Motorcycle Misadventures

Welcome to the Miss Adventuring Weblog by Carla King

Here's where you'll find the latest news and updates on motorcycle misadventures, writing, books, bikes, gear and gadgets, events, radio, and podcasts. I send live dispatches from the road when I travel, and talk about them on a variety of shows. I  post news and commentary here. Enjoy, and contact me if you have a suggestion for a trip, a story, or a show. And please visit my website for stories, books, and other writings.

Tonight on SideStandUp Motorcycle Radio: The 2012 Women & Motorcycling Conference

Yes I know there's the State of the Union address but you can always catch the podcast later - tonight, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio I look forward to talking with, Tigra Tsujikawa, Marketing Manager for the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) about the women's conference.  She has worked in the powersports industry for 12 years, including the last 3 and half with the AMA. (More info under the picture.)

With 26 years of street riding complemented by eight years of off-road, dual sport, and desert racing, Tsujikawa brings a rider’s view to her projects and programs.  

Tsujikawa’s focus in 2012 is on the AMA International Women and Motorcycling Conference, July 26-29 in Carson City, Nev.  This will be the second such conference that she has managed, leveraging her love motorcycling and enthusiasm for women riders with her work with various women’s clubs and women leaders in the industry.

Join me on Tuesday, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio. Tune in early and participate in the lively chat room! 

 

 

MotoShop - A Place in SF to Hang Out, Fix Your Bike, Take a Class

 

Here's a great new resource for San Francisco motorcyclists who want a place to hang out, fix their bikes, or take a class. They're having an open house this Sunday.

 

Moto Shop Grand Opening 
South San Francisco, CA  -Thursday December 15, 2011  

Moto Shop is proud to announce it’s Grand Opening on Sunday, January 22nd from 12pm - 6pm. Motorcycle and scooter enthusiasts are encouraged to stop by and take a tour, ask questions, and get to know the owners and community that make up Moto Shop.  

Moto Shop is a do-it-yourself shop where you can work on your own motorcycle or scooter, and/or take a class and learn how to do it yourself  - all for a very reasonable cost.

The space consists of a 4000 sq. ft. warehouse full of everything a rider needs to fix and maintain their bike, including onsite help. There are four motorcycle lift stations, one dedicated fluid change station (oil, coolant, etc) with lift, a tire change machine and balancer, an electrical station, and a small metal shop. Each well lit station also comes with its own set of tools, compressed air and a work bench. 

In addition to do-it-yourself stations, weekly classes are offered in basic and advanced maintenance. Class sizes will be limited to five students per instructor and work will be performed on a shop bike. No previous motorcycle knowledge is required or expected.

Address/Directions:

Moto Shop, LLC

325 South Maple #20

South San Francisco, CA 94080

(650) 873-1600

Conveniently located in South San Francisco between Hwy 280, Hwy 380, and Hwy 101 - a short walk from San Bruno BART Station and Tanforan Shopping Mall.

Hours - 

Wednesday - Friday 1pm - 8pm
Saturday and Sunday 10am - 7pm

Email, Website:

info@bayareamotoshop.com
www.bayareamotoshop.com

 

Today, help small biz, artist, innovators. Say no to corporate control of the internet

Strike Against SOPA & PIPA - This is important for me a small (teeny tiny!) business. The Internet is the only playing field I have and I don't think that corporations should control them. We, the public, has already lost control of our airwaves (television, radio) to corporations even though we are supposed to own them, so let's not let it happen here, too. Help small business, artists, and innovators by going all out today and letting your representatives know that this is not okay. Just fill in the blanks below, and if you can, make a phone call or two. And forward this info to everyone you know, and blog. This is the day!

Today, we are striking against censorship. Join the largest online protest in history: tell Congress to stop this bill now!

Write Congress Now!

Not In The US? Petition The State Department.

I am writing to you as a voter in your district. I urge you to oppose the Senate version of S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act. The PROTECT IP Act is dangerous, ineffective, and short-sighted. The House version -- just introduced by Rep. Goodlatte -- is far worse. Over coming days you'll be hearing from the many businesses, advocacy organizations, and ordinary Americans who oppose this legislation because of the myriad ways in which it will stifle free speech and innovation. We hope you'll take our concerns to heart and oppose this legislation.

