Buell Project Update

Well progress is a little slow on it but that's because I'm waiting on some parts to come in before I get into the meat of this whole thing. Once I get rolling, I don't want to have to wait on a gasket.

I've done a few electrical tests on the bike but as it turns out I can't do em all yet. Harley has these special connectors in the electrical system and unless you want to run the risk of damaging something you have to use these special adaptors. Well they're on the way. More money. At least they're aren't special tools for this one particular model and I'll be able to use them on my Dyna too. I'm assuming, that's dangerous I know, that I'll be able to use them on any Harley from 2004 to 2007, at the least, since both the Buell's service manual and the Dyna's call for them to be used.

I'm about to remove the gas tank from the bike tonight and try to test a few more switches. Once the gaskets and such get here I'll really be able to get the ball rolling on this. After that it's just a matter of figuring out what really needs to be replaced and getting the money to buy the parts.

I've also discovered the cost of the tools needed to measure the cylinders and I just don't have an additional $1000 laying around right now so I think that part of the project might get put on hold unless it gets amazingly busy at work for a few weekends.

I think I've got more than enough to keep me busy till I get that far into it. Hopefully by then I'll have found some used tools somewhere cheaper.

Course 5 (week 3)

Well I got ANOTHER 100 on the test last Friday. I know you're getting tired of hearing that.

We've started our final projects for this class and so far so good. I had to do two tire changes which kicked my ass since I've just never had to change a motorcycle tire before. I did it in Course 2 a few times but that was nine weeks ago. I didn't forget how to do them but if you've never done something like that and don't do it again after you learn how you just don't develop those tricks to getting it done right and quick. I thought I pinched one tube but it turns out that because the rim was bent a little on it the normal air trapped in between the rim and tube was just getting out quicker and creating bubbles in the lube. I ended up redoing it anyway just to be safe so I didn't get hit with lost points. My other project for the day was carburetor identification. We basically have to take one apart and identify all the parts, what they do and how they do it then put back together correctly. It's not hard at all.

Today I think I have to do my 4 stroke engine stuff. I'm not sure exactly since they keep changing the schedule around. I'm not scared.

I still can't wait for January. Two more classes to go then we're done with the basic training program and it's off to Harley!!!!!

Silent Bob's Cycle Shack is open for business!

Here's a little taste of what's to come. My first project. A 2004 Buell Blast. I've got all my tools with a few exceptions but not enough to stop the ball from rolling. I plan on completely stripping the bike, measuring it all to check it out and putting it back together with fresh stuff as needed. I'm not going all out customizing it just trying to get it back to original, good working order, tip top shape and maybe a few custom things here and there but I'm not going wild with it. I'll save that for one I'm gonna try to make some money on.

Course 5 (week 2)

Yea I know I just did Course 6. No I didn't fail anything. The school has our group of 60 students broken up into blocks of 2 courses at a time. Half of us go to, for example, Course 5 and half to Course 6. Then we flip.

Course 5 is a maintenence course. Mostly its focused on carbs and not the kind you eat either. We're learning how to sync them, rebuild them, vacuum test them and hook em up to an EGA (Exhaust Gas Analyzer) and adjust them accordingly. They're also throwing a few tire changes, safety inspections and some tune up stuff at us too. The 2 stroke tune up section is kind of a joke to be honest with you though seeing as we haven't touched a 2 stroke motor to date. All our learning on that has been book learning.

I got a 90 on the first test. It wasn't exactly fair that they gave us the test the minute we walked back in the door from Thanksgiving break. Nothing like a total of 30 hours of driving, family headaches and general holiday stuff to get you ready for a test. I'm surprised I only got one question wrong.

I worked the EGA machine yesterday, did 2 safety inspections, did two valve adjustments and some paperwork. It was the first day of labwork. We have 3 more days of practice labs for the stuff gets graded. We sort of got the shaft on this as compared to a lot of other classes in that school was closed 2 days last week and we don't get the chance to make that time up or anything and we still have to finish the same amount of work. It definatly puts the pressure on but right now we don't need pressure. We need to be able to learn how to do the work RIGHT, then get our speed up. So far I've gotten everything pretty good but I feel so rushed and the information isn't sinking in like it does when I can take my time and soak it all up. Which brings me to my next point........

THE PROJECT! I should have just about all my equipment by the end of the week so this weekend will bring pictures of the bike as it sits right now before I do ANYTHING to it aside from having the battery on a trickle charger for the last 2 weeks. It should be good and charged up and ready to get going on these electrical systems tests. I think I'll be succesful in my goal to become a full on recluse once this gets started. The only way you'll see me is at the parts store or if you happen to drive by the garage and say hi.

Course 6 DONE!

We finished up tonight and I'm happy to report you're reading the blog of the "Student of the Course"! I finished out with a 99.10 grade. I didn't get it by much though. The guy right below me had a 98.98 grade. Yea, you read it right. I got it by only .12 and needless to say he was NOT happy about it. Evidently he gets it quite often and was not happy about the new guy getting it. I personally couldn't care less if I get it or not. I'm not in the school to get top student awards. I'm there to get the best education that I can get and if I should happen to get the highest score then its a nice added bonus but I don't feel that I'm better than anyone else in there. I just got the better score that particular day.

On the final exam I scored a 96. I missed one question and I'm still kicking myself for getting it wrong. It was such a stupid mistake on a question about flat rate billing percentages that I'm not even going to dwell on it. I got a 100 on every single project we worked on and on a few of them I just barely got it.

While I don't feel I'm an expert by any means I do feel I have enough of a grasp of the basics to tear my own project motor apart and rebuild it. I plan on doing so as soon as I get back from Thanksgiving break. I've already started getting my information together from the service manual and getting my parts list squared away so I can order the stuff that I'm sure I'll need. I know there's gonna be stuff that I won't know about till I tear into it but it's to be expected.

The next class on the path is Course 5. Yes I know I just finished Course 6 but they schedule us out in blocks of two courses. Half the group goes to one and half the group goes to the other and then we switch. Course 5, I'm told, is maintenance work. I'm looking forward to this class. Probably more so than any other so far. It's the class that will realistically teach me the skills I need to save myself the most money on labor for my own bike.

Until the next update sometime next week.......peace!

Course 6 (week 2)

It's been a busy last few weeks for me, which would explain the lack of updates.

