Another Ride That Never Was

12/10/2013

My luck with going on branch rides has struck again.

I was up early this morning, ready to join the branch on the ride to Warwick for the "Bikes Thru The Bar" ride.

As the ride was going to be "up" the range, I decided I'd take Crash out for a spin and get a few more K's under our belt before we head down to Tassie at the end of November. Trailer connected & plugged in, jacket and gloves on, I was ready to go. Turn the key and hit the starter..............nothing.

Checking the battery showed on 11.4 volts, not enough to start the bike.  Trailer disconnected, battery removed and charger fired up, I knew I'd be pushing to make the ride.

45 minutes later, battery fully charged and put back in the bike.  Starts first time so it didn't look like it was going to be too bad a day after all as I'd just be able to catch up with the branch before they left.  Connecting the trailer I noticed the wiring was a little loose, but didn't take any notice.  All dressed again, I started checking the lights, indicators and horn.....nothing. Bike runs but none of the electrics are working. I knew now todays ride wasn't going to happen.

Turning off the bike, I disconnected the trailer and opened up the battery box for a second time.  Checking the fuses I found 3 blown fuses - trailer wiring, indicators and headlight....strange. Checking my spare fuses, I found I was 2 spares short so it was a quick trip to the local bike shop to pick up sufficient fuses to replace the blown ones and a few spares incase they blew again. $24 dollars later, I was back home with 5 fuses, ready to get the bike back up and running.

As the trailer wiring fuse has blown, I checked the wiring to the trailer connector....there's my problem...all 7 wires had pulled loose from the connector. It was then I realised I must have been a little too aggressive when I relocated the wiring last weekend. Not a problem I thought, I'll just grab the wiring diagram I used when I installed the tow bar.....wrong. I had a clean up a few weeks ago and threw out the diagram as I didn't think I'd ever need it again.

A long searching session on google finally located the wiring diagram I needed and I was ready to connect the wires. Then I through - "Did I wire the connection up the same was as the diagram says?".  I was reasonably sure I had, so 5 minutes of wire trimming and screw tightening and I was ready to rock. Grabbing my volt meter, I checked everything and it seemed to be OK.  Fuses in & trailer connected, I restarted the bike.

Bike starts - check

Left Indicator - check

Right Indicator - check

Brake Light - check

Horn - check

Under Bike Lights and Driving Lights - check.

Problem resolved. 

Here's the plug wiring for my bike:

I was now ready to go for the ride. It's a pity it was now about midday and by the time I got to Warwick everyone would be heading home, so no ride to Warwick. Maybe next weekend...oh hang on, I'm On-Call next weekend, so I doubt I'll be able to get out, but you never know.....

Thursty

PS: I worked out why the battery went flat. It seems the loose wiring in the trailer plug created a circuit, allowing the charge to leak. I looks like this was the case for a week & when I attached the trailer plug it brought all the wires together, blowing the fuses. So I guess this means I butchered my bike....but don't tell anyone.

Crash's First Day Out

25/08/2013

I haven't had many opportunities to ride in the past 12 months due to work and family commitments. I haven't been on a branch ride for several months and I decide today I was getting out no matter what to join in with the rest of the branch on the inaugural Cartwheel Ride.

Ready to leave home, my work phone went off...another problem at work that needed attention. Picking up the phone, I knew I wasn't going on the ride.

Two hours later, the work issue was resolved and I was free again. Unfortunately, the ride had already left, so there was no way I could catch up, mainly due to the fact that I had no idea where they were going. I did, however, know where the ride was scheduled to finish, so I thought it would be a good chance to load up the trailer and take Crash out for a spin.

Loaded up with all the gear I was planning on taking to Tasmania in December (all 70kgs of it) I attached the trailer, performed some final checks and adjusted the tyre pressure, and I was off to Aratula, a short 30 minutes ride away.

Being the first time I'd taken the trailer out fully loaded, I was a little cautious leaving home, but slowly gained confidence. After working my way through the suburban roads, I entered the highway at Yamanto and merged in wth the traffic.

Starting off at about 80, I slowly increased my speed, constantly checking the trailer to make sure it wasn't swaying or bouncing around. Before too long, I was cruising along at 110 with the trailer sticking closely behind.  So far, so good.

Now for the next test. Four B-doubles were heading towards me, so I placed my foot over the brake in case the trailer started moving around as they passed. Turns out it wasn't necessary as Crash stayed straight and true, no buffeting from the passing trucks.  

Now that I was feeling more confident, it was time to push a little harder. I put the bike through several emergency stops and emergency evasion procedures. Not once did the bike feel out of control or unstable. Happy with the results so far, I sped up and headed to the Aratula Hotel to catch up with the rest of the branch.

I arrived at Aratula to find over one hundred bikes already there, with more arriving. Getting off the bike, I caught up with a few of the branch members and gave my apology for not joining in on the ride. 

Several soft drinks (and quite a few sausages later, I bid my farewells and got back on the road. Leaving the pub, I headed towards Moogerah Dam so I could take the trailer through its paces on roads similar to wheat I was expecting in Tasmania - rough narrow roads, semi-sealed tracks, steep inclines and declines, twisties and open highways.

No matter what type of road I went on, Crash held on, not complaining or causing any issues with the bikes handling. Heading home via Kalbar, I now felt confident enough that I could take on any road conditions (in the dry) without having to worry too much about having the trailer on the back.

Today's total mileage was 274k... not bad for a first day out.

I'm feeling a lot more confident towing the trailer, but I'll need to put on a few more K's before I head down to Tassie. Next trip, maybe Miles or Goondiwindi for an overnighter.

And there is a long weekend coming up soon - maybe a chance to do some real K's.

Until next time, ride safe.

Thursty