Fly in, Ride Back... Central Oregon to SoCal and then the Adventure Begins !!!

[movenon]

Great post ! Glad the trip went so well. I hope to get a trip or two over to Bend this year. From here it's about 317miles. Just right for trip.. You got a good bike there.
George

[CatTomb]

Days 5-7 Spent with family and friends.

Day 8 - Packed up and took off. First 10 miles were highway 126, two lanes, straight and fast, and then highway 150. I nice bit of twisty from Santa Paula to Upper Ojai. This is St. Thomas Aquinas College.



My good friend, John, has an organic farm in Upper Ojai, I spent a few hours on Wednesday helping him prepare for his summer planting. Before I moved to Oregon, I volunteered on his farm and another a couple of days a week for 7 years. It was good to be back and get my hands dirty.





Riding down the 150 into Ojai and thru town onto the 33. I diverted into Meiners Oaks for a veggie burger at my favorite resaurant, The Farmer and the Cook. Steve and his wife, Olivia, have a great farm that supplies most of the veggies for the restaurant and market. Steve gave me lifetime picking rights to his farm, anything I want, anytime I want it... and then I moved. I visited with him and he bought my lunch.

Back to the 33 and one of the funnest parts of the ride. The 33 climbs, twisting and turning, for thirty miles to the summit.





The ride continued down the backside, hooked up with Hwy 166 thru grazing and oil land. I stopped in McKittrick for a soda and a candy bar to offset my healthy lunch and give my butt a rest.



Rode from there to Hwy 99, and then to  Hwy 178 toward Lake Isabella. The Kern River flows down the mountain and sometimes it rages.



Rode up joyfully passing all of the good people courteous enough to let me pass. Filled up at the far edge of town and rode east toward Ridgecrest and Hwy 395. I had a 50 mile an hour tail wind most of this section. I could put my had out to the side and feel almost no wind doing 65. I did have to stop and clean my visor...



Rode the 395 into Bishop and decided to stop for the night. First day, 350 miles. The bike has simple rubber, MX style, grips and my hands were numb, vibrating and sore. Got a $54 dollar room and had a good $13 prime rib dinner. The Giant Loop back takes 90 seconds to remove. It works great, holds a ton of stuff and doesn't require a rack. I can also use it on my dual-sport. The magnetic tank bag that came with the bike also worked great. It never moved the entire trip and since it was only magnetic, removed instantly for refueling.



Slept well. It was supposed to be a cold morning but turned out to be in the high forties. I had breakfast the same place I had dinner, Jakes Waffle Shack, and hit the road. Cold enough to get my attention but bearable. Hwy 395 is beautiful. Lots of amazing vistas.





I stopped at Mono Lake to take a break. This isn't the best place to see the wonders of this special place, but it is a perfect place to stop and stretch.





Continued to Bridgeport, stopped for gas, soda and the guilty pleasure of Nutter Butter bars which I shared with this guy.



I saw flocks of seagulls flying in formation several times. Some flocks had over a hundred birds.

Stopped for the night in Alturas, Ca. Day 2, 370 miles. Nice Best Western room for $80 and a tolerable lasagna dinner. Great nights sleep. Packed up by 7:00 and found the bike didn't want to wake up. It had dipped to the upper thirties during the night and I thought it might just be cold. It turned over great but didn't seem to want to fire. I let it sit in the sun and tried it every 10 minutes. It finally started and I was on my way.

Rejoiced to be back in the Rose State.



South Eastern Oregon is a mix of verdant valleys and stark desert landscapes. The ride had been cold. I have a decent pair of winter riding gloves but after several hours it was time to stop. I stopped at the turnoff for Fort Rock State Park and warmed my hand and stretched my legs.





The bike fell asleep and didn't want to wake up. I was only two hours from home... I tried the wait ten minute trick... several times. I had three quarters of a tank of gas and thought I could make it home if only I could get it running. I tinkered a bit and it finally started. I had removed the bags, seat and side covers and misplaced the seat in trying to reinstall it. I had to stop the bike to use the key to remove the seat and reinstall properly. Luckily it restarted instantly. I then noticed I forgot to replace the side covers which required stopping the bike again. Dumb luck, it started again and I was on my way. Made it within a couple of miles from home before it started to sputter, like it was running out of gas. I coaxed it within a half a mile from home when it quit. I had two hundred miles on this tank but the fuel light never came on. I could see the tank was still above the center divider. I waited. It started after 20 minutes and I gratefully sputtered home.

About a thousand miles, averaged 44 mpg and loved every minute.

Today is going to be spent cleaning the bike and sorting out the fuel problem.

[big r]

Nice pics. Looks like a really nice ride, and beautiful scenery. Hope you get the bike sorted out. Big R

[oz.fj]

Wow
Looks like you had a great trip
With some excellent scenery
Thanks for sharing

Darran

[The General]

  Wow! How good was that! I hung off every word. Loved the look of Jakes waffle shop. Incredible variety of scenery (and diet) you guys have over there. I even understood the comprehension (no Aussie dictionary required) - though for a second I did wonder how you could have lost your seat while parked on tha side of the road. 
Hey mate, I want one of them Nutter Butter Bars - I`ll swap ya for some Vegemite - but somehow I don`t think you should try both together!
That bike looks great and so does the paint job, so watch out for dust particles that get attracted to the magnets - I `d hate ta see you scratch it.
Amazing how common that fuel prob is on that model. I reckon the PO`s get sick of the unknowing mechanics that cost them dearly, while the solution is reasonably simple.
Many thanks for making my day.  Doug

[FJmonkey]

Jeff, I suspect you are having the same issue that drove me Nucking Futs. The issue is easy to check. You need to lift the rear of the tank just high enough to access the vacuum line that feeds the petcock on the underside of the tank. Remove the vacuum like from the intake boot, leaving it attached to the petcock. If you removed the fuel line from your carbs then provide a safe place for the fuel to flow during this test. Then suck on your petcock....Wait for it....Wait for it..... The comments will be rolling in on that one. The effect you are looking for is a slight give and then a solid stop. If you can keep sucking then you have a vacuum leak just like I did, and it only gets worse with age. If you have a leak then check the hose and its connection to the petcock, it could be the leak. If not then you need to get a new 86/87 petcock, or upgrade to the 84/85 like I did for less $$$.

Thanks for the pics and ride report, makes me want to win the lottery and ride everywhere....

[CatTomb]

Thanks Mark!

I'll just replace the hose tomorrow and give it a go. I checked the inside of the tank and the friggin' thing looks brand new.

Jeff

p.s. trying to plan a trip again down south with a stop for the West Coast Rally!

[FJmonkey]

Thanks Mark!

I'll just replace the hose tomorrow and give it a go. I checked the inside of the tank and the friggin' thing looks brand new.

Jeff

p.s. trying to plan a trip again down south with a stop for the West Coast Rally!

Don't just change the hose, I still have my original hose, I had to change my petcock..... Do the test..... Just a small suck on a tiny hose... And it would be good to meet you at the WCR if you can make it. Attendance has changed my loyalty and affinity for this mongrel bunch of misfits like myself... We might even have a potato cannon or two this year. I am bringing some home brew, not much as I am ridding up, but you get the point....

[CatTomb]

Alright, I'll suck the tiny hose... just please.... don't tell my mother.

[fj11.5]

  monkey,  are you corrupting ppl again