Course 6 has been fun so far. The course is all about engine diagnostics. We've had two tests and I've scored a 90 and a 100. We were given a rack with boards on it and on these boards were damaged engine parts. We had to figure out what the parts were, I say were because in a few cases there wasn't much left of the parts, then we had to figure out the damage to said part and what caused that damage. I've also taken apart an entire Evo motor top end and put it back together and started to completely take apart an entire Honda motor, and I mean ALL of it, and rebuild it. We have to then take this motor and put it in a frame, start it and not have it leak, smoke or blow up. Sounds easy enough doesn't it? Try it sometime if you haven't done it before. Next week I'll have the motor in the frame myself and hopefully it'll run without problem. I would have had it done already but I did all my other projects first so I wouldn't have to worry about rushing through this one. We'll also have to take two motorcycles that they have put together with broken parts and diagnose the problems based off noise.

Now for the reason behind the lack of updates.

I've decided that it's time to start a project of my own. I found a guy selling a Buell Blast and figured it'd be a good cheap practice bike to work on. If I don't put any of this stuff I'm learning to use it'll all dissapear quicker than money from a bank account. I'll be posting pictures from every step of the project. I've got a service manual for it coming and I'll start posting more about this, with the "before" pictures when it gets here.

Course 4 - DONE!

We ended Course 4 tonight and it was a long night.

I'll start with the final exam since that's my low point of the course. It was 50 questions which was the biggest test we've had to date and we've covered more in depth material than any other course to date. Let me tell you they pulled stuff out of places I didn't think were in the book. I scored an 84 on the test and just about every question I got wrong, except one, was from subject matter we never put to use. There's no way we could do a project on every type of setup out there and it seems, so far, that if I'm not getting some hands on time with a topic then it's not really getting into my memory. I know right where to find the answer but unfortunatly you don't have that option during an exam.

For all my projects, the scores on the books are 100's across the board. My first two exams were both a 100 and piled up with my perfect attendance and other minor stuff they grade I've managed to pull a 98.7 GPA for this course.

The next course I'm going to will be Course 6. We do them in blocks of 2, Course 2 & 3 for example, and half of the original 60 go to one and the other half go to the other. Course 6 is supposed to be where we have to build a motor completely, fill it up with oil and gas, crank it up and it's gotta run and run right. It's go time!

Well, I'm off for now. The fun is coming quick so get ready for some updates next week.

Course 4 - Week 3 (part 2)

Tonight was the second test for the electrical class. I got myself another 100 in the books. We had a little last minute cram session right before class and it's a good thing I jumped in because a few of the points we hit on I think I would have missed on the test. It's quite a bit of information to try and remember and I'm really scared of the final. I don't think I'll be able to remember it all and as much as I'd like to get a 100 on that too, if I don't, I won't start ripping my hair out. It's definatly preferable to remember the information but its more important to know where to get the information when you need it and then put it to use.

Other than the exam we worked on making a final block diagram of an ignition system. It's a little tricky because it's different from any other type of bike we've worked on in our practices and final labs.

We're having a slight revolution in our class. Evidently quite a few of the people aren't exactly happy with the way the instructor is teaching. They aren't quite grasping the material and are really struggling with it. From what I gather they seem to think it's the way he's teaching it. The guy we have is sort of a substitute since our original instructor got sick and then a few days later started his vacation. He, our current instructor, normally teaches the advanced electronics class and I think the problem they're running into is that he's used to teaching students that already have the fundamentals down and we don't. I've noticed he likes to respond to a question with a question. It can be frustrating at that exact point in time but it does make you think. The only problem I see with that method though is that you have to understand the base material to be able to figure out your own problem, if that makes sense, and a lot of these guys don't.

I'm trying not to lose my cool with him but I have a few times and I've told him that I'm sorry for doing but that I was just frustrated and I've also told him that I realize that it's easier having the answers handed to you but it's more rewarding to figure it out.

Course 4 - Week 3

Here we go. The final push in the electronics class. We've covered charging, ignition and starting systems now and we've had all our demonstrations. This week we have to knock out all the rest of the lab practice projects, the final projects, one more quiz and the final exam. It's gonna be a busy week for some of the people in there. Not so much for me.

I've finished all the practices for the charging, starting and 2 of the practices for the charging systems. I've also finished the final projects for the ignition and starting systems. I forgot to mention that we have to do the charging, starting and ignition project on a Kawasaki, Suzuki and a Honda for a total of 9 practices and 9 finals. So far I've gotten 100's on all my projects and a 100 on the one test we've had. I'm doing good so far but the last test and the final are the real ball breakers. That being said I'm not counting my chickens on this class yet. I've got some serious studying to do for this one. During the projects I can look through my book but not during the test.

I'll give everyone an update Wednesday night after our last quiz and again Friday night after the final exam.

Course 4 - Week 2

We had our first test of the course tonight. I got a 100 on it. According to the instructor this was the "free pass" test. It was only 10 questions and it was real easy. The next test is going to be 25 questions then the final is 50 questions and its a real ball breaker. Everyone says you really have to study for it.

I've finished all my practice projects that we can do and I've started into my primary final projects. I finished two of them tonight and got 100 on both of them. The lab projects aren't really the hard part of this course. The book learning is the hard part. At least for me anyway.

I'll be updating again Friday night.

No Biketoberfest for me!

I was hoping to be able to get some new pictures to post on here but I can't get off work to go. The weather is supposed to be great this weekend too but one of the things you just gotta do, to do what you want to do, is to do what you don't want to do. As much as I want to hit up Daytona and party, I want to go home for Thanksgiving and Christmas also head out to Cincinatti in February for the V-Twin Expo even more. I've gotta pick my battles and unfortunatly Daytona isn't high enough up on that list. I'm definatly planning on going next year right after graduation.

Course 4- Week 1

We're pretty well into the Electrical course and we've covered the basics from the Theory class and started to get into more detail. We hit on the starter systems, had a demo and started testing the starter systems on a Honda, Kawasaki and a Suzuki. We aren't given a Harley to test. Why I'm not sure. We get a different answer every time we ask so I've given up asking. Part of the testing of these systems has been drawing out a block diagram from the schematics. Reading the schematics isn't really hard. The hard part is knowing exactly what the instructors want us to pull from the schematics for the diagrams.

I have to admit that I'm having fun with this part of it. It's challenging looking at the schematic and finding that wire on the bike. It's nice when you get it right quick.

Next week we're supposed to hit on the charging systems and the ignition systems so I'll be ready to cause some real damage soon enough.

Why am I here.......

I had someone ask me, "Why are you going to motorcycle school?". Then I starting thinking to myself, why am I here?

Why am I here............

Have you ever asked yourself that and honestly gave it thought? Really, truly thought about it?

