First Ride 2015 on My Triumph and Navigating with Garmin

Ahhh that was a great ride. This was my first official ride with the Philly Moto Girls (only women can be members, but significant others are always invited to join rides).  And my first long ride on the Street Triple !!

I mapped out this ridiculously insane route, but sadly, my written maps have failed me yet again. I seem to get lost on every adventure because these are all new roads for me!

I've been trying to figure out a way to navigate on my iPhone and have found a few apps that do this. Unfortunately I have found them to be clunky, with the interfaces being rather difficult as to allowing me to import my google maps. But even if they did let me do that, I would have to pull over, take my phone out and pull off my gloves. And if you know me, I don't sacrifice protection for convenience. I'm not going to give up my incredibly protective riding gloves for something that has touchscreen-ability. I love my gloves!

So I bit the bullet and on a friend's suggestion (Thanks Anthony and Kate!!) I purchased a used Garmin Nuvi 765T, the car edition. It was $80 on eBay, and I have the option to return the sucker if it lets me down. I NEED the ability to import routes, and although I could maybe do it on Navigon, that doesn't eliminate my need to remove my gloves to use the iPhone even if it's mounted on my bike.

The other benefit to this particular model is it was less than $100 and it does essentially everything the Zumo does but for less! I'll need to figure out mounting options but I just didn't want to invest $500 in something that I don't *really* need. For $80, I couldn't pass this up.

I will do a couple tests next week and post a mini review. I can't wait to use it on my trip on the 13th! I'll be heading to W. VA (weather permitting) to visit my friend Tamela Rich so we can ride together through the mountains. Yippee!

I just have to say that I LOVE this bike. It's everything I'd imagined and I just can't wait to go riding again with her. She's smooth, powerful and just perfect. We even rode some dirt together!

One thing that I really love about this bike is the handling. Every corner, stop and start is smoooooooth. The throttle doesn't twitch nearly as hard as the SV and is far more smoother when accelerating and decelerating. I can't say enough good things!

I'll be doing a more comprehensive review after my long trip next week.

My New-To-Me 2012 Triumph Street Triple R

IMG_7122

On Monday I picked up a bike that I've been lusting after for over 5 years. A gently used 2012 Street Triple R! Oh boy. 

A couple weeks ago I sold my SV650 to my coworker. She was looking for an upgrade, and I happened to have exactly what she was looking for at the right price.

2006 Suzuki SV650

So I started my hunt and got very lucky with this gently used, 2012 Street Triple R with 5,000 miles on it. Pretty much in perfect shape, with a few minor scuffs.  Meet Goldie!

Yep, those are gold wheels. I couldn't say no. It was the perfect price and I just couldn't pass it up.

2012 Triumph Street Triple R

I cannot wait to shave off those chicken strips!

2012 Triumph Street Triple R

I picked her up yesterday and had a very, very cold ride home. But it was an awesome 45 minute ride home. It's exactly what I imagined and felt better than I remembered. I think it's been 5-6 years since the test ride I had back in San Francisco. I remember thinking how much I wanted one, but definitely couldn't afford one. I knew I would get one someday, just didn't know how long it would take!

It's been worth the wait. Having ridden my husband's Speed Triple many times, I knew I had to have one. But a smaller, lighter version of his. And that's exactly what I ended up with. I've never ridden on Pirelli Diablo Corsa tires, but they felt fantastic. Since I had a rather straight ride home, I didn't have much of an opportunity to lean her over much but I'm looking forward to the weekend.

It was missing some turn signals, but I reinstalled the rear and need to order some aftermarket options for the front. My plan is to install handguards with integrated turn signals. Before I rode home I installed my heated liner harness real quick. Then when I got home I installed Oxford Heated Grips.

This install took forever, much longer than the SVs took. I had to shave the entire throttle tube down, because the ridges were making the handgrips too thick to slide the Oxfords over. But now I have glorious heat! Is that considered a farkle? If so, then I guess that would be farkle #1. The next set of farkles include:

• Techspec Gripster Tank Pads

• CRG Shorty Levers!!! I couldn't help it and had to order the matching gold ones. :D

• Battery Tender Harness

• Coax adapter for my WarmnSafe

Philadelphia Women Riders

I've created another Meetup group to bring together women who love riding motorcycles. You may or may not remember (Bay Area) Moto Girls, which I ran with my friend Aleks a la Moto Shop. Check it out, join and let's ride once the ice melts!

http://www.meetup.com/phillymotogirls/

Ride Report, Bike Review and Pants!

Last week I went home to see my family for Christmas. Of course, I had to carve out some time to go riding on some of my favorite roads! Luckily, a wonderful friend of mine had this gorgeous little lady for me to ride up to Bodega Bay. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, except that I now know a Ducati Monster isn't really in my future :)

First off, I have to say that a Monster is a really really great motorcycle. And I can definitely see why many people love them so much, especially as first or second bikes. However, after having ridden many different bikes with really really great suspension, performance and handling it's very difficult for me rank this bike near the top of my favorites.

I thought the height and weight were nice, certainly a lower ride than what I'm used to on my SV650 and the Speed Triple. However, after having ridden the (Triumph) Speed Triple, I can definitely say that I want a Triumph of my own. But the STreet Triple, the smaller and more compact version of the Speed. The main reason is the suspension!

So this is where I'm coming from, having ridden an amazing bike with superior handling especially on the front end. I would definitely recommend a Monster to anyone moving up from 500-600cc or looking for a mid size twin over a mid size inline 4. I certainly enjoy my twin very much. But I'm tired of stock suspensions that aren't adjustable so saving up for a used Street Triple R is my current plan for next Spring.

As far as the Monster, I would have to say it's a much better version of the SV with a little more power, ABS, nicer wheels and a few other bells and whistles. But for me it just doesn't compare to what a Triumph has to offer, so unless it had an upgraded suspension you don't find me looking for one anytime soon.

However, what I would recommend is riding these two roads!

The big yellow highway is 1, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. The white road is the Panoramic Highway which takes you to Muir Woods. It's one of the most perfect, twisty roads that I love love love to ride. Something I can't find anywhere near the state of Pennsylvania. Perhaps down to West Virginia but I still need to find it. Le sigh....

I also wanted to mention the pants my friend Aleks and I are wearing. Unfortunately those exact models are discontinued (Rev'it Marryl and Gear Pants). However, the latest version is the Gear 2 pant, which I reviewed a couple seasons ago here. There's a reason why Rev'it is my favorite brand, and it's because they know how to put us in gear that fits and looks great!

(my friend's Triumph Speed Triple on the right and my borrowed Monster on the left)

Happy Riding, and don't forget to Gear Up!

PS, If you live in the Bay Area, you owe it to yourself to ride these roads, asap. You just have no idea how much I miss them.