Crescent Beach, BC

(Marina on Graybar Road, Richmond, BC)

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It was a great day to take off from work and go for a ride. While the mornings are chilly (around 5c = 41F) the afternoon was going to be fairly warm at 17c (62F). It was originally my plan to go for a two day ride into the interior of British Columbia, but with the cold front coming from the north, all the towns had forecast low temps from -7c to -9c (16-25F). BRRR wish I lived somewhere warm where 85F is considered sweater weather. For those of you who are not familiar with BC temperatures, this means frozen roads with ice in the morning which burns off during the day when the temps rise to 10c (50F). This is not good when you are on two wheels.

I decided instead to stay closer to home and ride south to Crescent Beach


(Crescent Beach, BC)

There are two main beach areas. Blackie's Spit, and this area which has a few commercial business' and restaurants. Notice the beach is nearly deserted, unlike during the summer when you would have a very hard time to find parking.



Along the promenade, in both directions, you will find lucky homeowners who have their beach houses fronting along the water. In the past these homes/cabins were probably just summertime retreats, but now most are occupied year round.

Here is the view looking in the other direction (South).



There was also a kindergarten class sitting on the grass enjoying a fall day in the warm sun. Today you could have your choice of sitting on any bench or log or even on the wet grass if you so desired



Looking directly across Boundary Bay you are just able to view the peninsula in the distance which is Point Roberts, WA - part of the United States of America



Behind me you can see a portion of the main street and some beachside restaurants



The beach is also a good place for dog owners to meet other dog owners



The business area is about 3 blocks long. I managed to snag a spot here



One thing I find while riding solo is that you have to eat and talk to yourself. I was hungry but I didn't want to go into a regular restaurant by myself. I was looking for a fast food or take out place



I walked up the street and noticed a fish and chip place ahead. It did look a little deserted



It was closed. So much for my plan of having a late lunch



When I crossed the street I noticed this plaque affixed to the concrete right beside the drain



That seems like a simple solution to dump your unwanted "contaminated with oil" rain water

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While it was a good day, it was also a bad day for me. I had a 'little' mishap while riding my Wee which resulted in "kissing" the ground. Sort of like testing my GIVI crash bars to make sure they work. I got a little too close to the apex of the corner and didn't notice the 2" of gravel. Lucky the cement guard rail stopped me from going over the embankment. I spent the balance of my day yesterday and today to repair all the battle scars. I think I got everything "buffed out" . Everything seemed fine. I was wearing all my armour, riding pants & riding boots. I felt just fine, no pain, no aches, nothing -- until this morning when I discovered that my left arm must have gotten "stressed". It feels like I have NO lifting power. Oh well, it should get back to normal in a few days


(Givi crash bars took most of the impact)


(Kappa 40L side case kept bike off the ground)


(Minor scuffs on my left hand guard)

All of the damage to my bar end bolt (bent), clutch lever (bent), and alignment of the left handle bar controls have all been corrected. Other than that just a few minor scuffs and scratches from the gravel

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(in the meantime, happy riding)

Tool Tube for Wee: V-Strom DL650

(Suzuki DL650 V-Strom, rear view)

When I was searching for my next bike I knew that I wanted to have storage options. One of the first things I did was to research hard side cases for my V-Strom (Wee). There were two models to consider both based upon the same frame but different powerplants. You had a choice of the DL650 (Wee), or DL1000 (Vee). The ABS option is not available with the Vee and this model is now recently discontinued due to stringent european emission controls. Without factory identification there is only one sure way to tell them apart, by their exhausts. The Vee has dual exhausts while the Wee only has one on the right side.
If you examine the photo above you will notice the chrome exhaust tip of the right and only exhaust for the 650 model. The GIVI PL532 side case racks are more or less symmetrical leaving unused space on the left side which can be used for more storage. If you scan the Stromtrooper.com forums I noticed that many 'Strom riders fit a "tool tube" into this area. Here is another view showing the view from the side


(Tool Tube)

It is more noticeable from the sides. This "tube" is made from standard DVW plumbing tubing & accessories. This tube is ideal to store tools, rags, wrenches, tire patch kits and other items which you may need in an emergency in order to get yourself back on the road. The bottom of the tube is permanently capped, while the top has a removeable end threaded plug. It is held in place with large diameter hose clamps strapped to the Givi Side Case rack.



It is a 4" OD tube cut 20" long to allow me to store my tripod. I decided that the tripod would be of more use to me than the tools. Actually I have storage under the seat where I keep a portable air compressor, tire patch kits, wrenches, screwdrivers, allen keys as well as the OEM factory supplied tool kit.



While this tube looks large it is not that apparent when the side case is attached.



I originally had the tube farther forward but it interferred with the swingarm while travelling at speed on a rough road so I moved it back a few inches.



The tripod is a Manfrotto meant for travelling. When compressed it is only 19-1/2" long and includes a ballhead. It will also easily fit into the storage compartment under the seat on my scooter, Kymco X500Ri or most backpacks. I believe that this particular model is the smallest tripod available from Manfrotto which can be extended to full height. It is stable enough to hold a standard dSLR



Here you can see that the tripod is not yet fully extended as the centre column is only about half way up but even at this height it is too high for me to use in this position.



From this angle you can get a sense of high this tripod can go. I use remote control to fire the camera(s). This was the setup I used when I met with Lance down in La Conner a few weeks ago. If I am travelling solo this will give me a chance to take my own self portraits as using the 10 sec self timer does not always give you the desired results.

