The Pass is Open!

"I Opened the Pass!"  That's what Roger told me, as he does every year when he is finally able to break through the snow with his grader and open up the Overland Pass Road, connecting my neighborhood with Summer's Bay.  That as all I needed to hear - right after training I headed out on the KLR, eager to be one of the first through, the perfect ride home from a long day . . .

As you may have surmised, the ride didn't go exactly as planned.  Overland Pass is a bit rough in spots, especially right after it is open for the year, and I was certainly riding it for all I was worth.  The ABS skid plate was no match for the rock that pierced the underbelly of the bike, breaking off the "tip of the spear" in the case.  As you can imagine, the oil drained out completely.  The interesting part is how long it took me to realize that little tidbit of information.  The Kawasaki KLR is known to be a tough, bullet-proof "poor man's BMW" . . . . I will say it will go miles in a low oil condition with nary a hiccup . . .

So, we've been having this amazing riding weather, and my poor KLR is in my shed waiting patiently for me to tear it to the frame, make repairs, and get it back on the road.  As you may know, spare time is at a premium these days, but I'm thinking when Goldfish goes on vacation this Friday I'll be able to get out there on the nights I don't have Fire Academy.

The whole reason I have a KLR 650 out here on the island, 800 miles from the nearest motorcycle dealership, is so I can ride it hard and do all my own repairs getting intimately familiar with the bike so I can do my dream ride in a few years, from the top of Alaska to the tip of South America, on a KLR,  with confidence I can fix anything that breaks along the way.  I've been from Alaska to Maine and back on bikes, and all points in between, so the north to south ride is the logical next step.

So I'm really bummed I'm stuck in my old beater truck with all this gorgeous weather we've been having - but I'm thrilled to be tearing the bike down, learning it from the inside out.  And seeing that rock jutting out from the aluminum like it grew there just makes me smile - man, what a ride that was . . . . . . I EARNED that rock through the case . . . . . .