I think I'm here for a few reasons. I like motorcycles. I like riding them, I like being around them and I like the feeling I get when I sit on one. What does that mean exactly? What does that mean to me? I hate to sound cliche but when I sit on a bike I feel free. Not the type of free that you find in an advertisement in a magazine. I get this feeling that I can be better than I am. That I can free myself of the troubles of my mind. Maybe that's what the ads are selling.

I'm also here to prove something. I could say that I'm here to prove something to my mother or my friends or just about anyone but I'd be lying. I'm here to prove something to myself. I've screwed up just about every good opportunity I've had and I need to, no, I want to finally finish what I start.

I've got a lot of work to shake all those bad habits and lose some of the attitude I've developed. Why do I need to challenge and fight everything? I don't know. I do know that, for some reason, I need to though. Maybe the thing or person I really fight and challenge is myself. I'm my own biggest critic and I bash myself the hardest. I suppose that can be good when I use it push myself to improve. What have I been trying to improve though? What are we all trying to improve?

The people I've respected most have been people who could fix or build things. For years it seemed all I ever heard was "you don't have the mechanical ability" and I think it's the reason I gave up on my pursuit of auto mechanics after high school. My favorite times growing up were when I got take something apart or build something. I know I'm good at it and the person or thing I will fight from now on is the one who stands in my way. I've finally found something I enjoy and makes me happy. I feel sorry for the one who gets in my way now. I include myself in that. I will not give up this time. I will not settle for anything less than what I want.

Course 3- Done

I finished out the course tonight with a 97.8. It's not as good as I wanted but it's what I got.

I scored a 88 on the final exam missing 3 questions. Two of them were from topics we covered in lecture but that we didn't do anything with in practice or lab so I didn't think it would be on the test. Was I wrong on that. There was also a question on the test that was not only not covered in lecture, in our papers or done in lab but it didn't have anything to do with our class at all. It was from Course 1. I got that one correct though. The last one I missed was just an incorrectly checked box. I knew the answer but just got excited that I thought I was going to get a 100 on it and just screwed up. Slowing down and taking my time is something I obviously need to work on.

Monday we're on to the first electronics class. I'm really looking forward to this one, partially because I have some experience with electronics and also because I'm afraid to touch the electronics on a bike. I know what happens when you start playing with wires and don't know exactly what they do so I've been afraid to touch the electrical system on my bike. It'll be nice to learn how the systems work so I'll feel confidant to work on mine once the warranty is up.

Hopefully it'll be as fun as I think it will and I'll have a few updates next week.

Course 3....almost done!

I didn't get a chance to post last weekend as it was my birthday and work decided it was gonna tack on a few hours as a present! Sorry about that.

Course 3 has been running fairly smoothly. I've reconditioned some valve seats, bored a cylinder and honed it, cooked a head and popped out the valve guides and replaced em, pushed out another set of valve guides with a press, taken apart 2 crank shafts and trued them and got to do a few bolt extractions which was cake walk work.

The cylinder boring and valve seat reconditioning was the hardest part but mostly, I think, due to the fact that these are "training aids" as the school likes to call them. I call them motorcycle parts that are FUBAR. I spent 2 hours just trying to get the cylinder back in round so I could begin trying to make a smooth cut on it. The valve seats..well lets just say...umm..let's not say. It took me all night to get one straightened out and done. I'm no professional at this stuff by any means and I'm sure a pro could have done them both in an hour or so but I suppose it was a good learning experience. The instructor told me at one point "this is good so you can recognize it out in the field". My reponse to that was "if I see this out in the field I'm gonna take their bike away from them".

I've enjoyed getting my hands dirty and we've certainly done that in this class. I know the fun is just getting started though. The next step for us is the Basic Electronics class or Course 4. I'm really looking forward to this one. I have gotten my feet wet in electronics before. Not so much on motorcycles but through home theaters and such. Electronics are electronics or so I think. I'm sure there will be some surprises awaiting me and I look for a challenge in it. I hope there's one there. I do know that there are more and more electronics popping up on bikes every model year and if you're good at diagnosing and fixing a problem with it you'll be in demand. One thing I'm not looking forward to is seeing someone do the ol "cut and splice with electrical tape" method of repairing something. I know i'll see someone do it and I might have to slap em in the back of the head because i've had to troubleshoot and repair some wires like that before and it's not fun. All that fun isn't till next week though.

Friday night is our final exam for Course 3. I have all my projects already turned in and have gotten perfect scores on them all. This instructor is really helpful with them and doesn't rule with an iron fist when it comes to scoring them. You really have to try to get a minor, points off if you remember, and you practically have to drop something on his foot or break something to get a major, a lot of points off. His attitude has been "I didn't hire you to bore cylinders...etc. You're here to learn and if you learn then you're doing what you're here to do. If not then you lose points" He goes off in weird directions in coversations some times but overall he's a good guy.

I'll try to get a post in by Sunday, if not Friday night and let you know what my final exam score is. Until then........

They're BACK!

After a little vacation, thanks to WJFK flipping formats, the boys are back on the air! I had a little conversation with them today near the end of the show. It was a good talk. I might be biased on that since I love the show and it's a kick to hear myself on the air let alone the fact that I just enjoy talking about pretty much anything motorcycle related.

You can stream the show LIVE at http://www.BigTalker1580.com every Saturday from 3pm to 5pm. That's right 2 HOURS! New and improved!!!!

If you can't catch it live podcasts will be up soon at their website. http://www.dawghouseradio.com

Let's listen up and hit those streams so the station and the advertisers will push the show back to FM and one day to prime time.

Week 13 & Course 2 Done----Week 14 Course 3 underway

Sorry I didn't update last weekend. I got a little caught up in some projects around the house so this post will be a big one.

Lets start where I left off. I was finishing up Course 2 (Suspension, Wheels, Tires) and we were getting ready for our final exam. I finished all my projects with perfect scores except for one. I had to remove a rear wheel, remove the tire from the rim and put it back, put the wheel back on the bike and adjust the belt. I screwed up and didn't pump the brake pressure back up when I was done. I didn't even think to do it while the bike was on the lift as I ALWAYS check the brakes when I get on a bike before I even start it and I just thought I would do it before what would have been the test ride but I should have done it while it was on the lift. The rules of project were to make the bike ready to hand off to the customer...I just got excited that it was the last project and I was heading towards a 100% for the entire course. Live and learn. I got a 100% on the final exam and finished out the course with a 99%. I gave it my best really and I'm happy with it. While I don't consider myself an expert on anything we covered yet, I do feel I have a good grasp of the basics and I'm ready to hit these topics again in the later courses where we'll cover them in more detail.

