11 PM on a Saturday night. A perfect time to order parts.
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COMING FULL CIRCLE
In the upper Midwest, a warm September Saturday afternoon isn’t something to be wasted working on the yard. While those chores can wait, this fleeting weather anomaly will not.
Several years ago, I remember writing about an upcoming end to the riding season as average daytime temperatures and leaves were falling, and before long, snow would cover the roads and trails. After that column ran, I received an email from a member telling me in no uncertain terms that there was no such thing as a riding “season” and that riding could take place any time of year.
In my reply to that member, I thanked him for his email, wished him well and left it at that. Debating anything over email and even more so, through social media, is a futile endeavor and something best watched from the sidelines.
I think of that member and his email as days grow shorter and layering becomes the dress code. I’ll then think of him again after several months of seeing a lonely, garage-bound motorcycle patiently waiting for the warming sun to slowly melt away the snowpack covering the roads and trails.
I’d been thinking about that email earlier this week while out riding, though I’m not sure why. I’m lucky to be surrounded by some of the more than 1.5 million acres making up the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest of northern Wisconsin. While I don’t think I’ll ever be able to pronounce its name correctly, I am very familiar with the beauty the National Forest holds and the roads, both paved and unpaved, running through it. I learned to ride here many years ago on a Rupp Scrambler packed in the family camper. Then as I got older and my bikes more capable, my exploration of the logging roads and trails branching off from the county roads grew much deeper.
Moving back to the area a few years ago has been somewhat nostalgic, and I feel I’ve come full circle and am able to rekindle the joy that brought me to love motorcycling in the first place. Whether to see what’s around the next sandy corner or over the distant hill on the horizon, a desire to explore still burns.
Today, I’m riding an old Suzuki found at a rummage sale a couple of years ago. This is a bit of a test ride as I’ve just rebuilt and cleaned the bike’s gummed up carburetor after years of inactivity. I realize I feel much more comfortable on the DRZ on these roads than I did riding my R 1250 GS here a couple years ago–almost as comfortable as the Yamaha YZs I had in the late ‘70s. Is it the weight of the bike? Probably. The fear of falling and breaking expensive parts? Could be. Maybe, it’s just the nostalgia I feel as I recall a day long gone. Hmmmm.
My mind continues to wander as I enjoy the solitude the forest offers. Thinking of the other bikes I’ve ridden here, I think of Mark Barnes’ article on page 66 of this issue titled “Farewell, Old Friend.” In his story, Mark describes the exhilaration of buying a new motorcycle, accessorizing it to truly make it your own, and then one day going through the bittersweet experience of selling the bike you once loved above all others.
Like most riders, I have fond memories of all the motorcycles I’ve owned and regrets that I no longer have them. Though this DRZ is moving me down the road, I can’t help but think how much more I’d be enjoying the ride if I hadn’t stupidly sold the G 450 X that used to be mine!
I guess I’ve got a few cold months to find my next favorite motorcycle.
A ride with a view
Jim Finkowski (#206143) photographed his son Mike descending the Trotternish Escarpment aboard an F 850 GS during a Renedian Adventures tour of Northern Scotland.
inspired by the ride
By Brian Dutcher BMW MOA President
While we use the tagline “Ride Inspired” within our content to inspire our fellow members and all motorcycle enthusiasts, I want to turn it around. The perspective I present to you is “How have you been inspired by a ride?” It may have been the riding experience itself, the journey, the destination or those you met along the way. But it’s the unplanned and unexpected interactions through all these experiences during our journeys that can, and sometimes do, have a lasting impact.
After nearly 200,000 BMW miles riding across 45 states, 10 Canadian provinces and territories, I have met countless people who all possess unique personalities and stories. Some of these interactions have even grown into great friendships that remain with me today. But it is two nameless faces that have left an indelible impression on me and still influence my decisions today.
It was the summer of 2012, and the first day of a 16-day ride with my youngest son on a tour of the western United States from Omaha, Nebraska, to Coronado, California, before he was set to depart for the U.S. Navy’s boot camp. Our route took us up US 101 and CA 1 to Olympia National Forest, and then back through Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks. Even after all of the indescribable majestic natural beauty we witnessed along the way, it was the lunch stop in a nondescript western Kansas town that still stands out for me today.
As part of our high-speed, low-maintenance pre-ride prep, we both shaved our heads. I’m sure it was a sight, but to an unknown mother and daughter, it must have provided a welcome sense of not being alone. As the mother and daughter walked into the restaurant and saw our two hairless craniums, she smiled commented, “Nice haircut, gentlemen.”
Contact Brian Dutcher at brian.dutcher@bmwmoa.org
Contact the MOA Board of Directors at board@bmwmoa.org
To this day, I do not know if the mother was supporting the daughter, or the daughter was supporting the mother. But it was this selfless act of one human in support of another during a trying time that has stuck with me. On that day, in a small Kansas sandwich shop, there were four young, bald patrons who just happened to cross paths.
That experience and the thought that they could not afford or had access to the resources to help them feel “normal” during their trying times, always churned inside me. It is without question that day inspired me.
Those who know me have witnessed my transformation over the last two years from my former high and tight Air Force haircut to my ever-growing locks I wear today. That is, until they pass the evaluation and are lopped off and donated to Locks of Love. I only hope my donation might be able to bring comfort to a future mother or daughter and bring some sense of normalcy during their trying time.
That was how a mundane lunch stop impacted my life on the first day of an epic ride with my son. I’d love to hear your stories on how your lives have been unexpectedly inspired by a ride. Send me a note, or better yet, send your story to Bill Wiegand. It’s all part of what makes us a passionate community of riding enthusiasts and one of the many things I am grateful for this Thanksgiving season.
Whether you’re out riding inspired, or seeking inspiration, thank you for being a member. I am extremely grateful and humbled to be your president and represent you and the BMW MOA.
Right, A photo taken during a ride along the PA Wilds BDR-X–a spur off the Mid Atlantic Backrountry Discovery Route in Pennsylvania.
Photo by Mike Grantham #232337.
Below left, A photograph from the Bear Creek Summit near Jarbidge, Nevada, and the northern end of the Nevada Backcountry Discovery Route.
Photo by Brian Wester #232833.
Below right, A beautiful K 100 parked outside a cafe in Lille, France. Photo by Adam Chandler #207579.
Top left, My 2024 K 1600 B photographed at Bear Creek Falls, south of Ouray, Colorado, along the Million Dollar Highway. Photo by Chris Ragland #220783.
Middle left, A wet ride in York County, Pennsylvania. Photo by Terence Hamill #14629.
Bottom left, My F 800 GS Trophy photographed at the top of the Hampster Trail in New Hampshire.
Photo by Derek Buttiker #213488.
Below, Originally planning to ride Colorado's Curecanti National Recreation Area, a road closure along US Highway 50 forced a detour over Kebler Pass where the riding and scenery were absolutely spectacular.
Photo by Eric Esswein #211930.
Each month we publish the great images sent to us by BMW MOA members from their travels around the globe. Send us your best images and you could have your work published in our Postcards from the Road pages. Email your high resolution images, image description and contact information to editor@ bmwmoa.org.
tRIDERTORIDER
Send your letters and comments to: editor@bmwmoa.org
rally site locations
The other day I was wearing my 50th anniversary t-shirt that listed all the National Rally locations over the years. For some reason, my wife must have actually looked at the impressive list of venues as she asked where the 2025 Rally was going to be held.
I said Lebanon, and she pretty much instantly commented that the Rally was just there.
Well, “just there” was four Rallies ago, but in my opinion, that is far too close together.
I’m pretty sure that the majority of riders use the different Rally sites as a way of seeing different parts of the country and returning to a venue so soon takes a lot of that seeing the country aspect away from riders.
Other than the Redmond area, the list has been impressively diverse. I understand that finding a venue is probably a considerable task, but diversity of locations should be high on the list of criteria.
Bob Livingston #159819
Martensville, Saskatchewan
Diversity of locations is high on our Rally Site Committee’s list of site criteria; it is but one of many. –Editor
more simplified not for me
As a longtime member of BMW MOA, I still look forward to receiving the printed copy of BMW Owners News, though my anticipation and interest do not equal that of the issues of the ‘70s and ‘80s. It’s always good to read Matt Parkhouse’s “Keep ‘em Flying” as he connects with us old-timers.
The article (i.e. advertisement) on
BMW’s Automated Shift Assistant by BMW Motorrad in the July 2024 issue certainly provided insight on the current state and likely future of motorcycle technology rider assistance. It appears that some motorcycle manufacturers, especially BMW, are on a similar trajectory as automobile manufacturers, providing for a more passive operator.
As a motorcycle rider for almost 60 years, I do not want nor need my ride simplified and made more comfortable. Perhaps some motorcycle riders prefer their “workload” be reduced, thereby making their ride more “enjoyable,” but not me. I have never considered riding a motorcycle as “workload,” which is a Madison Ave. (advertising) spin.
The photo of the left-hand grip that accompanied the article is certainly a contrast to earlier left-hand grips of BMWs. Perhaps the article should have been included in the April issue (April Fools) of Owners News. It would have been more meaningful to us old geezer BMW riders.
Jerry Reynolds #12033 Fairfield Bay, Arkansas
a mAjor riding milestone
As I sit on my couch reading the July issue of BMW Owners News after returning home from my now annual ride with my dad, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to add some recognition to my dad’s major milestone in riding that he accomplished with this year’s ride.
You see, he has been riding motorcycles since before I was born in 1973. He has even gone through an accident that broke his jaw, his wrist and of course, his pride. All of that, of course, healed and he continued riding. For the last 40-plus years he has been riding Honda
tGoldwings and doing long distance touring for 30 years on them.
Last year (2023), at the age of 50, he invited me along for the first time. He was astonished that I immediately accepted and thought “Man, what a great way to do a 13 day, 14 state, 5,500 mile tour with my son.” So, we did it last July.
But that is not why I am writing. That trip was an absolute blast and my very first long-distance tour. There were three of us on that trip, all named John and not a single one of us riding a BMW.
In October last year, I made the decision to move from my 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 1000 to a BMW R 1250 GS. Shortly after that, dad had made the very difficult decision that the Goldwing was just getting too difficult for him to manage anymore and ended up going to a 2007 BMW R 1200 RT. The last John from our trip last year has moved from an Indian to a brand-new BMW R 1250 R. So now all three of us have joined our own John in BMW’s cult.
On to the major milestone for dad though. The trip this year included a couple flights out to Anchorage, Alaska, where we rented a couple of BMW F 850 GSs for three great days of riding. For many, this is a trip of a lifetime, us included. The kicker is that this particular trip was also dad’s final state to ride in, having ridden in all 50 states.
I know that a lot of people throw around the trip of a lifetime moniker, but to be able to celebrate this trip with dad and the fact that it is his 50th state ridden in truly made it a trip of a lifetime, not just for him, but for me as well. Memories have been made that will never be forgotten.
JJ Shubin #236510 Mascotte, Florida
a bmw we'd like to see again
In response to Steve Poirier’s letter to the editor in the August issue of BMW Owners News, “The BMW We’d Like to See,” I am 100% in agreement with him.
I am lucky enough to have one of the rare BMW “Unicorns,” the 2007 F 650 X-Challenge. I love my R 1200 GS, too, but the F 650 XC is light, nimble, has lots of torque, great ground/obstacle clearance and weighs in at only 317 lbs. dry.
With lots of Touratech upgrades from back in the day, it is my favorite bike for BDRs and exploring anywhere, paved or unpaved, out west. On the downside, it’s harder to find parts now, and the subframe isn’t quite heavy-duty enough for the abuse I put it through, but it’s a style of bike I’d love to see BMW bring back. Please!
Dawn Hein #169208
New Paltz, New York
regarding "stealership$" by mark barnes
I have read Mark Barnes article on his experience with service with “Stealership$” (BMW Owners News September 2024) and find a have a need to share a few experiences, although I am afraid that my news isn’t any better than his.
I have been patronizing motorcycle dealers for over 60 years, mostly BMW dealerships as I have owned many. I am sorry to say that I have seen a lot of deterioration in the industry. The days of sitting on a bar stool at the parts counter with a cup of coffee in hand to chew the fat with the parts guy, owner or mechanic has gradually died. Mom and Pop dealerships have been forced to either get bigger or get out. Service has been long forgotten and the mighty dollar is
the only thing that is important today.
In my local area, I have seen the one-horse operations bloom into something that stops just short of looking like a car dealership. There are currently so many BMWs on display in the show room that you can hardly step over them, let alone walk around them. Service has become overpriced and of marginal quality. I have seen top mechanics and the top service advisors be promoted to higher supervisory positions leaving less qualified workers to take their place. I suppose owners see this as a more efficient way to use their best trained workers.
On my last visit, the new service advisor lied to me about who was actually going to work on my bike. This is an example of how bad things have deteriorated. To add insult to injury, not only did I pay premium for my annual
WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
service, they wanted to add on a 3% charge if I used my bankcard to pay for it. Apparently, this is done throughout the whole store. I don’t think that any of the employees enjoy doing this. The added fee is just another “junk fee” to improve the bottom line.
Taking care of your BMW has gotten so bad that I believe that BMW should just give away the motorcycles and concentrate on making their money from their overpriced service. My dealership is nothing but a money machine, and I know some of the employees are on salary plus commission. I do love the brand and have enjoyed many trips around the world on BMWs, but I am so disenchanted with how the current generation thinks they have to run a business, today.
Each month, the Rider to Rider pages of BMW Owners News detail the successes, failures, wishes and frustrations we all face as riders, BMW motorcycle owners, customers and individuals. As a BMW MOA member, these are your pages and we want to know what’s on your mind.
Got something to get off your chest? Tell us about it. Know a business that deserves to be recognized? Tell us about it. Got a riding or tech tip that we could all benefit from? Tell us about it. Got a suggestion for BMW Motorrad? You know the drill–Tell us about it! There’s only one rule and that’s to stick to the subject that brings us all here–motorcycling, so save political rants for Facebook! Send your thoughts to editor@bmwmoa.org and lets all work to build a better community.
Jeff W. Roberg #54600 Terrebonne, Oregon
ride portugal with the moa!
There’s no time like now to experience the joy and excitement riding motorcycles through amazing destinations can bring. This trip isn’t about tallying big miles, it’s about discovering the depths of Portugal’s soul. You’ve probably all heard of the city of Lisbon, but what about Porto, a city in northern Portugal right on the Atlantic coast? Or Guimaraes and Evora, inland cities with medieval atmospheres and deep history?
MOA Board President Brian Dutcher and his wife Tricia are excited to invite you to join them on this unique opportunity. Thanks to IMTBike, you don’t have to book any of the hotels or learn much Portuguese beyond words like “please” and “thank you”, and phrases like “Where is the bathroom?” “I’d like two beers,” and “Would you mind taking our picture?”
This ride avoids the big roads, and we’re the most excited about being able to ride through the many small towns and villages along the way where we’ll get to sample a foreign, but yet not so far-away culture. There’s nothing like this kind of trip to remind you how much we all have in common, and how wonderfully people respond to motorcycles around the world.
IMTBike has a web page with all the details, plus photos of previous tours, and they’ve set it up so it’s easy for MOA members to register via a dedicated web page. Choose from a number of BMW motorcycles, from the G 310 R on up to the K 1600 GT and everything in-between. IMTBike covers breakfast and dinner on riding days and hauls the luggage in their chase van, freeing you up to focus on riding and absorbing everything around you. IMTBike will even pick you up at the airport!
