Orson

Bella!

Hi all I'm at the Doha airport heading back to Saudi. I posted an update in the 24/7 Forum Section

Since the doctor says the injuries from my accident will probably take 6 months to heal, my participation is looking doubtful (see post in 24/7 Section of the forum). I hope to make one of these meets eventually.

Heavens no! it was a rental BMW 650 twin. Nice bike but a tad underpowered. For those who haven't heard, here's a list of the injuries: Right femur broken just above the knee and at the hip socket. torn ligaments in right knee and right ankle. Some broken bones in my right foot. Broken right collarbone. Several broken ribs. I had a 7 hour surgery to patch me back together. How my arms and hands escaped unscathed is a wonder, but I'm grateful as I've heard hand injuries can be a bitch. Doctor is cautiously optimistic for a good recovery. The accident happened on a twisty road, so I had no time to react. The car just appeared in front of me in MY lane! Well, that's what my brain told me when I saw the car. I thought he was in the wrong. I expected him to correct and return to his lane, so I didn't dare turn left in order to avoid a possible head on At the last second, he veered off to the shoulder, and I struck him on the driver's side door at about a 45 degree angle. I think he was almost stopped and I may have been doing about 40 or 50 mph when we struck. I bounced off him and landed in the road with a thud. No skidding. I just plopped. The South Africans at the crash scene were very helpful and I'm grateful I was taken to a first world standard hospital.

Thanks all for the well wishes. I'm in the Cape Town airport heading for Saudi Still a long recovery road ahead. Doc says maybe 6 months before I return to work. I stopped to take a picture, then started off on the wrong side of the road. Baldini & Martin have seen me do that before

it would be a strong man who could turn a blind eye to that deal congrats!

There is a dealer in Granada, although dealer might be a bit kind. It was more of a ramshackle garage with a Moto Guzzi sign on front. No showroom whatsoever, just a collection of ancient bikes of all brands. still, they managed to fit me with a new rear tire

For my type of riding, sport touring with occassional spirited jaunts, the Tenni suits me just fine I've never really cared for the sit-up-and-beg riding position

The Tenni problem was a broken coil. The Stelvio pulled like a freight train, however first gear seemed as if it wasn't tall enough for the tight hairpin switchbacks. Also, at low rpm's it seemed to splutter & cough. I've heard that the Euro 3 emissions standards are to blame. It may have been that particular bike that had a problem. Also, the transmission seemed hit or miss. Neutral seemed to make an appearance when it was darned good and ready. First gear sometimes engaged so quietly, I had to release the clutch to check. Other times, first gear engaged with a CLUNK. The V7 Classic I tried earlier had a much better transmission. I've heard from Daniel Kalal who rented a Stelvio from Agostinis saying he didn't experience any of these problems.

Alpinestar Effex Gore-tex here starting to lose a little of their waterproofiness after 6 seasons, but still holding up well.

I don't mind staying in a hotel...may have to get a taxi from the pub though how late does the ferry to Portaferry run? oops...ferry times are on the hotel web site....10:30 PM, 11:00 PM on Saturday.

I'd like a single since I snore and wake up at 4 A.M. every morning

On my last trip, my Tenni failed on me and I was wondering what the cognoscenti might offer as a diagnosis. The bike was running fine until I stopped for gas/petrol. When I started it up again, it seemed to be running on one cylinder. I made it about half a kilometer, and then she just died Checking the fuses, I found the fuel pump fuse had blown. I replaced it with the spare fuse, but as soon as I pressed the starter, the fuel pump fuse would blow again. I managed to get the bike back to Guareschi Moto where they'll hopefully make her good as new, but am wondering what you lot think caused the problem. The bike sits for long periods while I toil away in Saudi. I suspect that doesn't help matters. relays? fuel pump? bad coil? stuck throttle body?

I wouldn't mind seeing the North West 200. I'm assuming the chances of finding a hotel for the race are as remote as finding one for the Isle of Man TT?

Wasn't it the Rosso Mandellos that were numbered?

