Saturday, October 3, 2020

2020 Ride Around Texas - RAT Galveston


3,100+ Miles around the perimeter of the Great State of Texas

Galveston Start/Finish:  Ride the perimeter of Texas, clockwise or anti-clockwise, stopping at 18 mandatory checkpoints, including start/finish point, in order within the allotted time period.

  • RAT Insanity - less than 85 hours  - 7 am Oct 5 to 8 pm Oct 8
  • RAT Insanity Gold - less than 70 hours - 7 am Oct 5 to 5 am Oct 8
IBA RAT  Insanity Certification - Successful riders will receive concurrent IBA validation of their RAT, complete with the following at their Galveston finish.
  • RAT Insanity Certificate
  • RAT Insanity Swag - Pins, patches and stickers
  • Instant IBA Records entry

 Current Weather Radar

2020 RAT Riders (Click on name to see picture)

ID    Name, Motorcycle, SpotWalla Track Link

DCD    Danny C. Dossman, IBA 519, 2016 BMW R1200GS Adventure, SpotWalla Map
JPH    James Handley, IBA 66552, 2014 BMW K1600 GTLE, SpotWalla Map
MRB   Michael Brown, IBA 53862, 2016 BMW R1200GS, SpotWalla Map
DNS    Lynn Behrens, IBA 47957, 2016 BMW R1200RS, SpotWalla Map

Riding the RAT but not a Galveston starter
JMC  Jim McCrain, IBA 61944, Triumph Trophy SE, SpotWalla Map

IBA  RAT Mandatory Checkpoints (listed in clockwise order)

  • Galveston START
  • Victoria (DBR)
  • South Padre Island (DBR)
  • Del  Rio (DBR)
  • Panther Junction, Big  Bend NP  (picture of your motorcycle in front of Visitor Center sign is acceptable)
  • Lajitas General Store  (picture of your motorcycle in front of store sign acceptable)
  • Presidio (DBR)
  • Anthony (DBR)
  • Guadalupe Mountains National Park (picture of your motorcycle in front of park entrance acceptable)
  • Kermit (DBR)
  • Texline (DBR)
  • Follett (DBR)
  • Childress (DBR)
  • Paris (DBR)
  • Texarkana (DBR)
  • Port Arthur (DBR)
  • Port Bolivar (Take a picture of your motorcycle on the Galveston - Port Bolivar ferry while underway) 
  • Galveston FINISH (DBR) 

The La Quinta Inn - East Beach, Galveston is the host hotel and starting location for the RAT.  Sunday afternoon will be the optional social gathering followed by a no-host dinner at either the Saltgrass Steakhouse or Denny's next to the hotel. RAT Insanity departure is 7:00 AM on Monday.






Hangin' out at the Saltgrass









Galveston RAT Riders







Clockwise and Anti-Clockwise RAT Riders meet  
between Anthony and Guadalupe NP









GOLD Finishers All












Saturday, August 22, 2020

On the Road to Recovery

Three months after the May 18th crash, I can see the day I may ride again.  Not at the level of long-distance intensity I was before the crash and maybe not as often.  The recovery from my injuries is slow but I am making steady progress.  As of this writing I am far from normal.  The primary physical limitation are the range of motion in my left arm, weakness in my right hand and wrist.  Physical therapy is on going and making good progress.  Cost of all medical treatments so far are over $175,000.

The Covid-19 pandemic has hit the long-distance riding community hard.  Rallies and events scheduled months, some years in advance have been cancelled or rescheduled.  The impact of the pandemic will last well into next year. So, I'm missing out on all the cancelled events.  

I may be riding again by the first of the year.   All my riding gear was trashed and will have to be replaced.  Thanks to State Farm I have the funds to buy all new gear.  I will take it slow and steady when I do start after 6 months of not riding.  The last thing I want is another crash. 

I am disappointed I was unable to complete my goal of riding the Janus in the 2021 Iron Butt Rally.  Even though the Janus was only slightly damage and could have been repaired easily, I could not continue to ride.  Nor, continue the aggressive long-distance training schedule I needed to put the motorcycle through before committing to ride in "The World's Toughest Motorcycle Rally."  I "re-homed" Gryffin #036 back to Janus Motorcycles in Goshen, IN.  Hopefully, the IBA members at Janus will continue riding Gryffin #036 long-distances.   


