Okay so how does one kick off September? Labor day weekend, nothing before that really counts, right? Since I ended up working for a good portion of it a dirt ride was in order. So I talked one of the Santa Fe racers into going out with me. I’m pretty fearless, but I won’t ride dirt along, just doesn’t seem wise. Know what else would be wise? Taking your tools with you on the dirt ride. Since I had decided to try out the new shock on the TTR225 that Dave Rose from STM suspension had spent so much time reworking. (Even though it’s not really a shock that can be rebuilt, he’s a got some ninja skills.)
Luis and I almost always park in the same spot so we can make it a long loop. We headed off through the sand washes. Up the hill and around wandering through the trees we went. About 30 minutes from the truck I surprised myself by tucking the front of the bike. I got up, picked up the bike and got back on I tried to get moving to catch up to Luis, but the bike wouldn’t move. My front brake had locked up, the caliper was hot to the touch. Dang!!!! I pulled off my gear and sat there thinking about it. I poured some of my water on the caliper to cool it down. It helped a little, at least I could kinda roll the bike. Luis made it back about this time. We moved the bike off the trail, and I rode part of the way back to the truck behind him… I’m sure it was a funny sight. But I had to walk down that big O hill and once I got tools out of the truck I had to walk back up it. Dirt boots are not good for hiking. Once I bleed the brakes on the bike I was able to get it home. Turns out I over filled the master reservoir, or at least I think that is what it was… I haven’t had time to test out the bike since then.
The next weekend I had Saturday to get bikes ready for Sunday’s track day. I love having a lift, it makes things go so much faster, when I don’t have to stop every 10 minutes to un-cramp my poor broken back. I got packed up early and headed down to Abq to pick up a clutch cable for my trusty Sprint. It had broken two weeks before as I was getting ready to head out to teach an MSF class. They had told me at the dealership that it might break at some point because of the stress the risers put on it…. 40K miles later they were right.