We hope you’ll be able to join us on this fantastic tour which runs from March 30 to April 13, 2025. IMTBike is eager to fill this tour with MOA Members, and we’re looking forward to seeing who will join us on this journey! Visit IMTbike.com for all the details.
moa members receive $100,000 for their bmw purchases
BMW MOA members have received more than $100,000 in rebates earned through the BMW Parts Rebate program.
The popular member benefit provides MOA members 10% cash back on all purchases of original BMW apparel, accessories, parts, classic parts, service parts and replacement OEM parts. If it has a BMW part number, MOA members can earn a 10% rebate!
Claims for rebates have been submitted by more than 1,100 BMW MOA members who earned an average payback of $95 in cash. Claims have varied from just a few dollars to over $1,000 and include purchases of BMW accessories, riding suits, restoration parts and even parts used in repair orders, including regular service as well as damage repairs.
The rebate is scheduled to remain in place through the end of 2024 and options for 2025 are being considered. MOA members can learn more about the valuable benefit and file a claim online at bmwmoa.org/partsrebate.
bring your friends to the moa and they'll get 10% too
With the 10% BMW Parts Rebate in place through the end of 2024, now is the perfect time to connect your riding buddies to the MOA. Joining is easy, and you can even throw in a special offer for first-time members that will provide their first year of membership on us.
Let your friends scan the QR code on this page or point them to memberforces.bmwmoa.org. Your friends and family can then register using the activation code QON4 and qualify for a digital membership which includes the 10% parts rebate from BMW. Once they are registered, they will have access to file a parts rebate claim at bmwmoa.org/partsrebate.
Although the Member Forces offer is only valid for new MOA members, your efforts to bring new members to the MOA has benefits to you, too. Every rebate claim submitted proves value to BMW and helps keep the rebate program in place for all members in 2025. As they say, “There is strength in numbers!”
airhead 247 joins bmw moa podcast lineup
The Airhead 247 podcast is joining a great line up of motofocused podcasts produced and distributed by the BMW MOA. Hosted by MOA member and BMW Owners News contributor, Daren Dortin, the popular podcast features conversations with independent mechanics, product developers and aficionados of the classic airhead BMW motorcycles produced from 1970 to 1995, also known as the Type 247 boxer.
If you are an Airhead rider, you will recognize many of the guests in this series, including Hans Muth, Chris Hodgson, Matt Parkhouse and Hans Christian. If you’re generally a motorcycle enthusiast, this a great opportunity to add some knowledge to your database and enjoy some great motorcycle talk.
To learn more about Airhead 247 and listen to the latest episodes, visit airhead247.com
register for the rhythm & rides reunion and win a set of Metzeler tires
If you haven’t registered for the Rhythm & Rides Reunion yet, don’t wait any longer.
We’re giving away a set of Metzeler tries to ten lucky winners between now and the end of the year. Lucky winners will be selected every two weeks from everyone registered for the National Rally at the time of the drawing. The sooner you register, the more opportunities you have to win!
To register for the National Rally, go to rally.bmwmoa.org and click “Register Now” on the homepage. The best pricing of the year is available now, and if you have already registered, you will be included in the drawings.
Remember, the sooner you register, the greater your chances of riding to the Rally on new rubber!
bmw moa fall OPEN HOUSE and board of directors meeting
Need a reason to take a ride? How about free food, tire kicking, and a ribbon cutting? We’re cooking up hamburgers, hot dogs, and some good times at the BMW MOA Clubs Campus in Greer, South Carolina, on October 26, 2024. Hang out, tour the BMW MOA offices, meet the Board of Directors, and enjoy lunch with us. We will also be revealing the latest updates to the BMW MOA Foundation’s Historical Archive, dedicated to preserving the rich heritage of BMW MOA members!
Food will be served from 12 noon until 2 p.m. An open session Board of Directors meeting will begin at 2 p.m. Stay for the meeting or sit in the sunshine by the lake before heading home.
This is a free event, but your RSVP will be extremely helpful so we can cook enough food for everyone. RSVP online at bmwmoa.org/events/fallmeeting. There will also be some free MOA swag for the first 200 people to register!
klim adventure gtx gloves
By Mark Barnes #222400
Think of this as the middle panel in a tryptic of Klim glove reviews. Not long ago, I raved about their Badlands Aero Pro Short summer gloves and Badlands GTX Long winter gloves. Now I’ve got my hands on–er, in–a pair of highly versatile Klim mitts for the intermediate temps of spring and fall, as well as rainy weather during warmer months.
The “GTX” in these gloves’ name refers to the inclusion of gold standard Gore-Tex wind- and water-proofing, integrated in the form of “Gore Grip.” This application of the familiar textile technology maximizes tactile precision by bonding the one-way permeable membrane to the glove’s chassis, rather than leaving it free to shift position as a separate liner. Hence, the wearer feels only a single layer of material between their fingers/palm and a bike’s control surfaces–a more comfortable and secure interface where tiny instabilities can create outsized experiences of clumsiness or disconnection. “Short” refers to the gauntlet length, although there’s currently no long version of the Adventure GTX in Klim’s lineup. This glove is definitely designed to go inside your jacket sleeve’s cuff, with low-profile, yet still substantive, wrist protection
The first thing I noticed when wearing the Adventure GTX was the stiffness of its goat leather palm and fingers; this material was the most resistant to movement of any glove in recent memory. In addition, these surfaces didn’t feel particularly grippy on my bike’s handgrips and controls. I was pleased to experience considerable improvement in both dimensions during the first few hours of actual use. As the leather began to soften up, it also provided more traction at points of contact. After several more rides, the gloves felt genuinely supple, but they do require a bit more break-in than most modern premium handwear. Rider patience is rewarded, though, as I ended up with a comfortable,
I felt no tightness or pressure points anywhere, yet the gloves felt quite snug and extremely secure. Contributing to this feeling is the knuckle armor’s “floating” design. While not apparent at first glance, this contoured carbon-fiber plate (backed by Proron XRD impact-absorbing foam) is mounted within a well-anchored leather panel that extends forward over the finger backs and ends just beyond the plate’s trailing edge. A slightly stretchy synthetic panel covering much of the back of the hand slips under this assembly, leaving the two components free to move with some degree of independence, thereby eliminating any sense of restriction while delivering
Indeed, the Adventure GTX gloves pack a great deal of protection into a streamlined, relatively lightweight package. More Poron XRD can be found at the palm’s heel and on the knuckles of the first three fingers. Each finger and thumb is comprised of multiple articulated panels, with a complex network of double- and single-layering to maximize feel and flexibility in some areas and abrasion resistance in others.
The wide, Velcro-backed wrist closure strap is easy to work with, yet feels reassuringly solid while attached, in part because a low-bulk synthetic panel in the wrist collapses to form the crease when the strap is cinched down. Durable, low-friction, ceramic print covers slide zones to deflect impact energy and reduce the likelihood of the glove catching on the ground in a fall, which would add to the turbulence of a rider’s movements before they came to rest. These tough gloves carry CE Level 1 certification for good reason. Other thoughtful elements include a thin moisture-wicking
liner, a visor wiper on the left index finger, and a sturdy nylon entry-assist loop on the hem’s underside (the closure strap’s stout “beltloop” on the wrist’s backside can also be used to help pull on these snugly fitting gloves).
My only minor complaint about the Adventure GTX is the fingers are a tad longer than I’d prefer, so their tips sometimes catch on my clutch and brake levers during quick maneuvers. This issue is compounded by unique “pleated” stitching at the fingertips, which achieves an elegant and sturdy taper, but adds to the aforementioned stiffness (and with none of my flesh inside this area, no break-in occurs there). Riders with longer digits will no doubt only appreciate this construction. One final detail about these fingertips: they feature Mult-E Touch smart device functionality, meaning they’ll be recognized by electrostatic touchscreens.
Though not a complaint, I will warn you these gloves are warmer than you might expect. With zero ventilation and the highly effective windblocking property of Gore-Tex, I found them perfectly comfortable for street riding up to about 70 degrees or so; beyond that my hands started getting sweaty, even with Gore-Tex’s breathability. They would top out at a lower temperature in more physically vigorous off-roading, although one might consider great protection worth some sweat. The positive news is this also means they’re good for cooler weather than you’d guess for a glove this light and with this much dexterity. For me, they were fine into the lower 50s, in part because they readily transmit warmth from heated grips in the absence of any insulation. Klim’s excellent Badlands GTX Long winter gloves take over from there to the downside, and their Badlands Aero Pro Short summer gloves handle higher temps with aplomb. This trio has a rider covered with outstanding protection and comfort year-round, on- or off-road.
Available in sizes S-3XL, the Adventure GTX Short gloves sell for a price as substantial as their impressive build quality: $179.99. When you consider their high levels of protection, comfort, durability, and versatility, they still represent a great value. For 2023, Klim offers this glove in four colorways: black, tan, gray, and “asphalt”.
For more information, visit klim. com
MOTOGP VALENCIA
tours@IMTBIKE.com
www.IMTBIKE.com
akrapovic slip-on exhaust
By Charles Buchanan # 118151
First, let me admit that I may be a Akrapovic fanboy. I’ve had them on my last four BMW motorcycles, and I like them not only because of how they look and their build quality, but also for the deeper tone they add to the exhaust note. The slip-on exhaust I recently received for my 2024 R 1300 GS is no different.
muffler adds strength and durability and is finished with an engraved Akrapovic logo. After having the black coated version on three different GSs I have been very impressed on how well the coating has held up to the abuse of heavy off-road riding.
In addition to the weight savings the muffler provides, it also adds about two horsepower and 4.5 Nm of torque. After having installed the exhaust on my bike for a 1,000-mile trip up to Pennsylvania, I could immediately notice a little more low-end torque. While not a “Oh my gosh that is insane” power increase, there was a definite seat of your pants difference in engine response.
Esthetically speaking, Akrapovic exhaust systems just look great on the bike. The stock stainless steel exhaust with its plastic end cap just does not come close to the looks of the Akrapovic built from lightweight titanium with a handmade carbon-fiber end cap. I mounted the black titanium exhaust which can also be ordered in a standard titanium version.
A look at the Akrapovic website says the exhaust was developed exclusively for the R 1300 GS from their many years of experience working with the BMW GS range and its boxer engines. The double flow muffler provides a weight saving of a half-pound over the BMW stock exhaust. Additionally, the profiled surface on the
About 400 miles of the ride to Pennsylvania were off-road at slower speeds, so not as much cooling air flowed over the exhaust. I do believe the Akrapovic flows cooling air better and does not physically get as hot as the stock stainless steel exhaust does. This is nice when you are standing up and have you boots tight against the side of the bike.
The website also told me the exhaust was created for improved performance and enhanced sound silencing, which mitigates the impact on the environment while delivering a deep, full sound.
From my ear, the stock exhaust produced a higher pitched note, with the Akrapovic a bit deeper. Anyone with an Akrapovic exhaust on their R 1200 GS or R 1250 GS will understand. On top of that, the Akrapovic, produces a race bike-like popping sound as you down shift–a sound that always puts a little smile on my face. Another nice thing I found with the Akrapovic exhaust is that it is easy to install and does not require a trip to the dealership for installation or tuning. It literally takes five minutes and turning two bolts to turn to pull the stock exhaust off and install the
Akrapovic. I do suggest you use the sealant that is included with the exhaust when sliding the new exhaust over the end of the header section of the factory pipe as it creates a better seal between the two. Regardless, I would make sure you are purchasing it from a certified Akrapovic dealer.
As I’ve mentioned, my last four BMW motorcycles have had Akrapovic exhausts on them because of how good they look and the sound they create. All of us like to add special touches to personalize our bikes. Adding an Akrapovic exhaust will continue to be one of the ways I personalize mine.
I grew up in East Tennessee and started riding before I was 10 on a YZ50 and have never stopped. Retired from the U.S. Army in 2016, I currently live in Virginia. During my 26 years in the Army Airborne Infantry, I was lucky enough to be riding around on dirt bikes wearing night vision goggles. My current ride is a 2024 R 1300 GS and 1972 R 75/5, though in recent years I’ve also had an R 1250 GSA, S 1000 XR and an R 1200 RS. I ride all kinds of motorcycles, but my main passion is adventure riding which lead me to compete in the recent GS Trophy qualifier. I didn’t make the team this time but what an experience.
Secure your helmet with the HELMETLOK and T bar which fits through ALL quick release helmets (including SHOEI)!
The original helmet lock since 2010
your
Set
own combination on the HELMETLOK, slip the T bar through the quick release buckle, thread the HELMETLOK through the hole at the end of the T bar then secure to the bike. If you have a “D” ring you can just slip the HELMETLOK through the D ring without using the T bar!
Designed in Australia and manufactured in Taiwan.
Aluminium carabiner covered with soft
Locking mechanism made from weather resistant zinc alloy
Resettable
WATERPROOF SOCKS
Maybe you don’t like wearing waterproof motorcycle boots, or you just love the boots you already have. You still want to have dry feet when you get caught in that unexpected downpour, though, so maybe the thought of waterproof socks crossed your mind. It’s one of the accessories we can source from adjacent industries—hiking, running, camping, etc. We can leverage their experience for our comfort!
SEALSKINZ Stanfield
Extreme Cold Weather Waterproof Sock
sealskinzusa.com
When you want your feet to be both dry and warm, check out the Stanfield socks from Sealskinz ($60). They come in six different colors and have a mid-calf rise. Sizes cover feet from US Men’s shoe sizes 3.5 (S) to 15 (XL). Stanfields are made for extreme cold while remaining breathable to cut down on moisture. The Worstead is the knee-high version ($60).
SEALSKINZ Scoulton Waterproof Warm Weather Sock
sealskinzusa.com
Using their trademarked Hydrostop technology, Sealskinz presents the Scoulton, their ideal waterproof sock for warm weather use. Available in three colors and sizes from US Men’s 3.5 (S) to 15 (XL), the Scoultons are light, thin and durable. The Aquasealz membrane released foot-generated heat and moisture for more comfort.
RANDY SUN Ultra Thin, Quick-Dry, Breathable Waterproof Socks
randysun.com
Coming in at just over two ounces, these $37 Randy Sun socks are ideal for summer use, though the company recommends their thicker socks for heavy use and extended-use comfort. A three-layer construction with eco-friendly materials keeps out water, but also keeps down odors. The company notes their socks are waterproof from the cuff down. Sizes run from US Men’s 4.5 (XS) to 15.5 (L).
BACK COUNTRY SKINZ
Waterproof Mid-Length
Socks
backcountryskinz.com
At $45 per pair, these are about the middle of the road as far as cost goes. They rely on a three-layer construction, with merino wool as the layer against your skin for added comfort. A tough nylon outer layer stands up to your boots, and the middle membrane keeps the water out. Consider these all-weather socks. Available in two colors in sizes covering US Men’s 3.5 (S) to 12 (L). Also available in a knee-high version, black.
Available in four colors at $25 on sale via the website (MSRP $38), Pike Trail’s entry here covers sizes from US Men’s 4 (S) to 14.5 (XL). They use the typical three-layer design and waterproof from the cuff down, they sport a seamless toe and reinforced heel to stand up to hard outdoor use. The inner layer features 66% Coolmax to help control heat, odor and even blisters.
MOA members can get a 10% discount at checkout using code BMWMOA10.
If you’re looking for an ankle-height $35 pair of waterproof socks for use off the bike, Cycop just might be your solution. The Nonstop 2.0 are meant to fit like regular socks, but still protect your feet from bad weather, no matter the season. These socks aren’t just waterproof, they’re also non-slip, with features to repel dust and grease as well. Originally sold via Kickstarter, they cover the narrowest range of sizes of any of these offerings, going from US Men’s 6 (M) to 12.5 (L).
wunderlich usb charging station
By Mark Thompson #218859
Our smart phones now control most aspects of our lives, and the navigation apps available, such as Waze, Google Maps and Rever, among others, are justifiably popular. We’ve learned to trust their reliable directions and ease of use to get us where we’re going.