Wednesday, July 1, 2020

The Road Ahead - Mid 2020

The year 2020 has turned out to be the most challenging of my entire 50+ years of riding motorcycles.  And, it's only half over!  My 20 year career of building a respectable resume' in the long-distance riding community may well be at an end.  At this point, even riding a motorcycle again is in question.  At 70 years old it doesn't take much for something to become "life altering."  I am living through one of those experiences. The road ahead is one full of obstacles, detours and some closures.

A Minor Crash
Sunday, May 17, I departed Ocean Beach in San Diego CA at 4:00 CDT on my second attempt to ride the Janus Gryffin 250 in the Iron Butt Association 50cc Quest event.  This first day I rode the 1,165 miles to my planned rest stop in Junction TX, arriving a couple minutes before 1:00 am, Monday morning.  I checked into the hotel, showered and was in bed by 1:15 am. I woke at 4:25 am, got dressed and was out the door to gas up and have a cup of coffee at the Pilot across the street.  By 4:50 am I was eastbound from Junction TX beginning the 1,200 miles to Jacksonville Beach FL. (SpotWalla map)

A few miles east of Covington LA, I crashed on the shoulder of Interstate-12.  I do not remember anything of the crash. My last memory was recognizing a motel I once used while riding past Covington on I-12.  Next, I woke up in a bed at the Covington hospital.  To this day, there is no memory of the crash.  Judging by the light damage to the Janus it was a slow speed crash to the left side.  The crash investigation stated that no other vehicle was involved.  Apparently I  experienced some issue after crossing over a bridge, lost control of the bike and crashed on the shoulder of the highway.  I may never know what happened.  At this point it doesn't even matter.

I was taken to Covington hospital by EMS.  There, I was evaluated, administered stabilizing treatments and admitted.  I was discharged the following Thursday.  How I and the broken Janus got back home to Texas is another story I will be telling in a separate posting. Thank you, comrades!

Body Slam
Even though I was wearing some of the best riding gear money could buy, the force of the slow speed impact damaged my 70-year old body.
  • Fracture and partial amputation of the right thumb
  • Fracture of the right wrist
  • Fracture of left scapula
  • Fracture of fourth rib and sternum
  • Fracture of neck - C7
  • Hard impact to left shoulder
  • Extensive, severe body bruising
  • Mild concussion

July 1, six weeks after the crash, the cumulative affect of these injuries have hit me pretty hard. My right hand doesn't work correctly and I cannot rotate my right wrist more than a couple of inches in either direction.  I cannot extend my left arm forward more than 6 inches inches or lift my left elbow sideways away from my body. Even though a MRI did not show significant damage to the left shoulder bones or connective tissues, it could not rule out damage to the nerves.  The fracture to the left side of the C7 cervical bone in my neck may have resulted in nerve damage. I am facing months of physical therapy.  The therapy to strengthen and protect my neck to the point I can wear a helmet begins later.  Correcting the nerve functions to make my left arm work as it should is the critical path.  Even after physical therapy is completed, I may need more surgeries to treat lingering issues.

The Janus & Iron Butt Rally
Back in March, I was invited to ride in the 2021 Iron Butt Rally using the Janus in the "Hopeless" class.  Given the uncertainty of my recovery and yet to be demonstrated capability of the Janus to go the distance, I have decided to end my Janus Iron Butt Rally project. I cannot complete the extensive and exhaustive preparations I had planned for the Janus by June of next year.  Being laid up for six or more months will significantly impact my long-distance riding endurance level and not to mention basic riding skills.

The training schedule I developed, listed below, was designed to demonstrate the capabilities of the Janus to withstand the demands of "The World's Toughest Motorcycle Rally."  My "go-nogo" decision point for riding the Janus in the IBR was to be made after a successful and relatively issue free 48 States in Under 10 Days, scheduled to be ridden last month.  I never got past a successful SaddleSore 1,000, failing twice to complete the 50cc Coast to Coast ride on the Janus. I was on the second attempt to ride the 50cc when I crashed.
  • SaddleSore 1,000 - one thousand miles in under 24 hours (March)
  • 50cc Quest - 2,365 miles from coast to coast in under 50 hours (March-Scrubbed )
  • Ride Around Texas, 3,100 miles in under 70 hours for GOLD (85 hours regular) (April)
  • Bun Burner Silver, 1,500 miles in under 30 hours (May)
  • 48 States in 10 Days - Over 7,000 miles in under 10 days (June)
  • Blaze of Glory 36 hour motorcycle rally (July)
  • IBA Senior Butt Rally - 5 day competitive rally (September)  

The Road Ahead
Right now I am not physically capable of operating a motorcycle and do not know when or even if I will ride again.  As I struggle to get back to normal, I will work through these issues -- Does my passion for the sport really depend on riding a motorcycle again?  Can I be a contributing member of the LD community off a bike?