Join The Strike! and add this to your site

Fight For The Future may contact you about future campaigns. We will never share your email with anyone. Privacy Policy

Learn More: Watch the video · American Censorship page · View the Infographic
Read SOPA on OpenCongress · Read PIPA on OpenCongress

The three most definitive articles on SOPA and PIPA: Free Speech, Problems, Security

Fight for the Future is a non-profit organization fighting for people's freedoms in a new digital age.

A talk with AMA's Tigre Tsujikawa on the 2012 Women & Motorcycling Conference

On Tuesday, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio I look forward to talking with, Tigra Tsujikawa, Marketing Manager for the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) about the women's conference.  She has worked in the powersports industry for 12 years, including the last 3 and half with the AMA. (More info under the picture.)

With 26 years of street riding complemented by eight years of off-road, dual sport, and desert racing, Tsujikawa brings a rider’s view to her projects and programs.  

Tsujikawa’s focus in 2012 is on the AMA International Women and Motorcycling Conference, July 26-29 in Carson City, Nev.  This will be the second such conference that she has managed, leveraging her love motorcycling and enthusiasm for women riders with her work with various women’s clubs and women leaders in the industry.

Join me on Tuesday, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio. Tune in early and participate in the lively chat room! 

 

 

Motorcycle Misadventures on Facebook

Wow, did you know that Facebook friends lists max out? So I'm asking everyone to keep in touch through my Misadventures Media page on Facebook where I post motorcycle misadventures stuff... like why I carry a sledgehammer with me on long motorcycle trips. And it's not just because it makes me happy, despite my smile. Really.

Thanks all. And see you on Facebook! or Twitter. :-)

Going to a Drive-Through Holiday Light Park? $10 Admission Coupons for Bikers

Cruiserworks Motorcycle Gear Giving Away Coupons to Drive-Through Holiday
Light Parks Across the Country

Cruiserworks Motorcycle Gear is a proud sponsor of Glittering Lights at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Gift of Lights at Texas Motor Speedway, Gift of Lights at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Arizona Celebration of Lights, and Gift of Lights at Atlanta Motor Speedway. As a special promotion for our Two Wheel friends, we are giving away coupons for $10 admission into the light parks. You must ride your bike and present the coupon when you reach the ticket booth. Coupons for $10 admission can be found at www.cruiserworks.com. For more information about the light parks, visit the light park websites.

• www.VegasGlitteringLights.com
• www.TexasGiftOfLights.com
• www.NewHampshireGiftOfLights.com
• www.ArizonaCelebrationOfLights.com
• www.GeorgiaGiftOfLights.com

Tonight on SideStandUp Motorcycle Radio: Liz Jansen on her collection of women's stories!

Catch us tonight on SideStand Up motorcycle radio. 8-10 Eastern, 5-7 Pacific!

 Liz Jansen and I talk about Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment. 50 inspirational stories of adventure and enlightenment.

Check out Liz's book on her website. Hey, it makes a GREAT holiday gift!

 

See You at the Progressive International Motorcycle Show in San Mateo, CA this Weekend

I'll be speaking at the IMS Show on Saturday at 1:00 and 4:00 on the Learning Curve stage with rider, tour operator, author Liz Jansen (Twitter: @TrilliumLiz) about her new book, Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment. And cruising around looking at all the new bikes, and tweeting from @MissAdventuring. Also there, speaking at 12:30pm and tweeting will be Joanne Donn aka @GearChic. Tweet me up for a face-to-face hello, and follow @MotorcycleShows for the stream. 

 

Fall Issue of the International Journal of Motorcycle Studies is Here!

The Fall 2011 issue of IJMS is now available: http://ijms.nova.edu.

This issue finds contributors in engaged in contemplation, reflection and speculation. Psychologist Lisa Garber meditates on the inner journey of the motorcyclist, the narrative unfolding in her helmet as she rides.  While Garber encourages us to ponder how past and present are fused, as the embodied rider undertakes a timeless, archetypal journey, the contributors to our Roundtable challenge us to consider the future of motorcycling.  Diego Varela, Geoff Crowther, Randy McBee and Christian Pierce take on questions of sustainability, economic adaptability, alternative fuels and environmentally responsible choices that will lead us to think hard about our future purchases and riding choices.

