Shim...

 

Not to be confused with "shimmy"... because no one wants to see me make that move.  It's been a while since I pulled this out...

 In case you did think of me doing the shimmy.  You're welcome.

Joan found some hard plastic discs that I drilled out and used for a shim under the loop for the seat latch.  It works and now latches without excessive pushing down on the seat.  That was the last bit of adjustment needed to complete the new seat install.

It's a gray ol' day here in the desert, occasional rain and continuing rain.  It may make it to 60º today, but it won't feel like it.  More of the same tomorrow.  Music with the guys on Tuesday.  I'm looking forward to some riding time.  Not obsessed or anything.  Really.  ;-)

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Happy Easter!

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Out in the garage, looking at bikes.  I mentioned before that the seat on the Burgman 200 is large.  The CTX is a much bigger bike - the engine is more than 3 times the size.  Heavier by more than 40%.  Longer wheelbase.  Much bigger tires and wheels.  And now, there is a Corbin seat on each...

 Putting a measuring tape on each seat, the Burgman's seat is more than 50% wider (my reason for calling that bike a fat bottom girl).  The seats use different materials: all leather on the Burgman (carbon fiber textured leather on the main seating part), black leather and snakeskin vinyl on the CTX.  The Corbin on each bike makes is far more comfortable than the stock seats.  The seating position on each is different.

I have no idea why the designers of the Burgman felt it was necessary to put such a big seat on an otherwise compact scooter.

Look what showed up!

 

I was looking through the Corbin (they make custom motorcycle and scooter seats) website this afternoon and saw that "you will receive an estimated delivery date when you get your order confirmation."  Hmmm... I didn't get a notice of a delivery date, so I dropped them a note through their website to see what the status of the order might be, and when to expect delivery.

About 20 minutes later, while I was out making pork chops on the griddle, I heard the FedEx truck stop in front of our house.  To my surprise...

 I put it in the garage and went back to finish griddling.  Then ate (I made the pork chops, Joan made everything else that made it a meal: green beans, mac & cheese, carrots & brussel sprouts, and fresh baked bread.  When we were done eating, I needed to clean the griddle before moving on.  With that done, I went out to the garage and tore into the box (being careful to not cut deep when cutting the tape)...

Yeah, they really pack these things.  There is a seat in there...

That is Joan's hands in the image directly above - not my color of nail polish.  ;-)  The box was huge - that was because the seat is huge...

 

Here's a look at it beside the stock seat...

Besides being big, the Corbin weighs more than twice what the stock seat weighs; that means it was not a one person job to hold it in place and mount it to the stock seat mount.  Joan tried, but it was too heavy for her to hold steady - we recruited Dan to hold it while I bolted it in place.

The only thing that doesn't fit is the loop from the seat that goes into the latch on the bike.  Corbin gives you a couple washers that they call a "latch adjustment"... still comes up short.  Dan and I made a shim out of very firm foam Joan dug out for us - tightening down the bolts smashed the foam.  I know we can make something fit, so it's time to take this thing out for a ride to see how it compares to the stock seat!

I didn't go for a long ride.  I stopped to take a few photos...

You can tell from the shadows that it was getting towards sundown - it wasn't a long ride, but what a difference this new seat makes!  It is so far beyond the stock seat for comfort, and I think it looks a lot better, as well.  Oh, she's still a "fat bottom girl," but she doesn't look so stodgy.  The main seating surface is a black leather with a carbon fiber texture; blue welt and stitching; the sides and center trim are a dark smokey gray leather - it goes great with the trim panels on the bike that are a dark gray.  And the blue welt and stitching really pick up the blue of the bike.  The rider's seat is much roomier than stock and dished, so your butt and thighs are cradled, instead of the slope of the stock seat that puts pressure on your tailbone... well, on my tailbone.

The other concern I had about the seat was if the seat pan (the structure the seat is built on) intrudes into the storage space.  Yes, it does.  I had to move my helmet around a bit to find a place where the seat pan doesn't rub on it.  I was really hoping I wouldn't have to put a top case (trunk) on this scoot.

Back home, I took a couple more photos before putting the bike away...

The wind has really kicked up this afternoon, and the weather is supposed to turn rainy and even stronger wind for tonight, Sunday, and Monday.  It was good to get that ride in, 'cause it will be a couple days before I can get out on the bike again.  I need to put some miles on this new seat - Corbin says it will take at least 1,500 miles to break it in.  The Corbin on my CTX definitely got more comfortable after 1,000 miles or so... this new one feels really good right off the bat!

