| | | |  | | Newsletter Number :#1 | Catchin' Up
| | Hi achternaam, Surprise! Another newsletter so soon on the heels of the last. Yes well, it's a short story. The new website's newsletter module proved to be beyond both my brain cells. I constructed the bloody things and clicked send. You guessed it, they didn't go. As my Grandmother (a Yorkshire Lass) used to say, "waste not, want not lad". | | | | Pillions are such touchy things. I can't understand why mine gets squirrel-grippy on me when I misjudge fuel range and end up in Bombala in mid-Winter! Geez, the temperature was close to double figures, I'm sure. The plan was to sneak up the Cann Valley, down the Imlay Rd and catch up with Tontine and Jilly at 'Coota. The old Strom we loaned for the weekend sucked down more bang water than I thought it would. No... It wasn't my right hand doing the damage. The old jigger was playing up a bit and breaking down under load, I was trying to ride smoothly and sensibly for my passenger. The "Zen" of total concentration required for wet roads, to miss bumps to look after Pillion-in-a-Million's dodgy back, an unfamiliar bike that wasn't quite on song and a new rear tyre was awesome. Total involvement and focus. Who needs to sit cross legged in front of a candle and chant! And how ungrateful! By the time we'd made it back "down the hill" into Merimbula she was a bit err... touchy. More expletive blasts than the Whalers of old could have dreamt up, left me in no doubt she'd much rather be on her own bike. So much for quality time! | | | Moto GP Shop We've had confirmation that the usual "pop up" shop next to the Library in the main drag of Cowes is ours for this years GP week. We'll be opening on Wednesday and closing around Midday on the Monday. The all singing, all dancing Andy Strapz show will career out of control until late on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings. Please note that the showroom will be "Old Mother Hubbard" for the week as pretty well all the gear will be with us on Phillip Island. |  |
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| Another Peek in the Shed By the time you get this I'll be bouncing off the walls looking for trouble to get into. She Who Needs to be Adored's Guzzi will be finished and I'll be left to beg for test rides. The local sign shop printed up a sheet of stickers, enough to do 6 bikes. As is the way stickers filling a whole sheet costs the same as just one corner. Lookout, the fridge, esky, her car, helmets, kitchen cupboards and dunny lids are gonna be adorned with the red eagle and pinstripes. I reckon that the combination of experince, that Italian "S'ok" and the fact that the bike wasn't theirs made placing decals quick and easy. It took three of us hours to debate, measure, sight, move and scratch our heads. In the factory in the day I'll bet they virtually got thrown on... The next one will be real easy! The gods of sleep were appeased with sacrifices of a number of pairs of the billy lids' old PJ's as the finishing touches and sparkly bits got a once over. I made another new friend in this process too. I think I have a crush on my Dremel. The little sanding barrel, wire wheel and buffing pad are just so good. Having said that, the old strip of pyjama leg seam plus Autosol still makes a fantastic polishing system. Next time I'll be able to show you the final results. |
| Ear Ear All of us, as wears ear plugs regular like, need to start thinking about a long term ear wax plan. As an Earmold agent I peer in the odd ear (and a few normal ones occassionally) and if the owner of said lug 'ole is an earplug wearer you can just about bet your house on them having impacted wax. There's only one way I'm aware that it happens and that's having normal wax jammed back in! Wax is there to push dead skin cells and various detritus out away from the eardrum. Modern and admirable concern for hearing protection does have the downside of earwax management. I often suggest that people get some drops from the chemist to loosen the wax a week or two before seeing their GP for the regular blood tests. Ask the Doc to have a gecko in the donkey's years and make a plan from there. I give mine a squirt of the magic fluid about once a fortnight to try to keep ahead of the black glug. |
 | On Ya Knees One of the latest items on the Strapz test benches are the TP 199 knee guards. The TP prefix comes from a collaboration between EVS and Travis Pastrana to create a set of trick protectors for the shins and bikkies'n'cheese. A double-layered jigger capped by a smart armour outer with tough "Rhino" fabric cover. Firm shin protection neatly ensures there isn't a gap between the guards and top of my boots. A nice touch is medial and lateral grip/protection pads fitted on the inner sleeve. Dr Zed and I took them out for a preliminary trial in the Labour Day weekend and I found that, as all good gear should be, They proved easy to get on and off too. While it's another thing to add to the process of getting ready to ride I'm a big fan of knee guards.
