Fist ride in 16 weeks 6 days and 17 hours

WooOoo HooOoo.

As some may know I’ve moved to Hong Kong and don’t have a motorbike out
here, consequently I’ve been sitting inside looking out at the glorious
riding conditions like a kid in a cast when it’s snowing. A mate has
lent me an old XJ750 that has been slid down the road and not repaired,
dropped and has various bits of faring missing (it doesn’t help that
Yamaha gave it a severe beating with the ugly stick before it left the
factory) but is mechanically sound and is a perfect first big bike that
no one will mind me bending (except possibly me).

The roads here are uncommonly winding and steep with great, sweeping
curves on positive cambers and little hair pins littered all over them
interspersed with straights and all manner of different and exciting
road conditions. The weather at this time of year is generally cool,
clean, clear, crisp and sunny, and is generally the sort of thing an
English biker has dreams about (I know I did).

Anyhoo I’m sitting here looking for a way to relax my now painful cheek
mussels after a thoroughly delightful (if cautious) ride and thought the
assembled might have some advise for alleviating cheek cramp.

Also the bike back fires when engine braking, particularly if it’s
sustained and I know nothing about fuel injection, any ideas what’s
causing this, (other than fuel getting into the pipes and exploding, I
know that much), if I should worry about it and if so how can I fix it?

Ooo look I’ve got nothing to do for an hour or two… it’s mighty bright
out side…
…
<grabs keys runs out the door and foot steps recede>

--
Bob
Currently borrowing a black and red Yamaha XJ750 with fuel injection
Present: Honda XL125RF (FS)
Past: Honda CG125
bob at homeurl tomato dot co dot uk
remove the red fruit if you’d like to email me.

 

Re: subject - Not something I'd look forward to....

 

Before anyone says it, neither would I.

 

I can vouch for its unpleasantness, it’s boring, it fucks your
confidence and you forget witch end of the bike you get on, I’ve just
got back form a 50 mile blat round the twisties, I was riding like such
a prick I nearly kissed the floor when I got back.

It’ll come back but I just wish it hadn’t gone in the first place.

--
Bob
Currently borrowing a black and red Yamaha XJ750 with fuel injection
Present: Honda XL125RF (FS)
Past: Honda CG125
bob at homeurl tomato dot co dot uk
remove the red fruit if you’d like to email me.

 

Ah, one obviously missed the humourous typo in the subject header - or did
you?

 

Somebody should clean those up before someone gets hurt.

 

Ah..… yes…..



--
Bob
Currently borrowing a black and red Yamaha XJ750 with fuel injection
Present: Honda XL125RF (FS)
Past: Honda CG125
bob at homeurl tomato dot co dot uk
remove the red fruit if you’d like to email me.

 

You wait 'til summer when those *really* big bugs come out, the temperature
is 35C and the humidity is 97%. BTDTGTTS.
Best make the most of it while you can...

 

Yes, I can see the head line now “Daft English chap caught doing 100Mph
up Cotton Tree Drive on ugly motorbike in the nude claimed to be “Trying
to keep cool””, further down the article you will find a description of
the fight between the HK traffic police and fashion police over who gets
to prosecute me first.

I’m prepared for the fact that for a couple of months at least wearing
leathers will be impossible, unless someone invents a tank bag mounted
AC unit to pump cool air in to them, I would suggest at the groin.

I had a marvellous ride to Shek O yesterday afternoon on the
imaginatively named Shek O Road and I can’t think of a better road for a
hoon, I only wish it was longer.

--
Bob
Currently borrowing a black and red Yamaha XJ750 with fuel injection
Present: Honda XL125RF (FS)
Past: Honda CG125
bob at homeurl tomato dot co dot uk
remove the red fruit if you’d like to email me.

 

By the by, how long were you out here and when did you go back? We’ve
only been here 4 months so any pearls of wisdom on Hong Kong life
gratefully received.

--
Bob
Currently borrowing a black and red Yamaha XJ750 with fuel injection
Present: Honda XL125RF (FS)
Past: Honda CG125
bob at homeurl tomato dot co dot uk
remove the red fruit if you’d like to email me.

 

Buy umbrellas... ;-)

I was only there for 6 months, back in 1989. The time just before the
handover.
Any pearls of wisdom I had are probably way out of date.

I was working on the Eastern Island corridor before it was open and Tsing Yi
bridge before it was used as the main route from the new airport - I was
X-raying the road FFS!

The old airport was still open and I used to watch the planes as they banked
over the railway station in Kowloon =
I lived in Shatin, across the river from the horse racing complex, living in
a nice block of flats called "Ravana Gardens". They were just building a
restaurant on the river at the time.