It’s safe to say that the Garmin/BMW Navigator 5/6 units haven’t earned our trust. I’m on my fourth Nav 6 unit, and even though Garmin keeps warrantying them and the replacement process is easy, that “trust” thing
is absent. Many riders have either made a point of not purchasing the Nav 6 units at all, or are too annoyed with the ones they bought and then had fail, so they have looked for alternatives.
I like Wunderlich’s answer: a USB Charging Station combined with a SP+ Connect phone mount. The Charging Station (they really need a sexier name for this) slides into the Nav 5/6 cradle, locks in place with your existing key and provides a pair of USB ports to charge your phone, pulling its power from the Nav station contacts.
Then you can add the SP+ Connect, either in a case for your specific phone or a generic case with a SP+ ring installed via adhesive mount. It’s a simple, quick, effective and reliable alternative to the wonky BMW/ Garmin units.
After replacing my Garmin for the fourth time, I was ready to try something different. The cheap phone cradles from multiple unnamed makers on eBay and Amazon just didn’t appeal to me as they all require splicing into the bike’s wiring system and they have a thin plastic construction. Regardless, I purchased two to try out but was leery about their long-term durability and phone security.
No such worries with the Wunderlich Charging Station. It’s a European-made solid brick of fiber-reinforced hybrid material that’s extremely durable and slides smoothy into the Navigator mount it was designed for. It locks/unlocks with your Nav panel key. The Charging Station provides two quick-charge USB connections, one USB A and one C on the right side under a protective rubber flap. A blue LED light lets you know when the power is on.
The USB Charging Station by itself costs $180 (as of this writing), but accessories add to your total. All of the SP+ Connect products are available from Wunderlich. My Pixel 7 Pro phone SP+ Connect cover was $40 from Wunderlich, plus the SP Anti Vibe mount recommended for the BMW 1200/1250, and some brands of phones (Apple especially) add $30, so, in my case, the total was about $270. A clear protective rain cover added another $19.
Installation takes just minutes. You must, of course, have a BMW Navigator mount already installed. It’s just a matter of bolting on the SP Connect Plus housing with the provided screws and a dab of the included thread-lock. Then just slip it into the bike’s Navigation panel until it locks in place. You’re done! No rewiring involved and you are literally ready to go.
With your phone in the SP+ Connect case, just line things up and rotate your phone to horizontal until you feel a satisfying magnetic “click.” Note that you can also install the mount so the phone sits vertically if you prefer. Just mount the SP Connect Plus faceplate so the pair of curvy prongs run vertically to the Wunderlich unit.
Most current phones have a larger screen than the Garmin Nav 6. Because the Wunderlich unit with the anti-vibe module mount adds two inches, the phone screen is closer to you than the Garmin, making it that much easier to read.
Worried about your pricey phone getting wet? SP sells a slip-on clear plastic cover ($19.99 from Wunderlich).
If you already use the SP phone mounts, be aware that there is a newer “Plus” version, as shown in the photos, which is the one that’s required.
A few things I learned after a few hundred miles:
• You may need to regularly adjust the phone’s screen brightness. My first ride, with “adaptive brightness” as the default, left the screen too dark. I changed that in the Settings mode and check it each time before riding.
• You will need a short USB cable to connect your phone to the Charging Station. Wunderlich will sell you one ($10.95 for an 8-inch USB-C to C).
• A pair of blue LEDS confirms there’s power at the USB ports with the ignition on. There’s no power draw when the engine is off.
• While your phone is securely held in the SP Connect Plus module, it is NOT physically locked. Unlike the built-in Garmin GPS, you need to remember to take your phone with you when you stop for a break. That said, I think most people will assume it is locked into the mount because of the no-nonsense design. It’s not like when you have a phone sticking out of an obvious handlebar mount. The Wunderlich Charging Station itself is locked in place.
• It’s a lot easier and faster to program a destination with my phone using WAZE or MAPS than with the Garmin Nav 5/6.
• Glare can be a problem, especially if you have an optional scratch protection screen on the phone.
For more details and pricing, visit wunderlichamerica.com.
Riding and writing, that’s Mark. As a writer, his first published story was about a local Wisconsin motocross race while still a journalism student at the University of Wisconsin. Mark has been a contributor, editor and publisher for a wide variety of motorcycle magazines and online sites, in between 13 years at Readers Digest. There’s 40+ years of racing motocross, numerous transcontinental motorcycle trips on many different bikes, a deep involvement in the motorcycle industry and multiple books. He makes his home in the Cincinnati area these days and rides a ‘22 R 1250 GS A after stints on a K 1600 GTL and an F 850 GS won at the Great Falls National Rally in 2021 (he definitely should have written about that!)
After a year or so of nearly no work coming to me, I suddenly received three transmissions to service. One was the “needs a circlip” sort of repair, another was the not unusual failure of the big bearing at the forward end of the output shaft while the third was a real blast from the past in the form of a five-speed gearbox bearing the dates of ‘78/’79 stamped into the cover and the case.
I’ve mentioned a couple of times how I gained my initial experience working on the ’78 five-speeds. These transmissions were manufactured by a separate company for BMW for use in the Airhead motorcycles. For whatever reason, almost every single gearbox was incorrectly shimmed. I’ve heard Tom Cutter describe how, as service manager for Butler & Smith, he would have to remove transmissions from still-crated Airheads and replace them with properly shimmed gearboxes. Tom figured his workload was in the range of several hundred. My involvement began in 1978, my first full year of working at Doc’s BMW of Colorado Springs, which saw me servicing around 50 or so gearboxes during the spring, summer and fall of that year.
The third transmission I mentioned above was sent to me with the complaint of “not wanting to go into fourth gear.” This was one of the signs of a badly shimmed gearbox and was pulled out of a 1979 R 100 RT. Given the stamped dates, it could easily be from the bad batch of transmissions BMW had to repair under warranty.
Opening the box it arrived in, the transmission appeared to be very clean with next-to-no-wear on any of the moving pieces. The bearings are all very smooth and tight. As the bearings all felt good, my work was limited to replacing the seals, updating the shifting cassette by replacing the plastic roller with a tiny ball bearing of the same size, polishing the posts that the shifting forks move on and a careful shimming of the three gear clusters.
Now the job is done, and the owner has it back in his bike and reports it works just fine. It’s been a long, long time since I encountered one of the bad ’78 gearboxes.
At the beginning of August, Susanna and I drove up to Minnesota for the annual Pyrotechnic Guild International convention. Fantastic fireworks, as usual. Some of the displays are starting to add swarms of hundreds of drones to the mix. Not pyrotechnics, but a new twist to
Why I am an Airhead. One of the local Pikes Peak BMW Riders sent this to me. He’s a skilled electrical technician and actually works on the newest BMW bikes. I remember the Fourth of July weekend when three guys who knew they were doing spent two and a half days getting a friend's early K-bike back on the road after the wiring caught fire. We got it running but several functions never worked again. I’m content with my Slash Five and Susanna’s Slash Seven.
an evening show. We camped for the six nights that we were there. The cold nights, interludes of drizzle and hard ground (even with a good air mattress) are definitely taking a greater toll as we move along into our 70th decade. Between mowing the neglected lawn, riding my e-bike and gathering firewood for the coming winter, I’m getting my exercise where I find it.
Starting in July, I seem to have come down with yet another auto-immune problem: stenosing tenosynovitis, which feels sort of like arthritis but involves the tendons of the hand and wrist. I’ll be going in for my annual workup with the VA next week and will hopefully learn more. Basically, my hands are stiff, painful and weak–I can really sympathize with the little old ladies who need help opening up jars of food. In the next few days, I will see if cutting up two trailer loads of scrap wood is helpful, harmful or makes no difference. I realize I haven’t finished up with the evaluation of the several LED P45t lamps I acquired from the TEMU outlet. I have the first one on Strider (my ’72 /5) and do like how it lights up the road ahead of me. I think it is safe to say that any of these would be an improvement, certainly over the original 45-watt incandescent bulb and even over the halogen upgrade that easily mounts in the Slash Five headlamp assembly.
Susanna is the secretary for our local club, the Pikes Peak BMW Riders. The board of the club recently held their monthly meeting, and I tagged along. The members present, about a half dozen or so, were trading tales of complicated, expensive and sometimes impossible repairs to their modern BMW motorcycles
due to the very complicated electrics. One of the guys was impressed enough with his problems that he shot a picture of his torn-down R 1200 RT. Not something I would dare to delve into! Estimates as to the number of computer driven systems on their bikes ran up to as many as 13.
Meanwhile, back in simplicity land, I’m having an enjoyable time helping a 30-year-old owner of a long-stored barn bike, a R 100 /7. He’s one of the members of the Boulder Street Moto Club, which I’ve mentioned before. They are an enthusiastic group of not just BMW owners who are interested in learning. I’ve been running over to the clubhouse with relays and wiring diagrams to help the young, new-to-BMWs fellow. He’s proving to be a good learner and open to working on the Slash 7. I enjoy helping him out.
Matt acquired his first BMW in 1972, upon his return from Vietnam. He hired on at Doc’s BMW of Colorado Springs in 1977. Since then, his life has been a mixture of travel, owning/ working in various shops, as a
Q&A:
greasy final drive and battery issues
By Wes Fleming #87301 and George Mangicaro #136221
Send in your tech questions to Wes and George by emailing wes@bmwmoa.org.
Q: I was installing a set of Ohlins shocks on my ‘99 R 1100 RT, and it looks like I have a bit of an oil leak near the final drive. Smells like gear lube to me. I checked the fluid level in the final drive and it was near full. Is it the pinion seal I’m after? There’s no fluid residue near the hub where the wheel bolts on, just around and under the boot. Also, no side-to-side play or anything like that on the rear wheel. (Side note: dang these Ohlins ride nice!) —Joe M.
A: This is most likely not something to worry about…yet. With a 25-year-old bike, it’s bound to have some oil seeping or oozing from somewhere. What’s important to determine is how fast it’s coming out, because that’s going to establish our sense of urgency.
Yes, it could well be the pinion seal on the input shaft of the final drive. It could also be the transmission output shaft seal. The good news is that neither of these seals is particularly expensive nor difficult to replace.
The first thing to do is clean all the accumulated grime off–and don’t forget to clean the boot, too. Since your boot is secured with a hose clamp and a zip tie, it probably wouldn’t kill you to loosen the former and cut off the latter (provided you have a replacement handy) and get a look in there. If you see a puddle of oil, then you know you have a seal going bad. Depending on what you see, it may or may not be obvious which one it is.
One trick you can use to figure it out is to change the oil in just your final drive, replacing it with the appropriate amount of Redline 75W90 GL-5 gear oil. Then ride another 500 or 1,000 miles and if the greasy smudge has returned, see what color it is. If it’s completely black like what you have now, it’s the transmission output shaft seal. If it’s tinted red, it’s the final drive pinion seal. Mystery solved! If it’s the final drive pinion seal, you’ll want to remove the final drive from the bike. You might be able to replace it without removing the final drive,
but it’s not going to be easy. Get the final drive on a bench or table and have at it. You’ll likely notice the seal has cut or worn a groove into what BMW calls the compression ring. In a grievous emergency, like you’re in a ditch on the side of the trail in the Australian outback, you might be able to temporarily get away with flipping the ring over and retorquing everything, but let’s just spend $22.31 for the ring and $32.30 for the seal. (Prices current as of August 2024.)
If it’s the transmission output shaft seal, you’ll need to
remove the swingarm from the bike to get at it, but you can definitely replace that seal without removing the transmission. Pop out the bad seal and, using the proper tools, press in the new one ($27.24). You should take the opportunity to clean the inside of the swingarm while it’s off, and clean and check the driveshaft as well, which you’ll have removed after pulling the swingarm. Also check all the bearings on both ends of the swingarm–there are four of them–for function and possible replacement if they appear to be worn.
Q: My 2003 BMW F 650 CS battery reads at 11.55 volts with the bike off. This battery is a huge pain to take out as you basically have to deconstruct the entire front end of the bike. I opened it up enough to have access to both the positive and negative cables. Will it possibly damage the bike by giving it a jump with a Noco GB40 12 V1000A box? I may have to jury-rig the positive wire to reach the lead. By the way, the bike has been experiencing weak starting since I bought it a couple of months ago. Took it a to a certified BMW dealer just a few weeks ago and asked them to please look into it. It seems they never looked at the battery leads, as they were both near disconnected and falling off.
No power for a trickle charger in this situation. I’m trapped in rural America, far away from any city. Advice, please? —Thomas K.
A: You’ve got a lot going on here! As much of a pain as replacing the battery might be, I’m afraid that’s what you need to do. A battery reading 11.55 volts at rest and won’t start the bike is dead. It’s not too far from 11.4 volts, which is the industry standard for “if your battery is discharged this far, it’s likely overdischarging and damaged.”
If you’re going to jump-start it, the best idea is to use a jump box specifically rated for use with motorcycles. I looked at Noco’s website and it says the GB40 is meant to be used on “cars, boats, lawn mowers and more,” and is capable of jumping gas engines up to six liters in size (6,000 cc). They say lawn mowers, but I look at 6L and think it might be a bit overpowered. Just be sure to follow the best practices for using a jumper with a motorcycle and you’ll probably be OK in the short term. Bodging together a connection is a bad idea; if you can’t reach the battery terminals without a sketchy extension, don’t try to jump the bike. Start with both the bike and the jumper powered off. Connect the positive lead first, then the negative. Power up the jumper and hit the starter button on your bike. If it doesn’t start up immediately, wait a few minutes and try again—but don’t hold the starter down for a long time. It’s either going to start quickly or not at all. Either
way, you need a new battery. Without power to run a trickle charger, your new battery isn’t going to last a long time unless you ride the bike regularly, at least twice a week or so for more than 30 minutes at a stretch. My advice would be to check out Battery Tender’s 5-watt solar 12V battery charger; for $100 it’s a reasonable way to make sure your battery has a fighting chance at its full three-tofive-year life. They also sell jump starters specifically rated for use with motorcycles. (batterytender.com)
That your bike has been experiencing weak starting since you got it indicates the battery was already on its way out, a problem likely exacerbated by the loosely secured battery cables. You want to make sure those connections are clean and tight, otherwise the electricity isn’t going to flow reliably from the battery in the first place. I’d like to think an experienced tech would have caught that, but “my bike starts weakly, if at all” is a pretty broad description of the problem, and one that could have 100 different reasons. If the tech hasn’t come across a bike with starting problems stemming from loose battery cables, it might not occur to them to check.
Since you’re so far from a city, and I assume a BMW dealership, you might have to mail-order a battery. Of course, I recommend whatever AGM battery BMW recommends, or at the very least one with the same ratings and the same physical size (145 x 86 x 160 millimeters). An AGM battery assures you don’t have to do any mixing or maintenance. You might be able to find an appropriate battery at a dealer for a different marque or a chain like Batteries Plus.
If the new battery goes bad quickly, say in six months or less, you’re likely looking at a charging problem with your bike, a far more serious issue and one that will no doubt be more expensive to diagnose and fix.
Wes Fleming discovered BMWs in 2001 and has been riding trendy, not-so-trendy and sidecar-equipped motorrads ever since.
In addition to his content creation and editing duties, he functions as a freelance guitar consultant and history professor. When he’s not pacing around his empty nest, he’s out looking for a great deal on a used motorcycle or a vintage guitar.