| | EVS call them knee braces and are taking a bit of license, I think they will provide me with a comfortable compromise. It's now 3 months since I face-planted (last edition of Adventure Rider has the whole story) off a sand dune, I reckon this is a scar for life. I reckon they aren't expensive for what they offer at $147. My only question is will they be too hot in summer? Having said that, I can't see them being worse than the plastic set I'm currently using. Bugger, I'll have to go for a ride to keep up the testing. | 
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| Drop me an email if you want me to get some in for you. I'll order in a bunch and continue the testing. |
| Correction... sort of 
| In a previous missive, I cocked up and said that the new Schuberth E1 brain buckets would be priced in three figures. Woops...I did actually mean to say four figures. I've just had a yarn to the Aussie importer over the "telling bone". The price will be set at $999. So I guess I was wrong and right in the same breath. The aim is to make it so that we can offer a helmet with the appropriate 5 year warranty for as close to a Euro bought helmet off the interweb. I have a bunch of riders who are waiting for more info and ordering details as it comes to hand. Put your name on one now - email here. With luck, I'll have my tester in the next couple of weeks. Aussie Stock should be with us mid to late October. |
| Diesel Stripes Have I missed something or has diesel become free lately? The number of shiny stripes on corners seems to have shot up in the last few weeks. I know many are probably water but a bloody lot of 'em aren't! That multi-colour sheen gives it away. Maybe we need to get stickers made? We could distribute them to riders to slap on fuel pumps, asking the drivers not to try and kill us. How's about something witty like; "Oi dickhead, make sure you put the cap on yer fuel tank properly!" I know.... The turds that rip excise taxes off us should get together with the third party insurance scammers and distribute them free! As if! |  |
|  | Triumph Cap Just Add Feather I'd love to get an insight into the machinations of the wheeling and dealing that saw the other Euro Brand snaggle the Moto2 engine supply rights. As lapsed Tiger owner, I'm a bit excited about the prospect of a swarm of angry triples banging fairings in 2019. It's a huge leap of confidence for a seriously nice motor with a strong reliability record. As they say; "Racing improves the breed". Woohoo! Surely that must mean a new Tiger is in the pipeline. Lets' hope they can get the weight and seat a bit closer to the ground for us short-arses. |
| | | Yes Coach I had an interesting conversation with a Cpt'n Dave who drives boats, buses and motorcycles. He was expressing his dread of clipping a rider with the bus as his vision is seriously limited when they come alongside (see what I did there!). It struck me that it was a good time to remind myself of that sticker we often see on trucks - "If you can't see my mirrors... I can't see you!" It's not a fool proof adage but a heads up that there are big areas of buses and trucks that are BM-ahas Triangles (sorry, couldn't resist) that we just vanish into. AArrrrgh Jim Lad; riding in blind spots is as dumb as me parrot and to be avoided more than speeding tickets in my opinion. Just get the truck outta there! My ass is worth a speeding ticket if need be. | Butt it's no Joke I'm sure you've carried that little niggly fear that one day some careless turd will flick a durry end out the window and it will blow back, straight into your helmet or down the front of yer jacket. Marlene from Colac sent back her beloved Pannierz to have a burn hole repaired the other day. It certainly looks like a cigarette butt has lodged in the top fold of the bag and smouldered away until she found it. Sheesh... Tosser!
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 | But What Does it Do? I came across this at that snakey outdoor store the other day. What does a "Personal Herbal Outdoor Spray" do? Nowhere on the display or packaging does it set out a function of this stuff. So $11 for 100% natural, 100% herbal, Child safe stuff that says Ouch but won't melt my clothes. I guess it makes a schooner of New look like better value, doesn't it? |
| | |  | | Sometimes it's a bit hard to feel sorry for tin toppers. The Bandit and I came across this tree that couldn't have been on the deck more than a couple of minutes. After breaking a branch away we snuck between the embankment and the over-hung trunk. As tourists in hire cars arrived we gave our best French DILIGAF shrug and rode off. | | | | Read More | | |
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