The sport of long-distance motorcycling and the fellowship with the community of riders have given me 20 years of exciting hard riding adventures. I owe the LD community a debt of service.  Over the past several years I have been scaling back my riding intensity and working behind the starting line of events.  Perhaps this is where I can contribute the most, regardless of how things turn out.  Time will tell.

Saturday, May 16, 2020

Janus - IBA 50cc Quest, 2.0

UNSUCCESSFUL - Rider crashed just east of Covington LA.

Ocean Beach, San Diego CA to Jacksonville Beach FL in under 50 hours.  Iron Butt Association 50cc Quest.

I have been waiting two full months to do this ride.  It's a bit of unfinished business from back in the middle of March as part of Operation IBA Daytona.  See the Op IBA Daytona - After Action Report for the details.

During the pandemic stay-at-home time I was making improvements to the Janus.  I put on a Avon Trail Rider dual sport rear tire in hopes of getting greater mileage.  The OEM tire had just under 5,000 miles on it and would not have lasted the 5,000 miles I will be riding during this ride. Another improvement was to swap out the wide soft bag for a narrow waterproof hard case that holds maintenance items.

Sun, 5/17 - Tue, 5/19:  Janus 50cc Quest - Ocean Beach, San Diego CA to Jacksonville Beach FL, 2,356 miles in under 50 hours.  This will be the longest ride for the Janus so far.  A lot can go wrong along the way, but these training rides are about working out the kinks and keep the bike moving.  Hopefully, I've prepared the Janus well for this grueling IBA certified event.

Central Daylight Times
Shown here is the Garmin BaseCamp route timing based on a 60mph moving average. Adding the fuel and rest stop times to the route plan, BaseCamp determines the time to destination. This gives me good information about the ride pace compared to the plan. The fuel stops are spread about 250 miles apart. It does not mean that I will be stopping at the plotted stations.  I will get fuel based on the next available station after I switch to 'Reserve'.  The average range to 'Reserve' is 272.2 miles based on ROG - Run Out of Gas drills

The plan is to arrive at the finish in Neptune Beach, Jacksonville FL shortly before 3am EDT on Tuesday 5/19.  This plan give me a little less then 4 hours of slack time before the 50 hour clock runs out.

In addition to a Garmin Dezl 770 GPS, will be employing several smartphone apps via a waterproof (IP67) Samsung Galaxy S9+:  Android Auto running Google Maps for navigation, POI Pocket for GPX files to Google Maps, Amazon music and MyRadar for enroute weather radar.  I have unlimited data with Verizon.  There are only a few cell dead spots along the entire route from SDO to JAX.
Big "Shout Out" to Greg Rice for the 50cc -100cc JAX-SDO Weather page.  Very handy!

I will be using Bubbler GPS Pro for tracking.  I like using Bubbler GPS Pro for its integrated picture capability when marking locations.  At the start/finish and enroute fuel stops, I can take a picture of the dated business receipt (DBR) with the motorcycle odometer to document the stop.  Taking the picture while using the Bubbler GPS location markers automatically uploads a thumbnail of the picture to the SpotWalla map.  This provides three ways the important documentation is recorded, paper DBR with odo inscribed, picture on the smartphone and upload to the SpotWalla data cloud.

SpotWalla Map (Active Sun 5/17 - Tue 5/19)

Janus 50cc Quest Stats:  x,xxx GPS miles, x,xxx Odo miles, hh:mm total, hh:mm moving, Mvg xx MPH, hh:mm stopped, Ovg xx MPH

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

OP IBA Daytona - After Action Report

Operation IBA Daytona was definitely a hard riding adventure for the Janus its first time out.  A lot of my objectives were accomplished and a wealth of information gained during the 7 days of OP IBA Daytona.

Gryffin 036 arrives at IBA JAX HQ
Ramada Inn Jacksonville

A major objective was not met.  Janus 50cc Quest coast-to-coast event was scrubbed due to the failure of the rectifier/voltage regulator. Even this produced valuable information on how to make the motorcycle more robust.  In the long-distance riding community these kind of issues are normal. We train our motorcycles to perform in ways not anticipated by the manufacturers. The Janus team has been awesome and 110% behind the Janus IBR "Hopeful" project. What we learn from this intense field testing will make the Janus stronger, more robust.  Check out the full story of the breakdown and recovery in the section below:  Janus 50cc Quest.