Itchy Feet...

 

Is that a punk band or do you have athlete's foot?

Neither, but thanks for asking.  The Facebook Memories right now are full of posts of us getting ready to head out.  Most of our trips to Arizona in the past 20 years were during February and March... then heading back to the Tropical Tip of Texas around the 1st of April.  Then, a month or so later, gearing up for heading off to a "fun summer job" or getting ready to spend a summer traveling... or since 2018, going to Hart Ranch in the Black Hills to enjoy riding the great roads there.

This year, we don't have to make that trek east, always dreading the long expanse of west Texas.  We have been here in Arizona since October, and I am feeling that itchy feet desire to go... somewhere.  We have decided we are not going back to South Dakota this summer; Joan had some riding much further east on her bucket list (Tail of the Dragon*), so that is our plan.  There is a scooter gathering happening in North Carolina in July, so we are planning our timing around being able to do that.

But for now, we don't have to "pull up stakes," and get on down the road.  Going to check on the motorhome on Wednesday got me thinking about a trip somewhere before we head east this summer.  We are discussing options.  Short term, the weather is going to turn by this evening - it is a beautiful start to the day, but is supposed to be rainy (possible thunderstorms) and windy tonight, Sunday, and Monday.

Next weekend, I have a 2-day class on learning about CanAm 3-wheel motorcycles.  I don't have any plans to get one, I am just curious about them...

I am thoroughly enjoying my CTX700 and the Burgman 200 scooter... absolutely no plan for one of these 3 wheelers.  But, I am curious about them.  This class will give me some hands-on time without having to deal with a dealer.

The timing for this class next week is the same time as the Parade of Homes in the Litchfield Park area.  We did that last year and enjoyed it a bunch.  Dan does the design of the brochure for this group, so we did the tour last year, for the first time.  Joan will likely go with Steph and Dan next week, while I do my class.  Odds are pretty good, my feet will be even itchier after that.

For a short trip, I suggested Laughlin; Joan was thinking Tucson.  This was a discussion we had over a month ago.  When I brought it up again yesterday, I mentioned Tucson... and Joan suggested Laughlin.  No rush, but there is only one cure for those itchy feet and it has nothing to do with lotion.

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* If you want to check out Tail of the Dragon:  https://tailofthedragon.com/

 

Everything's coming up...

 

If you said, "Roses, from the song of the same name, by Ethel Merman, initially written for the 1959 Broadway musical Gypsy," you get 200 bonus points... 'cause that's a mouthful.

I wasn't referring to Roses, though - this is the desert.  Out for a ride on the scoot this morning, I did stop to take a few photos of some of the flowers blooming in the desert...

On this particular ride, I didn't see any cacti blooming.  The weather is supposed to be crappy this weekend (wind and rain), but maybe I'll get out on one of the bikes for a desert cruise next week, to check out more desert blooms.

Today, I took the Burgman 200... I have been enjoying the heck out of that scoot, especially when riding it on some fun twisty roads.  I'm really looking forward to getting that new Corbin seat for this bike.  Speaking of the fun, twisty roads, looking down on it from a higher perspective, this is a portion of what I rode today...

Can you find the road in that image above?  And, a couple more flower images...

 In the midst of some prickly looking stuff.  It was a good ride - not much traffic and beautiful weather.  I did stop to fill up my gas tank: 80 mpg; pretty good considering my "enthusiastic" riding.  The estimated mpg readout on the bike said I was getting 84.5 mpg, a bit more optimistic than the actual.

Joan and Steph went off together to do some clothes shopping - they didn't need Dan and me along, but we did meet them for a nice leisurely lunch.  Traffic on the way there and the way home was thicker than usual: the Friday of a holiday weekend.  Between the weather and the traffic, it will likely be an at-home weekend for us.

You'll have to trust me on this...

 

Yeah, I know: photos or it didn't happen.  Tango came over this morning and laid down in our living room.  Murphy came up to him, and... laid down beside him... gave him a kitty hug.  Joan and I were both, "Awwww - did you see that?"  Then, before we could grab a phone, it turned into kitty wrestling.  But, for one brief moment, they were both incredibly sweet.

I made breakfast on the griddle, and we enjoyed our meal out on our patio.  Under an umbrella.  It was a lovely morning.

