jeffrymcgee
Training Wheels
Today was my first tour (if you can call it that) on my Concours 14 ABS. It was 150 miles over about 4 hours, from Murfreesboro, TN, to Monteagle, TN, and back. It was 85 degrees F and sunny, i.e., a beautiful day for a ride! The purpose of the trip was to get the bike up to speed and work out any bugs, if any, in preparation for longer rides. I left out of Murfreesboro at 9:30 a.m. on Hwy. 41 South (2 lanes) towards Monteagle, which is up in some low mountains. The road is basically flat for most of the trip, but when you get close to Monteagle and start up the mountain, it gets curvy real fast, especially after getting used to running straight at 60 mph. There is one really nice hairpin curve! I arrived in Monteagle at 11:00 a.m. and stopped at McD's for a quick bite before heading back towards Murfreesboro. I left McD's at about 11:30 a.m. and took Hwy. 41A North (2 lanes), for the ride back. Hwy. 41A is longer and not as fun as Hwy. 41. The ride off of the mountain is too short , there are too many towns to go through, and too many 18 wheelers to blow you around. I took 41A North all the way to Eagleville before turning onto Hwy. 99 East (2 lanes) for Murfreesboro. Hwy. 99 East, near Eagleville, is under construction. They're making it 4 lanes, so there are a lot of dump trucks and rocks on the road, making it not so fun. I arrived back in Murfreesboro at 1:30 p.m. Lessons learned... I said my trip was to work out any problems with the bike and my gear. First, the seat has to be changed! My butt is killing me!!! And it was only 4 hours at about 60 mph. Second, I could use the extended windshield. I had the windshield all the way down, which kept me very cool, but when I raised it all the way up, the blast knocked my head around pretty good. Third, my gloves are not very comfortable. My left palm felt like it was going to blister and the fingers on my right hand started tingling after a few minutes of riding. I think my glove may be cutting off circulation. Finally, the heat coming off of the engine on the right side was considerably more than on the left side. I plan to adjust the foam on the right side to reduce the heat. Other than that, it was a great ride, but I'm very tired! Until next time...