We started into Course 3 (Machine Shop & Precision Measuring) and have finished the first week. This instructor really has us on cruise control and doesn't seem to have any desire to let us get into high gear. It's a good thing too because boring and honing cylinders is a skill that takes much patience as I found out Friday night when I got a little jumpy and cut too much out on my first practice run. That's why they call it practice and that's why we are using junk cylinders that we can't hurt too bad. The measuring exercise was just a repeat of stuff we did in Course 1 to help nail the skills in a little harder. I didn't have a problem at all with that. I haven't been able to get into honing the cylinder quite yet as the equipment available for everyone to use is extremely limited for some odd reason in this course and we have to share quite a bit. It makes it hard to get a lot of time working on these projects but we seem to be making it work so far.

I find myself more and more hating Friday's just because it means I have two days of no learning on the weekends. I'm looking into buying a salvage motorcycle from one of the auction places around here so I can just tear it up on the weekends and play around with it. I don't have any illusions of fixing it up to ride though. I just want some more practice and I figure a wrecked bike is the way to go since I can't hurt it.

Oh..........and in case you were wondering, I got a 100 on the first exam in Course 3.

I'll try to update again around Wednesday. I'm also still running with 100% attendance too! Not one minute missed to date.

Week 12 (almost done with Course 2)

Since my last post we finshed up our practice projects and took another test. I got a 100 on the test (yay me!) and did ok on the rest of the projects. We took apart the front end of a Sportster, took apart the forks of an old 3-wheeler, did more tires, laced more wheels and did a brake job. The front end job was a little intimidating at first but we muscled through. We definatly need more practice on everything before touching a customer bike. You gotta be careful with scratches and where certain fluids drip. I know I'd be a little upset at scratches and brake fluid dripped on my bars.

This week we have started our graded projects. So far I've gotten perfect scores on my projects and I've only got 5 left to do. I think it's going well. I came close to losing some points a few times but the fact that I was watching someone else get graded right before me allowed me to see them screw up and I fixed mine before I called the teacher to check it. A few old wise men always told me "the easiest way to learn is to watch someone else screw up" and believe me, I'm taking full advantage of that.

Our final exam is friday night like always. The next class we do is either going to be electrical or engine work. I'd rather be in either of those than in the one I'm in now to be honest with you. I'd rather be back in the theory class. Oh well. Almost done!

Week 11

Well things have been busy for me the last week or so. I started a new job on the weekends and its worn me out a little. I haven't worked since December, back injury....long story, and its hard getting back in the swing of things.

Last week we started the Chassis, Suspension, Wheel/Tires class. Last week was just about all book work. We got a new instructor and I'm guessing he hasn't quite found the groove yet. I'm sure he knows his stuff but it's gonna take a little while for him to get good and transferring that knowledge to the students. I'm not one for patience with stuff like waiting for teachers to get good. I pay for it now and I want it now, the education that is. We covered, besides the book stuff, some lacing of spoke wheels, fork tear down and rebuild, tire changing and of course balancing. The lacing took me a little while to get a good grasp on. Mostly because of the truing part. It's not hard once you get it but seeing as the only wheels I've done have been dirt bike wheels it's not doing me much good as far as Harley's go. It's a step in the right direction but I need to practice on what i'm going to be working on. It'll happen more once we break out into the electives (Harley, Honda, etc..) and get our hands on the brand specific training.

This week we started our practice sheets where we get a chance to screw up and learn from it. We're doing the screwing up part pretty good but I suppose if we could do it without screwing up then we wouldn't need the school.

On Tuesday I pulled the swingarm off a dirt bike and checked some measurements on it and put it back on. I also got to take the bearings out of a wheel and put em back. The swingarm kind of scared me a little. It's a very important part of the bike and it intimidated me a little. After we got into it I mellowed out and had fun with it. The bearings part was easy but I'll have to do it a few more times to really know it without reading my cheat sheet. We got done with that stuff a little quick so we knocked out the wheel balancing project. The typical balancing machines were easy enough but we had to use this gravity balancing device. I have never seen one of these before now but it really wasn't that hard.

Tonight, Wednesday night, we jumped into changing tires. It shouldn't have been that hard, or so I thought. The ATV tires didn't give me too much trouble. Those damned tube tires and mag wheels gave me such a headache. Again it comes down to repetition and the more I do them the better I'll get at it.

It's nice getting a little dirty. It makes me feel like I'm doing something. Next week we get graded on what we're doing this week so I'll do all this stuff a few more times before then.

M.M.I. Week 9 (Done) & the start of Week 10

Course 1 (Precision Measurements) DONE!


We finished up Friday night with our final exam and finishing up our projects. I had to finish tearing down and measuring the top, bottom and primary of a Sportster and a Big Twin engine and set the cam timing on a few engines then rebuild them all. It was a little intimidating at first but I got it all done.


I got a 96 on the final exam. I missed one question on what the meaning of the caution label in a service manual is. I said it mean possible bodily injury or death but I according to the answer key it was just possible mechanical damage.

I made it through the entire class without getting one wrong answer on anything. Until the final that is and it's a stupid question like that one that gets me. Ugh!

My final score for the class was 99.86% or something close to that number. I won't get the final results paper till about Friday this week. I do know that I tied with one other student in the class for "Student of the Course". It's nice but the award isn't a make or break deal for me. I'm just happy that I feel comfortable with the subjects we covered. That's my top priority, being able to actually know, understand and put to use all this information.

Tonight is the start of week 10 - (Course 2)Chassis and Suspension. We're gonna be learning how to put together laced wheels and mount tires. We'll also be building front and rear ends and learnging to adjust and repair damaged ones. From talking with the other half of our class that went to Course 2 first, this course is really a "get your hands dirty" class and I can't wait.

MMI Week 8 (Done)

I got another 100 on the test Friday night. Again it wasn't that complicated a test so I'm not patting myself on the back for it but a 100 is a 100. What I am proud of myself for is getting perfect scores on all the tasks we've had so far. You have to do (example numbers here) 15 primary tasks and 10 secondary ones. These can range from answering 50 questions from a service manual or owners manual to tearing down a transmission, or engine or both and measuring all the insides. I'm working with another person, not by choice, and we've just about completed all the primary tasks and we've started the secondary ones. We have till 10pm Friday night next week to finish all of them. We were cruising through them all pretty good till last night when I went to get some computer parts systems tasks done while he started taking the transmission apart so we could finish measuring.....big mistake. I shouldn't have turned my back on him. I got over there and he had it apart but he let a couple other people start asking him questions and it messed him up with the measurements. It took us all night to get it straightened out. We should have finished that task, the computer tasks and made strong progress, if not finished one or two secondary tasks. So now next week we'll have to bust our butts to finish all the tasks. If we can continue to get all the projects perfect we'll finish the class with a 100.

