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Tell us about yourself and your bike!

What the heck

I live in Hampton, VA with my wonderful wife Laura and the 6 cats and three dogs that own us... What can we say, stray animals show up and our vehicles don't know the way to the SPCA. We're into the usual camping, canoing, motorcycles, etc. Focus is our land off the Blue Ridge Parkway we purchased 4 years ago.

Started out on a 1975 Yamaha DT100 as a teenager. Next bike I ever rode was a friends R75/5 when I was 16. Since then a Suzuki GS1000, R65, R100RS, R50/5, K100RS, K75S, Suzuki DR350, R1100RT. Sold the RT, RS, and DR to get down to one bike - 1100GS. Not shortly after a friend was selling a Ducati 900SSFE and I was going to think about it, until my wife walked up and said, "That bike is beautiful, you should buy it." So much for one bike.....

I'm a daily, year round commuter on the GS and use if for business trips (hey they pay mileage and I get to ride - DC a lot, Boston, Dallas, Tennessee, GA, and other places).

Didn't ride many miles last year due to clearing brush and building buildings on our property. Hoping to catch the MOA and RA rallies this year as well as a ride to Goose Bay, Canada (my birthplace, how many people can say that!).
 

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sweet looking ducati. dang. julie claire (my honey) had a 750 ducati monster for about a year. scared the pants off her and she sold it. i got to ride it a few times (you know, so nothing would seize up or get rusty) and even though it was a tad small for me (6.3 225) it was a gas to ride.
welcome aboard.
 
Ducati

It was a lucky find - saw it in the back of BMWON magazine and it was owned by an aquaintance.

This thing will put a smile on anyones face! Granted it's not an all day ride or commuter, but I dare anyone to go out and ride some back roads for a few hours and not come back with a huge smile on their face!

For all the distance and daily stuff I'm happy with my GS.
 

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attempt....

If this attached correctly, it will show a photo of my GiGi on the far left, Leon's RT in the middle, and my uncle's Goldwing on the right. They are posing in front of the Canadian Rockies last July. :D
 

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Now THAT is a pretty picture! The Canadian Rockies rock. Thanks for sharing. :thumb
 
Glacier Green RT

Jackie, good color choice on the RT! I really enjoyed my '97 - was flawless for 48K miles.

Somewhere in West Virginia........
 

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Newbie Here

My name is Carroll Ensor. I am 49, and live in Maryland, North of Baltimore. Bought my first BMW in March of 03, and absolutely love the bike, which is a R1150RT. I took a 20 year leave of absence from motorcycling to do the family thing. Kids are pretty much grown and wife approves. She does ride with me, but only on shorter trips.
When I was a teenager my family was involved in Motorcycle racing. We participated in both Motocross, Dirt Track, and Enduro racing. My interest and passion for motorcycling never wained, but other obligations kept me from it.
A couple of years ago I was lusting for a Harley Road King, and actually came real close to purchasing one. My good friend Tim from Durango, CO suggested that at the very least I should test ride a Beemer. I took his advice and know I made the right choice. Both great machines, but vastly different in there characteristics. The BMW is more suited to my needs.
The first year I rode about 7,000 miles, and this year I put close to 9,000 on the RT. Mostly short trips, rallies and weekend get aways. I joined BMW Riders of DC (www.bmwbmw.org), and have really enjoyed making new friends, and riding with club members.
I really want to do a ride out West to visit my buddy in Durango this year. Thought I would ride out to Durango, then North to Yellowstone, the East to the Black Hills, and home. I figure on taking 15 to 18 days to do this trip. Any words of wisdom from the Long Distance Touring guru's would be appreciated. Hope to make a lot of new friends here.

Carroll

censor46@hotmail.com

2003 Silver R1150RT
 

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caroll - welcome aboard. if you search around the forum you will find some threads with traveling tips. nice to have you join us, looks like you have the biking/camping thing going strong.
jackie - many of use are eagerly awaiting the disappearnce of the ice!
 
Welcome censor46, may I offer BMW Motorcycle photography lesson#1,
the bike goes in front of the tent for picture taking purposes! Unless of course you are posting in the "What tent should I buy" thread! :p
 
I'm also a newbie....

I said hello in the Kbike tech forum, but I reckon I should introduce myself here as well. I'm John, I'm 33 from Tucson AZ, an active duty member of the Arizona Air National Guard, and I'm a newbie in every sense of the word. I grew up around bikes but never bought one for various reasons until last year. I took the MSF beginner's rider course in September and bought my 1990 K75s in October after test riding a co-worker's 87 K75s. When I bought my bike it only had 19,400 miles on it. When I got home today I noticed it has 21,998 on it now. I've been on several local rides with friends and recently took the MSF experienced rider course since it was offered at my base for free. I'm looking forward to the roadrunner rally in Heber, AZ in May....my first motorcycle camping trip.

JQ

P1010438.jpg


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Wow! Very kewl bike and photos! Welcome! and thanks for sharing!