But, first the the successes of Operation IBA Daytona.

Auxiliary Fuel Cell:  The 3.5 gallon aux tank worked perfectly.  Its simple construction and plumbing make it very reliable.  It measures 15x9x7 (LxWxH) inches with an anti-slosh baffle running the length.  The fuel drain is sumped to make sure every drop of fuel gets to the fuel line.  The filler neck is designed to optimize the amount of fuel received while on the side stand.  The venting system is IBR compliant.  I don't think I will have any difficulty at IBR technical inspection.  My fuel management procedure is to use the 3.5 gals out of the aux tank first.  Then switch to the primary on the main tank.  This should give be between 275 and 300 miles of range depending on the moving average, winds and hills.  The reserve on the main tank is over 30 miles, so when I switch to the reserve I will insure there is a gas station within the reserve range.  The Dezl 770 is ideal for identifying the next available fuel location.

Gryffin 036 earns its IBA stripes:  I participated in the IBA Krazy Key West SaddleSore 1,000 miles in under 24 hours.  All riders started at 6:45 am on Thursday, 3/12 from IBA JAX HQ at the Ramada Inn.  The total distance was 1,011 miles round trip and all riders were required to take a photo of their KKW rally flag at three different "bonus" locations:  The Key West Lighthouse, Southern Most Monument in Key West and the Ron Jon Surf board display in Cocoa Beach.  I elected to hit the latter on the way back from Key West.

I took I-95 until it intersected the SunPass Saltgrass Expressway.  While on I-95 I stopped at a Rest Area to replace the LED tail light.  This is the second LED tail light I have replaced since picking up the bike.  It is peculiar the LED bulbs failed given their small draw of electricity.  I was making good time on the Interstate and toll roads as the winds were light and variable.  My moving average was well over 65 mph even with one fuel stop.  That changed south of Homestead where the speed limit on US1 was a lot slower.  By the time I got to Key Largo at the northern end of the FL keys the speed limits were 45mph.  It's 100 miles from Key Largo to Key West.  I know because years ago I covered the distance 10 times in 24 hours during the Florida Keys 1,000 Insanity.

I got to Key West at 3:45 pm, pretty much on my scheduled arrive time.  I was surprised to see other riders pull up as I was taking the bonus picture of the Key West Lighthouse.  They must have gone to Cocoa Beach first or lollygagged down.  Next up was the photo bonus at the Southern Most Monument.  Again, several riders were still there.  Having bagged the two Key West bonus locations, my next objective was the Ron Jon Surf Shop bonus in Cocoa Beach.

When I got to Marathon I decided to stop for a "quick" meal at Taco Bell.  I ended up spending 27 minutes there.  I was second in line to order.  I was expecting a 5-7 minute order/pickup process but it actually took longer to get the meal than it did to eat it.  I put one of the burritos in my Klim pocket to eat later, just to save a couple more minutes. The stop and go traffic in the Florida Keys is notorious in the long-distance community as a "sucker bonus" ride because of the amount of time it takes to get from Florida City, at the end of the high speed highways, down to Key West and back to Florida City.  In my case I arrived in Florida City on the way down to Key West at 1:05 pm.  It was 7:30 pm by the time I made it back from the Keys.  A total of 6 hours and 25 minutes to cover 250 miles!

I arrived at the Ron Jon Surf Shop bonus in Cocoa Beach at 11:37 pm to take my last required photo before heading back to IBA JAX HQ at the Ramada Inn.  While at Ron Jon's I put on my electric gear. Even though the temperature in Cocoa Beach was 72F, I knew from experience it will change quickly after midnight as the ground heat dissipates.  I wanted to be comfortable the last 180 miles.  I arrived at the gas station next to the Ramada Inn at 2:39 am and the end of the Krazy Key West 1,000 Ride Stats:  1,011.7 GPS miles, 930 Odo miles, 19:41 total, 17:40 moving, Mvg 57.2 MPH, 1:59 stopped, Ovg 51.4 MPH

Run Out of Gas 2.0 Drills:  I departed home in Texas for the IBA event in Jacksonville FL on Monday, 3/9.  During the 1,000 plus miles to Jacksonville I was evaluating the impact of the 43 tooth rear sprocket on cruise performance and moving average miles per hour.  Also, this was the first extended use of the 3.5 gallon auxiliary fuel cell to determine range to "Reserve" on the main tank.  As you can see by the averages below, there is an improvement across all data markers using the 17-43 sprocket ratio over the Janus OEM 17-47 ratio.  (GPS Miles)  See the full data set here:  Janus Fuel Range Drills