Plus, in the Reviews section, Fabio Magnani brings us up-to-date on the lives of a daring group of young Brazilian riders, Charles Johnson surveys Ted Simon’s contributions to motorcycle travel literature, and Steve Koerner weighs in on a recent addition to the growing body of historical accounts of the British motorcycle industry.  

Click here for the latest issue’s articles and reviews.

Boo hoo no trick or treaters but there are three motorcycles in my driveway

Halloween eve on a Monday night and boo as in boo hoo nobody's coming to my door because I live on a dead-end street in a neighborhood with exactly zero children. I used to love Halloween in San Francisco because I'd sit on the front porch with my landlord who lived in the big house on 15th Avenue at Lake and hand out candy to kids in elaborate costumes. For example, a boy in a rock and roll outfit had a guitar that turned out not to be a toy as he demonstrated a Jimmy Hendrix number - it blasted from a portable amp strapped to his back. His parents giggled at the bottom of the stairs at our astonished looks and I wondered if they used to be famous rock and rollers, which wouldn't have been surprising in that area of the city.

Okay... motorcycles. I bought a Moto Guzzi California Stone this month so now I have three bikes in my driveway. I know that most of my neighbors find it amusing but I overheard one of them - not someone I really know - expressing disapproval. Or maybe he was kidding. Well, what can I do? Get rid of one? Yeah, right. Here it is pre-windscreen and panniers. I chose soft "throw-over" panniers by Touratech, that expand. They're black with grey trim and I think they look nice.

So the Guzzi is a lot like the California EV 1100 I rode in the late 90's in Italy for a few months. I rode it from Lake Como to The Boot, Sicily, Sardenia, and back again to Lake Como, camping most of the way and sending dispatches to the web. During that trip I fell in love with Italy and I fell in love with the Guzzi air-cooled V-twin engine that sits off-center at 90 degrees. On an 1100 cc motorcycle you'd better have both feet firmly planted on the ground before you race the throttle at a stop light or it'll whop you over on its side. That's not a defect it's a feature. Or maybe what we call "personality" in the motorcycle world and you either love it or you hate it. 

The only thing wrong with the bike was that it has just one key it was dangerously bent trying to open the gas cap. I took it to Trudee at Key Kraft in Noe Valley where all the motorcycle shops said to go because she's a genius, and she is. Oh yeah, and Bill at Quality Motorcycles told me that every single Guzzi he has seen has had its motor wiggled loose, so he torqued it down for me. Thank you Bill.

I didn't get the saddlebags and windscreen installed quite in time for the Horizons Unlimited motorcycle travelers meeting but I did ride it to the Overland Rally in Hollister. It wasn't awfully awkward on the dirt road to the meeting, but riding it took me back to Italy to the day I rode its cousin down a dirt road on the island of Sardenia that took a sharp curve where I saw too late that the small gully running down the center became a deep, sharp V that sucked the bike right in.

I waited for 45 minutes under some scrub trees for someone, anyone to come along, and finally I heard the stamp of hiking boots from a dozen elderly Dutch hikers headed to the petroglyphs I'd been headed for. It took almost all of them to haul the bike out and then they were so quickly anxious to get on their way that I had to beg them to wait a minute to make sure I made it back up around the corner away from the bike-sucking V. I still want to see those petroglyphs.

The Overland Rally was fun though it was waaaaay heavier on 4x4s than motorcycles. Next year I hope to convince Horizons Unlimited attendees to extend the party for a week using the rally as an excuse. I did learn how to right an overturned vehicle, which rope to use - the static rope, the bungee rope, or chains - and how to wench it just right so you don't flip it into your windshield, you know, useful stuff like that. There was a lot of math too that I need to review before I actually try to do it myself. Rope weight and tons per inch or something. I never was good at math. But the crowd was adventure travel-y and interesting and there were a LOT of modified vehicles which is always a kick.