It aggrivates him when I make us measure stuff two and three times then sometimes recheck it again if the numbers look even a little off. Too bad. I'm not gonna get in the habit of half assing the numbers. When you're talking about a transmission a little number fudge could very well get someones transmission locked up when they're doing 60mph and kill them. I'm not having that on my head. Let alone the ruined reputation for half assed work.

I'm starting to get a little more comfortable with tearing into stuff and putting it back together. All the mixed up terminology used around the school is driving me nuts though I must admit. Something as simple as a bolt could have 10 different names and screwing it in could be described in as many ways.

I'm sticking with my plan of going slow and doing it right as opposed to fast and fix it later. In my experience its easier to spend some time getting faster and doing it right first than to spend time fixing it when you did it faster first.

MMI Week 8

It's been a lot of the same from last week. We're still measuring but we're taking apart a little more to do it. The engines are getting a little more complicated and we're getting frustrated with new parts instead of the old ones. I'm starting to realize I like getting ticked off and pulling my hair out because it just means I'm doing something I haven't done before and it's forcing my brain to work. Don't try and tell me that when I'm in the middle of pulling out my hair though. You might get hit with a wrench.

I'll enjoy this even more, I think, when I don't have to do it with someone else and I can sit there and stare at something for a minute while trying to figure it out and not have to deal with "here lemme do it!". It's nice to have another person to bounce ideas off of but I enjoy trying to figure out something myself a little more.

This is a VERY tedious class with a lot of staring at micrometers. I'm starting to get a headache from doing it 100 times a night but in the end it'll help me learn it and I know that so I suck it up and get to it.

Tonight we start on transmissions. I think. It doesn't matter really. It's still better than towing cars or pulling cables through walls.

MMI Week 7 - Coming to a close

The first week in Course 1 is just about done. We've been over precision measuring and I've gotten pretty good at it, I think. We've gotten to tear down a small motor a few times to measure things like piston size, piston ring gap, cylinder size and such. Taking out the valves was easy. Getting those damned little keepers back in there is another story. Once you get the hang of doing it, it's not too bad. I'll just say there were some colorful words flying around the room, from all the tables, the other night when we first started doing it. Large fingers are NOT your friend when doing this sort of task. I'm starting to calm down and get a little more comfortable with the whole process as is most everyone else in the room.

I did have to blow up a little last night on 2 people for bugging me to death. They kept asking me for help on something that I was not working on and it was messing me up and I sort of lost it on them. I told them I didn't mind helping them learn something but not when it was going to interfere with what I was doing and trying to learn. I stick by my previous statement that I'm paying to go to school to learn how to do this stuff myself and not to learn how to teach others how to do it.

Madden 10 came out for the XBOX 360 last night so its a good distraction for my brain. Nothing like a little football game for 30 minutes or so to take the edge off during a study session. It helps to unlock your brain.

MMI Week 7 - "Course 1"

I'm extremely frustrated at this point and I can't quite put my finger on it as to why. It feels like this class, not the students but the class itself, is just so all over the place. There's no direction to follow with what's going on. We've been handed the book and spent one day going over how to precision measure and let loose on the worksheets. There's only one problem. I understand how to measure something but we have to take an engine apart to measure stuff that we have no idea what the hell we're measuring! If they're gonna teach us to take the engine apart then do that. If they're gonna teach us to measure the stuff then do that. Don't just toss in there to measure the stuff and assume we know what we're doing with regards to reading the service manuals and understanding all the technical terms in it.

I'm also getting real pissed off at some of the other students. I'm there to learn myself. If I'm spending my time teaching you how to do something then I'm missing something else myself that's going on at the same time. I can't tell someone to leave me the hell alone. It's just not in me but that's gonna change real soon.

I'll get it down soon enough. I'm just a little frustrated right now with this instructor.

MMI Week 6 (Theory 2) DONE!

DONE! FINALLY! We finished up the last Theory class tonight with our final exam and group presentations. My group did ours on exhaust upgrades. No one did a real detailed presentation as we only had 5 minutes but we covered 1 sportbike and 2 cruisers. We had some fun with it and it went over well.

To the information I know everyone is waiting on. We took our weekly exam on Electrical Theory last night and I got a 96 on it. Not too shabby if you ask me. You try to learn electrical theory in 3 days and see if you do better. I'm rather proud of myself.

Our final exam was tonight and let me tell you this, it was NOT easy to remember stuff from 4-6 weeks ago. We have covered a lot of information in that time and I've done a pretty good job of retaining it but it freaks you out a little when you're faced with a test forcing you to remember it. It didn't help that, after a guy from class came over to do some last minute studying today, I fell asleep in my chair at 5pm and woke up at 5:55. I have to be IN the class at 6:20 to keep my perfect attendance status and I live about 10-15 minutes away from the school. Wouldn't you know it, I hit EVERY stoplight and got stuck behind every slow person in Florida. I hit the door to the class with a minute to spare and of course that screwed my head all up. A perfect state of mind to be in right before a big test.

I got a 95 on it. WOHOOOOOOOOO! I had written down every question I had trouble with and/or knew outright that I was guessing on and sure enough, I got all 5 wrong. There was 100 questions on the final as opposed to 50 on the other exams.

After our presentations were all done and we cleaned up the classroom for the last time we got our final grades for the entire Theory 2 class, the last 3 weeks. I wasn't very nervous about passing or even getting a high enough grade to keep my 4.0 status. I was just nervous about how well I did do. I'm being stupid, I know. I just want to my best and score the highest I can and be able to back it up.

I got a 97 in the class!!!!!!!!

I can't say enough how proud I am of that. There's a UFC fight tomorrow night and there's some celebrating to be done. Our ENTIRE class passed and to top it off we averaged over a 90. We all tried to help each other understand stuff and we all made sure everyone had the opportunity to learn. There was more respect in our class, for each other and for the instructor, than in any other in the last 2 1/2 years our instructor has taught there. He also informed us that he was pretty sure that it was the first time at the school, that a theory class had a 4.0 average.

MMI - Week 6

Here we go. The final week of the Theory classes. This should be interesting. We have to cover all of electical theory in 3 days, test on the 4th day and the final exam for Theory 1 & 2 on Friday. Let the fun begin.

