Adventure of a lifetime

Exactly one week from today, I will be embarking on the biggest adventure of my life so far.  I will be flying to Madrid, Spain where I will meet two very accomplished motorcycle world travelers.

Jason Len and Duane Leib are brave enough to invite me to join them for one month of their two month motorcycle tour of Europe.  The boys (as I will call them) shipped their motorcycles to the UK a couple of months ago.

When we meet in Madrid, I will be picking up my rental BMW F700GS from IMTbike and heading out for adventure and shenanigans through Spain, France and Italy.

We have a rough idea of our destinations but it will depend on which way the wind blows us from day to day.

While I am very excited, this trip does not come without some fears.  This is the longest I will have ever been away from my wife, Becky.  I am certain that will come with some heart ache.  She assures me that I will be so full of new sights and amazement that it will not be as hard as I think.  We'll see....she is my heart and soul.

I will try and update this blog daily if you are interested in following along.  My blogs will be short and sweet.  For more detailed info on this adventure you can follow Jason Len's blog at jagmanxksunlimited.blogspot.com. 



Until next time.

Test

Today is the day that I am testing out downloading videos.  I will soon embark on the trip of a lifetime and am trying to prepare.  More to follow.

My first offroad experience with this bike came when I attended a weekend long off road training at the Rawhyde Offroad Adventure training in Valencia, Ca.  Attending this class was the best thing I could have done.  Not only does it give you skills and confidence in the dirt, it also increased my confidence in the motorcycle and the way it would handle both on and off road.
                                                                   

The group rallied around me after my first drop.
Bike was well protected, so very little damage.

Catch up with the 2013 BMW F7

Wow...time flies.  I have not posted for a very long time...actually, the entire time I have owned my first BMW F700gs.  This blog will probably only appeal to motorcycle peeps, especially smaller riders who might be interested in the experiences I had with this motorcycle...So, if that is not you, I am just warning you..this could be very boring for you!

So, you might remember I found this bike being sold by a really nice guy in San Diego.  He has a f700 but decided to purchase one for his wife in hopes she would ride.  It is a 2013 with the factory lowered suspension.  I also had a low seat on it.

Here she is before I added a few items to her.  first let me say, I am 5'4.  With the factory
lowered suspension and the low seat I was very comfortably able to place both feet on the ground.  The balance and weight of the bike was perfect.

My first additions were the Vario top and side cases.  I added a taller windscreen that later got switched to a Givi Airflow windscreen that I loved.  I could change the height easily if I was riding alone or added a passenger.  My passenger would sit slightly above me so to raise it a little really helped her to be out of any wind.  

I added a Givi tank lock ring and Givi tank bag that worked perfectly for carrying small things that you want within reach.  I put Rox risers on the handlebars which put me in a more comfortable riding position on the street and really helped when I went to the Rawhyde offroad training and was standing most of the time.  Of course, in preperation of the off road training I added a SW Motech skid plate and Altrider crash bars.  

Here she is with some of the accessories I talked about.

                            


This was on a ride up Indian Valley Road.  We took it from San Miguel, Ca to Hollister, Ca.  It is a beautiful ride through the countryside with very little traffic.  A great day trip.




This ride was one of our favorite evening rides to dinner at the Loading Chute in Creston, Ca.

Quick addition

My last post talked about my Harley Davidson 883 that was customized by my friend, Chris Chitty.  I was unable to find a picture of it...then BOOM, Chris sends me a picture.  She was a beauty.

A Little Background

OK...so I took the first step.  Set up my blog page, learned a little about navigating around it and actually wrote something.

Now, I will give a brief history of my early love affair with anything that rolls or floats.

This was my first car....My little brother and I would start at one end of the house and slowly make our way to the kitchen for breakfast.  By the time we got there...it was lunch!

Before I had access to a motorcycle, I rode bicycle motocross.  I would spend hours in the garage taking my bike apart, adding new parts and putting it back together.  My dad would take me to Moorpark, Ca. on Sundays where I would race.

In the interest of full disclosure,  the young "boy" on the left with the long hair....is ME!  My tomboy status, I guess, is really no big surprise to many.

The (real) boy on the right was my first boyfriend, Paul.  Paul had a small Honda dirt-bike that we tore the neighborhood up on.   This is where my love for motorcycles begins.

My first motorcycle I owned as an adult was a Yamaha Virago.  I purchased it from a co-worker when I worked at the local police department.  I loved the bike and it was a perfect starter to get used to street riding.

When I was a young police officer I wanted to ride a motor so badly.  At 5'4" it just wasn't in the cards for me.  This was as close as I got.



Fast forward a few years and I got my first Harley Davidson.  It was a Sportster 883.  Unfortunately, I could not find a picture of it.  I did a lot of customizing to the bike adding a stretch fuel tank among other things.  The multi talented, Chris Chitty did an amazing paint job on it.  The bike was fun but I found it very top heavy.  I never felt completely comfortable on it.


A few years later I traded the 883 for a Harley Davidson Fat Boy.

Again, me and my pals did a ton of customizing to it.  The top picture was the original bike.  After my extremely knowledgable and talented friend, Chuck Denchfield was done working his motorcycle magic...this is what she looked like.

I LOVED this motorcycle.  The center of gravity on this bike felt so low compared to the 883.  A bigger bike but so much easier to ride.  This was mostly a weekend cruiser with two longer trips: one to Santa Cruz Ca. and one to Palm Springs, Ca.

 As things do....life changed for me in ways I will not bore you with.  After a few good years with this bike I just wasn't riding enough.  I sold her to a local woman who was thrilled to have her.  My pal saw the bike a few weeks ago and said it is still as beautiful as ever.

So, that pretty much brings us to the conversation about my current motorcycle.  Coming soon.

My First Blog Ever

Well.....I was laying in bed last night (actually 3:00am) wide awake and the thought hit me.  I'm going to write a blog!  I am not a great writer but I decided that was Ok.  I have recently retired from 28 years in law enforcement and have written thousands of police reports.  I will try not to write in that style.  Honestly, I may have some grammar issues as well...but I'm pretty sure you won't care.

My blog is going to be about my experiences with my 2013 BMW f700gs motorcycle...and my journey into the world of adventure riding.  So I hope you come along with me and bear with my learning curve.