p6x

So, after your post, I did a full immersion in decibels, and wow.... it is anything but simple. I thought I just needed to plot decibel levels on a semilogarithmic scale, just to figure it out, but there is more than one type of decibels. I am not even certain the Champion comparison should be Db, or Db(A).

You may have gotten a bad batch. That happens more often now, that nothing produced is systematically tested. I have read somewhere, that it is less expensive to replace a few failed equipment, than to budget for testing. Actually, testing is expensive in terms of resources.

@PJPR01 Look what I found.... https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/380529721581655/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3Ae944539a-3697-45ac-97bb-6c26afc28cbf Pity, it is not red. At least, I can go to MPH and ask them about the bike. Now there is something I don't understand: what does "Blue Title Bike" means? I checked out the Internet, and it says that title colors in Texas are specific to Texas, and a blue title may mean a salvaged bike, or a standard bike. In any case, a bike that is legal to ride... My two motorcycle titles have a blue border. Is it what you call blue title?

@PJPR01 you have a lot of luggage carrying appointment on your bike!!! Nice pics!

I don't know why YouTube seems to think that I am into Moto Guzzi, but I get plenty of Guzzi related suggestions, this one included. So far, the Griso was never on my radar, because I never quite liked the flip side of the bike, with that exhaust that looks a bit like a trombone. This video is at times difficult to follow because of the initial wind noise (hello Audiomick!), and the long rambling. So, scrub to 14 minutes, so you can see the ride in California. The end of the video is hilarious! while he makes his conclusion, there is a UPS truck and UPS guy making a delivery that breaks his concentration. The Guzzi Tech exhaust system that's installed on the back changed my opinion. And it is RED! I am going to add that to my loose list of things to keep an eye upon.

The King Ranch Museum is a very limited gateway to all there is to see in Kingsville. I am planning to go back there for a few days. King Ranch organizes many different tours of their outfit. It is a very well oiled machine. There are many different aspects of the ranch you can visit. They make turf, they make cotton and they have their own cotton factory. Of course, cattle, horses, and so much more. It is an industrial outfit within its own city limits. The headquarters of King Ranch are in Houston! its huge! When I got to the Palo Alto battlefield, it was like a barbecue grill there. I am glad I wear the SIXS stuff, because it makes a difference. I have found some new mesh riding shirts made in UK, which I will make a separate thread for. From what I understood, but I have no personal experience with it, the cooling vests have a limited working time span. Unlike heated gear, the cooling effect cannot be maintained throughout the ride. Interesting point about the Griso. I am going to post a video about one shown on youtube, in red, which I really liked.

Yes, that seems very strange. Infancy failure is anything which, after a very short period of time working, just fails, or immediately after being started. I have an easy example. I replaced my turn signal incandescent bulbs with led ones. Which implies replacing the flasher with one that works with LED lamps. I did, tested it, worked. A few days after, no more turn indicators. Just like that. I got it replaced with the same one under warranty. Same brand, same specs. Still works today. I learned about infancy failure when working for ExxonMobil in an oilfield with non-eruptive oil wells. Those wells need to be pumped to produce oil. While everyone has seen a horse head pump once in his/her lifetime, there are other pumping systems. Those pumps are lowered into the well, and pump the effluent directly from down hole. The output is a lot higher than what a horse head pump can manage, it is continuous pumping. These pumps have a limited life span, affected by many factors. Also, during the life of the well, they may need to be replaced because some conditions have changed. To install a down hole pump, you need a work over rig. It is expensive to extract the existing completion, and to run the next one. As soon as the pump has been installed, the wellhead connected, the pump is started and there is some test carried for a few hours. After that, the rig is moved to the next well. Not long after the rig has moved, something within the pump fails. The pump was tested prior to being lowered in the hole, but this kind of failures, named "infancy failures" are unpredictable. They are factored in when a field has to be installed, at planning time. Some money is put aside for this kind of repeat intervention. But even if it is built up in the budget, you always get a good rimming by the representative of the oil company for having early equipment failures on "HIS" watch!!! Sometimes, they refuse to pay for the equipment you installed!

I have turned the corner; yesterday, 26th of May, I completed the 25th stop, eligible for the 2024 rocker. All documented in the original post, if you care to read it to the end. Of course, I want to go all the way to the 50 stops. Tomorrow I will try to get some schedule for my Quota which has been under the care of MPH Cycles since.... the month of February. Of course, I sent the instruments to Germany, got them back end of March, but we are now end of May. My next ride should be the stops in the Texas Panhandle, hopefully with the Quota....

With electronics, there is something called "infancy failure".