This month I've also started walking my neighbor Raymond's fat Jack Russell Terrier Tinker. I tried walking him a couple of years ago when Raymond first had a heart attack and couldn't provide him with the exercise he desperately needed, but Tinker pulled so hard that I couldn't stand it. Another neighbor, Marilyn, has since trained him really well and he heels beautifully and does not veer to follow common doggie interests such as squirrels, cats or other dogs. So he has been my companion on my almost-daily hikes.

I hike in the open space near my house where a mountain lion was recently spotted so now it is considered that dusk and dawn walks are not safe. Those who know me just had a little giggle at that word "dawn" because they know that a dawn walk is not really in the realm of possibility, but I do love dusk hikes as the heat of the October sun is cooled by bay breezes here in Northern California. Tinker, I think, would make a nice distracting little appetizer for a cougar, anyway, and I can run faster than he can - so far, at least.

I've got him jogging a little bit but mostly we just walk really fast. After an hour and a half in the hills and then down by the waterfront - where the sound of water laping around the rocks kind of freakes Tinker out - Raymond tells me he sleeps very well.

The International Motorcycle Show hits San Mateo in mid-November, and I want to motorcycle there, it's only an hour, but if tradition stands there will be driving rain all weekend. This would be too bad, because Liz Jansen of Trillium Tours is coming to tout her new book and I want to take her for a ride through Fairfax over to Bolinas by the lakes and through the Redwoods, and then down Highway 1 to Stinson and back to Mill Valley and over the Marin-Richmond Bridge. 

Liz says we could ride even if it rains but I say you don't understand, you're Canadian and I live in California and I will ride in the rain if it hits me unexpectedly but few of us like to negotiate greasy wet roads and idiot tailgating lanechanging car drivers talking on their cell phones. I am going to keep my fingers crossed, hope for sun, and if it rains maybe, just maybe, I'll try. I have the gear for it. 

I will join Liz at the show on Saturday for a couple of presentations on her new book Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment: 50 Inspiring Stories of Adventure and Self-Discovery. (You can pre-order it for delivery in time for holiday gift giving.) I have a story in the book, and there are some other women whose names you might recognize like Genevieve Schmitt and Sue Slate, Debbie Evans, Stefy Bau, a couple of others I wrote about in May for International Female Riders Month. Here's a review I wrote of the book:

“Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment is a collection of fifty intensely personal stories of women’s journeys through obstacles, desires, self-realization, setback, perseverance, failure, success, courage, excitement and finally joy in shedding fears to open a big new world in which to frolic and share and move through with purpose. I recognized myself in many of these stories and you will too, whether you motorcycle or not. It’s all here — bad husbands (and good husbands), supportive parents, discouraging bosses, perceptions of physical limitations, real injuries, societal restrictions, and then, a turning point, a role model, or sheer exasperation and simply getting fed up and doing it anyway. Some of the stories made me cry but then they eventually made me laugh or even shout out loud in congratulations. The writing is exquisite, with each woman pouring her truth and passion onto the page in the spirit of sharing and encouragement. Our tour guide on this journey is Liz Jansen, a real-life motorcycle tour guide, workshop and retreat leader whose own story elegantly leads us through ten aspects of power through mastering the motorcycle, the very real, yet symbolic and spiritual machine so uniquely qualified to carry each of these women to freedom. ”

If you're anywhere near San Mateo on the weekend of November 18, 19, 20, stop by the show  (Twitter: @motorcycleshows) and say hi! I'll be monitoring tweets and you can tweet your location to @MissAdventuring.

Until next time, may all your misadventures have happy endings.

Tonight: Christopher Baker on Touring Costa Rica & Panama by Motorcycle

JOIN ME TONIGHT
SideStandUp.com
5:00 - 8:00 Pacific Time 

for my talk with Adventure motorcycle travel writer Christopher Baker.

I talked with Chris back in April 2010
( download the MP3)
about his book
 Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro’s Cuba.

Chris is a Central America expert, longtime tour escort and lecturer. Chris will talk about the  motorcycle tour he’s leading in 2012 to Costa Rica and Panama for MotoDiscovery.

