Adventure Bike Rider Forum

Love the 'wild' look to the garden.

I have been able to make day or evening tours on the Yamaha.
It ended up 4 000 km
Wednesday evening with a group. Tuesdays to a classic car/motorcycle meeting
And many tours by myself.

I even made some tours with a Harley Davidson !!
Strange. But it was easy. I could sit down on the bike.
Instead of climbing up.
It ended up with 1 500 km HD Softail Custom riding. I just arranged the garage for the winter. And took out my work horse. The Suzuki DL 650 XT. That I have used so much.
But that I found too difficult to get on and off.
I did a 2 km spin on it. Before it went in for winter sleep.

The plan is nothing but the planning is everything.

Time to move to Portugal.
I have collected parts for the Himalayan 411 - 2021.
It needs some maintenance and modifications to fit me.
I plan to do that during the first two weeks of September.
Use one week to watch World Championship in Track and Field.
And than: Try the Himalayan to see if and how I can use it.
And take it from there.

The stupid high pillion seats on modern bikes are just ridiculous.
Causing me all sorts of problems, both with the Tiger I’m having to sell and also finding a bike my wife won’t feel so high up on.

Good to see you out and about.

Hello

So many pages have been posted before I even saw this discussion

Best of luck and may I suggest a good book to inspire and motivate

Joey Evans is the greatest comeback story (IMHO) within the biking world

Perhaps grab a copy of "From Para to Dakar" by Joey Evans

I don't normally spend much time at the ABR rally listening to the talks even when I intend to. However this year I listened to Joey talk

I would really recommend people struggling with almost anything ... to check this out

Best of luck and please send updates

KR

I am working on my Himalayan. That will be a separate post. But while doing that, I also fixed a bit with the Honda.
Tuesday:
I changed the voltage regulator on the Honda. I tried to sit on the motorcycle. It worked OK. I drove it for 5 minutes around the block, to warm up the oil. The charging worked and I was able to drive without any problems.

Wednesday:
Short test ride. Stop to eat "Bifanas" The bike stopped charging the battery. But despite everything, a great day. First motorcycle ride in Portugal in a year. Finally back in business again. The charging issues was just a bad contact. Fixed in the evening => Everything was OK

Thursday:
Time for a little longer test ride. I'm OK and the motorcycle works. Happy days After a short ride I'm in chaotic city traffic. (Guia) I drive slowly. I braked before a pedestrian crossing, when I saw some people approaching. On instinct. Without thinking. I locked the front wheel. (Which shouldn't happen when you're driving straight ahead. But the tire, despite a decent pattern, was old, hard and with bad grip. And the street was dirty). I fell over on the left side.With my left leg under the bike.
I always ride with protective clothing. Even in the heat. So my new jacket did its job to protect the shoulder. But my leg between the knee and ankle took a real beating. I had low boots that gave good protection of my ankles. You see the scratches.
Unfortunately I left the high boots in Sweden. And have ordered another pair to wear in Portugal. But they haven't arrived yet. With them on, it would have been much better. I was terrified that my knee was injured. But it felt like only the calf muscle was injured. And the thumb + index finger on my right hand. I got help to set up the bike and it had only minor damage on turn signals and some more.

I continued a bit further and had a coffee. But then I realized that it was better to go to the hospital. My leg started to swell and hurt. So I took my bike to the hospital and entered the emergency. I was treated well. I was examined, including an X-ray. No damage to hard parts of the leg "Just the calf muscle was bruised and the leg scraped”. The ligament in the hand was stretched but not torn. Conclusion: Rest with an elevated position of the leg, cleaning the wound 2 times a day, etc. and it should be OK within 2 weeks. I will be careful with cleaning. I definitely do not want an infection in the wound.
I got a prescription for fairly mild painkillers and disinfectant liquid. I passed the pharmacy on my bike on the way home from the hospital. I don't give up that easily. Once at home, I took a strong painkiller that I had left over from the surgeries. And a double dose to start with what I picked up at the pharmacy. It helped. So I slept well.

Logic says that I am happy. That it went so well. No damage to the operated knees or anything else that needs to be addressed by a doctor.
But my brain is also unfortunately wandering off into thoughts. Damn. Now again. After a year of struggle I had a nice day. And then it's back to sick leave. Instead of using September (which is the best month of the year) to ride a motorbike in Portugal. It never ends. But I try to don't think like that. And hope it goes away. But your brain don't always do what you want.
And of course, I am angry with myself. It was me who crashed.
=
I was riding with a Portuguese guy. Who was riding a scooter in a helmet and a good jacket. But with shorts and sneakers. He got some serious thoughts, when it comes to protection.
=
To be continued

So sorry to hear this. I really hope you heal up quickly and that there’s no lasting damage

It's a minor setback compared to how far you've come and you rode the bike home so don't give yourself a hard time, keep on moving forward