Somewhere out there, beyond the clouds, is the escarpment which is such a wonderful feature of where I live (I think you can just faintly see its outline). Sadly it is obscured as the rain rolled in overnight and looks like staying (hey, it’s supposed to be Spring). So, the Friday ride planned for today is OFF.
Oh, well, plenty to do instead. First of all I’d like to thank the people who responded to my story about my army days; evidently the feelings expressed in it touched a very raw nerve with quite a few people. Thanks for the feedback.
You’ll notice the distinctive profile of the Minibago peeping out of the corner of the photo and I’m delighted to say that, over six weeks since it first broke down at Flaggy Rock, about 110kms south of Mackay in far north Queensland, it is home, fixed, running and registered! It’s been quite an ordeal as those of you who have been following the saga will know. Once back home here, my mechanic hit the problem solving trail and determined that there was nothing wrong with the timing and that the top end of the engine was undamaged. Despite his endeavours, he was still unable to get the thing to start, however. Further trouble-shooting revealed that there was no spark. Since both the coil and distributor had been replaced with new items before the trip it was clear they were not the culprits. The defective harmonic balancer was replaced but still no go.
A little more probing revealed that the cam angle sensor had apparently been damaged (probably when the balancer spun off its centre) so it was replaced. STILL no spark. Compression was good but no spark. Back to basics and the culprit finally emerged. The earth strap between the block and the chassis had broken (it had been gradually fraying for some time, he reckons). Once it broke it shut down the ECU so no spark-no go. A comparatively simple and cheap fix after all that, such is the nature of things. Looking for a complicated solution can sometimes blindside you and it seems it did exactly that to the mechanic in Queensland who had failed to solve the problem.
20-20 hindsight is a wonderful thing, isn’t it? Anyway, all is good. Now, once the rain clears, I have to get the thing cleaned up after it has been sitting, unused for over 6 weeks. The solar system is still pumping out 14.6 volts so it’s still spot-on. Sadly, Helena went back to work yesterday after her long service leave break, so we’ll have to wait a while before we can do another long run. I must say that I am desperate to get back on the road again, I’ve always loved touring, as most lifers will already know.
Experts are easy to find and even easier to debunk as most of you know but I have to do a BIG shout out to the good folks who made such a huge success of the Morgan Park round of the ASBK a few weekends ago. Instead of believing what the “experts” say, Paul Edwards and Alan Redman and their team gathered together over 30 exhibitors and made the off-track activities the biggest and most attractive of their type that has been seen for a long time. Bringing people, and especially families, back to the track is the major step that all promoters must address if they are to contribute towards our wonderful sport surviving. We cannot sustain the situation where champagne racing is taking place on the track in front of empty grandstands. Hopefully the promoters of succeeding ASBK rounds will examine the model and copy it. It always was, as Paul Edwards said at the beginning, an experiment to see if a template could be created that would work once and then work again and again. I have no doubt that it will. Who knows, but maybe we CAN get back to these great days? Well done, guys and gals.
As I type this post, I am listening to ABC FM which, for 24 hours today, is playing a Mozart Marathon. And, right now, the sublime Clarinet Quintet, written at one of the lowest points of Mozart’s life. It would have been so easy for him to write something maudlin but, the genius that he was, he wrote this gloriously sunny piece instead. I’m in Mozart heaven today.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mKUYMQsFwM[/youtube]
From time to time, the question arises, what do you reckon your next bike will be? With newer, faster, more capable and faster bikes constantly appearing, it’s an easy game to play. But I have to be an old fuddy-duddy and say that I still love my old VFR. Pound for pound, there’s still nothing that will do the job that it does any better, so, 22 years old or not, if old red carks it tomorrow, I’ll be back on the look out for another 4th Gen. Oh, one caveat. If any of you would like to donate 25 grand or so, I am sure that I could make one of these VERY happy!!
British Grand Prix this weekend. Rain is predicted (hey, it’s England) and Marquez will be looking to protect his 53 point lead in the championship. Rossi has leap-frogged Lorenzo into second place in the title chase after JL99’s abysmal performance at Brno so the yellow army is happy. But even if the two Yamaha riders win more races in the closing part of the season, all MM93 has to do is finish on the podium and he will still collect. Some pundits (note my comment about “experts” above) are already saying that the title is won which is plainly silly. However, Marquez has learned to ride with his head and not just with his heart and, while he retains his blinding speed, he will now settle for a placing rather than bin it it trying to win every race so that makes him an even tougher opponent. The last part of the season is going to be engrossing.
And, on the subject of MotoGp, I am more than just a little amused at the hoopla surrounding the two “out of left field” wins by Miller and Crutchlow. Yes, a MotoGp win, even just ONE of them, is about as good as it gets, but the xenophobic comments about both wins are slightly amusing. Perhaps the “experts” should go back to the stats and find out how many riders over the years have just one GP win to their names. The old saying that “One swallow does not a summer make” is pertinent.
The rain is still belting down but I’m not going to let it worry me. Life goes on.