Just back after making some stops for the Moto Guzzi Grand Tour of Texas. I like your plan, as I have penciled an excursion to Alaska myself. On the Quota though, and not on a Le Mans. You have not specified a timetable, or what would be the intended duration of the trip. I suspect about 15 to 21 days? I am sure you already know that, but just in case, Alaska.org helps you with planning your trip. I have been to Alaska in 2022 to see the Northern Lights in March and I thought that riding a motorcycle there would be very challenging. Obviously, July should not have any snow. But I made some notes that cell phone coverage outside the cities is not consistent... some of the roads I took, were with very little traffic. So should you have a breakdown, keep that in mind. Wildlife. Well, in March, no bear of any kind. I had a friend from Anchorage who told me he would never go "bush" without a firearm of some sort and bear spray. The firearm would be a last resort, but you know as well as I do, if you walk upon a sow and her cubs, you will face immediate retribution. I had the opportunity to see a female and her cubs in Yellowstone park, but the rangers were there to prevent any overly daring selfie from the tourists. She, the bear, did not seem to be fazed by the attention and the traffic jam her and the cubs had caused. She did not seem belligerent at all, although the rangers, each had their bear spray in hand. But that was Yellowstone. I do believe Alaska is a different matter, where bears do not encounter human beings on a daily basis. I think you may want to consider renting a satellite phone if you are going to get off the beaten path in Alaska. They are not expensive to rent (did not use to be) as long as you don't call. I have not checked on the current rates since the late 2000. But in case of a breakdown or an accident, you will be happy to be able to at least call someone. "

I should be able to make the difference between my current helmet and the new one, once I get it. The one I have currently is not especially quiet.

This is the one I chose, the Rhad. It has some red and black which perfectly match my V11 Le Mans. The white lights on the front should make you visible, even more in high contrast with the black. I hesitated to get the Flag one, but they did not have it where I purchased mine. By the way, I got mine for $255, shipping to the USA included. Revzilla sells it for $400 + taxes.

So, just to be clear, if you look at this study done by Champion helmets: https://www.championhelmets.com/us/magazine/post/the-top-10-quietest-helmets-of-2022, You can see that the quietest one, in 2022 had a noise level of 97 decibels, while the loudest is 99 decibels.... so, 2 decibels difference, not much. I have published several threads with the result of my investigations into the matter of wind noise. My current Shark Race-R GP Pro is in carbon, and was equipped with the proprietary Shark "tooth" Bluetooth audio. Unlike the other systems, the side wart is not as big because the battery fits in a small compartment in the helmet. However, as soon as you hit the highway, the wind noise is there, and you can't make out what the audio guidance tells you. So, I investigated motorcycle dedicated earplugs, equipped with filters that are tuned to only get rid of the wind noise frequency. Alpine Motosafe earplugs. Unfortunately, wearing them attenuates even more the speakers in my helmet, making them useless. Also, under the sweltering Texas sun, they are very difficult to extract when you have perspired. I have finally found solace and the answer to all my problems; I purchased the Snugs-Moto, and I am now completely satisfied. The actual helmet noise level is irrilevant since I wear the Snugs all the time. They are perfect. As for the Shark i3, I have not yet received it. I will give you my thoughts when I do.

I know some will consider this full face helmet as a gimmick for nerds. But I have been riding in the darkened streets with no streetlights, and when stopping at dark traffic lights, I was always checking behind me to make sure cars would also stop. I think the i3 Skwal concept is interesting. It is not one of those bionic helmets. If it makes me more visible, especially at night, then all the better. Here's a video from UK. The Skwal i3 is available DOT certified from Revzilla in the USA. It is also ECE 22.06, the latest European norm.

@docc This was an incredibly educational experience. There were a lot of positive learning from what happened. Primo: there were no more traffic lights. We all have experienced the occasional outage, but it is completely different when none of the traffic lights are working. To add to the challenge, it is not localized to a small area, but it is wide all around miles away. This is when you realize that many drivers do not understand what to do, or even if they do, they are anxious to do it. Complicating the task, the left and right turns from perpendicular intersections. Even more challenging, when driving in non-familiar neighborhoods, you do not know where the traffic lights are, so you have to pay attention and look out for them. Now, this is easy during the day. Picture it at night, when there are no lights.... Secondo: the amount of debris scattered on the roads, fallen trees, fallen medium voltage lines, twigs of any size and kind, signs... I always wondered why nobody seemed to maintain some of the trees which are not placed inside private properties. Some of these trees have diseases, and this became obvious during the storm. I saw trees uprooted, others broken at mid-trunk. It seemed to me, some of the damage could have been avoided if those trees had been removed. Not all the damage, but since I live here, I have never seen anything being done to those branches that protrude into the streets. They usually get removed by trucks, or they sometimes fall. Terzio: absolutely impossible to get an update on when power will be restored in your area. I realize priority goes to hospitals, government institutions, thereafter where it will benefit the most customers from the least possible effort. But it is difficult to accept that passed the day after, nobody can give you any clue on a date, other than power will be restored as fast as possible. Around my house, there are families with small children, many did not know what to do in the absence of clear indications. Sure, the city was quick to setup so-called "cooling centers" but those were only opened from 7:00 to 19:00. Where do you sleep kids in that kind of heat? last but not least: food! with your fridges and deep freezes out, cheap food maybe out of reach. As incredible as it seems in our times, we had families who struggled to feed themselves. Fortunately, some supermarket chains offered food to those who needed it. Quarto: No power = no network = lost in the world! since hertzien waves have been replaced by WiFi, being unable to keep in touch is incredibly frustrating. You can no longer communicate. My cell phone provider had no network, because all the repeaters were down too. No call, no text, nothing.... back in the days, you could switch on your radio, turn to local radio stations and get some updates. When the storm hit at about 18:15 that Thursday, we lost power at 18:30. Shortly after, we lost all means of communication too. I don't even know if 911 was accessible. That too was a new. We grew accustomed to get everything from Internet, without it, it seems impossible to go on. yes, it was really an eyes opening experience!

