Thirteen Moto
OI Foundation
Fuel Mileage
Syndicate
Thirteen Moto
2 Hour Sale at Cycle Gear
Just an FYI for those that didn't get the mailer. It looks like they have some pretty big mark downs and an additional 10% off of everything in the store. 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM on February 11th.
More From CES 2010
I'm still mulling over all the news and product announcements from last week's event. Here are a couple more that look interesting.
- Who needs ear buds when you can Shake? The TuneBug Shake attaches to the surface of your helmet and effectively turns it in to a speaker. It's advertised for use with skate and bicycle helmets. I don't know if it would work with a full face motorcycle helmet and at $120, I'm not interested enough to find out. They're made by NXT who knows a little something about getting sound out of flat surfaces.
- Have you ever been caught on the road with a dead cel phone battery and no way to charge it? Easy Energy has a solution. The YoGen is a pocket sized battery charger powered by you. The device has a rip cord of sorts that winds a generator that can charge electronics via a mini or micro-USB connection. It seems like cheap insurance and possibly a great workout at $40.
CES 2010
I've been following this year's edition of the Consumer Electronics Show at Engadget. It occurs to me that there are several products that might appeal to the touring motorcyclist.
- The Liquid Image Summit Series Snow Camera Goggles actually broke cover just before CES but I think they deserve mention. They're designed for snow sports but the concept could easily be applied to a street helmet or a pair of off road goggles. You're $150.00 gets you a pair of goggles with a built in video camera capable of 30 fps at 720x480. It only has 16MB internal memory but it will accept an SD card up to 16GB. Look for it late summer 2010.
- The Lenovo Skylight is a member of a new class of ultra-portable computer designed to out netbook the netbook. These smartbooks, as they're being called are in many cases even smaller, lighter and slower then their big brothers but they also included some kind of cellular connectivity. The Skylight runs a streamlined Linux OS on Qualcomm's Snapdragon proc. Yep, the same Snapdragon that is destined for several smart phones coming from LG and HTC among others. $499 off contract but rumor has it that AT&T may offer a subsidized version.
- The Dell Inspiron Mini10 is mostly unremarkable. It's another Atom N450 netbook. Dime a dozen right? Well not quite but you can get this one for a mere $299. For a few dollars more you can add a 9.5 hour battery.
- Garmin dropped a few new products including the Zumo 665. It's a lot like the 660 except that it gets traffic and weather info from XM instead of MSN Direct which is not long for this world.
- DeLorme's PN-60W GPS offers all integration with social networking sites including Twitter and Facebook when paired with a Spot Satellite Messenger though it's apparently one way. More interestingly, you can also track the position of friends with the same unit. Restrictions based on range and kine of sight may limit the usefulness of this feature.
- Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX5V is a 10.2MP point and shoot with a 10x optical zoom and full HD video capability. All pretty standard stuff right? Well here's the cool part: It has a feature called GPS + Compass. Not only will it geotag your photos for you but it also knows which direction the camera was facing when the pic was taken.
- iHome has their usual range of traveling iPod accessories. The iP48 looks particularly appealing. It's a self contained iPod charger/speaker set/travel alarm. Best of all, it syncs the alarm clock's time with the iPod so you don't have to after a long day in the saddle. What else could you need?
- Navigon was, if I'm not mistaken, the first major GPS vendor to bring a navigation app to the iPhone. Now they've done the same for both Android and WinMo.
For Sale
Anyone need a clean used car? The dog hauler is up for sale.
My wife and I have been talking about becoming a one car household for some time. We've decided that the middle of winter is the perfect time to take the plunge.
My wife and I have been talking about becoming a one car household for some time. We've decided that the middle of winter is the perfect time to take the plunge.
The Pace
We're podcasting which explains the distinct lack of action on the blog. Check us out at thepacepodcast.com.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
Another one of my favorite quotes. That one comes from Leonardo da Vinci.
Another one of my favorite quotes. That one comes from Leonardo da Vinci.
Simplicate, then add lightness
"Simplicate, then add lightness."
Colin Chapman said that. I know he was a car guy but the man was a goddamn genius. I can't help but reflect on those words every year as manufacturers start to unveil their new models.
Oh, and the new VFR launches tomorrow.
Colin Chapman said that. I know he was a car guy but the man was a goddamn genius. I can't help but reflect on those words every year as manufacturers start to unveil their new models.
Oh, and the new VFR launches tomorrow.
Heads-Up GPS
This could be seriously cool if you could project it directly on the face shield.
Philly digs bikes!
We're talking about people powered bikes but it's still pretty cool if you ask me. Mayor Nutter officially opened two new cross town bike lanes on Pine and Spruce. According to the Channel 6 news story I just saw they took a lane away from automobile traffic and gave it to bicyclists. That takes a lane away from us as moto commuters as well but it's still a win for the city. The only way were going to get people out of cars is to make other options more attractive.
