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Messages - T.W. Day

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1
General Banter / Re: I hate tube wheels - do you?
« on: November 27, 2014, 06:18:18 PM »
I used to dislike tubes a lot more than I do now. Since I started using these babes, I haven't pinched a tube: http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycle-tools/stubby-tire-tools/. I have had something like these for my bicycle tubes for years, but it took a while before someone made them for motorcycles.

2
General Banter / Re: Free Subscription to Motorcyclist
« on: April 17, 2013, 07:29:28 PM »
Holly molly, I just read the article. I figured when you wrote that you mentioned me in your column, I thought it would be something like "I was talking to my friend, Ray and he brought something up that made me think", not like something using my full name entirely attributed to me. I'm flattered.

We're both good, then. I'm usually a little gun shy about quoting people in my column, since I tend to piss off more people than most. If you're good with it, I'm past happy. It was, by the way, a brilliant observation that I would have not made on my own.

3
General Banter / Re: Free Subscription to Motorcyclist
« on: March 27, 2013, 09:26:38 PM »
I hope it wasn't anything embarrassing.  ;D  That was so long ago, I can't remember what we talked about.

I thought it was a brilliant comment about how gear had become a little trendy, at least for the young sportbike crowd. I think the conversation started when I mentioned that I was surprised and happy to see so much actual motorcycle gear on the bikes I saw on the way to your place.

4
General Banter / Re: Crashes Reported in the Media
« on: March 27, 2013, 09:25:07 PM »
On a warm day I see dozens on motorcycles on my commute.  And I only travel 8 miles to work.

There are plenty of people commuting on motorcycles where I am.

Where is that? I'll haul a camera up/down that way and finally get some motorcycle shots.

5
General Banter / Re: Crashes Reported in the Media
« on: March 20, 2013, 09:00:30 PM »
http://www.startribune.com/local/blogs/185571181.html

Jump in motorcycle deaths pushes up fatality count in state

Posted by: Tim Harlow

Despite an uptick in the number of fatalities on state roads last year, 2012 will go down as the third safest in nearly 70 years.



Interesting. I'd love to know what makes MNDOT think there were more motorcycles on the road in 2012. They were sure invisible, if they were out there. For a proposed PSA, I wasted hours on six different days in mid-to-late April and early May trying to get some motorcycles on video. For at least ten hours of filming at rush hour, I got about a half-dozen bikes at three different high traffic locations.

I suspect total mileage wasn't any where near the highs of the last 70 years.

Thomas Day
Minnesota Motorcycle Monthly Magazine
http://http://mnmotorcycle.com/
http://geezerwithagrudge.blogspot.com/
thomas@motorbyte.com

6
General Banter / Re: Is Aerostitch worth the money??
« on: March 20, 2013, 08:50:05 PM »
Having watched friends cheap out and buy the 7-cupholder versions of Aerostich products, I can only say "funny" to the basic question. Anything that is lined with that perforated nylon crap is going to be short-lived. My 2005 Darien has worn out three bikes and is half way through two more. A buddy who bought the "much tricker" First Gear Ranier a couple of years ago is, now, trying to pony up the cash for a Darien. The FG's zippers failed, seams fell apart, the cupholders (poorly designed pockets in idiotic places) caught on stuff and shredded, now he looks like a nylon-covered hobo.

I've hit the ground hard (off-pavement) many times in my Darien and the only damage has been to my pride (easily as worn out as Scott's FG gear) and the reflective tape on the back. It's still water-tight, all the bits are in working order, and I've only replaced two zipper pulls in 8 years. Comes from using long nylon pull extenders so I can move the zippers with heavy gloves.

Thomas Day
Minnesota Motorcycle Monthly Magazine
http://http://mnmotorcycle.com/
http://geezerwithagrudge.blogspot.com/
thomas@motorbyte.com

7
General Banter / Re: Free Subscription to Motorcyclist
« on: March 20, 2013, 08:41:27 PM »
Very cool. Thanks Ray.

Hey! You're mentioned in this month's Geezer rant. It's something I wrote almost right after you helped me crimp my new chain a couple of years ago. Sometimes, it takes a while before my morass of stuff filters into the magazine or the blog.

Thomas Day
Minnesota Motorcycle Monthly Magazine
http://http://mnmotorcycle.com/
http://geezerwithagrudge.blogspot.com/
thomas@motorbyte.com

8
General Banter / Re: Cold weather armored riding suit
« on: March 05, 2013, 09:32:37 AM »
 >:(It feels like I haven't ridden for so long that I have forgotten how. Damn this has been a long winter (yeah, I know "wimp"). I "converted" to Aerostich electrics about two years ago, after blowing off that stuff as "unnecessary" for decades. I can't go back now. I'm only using a vest/liner or the heated bib, but it makes a world of difference. I usually quit riding when the ice is staying on the road, just after Thanksgiving this year, ad go back to two-wheels when/if the ice leaves. I don't care much about the temperature, if I don't have to worry about black ice. I have a shiny new (2 years old) titanium hip and can't afford to bend it.

Since I'm mostly on the WR250 around town, I can't really think about full-body electrics. The torso stuff will have to do. I've put some long miles on at 20F in Alaska, though, and was pretty comfortable with the air bladder cranked and on full heat.