Aux Tank:  197.1 miles for 3.5 gallons.  Not evaluated using the OEM 47 tooth sprocket
Main Primary:  47 tooth = 70.8, 43 tooth = 85.2 miles
Main Reserve:  47 tooth = 33.8, 43 tooth = 42.0 miles
Main Tank:  47 tooth = 104.5, 43 tooth = 113.5 miles
Miles to Reserve: 43 tooth = 272.2 miles (47 tooth not evaluated with aux tank)
Miles Per Gallon: 47 tooth = 52.3, 43 tooth = 57.2 miles per gallon
Moving Avg MPH: 47 tooth = 55, 43 tooth = 67 miles per hour
Max MPH:  47 tooth = 68, 43 tooth = 72 miles per hour

The most significant improvements were to the cruise speed moving average and fuel range.  Using the 43 tooth rear sprocket increased the sustained moving average as measured by GPS a full 7 miles per hour.  Miles per gallon improved by 5 miles per gallon.

GPS Upgrade:  The Garmin Dezl 580 5.0 inch GPS I installed on the motorcycle failed on the way to Jacksonville.  I suspect it was the result of excessive vibration at the end of the handle bars when first installed on the bike.  I had moved the mounting closer to the raisers, which reduced the vibration to near nothing, but I suspect the damage had been done.  The LCD membrane ruptured resulting in a large black hole.  Danny Dossman let me use his 7.0 inch Dezl 770 GPS which worked great.  I am going to move my Dezl 770 from my BMW R1200GS Adventure to the Janus.


Chain Lube:  I used Motul C5 chain paste at the recommendation of Kurt Worden, 3 time finisher of the Iron Butt Rally on a Kawasaki Ninja 250.  Pictured here is the chain after 1,011 miles in about 20 hours.  It may be hard to see in the picture but the chain and sprocket was still looked well lubed.  With the no mess brush applicator on the Motul tube it takes just seconds to put a pasty film on the chain that will last all day.

Rally Flag Stowage:  During the IBA Jacksonville Daytona Party I rode in the Krazy Key West 1,000 event.  Jacksonville to Key West and back in under 24 hours.  During the event, I was required to take pictures of the three "bonus" locations to verify I was actually there.  Pictured here is the rally flag stowage behind the saddle, with lanyard for easy display in the bonus location photo.  Note the yellow caution ribbon.  If during a rally I needed to take the flag off the motorcycle to the bonus location, the yellow ribbon would hang out of the stowage pouch prompting me to reconnect the flag to the lanyard before departing.  It's simple and effective reminder to not leave the rally flag behind.


Hydration System:  I use a CamelBak ArmorBak Milspec 100oz hydration system.  In the position I mounted the bladder pack, the hose is just a little too short to reach my mouth.  I will put an extension on the hose using the CamelBak quick connect system for future rides.

Parking Lot Service:  The procedure I planned for performing a service in a parking lot or at a travel center worked great.  The major components of a 2,000 mile service on the Janus are to check the valve clearance, change the oil, adjust and lube the chain.  Along with checking the nuts/bolts, cables, lights, brakes and anything else, this worked well for me.  With practice I can get the total service time down.  The EZ-Drain Nbr 109 made catching the quart of oil into an empty oil bottle easy and without any mess.  I did a 2,000 mile service on Gryffin 036 Saturday morning before departing IBA JAX HQ for Jacksonville Beach for the start of the next major objective.

Janus 50cc Quest:  With a fresh service on the Janus I was ready for the 2,365 mile IBA 50cc Quest coast to coast ride to Mission Beach San Diego CA.  After leaving the Ramada Inn I attended the annual IBR Pizza Party in Daytona beach.  It was great to enjoy a meal with some of the legendary Iron Butt Rally riders.

Arriving in Jacksonville Beach - Neptune late in the afternoon the plan was to turn in early for a good night rest.  With the bike tucked in for the night I took a shower and climbed into bed.  My alarm was set for 3:30 am.

Right on time I was out of bed, dressed and on the bike headed for the 24 hour gas station I scouted out the day before.  Exactly at 4 am I paid for my cup of coffee, collected my DBR (dated business receipt showing Date/Time/City/State).  Since I am an IBA Premier Member to validate my start and finish of an IBA certification ride all I need do is take a picture of the start DBR and the odometer to start the clock.  And, I was off and running....