Here's a link to the Philadelphia Inquirer story.
Here's a link to the Philadelphia Inquirer story.
Lake Placid: September 2009
I attended Sport-Touring.net's ESTN 2009 rally last weekend. The event was held in Lake Placid New York in the middle of the Adirondack Mountains. It typically runs Friday through Sunday. Having never been to the area I decided to ride in on Thursday. I wanted to do some sight seeing before the rest of the crowd arrived.
I packed my Ventura bags and loaded up the SV on Wednesday night. I managed to roll out of the garage at about 7:15 Thursday morning. That was only fifteen minutes later then planned which is pretty remarkable for me. The early start gave me plenty of time to take a long, meandering route through four states. I crossed from Delaware in to PA on Rt. 52. I stayed west of Philadelphia slogging my way through some suburban traffic before turning east well north of the city. I cruised country roads until I hooked up with 611 crossing in to the Garden State from Portland, PA. Portland was the site of my only wrong turn of the entire trip. I'm still not entirely sure what i did wrong but I managed to cross the state line 3 times. How did people survive before GPS? Once in Jersey I found my self on CR519. This road turned out to be a nice surprise. It was a winding, 50-60 mph two lane through state forest and preserved farm land. There was no traffic to speak of, the surface was in great shape and the road just kept going in the right direction. I hit New York State around Port Jervis where I picked up 209. 209 was pretty straight and fast. I had to slow down for the occasional small town but there weren't too many of them. Those towns made gas stops easy and the red lights gave me a chance to stand up and stretch out every now and then. From there I ran parallel to I-87 on 9W. I did jump on 87 and 787 to get trough Albany. It was early enough in the day that I didn't think traffic would be an issue. It wasn't. Once north of Albany I switched back and forth between 87 and 9 all the way to 73. From there it was a short but glorious ride through the Adirondacks to the official motel of ESTN 2009.
Olympic ski jumps from Rt 73 tell me that I'm getting close
The venue was perfect. We stayed at the Lake Placid Econo Lodge just on the edge of town. The staff was pleasant, the rooms were clean and they had an indoor pool and hot tub. I really can't over state the awesomeness of soaking in a hot tub after a long day in the saddle. The coffee served in the lobby was what you would expect. That was the only miss. The Lodge was a right turn and a few minutes from Main St's restaurants and attractions. A left turn out of the parking lot led to great riding in short order.
I've arrived. No one else has.
On Friday I got my Olympic geek on. I was a 12 year old American boy in 1980. I still regard the USA's 4 to 3 victory over the USSR as the single most significant sporting event in my life time. I had to go see the ice. I also wanted to see the 1932 rink, the Olympic Museum and the ski jumps. They are all surprisingly close together. I didn't get as much riding in as I expected to on Friday. No problem. That's what Saturday was for.
My first stop was the jumping complex.
Summer training off of the 90 meter hill (extreme crop)
Walking to the lift after a successfull landing on the grass
Freestyler in training
Off of the big ramp
These guys landed in a pool. I've worn ski boots. I can't imagine swimming in them.
Next I was off to Lake Placid proper to see the ice rinks. This is the exterior of the 1932 arena.
And the interior
The site of the "Miracle"
The exterior
Lake Placid High School is situated directly next door to the ice rinks. That's the speed skating oval in front of it.
Bobsled safety gear circa 1932
Mirror Lake
By the time I got back to the Lodge other riders were arriving. We hung out in the parking lot doing the requisite tire kicking and bench racing before deciding to take the free shuttle in to town for dinner. We gathered on the curb and waited. And we waited some more. About 45 minutes later a group of us decided to ride in. We ate at the Lake Placid Brewing Company. The food was adequate, the IPA was better.
The bikes gather. That FJR has been Alaska with a car tire on the rear.
As mentioned above, Saturday was for riding. The roads up there aren't as technical as those in the south east. In Tennesseeand West Virginia the roads force themselves up and over the mountains.You feel the altitude as you climb from one switch back to the next.That's not really the case in the 'Dacks. The roads sort of flowthrough and around the mountains. that makes it easy to settle in to a grove and just ride.
Chris led a great ride along a route suggested by Garry. We enjoyed a nice mix of roads at a sane and reasonable pace. The roads were wet early in the day but they dried out nicely. We ended the ride with 2 passes on Tracy Rd. This road was definitely the highlight of the route. It was clean, smooth and curvy. There was one mid-corner bump that caught me off guard the first time through. Other then that it was fantastic. After the group split up a couple of us couldn't resist the urge to run Tracy a couple more times.
Saturday morning
Mid ride break. That's Glen, Frank and Chris in the foreground. We were also joined by Mike, Gwen, John, Robert and Jeff.
From the same location
Lunch break
Tracy rd. (Chris Hornberger's image)
After our second run on Tracy rd.
