed out to Highway T and beyond.

It was a glorious day for riding but a bit windy. I hadn't been on highway V since spring, when it was a mess of patches and busted pavement. Now it's brand new blacktop all the way to Union, and it's one smooth sweet sweeper.

No bikes at the church and the line was too long for me so I explored instead. St. Louis Rock Road starts at V and heads back toward town. It's a lovely top of the world ridge-runner. It's patchy but my new Sport Demons didn't care.

After ride inspection found some oil leakage at valve cover gasket. I didn't do anything unusual on this ride so I have no idea what the problem is. Back to the shop for warranty work.

Too Busy Riding

I haven't written many entries to this blog lately because I've been too busy riding. That will change with the weather. Soon I will write more than ride.

Last weekend I took my wife on a tour of my favorite recently discovered rides. Over two days we rode more than 100 miles on wonderfully bad twisty roads, crossed three rivers, rode three ferries, in two states and five counties. We saw great scenery and an unearthly circling flock of pelicans over Calhoun County, Illinois. I avoided the boring Great River Road and its endless parade of noisy Harleys, preferring to spend my time on mostly empty back roads.

This weekend it's threatening to rain. Very sad. It's a full moon and the autumn foliage is at its colorful peak. I might have to risk getting the Nun wet and road-dirty. She's due for a bath anyway.

The Honda CB 900... by Triumph

I love vertical twins, but I have only owned two. My first bike was a Honda Dream 250, a parallel twin with forward leaning cylinders. My third bike was a four cylinder Honda 550. My second bike was a Honda CJ360T, a true vertical twin, and I thought it had a beautiful engine. I loved the looks of the vertical twin DOHC (double overhead cam) Honda CB450 but somehow never bought one.

And now I own a New Bonneville, which is like a big brother to the 450. It's an even bigger DOHC vertical twin motorcycle. It's the big twin Honda never made.

The Bonnie is also classic-Honda-like with its high quality, smoothness and quiet strength. In many ways it's more like a grown up CB450 than a classic era Triumph. And I couldn't be happier about it.

60s Triumphs were fast, great looking and super cool, but they weren't great vehicles in several important respects. They were unreliable and not the best handling bikes. Some people found their quirks charming. But I needed a bike that would get me safely to my destination, every time. In the 60s and early 70s that meant Hondas and BMWs.

Honda changed motorcycling by making performance and quality affordable. The other manufacturers had to inprove their quality to compete. Every motorcycle company has benefited from Honda's lead. Remember the AMF-era Harleys?

So when John Bloor reinvented the Bonneville, he insisted on a super reliable, high quality machine capable of competing with the best bikes in the world. And Triumph built one. I bet even Sochiro Honda would love the New Bonneville.

Honda changed automobiles, too. Remember the Vega?

Calhoun County Revisited

Yesterday I returned to Calhoun County, Illinois. Traffic was heavier and two ferries were running. I rode the MRR, the Mississippi River Road, past my intended Hardin turn off because that road was completely unmarked. After riding twisties devoid of bike traffic I met the western part of the GRR, the Great River Road. The GRR is fairly flat and barely curved so it was full of noisy Harleys and similar machines.

I took the GRR back to Hardin and perhaps the only gas station in the county. The lot was full of Harleys and trikes. I got the hell off the GRR route and took my missed cut off back to the MRR and home by the twisties.

Riding a hundred miles of "bad" twisty hilly roads has left me a bit sore. You use a lot of muscles to navigate the bad back roads; muscles that you don't use if you're reclining on a cruiser, taking easy roads.

The trees are beginning to change color. Next weekend will be very colorful. I've had enough of Calhoun for awhile. The scenery is primarily bare, recently harvested fields. I'm starting to miss Wild Horse Creek Rd.

I just had new Pirelli Sport Demon tires put on the Nun and they feel great. A minor oil drip turned out to be a loose oil filter that was installed by an authorized dealer tech. When the warranty concludes next April I'll be doing most or all service work myself. I'm more careful than the average mechanic.

I'd be riding instead of writing if I hadn't overdone it yesterday. I'll take the Nun for a spin sometime today but right now I'm enjoying a restful Sunday morning.