Day One - San Jose to Barstow

1/15/06
I finally got out of San Jose, still haven't worked out all the bugs from the cycle overhaul, but it was time to leave. I needed to break in the new engine so I took Ca 25 out of Gilroy, heading south to Ca 198, both nice twisty roads with lots of opportunities to rev the engine and let it back off to seat the rings. By the time I got to Colinga I had 150 miles and the rings were seated,I hope.
The next 100 miles were on Ca 33 a nice straight road that runs parallel to Interstate 5 only 10 miles west. This gave me a chance to open it up a little, 75 mph @ 6500 on the tack. I decided not to get gas in Bakersfield,I didn't see Buck Owens, But I went past his Blvd. Ten miles before I got to Tehachapi the bike quit running. After looking in the tank and seeing that there was still at least a gallon in there, I knew it couldn't be out of gas. It was 3:30 and starting to get cold with a strong wind blowing. I don't think I have ever been to Tehachapi when the wind hasn't been blowing. I called my friend Vernon Danielson, and explained that I would be late. While he was on the phone I checked for spark, I said I needed to find something to stick in the plug wire and he suggested why not stick the plug in there, I said it was cold I must have had a brain fart, after finding spark I decided to check the gas again. This time I used a light, not a match, to look in the tank.
The gas was all on one side so I put the bike on the curb and let it lean as far as I could without unloading all the stuff off it, it started and made it within two blocks of a gas station in Tehachapi. I put in a little and saw a leak by the fuel shut off so I took it off and fixed it with a tire patch as a gasket. Filled up and headed toward Las Vegas. By this time it was dark, so I ran my piaa light to help see better. Actually not to see better but to see at all. I stopped for gas at Barstow and when I went to start the bike the battery was dead. I decided to not drive at night without lights and just sleep behind the station. It "only" got down to 26 degrees. What a start!!


1/16/06 Today has to be better than yesterday It was still cold in the morning. The frost on my tent didn't show up in this picture. I pushed the bike to get it started, did I mention the gas station was at the top of a hill. It started right up and I headed toward Las Vegas. The engine was running great, Jessie Klein of www.Kientech.com
had put in a big bore kit and did an overhaul and beef up of the clutch. The bike I ride is a Suzuki Dr 350SE. Jessie put in a 441 kit, new carburetor, new heavier springs (front & rear).
I got to Baker, got gas and called Vern. I love it when the temperature gets above 50.