Making good time through Jacksonville proper I was on I-10 and traveling north of 63 miles an hour.  My goal for the Janus is to maintain a 60 mph moving average whenever traveling on Interstates.  My first fuel stop was 256.2 miles near Oakdale FL.  Fueled up, oil ok and the bike looking good I continued west.  I wanted to reach Kerrville TX by about 10:30 Central time for my scheduled rest stop.  I was on a good pace to make that with a GPS indicated moving average of 63 miles per hour.

Somewhere around Pensacola I notice the volt meter showing less than the normal 14.5 volts.  I was not running my heated jacket as the temperatures where in the mid 60s.  I monitored the volt meter for several miles and watched it dip below 11.0 volts then dropping by the minute.

I pulled into a rest area to check it out.  First thing was to check the battery terminals...all tight.  Next, checked the stator connector to the rectifier/voltage regulator...all good.  I checked the main ground connection to the frame and looked for any loose connections to either grounds or to the starter solenoid.  All good.

I got in touch with Janus (Yeah, it's Sunday) for technical assistance.  They called me back and we went over every possible item on this simple motorcycle to isolate the problem.  Having failed to find an obvious reason, Janus recommended I kick start the engine and ride it to the nearest Walmart to replace the battery.  It was reasoned that if the battery failed and a new one would resolve the issue.  It the new battery did not indicate a charge, then the voltage regulator was probably the item that failed.  I rode to the nearest Walmart in Daphne just across the AL border and replaced the battery.  No luck, still not charging.  So, I pushed on.  Several miles past Mobile I switched to reserve and scanned the GPS for the next available fuel stop.  I decided to pull of at Moss Point MS for fuel and at the end of the exit off I-10 the motor stopped.  I could not restart it using the kick starter.  The Janus has a DC CDI ignition system that requires the bare amount of voltage in the battery.  I had run the battery to that threshold and the CDI read the lack of voltage as engine cutoff.  I could see the Shell station just a couple hundred yards away.

It was easy pushing the Janus at under 300lbs wet.  I used up all but about 3/4 of a gallon.  There were two motels and a Waffle House across the street.  I parked the bike, got a cold drink and sat down to assess the situation.  First thing I did was to contact Danny D who, being apprised of my situation earlier had offered to come get me...again!   I tried to find a local U-Haul or Enterprise van rental near Moss Point but they were all closed on Sunday.  They would be a good option if I needed to spend the night in Moss Point.  Danny, who was still riding home to Belton TX, called me for an update, which I gave him.  He was going to return home, get his pickup and come get me and suggested I reach out to the Long-Distance riding community to see could help get me closer to Texas where Danny could take over the recovery.  Belton is 6 hours from Moss Point MS.

In less than an hour after posting in the Iron Butt Motorcycle Riders Facebook group Peter Henson in New Orleans chimed in with an offer to help.  He was a couple of hours away from Moss Point MS.  He would pick up his son in Slidell to help with the loading.

We met Danny in Iowa LA just east of Lake Charles at the Pilot Travel Center.  Backed the pickups tailgate to tailgate and moved the Janues.  Danny, I and the Janus drove a couple more hours to Brookshire on the far west side of Houston and stopped for the night.  The next morning we had breakfast at Denny's and continued another 3 hours arriving at my home in the suburb of Wimberley, TX around 9:30am on Monday.

Thank you Peter and his son for the help in this recovery operation.  As for Danny C. Dossman, I am eternally grateful for rescuing me a second time.  I am humbled by the extent members of the long-distance riding community have helped me.  It is exciting to see the passion LD riders have for our sport when the riding is going great and when it is not.  Thank You!

Problem identified and solved. This is the positive lead from the voltage regulator to the starter relay.  It is responsible for bringing 12v current from the voltage regulator to the secondary electrical system of the bike, which keeps the batter charged.  As you can see it chafed against a hard spot on the frame and grounded out the 12v flow.  I have since replaced the wire with a longer piece, wrapped it in heat shrink cover and secured its route to the starter solenoid.




Saturday, March 7, 2020

Operation IBA Daytona

Basic training of Janus Gryffin #036 is complete.  Outfitted with well placed load bearing equipment, a 4 gallon auxiliary fuel cell and a fresh service the Gryffin is ready for some advanced endurance training.  Over the next week to 10 days I will put over 5,650 miles while attending the IBA JAX Daytona Party and doing two IBA certification rides. By the time I get back home the total distance ridden on the Janus since January 23rd will be over 7,700 miles.