Until We Meet Again
By Reece Mullins #143779
2024 MOA National Rally Co-Chair
While walking out of the Panama City airport, pulling my roundel-emblazoned suitcase behind me, laden with clothing desperately in need of a date with a washing machine and dryer, I saw Rhonda in the X5 waiting patiently. At this point, I had been awake for I don’t know how many hours, eaten some of the “best” airport food in the world, drank gallons of something that passed for coffee in locations too numerous to remember. I know I must have looked a crumpled mess. I had just spent over a week pouring out my heart and soul, along with hundreds of other volunteers and staff, into our
National Rally, in Redmond, Oregon. I was exhausted and would sleep over 12 hours that night with the memories of every hug, handshake and radio call streaming through my consciousness like a ruminating, circuitous dream. I’ve missed Redmond every week since.
What a great rally! From the moment Sam and I linked up at the airport in Redmond until the moment we hugged one last time and went our separate ways, we would be completely immersed in the rally co-chair experience. Best of friends before, during and since, Sam and I will always have Redmond to look back upon. The
rally was successful across every metric I could think of, but most specifically the rally was safe, everyone had a great time and the club came away on budget.
I have never read a post-rally wrap-up from a rally chair that did not profusely thank the army of volunteers that make the rally happen. Let me join their ranks and say, without hesitation and with the utmost sincerity, our volunteers this year were phenomenal. The rally ran smooth as silk. Every hiccup I can remember was resolved almost immediately. Upon resolution, staff and volunteers positioned themselves to be ready to react to whatever came their way next, and they did it with smiles on their faces. This military guy was truly humbled at the degree of devotion and loyalty he saw on display at the rally. I’ve seen it before, but never as a rally chair. The support Sam and I received was like nothing else I’ve ever experienced.
Thank you so much to every volunteer, Committee Chair, Co-Chair, and staff member for your tireless efforts. Additionally, I would be remiss if I didn’t give a special shout out to the Redmond Fair Grounds General Manager, Luke Larsen. Luke was absolutely instrumental in coalescing a team of staff members that went above and beyond to make our rally work. If we needed something, the answer was always yes. Luke and his team, I suspect, have an appreciation for our club and its members that few outsiders ever get to experience. If I lived out west, I feel Luke and I would be good friends.
Finally, a special shout out to former Great Falls, Montana, Rally Chair-turned-MOA staff member, Becky Smith. Becky was the pleasant face of the club staff that interfaced with Sam and I every week for an entire year through email and Zoom calls. Becky not only served as staff facilitator, but also as a mentor for two novice and inexperienced rally chairs. There were many times when I asked myself, “What did I get myself into?” On days when I found myself discouraged, I could always count on Sam or Becky to keep my head and my heart in the game and remind me that our members are worth the effort.
I know this may not be the typical post-rally wrap-up, where a rally chair would talk about the awesome hula dancers (they were awesome by the way), the great weather we had, or the fantastic roads and excursions that many members took advantage of. It was my experience, and though I could fill this entire magazine with that experience, I will close by simply saying that I am honored to be able to share my Redmond experience with you this one last time and that I miss each of you as much as I miss the Three Sisters mountain range glimmering in the early morning sky overlooking Redmond.
Until we meet again in Lebanon, be well, be safe, and enjoy the ride.
Reece Mullins entered the riding community for the first time in 2008 at the tender age of 41, after retiring from the Army and buying his first bike, a 2005 charcoal gray R 1200 RT named Ursula. Now at the age of 57 on his third RT, a beautiful sport-blue 2022 R 1250 RT named Anja, Reece spends a lot of his free time volunteering for the club he has loved since first joining way back in 2008.
Conversations with independent mechanics, product developers and aficionados of the Airhead 247 BMW. New episodes every two weeks. Available on Apple Podcasts Spotify, Soundcloud.
Rally Vendors
By Sue Aldridge #190790
Something for Everyone! That was the idea for this year’s vendor show.
Corey Smith and Sue Aldridge brought in a total of 127 vendors, of which ten were new to the MOA Rally scene with six being local vendors. Many of the vendors in Redmond had attended previous MOA National Rallies in the past and knew what a great show it was. Some joined the Rally from their experience in Richmond and drove all the way out to Redmond just for us.
The show was a success for all, bringing smiles to not only the vendors for their sales, but for our members who loved seeing options so that they could compare.
One positive outcome of having such a large building was that vendors could hold seminars right there. Covering a wide variety of topics from tours to tech, the seminars were well attended and well received by all.
I believe we hit our goal of having something for everyone in Redmond.
Thank you from the Karol Patzer Children’s Charity
By Susanna Parkhouse #56786
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
As many of you know, the Karol Patzer MOA Children’s Charity honors the memory of Karol Patzer, a long-time MOA member, who, along with the Port Washington (Wisconsin) BMW club, had an idea almost 30 years ago.
Karol suggested that each year we choose a worthy children’s program in the area that the National Rally was to be held and designate it as that year’s MOA Children’s Charity. Karol’s concept was enthusiastically supported. Many and varied are the programs that have benefitted from Karol’s vision.
A challenge of $100 is issued to all MOA clubs by the Port Washington club, and its amazing how many clubs and individuals responded. Additionally, Shep Brown and his merry band of red-aproned volunteers answered the call and were seen all over the grounds selling 50/50 tickets. There were five drawings over the three days of the Rally and much money was raised, thanks to their efforts. Karol’s club, the BMW Club of Minnesota donated $750. Again, thank you all for your outstanding generosity.
People’s Choice Bike Show
By Roger Trendowski #88147
We had a successful People’s Choice Bike Show at the National Rally in Redmond, with 1,302 votes cast for the 31 bikes on display. Overall, 194 rally attendees voted for the best bike in each of the 10 classes.
This event was not only for those who wanted to show off their cool BMWs, but for everyone else who wanted to help judge them–that’s why it is called “People’s Choice.”
Judging took place on Saturday morning and award certificates and ribbons were given to first through third place winners as well as best-in-class winner. This year the overall best-in-class bike was unusual–not a pretty bike as in past years, but a maxi-farkled R 1200 GS heavy-weight with so many farkles they couldn’t all be counted.
Thank you to all bike participants, rally attendees who voted and volunteers who were instrumental in the success of our event. Visit youtu.be/0HNJAv4dMlk to see a video showing award winners along with pictures taken during the show.
The Charging Station
By Ross #39313 and Jean Copas #49338
We always get a big charge out of this assignment!
Since we’ve been doing it for over 15 years, we have acquired several regular volunteers that show up every year and jump right in. It’s a fun job because everybody is in a happy, rally mood and are appreciative of the services we offer.
Speaking of service, we don’t just recharge your batteries, we also handle Lost and Found. One of the biggest thrills we get is when someone turns in a wallet full of money, credit cards, etc. and we’re able to track down the owner. They are always so relieved and grateful that they often give a very generous donation to our Children’s Charity box. A special thanks to the honorable finders who save someone’s rally! Here’s a tip: Put your phone number in your wallet so we can call you. Most pieces of ID that you carry don’t have that info. With phones, put someone else’s contact number in the case.
We also handle the communications for the Rally Chairs by distributing and charging their radios so they can always be in touch in these massive fairgrounds. There’s never a radio very far away, so emergencies and other situations can be dealt with quickly.
This year, we charged 587 units, returned six wallets and numerous lost packages of purchases, as well as chatted with old friends, met new riders and had a great time!
MOA Rally Pioneers
By Norm Phoenix #1222
The BMW MOA Pioneers include the 31 MOA members who attended the first 10 BMW MOA National Rallies. Currently, there are only four of us left. Ever since the 10th Rally, the Pioneers have held a dinner at each Rally that serves like a reunion get-together. This year’s dinner was held on Friday evening at Madaline’s Grill & Steak House, where we had two of our remaining four Pioneers in attendance, Susan McCallister and myself, Norm Phoenix.
During recent rallies, we have been inviting High Rally attenders to the dinner. These are people who have only missed a few of our National Rallies over the years that we have been holding them. MOA Vice President Adam Chandler was also a guest at our dinner. Along with our personal guests, we had a total of nine dining together.
If you see someone wearing a Pioneer shirt at next year’s Rally in Lebanon, ask them about some of those early rallies and how they differ from today’s. They would love to share their stories with you.
Rally Awards Committee
By Jim Low #2803
It’s been many years since I’ve volunteered at the Awards booth, and this year, I got the honor to serve as the Committee Chair with Jim Kossow from Madison, Wisconsin, serving as Co-Chair.
As with most Committees, we had many wonderful volunteers. John from Milwaukee was especially helpful, volunteering for multiple shifts and willing to fill in as needed. The best part of volunteering on this particular committee is listening to rally attendee’s stories about their ride to the rally, both good and bad.
My favorite story came from a member from China. Xiangyu traveled to the U.S., rented a BMW and toured the country for 30 days and 5,000 miles, and counting. We hope the rest of his stay in the states was as good as the first part and that he made it home safely.
We had many good suggestions from Awards participants and volunteers which were summarized and passed along to Rally Chairs for next year’s rally.
Rally Sewing Booth
By Ann Roberg #106032
The Sewing Booth may not be well known to new members, but we are the ones able to sew on your rally patch or mend a minor rip or tear in your gear. In Redmond, we had some great sewing volunteers who did a fantastic job of fixing up and placing the patches. One volunteer even made us a quilt that helped boost our proceeds. This was great because all our fees go to support a local charity in Karol Pratzer’s name.
Though finding us is sometimes a challenge, this year we were on the balcony of the arena above the exhibits near the booth handing out the door prizes. Remember to look for our banner next year and bring us your patches to sew on something.
50-Year Member
By Frank Florio
We look forward to seeing you at the Sewing Booth in Lebanon next summer.
Thursday Grand Prize Winners
#1. DeVern Gerber won a Motorrad Audio upgrade for K bikes and RTs. $1,389 value.
#2. Ken Long won a prize bundle which included products from Continental Tires, WunderlinkIQ, Aerostich and Flying Eyes Sunglasses.
#3. Henry Vanderleek won a prize bundle which included products from Bohn Body Armor, Michelin Tires, WunderlinkIQ and Gerbing.
#4. Lee Whiting won a $1,500 gift certificate from Bike Tour Asia.
#5. Richard Green won a $1,500 gift certificate from Motoquest.
#6. Ankur Aurora won a $1,500 gift certificate from Clearwater Lights.
Rally 1st Timer Jody Gary won a set of Metzeler Tires.
Friday Grand Prize Winners
#1. Nancy Burbank won a prize bundle which included products from Brake Free, Legendary BMS saddles and Helite.
#2. Rafe Meyer won a $1,500 gift certificate from Gryphon Moto.
#3. Timothy Hess won a $1,600 gift certificate from SW Motech.
#4. Richard Bush won a complete in-ear monitor system from Big Ear.
#5. Stephen McNaughton won a Mosko Moto jacket and matching pants.
#6. Rosco Howard won a Five-Day Utah Tour from Waypoints West Moto Adventure.
Let’s all give Robert Mandel (second from left) a big congratulations on his 50th year as an MOA member and Robert…….thank you for your membership, we appreciate you. Pictured with Robert are Phil Stalboerger, Frank Florio and John Dillon.
Rally 1st Timer Lynn Chadwick won a set of Metzeler Tires.
Saturday Grand Prize Winners
#1. George Franke won prizes from Rider Share and Aerostitch along with a BMW MOA Lifetime membership.
#2. Carl Tyler won a $1,500 Gift Certificate from RevZilla.
#3. Caleb Cook won a BMW Jacket, pants, gloves and Schuberth helmet valued at $1,646 from Bob’s Motorcycles.
#4. Neil Ware won a Two day on or off-road class from the U.S. Rider Academy at the BMW Performance Center.
#5, Dennis Law won a No-Mar Motorcycle Lift valued at $2,495.
#6. Malcolm Robinson won an IMTBike Perfect Pyrenees Tour valued at $4,540.
Rally 1st Timer Kendra Summers won a set of Metzeler Tires.
NA LED IT
BY ED KOLANO
#15893
A mind wanders and inner conversations are triggered often during a long motorcycle ride, especially when banking miles on non-technical roads. Last summer, while approaching a tunnel along on Washington State Route 14 during the second day of a two-week ride, I asked myself if this would be a Roadrunner trip or a Coyote trip.
With my good buddy Wedge, we planned to ride from Bend, Oregon, to Crater Lake National Park, with two nights in Bend just to do our Crater Lake excursion. The next day, while prepping my F 900 XR in the hotel parking lot, a man in a wheelchair rolled up and said, “You’re lucky.”
With no idea how to respond, I affected my well-honed, mouth-agape, freeze-frame expression and offered a spot-on Butthead response of “uuuuuhhh.”
The man continued, “You’re lucky ‘cuz I’d stolen your bike last night, but I ain’t got no legs. HAHAHA!”
Still frozen in a zone of discomfort, I reverted to my Mr. Fixit engineer persona and postulated how we could get him on the bike. This gave way to more normal pleasantries with this nice gent who was clearly pleased with himself for nearly obliterating my bladder control. Our conversation had me thinking this was going to be a great day.
On our ride to Crater Lake, we rode through pines with
trunks still charred from a fire long ago that continued to fill the air with a smoky olfactory reminder.
Despite that sobering souvenir, the trees all boasted full headdresses of healthy green pine needles—truth that nature always wins.
While stopped just inside Crater Lake National Park, I noticed a nail in my rear tire. Great day my patootie! The ride to this point was so pleasant, I figured the nail must’ve been payback, you know, to keep the universe in balance.
OK, so we came within nine miles of Crater Lake, and it was time to limp the 90 miles back north and figure out what to do. Fortunately, the tire was holding pressure, albeit 10% below spec.
While I always, ALWAYS travel with a tire repair kit, for some reason I didn’t this time. Roadside plugs are always just a get-home, temporary remedy anyway and because the tire was holding pressure with the nail in, I thought it was better not to mess with it; just get back to the hotel or at least closer to civilization.
Once back in our hotel room in Bend, my hunt for a replacement tire, or at least someone who could patch it, began. I thought I found the perfect guy just a couple of miles away who had a Michelin Road 6 in stock, but the problem was the guy was racing in Washington that day. I then tried another outfit nearby, but they didn’t return my call. I even tried the local Harley dealer, but they never called back either. I finally caved and called the BMW dealer near Portland, Oregon, who was kind enough to carve out time the next day to replace the tire and get me back on the road. This option would mean backtracking a day’s ride, but the proverbial “bird in the hand” won.
We planned an early start the next day, and besides the major inconvenience of traveling the opposite direction from our planned route, it boded well. Sunrise would be at 5:48, temperatures would be in the 60s, and we’d be heading west with the morning sun at our backs. It looked like it was going to be a good day, but you know how that jinx goes.
With a blue sky above, even with a lousy night’s sleep, it had to be a good day, balanced universe and all that. We launched at 6:45, 15 minutes ahead of schedule. Then I felt it–the rear tire had lost too much pressure overnight, and
five minutes later we were in a parking lot attempting to remedy the situation. After struggling with Wedge’s portable air pump and the short in the power switch, we eventually pounded enough air into my tire to press on with our 170-mile limp to the Portland BMW dealer.
Tire woes aside, the ride west over the Cascade Mountains along Washington State Route 20 was lovely with temperatures bouncing back and forth between the low 50s and mid-70s. Not a single pothole or erosion divot was seen, and traffic was light enough to not matter. My bad night was offset by the good day.
One problem arose during a rest stop when nature called, rather urgently. I mean Bat Phone urgently. When I entered the men’s room all the stalls were occupied, with me number three in the queue. I didn’t expect all of the stall occupants to be reading War and Peace from cover to cover in this convenience store lavatory, but the duration factor pointed that way. My uncomfortable shuffling didn’t help, and starting a conversation with the two gentlemen ahead of me couldn’t happen as that goes against Man Rule #6. Even loudly informing a newly arrived player four that all stalls were STILL occupied had no accelerant value to those occupying the stalls. Thankfully, the problem self-resolved eventually and with dignity.
