24 October 2011
By CrudMop
In General Junk
Looky Looky – BMWMOA and Revzilla have another contest going for some free stuff
http://bmwmoarally.com/motorcycle-adventure-blog-contest
What does touring or adventure riding mean to you?
To me? It means that somewhere outside of the sad dreary confines of my lifeless office there are places and people who are living a life far more exciting and enriching that those of us shackled to an office – and that sometimes, on 2 wheels, we can catch a glimpse of it and hold it close. Even if for but a moment.
Revzilla is my, without question, favorite accessory shop out there – great links to vids describing their products, run by a shop of riders who actually seem to give a damn. And, good prices. Free stuff makes it even better 
Go check ‘em out.

10 February 2011
By CrudMop
In General Junk
It’s photo meme time again over at Fuzzygalore.com
Photo Meme: Trees
One summer day back in 2003 I took a spin down by the inner coastline of the Great South Bay, and stopped by Tanner Park in Copaigue and caught a quick picture of my then near-new 2003 636 by a lonely tree down by the water.
Sorry for the size, but this was taken with a little Elph that had like, hmmm, 2 centipixels? :)

Picnicking with my 2003 636
26 January 2011
By CrudMop
In General Junk
A little photo tag from Fuzzygalore.com…

New River Gorge Bridge, West Virginia
On our way down to Deal’s Gap in 2004, we made a route change and decided to go head over to the New River Gorge Bridge to see what all the hubbub was about. It turns out the hubbub was right – it’s an amazing span with breathtaking views from above and below if you head down to the observation overlook along the river’s edge. The bridge is so high and large it almost looks like it was created with special effects.
16 December 2010
By CrudMop
In General Junk
12 December 2010
By CrudMop
In The Alps, Travel
The San Bernardino Pass was definitely one of my favorites. Maybe my favorite all around.
We snaked our way up and down the pass after stopping at a small grocery in the town of Splugen.

Water and a snack in Splugen
The way the road is laid out, the quality of the pavement (and the color, which made it very easy to read), the varying landscapes and shift in elevation made for an amazing ride. IIRC (and I say that loosely, some of the passes are blending together in my memory and I find it hard to separate some parts from others), the front side climbed up the face of the mountain, surrounding by bright green grass and a steep set of corners etched into the edge of the mountain. The lush grasses and blue skies added an amazing colorful contrast to the grey snake of pavement – it was absolutely beautiful.

San Bernardino Pass

The San Bernardino Pass
At the top is a small lake and restaurant, much like many of the other passes. We saw a few guys milling around a couple of new Multistradas, with camera crew and photogs in tow – THAT must be a horrible job, being FORCED to test bikes on those roads.

Restaurant at the top of San Bernardino

At the top of the San Bernardino Pass
Coming down the back side (to us), the road opened up into a racetrack with more fantastic elevation changes and what appeared to be a missile silo (Pimmie later informed me that I was an idiot, and that the silo was actually one of the vent tubes bringing fresh air to the San Bernardino Tunnel found deep below us). Sheesh.

San Bernardino becomes a racetrack

Pimmie and I on San Bernardino

Me and My Sweet, Mademoiselle Fuzzy Galore
Riding the Alps