droffarc
Race Dog
- Joined
- Jan 27, 2006
- Messages
- 1,375
- Reaction score
- 126
- Location
- Cape Toon - TransAlp XL650V 2004
- Bike
- Honda NC750X
Twas Sunday morning just after 10 when I left. I had just acquired a pair of foam earplugs, which I stuck gingerly in me earz. The hellmit I had was a Vemar and due to the heat (+- 29Deg. C) I removed the detachable cheek pads, which improves the airflow around the teeth, which I like. This however, increases the sound level, hence the earplugs – they work a treat!
There I went on the N1 freeway towards Paarl, with my back legs hooked on the passenger pegs, in my favorite seating position, with not a care in the world. Once away from the urban area, I squeezed the Tranny up to 140km/h and it was like I was sitting on my throne.
You may note that I have the MRA taller screen fitted and, like on the screen of me olde CX500 twenty odd years ago, I have used a strip of french car inner door weather strip as a finisher. I tried it with the bulge on the outside and boy! Did I get buffeting! So now it is with the bulge on the inside and I get absolootly no buffeting at all. With the ears plugged and at 140km/h it was like riding in a dream.
I left the N1 at the Butterfly world near Klapmuts and went on through to Franschoek. Lotsa bikes passed me going home from their breakfast runs. Lotsa Sunday drivers at Franschoek soaking the sun and gorging at the restaurants.
By now it was very hot and I pitied the guys in their black leathers and black helmets crouching on their uncomfortable little (big) racing bikes, with their pillions sitting up in the air in the hot sun. I have never worn leathers and never will. I have (a few) rather expensive white long sleeve T shirts from CapeStorm which are great. They are called “Vapour Trail” and have wicking properties so that my whole upper body is covered from the sun, the material is white which reflects the heat away, the sweat is wicked to the surface of the shirt and evaporates and the wind goes right through the material. This keeps me cool and dry, at the end of the day in the sun I am just sticky but never aware of being swetty.
Up over the Franchoek pass I encountered a group of cruiser riders, some may have been Hurly Davizons, I didn’t bother looking. A colleague of mine has a Honda 750 Magna and says he cannot even get 130km/h out of it. These bikes just look uncomfortable to me tho the missus (who teaches art) says they are aesthetically good looking. For my money give me functionality and comfort – and my Tranny looks great too!
Passed the Theewaterskloof dam which has more dust than water in at the moment – we have restrictions on water use due to the drought. From here on towards the N2 the wind started picking up and eventually my helmet was pressed hard against my cheek ( shoulda brought the cheek pads with) and was not very pleasant. Went through to Caledon where I stepped in at the SPAR to get something to eat and drink along the road as it was just after midday. Retraced a few km to the turnoff for Genadendal. At the entrance to this little settlement which started off as a mission station in the years before my time there is a large shady shrub beside the road and a wall with glass cases and a table with a thatched roof covering, giving shade from the lunchtime sun. I had planned to stop under a shady tree and munch me lunch but I shoulda known better – no self respecting tree would grow along the road in this area.
After munching I took a ride into the settlement and ended up at the town square. This consisted of a number of historic buildings, a church, the old slave bell and a museam um which was closed. All of this was covered in the coolest most shady trees you could think of. There is also a furrow with running water. Drat! Shoulda had me lunch here. Not a soul in sight but later a rather bedraggled dog sauntered up, sniffed at the Tranny and must have liked it cos he didn’t pee on it but lay down beside it all friendly like.
About 8km further on is Greyton. What a lovely place. It has probably the shadiest main road I have ever seen. Here and there are restaurants with people sitting on porches enlarging their paunches. Really a quiet pleasant place with a walking trail and a backdrop of mountains. I could retire here.
The plan was to take the gravel road to Riversonderend and then back to Caledon and across, via the gravel road to Hermanus and then home along the coastal road. So along the gravel road I went at about 80km/h. I had just passed the sign for the Blue Hippo (see in the background of the pic) when I felt something nudge me from behind. The missus never nudges me so gently and besides, she was at home with her visiting mother. ‘Ere, what the ?? Where’s me top box gone? I peeked in the mirror at the now open space. I stopped and turned the bike around and retraced to where I found the topbox resting rather sheepishly under a shady tree alongside the road.
“Wonder how that happened?” I mumbled attempting to re-attach the case but it wouldne click. The lip part of the base plate that the lock clicks onto was still inside the lock so there was nothing to click onto!
“That’s a bit of a bugger” I said to no-one who was crowding around me inquisitively. “So, if it won’t attach to the bike, how the hell am I going to get it home?” Where the hell is Gandalf when you need him?
I cast around and eventually found a length of orange twine near the hippo sign which I used to secure the case to the base plate and retraced my path to the N2. Once on the N2 the wind was gusting with a vengeance, so much so that it sometimes pushed me onto the wrong side of the road. After Botriver and over the Houhoek pass the wind improved but was still strong. At Grabouw I pulled in to Peregrins farm stall for some liquid refreshment and bought a still warm from the oven loaf of raisin bread. I noted that from the wind pushing my helmet my wire framed ray ban sunglasses were now sitting quite skew. All the time the top box held position, so my knots were quite adequate.
Over Sir Lowry’s pass to Somerset West and then on through to Firgrove. Almost got totaled by a car that ignored a stop sign – was a little slow finding the button for the hooter while also slowing down, pulling on the brake and moving me foot to the brake pedal and making evasive maneuvers in one fluid action. Whew! Then on to the R300, N1 and home.