The other problem I had during this morning’s ride was my speed control. Though I intended to take it easy with that nail threatening to pop out at any time, the curves and twists had a way of making me forget. Luckily the nail held, although the pressure slowly dropped the entire way.
In Portland, the dealer was the same one I purchased my bike from three years earlier, so I thought I knew where to go, except they moved without telling me. Thankfully, the current building’s occupants posted a note on their front door with the dealer’s new address, which was only a few miles away. The nice, trip-saving folks at Cascade Moto took my bike in immediately.
Once there, it occurred to me that I had tire coverage with my BMW MOA Roadside Assistance. I called the number, and Gabriel answered and asked, “Are you at a safe location?”
“I guess so, I replied. I’m at a dealer.”
“Then why are you calling?” Gabriel responded.
OK, the actual conversation went on for about 10 minutes before I realized I’d called the roadside assistance (instead of the tire replacement) department who, naturally, were puzzled as to why I needed the bike transported to the
dealer I was already at.
While I was on the phone with Gabriel, Wedge used the time to find lodging for the night. I then wandered the showroom and struck up a conversation with a salesman. During that conversation, I guess I got a little too animated and sent my full cup of coffee airborne. Without feigning modesty here, I heroically intercepted some of the airborne liquid with my own clothing, limiting the fallout to the nice man’s desk, one customer chair and the showroom floor. With us both swabbing, we had it cleaned up in no time, except for the coffee aroma which, of course, remained with me for days.
The hotel Wedge found was a mere 10 miles from the dealer and adjacent to a sports bar. Hooray! I was not having the best day despite that whole balanced universe bullhockey, and I just wanted to be home, or whatever home was to be that night. That 10 miles took nearly an hour of combat driving across Portland, with traffic constantly merging and stopping, leaving us jockeying between lanes. It was now 90 degrees outside, meaning at least 110 degrees inside my Aerostich Roadcrafter which became a sticky, latte-scented sauna.
The next morning had me emerging from another lousy night’s sleep, but I refused to give up on the balanced universe mandate. The cosmos owed us a good day. Still, I awoke doing the one-eye-only technique, as if testing the conscious world for any leftover bad juju from the past two days.
Trundling westward, my trepidation slowly ebbed, nudged aside by good weather and minimal traffic, despite a complete lack of tunnels. It turned out to be a Roadrunner day, with the MOA program reimbursing me $250 for my new tire.
Ed Kolano is a former Marine and semi-retired test pilot who’s been riding motorcycles since well into the last century. Currently on his fourth BMW (seven, if cars count), his rides have traversed 42 of the lower 48 states and six Canadian provinces. So far.
Our Route to Redmond
By Dustin Silvey #224778
With fish and chips in hand, I went searching for Janel. The sun was intense this day, which instilled a bit of frenzy in my hunt. I don’t do well in the sun, so I had hoped to find her quickly then seek out some shade to enjoy my meal. Although Janel and I agree on a lot of food choices, eating unhealthy food is not up her alley, so she was on the hunt for a salad. After a few minutes cooking in the hot sun, I saw her walking towards me at the Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center in Redmond, Oregon.
“I just ran into someone we met on our trip across Canada,” Janel told me with a smile on her face. “He stopped me in the path and apologized repeatedly for it, then told me he met us on the road in Manitoba and wanted to say hello.”
Throughout our time at the 2024 BMW MOA Rally people stopped us in our tracks numerous times to introduce themselves and tell us how much they enjoyed reading about our trip across Canada. Other spoke about how Janel had been an inspiration to them and that our stories let them travel along with us.
“On the road in Manitoba?” I thought out loud for a moment. Then I remembered we met a couple of gentlemen just before our 11-day sprint to Labrador near the border of Manitoba and Ontario. While Janel and I were sitting at a rest stop on a back road surrounded by the Canadian Shield, suddenly two BMW motorcycles pulled up. While packing up our bikes to head off, I asked the riders if they were part of the MOA. We then had a short, but fun discussion about our rides before heading in opposite directions. Two years later, one of them still remembered Janel. To me, that is just awesome.
When I tell people about MOA rallies, the most common question they ask is, “What do you do there?” While the answer is different for everyone, for me the rallies offer a place to catch up with riders I have met over the years, an opportunity to meet new members, and to buy stuff I probably don’t really need.
As much fun as the rallies are, I think the most fun is getting to them. Last year I rented a bike in D.C. and rode it much too fast to Richmond, Virginia, and due to my lack of sleep, I confused miles and kilometers per
hour on the bike’s speedometer. This year, I was a little more focused while on the road, and Janel and I made an adventure out of our journey.
After six hours spent getting to the border just short of Vancouver, British Columbia, and with a three-hour ride still to come to our first stop in northern Washington, I was getting tired. A hold up at the border would have finished me off. Sitting on my bike with my helmet across my lap, I hoped this would be quick.
A border guard asked me, “Why are you entering the United States?”
I calmly replied, “Headed to a rally in Oregon.”
The guard’s face became contorted and looked much less friendly as he asked, “What kind of rally?”
I quickly realized my mistake and said, “Oh, a motorcycle rally.”
With that, the guard relaxed a bit, passed me my passport and waved me on. I pulled up about ten feet, then waited for Janel to wrap up her short transition into the U.S. From there, we started our official journey to Redmond.
With the border behind us, Janel and I spent the rest of the day riding interstate. To be honest, cruising the interstate is not fun on a 650 GS. While the bikes can maintain the speed limit, trying to accelerate to get around some slow drivers, or to quickly make an exit isn’t in the bike’s wheelhouse. If we hadn’t already had such a long day, we would have just hit the back roads and visited some of the small towns in the area, but at this point it was “let’s just get there.”
I-5 was chock full of traffic heading into Seattle, but once we turned off onto I-90 E traffic really eased off. We felt we had the highway to ourselves and had a bit of fun riding down the empty road enjoying the forests tightly hugging the road.
Traffic was bonkers as we arrived in Snoqualmie a little after 4 p.m. We were within 500 meters of our accommodations for the night, the Salish Lodge and Spa, and there was a thick line of traffic ahead of us that had appeared out of nowhere. Finding the flagman trying to control traffic, I asked him what the issue was and he explained that the traffic was actually a build-up of tourists trying to get into the parking lot
We don’t take a trip. A trip takes us.
~ John Steinbeck
for the Snoqualmie Falls, one of Washington’s most popular tourist destinations and made popular as the waterfall seen in the “Twin Peaks” TV show from the 1990s. Obviously, a Sunday in June is not the best time to visit. Our issue was that the entrance to the falls parking lot was the same as the entrance to the Salish Lodge and Spa.
I asked the kind flagman if we could skip the line, and he said no problem. I then called Janel up the
shoulder through my Cardo, and we successfully ended our 11-hour day on the bikes.
After we unloaded the bikes, we met with Gwynne Chase, manager of the Salish Lodge and Spa, who asked if we would like to grab a drink with her and an Iron Butt Rally winner who happened to work at the lodge. Janel and I jumped at the opportunity and within minutes we were sitting down with the 1999 Iron Butt Rally winner George Barnes. A jovial man,
Snoqualmie Falls is one of Washington's most popular tourist destinations.
George told us a ridiculous number of stories, from his attempts to win previous rallies, and even more from the one he finally did win. After a long day of riding, we both enjoyed the laughter and wanderlust his stories created, and it also made our “long day” seem a little bit shorter. If you do visit the Salish Lodge and Spa, be sure to ask to speak with George, you won’t be disappointed.
The next day, Janel and I relaxed and explored the area around the lodge. We hiked to the base of the falls (which are jaw dropping), enjoyed two amazing meals at the restaurant, and lastly, we took in a couples massage at the spa. After a non-Iron Butt Rally Champions idea of a “long day”, the massage was a nice way to get our bodies rebooted before we took on the next day’s ride to Redmond.
We had decided to arrive in Redmond a few days before the rally to explore the area a bit. Janel’s job doesn’t offer a lot of holiday time, and when we go on these adventures, I try to spoil her a bit since she is willing to spend what little vacation time she has riding a motorcycle all over the continent with me.
I could tell by Janel’s attitude and smile during our time there that I had done well choosing the Salish Lodge and Spa. The next test would come at the FivePine Lodge and Spa in Sisters, Oregon. I had booked a private cabin there for two nights, hoping this would be something Janel would enjoy. But first, we had a 338-mile ride to Sisters.
Our first stop on the way to Sisters, was for fuel. Since we always bring U.S. currency to save on credit card foreign exchange charges, I always go in and pay for fuel before filling our tanks. After handing the cash to the employee behind the counter, I went back out to fill up our tanks. Normally this is a simple process but for some reason, I just could not get the pump to start pumping gas.
That’s when I learned about Washington State’s fuel handles and their vapor recovery nozzles. I then went back into the station, and the very polite employee came out and demonstrated to me how the new nozzles work in Washington state. Designed to prevent fumes from escaping when pumping your gas in cars, with motorcycles they can be difficult to operate. Watching the fumes spewing out of my tank, I asked, “But doesn’t this make it worse for motorcyclists?”
The employee replied, “Yeah, it really does.”
We laughed together as he filled up our motorcycles. Finally, with our tanks full, we got on I-90 east toward Yakima.
Like our ride to the Salish Lodge and Spa, I-90 east was empty. As we rode, we took in the mountain scenery Washington state is known for while chatting about how nice and cool the weather was. Other than a quick breakfast at McDonald’s and a small fix to Janel’s motorcycle, we were making great time as we changed directions and headed south along I-82. I didn’t want to spend our entire trip riding interstates, so we took a small detour onto Washington State Route 821. This short, 25-mile highway twists and turns along the Yakima River and gave us a break from the interstate but focused our attention on the bikes and the curves
that appeared ahead of us with each bend in the river. As usual, Janel and I chatted about the pleasant road and the fun we were having leaning the bikes over as far as we could. After a quick water stop along the river, we carried on through the Yakima Indian Reservation.
The rest of the day, we battled the hot afternoon sun, construction along Oregon’s highway 97, and of course, summer traffic. Once we made it through Redmond, however, the ride to Sisters was beautiful. As we got closer to our destination, the Three Sisters Mountains grew larger with the sun slowly setting behind them creating a red glow across the landscape–a welcoming site after our two-day drive to Oregon.
Once at FivePine Lodge and Spa, we unloaded the bikes at our cabin, showered, then grabbed some pedal bikes from the lodge and went out to explore Sisters. This lovely town was friendly, and in the evening the tourists all depart, so we basically had the town to ourselves. We found a Mexican restaurant for dinner and after a few margaritas, rode back to the lodge. Once back at our cabin and while relaxing on some chairs looking out into an empty forest behind the lodge, I asked Janel, “How did I do?”
She looked at me with a face that was relaxed and at peace and said, “Pretty good Dustin, pretty good.”
I know this was supposed to be a story about the
2024 MOA National Rally, but as I stated, a rally is only the destination, the journey to the rally is what you hear most people speak about. How did each attendee make their way to Redmond? Did they fly over and rent a motorcycle? Did they take this as an opportunity to finally ride across the country and see all it has to offer? These are the real stories, and everyone’s story is different. Then, there is the story of how everyone got home. I’ll tell you our story of returning home next month.
Dustin grew up in Quesnel, British Columbia, and began riding on the back of his father's motorcycle many years ago. He has a doctorate of Community Health with a speciality in Indigenous Health. He currently works several contract positions with Indigenous organizations across Canada. Dustin's publication credits include The Globe and Mail, CBC, and Vice News, along with several extreme sport magazines such as Explore, Sidetracked, Canoe and Kayak, and Paddle Magazine.
Dustin and Janel currently live in Powell River, British Columbia.
What to see and do in Snoqualmie Falls, Washington, and Sisters, Oregon.
Salish Lodge and Spa: You come to Snoqualmie Falls to see the falls. But staying the night at the Salish Lodge and Spa (salishlodge.com) gives you an opportunity to see the falls with no one else around. I cannot say enough how much I enjoy being able to visit a place without anyone getting in the way of my camera, bumping into me while they take a selfie or just plain old standing too close. Not only that, the lodge is beautiful, with a restaurant that overlooks the falls. The restaurant cooks up some amazing meals, but also, it is quiet, friendly and relaxing. It is well worth your visit if you are coming through the area. Rooms average $450/night in the high season.
FivePine Lodge and Spa: Along with more than 1,400 five-star reviews on TripAdvisor, FivePine gets the coveted “Janel Thumbs Up.” Jokes aside, the FivePine Lodge and Spa (fivepine.com) has everything: a free happy hour, a pool, beautiful cabins, bikes to borrow at no cost, a movie theatre and of course, a spa. The location is just outside of Sisters, so you can really sit back and enjoy the scenery.
Wild Roots: If you like gin, Wild Roots’ tasting room is worth the visit in Sisters (wildrootsspirits.com). I really enjoy drinks made with gin, and Wild Roots has an orange and bergamot that will knock your socks off! Well worth the visit. Samples range from $5-$25.
Hans
A Conversation with Motorrad Icon Hans MUTH
BY ROBERT MCISAAC #10494
My story with BMW began in the summer of 1975 when my father, in an apparent celebration of my high school graduation, brought home a new BMW R 90/6. The bike looked like nothing I’d ever seen before, but I’d already learned to expect the unexpected from the folks in Munich as five years earlier, dad had acquired a four-wheeled 2002 sedan. My original reaction was that the man who had entertained me as a kid with V8-powered Fairlane Sport Coupes and Mustang GTs had lost his mind. One ride in that Bimmer set me straight and thirsting for more.
That R 90/6 seemed like an angry beast! A simple twist of the throttle produced a level of torque-induced violence that was stunning. It didn’t take long before I too, drank from the Bavarian stein and became the proud owner of a lovely R 60/5 LWB. Though shorter on power than the R 90/6, she was nevertheless a joy to behold.
Dad later restored a ‘64 R 50/2 he nicknamed Max, and an R 69 S he dubbed Friz. Together, we unpacked the roundel story back to the founding of the company in 1923 and along the way, we marveled at the R 90Ss his friends owned and saw the R 100 RS roll out in 1977. Along the way, a new name came into our conversation as we wondered who Hans Muth was and how he created so many wonderful pieces of “rolling art.”
In 2012, I had the good fortune of acquiring the Beemer I’d always wanted–a smoke red 1982 R 100 RS. I’d first seen that color combination on an R 100 RT at the 1979 BMW MOA National Rally and thought, “Someday my RS will come.” Ironically, that rally was in Minnesota and the RS came to me from Minneapolis.
Later I managed to add a 1977 RS to our stable, which made me wonder if I could locate Hans for a talk about his wonderful creations. A little to my surprise I found him via LinkedIn, still running his design studio in Stuttgart. We became email pen pals who ultimately had a chance to collaborate on the 100th Anniversary celebration for BMW Motorrad held in Pennsylvania in 2023. Hans’ health prevented him joining us in person, but he shared his notes so that I could do his presentation. I remember wondering what my dad would have thought about that moment, 48 years after his Polaris Silver R 90/6 got the journey started.
Earlier this year, as Hans’ health improved, he agreed to collaborate on this article which would allow us to share his insights and perspectives with Airhead fans around the world. This article is based on our recent conversation, and we are fortunate to be able to connect directly with him now.