 

After Tango went home, Murphy got a walk on his leash - we have been letting him walk around unleashed (while we keep an eye on him)... I didn't want him to forget his leash manners.

I took the CTX to Chandler to visit my buddy, Pat, in the rehab hospital.  He is looking good, and he has a discharge date next week.  He has been doing the work and will be ready to travel (wheelchair assisted) next week.  It is tough when you have a medical situation so far from home.

When supper time rolled around, Joan asked if we could change the plan (she had taken some pork chops out of the freezer): "Would you be OK if we ordered a pizza?"  I can't think of a time that I wouldn't be OK with pizza.  I went to pick it up.  The traffic on the way to the pizza place is generally quite heavy - I was there and back in a flash.  Good clean living.

A good day.

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Joan checked her phone to see what she got for photos with Murphy and Tango this morning.  Steph was concerned that Murphy might be dominating Tango - not that I can tell...

LOL

Another video (this one from Joan); audio may have been altered...

Boop...

 

Betty?  No, but thanks for asking.

Tango came over first thing this morning; he and Murphy played nice.  Then they both wanted the same new toy...

 A couple stills...

Chillin' above; and All Star Wrestling below...

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Joan and I did some running after getting Murphy his lunch - the main thing was going to the motorhome to look it over (all good) and exercise the engine and generator...

I miss being out in the coach; in the past, this time of year, we would have been in it for over a month.  No need to make that run from south Texas to Arizona, since we live here now... but we are discussing taking a few days out in it... it's a lot of work to load it up for just a few days.  We'll see.

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Be Gentle - It's My First Time...

"Well, it's about time, Jim," you say?  Yes, it is.  I've been putting it off.  I know it's OK to do it, but somehow it just feels like I'm doing something naughty.

Wait!  What are we talking about?  Thanks for asking.  When we got back from our running today, I was feeling the need for some scooter time.  As usual, it is an easy run to South Mountain.  Today, though, the main surface road between us and the turn to get up on the mountain is closed for road work.  Not the first time since we've been here that the road has been closed.  I had to make a slight detour north to Baseline Road to go east for a couple miles to get around the road construction.

My ride up and down the mountain was a delight, as usual.  So, what about that "first time" you ask?  I'm getting there.  I knew the traffic was going to be thick at 4:00 on Baseline... and it was.  Traffic was backed up for a couple blocks thanks to the stoplight on 35th Ave.  I was waiting in my lane, when 2 sport bikes went by me... yes, "lane splitting."  Well, the legal term is "filtering," and it is now legal in Arizona under certain circumstances... and when traffic is stopped, it is legal to ride the line between the lanes to get to the front of the line.  I watched them go by, and followed behind.  Yes, I felt like I was doing something wrong and was on high-alert to see if any cars were going to shift their lane position to cause me a problem.  They didn't.

The light turned green and the three bikes were all off ahead of the car/truck traffic.  That probably cut 10 minutes off that 2 block stretch.  And, in case you are wondering: when you see some dumbass doing that on the freeway when traffic is moving at 70 mph - NO, that is NOT legal.  So, my first time.  I am no longer a filtering virgin.

For those keeping track, the only states I know where this is legal are California (where it has been legal for years) and Arizona (where the law was enacted just last year).

I am consistent...

 

Sometimes it takes a while.

The Facebook Memory from 6 years ago recounted a visit to a motorcycle dealer to check out a low advertised price on a Suzuki Burgman 200.  It turned out that was a complete sham.  As is typical with many motorcycle dealers, all the added bullshit fees amounted to almost the same amount as the low advertised price.  I told them where they could shove their bullshit fees and we walked.  When we were gearing up to get on our scoots, the salesguy came running out and said, "OK, you win - come back in and we'll write this up."

I said, "You can keep that ******* bike.  Buying a bike shouldn't be about winning or losing - I feel sorry for you that you have to work in a job where you have to lie and try to cheat people."  We left.  I won't mention the name of that dealer, but the initials are: Ride Now in Surprise, AZ.

And now, 6 years later, I am riding that same model scoot.

We went home to Texas not long after that encounter, and I bought that first Vespa from a private party in Harlingen.  That Vespa eventually led to a new 2020 Vespa.  And, coincidentally, I sold that 2020 Vespa 2 years ago today.  (Facebook Memories are a bit like a diary.)