Janus Load Layout:  Left - Riding gear, and street clothes.  Right - Tank bag items lower, Tools and spares upper
Janus Farkles - A Work in Progress


For those in the Janus Motorcycles Owners, and Iron Butt Motorcycle Riders groups on Facebook, I'll be posting items of interest during the entire "Operation"

Operation IBA Daytona Itinerary

Mon, 3/9 - Wed, 3/11Home to Jacksonville, FL.  I will be completing the fuel range drills using the 17-43 sprocket setup.  My goal is to determine the impact on the moving average MPH recorded by GPS and any changes in the fuel range over the original 17-47 sprocket ratio. See the Janus Fuel Range Drills page for up to date numbers.

Wed, 3/11 - Sun, 3/15IBA JAX Party.  The Iron Butt Association Daytona Bike Week Party is the annual spring gathering in the long-distance riding community.  LD riders from around the world will make their way to Jacksonville FL to attend the JAX Party.  The 300 plus seats at the Friday night banquet always sells out.

Thur, 3/12:  Krazy Key West 1,000.  The will be first of many IBA certification events for Gryffin #036.  1,000 miles in under 24 hours, starting at IBA JAX Party headquarter, down to Key West and return.  The Krazy Key West is a fun SaddleSore 1,000 event that riders are required to make "bonus" stops to take a picture of a Florida landmark with their rally flag in the picture.  I will be using BubblerGPS Pro to track my progress.  Follow along using the SpotWalla trip map below.

Krazy Key West 1,000  (Start 6:45 am EDT 7:45 CDT/SpotWalla)

Krazy Key West 1,000 Ride Stats:  1,011.7 GPS miles, 930 Odo miles, 19:41 total, 17:40 moving, Mvg 57.2 MPH, 1:59 stopped, Ovg 51.4 MPH

Fri, 3/13:  IBA Daytona Party Banquet.  I will probably sleep in after putting in 1,000 miles. I plotted the route in BaseCamp and at a 60 Mvg speed and planned stops I should arrive back at IBA JAX Party HQ after 1am Friday.  The rest of the day will be spent hangin' out with fellow LD riders.  At 4pm Mike Kneebone, IBA President, presents certificates to those riders who participated in either ride-in events or the JAX Daytona Party rides:  Krazy Key West 1,000, JAX Park 'n Ride 1,000 and JAX Park 'n Ride Bun Burner GOLD 1,500

The banquet begins around 6pm but the line starts forming long before that, making its way through the bar.  The food is great and the company is outstanding.  The Master of Ceremonies is Dr. Howard Entman, who usually arranges interesting speakers to conclude the evenings formal activities.  But the fun doesn't end with the banquet.  The bar stays open to the wee hours to accommodate those who have LD stories to tell.

Sat, 3/14:  After the Krazy Key West 1,000 I will have put another 2,000 miles on the Janus since leaving home.  My plan is to do an early morning service to get it ready for its next long-distance challenge. The rest of the day is open.  Maybe I'll ride down to Daytona Beach for lunch at Stavro's Pizza before heading to Jacksonville Beach for the night.

Central Time
Sun, 3/15 - Mon, 3/16:  Janus 50cc Quest - Jacksonville Beach FL to Mission Beach, San Diego CA, 2,356 miles in under 50 hours.  This will be the most grueling ride for the Janus so far.  A lot can go wrong along the way.

Shown here is the BaseCamp route timing based on a 60mph moving average. The fuel stops are spread about 275 miles apart. It does not mean that I will be stopping at the plotted stations.  I will get fuel based on the next available station after I switch to 'Reserve'.  Adding the fuel and rest stop times to the route plan, BaseCamp determines the time to destination. This gives me good information about the ride pace compared to the plan.

I hope to arrive at the finish in Mission Beach CA shortly after 11pm PST.  This plan give me a little less then 4 hours of slack time before the 50 hour clock runs out.  Big "Shout Out" to Greg Rice for the 50cc -100cc JAX-SDO Weather page.  Very handy!

Janus 50cc Quest (Start 4:00 am EDT 3:00 CDT/SpotWalla)

Janus 50cc Quest Stats:  x,xxx GPS miles, x,xxx Odo miles, hh:mm total, hh:mm moving, Mvg xx MPH, hh:mm stopped, Ovg xx MPH

The Janus 50cc Quest was aborted due to unrecoverable electrical issues.  See the OP IBA Daytona - After Action Report

Janus Farkles - A Work in Progress

Friday, February 14, 2020

Outfitting the Gryffin AT

It's been about a month since I took delivery of Janus Gryffin #036.  In that time I have been working to transform the Janus "Scrambler" into a long-distance "Adventure Touring" motorcycle.  There were several things I had planned to use but they didn't meet the utility expectations during the first 500 miles of the break in test rides.  And, the current configuration is likely to change as the the miles add up.


