I did another trip that September to the HSTA Rally in Townsend, Tn. I trucked the SV down and got there early. I went for a ride to Deal's Gap by myself. Good thing I did because as I got on the twisty part of 129 I was riding like crap. I couldn't hold a steady line in the curves and the throttle response at low speeds seemed really abrupt. I was glad I was riding alone because I would have been embarrassed to have some one see me.
What was going on? I think the problem was that I was used to my EX500 and also R1100GS. Both had very light but fairly slow steering. The SV was the opposite. The steering was heavier but once you made the input the response was much quicker. It just took a different riding style than my other bikes. On sweepers it didn't make that much difference but in the tight stuff it did. It just took some practice for me to adapt. Since I was down there for more than a week I was able to get used to the SV. Once I did that the bike was great.
I don't have any pics from this trip but I do have some stories.
One of the guys I rode with regularly was Gary from Virginia. He was a fast rider who always rode fast, powerful bikes. This time he was on his CBR1100XX. He was one of the few guys I rode with who was faster than I was. So we spent a day riding together. Towards the end of the day we left Deal's Gap heading back to Townsend. Gary wasn't pushing it because I was able to keep up with him. As we were riding along we saw a bunch of guys stopped on the left side of the road with a right hand curve coming up. The next thing I knew Gary and his bike were sliding down the road
His bike ended up hitting a tree just off the road gas tank first. It spun around and disappeared down the side of the mountain
I stopped and asked Gary if he was OK. He said he was but asked me to ride to Townsend to get his friend and have him bring his trailer for the bike. Oh yeah, Don't forget the six pack in his motel room fridge.
Later he told the full story of the crash. Gary saw the guys standing by the road taking pics and decided to show off a bit. He ran the bike out of ground clearance and crashed. As he was sliding down the road on his back he put his feet down and they caught traction vaulting him to his feet. Since he had a lot of forward momentum he had to run forward to not fall flat on his face. He came to a stop at the edge of the mountain just in time to see his bike tumble down the mountain.
They needed a wrecker to pull it back up. Gary ended up fixing the bike using used parts and doing the work his self for 2500 bucks if I remember right.
After the rally I headed down to TWO. At this point I head 3200 miles on the bike and the rear tire was shot. So I called Blue Ridge Yamaha, my go to dealer in this area. They happened to have a Dunlop Sportmax in stock in the correct size. Not only that it was on sale for $99. I knew those tires had a reputation for not lasting long but I needed a tire and the price was right. Three days and 750 miles of riding later that tire was toast. There was still tread left in the center but the edges were bald! Oh well, it was a fun three days
Luckily I didn't have to ride the bike back to Maine. After I got back I replaced the front and rear tires.
Since I have no pics from this ride I'll post this next one which was I have no idea when I took it but was probably somewhere in this time frame.
Someone had put this on the side of 129 between Deal's Gap and the overlook. It's hard to read but here's what I think it said:
Here he lies with piston and crank
Buried up to his ass in the face of this bank
He challenged the Dragon to have some fun
As you can see, the dragon won
What was going on? I think the problem was that I was used to my EX500 and also R1100GS. Both had very light but fairly slow steering. The SV was the opposite. The steering was heavier but once you made the input the response was much quicker. It just took a different riding style than my other bikes. On sweepers it didn't make that much difference but in the tight stuff it did. It just took some practice for me to adapt. Since I was down there for more than a week I was able to get used to the SV. Once I did that the bike was great.
I don't have any pics from this trip but I do have some stories.
One of the guys I rode with regularly was Gary from Virginia. He was a fast rider who always rode fast, powerful bikes. This time he was on his CBR1100XX. He was one of the few guys I rode with who was faster than I was. So we spent a day riding together. Towards the end of the day we left Deal's Gap heading back to Townsend. Gary wasn't pushing it because I was able to keep up with him. As we were riding along we saw a bunch of guys stopped on the left side of the road with a right hand curve coming up. The next thing I knew Gary and his bike were sliding down the road
Later he told the full story of the crash. Gary saw the guys standing by the road taking pics and decided to show off a bit. He ran the bike out of ground clearance and crashed. As he was sliding down the road on his back he put his feet down and they caught traction vaulting him to his feet. Since he had a lot of forward momentum he had to run forward to not fall flat on his face. He came to a stop at the edge of the mountain just in time to see his bike tumble down the mountain.
They needed a wrecker to pull it back up. Gary ended up fixing the bike using used parts and doing the work his self for 2500 bucks if I remember right.
After the rally I headed down to TWO. At this point I head 3200 miles on the bike and the rear tire was shot. So I called Blue Ridge Yamaha, my go to dealer in this area. They happened to have a Dunlop Sportmax in stock in the correct size. Not only that it was on sale for $99. I knew those tires had a reputation for not lasting long but I needed a tire and the price was right. Three days and 750 miles of riding later that tire was toast. There was still tread left in the center but the edges were bald! Oh well, it was a fun three days
Since I have no pics from this ride I'll post this next one which was I have no idea when I took it but was probably somewhere in this time frame.
Someone had put this on the side of 129 between Deal's Gap and the overlook. It's hard to read but here's what I think it said:
Here he lies with piston and crank
Buried up to his ass in the face of this bank
He challenged the Dragon to have some fun
As you can see, the dragon won