~jackie
'99 glacier green RT GiGi aka "PSYCHL"
PDX
well behaved women rarely make history...
Blue Knights Oregon I, IBA #16940
 
Tell us about your bike and yourself

My name is John Ephlin, I live in Los Lunas New Mexico, have lived here for about 13 years, prior to that I lived in Las Vegas Nevada for 23 years. Baught my first bike in 1947, an 80CI flat head harley 1938 model. kept it for 3 days the 3rd dime it put me in the celing of the garage (kick back) I traded it for a 21CIIndian scout. I spent 20 years in the Air Force and 20 years at Titanium Metals Corp of America in Henderson Nevada, retired from there in 1990 and moved to New Mexico in 1992, couldn't stand the heat in Nevada any longer. I have had so many bikes I can't remember them all, at one time I had 13 of all kinds. My present rides are an 03 F650GS and an 05 ST1300, and will go for a ride at the drop of a hat.
 
Meet the transplanted Cajun

My name is Matthew Guidry and I am 29y.o. I currently live in West BY GOD Virginia, but I was born and raised in Lafayette, LA. I have wanted a BMW motorcycle since I was about 10 y.o. when I learned that they had a drive shaft. I thought that was the coolest thing. School and work and life got in the way until we moved to Charleston. I figured out that WV is a great place to ride a motorcycle and I needed a BMW. Once I learned about the BMW culture and how you guys(now me too) really RIDE, I had to get my own. I decided that getting a bike from the year of my birth (1975) would be great, but I ended up with a 1977 R100RS instead. I feel I have fully indoctrinated myself into the BMW fold by attending several rallies including the Finger Lakes and the VIntage Days last year. I have met some great people, many who are now good friends. The only bad thing about living WV is that I am relatively isolated from other riders and clubs. Check out the pictures and let me know what you think. I send another picture of me with my girl next.


Matthew Guidry
'wvcajun'
 

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There I am.

I think this one was taken when I was leaving for the BMW riders Campout at the Laurel Highlands.

MG
 

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Hey Matthew,

Sweet ride--and you look good on it, too. Send us some images in a ride report and let us all see how good that WV riding is.
 
you look ready for bear. nice scoot. we want to see a big beemer smile in future pics!
 
Ok

I don't know exactly what a big beemer smile looks like. I was trying to go for that "I'm a BAD mamma jamma, don't mess with me" face.
I would be happy to provide ride reports for the rallies I attend this season. I only started last summer with the rally thing because I bought that(my first) bike in Oct 03. I realize now that I didn't take nearly enough photos of rides, rallies, scenery, people, or bikes. This summer, it is my mission to get something (photo, story, letter) in the ON.

MG
 
i can't believe i never posted in here, sorry about that!


so it was a quiet day in downtown boston on April 28th, 2004. I was working a Celtics playoff game and they were down 0-3 to the Pacers in the first round, so it was one of those lazy days where you knew you were done at the Fleet Center for the season. I took a walk over the 7/11 after setting the mics and picked up a want advertiser. fortune was smiling on me for in that want ad was the key to my happiness. you see, for about a month prior to this, i'd been fiddling with a 1980 CB750F ($420 on ebay, needs "minor work"):

img_0634.jpg



well, that minor work turned out to be 2 cylinders w/no compression and some burned valves. i never really felt good about the bike and i just wanted something cheap to get started with (this was my first motorcycle, i'd had a 63 vespa back in high school, but you know........). anyway, i'd always loved the look of the airheads, but felt a bmw was out of my price range at the time

till i picked up that want ad!

1984 R100, runs great, needs cosmetics:

IMG_0777.JPG


cosmetics for sure! but it did run nicely, even if the starter button was missing and i had to rub a wire on the handlebar for a week (not to mention i HAD to get rid of those attrocious handlebars) anyway, $1500 bucks and i had a running bike who's only immediate concern was it's front tire, which i quickly replaced. over the course of the summer i also put bar ends on my new /5 euro bars, dismantled and cleanded the carbs, painted the frame and engine and did various other mechanical things in preperation for THE BIG TRIP.

a friend of mine had recently purchased his first bike as well, a 2001 ducati 750SS and we'd been talking about taking an extended cross country trip. so thats what we did, i quit my job and headed west, hoping to find some place i liked enough to settle out there, details here : http://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?t=3947&highlight=boston+seattle

greetings from new mexico, my spaceship is parked over that hill:

R100.jpg


well, long story short, after 2 months of riding, i hurt myself bad enough to warrant going back home for possible surgery/rehab (dont' worry, i didn't do it on the bike) got home and realized the move out west wasn't gonna happen and managed, somehow to get my old job back. i thought about my airhead, and the good possibility i'd never see it again. so i took the no money i had and bought a 99 R1100S:

R1100S.jpg


i managed to sell the airhead to my friend on the west coast who was holding it for me for an even sweeter deal than i got it for (it badly needed the top end re-done, the exhaust valves were hurting by the end of the trip) so now i've got my oilhead and the world is at peace w/itself

bio: my name is derek hirons, i'm 24 and have been motorcycling for a little less than a year. i work in the educational field as an A/V tech/part time unofficial audio professor, i also do sports tv audio freelancing on the side. i have no kids, no wife, no dog and no comitments, aside from spending all my money on motorcycle related stuff and having fun. defenetly refusing to grow up, hahah :drink
 
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