Finally back home, after 5 days and 1/2 of power outage. This was an experience. Houston opened "cooling centers" for those without AC because the temperatures are close to 90 degF with the heat index around the 100 degF... It's impossible to not have AC in these conditions.

@fastaussie, I do not know if you are still looking for a "Champagne" V11, but I found one on Facebook Marketplace that looks like new! It is a 2002 millesime, 18k miles, 7500 USD or best offer. Personally, the 7500 USD are justified when you look how spotless the bike is. It is located in Dresden. No Audiomick, not there, but in Ohio... I know, it is confusing. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/322860094160717/?ref=search&referral_code=null&referral_story_type=post&tracking=browse_serp%3Ae4b418ba-97fe-45ea-a027-9ef4825d5572

But to the uninitiated it looks like a tank; the bag is set on the inlet, hiding the cockpit, and the gauge could be reading the amount of fuel left. I know what it is though. It is an egg shaped barbecue, such as a green egg or a Kamado Joe.

What is the capacity of the fuel tank? is this your fuel gauge? the paint job looks a bit rough though....

Nobody mentioned AI? I was reading about those illustrators losing their jobs, since AI can do it just as well. Of course, AI trained on all that was done by those same people, to make them redundant. What will come next? ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot to design your next Moto Guzzi?

Have you heard about what a Derecho is? this is a good example of what the deluge maybe. This happened unexpectedly in Houston on Thursday 16th of May 2024. I have been without power since. The storm was incredibly strong, I had never seen something as powerful as that before. My street was littered by fallen trees, fallen power lines. Being out on a motorcycle would have been terrifying. I had the warning to shelter at about the same time the Derecho hit, about 18:15. I lost power at 18:30. The storm subsided at 18:45, just about. According to those that predict the weather, a Derecho is unpredictable, since if forms spontaneously if and when the conditions are met. I am still off post, and our electricity company says power should be restored by Wednesday or before. I am currently at someone else's house, waiting to go back. The video below gives you a good idea of what happened. Notice at one point we see a motorcyclist. I would love to know how he did in that kind of fury.

I am still waiting for it. I gave it to MPH Cycles for a baseline after I purchased it. Then I decided to fix the Tachometer and refresh both Tachometer and Speedometer at Casa di Moto in Germany. That took the complete month of March and some, because of an issue with customs. The instruments were imported permanently in Germany instead of temporarily, and FedEx was trying to make us pay for it when the customs declaration was a clear "repair and return". I recently went to check and Davey is swimming in motorcycles to get ready for the riding season. As long as I have the V11 to roam around, I am fine. Besides, I never quite understood how he manages his work. I thought he followed FIFO, but it is not evident that he does. The first time I went there, I was informed the turn around time is about six weeks. Now that I have a little experience with them, I'd say six weeks are optimistic. I only make use of their services for what I can't do myself.

A. Lopez should have been sanctioned for his pass on Joe Roberts in the final lap. This is the consensus. Joe Roberts would have finished 3rd instead of 4th. As usual, the stewards' decisions remain completely opaque to the rest of the field. I guess they like to be despised by everyone.

I am reading that both Joan Mir and Luca Marini are actively seeking an out from Honda factory, which in turn puts Honda back into recruitment mode. Jack Miller seems to be a prime target. Lots of experience, and maybe surplus at KTM since Pedro Acosta is the obvious choice to join KTM Factory next year. I also read that PRAMAC is also sought after by Yamaha as their non factory team; that makes PRAMAC's decision "should I stay or should I go" the linchpin of next season's pilot's musical chairs. We all know that Martin wants a factory ride, so does Marquez now that he has shown the world that he still got it. PRAMAC said they will only declare their intentions on July 31st, at the expiration date of their option to continue with Ducati. So Ducati is going to have to make a blind decision to decide between Mar+quez or +tin. Marquez is 32 years old, while Martin is 26. But Marquez is a marketing coup for Ducati. They may always remain the manufacturer that gave Marquez the ability to equal Rossi on the number of World Championships won, and of course, they enabled Marquez to make a comeback in 2024.

I really doubt that. Marquez admitted that Ducati was the bike to have if you wanted to win. Ducati comes out of two consecutive world titles. Ducati introduced the aerodynamics appendixes, hole shots and ride height devices, front and back. Ducati is constantly at the front. There will be no confusion even if Marquez win the world championship. From what we know, he does not even get a salary from Gresini. He only gets whatever money from his sponsors. He said that in 2025, he will be on a factory bike, he also admitted that it could be any, but I don't believe it. Back to Ducati's decision, this is a no-brainer. A Marquez win on a Ducati his a success that is going to generate millions. I am even wondering if Repsol is not going to try to get in on the deal.