My work has moved to a new location, and my new commute pretty much sucks. Instead of a straight shot across the bridge, I now have to travel down one of the most hellish highways in the Bay Area all the way down to Santa Clara. After a couple of weeks of experimentation it looks like the early morning carpool lane on the motorcycle, combined with frequent telecommuting will be the best strategy.
Speaking of the motorcycles, I've been riding the Tuono pretty much exclusively. Other than a crack forming around the inlet of the exhaust can, there have been no major problems to report. I swapped the stock can back on, and I'm now contemplating whether to just leave it so or replace it with something like an Arrow, Leo Vince, or the default Akrapovic (pronounced “A-krap’-o-vich” apparently). It seems a shame to leave the stock boat anchor on an Italian motorcycle, but the truth is that this is a street bike. It's not a track bike, or a show piece, so there's no need to impress anyone. Also, my early morning starts have made a bit self-conscious of the noise I'm making in the neighborhood. Buuut, I'm interested in the Arrows because I heard them on our friend's Ducati at the MotoGP this year, and it had a nice low, mellow tone. Powerful, but not at all loud.
At any rate, that will have to wait since the moto repair budget is currently allocated to the Legend and the V-Strom. I ordered new clutch parts for the Strom in an attempt to alleviate its gronkiness. I'll be doing the work myself, because I just can't bring myself to trust a dealer with it. This procedure is pretty straightforward, as several other owners have performed it with success. However, some have had to do it more than once after the gronkiness returned.
Sorry, no news on the SV front. :^(
After all this is done, I need to plan a ride. I think I'm going a bit stir crazy.
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