MMI Week 5 DONE!

Well week 5 has come and gone with quite a bit of headache. Our instructor was pulled out of our class and we got the afternoon class instructor. Needless to say it's been a repeat of the last time he was in. If I had to put up with this crap all the time I wouldn't be in this school. It's not acceptable that I am getting my time and money wasted because some people would rather have fun than learn.

On a positive note we did get to take apart a few carbs this week. It was cool to get a little hands on. We didn't rebuild them or anything. They were "junk parts" but they were complete (mostly) and we got to take them apart and put em back together after telling the instructor what all the parts were and what they did.

We finished covering carburetors and fuel injection systems. I got a 98 on the test tonight....or last night depending on your point of view. I only missed 1 question and the only reason I missed it was cause some asshat behind me decided it was a good day to live out his John Bonham fantasy and perform a 30 minute drum solo on the table with his fingers and pens. It was so damned distracting I checked a wrong box. I've made my frustrations known to this instructor and if this crap keeps up I'm going to main office about it. I'm not the only one either. There's about to be a civil war in the Theory 2 night class.

We started taking the notes down for the electrical theory chapter for next week and it's not gonna be a total breeze, especially if the crew keeps up the crap.

I'm still positive about the entire experience as I'm learning quite a bit and I still can't wait to really get to tear into some bikes and get dirty.

MMI Week 4- Done

Well the 4th week is over and we've been over oil, gas, transmissions, final drive and a few other little things. Keep in mind we aren't covering every single thing there is to know about these things but the theory behind them.....Hence the class being called "Theory 2". The first test in this class was on Friday and I got a 92 on it. Not what I wanted but considering the sheer amount of information the 50 questions were drawn from, I think I did ok.

We started covering carbs after the test in preperation for next week and I was ready to stab the instructor in the head to get him to use the word "vacuum". For some odd reason he doesn't want to say it. He says it doesn't exist on earth. I know he's an instructor for a reason but I also know that everyone can't know everything. I don't want to assume to know what he does and doesn't know but I do know that he's not explaining his point in a way that everyone can understand. I personally blocked him out and started reading something else while he was talking about it. He was just confusing me as I already understood the basics of how a carb works. I did keep an ear open in case something came up that I didn't know. People do ask questions and it could be something I don't know.....It's a good way to learn, listening to others questions.

So week 5 is about to begin tomorrow night and that means only 2 more weeks of theory then its time to get our hands dirty!

MMI Week 4 (part 1)

We've had a few nights this week and I'm still noticing people coming in late, leaving early and just not showing up. Are these people paying the same amount I am for this school?

Our instructor informed us on Monday when we came in that he had just finished covering the afternoon class as a favor and that he missed us. Evidently the afternoon crowd is loud and doesn't pay attention. Not to mention the fact that a bunch of them tried to sneak out early and that he found out they do this just about everyday. I believe it. Again......are these people paying the same amount as me?

So far this week we've covered transmissions, cooling and lubrication systems and watched a few of the Harley PHD (PHD is Harley's training program) videos on rebuilding transmissions and the oiling systems for the 88's. They wouldn't let us take the test for them while watching them though. They said we had to wait till we actually started the Harley specific portion of the training. At least I've got an idea of what to expect now when I have to watch as many of those videos as possible before I graduate. They have a lot of information in them and it would be nice to able to get a copy of them. I'm sure there's someway somehow to pull it off but Harley doesn't want anyone to have them besides a dealership. It's an ass move but it's a way they keep the business in house.

I'm still keeping a pretty good grip on things. I think I'll do good with this class as well. Hopefully on the next update, Friday night, I'll have another high score to report.

Until then....................

For you Judas Priest fans out there, they are selling tickets to win the Harley CrossBones they use during the show. All proceeds go to charity. I'm assuming since it's a "local charity" thats local to this particular dealership that they are the ones who gave the bike to the band and had it painted and such. The bike is supposed to be autographed at the end of the tour and I'm sure it'll come complete with custom scratches and everything else loved by a fan. You can mail this in so no need to be there if you'd like a shot to win it. I'm personally not THAT big a Judas Priest fan to be rolling around on a custom bike with their logo all over it but I wouldn't refuse delivery either.

MMI- Week 3 DONE!

Well the first class, Theory 1, is done. We took the final for it tonight and I got a 96 on it. I missed 2 questions. One was reader error. The other, well, I contest the results of this one. I'm not trying to say the instructor was wrong I'm saying the question wasn't worded properly on the test to get the answer they say was right. I don't have a copy of the test so I can't retype it...and I don't have the patience to try and explain it all but its pointless anyway. It won't change my score, just make me feel better complaining about it. Much like everything else in life, even when they're wrong they're right because they're in charge.

Back to the point of the post. The class is done. I got a 96 on the test and finished out the class with a 96 AND perfect attendance. Not one minute late. That doesn't sound that hard but you'd be surprised how many couldn't seem to pull that off.

After finishing the test and getting our grades, and kicking out a few that couldn't pass Theory 1, we started in on a little of the Theory 2 class since we finished early and had some time to kill. Works for me.....I hate sitting around with nothing to do.

Transmissions are the first mission in Theory 2 and just kind of brushed on em lightly tonight. We hit on some basics of the gears and how they link up to each other. We also hit a little bit on the power flow of an indirect drive transmission. I think I'll be OK on this section. Motorcycle transmissions are a little different from car ones, well at least I think they are. I'm not a transmission expert for cars or anything. Hell I know the VERY basics of them but I'm not going to school for those.

For now its MILLER TIME! More like Bacardi but that doesn't sound as good when you say it.

Until next week..............

MMI Week 3 - Part 1

We've dipped into 2 stroke motors and a section they call "Shop Math". I call it 3rd or 4th grade math. You'd be surprised how many people need help with this stuff but the dedication I saw last night on quite a few of those people to nail it down was good to see. On that note I have to say that the attitude of our instructor in his handling of classroom rules is very strict. As a matter of fact I had thought it was a little overkill...until last night that is.

We had a substitute last night and let me say that it ended up like being back in high school again. All the rules just went right out the window and NOTHING got done. It's gonna kill us with this final test Friday. Everything we were supposed to get done last night, that we didn't get done, we'll have to cram in tonight and I'll have one less day to study it. A couple fights almost broke out between those of us trying to learn and the ones who didn't care. It got a little ugly a few times. A few of us got a little vocal about our displeasure of the situation, to put it mildly, and offered lessons in manners outside after classes after getting told, and I quote, "shut the hell up we'll do what we want" among other things a little worse sounding. Didn't get any takers though. I don't want to go off on a rant again but it's a fact that all the ones causing the trouble happened to be sport bike students. Now don't read that wrong. I'm not saying all the sport bike students were causing the trouble. I'm saying all the ones that were causing trouble were sport bike students. Young kids with an attitude problem and no real desire to learn I guess.