It turns out that Muth’s first BMW engagement was designing the interiors of cars! Well aware of the /2 series bikes and their aging designs rolling into 1969, Hans found out that there really was no one responsible for design work on the motorcycles at BMW, so he was “volunteered” into the job. This coincided with the American Bob Lutz showing up in Munich on a mission to remake the stodgy image of BMW. Together, Muth and Lutz made magic.
One of Hans Muth's recent projects include a reimagination of his RS using the chassis of an R nineT.
The first product born of this relationship was the 1974 R 90 S. In keeping with BMW’s strategy of using up all the old parts before introducing new ones, that model year reflected a combination of /5 and /6 technologies. It also introduced a tank design used universally with the /7 Beemers.
Hans noted that the decision to create an R 90 S was made very quickly and some details were adopted from the existing /5 (246 series). In addition to the engine and double disc brakes, the investments were deliberately aimed at the S’s cockpit and headlights, 24-liter tank, bench seat and battery covers. The “mysterious holes” in the fairing were actually an emergency solution to provide access to open the headlight with a screwdriver inserted through the holes. The reason for this, Hans said, was that the original R 90 S design headlight could not be delivered and was not there at the start of series production. Therefore, the holes. “German ingenuity,” he added.
Somewhere I’d read that Hans was involved with the design of the Toaster Tank on the /5 series. When I asked him, he said no, that was something engineering came up with in an effort to add some flash to the designs before he got down to
One of Muth's early sketches of the R 90 S (above) and an actual model pictured below.
serious work on the R 90 S. When asked if there had been any major changes to the R 90 S/R 100 S because of the racing program, Hans again said no, that was not the case. The final design stayed true to his original vision and remained that way for as long as he was associated with BMW.
Asked if he considered other instruments in the design of the S/RS fairings and the decision to include a clock and voltmeter, Hans said that a voltmeter was requested by engineering, but that the clock was his idea. He felt that “you need a spontaneous and uncomplicated look at a clock, which is very difficult and complicated to do with gloves and a jacket on and can even be dangerous while driving.”
When asked about his favorite colors, Hans paused to reflect on the critical importance of color in his design work as well as sound! He said both are vital in creating a proper sporting motorbike. That said, he shared a particular fondness for both the Silver Smoke and Daytona Orange liveries, in that order. He also called out special mention of the silver used on the original R 100 RS, which he referred to as “beautiful.”
Speaking of colors, a fan in the UK asked about the backstory
on the Goldie RS introduced during the bike’s second model year. Hans shared that, once again, the marketing team in Munich wanted a second and very distinct color scheme for the RS, in much the same way they had encouraged the introduction of the Daytona Orange R 90 S in ‘76. Hans thought that the silver and gold duo in ‘78 did just that, clearly is distinctive and, even today, creating strong reactions. I was not a fan initially, but it has clearly grown on me over the years, and I now count myself as a big Goldie enthusiast. Hans noted that he didn’t want a normal color but wanted a high-quality, counter-color to silver and this was the gold. He said, “Some liked it, some did not, that’s the normal risk.”
The following year brought the two-toned RS in dark blue and silver. I thought it might have been an homage to my Monza Blue Toaster Tank from 1973. Alas, that wasn’t true. Hans shared that, again, something distinctive was required and that the Bavarian flag actually was his inspiration for what is now considered to be a truly iconic beauty. I recall my own original reaction wasn’t all that positive, thinking that somehow BMW had managed to make the RS an “old man’s
bike.” How wrong I was, as it is now one of my favorites. Hans shared that it is one of his, too.
While much has been written about the R 90 S, the R 100 RS, the R 80 G/S and the R 65 LS, there’s another BMW of that era that doesn’t get much press. Was the R 100 RT his creation too? Indeed, it was!
Hans was asked by BMW to go “one better” than the Windjammer/Luftmeister fairings of the day, and he created another iconic effort with the RT. An extension of the RS model, the RT offered a more upright riding position and added storage compartments for less sport-oriented and longer distance touring. Hans noted that since he had designed the RS as a modular concept, the lower parts of the integral cockpit could be taken over directly in the RT concept, while the upper shell was changed accordingly for the new touring use.
When asked about adding storage compartments on the RS fairing, Hans felt that was unnecessary and would have taken away from the sport touring orientation of those apex hunting machines. He referred to the R 90 S/R 100 RS as being part of his integrated “man-machine philosophy.” From a personal perspective, this makes complete sense, as I always feel like I wear an RS more than ride it!
I asked about the blacked-out cylinders on the R 90 S engine: Was it a lucky accident or a specific design choice? Hans said, “This was a conscious decision on my part to visually reduce the mass of the silver cylinders.”
When asked what he thought of the design changes which
came with the mono-shock RS/RT bikes after he left BMW, Hans noted that he clearly prefers the original efforts. He said the changes made them appear more in keeping with the K 100 bikes that emerged from BMW while he was working on other iconic designs, including the stunning Suzuki Katana. So, while he was not really a fan of the changes, he understands why they took place. When asked if he preferred the dual or mono-shock RS models, Hans replied, “I drove my own R 100 RS with dual shocks and found the suspension to be very sporty and standard at the time.”
Asked how sure he was of the correctness of his design efforts as the RS fairing emerged from his pen and headed to the Pininfarina Wind Tunnel, Hans noted that he was absolutely convinced that what he was doing would be a winning design. He also shared that he had no doubts about the effort. Confidence and conviction clearly were part of the genius embedded in his work. When asked if he penned his designs to specifically wrap around the mechanical elements of the BMW’s he worked on, Muth noted that he did. He continued by saying, “All of my designs start with a design sketch using a ball pen and marker and chalk. To this day, I only create such sketches and renderings on paper, never on a tablet.”
Asked if he had a mental picture in his head before designing the RS fairing and then fine-tuned it in the wind tunnel, or if it was driven purely by aerodynamics, Muth noted that “As a designer, you should have a clear imagination for the project task at hand as well as–especially as a vehicle designer–a feeling for
A pair of Hans Muth's masterpieces.
aerodynamics, which was probably passed on to me by my grandfather, who was an automobile designer. In the wind tunnel it was only necessary to change the radius in the lower area of the main shell. The original design worked very well.”
The original R 80 G/S design called for stunning red drivetrain castings which didn’t make it to production. It did finally see the light of day in an homage machine built in 2017. Did any other original design features get left on the cutting room floor? He indicated that they didn’t. He left BMW before the GS bikes arrived in market, so couldn’t press the company to keep true to the original vision. Of course, it remains a classic that defined a whole new class of motorcycle. When asked about why the panniers for these bikes are smaller than the standard BMW saddlebags of the era, he said he “had no idea.”
An interesting point in that era was that some designs clearly raced into production and were refined as time went on. The pinstripes on the ‘74 R 90 S were tape, while all later ones were painted. My own early ‘77 R 100 RS also has tape model designation on the seat tail cone. Later bikes had a more refined emblem. Also, humorously, the R 100 RS owner’s manual wasn’t printed in time to be included with early production run bikes. Instead, they came with surplus 1976 R 90 S manuals that were left over in the warehouse!
We asked Hans about the 1978 RS Motorsport livery, which is also stunning. He said, “The white colored R 100 RS with Motorsport-pin-striping had been planned exclusively for the USA market.” He also noted, “It had been a marketing decision to support interest in the establishment of BMW as the BMW Motorsport GmbH, headed by Jochen Neerpasch. He joined BMW one year after I did, from Ford; I worked together with him for coloring the racing Capris. He was a rare mixture of talented and successful race driver, organizer and businessman. He was also a jolly good Fellow!” For anyone unfamiliar with the racing Capris that were part of the Ford racing program, suffice it to say that they were brilliant.
Hans was asked about all the BMWs he designed. He noted that the full list included the R 90 S, R 100 RS and R 100 RT, the R 45 and R 65, the first concept and wind tunnel model for the K1 series and the G/S 80 concept design reference model.
We also went a bit further and asked Hans if he had ever worked for Moto Guzzi. As many have noted, the Moto Guzzi SP and LeMans series from 1979-80 bear a striking resemblance to some of Hans’ handiwork. The SP copied the color of the original R 100 RS, and the LeMans was clearly mimicking some aspects of the contemporary R 100 S, as well as the R 65 LS. His comment was priceless: “No, I never worked for Moto-Guzzi but this is a very good example of follow-the-leader of success. Look at the production dates of MG which indicates 1979-80. The R 100 RS started in 1976 running through 1984, so there was quite a chance for MG to come up with something similar to receive a small piece of the cake. My own personal view of the Moto Guzzi interpretation is that it was quite contrary (different from) the so far more softly executed Italian-style as well as to my own
design approach. I enjoy really the questions with their own interpretations.”
One of the other aspects of this whole enterprise that’s worth sharing is how appreciative Hans is for the opportunity to engage with people who continue to admire and respect his work. Another is how engaged the community is, with several people stepping up to help with translating text from German to English.
Humorously, his fans in Germany have asked for the original text! We will make that happen too.
One of the remarkable things now is that there remains a strong community to support and maintain what are now historic vehicles and relationships that are at the half-century mark. Through these relationships, we collectively help keep the Roundels spinning.
It’s a remarkable gift for the BMW faithful that we can still engage with the man who designed so many of the pieces of art we strive to keep rolling now.
It is also true that Hans and I shared more than a love of BMW Motorrad. When he was a young boy growing up in Germany, he was fascinated by the beauty of the American P-51 Mustangs arching and flowing across the skies. It was a groundbreaking design in its day and remains an iconic machine in its own genre. Not much later than that, my father was a Mustang crew chief during the Korean War, and his experiences with the Rolls-Royce/ Packard Merlin engines fueled his own interest in high performance equipment, including motorcycles. He described motorcycling as “two-dimensional flying.”
I recently visited a BMW dealer to look at the new machines. It wasn’t even a challenge to keep my powder dry and my wallet in my pocket. But when a friend recently asked me to “adopt” a low mileage 1978 Goldie, I started measuring the garage to see if there was room. More on that decision to be shared on another day…
Rob McIsaac (#10494) lives and plays in Clayton, North Carolina, a part of the Research Triangle Park Region. He joined the BMW MOA in 1977, shortly after acquiring a LWB R 60/5. Since then, a series of airhead and oilhead Beemers have graced his garage, all built in the 20th century. His enjoyment of motorcycling, and in particular BMW’s, is directly traced to the day his father brought home a new R 90/6. In his spare time, he now joyfully spends time with his four grandchildren who are intrigued with his fascination with two-wheeled motoring. The latest project is a recently “adopted” 1979 R 100 RS.
Listen to Your Engine!
Jon Collins #113338
I waited for years for the National Rally to be near Seattle so I could to ride out and visit my son since he moved west in 2018. Also, I had just attended my 40th high school reunion in October. My regret? Besides the girl who got away, not once taking a proper walkabout.
With the seed planted, the daydreams began. Exhausted after 25 years keeping up with 8-bit to Cloud technology and getting ready for retirement, I signed a vacation request form in November and committed. I was going to Redmond, Oregon, and beyond from my home in Cooperstown, New York, for my eighth Rally.
All winter I plotted my route and monitored the MOA website. Other rallies I braved sleeping inside a pup tent often set on rocky slopes. Now nearly 60, I’m finding it much harder getting up from way down there, and I was staying five nights, so I booked a hotel. This rally was going to be a leisurely walkabout built for comfort, not speed.
Last spring, I tallied my RTs mileage for the BMW Annual Mileage contest. Certainly 2024 would be my longest in the saddle ever, and this would be the first time I entered since joining the MOA about 20 years ago.
It was finally time, and I had an entire month to ride. I knew my code could run without me and was good for years to come. I always gave the extra mile, and now I wanted to ride it, thinking I’ll work twice as hard in May to leave, and twice as hard again in July to catch up. I would mark the end of my hall of fame career with a hall of fame walkabout.
As May arrived, I began to prep and pack for the Rally, making sure my medical emergency flight insurance and premier perks
were lined up. I believe luck favors the well prepared, but my latest copy of the BMW Owners Anonymous book was stowed just in case. Monday, June 3, was my go-day with the NFL Football Hall of Fame and the Air Force Museum as destinations one and two. The Gateway Arch and KC ribs, a nod to Clemens & the Pony Express, buzz the Air Force Academy (a muffled “Go Navy!” through the helmet), and Yellowstone, too. I planned to meet several buddies on the way until the rally in Oregon June 6.
My post-Rally plans were also perfected. On the first day of summer, my destination was Hyder, Alaska, with a full moon on the longest day of the year. My route would take me over the Cascades to Point Roberts, then through British Columbia. Banff would be visited on the way back, and my walkabout would include Glacier National Park. Alaska was the pinnacle, my last state to visit and my last frontier.
Then it happened. I needed a break this winter, and then I got it. I was let go and took the “package” (not quite the golden parachute, but thankfully a soft landing just the same). I will miss the people and the projects, but not the pressure. I can now finally sleep the night. On the bright side, I didn’t have to work those long hours pre- and post-rally. I had time to find the new old me. It was quite the ride, and hard giving up the reins and responsibility, and harder to be away from work friends both old and new.
On a spring Friday in May, I walked 5,000 steps at Bluff Point in Groton, Connecticut, which triggered a migraine-like flush that had me resting on a park bench for several minutes while winded and wiped. An hour later, inside the theater waiting for my friend’s Irish dark humor premiere to start, my bright red,
internal check engine light came back on. I needed to go outside and recover. Nauseous and flushed, I took some meds and returned to watch the drama and comedy on and off stage. No way would I try this on the highway and had only a few days before my Rally go-day on June 3.
That Tuesday morning, I woke up drenched in sweat, knowing something wasn’t right. I took something, went back to sleep for maybe an hour or two, then jolted awake again in clammy sweat. My blood pressure was a record number that I never wanted to attain. There was no excuse, the rally was days away.
Too high to ignore, and not a technicality this layman could solve at 6 a.m., I resolved to go to the ER at Bassett Hospital only a few miles down the road from my home. I drove myself in, walked in the front door of the ER, pointed at my chest and told triage, “This is not right; I can’t lower it.”
A cardiac catheter discovered the truth–I needed a triple bypass. I’ve got to trust the cardiologist just like I trust my mechanic. There aren’t a lot of options when it comes to the engine, and their years of training and expertise can affect the outcome–my outcome. Clogged arteries are just like a gummed-up fuel line–the engine is fine, but you aren’t getting any gas and a stent wouldn’t cut it. My spaghetti code will finally match my spaghetti heart. Thirty years of the programmer’s diet finally caught up with me. My ride to the Rally Redmond was off, and by Thursday I was out cold.
Days later, after the wonderful care from the Cardio and ICU teams, I was discharged and ready for the revised June schedule. Each post-op day, I compared the current with what should have been.
“Today I should be in Thermopolis. Did you see the road collapse in Yellowstone? Might have been a glitch in the ride anyways.” Instead, my reality was a 12-inch scar and a 12-week recovery. I had barely enough energy to twist the sippy cup, never mind twist an open throttle. I had it easy.
Was it worth it? I worked very hard before and during the pandemic to help science win, but it was nothing compared to the tenacity of my new friends in the front lines in Clinical Care. I was a grateful patient; I put myself there, and their dedication and compassion got me back. I could shuffle down the hall from the get-go, but no way could I reach the end of US-20 in Newport, Oregon, even though it’s right down the road from Coop. Instead, I had to pause at door #2, with an Oxygen SPO screaming instead of the tach. My metric was now in post-op milestones, the clocks in the ICU were too slow, and I was now making ICU friends instead of Rally 2024 ones.
Ten weeks later and still on the road to recovery, I’m grateful to be here, waiting to be strong enough to lift the motorcycle from the eventual tip over. I need my sternum and strength to match Sunday drive desires. Right now, lifting the center stand seems uncertain. I know it will pass. I’ve a poster declaring “Guinness for Strength,” but alas, the cardiology team disagrees with pints for the recovery. I know the cards, visitors and pings did wonders.
