ortega highway 10/28

[GARTHXS]

me plane dick and 3phase did a nice ride today . I started from san diego to corona and Scott met me at plane dicks house in yorba linda . went south into the cleveland natl forest for a great ride a really nice day about 75 to 80 degrees and only a little construction traffic saw some cool bikes and some great views . and the condition of the road was excellent . hardest part was trying to keep up with scott and planedick with my spongy brakes I was just taking it easy!

nice scenery

nice view from the lookout

some guys tricked out honda , are those xs rims?

any ways I ended up doing about 275 miles yesterday and the bike ran good and I got about 36-37 mpg I probly would have had better mileage but its hard to keep it under 85 mph

now if i can can get my butt in gear and change brakes I will be able to get through the twisties a little faster

[XS1100 Newbie]

Looks like it was a great ride guys. I don't quite understand the problem with keeping up with Scott.
Bob

[3Phase]

Bob, Garth's brakes were not working very well and that made it difficult for him to ride the canyon.


Here are some of the pictures I took on the ride. Click to enlarge any picture:-

"Holy hacks, Batman!"

"Columbo" at the deteriorating eastbound turnout near the crest of the Ortega Highway a couple of miles west of the Lookout Roadhouse.




My XS11 "Columbo" next to Planedick's "Pathfinder" and GarthXS' XS1100F in the parking lot of the Lookout Roadhouse.




A nice customized monoshock Honda bobber next to a Husqvarna at the Lookout Roadhouse parking lot.




GarthXS and Planedick getting their pictures taken at the Lookout Roadhouse.




GarthXS and the welcome character that took our trio's group photo at the Lookout Roadhouse.




A view and a contrail seen from the Lookout Roadhouse.




Another view from the Lookout Roadhouse.




A contrail with its shadow seen from the Lookout Roadhouse.



And here's the obligatory slideshow link.

[GARTHXS]

truthiness

well that was part of it , the other part I am not really a corner carver

[3Phase]

... the other part I am not really a corner carver

Planedick and I were going about the same pace as you, Garth; usually +/- 5 MPH over or under the posted temporary speed limits[1] more often less because of the traffic which is why we kept pulling over at turnouts to let the traffic get ahead of us. It was just a really nice ride with a comfortable pace and nice scenery. The knee-dragger that flashed past us headed west at warp speed from the turnout on his YamaKawaZukionda 600 SRR (Squid Race Replica) was pushing it.


[1] CalTrans determines temporary speed limits by watching for the speed at which a highly-polished ceramic coffee cup begins to slide across the metal dashboard of a 1964 GMC L4000 with minimum tire tread and bad shock absorbers.

[xsroadrunner]

Hi Garth, I know a thing or two about canyon carving and brakes. Put simply you need to use your engine as braking by being in the right gear so you do not need to use your brakes at all or very minimally at best. Theres that little voice in our heads that says we must shift once a set gear starts revving out. But next time you are out there try keeping it in 3rd gear. You can rev it out and the bike wont explode.In the real tight stuff even 2nd gear will work. What this does is it enables you to stay off the brakes and since you're not shifting you can keep your feet on the pegs. Preferably on the balls of your feet. BTW nice ride report.

[GARTHXS]

trust

I guess its really about trust , do I really trust the bike to do what I want it to do and not fling me off a crevasse , with crappy brakes on a 30 year old bike that ways almost as much as a harley HMMMM?

[cywelchjr]

If your doing it right it should. I know several riders who go on a ride together and have a point system for how many times they use the brakes other than at stop signs or lights, and the one with the worst score buys lunch. According to them, its very often whoever used their brakes once. Can't say I'm that smooth of a rider, but I know of some who are.

[Larrym]

Fear...

I guess its really about trust , do I really trust the bike to do what I want it to do and not fling me off a crevasse , with crappy brakes on a 30 year old bike that ways almost as much as a harley HMMMM?

Garth,

If I may:

“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” (Yoda.)

Knowing that the bike has an underperforming braking system and riding past your "comfort level" (CARVING....) should provoke a fear response in a responsible driver of any motorcycle IMO. On an XS/XJ (translation: limited number of them left alive and functional.) that "fear" keeps the bike and YOU safe.

No Fear equals the darker than dark side: crashes. Angry at yourself for knowingly doing something that shoudn't have been done. Hating to post the pics of the mangled bike on the site. Suffering through the physical therapy in order to regain a portion of your former mobility.

Congrats on not being the unhappy owner of a parts bike.

[GARTHXS]

Well said Larry , I guess I am not invincible and fortunately I know it

[3Phase]

“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” (Yoda.)

Obi-wan Kenobi: "Only a Sith deals in absolutes."
Yoda: "Do or do not. There is no 'try'."

Unreliable and full of mixed messages are quotes from Wars of the Stars.

Well said Larry , I guess I am not invincible and fortunately I know it

Garth, here's a link to the Pashnit site and a copy of the riding technique known as "The Pace.":-

The Pace - By Nick Ienatsch
Sport Rider Magazine June 1993

A year after I joined the Motorcyclist staff in 1984, Mitch Boehm was hired. Six months later, The Pace came into being, and we perfected it during the next few months of road testing and weekend fun rides. Now The Pace is part of my life--and a part of the Sunday-morning riding group I frequent. The Pace is a street technique that not only keeps street riders alive, but thoroughly entertained as well.

[GARTHXS]

Good article. I actually met Mitch last year and he is a pretty cool Guy and he loves Yamaha's. Anyway I just got the new ss lines installed with new pads just need to get some brake fluid and a can of brake cleaner

[g15usmc]

next time ya'll ride give me a shout...I'm always up for a ride...and if my xs isn't ready by then i'll just use my everyday ride...thought the tires are a lot more expensive...they stick a lot better and handle higher speeds a lot easier...