big long ride...

[chinard]

ok, so after 4 days i finished my big long ride from toronto to florida via the ultra-scenic route.

learned a few helpful things about the m-50 along the way.

- handles much better than i expected on the freeways.
doing 80+ on the interstate was no problem.. except at night which was downright terrifying.
solution: going to upgrade the headlight to one of those piaa ultrawhite lights that ive already ordered.

- i am a mutant!
the stock m50 seat was completely comfortable for me on a 4 day ride pushing 12-16 hours of riding each day.
I am guessing it is because my tailbone doesnt quite hit that bump where the rear mount is.

- stock footpegs are still good on long hauls.
i have a new set of the switchblade pegs i will be installing, but i did not have them before the ride so i toughed it out with the stock pegs and no highway bars.
i figured out an easy trick to do to be able to stretch out on the stock pegs. Put your heels on the pegs and stretch your toes forward HARD for about 10 mins or so. It feels great

- handlebars have got to go.
they hunch you over too much and i have WICKED cramp between my shoulder blades.
i need to start looking for a more comfortable handlebar.
i hear the c50 is a good replacement, but i dont really want to change the shape of the bars, id rather just bring them back another 2 inches. I might look at riser extensions or new risers.
The biggest thing that concerns me about doing this is that it would change my seating position which MIGHT mean that i will have my tailbone on that spot that is giving everybody else trouble.

- travel with your laptop? use your kingston cable lock!
My laptop was too damn big to fit in a side bag so i had to bungee a backpack to the back seat with it.
I felt kinda nervous leaving it like that at rest stops until it dawned upon me to use my kingston cable lock to anchor it to my bike.

other than all that, the whole trip went extremely well.
met alot of interesting people along the way especially as i was getting closer to washington cause of the rolling thunder rally.
lots of photos to sift through. will post later.

[cyclesinct]

Sounds like you had a great time. Put up some pics if you get a chance.

[diamond_jim]

It's been over 12 hours since your post, Chinny, Where are those pics?

[geoffsimpson]

Sounds like a great trip man! Can't wait for the pics

[pinky44]

Originally Posted by diamond_jim

It's been over 12 hours since your post, Chinny, Where are those pics?

After 4 days of riding probably doing the beer, woman and then sleep Thing,LOL

[chinard]

Originally Posted by pinky44

After 4 days of riding probably doing the beer, woman and then sleep Thing,LOL

hate to disappoint you but i was workign on the bike all day

I had a bunch of upgrade parts shipped to my destination here in st-augustine cause they were on backorder and wouldnt be in toronto before my trip.
they were of course waiting for me here so i got started on them.
in the box: PIAA ultrawhite H4 upgrade, Brakeaway cruise control, Kuryakyn switchblade footpegs/adaptors.
Had to do a quick run to home despot because the adaptors dont fit as well as they should so i needed some washers to tighten it up.

Anyways, as far as footage goes, i have a batch-upload to youtube going on right now. My camera has limited video features that allowed me to get a video log of certain key rest points. Quality sucks, but its better than nothing.
Pictures i still have to sort through. Some of the shots at sideling hill, skyline dr, and hatteras lighthouse look incredible.

There will still be more posted later cause i still have driving around to do here in florida plus the drive back which will take me to deal's gap.

[pinky44]

Have a safe journey.

[chinard]

I siphoned out a few short videos and snapshots and just posted them in bulk:

some videos:
YouTube - chinard's Channel

some pictures:
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v4...trip%2008/

[Dragonetti]

Is that a GPS mounted to your bars?

If so, how'd you get that accomplished?

[SnowMan29]

Dragonetti

I have one mounted to mine. Pretty simple. I just used RAM Mounts for it. I have a TomTom 920 and they make a mount that goes onto the bars. I had already installed a 12v all weather outlet on the bike under the speedo and it just plugs in there for power. Got the mount from Garmin GPS, XM, Sirius, Magellan GPS, Lowrance GPS, TomTom GPS, MIO GPS & RAM GPS Mount Authorized Dealer at MountGuys.com

[boooya]

Nice ride chinard beats the Muskoka loop LOL

[Dragonetti]

Snowman,

Awesome man, thanks... Still one question though... I've got the Garmin NUVI 350, and I have to have mine plugged into a cigarette lighter when I'm using it my car, is there some sort of battery attachment for the bike?

[Dragonetti]

Whoops, nvm... Misread your post. ><

[Talarspeed]

Nice pictures! I'm jealous!