Prepping for the Rally

[aviationfred]

I have been doing a few minor upgrades to prep the bike for the Central Rally at the end of the week.

During my 2000 mile trip to Gunnison last year, I ended up with severe arm pump during the ride back to Kansas. This trip is a little over half the distance. Still, I have been wanting one of these throttle locks for a while.

Vista Cruise Throttle Lock



A lot of riders use ear plugs while riding, For a long time I had speakers inside of my helmet. The down side was, with ear plugs in, I could not hear the music over the wind noise. The solution I found is earplugs with speakers. These differ from ear buds, as they insert fully into the ear canal and block all wind noise. MEElectronics Over-the-Ear M6 Sound-Isolating Sports In-Ear Headphones

http://www.ebay.com/itm/131104933534?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

I use the MP3 setting on my phone for the music. Over long distance, or all day rides my battery on my phone runs low. To combat that, I wired in a cigarette lighter charging port.



Fred

[Country Joe]

Fred,
It looks like you will be headed to Arkansas in fine style. I just got the Ninja running tonight, it has a Muzzy full exhaust, and it is rowdy! It may be too loud for me to ride it.......but I think I will manage. Just need to sync the carbs and get the rest of the body work back on it. I have every intention of being there Friday and Saturday, one bike or another.
Joe

[giantkiller]

Changed the front sprocket from 17to18 tonight. Going to change the back tire tomorrow night. For some reason the back tire wore out really fast   
Lube chain, cables, change the oil, repack the bearings ect
After work (12hr shifts) and hopefully be ready early Thursday morning. 12 or so hours later I'll be there.

[TexasDave]

Installed new front tire. Thinking about installing a 40 tooth rear sprocket.      Dave

[ribbert]

During my 2000 mile trip to Gunnison last year, I ended up with severe arm pump during the ride back to Kansas. This trip is a little over half the distance. Still, I have been wanting one of these throttle locks for a while.

Vista Cruise Throttle Lock
Fred

Fred, that is definitely one of those "why didn't I do it years ago" mods. You'll love it.

Did you choose those particular ear buds for any reason?

I have the new Sena 20s to replace my very old, first generation Q2, it is bristling with all the latest electronic and bluetooth wizardry, but, like Dyson vacuum cleaners, they overlooked it's most basic function. To anyone on the receiving end, phone or intercom, it sounds like you're talking with a mouthful of marbles and I can no longer hear the speakers clearly at speed through my ear plugs ( I could on the Q2)
So, I am looking at other options. I will be interested to hear some feedback from you on how they perform on you trip.

Noel

[Dads_FJ]

Fred,
How long have you been using the earbud speakers?  Do they work well? 

[aviationfred]

Fred,
How long have you been using the earbud speakers?  Do they work well?  

Noel and John,

I have been using these ear plug/speakers for awhile. I really like them and IMO they work great. When I had the speakers in my helmet, I would have the volume on my phone at 100% and I use a Rooster Booster amplifier. Without ear plugs, at speed, I could hear the music just fine.
With regular foamy ear plugs in, i could barely hear any music at speed.

With the MEElectronics earplug speakers, I can set my phones volume at 50% and the wind noise is barely noticeable. They come with 7 sets of rubber plugs. I use the smaller of the Christmas tree rubber buds and once installed the speaker sits pretty close to flush with the outside of my ear.

Why did I choose this particular earplug speaker? At an all brands sport touring rally (MSTA BS Rally) I attended last year a fellow rider had a pair and I talked to him and he gave a great review.

Fred