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Almost 1,000 miles this weekend

1014 Views 17 Replies 11 Participants Last post by  norton
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I rode from Cleveland up to Ontario this weekend. After spending Friday riding a gentle 300-odd miles up the interstates, I bailed off the windy QEW and took the back roads to Caledonia. I spent Friday night helping crew at Oshwegan Speedway (dirt track) for my uncle, who races in the Mini Stock class. Then I watched the amazing fearless Sprint cars do some hot laps before a downpour called an end to the evening.

Saturday I meandered around the back roads again, letting my GPS gradually direct me towards my brother's house in Rockwood. I visited with him for a while before heading into Toronto to meet up with my old friend who rides an SV650. She and I spent the rest of the day making our way up towards Georgetown, where we met my brother and a couple friends for dinner, before garaging the bikes at my parents' house, and four-wheeling it to the Legion for another friend's surprise 40th birthday party. And that's all that I remember about that night. :)

Sunday morning my SV650 friend and I got up and dressed, and headed back out on the bikes through Terra Cotta, Belfountain and the Forks of the Credit (incredible biking road that she had never seen before), then wandered through back roads over to Bolton. It was 50 degrees out and blowing like hell, so we headed back into the city to have lunch with friends of hers. After lunch I said goodbye and she headed home, while I bundled up against the wind (my lined Joe Rocket gear is simply AMAZING) and started off back towards Cleveland. The wind soon died down, and I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at 75 mph on I-90, talking with the truckers on my CB, listening to my satellite radio, and just enjoying the ride. I got home just after 9 pm.

Total mileage this weekend: 975 miles. The Goldwing blew through it all like it was a gentle ride through the park. I am completely convinced that this bike will run forever. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute.

The best part? My SV650 friend now says she wants to sell her bike and buy a tourer. :)
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Great story! Can't wait until I can tour up north some day. Sounds beautiful.

DeDub :18white:
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Sounds like you had one heck of a time. Good to hear. Bet you saw some beautiful country. You crossed the international border, do you need a passport now? or is that just flying?
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As of today (June 1st) you now need a passport, passport card, Nexus card, or enhanced drivers license to re-enter the US when you drive across the border.

The country I saw in Canada is beautiful, but I grew up in that area, so it wasn't really anything new. :)
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Good write,,,,,,, thanks for sharing,,,,, I always enjoy reading about others adventures on a bike. And I understand how you feel about your bike. I was alsoimpressed with my wing on last years trip to Colorado.

Now you know you can make it to Montrose,,,,,, right:cool:
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It's always nice when you have worked on/assembled your own bike with your own hands, and KNOW it's been done right. Gives you a very assured feeling when riding it.
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Awesome !!

I just did an oil and filter change on my gl1100...using part # for the filter from your reference. THANK YOU !!!!

I agree with, if you (can) do it yourself..you know it's done right ! One of my pet peeves is people who jump in..do it..say good enough..when it really ain't.
(My drain plug was at about 60f-lbs....gimme a break.. heh..)
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GSMaclean
Nice post sounds like a great trip, nice to see all your work paid off (great job on the how to's). Sometimes I wonder about the dependability of the 1100 I'm going through mine and it seems like one thing after another (it was neglected by the previous owner). So it's good to hear that when you get them dialed in they will go forever. :action::action:
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GS, I spent 3 decades exploring Canada & the Great North. Most of my 450k miles were prob done in Canada ... and in MI where I lived for my first 46 years.

Unfortunately, I did most of those miles on Nortons& Harleys with extra gas tanks strapped on the forks.
I used to believe 'windshields", "raingear" [even tents] were for 'dainty-riders', while I throttled mynumb, wet butt down the highway.What an idiot I was.

So many years wasted on being young, dumb and stubborn,but I figured things out, eventually. :action:
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Lyrkin wrote:
Awesome !!

I just did an oil and filter change on my gl1100...using part # for the filter from your reference. THANK YOU !!!!

I agree with, if you (can) do it yourself..you know it's done right ! One of my pet peeves is people who jump in..do it..say good enough..when it really ain't.
(My drain plug was at about 60f-lbs....gimme a break.. heh..)
On my truck, or my lawnmower etc., if it doesn't come out perfectly, and I think it's "good enough" for most things (not brakes, or critical items, of course), I'll leave it at that.

However, there's a lot less room for error on bikes. I treat my bike the same way you work on an airplane: it's either perfect, or you go back and fix it until it is.
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Thanks for sharing the excitement of your ride with us all GS. You got a great bike there, what joy to tour on the greatest motorcycles on earth.
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GSM, sounds like a great ride. One of the many benefits to living in Cleveland is that you are so close to many great destinations in the states and Canada.

Best regards,

Kai
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Good story. FYI: I was born and raised in Brookpark, but spent most of my time in Strongsville. Is the Draft House still open? I miss the Metro park system.
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kai wrote:
GSM, sounds like a great ride. One of the many benefits to living in Cleveland is that you are so close to many great destinations in the states and Canada.

Best regards,

Kai
One of the biggest benefits of living in the Cleveland area is that we are only 15-20 minutes from hundreds of miles of fantastic biking roads! The Cuyahoga Valley is full of them - lots of hills and curves.

And if you care to ride an hour or so south to Wooster, you can take Rt. 83 south towards Coshocton, which is one of the most beautiful and fun motorcycling roads I've ever been on. If you want to, you can just bail off of 83 and take side roads that are equally as great.
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Speedratchet wrote:
Good story. FYI: I was born and raised in Brookpark, but spent most of my time in Strongsville. Is the Draft House still open? I miss the Metro park system.
I suspect it's no longer around, as it doesn't sound familiar. I could be wrong though, I've only been here for three years now.
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I like the Sprint Cars, Too!
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norton wrote:
I like the Sprint Cars, Too!
Here's a short video I took of them...

[flash=425,344]http://www.youtube.com/v/rx6afpyL8K0&hl=en&fs=1&fmt=18[/flash]
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