That Vespa was a beautiful scoot... sexy Italian design (to my eye).  I guess I am consisted with color choice, too: my last 3 bikes (the Vespa, the CTX, and the Burgman 200) have all been a similar dark blue color.  Looking back, if I had bought that Burgman 200 6 years ago, would it still be enough?

Here's a look at the current stable of bikes...

That's the Burgman up front, Joan's Xmax to the left, and the CTX at the back.  This makes me want to go for a ride.  :-)

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I had a great afternoon of making music with Mark and Ron - these two are good musicians, and great people; it's always fun when we get together.  We learned a couple new songs and refined several others.

As usual, traffic was thick on my way home - mass quantities of people heading out of downtown Phoenix.  When I got home, Joan had supper ready to serve.  A good meal, and discussion of each of our days.  She had already fed Murphy (twice), so I took him outside to get some fresh air.  The sky to the west looked like this...

Yep, the sprinkles started a few seconds later.  We scurried around, putting patio furniture cushions away and trying to herd Murphy towards the door.  The boy is fast.  And can do a good fake, zigging when you think he is going to zag.

Helpful...

 

Last night, Joan was working on a knitting project.  Well, getting some yarn ready for a project, which meant making smaller yarn balls out of one big one.  It is a bit of a cliche' with cats and yarn balls, but Murphy was doing his part to help peel the yarn off the big ball...

 He's very helpful that way.

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With yesterday's less than great weather, Joan had covered everything on the patio.  While I was soaking in the hot tub this morning, she came and started opening everything back up.  The only thing better than watching work being done is watching work being done while you're soaking in the hot tub.

When I was done, I went inside to shower.  It's a warm water kinda day.  After finishing my morning clean up routine, Joan announced, "The new umbrella is set up."

The base she ordered for it came yesterday afternoon.  She filled it with water (for the weight) and set the umbrella into the base...

It is smaller than our main umbrella; fits under it, in fact.  The base has wheels, so it should be easy to move around where it's needed.  The shade makes all the difference here in the desert: block the sun and it cuts the "feels like" temperature by about 20º or so... that is not a meteorological fact, more of a "Jim said so" kinda thing.  You can see from the photo that there is plenty of shade - the pergola (making the stripes), the big umbrella and the smaller umbrella.

The umbrella was a Vine acquisition; she had to purchase the rolling base.  Further update on the Vine situation: Joan was just notified that we now have "Gold" Vine status - that ups the number of items we can order per day and eliminates the $100 max value of an ordered item.

When we were ready to head in, I saw this through the glass...

"You don't see me.  You don't know that I am in here, waiting for you to come in a feed me.  Which should be right now."

Blossom where you're planted...

 

Is that a reference to life in the desert?  Kinda.

I mentioned that Joan has been working on her plants in a previous post.  The numbers keep growing and there is an interesting variety: some cacti, some flowering, etc...

These little guys are my favorites...

She could probably tell you what each kind of cactus is represented - I just like the colorfulness.  Steph has planted stuff in their yard, including a raised planter that has some herbs.  Look at us, being all horticultural.

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Gotcha Covered...

More Vine acquisitions, this time another patio umbrella.  We love the patio umbrella we bought several months ago: it is large and solid; heavy duty enough that it can withstand some wind.  With the weighted base, it is not something you will easily move around.

No, that was not a Vine acquisition, but we did find it for half price at Lowe's (off season).  Joan has been wanting another umbrella that we can move reasonably easy - something on wheels, preferably.  She found an umbrella on Vine, but no stand for it...

That is the umbrella - that is not in our courtyard (manufacturer photo).  There was some assembly required - I took it outside to put it together... no tools necessary.  This umbrella sells for around $75 and is pretty lightweight construction.  The fabric isn't as heavy-duty as our first umbrella.  The price was right: $0, thank you, Vine.  Joan had to pay real money for a weighted stand on wheels for it.

The umbrella was delivered today, and I put it together.  The stand should be here tomorrow or Monday.  I think it is going to do what we want: to fill the "gaps" that the other umbrella can't reach.  We cranked it open to check it out... it goes up, it goes down, and it has a "hinge" so you can tilt it.  If the main umbrella is a Mercedes, this one is a Kia Rio... we'll see how it does the job when the stand gets here.

A refreshing morning...

 

After a delightful breakfast of bisquits, gravy, and sausage, I took the Burgman out for a ride.  The weather weasels are predicting a high today of 86º (if so, it will be the warmest day so far this year), so I got out in the cool of the morning.