The two major pieces eliminated were Janus aux tank and the second 50 Cal ammo can pannier. The well made aux tank fabricated by Janus, was cube shaped and tall.  It was difficult for me to swing my leg over the tank to mount the motorcycle.  Most significantly, it held only 3 gallons of fuel.  I need a fuel endurance range of 300+ miles at a moving average speed around 60 miles per hour.  That's at least 6 gallons of fuel at the anticipated 50 miles per gallon.  I have ordered a new brick-shaped 4 gallon aux tank that measures 15" long, 9" wide and 7" high.  Low profile with a soft cargo area on top.

The second 50 Cal ammo pannier idea was scrapped and replaced by a soft luggage option to carry maintenance items. The weight of an empty can is a little over 6 pounds.  The weight of all the maintenance tools and spares is just under 7 pounds (6lbs, 14oz).  So, by going to a soft pannier that weighs less than a pound, I bring the weight down on the left side.

The existing right-side 50 Cal ammo pannier is to be used for my personal gear and route planning hardware, combined weight of 4lbs, 10oz.  It is waterproof and lockable. About 11 lbs for the right side load.


The current configuration is ready for the next series of road tests.  I used the first 500 miles to break the bike in at various speeds and conditions.  The next 1,000 miles will be ridden at more typical long-distance road speeds.  In other words, I want to establish a consistent ride pace at the anticipated cruise speeds around 60 MPH.   I am planning a series of "Run Out of Gas" (ROG) test using the 2 gallon main tank with a 1 gallon RotoPax, tucked under the tailbag.

I'll cover the ROG series of drills in a separate post detailing the ride pace statistics for each fuel range cycle of the main 2 gallon gas tank.

Janus Farkles - A Work In Progress



 

Thursday, January 9, 2020

Janus Farkles - Pre Delivery Accumulation of Stuff

In the Long-Distance and Adventure Touring communities, "farkles" are items added to a motorcycle to increase functionality for long-distance riding.  These items may enhance functionality, navigation, comfort, safety, reliability or just add to the cool factor.

Since placing my order for a custom Janus Gryffin 250, I have been accumulating many of the items to be mounted on the bike. Below are just a few of the items I will add to the Gryffin when I get it back to Texas.  Check out this video on YouTube:  Janus Farkles - Adventure Touring Items

Janus Farkle - Pre Delivery Items
The Farkle List - A Work In Progress

Functionality
Tire Pressure Monitoring System - FoBo Bike 2
Enhanced Brake Lights - Federal Signal MicroPulse Ultra 6 Red
Caution Lights - Federal Signal MicroPulse 2 Amber x 2 synced
Anti Tamper/Theft - Wsdcam 113db Anti Theft Vibration Alarm
Cover w/carry bag - WDLHQC 210D Waterproof Motorcycle Cover

Navigation & Communications
Sena 20S Evo Motorcycle Communications
Garmin Dezl 580 GPS
RAM Case for Dezl (Dezl 580 fits in 570 RAM case)
SmartPhone Mount - Samsung Galaxy S9+ running Android Auto
Farkle Bar - RAM Arm and mounting hardware on slotted angle steel

Electrical Accessories
FuzeBlock
Multi Meter
12v Plug

Maintenance and Repair
Tools - Janus Standard Listing
Tire Repair - slime tube and tire repair
Tire Spoons - Motion Pro 08-0539 22mm and 12/13mm T-6 Combo Aluminum Tire Lever/Wrench
Tire Pump - slime 40059 Tire Inflator
Jack Stand - MX Emergency Side Stand C5010

Ergonomics and Comfort
Janus Wide Line - Custom fitted saddle to replace stock Gryffin seat
BeadRider Ultra - Ceramic bead saddle cover
Highway Bar/Pegs - Janus stock rider foot rest assembly
Windscreen - To be selected

ATGATT - Riding Gear
Schuberth E1 Helmet
Klim Kodiak 
Aerostitch AD1 Motorcycle Pants
LD Comfort - Base Layer
TCX X-Desert Gore-Tex Boots
Dr. Scholl's Compression Socks