Spokey

This is Wicked!!

They will get over it! Years ago I lived in a complex in Midrand. Kids were little and I would take them to the gate and back on the bike. Body corp then issued a notice that bikes and vehicles with noisy exhausts must just enter and exit via the gate and not ride around the complex.......so to appease the cockwombles I did that precisely, out the gate, turn around and back in.... Honestly I tried hard not make a racket. Realized complex living is not for me. Now, years later I do try to keep the noise down in the village, Big Zed with the Yoshi pipe will almost awaken the dead when wound up! Honestly, 5 mins at idle, not excessive in my opinion!

A few pics to show some of the EK aeries parked up at Dubai South (OMDW). Most are 380’s but there was a row of Trip 7’s. Some are in very much prolonged storage with wheels, and landing gear covered, all windows taped up. Rough counting showed over 50 machines there, not all in the posted pics. We were wasting jet fuel and tyres doing landing recency for the crew, sadly not me as I am on sim recurrent from tomorrow!

I am in Dubai, sim recurrent on 30th. Doing it on my FAA. I am advised by the peeps who submit my paperwork in SA that the turnaround for the license is 4 weeks! Add on the delivery time from Dubai and back. As I fly on a validation I think I may just skip doing the SA renewal this year anyway and just Validate my FAA to San Marino.

Yesterday at Garden Route Dam, cold and muddy, but wonderful.

Perhaps time to up our game here and develop LPV approaches that can also have the equivalent of Cat 1 ILS mimima with no ground based aids. Granted not the same as ILS Cat II or III but better than Visuals or NPA’s But then, it would work for me as we are not approved for Cat II let alone III. I see the RNAV approaches at Josie are just GNSS with LNAV...........basically around 500 feet higher minima than a Cat II ILS..........seriously an issue in crap weather.

Fly RNAV approaches......will only affect Cat II or III ops. Not that busy at the moment, surely not that many aircraft will be affected in the short to med term.

Or down grade to Cat II or even Cat I until able to safely do Cat III again.

I love it. This beast is the S model, works well for me on the Karoo dirt roads and is awesome on the tar with street based tyres. I have Anakee Wilds on now but had the brilliant Anakee Adventures on for a while. The bike has had the rear cylinder inlet rocker bits replaced due to a blocked oil inlet, done under warranty as I bought an after market warranty even though the bike is 2013. Apparently this is a known issue with these engines, or so I heard. I will be honest, I was after an Africa Twin and the Katoom was an impulse buy.......silly yes, but a massive smile on my face each time I ride it. I do not think the rear knobbly will last very long though....! Tis very easy to ride way faster that one should and has very clever rider aids. Been fun getting used to the big twin, I am used to four cylinder engines and of course my little KLR. The big Katoom is excellent on a long trip, fast and comfortable. Light enough to hustle on the dirt tracks. I am becoming a fan of the Orange!

Swartburg Pass.....on the way home.

Did a not so quick 403 km round trip for coffee in De Rust. Home through Prince Albert and Swartburg Pass. This pic on the Klein Sleutalfontein dirt track between the N12 and Prince Albert.

Alrighty Fellow Motorcycle Enthusiasts! A cool +/- 70 large piles of Randellas and this could be mine..........I think I need to bid for a Guvmint contract!!! Big Zed would enjoy this, not to mention the rearsets, bars, wheels and Ohlins Black Twinshocks!!

And a seriously salty price tag I am sure! I will look though as new bikes are silly money and I think Big Zed is a keeper, worth throwing money at to make it something very special. Gosh, Ohlins and Brembo, that would be something!

I like the answer and I figured the same, I was so angry with myself for mucking it up. After initially battling to set the link to rivet ( good old hammer method) I remembered I had a chain tool in my KLRs off road kit............what a Plonker! Anyways, will obtain a second master link tomorrow and set about trying to be clever and set my chain on correctly!

Man.......super happy, flying out on EK later this month, back to work!! Well after sim recurrent. I have had to delay my sim 6 times since April and have cancelled Dallas to continue with Dubai’s booking. I have been nervous of Texan Covid! Not sure when I will eventually return home but after what will be nearly 5 months at home I think the Missus is going to be very happy to drop me at the airport ha ha!

Sure is, but hands down my favourite ride to and from work/simulator as a cattle class pax in the back. My few upgrades to “bizniz” were awesome.......far superior to the Trip7.

Bit of a polish and good to go hey, LWB you sign off the paperwork and we have a little charter jet, could carry a fair wack of contraband smokes under cover of darkness....... Just kidding, that is vrot, would make a lekker holiday cottage in my garden with suitable design and thought going into it!

Right, question for you bike guys. Long story and embarrassing, will shorten it.....my brand new DID Gold Xring chain managed to end up a link short! Yes, I know, measure twice and all that........no need to rub it in! So, on my FZR 1000, do any of you think I can run two master links of the rivet type. My little brain is failing to see how running two can be any worse that running just one.......assuming I fit the buggars correctly! Thoughts......... ..

I have changed the bars already, the originals were rubbish and a crap riding position.. I do keep the bits and pieces I change in the event I sell any of them! If I put modern shocks on I would like to go the route of the remote canister, but gosh......the cost! I found Ohlins twin shocks available.......Man those are Bike Porn! Perhaps a rebuild and re valve of the originals will have to do.

I think I must give Up my T700 dream and focus on my Rex...ZRX1200R. Had a quote for some shiny new Bitubo Suspension bits front and rear, as well as checking out some Brembo stoppers........those bits alone would be a wonderful addition to the beast!

Yup, that is me......not that active there, I find that there are too many social media options available and for some reason I did not get on well with that site, honestly do not know why. 685 cc, hardly worth the effort really, surely not much power or torque to be gained in around 35cc. Tis just a model aerie engine more!

One of my mates here has just sold his 690 but kept both his older 640 adventure and 950. The reason above why I have kept my agricultural KLR and looking at the possible pricing of the Tenere700 the KLR is going to be a keeper. I have just done the Eagle Mike Doohicky conversion and the suspension is upgraded. Perhaps I may even go in for the 700cc big bore kit. One could argue the cost effectiveness on an old bike/design, but it sure is cheaper than a new bike. In any event even 5 to 8 hp more on a KLR would be noticeable!!!(even though it will still look ancient)

Man that 125 is sweet, I am developing an itch so to speak! I am sure there is room in my study for that little beastie!

Jeepers, awesome.....I used to fly little Lear 45’sin to George years ago, runway always looked short, imagine in that 74! Reminds me of a night we flew Kuwait to Nice in the Global, chasing a fast aerie across Europe, him below us, we doing .85 and hardly catching him. Then arriving in Nice he does a go around off the admittedly challenging VOR A/ Visual approach and we are cocky in the cockpit and taking the micky as we land on a beauts clear night with him doing his go around ahead of us.......Turns out it was a Qatar Royal Flight 747-800, a big aerie into Nice at night off that approach!!! We felt a little silly after that!