Light traffic, light breeze, and plenty of sunshine - nice timing for a ride.  A few photos:

Coming into the mountain park/preserve...

 Some curves ('cause that's the best part)...

I had the Insta360 Go 3 camera on my helmet, so from the rider's perspective.  Another motorcyclist coming down the mountain while I was heading up...

Cacti and antennas...

This spot on South Mountain is a good position for getting TV, radio, and phone signals out to the Valley.  This "SLOW" is letting you know there is a tight curve and a hiking trail crossing the road ahead...

Nice day to be out and about...

That's a glimpse of Phoenix in the distance, between those hills.

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A one minute video of today's ride...

Have a seat...

 

Sit a spell.  Take your shoes off.  Y'all come back now, hear?

If you said, "A line from the theme song to the Beverly Hillbillies," you get 10 bonus points.  If you said, "Did you finally make a decision on the seat for your Burgman scooter?" -  you are right.

I have been agonizing on this seat decision.  The Corbin seat is expensive (nearly 20% of the cost of the bike)... and no returns.  It is a known item for me, since I've had previous Corbin seats on other bikes, and currently have one on the CTX.  The other option is having a local guy remake my stock seat (for about half the price).  This morning, I placed my order for the Corbin...

With the blue stitching and welt, it will look better on my dark blue bike, compared to their "configurator" on their website.  Well, that is my hope.

Now, I get to wait "6 to 8 weeks" for the seat to show up at our house.  If you go to the Corbin showroom/factory in California (near San Francisco), you can get "ride-in service," where they will make your seat, and install it, the same day.  Nice service... if you are local.

When I ordered the Corbin for that first Vespa at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, the timing was such that I ordered it on a Thursday and they had a truck coming in from their factory the following Monday (yes, 4 days later) with my seat on it.  I was impressed.  And the seat was gorgeous.  And a perfect fit.

I am hoping this seat will be a perfect fit, since Corbin has never made one for a Burgman 200 after 2021, and mine is a newer model.  I couldn't find any info that anything had changed on the Burgman over that time.  In fact, to order a new OEM seat from Suzuki, the part number is the same from 2021 and later... so, I am hopeful that it is the same.  We'll see.

In the meantime, when I go out on the B200, I am using that generic seat pad that Joan got for me on Vine.  It raises me up just enough so that my tailbone doesn't rub against the seat.  My seat padding is less than the seat padding on the bike.

Speaking of padding: Corbin seats are firm.  Made more like a saddle than a cushy seat.  It takes a thousand miles or so to break-in the seat... or, perhaps your butt gets used to the firmness in all those miles?  Either way, the Corbin on my CTX is great (after breaking it in)... hoping for more of the same for this new one.

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Yeah, yeah... motorcycles, scooters, blah, blah - where's the cat content?

Thanks for asking.  This morning, Joan moved the chairs at our kitchen counter...

This will probably be hard to imagine, but Murph can be an imp at times.  Morning is most often his wild time... he is not allowed on the kitchen counters... and some days that's all he wants to do.  He will sometimes sneak his way up there, but is most often blatant about it.  He jumps from the floor to one of the chairs, and up onto the counter.  Joan has pulled the chairs away from the counter in their normal position, just farther away... the furry boy can make that jump from 6 feet away with excellent accuracy.  Joan has turned the chairs 180º - Murphy will position himself balanced on the back of the chair and make the leap.  If you tell him "No! Get down!" he will generally do just that... and by "generally," I mean about 37% of the time.  As far as we can tell (by checking our inside security cameras), he isn't up there while we're gone... it makes me think this a game... and he is winning.

When Joan put the chairs in that configuration in the photo above, I laughed out loud - it looks like Murphy is riding in a bus!  I predicted that he would jump from chair to chair... it took almost 20 seconds for that prophesy to come true.  He went from chair to chair with the grace of an Olympic gymnast, then turned around and jumped it in reverse.  And then went to the counter... "No! Get down!!"

For full disclosure, Murphy has his own bar stool: it is the same as what you see in the photo, but it has a "cooling pad" on it (slick fabric) - we move that chair to the glass patio door each morning when we get up so he can look outside.

Murphy and Tango had a couple play dates today.  They usually turn into wrestling matches.  This afternoon, Joan brought in some catnip from one of her plants, and the boys each had a chew.  This was a pretty mellow get-together...

There was a bit of wrestling, but it looked like slow-motion and very little contact.  ;-)