I'm no angel myself but I'm never that bad last night I was actually keeping my mouth shut cause I know how hard that stuff can be to someone who doesn't get it.

ANYWAY.......Tonight is gonna consist of, after getting our collective asses chewed out I'm sure, checking all the homework from the last two days and starting into clutches and gears.

Bald heads and do-rags.

This observation is quick and to the point. A freshly shaved head, an ample application of sunscreen and a nice clean do-rag at 80mph will quickly become a head with no do-rag and a nice lil sunburn. Why I was thinking it would stay on is beyond me but when that wind hit that slick smooth head it came off real quick.

Dawghouse Radio Topics Discussion

I thought I'd start a weekly post about my thoughts on topics discussed on the Dawghouse 2-wheel Radio show. It's live on WJFK in the Washington DC area or you can stream it live Sunday Mornings at 10am http://www.wjfk.com. If you missed it or want to refresh the discussion check out the podcast at http://www.dawghouseradio.com .

The first topic I want to comment on is motorcycle death statistics and the relating lack of a license. Having worked with the police departments in Northern Virginia driving a tow truck, I have cleaned up my share of motorcycle accidents. The statistics discussed today said motorcycle deaths were up about 80% where the rider was at fault and the fact that there are around 60,000+ people without the endorsement. I'm just wondering what percentage of those fatalities were sport bikes and what percentage were cruisers. (notice I didn't say imports to Harley's. It's not a question of the nationality of the bike. It's the style in question) Now don't get me wrong here. I'm not saying "guns kill people". It's a fact that, very rarely, the bike doesn't cause the accident. It's the rider. I'm just a firm believer that sport bikes are generally a type of bike that should only be ridden by someone who has the self control not to get stupid with it on the road. They, the bikes, have the power that'll just get out of control if you let it. It's the reason I don't have one. I'd kill myself on it. I get that power under me and it would take control.

Let me move on from my rant and get to the topic of having a license. If you can't get a license then you shouldn't even have a motorcycle, unless it's a show bike that never touches the road. I won't even get started on the stupidity of Florida's law that allows riders to not even have to have insurance at any level, unless you ride without a helmet that is. If you don't have the skill to get the license...get off the bike.

Boring and stroking was also discussed today. We actually talked a little about this in school last week so it was good timing for me because it actually helped me understand what the guys were talking about today on the show. This isn't something you need to do to a motorcycle unless you just want more speed. It's nice to get a little more pep but, for me, I'd rather have reliability so there is only so much I'm willing to do to my daily rider that will effect that. When you grind down the thickness on your engine and push it harder it stretches the engine out and wears it down. It's like steroids in a human body. Sure they make performance better but in the long run, if it makes it to "the long run", it will require a lot of extra maintenance and parts replacement.

If speed is what you crave, believe me when I say I like it, then by all means get that speed. Just keep it off the road where you can hurt someone else.

MMI Week 2 (Post test)

I got a 92. It's not as good as I'd hoped but it is what it is. I missed 4 out of 50 questions.

One question was on being able to identify which parts of a cast iron valve are commonly Stellite plated. The option I chose was "tip and stem" and I only picked that one cause the only other choice that I thought that could have been it was "tip and face" and I could have sworn that the stem needed the extra protection too but I was wrong.

Another question I got wrong was about how many times the camshaft turns to every turn on the crankshaft and piston strokes.....I said 2 cam turn to 1 crank....not sure where my head was on that one.

Third one I got wrong was just identifying the parts of a valve. This is the one that I just checked the wrong box. I got cocky and was going a little fast through the test at this point and just screwed up. I told myself to go slow through it so I wouldn't do this sort of thing but.........well. Lesson learned.

Fourth one I got wrong was "which of the following using mechanical method to move the valve" For some damned reason, probably the "going to fast reason" again since it was the question right after the 3rd one I got wrong, I just read it as saying "which of the following doesn't use mechanical method".

It really sucks when you're going over what you got wrong and you know the reason you got it wrong wasn't because you didn't know the answer but because you just screwed up. I think it feels worse to get it wrong from just going too fast than to not know the answer.

I'm not gonna lose sleep over it but I won't get those questions wrong when they show up on the final. I also will try to keep myself from getting excited and screwing up again.


We started 2-Stroke engines last night a little after the test. I don't like 2-stroke motors. They seem like the biggest waste of gas but if they could figure out a way to prevent them from shooting so much fuel mix out of the exhaust they seem like they'd be quite the powerhouses. I could be wrong on that thought but I'm not sure yet. I'll learn more next week on that.

Riding without a helmet......

I had someone ask me "why do you people ride without a helmet?"

Well......

It's like this. We know it's probably not the brightest idea in the world but then neither is living when you think about it.

1. Bad things can happen to you anywhere at anytime. I don't think anyone can argue against that point. Healthy people have heart attacks, people who practice safety 24/7 have accidents, and even the most well protected countries get attacked. Let's face it.....you can't be ready for everything all the time. If you spend your life being worried about what's gonna happen to you then nothing is gonna happen to you. Good or bad.

2. For the safety police that are going to yell "well this statistic shows this..." and blah blah blah blah. I counter with this statement..."I'll take it under advisement". We all know statistics can be twisted harder than a twizzler. Facts are simple...sure helmets will save you from getting brain damage but only if you don't snap your neck, cut your head off or die from any other trauma or blood loss resulting from the accident. The same thing can happen in a car too, it's just more likely to happen on a motorcycle than a car because you don't have that cage of steel around you. Again this goes back to the whole thing of worrying about what's gonna happen. And for the record, I do wear a helmet when legally required and/or in certain riding conditions and situations where I feel the danger factor reaches the point where it would help me survive an accident.

3. Have you ever ridden a bike without a helmet? Ever ridden in a convertible with the top down? Stuck your head out the window of your car while going down the road? It's a blast and it feels good to feel nature going over you. Don't believe me? Ask a dog why they like it.

My whole point is this....I wouldn't die today if I had to wear a helmet everywhere I went but it wouldn't be as fun and with all the crap I've been through in the last year, BEING SAFE BY THE WAY, I don't want to spend my time worrying about what might happen. I'm not saying run out and play Russian roulette but think on this statement......

