Excellent Day

Today the weather was about as good as it can get in the NW for this time of year. Beautiful clear skies and temps in the upper 50's. Tomorrow it is suppose to rain and there is a chance of more snow by Sunday.

I went for a bicycle ride today. It was not very far, 10.4 statute miles from home down town and back. The route is hilly on the return.

Then went for a motorcycle ride to Bainbridge Island and back. I have done some more work on the motorcycle and it runs a lot better and I feel more confident that it is reliable enough to take longer day trips. I would like to go to Port Townsend the next time the weather gets nice. What I really would like to do though is buy a new motorcycle. The last one I bought was in 1982, and I am still riding it. One of my early blogs from summer 2008 shows pictures of it.

Here is a picture of what could be my next motorcycle. It is a Buell Ulysses XB12X. They call it an "Adventure Sportbike". It has most of the same features of the rest of the Buell line except the suspension is beefed up and the ground clearance increased to give it fire road capability as well as touring ability. I need to take a test ride yet, but this seems to fit my needs. Reports are that it is still comfortable on the road and luggage can be retrofitted if storage is needed for longer trips. The weight is quite light and the center of gravity is low in these bikes. The engine is based on the Harley V-twin with 73.4 cubic inch displacement, 103 hp and 84 ft/lbs of torque. I like the engineering that has been put into these bikes. Sorry Scott and Dave, I really don't find anything in the HD line that I like. I did look at the new Sporster XR1200, but it really did not appeal to me that much. Suprisingly, I don't find much in the Japanese line either. After being a hard core Honda guy for nearly 40 years, it may be time for a change.




Now for the trivia experts lurking out there. Here is the distance that I rode the bicycle today:

10.4 statute miles= 9.037352896 Nautical Miles=16.7371776 Kilometers(when converted using a calculator and false accuracy (as an instructor informed me once)) and :

10.4 statute miles=9.04 Nautical Miles=16.70 Kilometers (when converted using a slide rule)

The computer on the bicycle can record distances in Statute miles or Kilometers. I leave it on Statute Miles. If I ride to the boat and want to know how far it is in Nautical Miles, I need to convert from Statute Miles.

I know, it really does not make a difference and the only time I use Nautical Miles is when I am underway on the boat for distances that the boat travels or needs to travel and kilometers only when I am traveling on land outside our country. The traditional definition of a Nautical Mile is one minute of arc along a meridian or line of longitude. One degree=60 minutes. Angle from north pole to equator=90 degrees= 5400 minutes=5400 nautical miles. Ok, I am sorry to try to lecture! Schools out!