I’ve been on the bike now for 2 days getting to Phoenix, with an overnight stop in Santa Clarita. Left home in solid rain, standing water in some places along the road and busy roadways. I was keeping my concentration and focus in good shape until I passed the only other motorbike I saw in the morning, a Hells Angel on his harley was reading his cell phone on the freeway. Maybe I am over thinking this a little.
After stopping for gas, getting rid of my rain gear and watching a guy walk his lizard in the parking lot I made my way without further ado to Santa Clarita. The ride to Phoenix was in the warmth shedding layers like, well, a lizard along the way.
Two observations on the bike so far. First it is more subject to freeway wind shedding off vehicles like trucks and vans than my other motorbikes. At first I thought the bike had a miss or bad gas as it seemed to hesitate off and on, but finally figured out it was just the wind. Secondly, the fuel range is less than I thought. I am getting a bit less than 40 mpg, less than my Ducati. Seems a bit odd, but just something to get used to. I did a test to see how the reserve system worked and managed to get to 12 miles on the countdown reserve before pulling into a Chevron. Didn’t want to stand out in the heat of the desert waiting for gas. That is for lizards.