The most fun I've ever had is when I didn't know what was gonna happen.....

MMI Week 2 (pre-test)

This week started off good. We finished covering engine theory and started into 4 stroke engines. I'm kind of surprised how much I thought I knew. I shouldn't be shocked as I've learned over the years most of the stuff you think you "know" is wrong. We are still in the book and note taking stage of things and most of us are anxious to get our hands dirty but if you don't know what you're doing it's pointless.

At the end of the night on Monday some genius decided to pull the fire alarm. I'm not sure when I went back to high school but I thought paying for school was supposed to bring out the grown-up in people. Once again.....something I thought I knew.

I've noticed a few people not showing up to class and showing up late. It's only week 2 and already people are taking a serious hit to their grades. My only hope is that I don't get real sick for the next year or two as that's the only reason I'll be missing any time.

As the week has gone on the information has been flowing at a rather quick pace. If you blink you really do miss quite a lot and let me tell you, it's a BITCH to catch back up. I've been studying my ass off and I think I've got a pretty decent handle on things.

It's Thursday night, well technically Friday morning, as I'm typing this and the big test is Friday night when we walk in the door. I've got a lot of studying to do to make sure I not only get a good grade on it but actually know what the hell I'm doing. Getting lucky on a test isn't good enough for this guy. I've got a few people who are looking to me to do well down here and one in particular that I really don't want to disappoint, who has helped me a lot so far. More than I can ever hope to repay but I know that I'll do her right by learning all I can. Oh and don't think I forgot about the crowd back home just waiting to give me a hard time if I mess up. Most of which will be a load of good humored poking but painful none the less.

MMI Week 1

The first week here at M.M.I. in Orlando, FL is just like the first week in any school to be honest. A lot of policy and procedure, time spent buttoning up financial aid paperwork, quite a bit of "this is what we're going to cover" and a little "why not sign up for more classes" just for flavor.

The school is VERY persistent in ramming the attendance policy down our throats. Showing up ranks higher on the scale than getting good grades. They say its because the employers they have consulted with told them that attendance was a bigger factor in the hiring process than grades. This is just a little confusing to me but whatever. I'm shooting for both so this policy doesn't really matter to me.

The schools drug and alcohol abuse policy is VERY strict so potheads get ready for a change if you want to stay. They do testing not only when an accident has occurred or when student, or faculty member, behavior warrants it but they also do random testing. The computer picks a few student ID numbers and off you go to get the swab test. Once more this policy doesn't really bother me so I've brushed it off but I thought it was important to note that they do care about getting you ready to be out in the real world as if most of us attending haven't been there already.

We do get a nice discount from Snap-on, who have an office and dedicated employee on the campus. That's a great bonus in my book and could very well save me, or any student, thousands of dollars in tools, boxes and equipment.

One thing to watch out for if you ever go to the school, for visiting or attending, is the parking lot during shift change. Everyone rushing to get out and the incoming group fighting for that closer parking can be quite the show and getting hit by someone not paying attention isn't out of the question. I've seen it almost happen a few times already.

The police in the Orlando area have become used to the shirts the students wear and, from I've heard and seen, are attracted to it like Jaws to a kid on a raft. It's amazing how many people here can't grasp the concept that, and this is another topic rammed down our throat, a clean driving record is essential to getting a job as to fix a bike one must test ride said bike.

On to the subjects covered this week.........

Being a short week, with the 3rd being an observed holiday and with having spent the first 2 and a half days going over procedures and other stuff, we really didn't get too deep in much. We did start to cover the basics of engine combustion. I'm not too thrilled with the lack of a text book in this teaching style they use. They have printed out a power-point presentation with some information missing that you must fill in from the lecture. It's hard to study by and it lacks a structure for later research so I've been taking the time to redo it as we go and I've made my own study guide and scanned in the pics from the sheets they gave us. It might take a little time but it helps me to understand the topics and it should help later on if I need to look back on something.

Next week is supposed to be a lot more detail so I should have a little more to post on what we've learned.

If I have to explain....

Strange things can go through your head in the shower and you can sometimes have some deep thoughts. I had one of these thoughts today.

"If I have to explain, you wouldn't understand......"

This is a strange and tricky phrase if you think about it. To the person who doesn't ride it comes across as a cliche t-shirt slogan. To the person who rides or has ridden, it's meaning is as clear as a blue sky day.

But have you ever stopped to think....why?

Let's start from the non-riders point of view. What is there to explain that someone wouldn't understand? Why wouldn't they understand it? Can you understand what it is to understand something you can't explain? Last but not least, have you ever given any thought to what it is you really love about this adventure that is riding?

I myself think its easy to explain to someone why I love to ride. It's simple. Riding clears my head and calms my nerves. All my anger. All my frustration. All my confusion gets shaken out of my head and gets sucked right through the bike to the road below or gets blown away by the wind. It all comes clear when you come over that hill and the first site of the mountain appears in the distance, when you catch that first deep breath of the pine tree forest, when it quits raining and you finally dry out, when you hit that spot in the road where the sun happens to creep out and warm you up on that winter ride, when you get where you're going with your friends and see a group of future friends. I could go on and on.

This is where the rider mentality is needed. I could explain till your eyes pop out of your head from reading but I won't. It won't do any good. I'll explain why.

Did you ever have anyone try to explain love to you before you met your first girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/husband...whatever the case may be? Did you ever have someone explain what death was and what it meant before your first pet died? Did you think you had a good grip on what it meant to have your first kid before you had it? Sure you did. You had all the information...or so you thought.

I thought I knew what it was....what it meant to be on 2 wheels. Understanding what it means and understanding how it feels are different things.

So keep this in mind. "If I have to explain, you wouldn't understand" isn't some half-cocked way of saying "if you don't have a bike YOU SUCK". It's a way of letting you know how great it is and throwing you an invitation to discover it for yourself.

It's worth it.

Welcome to my blog.

In American history, today is the day our forefathers got off their ass after months of debate and got the kick start working on the engine of freedom and this great country got rolling down the road to where we are today.

I figured if July 4th was a good enough day for them to get off their ass then it's a good enough day for me to do the same. I'm not starting a new country but starting a good blog is quite a bit of work in itself and much like starting a new country there will be quite a few bumps in the road for me but I don't plan on quitting.

I hope you all will enjoy this and PLEASE give me any comments on what you like, don't like and please post your opinions on a given topic. As long as the comments stay somewhat on topic, anything posted will stay posted.

I look forward to this adventure and glad you jumped on for the ride.