Cafe Classic with the 8V engine for me, please

wow A Presidential press conference...I had forgotten what those were. And he told Pelosi what he expected of her.

I would hope to be able to ride from Italy to my friend's house in Shropshire beforehand. If not, I'd make the long trudge across yurup. Ireland has been on my radar for a while, so this meet would dovetail nicely. I like Jaap's idea of combining Ireland with Scotland, if there's enough time

I'd like to make this although, I won't know if my vacation request is granted until a month or so before the event. I don't camp because then I don't sleep, and then I'm miserable. does that get you drummed out of the corp? anyways...I'd like to think I'm 50% confirmed.

I remember passing through a tiny village in Northern England that couldn't have had more than 200 souls. In the village square was a marker commemorating the names of twenty or so local lads who gave their lives in the Great War. I was moved by the fact that for a village so small, twenty men must have comprised the majority of an entire generation. Quite sobering.

I agree that the new AGV version is a bit "busy" what with all the stars and decals. I prefer discrete myself

I've been out of the loop Apparently AGV reissued the Ago tri-color helmet at this year's TT.

as seen on a recent trip to Italy Guzzi AGV Helmets

Although, didn't a Griso win a BIKE magazine shootout recently?

Staying ahead of the cold front, we follow the western shore of the lake heading southwards to Arona, before jumping onto la autostrada for a quick 3 hour dash to the Ligurian coast. The Isola Borromee are a trio of islands that has ornate gardens and palaces built by the Borromee family since the 1650s. Regarding the Lake District as a motorcycling destination, in all honesty, the roads aren't conducive to sport riding. The roads are very twisty with lots of traffic and few places to pass, even for a motorcycle. There are few roads inland from the lakes, as the mountain terrain is so steep. Mr. Clooney's idea of cruising around on a Harley make more sense. If you can't go fast, you may as well go slow and enjoy the lush views. Approaching Genoa on the coast, I find myself tiring of the autostrada and beat a quick exit for a road following the coastline in the hills above Genoa. It turns out to be a fortuitous decision as the road turns out to be a freshly paved supermotard track. Unfortunately it's a track that contains four-wheeled competitors so care must be taken on blind curves I have to say...Gawd, I love Italian riding :inlove: Motorcycles can get away with anything short of murder and cops just look the other way You pass where you want, when you want and nobody honks at you. Solid white lines are meaningless. There were times when I would fall back into American riding, trundling along behind slower traffic, only to be buzzed by a sweet young thing on her moped I'm old enough now where my manhood isn't threatened by such things. In one town a young thang zipped by me, while waving to a friend she saw. At least she wasn't texting and waving. I stayed behind her on the narrow road to Portofino. Coming around one corner, we met a bus that took up most of the road, leaving a three foot gap between the bus and a wall of granite. Miss moped didn't bat an eyelash, kept the throttle pinned and shot the gap between the bus and the wall. :eek: I stayed in her mirrors just to preserve my masculinity :cool: Approaching the coast overlooking the town of Santa Margherita. I decide to head for the quaint, if touristy village of Portofino and find a hotel that can make a martini. I strike paydirt, scoring a nice hotel near the mouth of the harbor. The road leading to Portofino. Last time I visited Portofino was in May of 2002 and I had gotten a bad vibe from the place from the rampant tourism. In October, it was a different story. With the throngs of tourists gone, you could almost squint and imagine what a lovely place it once was. My plan to escape the rain had worked, as I had awoken to overcast skies, but no rain. After the funfilled supermotard track of the previous day, I decided to head up into the Ligurian hills and explore. I was finally encountering some motorbike worthy roads. I came away very impressed with the hills around Genoa. I must make it a point to explore this region with more thoroughness The final day on the road dawned with cloudy skies yet again, but the clouds had yet to unleash their damp revenge. After a leisurely breakfast with one last dossage of Italian cappuccinos, I head towards Parma across the autumn-hued Appenine range. Trip route: Trip summary: Mileage: uhmmm...I lost track. Maybe close to 2000 km in 8 days. Carabinieri encounters: 1 Puckers: 1 (sand in curve) Bee stings: 0