Went for a little ride today

RDosdorian

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My buddy Steve and I have been riding together for years.  We are at the point where we can almost predict each others movements.  However, in recent months, we find it harder and harder to get out for the Saturday/Sunday "joy" ride.  We finally said enough of the overtime (work) and other things that have been in the way and we planned a little ride for today.

I get the first call from Steve this morning a little before 8:00am.  He says he is almost ready to go.  He just wants to change his oil first.  I am thinking... why didn't you do that last night?  He says it won't take long.... he will call me back in a few.  About 15-20 minutes later, he calls back and says he is leaving his house to meet me at our predetermined location.  I am thinking wow! that was fast and I give him about a 10 minute head start, then I leave.  

As I cross the Golden Gate Bridge heading north, the fog is pretty thick.  As I get closer to Mill Valley (about another 2-3 miles, the low fog is lifting, but as I look up at where Mount Tamalpais is supposed to be... all I see is fog.  I am still hopefull that the ride will be good.  We arrive at almost the same time at the meeting spot.  Arco Station.  We talk to a couple of guys.  One riding a VFR and the other riding an F4i.  The guy on the VFR makes a statement that went something like... "Nice bikes, I love the exhaust sound.  I wish I could make mine sound like that"  Dude... you are riding a VFR!  It can't sound like an inline 4.  I didn't say that, but I was thinking it.

After they leave, we take off for the mountain.

This was our first stop.
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With all the fog, Steve needed to clean his visor.
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As you can see, we are heading into some thick fog.  No it was not fun.  The roads were went and very slippery.  Not fun at all.
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This is where I waited for Steve.  He stopped again on his way up to get the water off his glasses and Shield.  I guess he was riding with the shield up.  The fog came in on top of him and he decided to wait for it to lift a bit before riding to my location.

We tip toed down the other side of the mountain.  It was like riding on ice.  I kid you not.  The roads were a little broken up and the weather temps along with the moisture made it tough to ride down.  We pretty much coasted all the way down and did very little leaning around the hairpin turns.

At the bottom, the fog cleared and we came across a resivoir.
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The rest of the day was full of a few more rough roads then some high speed stuff  

We stopped to eat at a place called Black Bear Diner in Sonoma.  (Highly Recommend it.)

Then Steve and I swapped bikes and he finally got to ride the Busa.  It has been a while since I road an XX.  Steve said he liked the torque of the Busa, but he could not see himself commuting on one.  He said it was more aggressive than he thought it would be.  I stopped at Steves place for a few then headed home.  The ride home was full of heavy winds and heavy traffic.  Hopefully the next ride will be better.

Now I have to clean the bike.  It looks like we road through snow.
 
Cool pics and thanks for the ride report. How do you like the XX compared to your Busa?
 
Nice pics - sorry about the fog, but the weather is absolutely gorgeous here - unfortunately, I hafta take the boys to a party or I would be out!
 
Fog is not any fun, but looks like the ride was good otherwise.
 
Cool pics and thanks for the ride report. How do you like the XX compared to your Busa?
Actually, that was my XX.  I sold it to him just before I got the Busa.

Let's see...

The Busa has more power and the steering is definately lighter.  The Busa feels more agressive (riding position) when you are on it.  

The XX is a more comfortable ride.  Not as aggressive and the seat to the peg length puts your legs in a better position for touring.  This could be due to the Tobin I have on the Busa though. I feel the XX has a smoother shifting tranny than the Busa.

All in all, I think they are both great bikes.



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