The weeks of recovery are longer, too. I’m healthier, but not as strong as I used to be, and not ready to give up two wheels for four. My convertible has many charms, but nothing
compares to gliding on a ribbon of hills and valleys to find a perfect a la mode which now has to be a la low fat and lowsugar mode. Pizza on Friday will now be truly a treat, but the ride remains the prime reason. I hope to take on a few sweepers on the lighter weight F 650 soon.
For now, only the tamest trails for me, though I’m sure physical therapy will eventually have me ready for the RT. The rally bug will bite again with another year in this lifetime membership to dream of the next ride. There are many miles and twists ahead, both on the road and in real life. I’m thankful for science and providence to bring me back from the precipice.
I’m certain my MOA Annual Mileage Contest numbers will be much shorter than anticipated, but I hope not zero after this pit stop. I have some rides planned, and when I publish the tally, I hope they won’t scoff. I’ve learned there’s always a story behind the number. Not all have this blessing of a rebuilt motor and a new chapter ahead. Although I wanted the road to lead to the furthest frontier; this year’s rally was an internal solo ride. I didn’t want to test the third strike.
I hope my colleagues will accept my sincere apologies for missing out in Oregon. It was a good tale to tell in first person prose just the same as in the bier garten. My only advice is to trust your own engine’s warnings as well as your motorcycle’s.
I hope to see you in Tennessee or elsewhere down the road.
I’ll start plotting soon.
Jon B Collins, recently retired to Cooperstown, New York, from Eastern Connecticut after a career in software development with the instant zen of his RT was a comfort during many challenges. Often found riding two-up with his wife, Kristen, Jon always called the roads of the Last Green Valley home. Meet you at the Woodstock Fair!
Not all rides go as planned.
healthy paranoia
By Jim Crum #48927
“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.”
-Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22
Nobody has ever accused me of being an optimist, but while I am trying to be less glass-half-empty as I age, that’s not true when it comes to my expectations about other drivers on the road, especially when I’m on a motorcycle.
I like to call it riding with a bit of healthy paranoia, which to me means assuming other drivers will either not see me, turn in front of me, brake hard when in front of me, or not use their turn signals. I don’t give any of them the benefit of the doubt; not because I have an innate sense of distrust of my fellow human beings, but because if we get in an accident, I’ll always lose. They are bigger than me.
I’ve worked in hospitals, and whenever I would arrive by motorcycle, my coworkers, especially the Emergency Room staff, would scold me or roll their eyes and say, “Don’t you see what happens to the motorcycle riders they bring in here?” I would mostly shrug this off or defend the many benefits of motorcycle riding, but these exchanges deepened my resolve that good
health begins with avoiding accidents.
My Motorcycle Safety Foundation training taught me well. There, I learned ways to scan for obstacles, separate multiple problems so they could be dealt with individually, maintain safe following distances, and plan escape routes should they be needed. I have used that training for years to avoid collisions, both in my car and on my motorcycle, and I believe it has saved my life countless times.
On the road, I constantly scan the sides of the road for animals or vehicles that may leap into my path. If I see a large truck approaching and the road ahead narrowing for a bridge, I will slow down or speed up to separate these two potential hazards so I can cross the bridge before or after the truck and brace for the potential wind blast when I have the extra room to maneuver. I use the three-second rule to regularly check and be sure I am following no less than three seconds behind the car in front of me. I’ll also keep an eye on the vehicle behind me in case I need to slow down or give myself more room ahead to deal with potential hazards.
When I come to a stop in traffic, I plan an escape route off the road or even onto a sidewalk, if need be, in case the person behind me does not see the stopped traffic and is heading toward my taillight without sufficient time to stop. A bit paranoid maybe, but thank you MSF for helping me survive to ride another day.
When riding, or driving a car for that matter, I think you’d be wise to have a little bit of paranoia, as long as it isn’t so much that it prevents you from riding at all, because that would be a Catch-22.
Jim Crum is an avid motorcyclist, an active member of the MOA, a former MSF riding coach, a farmer and a podcast editor. He has a background in psychology, accounting and data analysis, and lives on the Hāmākua coast of the Big Island of Hawaii.
why i am anal about my tires
By John Lloyd #236695
I am anal when it comes to my tires, especially on my motorcycles and will often change out tires in the spring before Florida’s rainy season begins so that I am confident I have the best available tread. Oftentimes, I will retire a tire once 50% of the tread has been worn away. Is this wasteful? Perhaps, but having fresh tires gives me the confidence to ride to my limit, without worrying if I have enough traction.
In my opinion, tires are even more important than brakes. If you lose brake pressure, you may still have options. Hopefully, since the front and rear brakes are independent, you will still have some braking power from the remaining system. You may be able to coast to a stop, or even use engine braking. But, in the event of tire failure, all options are out-the-window. Maybe I have enough skill to bring the bike safely to a stop. But I don’t want to test those limits. Better to avoid a bad situation through good maintenance.
Tire Pressure
The most important measure of tire readiness is pressure. Incorrect tire pressures are unforgiving on a motorcycle and can lead to a wobble and potential loss of control. Tire pressure is measured when the tires are cold, that is, before riding since tires warm while riding. On American touring bikes, the typical front and rear cold tire pressures are 36 front and 40 rear. Check your owner’s manual or look for a sticker, usually on the left side of the swingarm for correct tire pressures for your bike. It is equally important to ensure that any replacement tires for your motorcycle match the original manufacturer specifications.
Tread Depth
The purpose of tread on tires is displace water and small debris so that the tire and road maintain good contact. If you can personally guarantee that your bike will never see water, or debris, such as on a track, then tread depth may be less important. For the rest of us, tread can be critical.
New motorcycle tires have a tread depth of about 8/32nds, while the legal minimum tread depth in the U.S. is 2/32nds. By the time my tires tread depth falls below 5/32nds I am making plans for replacement because, in my experience, the wear is not linear. In fact, I find that the first 50% of tire tread lasts about 70% of the tire life, while the remaining 2 to 3 32nds will disappear quite quickly.
Tire Age
Raise your hand if you know how to check how old your tires are? On the tire sidewall you will find a Tire Identification Number (TIN). The last 4 digits of the TIN are the manufacturing date code, expressed in weeks (first 2 digits) and year (last 2 digits). For example, if the last 4 digits of the TIN are 0117, this would indicate that the tire was manufactured in the 1st week of 2017.
Personally, even if I have not ridden one of my bikes enough to warrant replacement based on tread wear, I will change out the tires if they are more than three years old, based on the manufacture date code. This is because tires deteriorate with age. Can you ride on tires that are older than 3 years? Sure. I may be anal, but I have never experienced a situation on the road due to tire failure and would like to keep it that way.
Tire Replacement
Tire pressures should be measured every day before you ride as part of your pre-ride inspection. However, it is a minority of riders who adhere to this strict schedule. Alternatively, a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) can be a simple and relatively inexpensive alternative to getting down on the garage floor in your clean riding gear before each ride. TPMS technology can communicate with smartphones via Bluetooth for easy pre-ride and continuous tire pressure monitoring. Remember that tires will leak some pressure over time, so checking your pressures regularly, especially during season changes is of critical importance.
Motorcycle tires are much softer than car tires and wear out far quicker. Unless you are running hard compound tires, which I don’t recommend, you will be lucky to get more than 10,000 miles out of a bike tire. In my experience, though dependent on riding style, rear tires will wear out about twice as fast as the front tires due to the fact there are greater forces acting on the rear tire since it is the drive wheel.
It is not necessary to replace both tires at the same time, unless needed. If the tread wear on the front is still fine, but the rear is looking a little tired, you don’t need to pay for both. Personally, I prefer to have matched tires front and rear, but that is just my preference.
Reading your tires.
Motorcycle tires are made with a higher level of precision than car tires. Off the shelf they have minimal irregularities, unlike the road surface. However, there may be a release agent on the skin of a new tire, which is necessary to remove the tire from the mold. This release agent has a lower coefficient of friction, and until that skin is scrubbed off, with careful riding, it can cause unexpected sliding. It is therefore important to ride with more caution during the first 50 to 100 miles after a tire has been replaced.
Reading your Tires
One can typically tell the riding style and proficiency of a motorcyclist based on the tire wear patterns. Don’t make the mistake of trying to compare the wear patterns on your tires to those of another rider, since each rider’s style is unique. However, you can visually inspect and compare your wear patterns from photographic records as a measure of improvement in your own riding skills. Practice is key. When the opportunity presents itself, or at least every few weeks, go to a parking lot and practice in the safety of an open space.
John Lloyd is a PhD researcher, whose career focused on the biomechanics of traumatic brain injuries for veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Now retired, he consults on helmet technology and motorcycle accident reconstruction. John is also an avid motorcyclist with 40 years of riding experience and a proud member of the BMW MOA. Please feel free to reach out with questions or comments at DrJohnLloyd@Tampabay.RR.com
LEADER OF THE PACK
By David Cwi #28490
I’m not quite sure how I screwed up. Well, that’s a lie. I know what I did, but I’m just not sure why I did it. If you live and die by your GPS, you will likely sympathize and know what I mean.
To wit: Your GPS is telling you that in X-hundred feet, you need to turn left at the light. Then, immediately after turning left, the GPS screen shows that you need to turn right. I was stopped at the light, looked up as it turned green, made the left turn but did not see the “correct” right turn and instead took the second right. Most folks in the group ride I was leading followed me except for a couple of saved souls who did not, thereby avoiding the near catastrophe that ensued. Suffice it to say that no one had a kind word for Dave once we parked it for lunch.
Rules For Group Ride Leaders
Lesson 1: Leaders should share the route, but remember, just because you sent them the route does not mean they actually loaded it into their GPS or even looked at it.
It was a morning group ride out of Marietta, Ohio, during our annual Octoberfest reunion. No one wanted to end up that morning like we did, feathering the clutch up a hill on a narrow, car-lined street that suddenly got narrower then sharply pitched downhill with enough tight turns to make you wonder which of the riders was going to crash and burn into the rider ahead. There was no turning back. Luckily, all survived and eventually, we got back on course.
Lesson 2: Group members should be told to not follow the leader if it is obvious the leader is an idiot and going the wrong way.
Even if the leader is going the right way, it helps if someone has actually ridden the road in the recent past. Raider Sport Touring leaders have learned the hard way that it helps to ask riders who live out that way if the targeted roads in their area are under construction or twisty on the map and suddenly all torn up.
Lesson 3: If a group is counting on you to create the next great ride, verify that it’s a great ride. Don’t ask about my personal experiences with tight rider formations and having to turn around on tight, two-lane roads that suddenly come to an end in sand,
mud, potholes from Hell and more.
Lesson 4: Not running out of gas is kind of a big deal.
This is in fact my favorite rule, especially when newbie group riders are along. I was that kind of mess-with-you guy and would sometimes torment them. But I was actually looking out for them, really. When planning a ride, I would use fuelly.com to get a sense of each rider’s potential mileage capability until empty, meaning how far they could ride before they were in a panic. On his first RST ride, I knew Clyde aboard his Ducati could get 40 mpg maximum when riding at speed and that he had maybe five useable gallons of fuel capacity. Knowing this, I deliberately found gas stops at around 175 miles out. When running low on fuel, surely Clyde was going to try to catch up and nervously point to his tank since back in the day we did not have helmet communication. I would just ignore him but eventually point to the upcoming exit sign and planned gas stop.
Of course, it’s not very funny if you’re in the middle-ofnowhere Arkansas on back roads and you did not fill up at the start of the ride and are now running low on gas with none anywhere around. We’ve had to siphon fuel to keep riders going. So, FILL UP at the start.
Lesson 5: Regarding group passing.
If matters are dicey and tight and you’re the leader, keep going and just don’t pass. Stay in the left half of your lane, thereby requiring your buddy to pass YOU. Be aware if you may need to pull to the right of the lane so a follower can pop in beside you, thus saving their buttisimo from oncoming traffic.
It took just one misstep and a near-death head-on experience for me to get the message. There is a difference when the challenge is moving a group along a congested interstate as opposed to a crowded two-lane with blind corners, lots of head-on traffic, slow movers, RVs in your lane and more. But let’s cut to the worst-case chase. Part of the problem when learning to be a pack leader–wait for it–was me.
Early on, I learned that it was not enough to know how to corner your motorcycle. Mind you we did, in the past, sponsor Susan Galpin’s excellent on-road “Conquer Corners Before They Conquer You” weekend training. I was at best a middling mid-pack rider who never took the
next step; for example, track days to where I could scrape a knee in a corner. But I did know two things about my motorcycle: I knew how fast it accelerated with a downshift or two and how fast I could shave off speed without locking up a wheel (this of course before ABS). This knowledge turned me into a fearless passing machine. That is the appropriate segue to two-lane twisty riding, especially if the rider pack bunches up, the setup for disasters of various sorts.
One thing we know for sure is the faster riders are going to want to break loose and dash ahead and the slower riders will not want to lose sight of them. Let’s assume the rider ahead of you wants to keep pace and suddenly moves out to pass that slow-moving truck on an uphill portion so the top of the hill blinds you to traffic over the top and on the backside coming your way. What do you tend to want to do? And what are you counting on the rider you are chasing to do?
Time is running out. Dave drops down two gears and is gone in flash. You hope he has enough room for the two of you to pass that truck before something pops out coming over that hill but figure what the heck, you can always hit the brakes or drop down back behind the truck. But what if another rider decides to chase you both? Hold that thought. We are in a bunched group and nobody knows one another. A situation is about to unfold. In fact, let’s pause and read about two actual events, one recent and one occurring 20 years ago on a club ride.
We had been riding, for about an hour, with a group of about 12, over twisting rural roads in the mountain foothills. Debris on the line caused the rider immediately in front of me to straighten up and step out briefly and led me to prematurely assume the curve was ended. I followed suit. That adjustment required us to use an increased lean in order to follow the actual, decreasing radius turn. Speed about 35 mph. I exceeded the lean angle limit of my machine riding two up. Next I knew, both of us were hitting the asphalt. My right leg was broken and is now held together with multiple pins and plates. My jaw was fractured and lips pierced.
Or how about this story:
On March 8, 2024, Bill died in a motorcycle accident. A group of six [of us] were on a ride to lunch. Bill was in second position and I was third. Bike #1 and Bike #2 were following a car and passing two small trucks. Suddenly the car slammed on its brakes to avoid a dog. Bike #1 was able to stop, albeit so closely that Bike #2’s front tire touched the rear tire of Bike #1.
Bill, bike and dog went airborne. I witnessed Bill crashing and instantly dying.
The scene plays out in my brain over and over again. I cannot stop playing the what ifs. I truly believe the wreck could have been avoided. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation impressed upon me to maintain a minimal distance of two seconds.
Well, that two seconds is minimal at best, and the MSF shows it as a graphic with riders staggered in one lane. If you want a good outline of some basic MSF guidelines for group riding and leading the pack, go here: tinyurl.com/ wb9scucj.
Now where was I…ah, I’ve dropped down two gears and punched it. You have decided to keep pace. Your best hope is that no vehicles are ahead speeding up and coming over the top of the hill.
Rule 6: How about a rider’s meeting?
A pre-ride meeting is an opportunity to sort out who is fast and who’s not, to figure out who knows where we are going and who might get lost. Consider pairing some folks up who have the route in their GPS and know the planned gas stops. Suggest that those in the know stop at corners and wait for the slow ones so they can see where you are turning. And last, emphasize TWO SECONDS IS NOT ENOUGH. In other words, “Get off my arse when you are riding behind me.”
See you down the road.
