KLR650 Upgrades

Well, I have been looking into some parts for the bike, and have ordered them, only to finally have the money today and the guys at leading edge motorsports are installing as we speak. I thought i would share the joy of new gear. I already have the pump guard installed and did that within the first few days of owning the bike. I may need a new back tire within the next few days. Especially if i am to take the bike across canada and into the states. As for that dream, I may have to move to plan B as i have heard that there has been some snow already in labrador. One thing that i really dont want to do is tangle with mother nature. She does not tend to be kind to those who cross her, and I am fully wary of this.

Well, i am off to pick up the bike and check it out.

Seasons Change

The leaves have started falling. I took a walk today down the street and noticed that there were more leaves on the ground than were left on the branches. It has been colder in the mornings, and yesterday i was reminded of how close winter is, with a thick blanket of dew on the motorcycle seat. I wonder if maybe my plans need some revision.

Lately there have been many roadblocks and hurdles to overcome. I wonder if many of them will be show stoppers for this trip.

Testing the bike out on dirt...and hills...and rocks

So, last night, me and my brother were trying to decide where to go for a ride. The drive to the mclure ferry was an option, but i suggested something more apt for the offroad motorcycles that we both were driving. It was decided that we would ride up in bachelor, and try to get to deep lake. The offroad ride that we rode (in red) was within 1 km of the main road(Westsyde Rd.) so if anything happened, we didnt have to worry too much about getting help or coasting the bikes down.
As it happens the bro was trying to work some bugs out of the bike, so this was a good trip, and with a few idle adjustments his bike was ticking along great.
This being my first attempt at anything other than easy grade logging roads i was a bit nervous. There are at least 4 to 5 very steep 100-150 foot slopes that required alot of leaning to climb. By the end i had cut my teeth at the fine are of hill climbing.
We stopped ont he way back at turtle hump, and regretted not bringing the camera. But it will come with us for sure.
So at the end of the day, there were no drops, no damage. The KLR650 performed amazing. A smaller bike would have handled better because it would have been shorter, but the KLR has alot of torque, so even when i was learning how to line up the hill in the wrong gear, it tractored through.
We are going to have to do that again!

So i thought i would update with a pic of my current location. Soon to change. This is more of a test of the blogger tools than an actual post. As for the KLR650, it is in great running condition. Just need to do and oil change and give it a tune up before I go. Still nervous about doing this so late in the season, but i want to do this now. Because if I dont, I wont.

So here it is... Kamloops, BC:

Research Research Research

Well, I have been researching again the trip. It looks like the craziest part of it is going to be at the beginning, within the first 9 days. Labrador is getting colder by the day, and my plans to drive from quebec city to goose bay may be pre-empted by snow. I really hope that this is not the case, but i think i can make the drive in a day or two from labrador city. If it shows at least the road is dirt, so there shoul be some sort of traction. From goose bay there is a ferry across to the labrador highway. Its odd that no one has built a road as the crow flies, but i suspect the muskeg and mountains probbably are the issue. So cross your fingers. Lets hope its a warm winter, and it comes late.

Traveling is Dangerous, It gives you ideas on how small the world is...

Well, This being the first blog entry I have ever posted, I suspect that it is customary to ensure that the reader has some background. At this point my entire life is in turmoil. Nothing is certain. As anyone who knows me understands, I have made some significant changes lately. I have lost 40+ lbs, and am hitting the gym 2-5 times a week, have lowered my cholesterol, and am quitting my affluent job with a gaming corporation.
But one thing that I have re-discovered, is a love for adventure. I had forgotten about how to enjoy life for its more simple pleasures. I was pretty caught up in the whole, buy a house with a white picket fence, buy a dog, drive the SUV, sell the motorcycle, and look forward to being locked in with kids. But always in the back of my mind, there was something else. Something that never sits right, and i never experienced the uneasy almost anxious feeling until now. I know now that it is because right up until i graduated university I spent alot of time adventuring. I rock climbed, adventure raced, loved day trips to places i have not been, hiked, mountain biked, snowshoed and explored. After I graduated, that stopped. I stopped dead in my tracks because of university debt, and the expectation that I needed to become successful by getting a great job and a bigger paycheque. I was 300lbs and was on the fence between giving up and continuing the adventures i have experienced years before.
Well, fast forward 6 years to today. I have lost the weight, sold the house, quitting the job (because i am tired of being in the basement and not talking to people), and am planning a whole new set of adventures that will take me further than i have ever been before.
So this blog is for you guys. To keep in touch and know whats going on. Its going to be a few weeks before there are any new developments, but trust me, I will be living the life less traveled.
Best Regards
Richard

"It's a dangerous business, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.'"Frodo, Book I, Chapter 3