From a distance you are hardly able to notice that the tool tube is there


(Wee with tool tube, hardly noticeable)

Meet Mayor Gregor Robertson

the Mayor of Vancouver, that is



That's his honour Mayor Gregor in the white shirt with the "R" protruding from his healthy head of hair. He is the one most responsible for the green initiatives in Vancouver, such as taking away one lane of the Burrard Bridge from the Cars. He is an avid cyclist and today he is ribbon cutting murals which are located on one of the city's bicycle routes



Today they are unveiling 4 murals with a ribbon cutting ceremony at each of the four locations. Of course I was not travelling on a bicycle of the pedalling kind and I am sure to be scorned if I used a gas guzzling machine so I only got to see two dedications



I wasn't sure what time they were going to arrive so I had been waiting for nearly an hour. Then a gaggle of bicyclists silently converged on the area accompanied by our bicycling Mayor.


(Richard Tetrault the artist, is on the right in the green T-shirt)

He had been working on the mural for weeks using hydraulic lifts (www.eastsidemurals.com) .



While Richard was explaining the painting process and how they had to prepare the walls I walked about snapping a few pictures of the crowd



Soon the dedication speeches were over and it was time to cut the ribbon


(Mayor Gregor Robertson cuts the ribbon)

Beside the Mayor (white shirt), on his right is the artist, Richard Tetrault. I have no idea who the others are BUT, Mrs Bobskoot is the one on the right .



With the ribbon cut and lying on the ground it was time to move on to the last stop



I caught a glimpse of the Mayor leaving aboard his bicycle



Soon he was under his own pedal power and slowly made his way down the street and out of sight. Of course, we were also invited to the see the last mural at the Russian Hall where they had entertainment and a healthly supply of nurishment and beverages


(The Russian Hall, Campbell Avenue, Vancouver, BC)

Here they had murals painted on 3 walls



The selection of images for the mural are decided upon by a committee in consultation with the building owner(s)


(West & South facing murals)

Here's part of the mural on the north wall



Here's the Mayor doing the ribbon cutting at the Russian Hall, with prominent members of the Russian Community



Our daughter and grand-daughter were also there watching the festivities


(Tami, daughter & Natashia, grand-daughter)

Summer's fading light

It is during this time of year when our days grow shorter and the heat of the sun diminishes. It is getting darker by the day. During the height of summer, the sun rose before 5am, now it barely rises before 7am and soon it will be dark when I get ready for my morning commute. As I head Eastward I caught the sun at a very low angle


(West Broadway near Renfrew eastbound)

You are so vulnerable on a bike. You do not have proper visors to shield the light from hitting your eyes and sometimes you are momentarily blinded. Not a good situation when you are riding into the bright light and not being able to see the traffic ahead. It's as if the sun is lying directly on the roadway ahead. Either that or a heavily farkled K75 (<-- click link) with lights as powerful as the sun is making its way in the opposite direction.

It's also getting darker earlier. A couple of weeks ago I took this photo around 7pm



The sun is still high on the horizon but now it is around sunset

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Recently there has been a lot of interest in Hacks (Motorcycles with sidecars) . You can read about Charlie6's Redleg's Rides (<-- click link) adventures with his "new to him" Ural named Natasha.

I am starting to notice Hacks more and one of our scooter riders has outfitted his V-strom DL1000 with a sidecar which he also rode to Kelowna last July for the Kelowna scooter rally


(Suzuki DL1000 V-strom with sidecar)


(Rear view)

I don't know who manufactured this model but I will pay closer attention the next time I see it. All I know is that he told me it cost around Cdn$3,000.

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The last Bike Night of the year was a grand affair. They arranged for a portable Dyno for those who wanted to test their bikes



As it was cool and getting dark fast there were less riders there but the BBQ was manned and churning out hamburgers and hotdogs



BCStunters were putting on their show



And they even arranged for a live band, who were in the process of "setting up"



Tony was so hungry that he even forgot to open the bag



He is a scooter rider, recently converted to motorcycles. Here is a shot of his "new to him" Suzuki Bandit 400 which he only purchased that afternoon


(Suzuki Bandit 400 classic water cooled 4 valve)

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Many of you may know that I also belong to the BC Corvette Club of Vancouver (<-- click link) . We have hamburger nights throughout the summer, but this was the last one of the year. We meet for dinner and go for a group ride to various local destinations.



Here is a 1959 'Vette which has been owned by Dan since 1969. He drives it everywhere. Recently he went to Texas and drove along Route 66.


(1959 Corvette)

I normally order the special, Burger, caesar salad, blueberry pie with whipping cream, and soda beverage of your choice. Not bad for Cdn$10. car service



Here is another shot of my Red Chariot


(C5 Corvette Roadster, torch red)

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Last year we had the worst Winter in over 50 years. My car was snowed in for 3 weeks. Even our AWD Subaru had difficulty because of the high snowbanks and ice which was higher than the undercarriage. So I told myself that NOT this year, I am going to be prepared so in the heat of summer I purchased by 4 snow tires. I had to put two in the back seat



and the other two in the trunk



I get them home and stack them in the carport



along with my case of DE-icer antifreeze



The next step is to purchase 4 steel rims to mount my snow tires. Last year there was a shortage of snow tires because of the new law in Quebec and most tire shops will not sell you just 2 tires because of an expensive lawsuit a few years ago which caused a large tire company to go out of business. I know Murphy's Law will come into play this year and I don't think we will get any snow but I am prepared for it if it should come

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Recently while at my Suzuki dealer there was a Triumph parked next to me


(Triumph Thunderbird)

It was a beautiful bike with a large engine




(Yep, it's got a TACH)

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I didn't want to let the Triumph have the last word, so here is a pair of V-Stroms


(Both with Tachs, incidentally)