Dancin’ Dave Cwi is a Life Member of the MOA as well as a Premier Member of the Iron Butt Association. He’s owned every series of BMW motorcycle from the Slash 2 to the modern RT, and has burned out his wife, who once loved motorcycling but sold her bikes after two trips with Dave. He pays for his riding addiction via marketing stints, including work in powersports. You will see him down the road.
farewell, old friend!
By Mark Barnes, PhD #222400
‘Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.
– Alfred Lord Tennyson
How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.
– popularly attributed to Winnie the Pooh/A. A. Milne
Selling a bike isn’t nearly as exciting as buying one, but it’s something we all must face sooner or later. Having recently written about the exhilaration of adding a motorcycle to my stable (“New Bike Fever,” July 2024 BMW Owners News) and the intense preoccupation with making it truly mine following such an event (“Farklemania,” May 2024 BMW Owners News), it’s only fitting to complete this story arc with the bittersweet experience of selling a bike I was once thrilled to acquire and upon which I lavished a great deal of time, effort and money. Riders become attached to their machines to varying degrees, depending on details of their personality, circumstances, the unique characteristics of the bike and what special meanings those hold for the owner. Some motorcyclists don’t get very attached to their motorcycles, while others develop a
powerful bond with each and every one they possess. Here we’ll explore some factors involved in the relationships between flesh-and-blood human beings and their steel-and-aluminum companions. Such factors are especially apparent during the separation process, when the prospect of loss brings them into sharpest focus.
What follows won’t apply to everyone. Riders and racers who view their motorcycles as mere tools for getting certain jobs done (e.g., commuting, competing) may value machines that serve them well, but don’t necessarily have much of an emotional connection to them. Such motorcyclists are focused on the ends, not the means; the bike itself is of secondary importance. As long as it’s functioning well, it disappears behind a utilitarian goal. Whatever emotional investment exists is directed at that purpose, not the conveyance toward it. Also, there are people within and outside the world of motorcycling for whom attachment to inanimate objects simply makes no sense. These folks reserve affection for their relationships with other people, and perhaps pets, although this wording suggests it’s a conscious, deliberate decision. While we may try to squelch or disregard our object-oriented sentimentality, I don’t think its existence is really a matter of choice. Those of us who imbue our possessions with powerful emotional meaning do so because of how we’re built, not what we choose. Try as we might, none of us has much control over what moves our heart and what doesn’t.
Over the past half-century, I’ve owned about 40 motorcycles, with as many as nine at once. Parting with a bike has almost always been fraught with serious ambivalence. Even when my riding interests shifted and I had to sell the current motorcycle to pay for a replacement better suited to my evolving tastes, I never wanted to completely give up the unique character and capabilities of the outgoing machine. During a period of almost two decades, my pendulum of craving swung back and forth between on- and off-road riding when I lacked the money and space for more than one motorcycle at a time. In a misguided approach to frugality, I suffered the financial penalties of frequent turnover until I realized it would actually be cheaper to just keep two bikes in my garage
simultaneously. (I was never content with the compromise solution of just having a dual-sport, as it would frustrate me no matter where I was on the continuum.) Once I could afford to keep an assortment of more niche-bound motorcycles handy, I still hated letting one go, even when acquiring another of the same genre.
Admittedly, this defies logic. Why would I feel such a sense of loss when the new bike did virtually everything better than the old one? This was certainly the case with the latest arrival and departure. While the ultimate decision to replace one with the other boiled down to this objective functional comparison, it’s the plethora of intangible factors that made the execution sticky.
There’s the origin story, for starters. Thirteen years ago, I stumbled upon an absolutely crazy deal on this rare bike that had already been extensively customized in many of the ways I’d have done myself. It was pristine, and a model I’d been infatuated with since its appearance as a concept bike in the enthusiast press a half-dozen years prior. Exotic enough that I had yet to see one in person locally, it kept getting rave reviews in the media, fanning the flames of my desire from afar. The principle, “Absence makes the heart grow fonder,” was definitely in play. I couldn’t spend the big bucks required for a new one, so I’d regularly scanned online classified ads in hope of nabbing a used one I could afford, but they very seldom appeared and were always gone by the time I reached the seller. This time, I saw the ad minutes after its posting, immediately called the seller, and set up a deal three states away for the next morning. I hooked up my trailer, grabbed cash at the bank on my way out of town, and drove through the night to get this deal done. Not only was it by far the finest example of this machine I’d ever seen, it was being sold at the lowest price with less than a thousand miles on the clock. I was afraid it might be too good to be true, but I went to the extraordinary lengths necessary to find out. It was completely legit. The extremely wealthy owner had a garage the size of my house, densely packed with top-shelf, decked-out motorcycles. He cared more about reclaiming a little floor space than recouping his monetary investment in this bike. It was an utterly surreal fairytale to me, one of
those moments when all the stars had come into perfect alignment.
My acquisition effort was greatly rewarded. This bike was easily my favorite “of all time”—for a decade. I loved its power, handling, appearance, sound and the brilliant engineering and craftsmanship it displayed. Although I knew I’d never be able to exploit its performance, it fit me like a glove in every way and allowed me to participate in its sporting grandeur, if mainly in my imagination. I devoted countless hours to meticulous maintenance and many more upgrades, each of which looked and worked like it’d come from that way from the factory. Years later, when I finally completed all this intricate work, I’d almost bought the bike twice, but I had no regrets; it was pure magnificence, the hard-earned concrete manifestation of my personal ideal—a dream come to life. However, the dream eventually began to fade…
With age, I grew less enamored of this bike’s ferocious brutality. What had been thrilling became stressful and hard work to manage. There was no way to carry any real luggage on it, and it would be exhausting to ride for more than a day or two, anyway. I was drifting toward a more relaxed, longer distance version of motorcycling. I spent less and less time on it, and more and more time on my other machines, but every once in a while, I’d take it out for a spin and revel in its glory. I can’t possibly sell this!! Since I didn’t have to let it go, I didn’t. I might have put no more than a couple hundred miles on it each year by the end, but the ongoing costs of ownership seemed worth it to avoid losing access to the very special experience only this motorcycle could deliver. Whereas I’d never owned any bike for more than a few years, this one stayed with me for 13, and I still hated to see it go.
Who would appreciate it like I did? Would someone else take care of it like I had? I wanted my precious pet to go to a good home! Logic dictated that I must sell it to make room and help fund a replacement more in line with my current needs; it became increasingly hard to justify keeping a bike I wasn’t riding, but which still took up space in my garage and required annual maintenance, registration and insurance premiums. If I wanted another motorcycle I’d actually ride and enjoy more, I had to pass this one on to its next owner. I
dragged my feet by pricing it ridiculously high, hoping someone willing to pay that much for it would be a worthy candidate. But as the months dragged on without a sale, I reduced my price to something more reasonable and finally interviewed several potential buyers to determine who was most enamored. I do believe the “winner” is genuinely in love.
This was definitely the most emotionally difficult sale I’ve ever made, but many other motorcycles were very hard to part with, too. The common factors have fallen into several categories. One is the bike’s stature as a true classic; was it recognized by the worldwide motorcycling community as iconic? This “star appeal” would never be enough by itself to endear a machine to me, but it supercharges the initial attraction, magnifies the pride of ownership, and makes me part of history. Landmark motorcycles, like Kawasaki’s first Ninja 900, Honda’s initial CBR900RR and KTM’s original Super Duke weren’t just game-changers I admired at a distance; I knew them intimately as my own.
Something else my stronger attachments have shared is the investment of vast quantities of time, effort and money on repairs and modifications. Whether it was a basket case that required a ton of work just to make it function properly, or a brand new bike already featuring superlative abilities that presented a serious challenge for a would-be improver, the more I poured myself into these projects, the more my connection grew in the process. While I might curse and fume about the (sometimes tremendous) demands and frustrations involved, these ultimately strengthened my attachment in the end. Likewise, when a motorcycle accompanied me through some particularly arduous ordeal, like (unintentionally) touring on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the middle of Hurricane Opal or climbing the boulder-strewn trail up the side of Mount Antero (one of Colorado’s “14-ers”), the bike involved will always occupy a very special place in memory, with an associated sense of gratitude and devotion.
These relationship-enhancing factors aren’t really all that different from those that contribute to our bonds with other people. Attraction often begins with some sort of notoriety, even if only within a small circle of acquaintances. Some degree of public-facing flashiness grabs our attention, although it may later prove ephemeral or be supplanted by more substantial merits. We invest in connections that excite and gratify us, whether polishing “a diamond in the rough” or further elevating something already idyllic. Such investments reflect our valuation of the bond and
further compound that bond’s worth. When we endure hard times with someone, we also build a stronger relationship with them, especially when we emerge victorious with their help.
Of course, the converse of all this is true, as well. Our connections to other people weaken when we change in ways that leave us with less in common. One attachment may give way to another that is better equipped to meet our evolving needs. We may miss old relationships for their unique qualities—qualities that can never be precisely replicated elsewhere—yet also recognize we now have a more complete package in someone else, be they friend or lover. Aside from the issue of replacement, there’s also the need for diversification. One-stop-shopping for emotional supplies is a myth. Any set of characteristics we treasure will have a flip side, with some other desirables being mutually exclusive. There will always be compromises and trade-offs; best to have an assortment of options from which to choose for meeting the widest variety of needs. Some relationships will cover more territory than others, but others will tower over the rest in one particular dimension.
Obviously, there are very real, very important differences between our attachments to motorcycles and our attachments to friends and family, but there are perhaps more similarities than an outside observer would notice at first glance. Goodbyes, no matter how necessary or unavoidable, can be very difficult in any case.
Mark Barnes is a clinical psychologist and motojournalist. To read more of his writings, check out his book Why We Ride: A Psychologist Explains the Motorcyclist’s Mind and the Love Affair Between Rider, Bike and Road, currently available in paperback through Amazon and other retailers. The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWOwnersNews.com. Listen to this column as Episode 67 of “The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes.” Submit your questions to Mark for the podcast by emailing podcast@bmwmoa.org.
is this the last one!
By Deryle Mehrten #58537
In December of 2008, Wanda and I bought a 2008 K 1200 GT. Very stately in Aventurine Silver Metallic, to my eyes she was a bit on the grey side, and for whatever reason I nicknamed her the Grey Ghost. The stand-up four-cylinder engine produced enough power to take Wanda and I–along with all of our camping gear–to several BMW MOA National Rallies along with a bunch of MOA Weekend Getaways.
The BMW K44 (2006–08 K 1200 GT) model had problems, and ours had them all. The first was the infamous cam chain jump, which let Mr. Pistons meet Mr. Valves. Our extended warranty picked up the tab on that, and soon we were back on the road. Even an Arizona haboob couldn’t stop us, although the rear drive was destroyed by all the sand that got in. Again, our extended warranty covered the cost of a new rear drive. Only the cost of the clutch that went out around 80,000 miles came out of our pocket.
While at the Iron Horse Motorcycle’s 2019 Annual get together, Wanda picked our next new bike, a 2019 K 1600 GT Sport. The Grey Ghost had 130,500 miles on her at the time, and although the engine ran as well as
ever, other parts and pieces were beginning to show signs of wear. We made the trade and were happy with the K 16 for the two years we owned her, but I always wished we had kept the K 1200 GT for our second bike. We had some great adventures on the Grey Ghost.
This year we lost several members of the South East Arizona Touring Riders (SEAT), one of whom was Dan Neal, who had a heart attack. Dan was a painter, fiberglasser and restorer par excellence; and he rode BMW motorcycles! His property in Tucson, Arizona, is covered in old–and for the most part–worn out K 75s and K 100s. One of his favorites was a K 1200 GT brick and most recently a 2008 K 1200 GT.
SEAT sent out an email letting the membership know that everything in Dan’s shop and all of his motorcycles were for sale. Pam, Dan’s lovely widow, allowed a special open house for anyone interested in any of Dan’s tools and bikes to come to their home and make Pam an offer. I was surprised to see that one of the bikes for sale was a 2008 K 1200 GT. I got really interested when we found it was painted in Aventurine Silver Metallic, just like our Grey Ghost.
We called Pam and asked if we could come by and look at the K GT; the next week we were in Tucson checking out all the old bikes scattered on the property. Inside one of Dan’s workshop areas sat a used-butnot-abused 2008 K 1200 GT that, except for a few things here and there, was identical to our past Grey Ghost. I immediately wanted it.
We left Pam with the proviso that we would let her know in the next few days if we wanted to buy it. Then I looked at the vin on our past K 12 GT and Dan’s K 12 GT. Our GT’s serial number included ZN48124; Dan’s ZN48121. They were sisters! We made Pam an offer and we agreed on a price.
Iron Horse Motorcycles in Tucson did us the gracious favor of picking up our new Grey Ghost at Pam’s and taking her to their shop for a full service. To be on the safe side, they replaced the battery and put on a new set of tires. The next weekend, our son Daniel took Wanda and I to Iron Horse so I could ride her home. To say I was excited and a bit nervous is an understatement, but once on the road, I soon had that grin that only motorcyclists know and understand.
Over the last several weeks, I have been going over Grey Ghost II with a fine-toothed comb. I’ve ordered
several small parts here and there to put things back to original. One of the aftermarket pieces that I really wanted to replace was the loud muffler–I like quiet! I found a guy in Tennessee who had an OEM muffler off a 2008 K 1200 GT; after postage, I got a really nice muffler for $142.
A used front and rear seat, both with all the loom parts needed to go stock, are on order from a shop in the UK for close to $900 less than new. Finding 16-yearold parts has been fun and has saved us quite a few bucks putting Grey Ghost II back to her stately original look. Some time this summer, I plan on taking Grey Ghost II around the block and then around the county. It’s good to have a really cool K-bike in our stable, and I’m looking forward to putting a few miles on her.
Is this the last one? Wanda and I both turn 77 this year, so who knows!
Deryle Mehrten is a 77-year-old Army Brat who has been married to his best friend Wanda going on 45 years now. Now retired from the Department of the Army Civilians, Deryle’s first ride was in Orleans, France, in 1960 on a Peugeot. Wanda’s first ride with Deryle was on the back of a ’72 750 Kawasaki triple in 1980. Their first BMW was a 1988 K 100, and they’ve been BMW riders since. With 450,000 BMW miles under their belts, the couple is hoping to hit a half-million miles before having to hang up their boots.
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“I joined BMW MOA as a recommendation of my father, who has been a member for many years. I would always snag the latest copies of his MOA magazine when I would visit. Now it’s my turn to enjoy the camaraderie of this community and all the resources that are available. I just reintroduced myself to a life with a motorcycle after many years of being absent. I absolutely LOVE the flawless feel of my R 1200 RT and the freedom it gives me.”
– Josh Matthews #238236
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“I joined BMW MOA to find out about events, latest info BMW, gear, and travel info. I love how powerful my R 1200 RS is. It’s quick to respond, quiet and smooth. I love to explore, and I love riding in the mountains.”
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– Cynthia Barnick #238059
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I love my R 1200 GS! This is my fourth BMW motorcycle and by far my favorite. My favorite trip to date was heading out to the PA Backcountry Discovery Route X with my good friend, Mike. The ride was a perfect mix of light off roading and good old paved twisties. I wouldn’t do a trip like that on any other bike!
– Domenico Palagruto #237432
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I joined BMW MOA recently to benefit from the knowledge of this group and to find a community with like-minded individuals. I purchased my R 1250 GS in June of 2023 after a couple of years on a Honda Africa Twin. The quality of the GS and its unique blend of sport touring and adventure capabilities have won me over and I can’t think of a machine I’d rather ride than a GS. Great way to see the amazing roads of South Dakota during a fun week of travel.
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