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Oh, boy...am I embarassed...

flyrider

Morning Person
Recently returned to riding after 25 year hiatus. Ordered a 2012 F800ST and waited the interminable 2 1/2 months for production and delivery (during which time I took a safety and skills course and read every good riding safety/skills book out there). Bikes today have more technology than back in the 1980's...which is why I'm embarassed. My new BMW has grip heaters...and I knew that when I picked it up. Two positions on the heaters...low and high. For some reason, I never thought to check the switch after I picked up the bike (after all, why would the switch be on in summer?), and rode for 600 miles over 2 weeks, in summer temperatures, with the switch on low heat. I kept thinking my short leather gloves were just too damn hot for summer and ordered some textile gloves. The day the textile gloves arrived, I discovered the grip heater on "low". I started laughing out loud...the motorcycle gods really got me that time...:)

Next ride, I wore the leather gloves again, with the heat off. Wow, were those grips so nice and cool...:thumb

Anyone else ever do anything dumb? Nah...probably not...
 
Group of Beemer guys on a Sunday ride. One fellow's bike wouldn't start after a stop. Everyone looked and offered opinions, still didn't start.
Bike was trailered to the dealer where the mechanic came out and flipped the kill switch to the run position..............

And no, it wasn't me.
 
On my first ride over 100 miles on my 05 RT, my ass was hurting something fierce. How in the heck was I going to ride 4 or 500 miles if I could not make 100. I was shifting left, right, forward, back... But it was just BURNING...

Yep, somehow, I had inadvertantly turned the seat heater on to HIGH... After I stopped to walk around & stretch, I discovered the switch was on. I now check it mid ride a bunch.
 
Did a 724 mile day from Asheville NC to Vicksberg, MS and toured the battlefield (very cool). Had to be home next day and wanted to ride the Natchez Trace so I go up at 3am and headed out. Was probably 400 miles into the trip and just couldn't get comfortable on my Russell Day-long and was chalking it up to the long day the day before. Finally decided to stop and take a leak only to discover that I had my moisture wicking underwear on backwards with the fly in the back.

Just embarrassing because I was too stupid to dress myself correctly
 
Woodnsteel and I spent about a week trying to figure out why we couldn't get the headlights to go on on my new-to-me R80. Wiring seemed fine, bulb seemed fine. Finally noted the PO had put a Euro-only perch on the handlebar. You know...the one with the headlight on/off switch.....

Mac
 
Group of Beemer guys on a Sunday ride. One fellow's bike wouldn't start after a stop. Everyone looked and offered opinions, still didn't start.
Bike was trailered to the dealer where the mechanic came out and flipped the kill switch to the run position..............

And no, it wasn't me.

I definately resemble this. I have an old Honda Fourtrax 300, 1989. She has been a beast of burden her whole life. Dragging deer, ice fishing equipment, and trying to coax stuck vehicles out of their holes has been her entire life. Other than the agressive tires, she looks beat. Mechanically, the fourwheeler is tip top. Crack the pet cock, open the tank vent, turn the key, then hit the start button and pay attention. The damn thing seems to fire before you even hear the starter. Well....... twice now, she has not fired. The first time I had the tank off, carbs out, and half apart before I noticed the kill switch in the off position...........:banghead the second time I did not get quite that far. I swear I never use that switch........
 
Voni's F800S came up with a bulb fault. I discovered a burned out brake light filament in the combination tail/brake light bulb. I replaced the bulb. Still a fault but the lights worked. I disconnected the Motolight combination brake/tail/turn LED lights. No change. I checked all the turn signal bulbs. No change. Finally, I noticed that the little parking light bulb in the headlight housing didn't light. Replaced. Fixed, after about 2 weeks.
 
Voni's F800S came up with a bulb fault. I discovered a burned out brake light filament in the combination tail/brake light bulb. I replaced the bulb. Still a fault but the lights worked. I disconnected the Motolight combination brake/tail/turn LED lights. No change. I checked all the turn signal bulbs. No change. Finally, I noticed that the little parking light bulb in the headlight housing didn't light. Replaced. Fixed, after about 2 weeks.

How many hours did you bill her?
 
I've done the same thing with the grips heater. Took me a few minutes to figure out which way was off.
They do work well.
 
I spent an hour looking for a part that went on a set of luggage I was installing. I was at my wits end when Annie asked me what was up. I said I was looking for a part "that goes right here" as I pointed to where it should be installed.... and it was already installed... by me.
 
So, I start my bike and get a few blocks before the bike has trouble idling. I keep giving more gas, but it doesn't help much. Now the bike's running rough and it's really hard to keep running. I pull over and start wondering what's gone wrong with my 20 year old bike. :scratch After a bit, I realized that the petcocks were closed. :doh I know now that the first thing to check is the petcocks when the bike starts acting that way.

I won't say how many times this happened, but I will say more than once. But, mostly in the first year or so when I got back into riding.
 
I accidentally brushed the kill switch the other day while at a stop sign. It probably took me 5 seconds to realize what had happened. But during that short "Oh Sh**" moment, I must had a dozen thoughts about why it died and what a pain it was going to be to get the bike home.
 
So, I start my bike and get a few blocks before the bike has trouble idling. I keep giving more gas, but it doesn't help much. Now the bike's running rough and it's really hard to keep running. I pull over and start wondering what's gone wrong with my 20 year old bike. :scratch After a bit, I realized that the petcocks were closed. :doh I know now that the first thing to check is the petcocks when the bike starts acting that way.

I won't say how many times this happened, but I will say more than once. But, mostly in the first year or so when I got back into riding.

Turning off your buddy's petcock is a very popular trick amungst the dirtbike crowd! Always seem to run dry in the middle of an uphill too!
 
Of course, on a hot day, with the bike out in the sun, the grips are always hot when you start off, even with the heat switch in the "off" position. So it is understandable it might take a little time to figure out that the switch is in the wrong position, and "on."

Harry
 
A few years ago I was riding and neglected my fuel level, by the time I noticed the light I was in the middle of nowhere. So I eased up, shifted at low rpms and started looking for fuel. The gps said the closest was 20 miles further than I had gone before and I have put near capacity amounts in before. I headed for the station and nothing in site, GPS was wrong. I kept slogging on, coasting down hills with the engine off, etc. I swear I felt it buck just a a station came into sight, so I hit the kill switch and coasted into the station, as I did not want to run the pump completely dry.

I filled it and it took the published capacity. I go to leave and hit the starter button, engine cranks but does not fire, convinced I ran it dry, I cycle the key a few times to run the pump and prime the system, and try again, repeat and retry. Then some guy on a bike, also filling says you know your kick stand is down?

Talk about feeling stupid. BUT I was so convinced I ran it out of fuel, I forgot the obvious.
 
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