I rode home on Sunday. My route was basically the reverse of Saturday's. I did make a short detour to run Tracy rd twice more then skipped i-87 on the north end of the trip. I did ride a little slap closer to home just to make some time. Sunday was my very understanding wife's birthday. She encouraged me to take the trip despite the date. I wanted to get home in time to unwind for a bit and then take her out to dinner. A big plate of sushi from Kyoto was a great way to end a fantastic weekend.
Greg gets ready to roll out
Frank packs for the trip home
Along Rt 73
I packed my Ventura bags and loaded up the SV on Wednesday night. I managed to roll out of the garage at about 7:15 Thursday morning. That was only fifteen minutes later then planned which is pretty remarkable for me. The early start gave me plenty of time to take a long, meandering route through four states. I crossed from Delaware in to PA on Rt. 52. I stayed west of Philadelphia slogging my way through some suburban traffic before turning east well north of the city. I cruised country roads until I hooked up with 611 crossing in to the Garden State from Portland, PA. Portland was the site of my only wrong turn of the entire trip. I'm still not entirely sure what i did wrong but I managed to cross the state line 3 times. How did people survive before GPS? Once in Jersey I found my self on CR519. This road turned out to be a nice surprise. It was a winding, 50-60 mph two lane through state forest and preserved farm land. There was no traffic to speak of, the surface was in great shape and the road just kept going in the right direction. I hit New York State around Port Jervis where I picked up 209. 209 was pretty straight and fast. I had to slow down for the occasional small town but there weren't too many of them. Those towns made gas stops easy and the red lights gave me a chance to stand up and stretch out every now and then. From there I ran parallel to I-87 on 9W. I did jump on 87 and 787 to get trough Albany. It was early enough in the day that I didn't think traffic would be an issue. It wasn't. Once north of Albany I switched back and forth between 87 and 9 all the way to 73. From there it was a short but glorious ride through the Adirondacks to the official motel of ESTN 2009.
The venue was perfect. We stayed at the Lake Placid Econo Lodge just on the edge of town. The staff was pleasant, the rooms were clean and they had an indoor pool and hot tub. I really can't over state the awesomeness of soaking in a hot tub after a long day in the saddle. The coffee served in the lobby was what you would expect. That was the only miss. The Lodge was a right turn and a few minutes from Main St's restaurants and attractions. A left turn out of the parking lot led to great riding in short order.
I've arrived. No one else has.
On Friday I got my Olympic geek on. I was a 12 year old American boy in 1980. I still regard the USA's 4 to 3 victory over the USSR as the single most significant sporting event in my life time. I had to go see the ice. I also wanted to see the 1932 rink, the Olympic Museum and the ski jumps. They are all surprisingly close together. I didn't get as much riding in as I expected to on Friday. No problem. That's what Saturday was for.
Summer training off of the 90 meter hill (extreme crop)
Freestyler in training
These guys landed in a pool. I've worn ski boots. I can't imagine swimming in them.
Next I was off to Lake Placid proper to see the ice rinks. This is the exterior of the 1932 arena.
The site of the "Miracle"
The exterior
Bobsled safety gear circa 1932
By the time I got back to the Lodge other riders were arriving. We hung out in the parking lot doing the requisite tire kicking and bench racing before deciding to take the free shuttle in to town for dinner. We gathered on the curb and waited. And we waited some more. About 45 minutes later a group of us decided to ride in. We ate at the Lake Placid Brewing Company. The food was adequate, the IPA was better.
As mentioned above, Saturday was for riding. The roads up there aren't as technical as those in the south east. In Tennesseeand West Virginia the roads force themselves up and over the mountains.You feel the altitude as you climb from one switch back to the next.That's not really the case in the 'Dacks. The roads sort of flowthrough and around the mountains. that makes it easy to settle in to a grove and just ride.
Chris led a great ride along a route suggested by Garry. We enjoyed a nice mix of roads at a sane and reasonable pace. The roads were wet early in the day but they dried out nicely. We ended the ride with 2 passes on Tracy Rd. This road was definitely the highlight of the route. It was clean, smooth and curvy. There was one mid-corner bump that caught me off guard the first time through. Other then that it was fantastic. After the group split up a couple of us couldn't resist the urge to run Tracy a couple more times.
Saturday morning
Mid ride break. That's Glen, Frank and Chris in the foreground. We were also joined by Mike, Gwen, John, Robert and Jeff.
From the same location
Lunch break
Tracy rd. (Chris Hornberger's image)
I rode home on Sunday. My route was basically the reverse of Saturday's. I did make a short detour to run Tracy rd twice more then skipped i-87 on the north end of the trip. I did ride a little slap closer to home just to make some time. Sunday was my very understanding wife's birthday. She encouraged me to take the trip despite the date. I wanted to get home in time to unwind for a bit and then take her out to dinner. A big plate of sushi from Kyoto was a great way to end a fantastic weekend.
Greg gets ready to roll out
Frank packs for the trip home