I had to cut the top box loose and console myself to spending more money on another top box. The ride, apart from the wind, was very enjoyable and the Tranny was not as dirty as it was the previous weekend when I went to Citrusdal via Ceres.
There I went on the N1 freeway towards Paarl, with my back legs hooked on the passenger pegs, in my favorite seating position, with not a care in the world. Once away from the urban area, I squeezed the Tranny up to 140km/h and it was like I was sitting on my throne.
You may note that I have the MRA taller screen fitted and, like on the screen of me olde CX500 twenty odd years ago, I have used a strip of french car inner door weather strip as a finisher. I tried it with the bulge on the outside and boy! Did I get buffeting! So now it is with the bulge on the inside and I get absolootly no buffeting at all. With the ears plugged and at 140km/h it was like riding in a dream.
I left the N1 at the Butterfly world near Klapmuts and went on through to Franschoek. Lotsa bikes passed me going home from their breakfast runs. Lotsa Sunday drivers at Franschoek soaking the sun and gorging at the restaurants.
By now it was very hot and I pitied the guys in their black leathers and black helmets crouching on their uncomfortable little (big) racing bikes, with their pillions sitting up in the air in the hot sun. I have never worn leathers and never will. I have (a few) rather expensive white long sleeve T shirts from CapeStorm which are great. They are called “Vapour Trail” and have wicking properties so that my whole upper body is covered from the sun, the material is white which reflects the heat away, the sweat is wicked to the surface of the shirt and evaporates and the wind goes right through the material. This keeps me cool and dry, at the end of the day in the sun I am just sticky but never aware of being swetty.
Up over the Franchoek pass I encountered a group of cruiser riders, some may have been Hurly Davizons, I didn’t bother looking. A colleague of mine has a Honda 750 Magna and says he cannot even get 130km/h out of it. These bikes just look uncomfortable to me tho the missus (who teaches art) says they are aesthetically good looking. For my money give me functionality and comfort – and my Tranny looks great too!
Passed the Theewaterskloof dam which has more dust than water in at the moment – we have restrictions on water use due to the drought. From here on towards the N2 the wind started picking up and eventually my helmet was pressed hard against my cheek ( shoulda brought the cheek pads with) and was not very pleasant. Went through to Caledon where I stepped in at the SPAR to get something to eat and drink along the road as it was just after midday. Retraced a few km to the turnoff for Genadendal. At the entrance to this little settlement which started off as a mission station in the years before my time there is a large shady shrub beside the road and a wall with glass cases and a table with a thatched roof covering, giving shade from the lunchtime sun. I had planned to stop under a shady tree and munch me lunch but I shoulda known better – no self respecting tree would grow along the road in this area.
After munching I took a ride into the settlement and ended up at the town square. This consisted of a number of historic buildings, a church, the old slave bell and a museam um which was closed. All of this was covered in the coolest most shady trees you could think of. There is also a furrow with running water. Drat! Shoulda had me lunch here. Not a soul in sight but later a rather bedraggled dog sauntered up, sniffed at the Tranny and must have liked it cos he didn’t pee on it but lay down beside it all friendly like.
About 8km further on is Greyton. What a lovely place. It has probably the shadiest main road I have ever seen. Here and there are restaurants with people sitting on porches enlarging their paunches. Really a quiet pleasant place with a walking trail and a backdrop of mountains. I could retire here.
The plan was to take the gravel road to Riversonderend and then back to Caledon and across, via the gravel road to Hermanus and then home along the coastal road. So along the gravel road I went at about 80km/h. I had just passed the sign for the Blue Hippo (see in the background of the pic) when I felt something nudge me from behind. The missus never nudges me so gently and besides, she was at home with her visiting mother. ‘Ere, what the ?? Where’s me top box gone? I peeked in the mirror at the now open space. I stopped and turned the bike around and retraced to where I found the topbox resting rather sheepishly under a shady tree alongside the road.
“Wonder how that happened?” I mumbled attempting to re-attach the case but it wouldne click. The lip part of the base plate that the lock clicks onto was still inside the lock so there was nothing to click onto!
“That’s a bit of a bugger” I said to no-one who was crowding around me inquisitively. “So, if it won’t attach to the bike, how the hell am I going to get it home?” Where the hell is Gandalf when you need him?
I cast around and eventually found a length of orange twine near the hippo sign which I used to secure the case to the base plate and retraced my path to the N2. Once on the N2 the wind was gusting with a vengeance, so much so that it sometimes pushed me onto the wrong side of the road. After Botriver and over the Houhoek pass the wind improved but was still strong. At Grabouw I pulled in to Peregrins farm stall for some liquid refreshment and bought a still warm from the oven loaf of raisin bread. I noted that from the wind pushing my helmet my wire framed ray ban sunglasses were now sitting quite skew. All the time the top box held position, so my knots were quite adequate.
Over Sir Lowry’s pass to Somerset West and then on through to Firgrove. Almost got totaled by a car that ignored a stop sign – was a little slow finding the button for the hooter while also slowing down, pulling on the brake and moving me foot to the brake pedal and making evasive maneuvers in one fluid action. Whew! Then on to the R300, N1 and home.
I had to cut the top box loose and console myself to spending more money on another top box. The ride, apart from the wind, was very enjoyable and the Tranny was not as dirty as it was the previous weekend when I went to Citrusdal via Ceres.