Thomas Day
Minnesota Motorcycle Monthly Magazine
http://geezerwithagrudge.blogspot.com/
thomas@motorbyte.com

9
General Banter / Re: Earphones
« on: July 24, 2012, 04:30:51 PM »
A pretty good rule of thumb is both "if it hurts to hear, it's hurting your hearing" and if you experience noise that causes ringing, you've done some amount of permanent damage. We're all different, but the hearing mechanism is incredibly fragile and not that well designed for the modern environment. I recommend shelving the ear phones and going for the best ear plugs you can find. Both ears, almost all of the time.

The math is pretty straight forward and solidly points in every direction away from sound in the helmet. I use in-ear phones, all the time, to mix in live recording environments. That's, even, pushing the boundaries of safe practice. In R&R situations, I put my Shure in-ears (36dB of isolation, mid-band) inside of my industrial ear protectors (38dB of isolation from 250Hz to 12.5kHz and 29dB of isolation from 62.5-250Hz) to give myself a little dynamic range while monitoring the recording. Helmets are miserable protection, sometimes actually magnifying air flow and SPL inside the helmet. So, I don't count that as any sort of protection. Many audiologists (and me) have done measurements in a helmet at highway speeds and the general consensus is that the noise level in a helmet is between 85dBSPL and 120+SPL; depending on the helmet (3/4 helmets are the worst offenders), fairing and windshield, motorcycle exhaust noise, speed, and environmental conditions. So, getting 36dB of attenuation from your ear plugs or in-ears just brings the noise level down to "marginally harmful" in many/most cases. 

10
General Banter / Re: Earphones
« on: July 24, 2012, 10:06:02 AM »
I did a Geezer column on this silliness a while back and it turned out to be one of the most inflammatory things I'd written. (http://home.comcast.net/~twday60/geezer/geezer77.htm) I even had  goofballs claiming one of my sources, Sarah Angerman from the UofM, was invented. It was pretty hilarious, since this territory is where  make my living and most of the ranting letter writers were obviously freaked out about their current loss of hearing.

My personal favorite comment was, "Wearing ear plugs, I can't ride for more than 100 miles listening to my tinnitus screaming in my head. . . " This guy went on to tell me that he'd rather go deaf than be stuck hearing that self-generated noise. That's not how it works. The more "deaf" you get, the louder the tinnitus will become as the neural-generated tinnitus "tones" overwhelm the acoustic signals sent from the vanishing cilia in your cochlea. Clapton, Townshend, and Phil Collins describe their tinnitus symptoms as "a loud metallic waterfall that never lets up and is always the loudest thing in whatever room I'm in."

Audiologists are looking forward to your future business (http://children.webmd.com/guide/hearing-loss-mp3s). Yep, it's true. They do call the 18-40 year old group, the "MP3 Generation." You are going to be big money makers for the hearing aid manufacturers, since you're going deaf faster than my generation. More 30 year olds are hearing impaired than 60 year-olds, percentage wise. Get ready for a lifetime of "get an ear horn" jokes from the few of you who can hear.

11
Bike Help / Re: Another welding question
« on: July 24, 2012, 09:38:13 AM »
One of the fine folks on this list volunteered to weld it for me. He did an absolutely artistic job on the plate and engineered it far better than the manufacturer. It has been installed, unintentionally tested in the Pine Barrens north of St. Croix, and held up beautifully.

In case he doesn't want to get buried in a lot more work of the same sort , I'll leave it to him to "expose" himself as an excellent artisan.

Thanks for all of the great advice.

12
Bike Help / Re: Another welding question
« on: July 10, 2012, 11:55:32 AM »
I hadn't thought of that. Thanks.

13
General Banter / Re: New MSF "Guidlines"
« on: July 09, 2012, 09:18:47 PM »
Back in the 80's, I went to a lot of Laker games, especially when they weren't playing someone in the hunt because I could get tickets cheap and the rich assholes would bail at half-time and I could filter down to the floor seats. In a game against Philly, Magic slipped a pass through everyone and nailed Vlade Divac in the chest, knocking him on his ass and putting the ball in the bleachers. Without slowing down, Magic ran a loop around the opponent's end of the court, grabbed Divac by the jersey, yanked him up, drug him down court, while saying (loudly), "Three rules to basketball, Vlade. Look, look, and look."

14
Bike Help / Another welding question
« on: July 09, 2012, 09:04:23 PM »
I need to get my bashplate rewelded. It's aluminum and will need to be patched a bit to be actual protection again. Anyone know of a good TIG/MIG welder who will do piece work?

T.W. Day
Little Canada, MN
twday60@comcast.net

15
General Banter / Re: Lake Superior Loop Experience
« on: January 05, 2012, 01:46:14 PM »
Ian (and anyone else who wouldn't mind being directly quoted in the article),

Would you email your comments directly to me (along with the name you'd like used in the article and the motorcycle make and model you ride on the Loop)?

Thomas Day (twday60@comcast.net)
Minnesota Motorcycle Monthly Magazine
http://www.motorbyte.com/mmm/
http://geezerwithagrudge.blogspot.com/

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