Report from Horizons Unlimited California Travellers Meeting 2011

 Just back from the Horizons Unlimited Travellers meeting in Cambria, California and a friend told me, "You're glowing!" Yes, I am, because there is nothing like being among people who don't think you're crazy for planning to pack up and head down through Mexico and Central America to South America on a long camping trip because you have been invited to visit a friend who lives in Chile -- who I happened to meet at the last HU travelers meeting.

See the Misadventures Media Facebook page for photos of the weekend HU meeting. Again this year I met many people I'd only known by reputation or online, and reconnected with motorcycle traveling friends, and met many new friends I look forward to staying connected with. Here's a quick rundown of a few you'll enjoy following through their blogs, books and articles.

Sherri Jo Wilkins is a belle on a bike who is smack in the middle of a world tour on a KTM. Her duct-taped windscreen is a souvenier from Russia, why bother to get a new one, it works fine, and all those memories! 

Zig Kaluzny is a professional photographer (People, Forbes, etc.) who shares his pro tips with us even if it does mean riding with one hand and letting rocks ding your lens. He also shared his system for traveling light  - really great advice - and his experiences riding around the world. A true bon vivant and okay, an incorrigible flirt.

Speaking of incorrigible, Gregory Frazier  rode his KLR up and brought his new book Motorcycle Adventurer, Carl Stearns Clandy: First Motorcyclist to Ride Around the World 1912-1913. I guess after riding around the world five times now he figured he could settle down and learn about the guy who pioneered his passion. It's a great trip back in history, Greg has been researching this book for years.

The array of motorcycles was stunning, all the usual suspects from KLRs to GSs and KTMs and DR650s and VStroms and even Harley-Davidsons including not one but two huge Harleys that have visited more countries than any other bike in the group. Go figure! That would be Peter & Kay Forwood from Australia (193 countries) and Tim Bussy who wrote this great story about his world travels. 

As always, it's fun to connect with Moto Adventure Gal Alisa Clikenger, who presented on South America. She's been writing for Adventure Motorcycle magazine too - check it out. Editor Paul Smith and contributor Nicole Espinosa, aka Nicomama of RuggedRider.com were there, too. Paul is test riding the new Yamaha Tenere adventure motorcycle, so far so good, he says, heavy, but on the bottom end, so it doesn't have that GS1200 top-heavy feel. Don't quote me on that. Nicomama did some magical demos with home-dehydrated food (lighter, healthier, packable!) and just-add-water or heat ready-to-eat stuff from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. Yum! 

The last night of the event Clement Salvadori gave a great slide presentation of the off-road Continental Divide ride, and then Ted Simon closed it out with a wrap-up of his world journeys including a narrated video slide show of Jupiter's Travels.

Next morning there were a few more presentations and then parade of travelers on two wheels rolled out, some of them in newly-formed groups to camp in Yosemite, or zoom to Malibu, or up to the San Francisco Bay Area where the October sunshine beckons. Those of us in the SF Bay Area have promised to get together for a mini-Horizons Unlimited meeting soon.

The grounds were stellar. Camp Ocean Pines is by the sea, and has lots of bunkhouses and tent spaces, a big mess house and good presentation rooms. There are also some nice motels and B&B's around, it being a tourist destination and all. I think I heard Grant say that they'll need to cap the event at 300 participants next year. The weather was sunny on Friday, foggy on Saturday (the day we were mostly inside with the presentations), and sunny again on Sunday for the ride out. Yay! Those who are camping sleep to the sound of the waves and the sea lions barking. Since October is mostly sunny on the coast we'll hope for nice weather again in 2012. Sign up early, I know it's going to fill up.

Also, you gotta love a crowd who doesn't scold you for buying a Guzzi Cruiser when you were really shopping for an adventure bike, and furthermore completely understand how that when that engine turned over your heart did, too. And who can have too many motorcycles, anyway? Jonathan Ehly of Xpedition Tech may have convinced me that the BMW R100 should be my next bike. It's carbeurated, air cooled, light, maneuverable, a great ride to South America, which is maybe my next trip. Maybe. Unless it's Mongolia. 

Well, we'll see. And I hope to see you next year at an HU meeting somewhere!