First Long Ride

[sportsguy]

Nobody's mentioned clothing. Whatsup wi' dat?

Ear plugs. The wind noise in your helmet is tiring in itself, as well as bad for your hearing in the long term.

We. Ride. Nekkid.

...though +1 on the earplugs. I just had custom ones molded this past weekend. Have yet to test them out.

 

[FiveG]

Again thanks all. Quick corrections -- ear plugs and hydration. I was definately not drinking enough Dihydrogen Monoxide during the ride. To go six hours on about 20 oz of water is pretty bad, and probably led to cramping, now that I think about it.

On earplugs, gotta get some of those in-ear foamy ones from a local Cabela's or gunshop. I had a set of custom made earplugs that I had made for another noisy hobby of mine, but putting the helmet on, they kept getting knocked out.

 

[Go Far]

Again thanks all. Quick corrections -- ear plugs and hydration. I was definately not drinking enough Dihydrogen Monoxide during the ride. To go six hours on about 20 oz of water is pretty bad, and probably led to cramping, now that I think about it.
On earplugs, gotta get some of those in-ear foamy ones from a local Cabela's or gunshop. I had a set of custom made earplugs that I had made for another noisy hobby of mine, but putting the helmet on, they kept getting knocked out.

Good suggestions rolling in.

You are in the shakedown phase of breaking in a new bike. And the bike may be breaking you in a bit

The cheapest farkle is a pen and paper. Finish a ride and jot down some notes while they're fresh.

Then repeat...

And- Again...

What's bugging you? Noise? Back? Butt? Knees?

One item on my list early on was having to stop for gas and having to pass the same semis over and over again! That's when MY list aimed me toward aux. fuel.

Some lean towards bug cleaner and wax, others towards multiple efficient gas stops in a day.

Write your list, it worked for me B)

 

[krashdragon]

Again thanks all. Quick corrections -- ear plugs and hydration. I was definately not drinking enough Dihydrogen Monoxide during the ride. To go six hours on about 20 oz of water is pretty bad, and probably led to cramping, now that I think about it.
On earplugs, gotta get some of those in-ear foamy ones from a local Cabela's or gunshop. I had a set of custom made earplugs that I had made for another noisy hobby of mine, but putting the helmet on, they kept getting knocked out.

https://www.magidglove.com/Ear-Plugs.aspx

https://www.drugstore.com/templates/stdplis...x%20ear%20plugs

These are my favorites

https://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp...x=BUY-GFI-0-PLP

Except that I really have to take care to keep my hair out of my ears! <G>

Can still hear stuff ok, but keeps the wind out of my ears as well.

Take care, ride safe and have fun!

Mary

 

[FiveG]

Well, did second 214 mile ride today -- was to be shorter, but courtesy of crappy online maps and road signs that didn't help much, I got to repeat several stretches in Dutchess County, New York as I tried to find my way back home from Rhinebeck.

Definately found that water, breaks when body says to, and paying attention to seating position helped a lot. So did ear plugs. Feels like a long day (was in saddle from 8 AM to 3:15 PM), but didn't have the same issues with cramping, soreness etc.

I suspect a different seat and a V-Stream are in the not-to-distant future. That, and a good set of real maps.

 

[sportsguy]

Psssst...

G P S

 

[GL4435]

When I feel some fatigue, I just stand up on the pegs ... but then my wife will grab my *** ... I forget all about being tired!

 

[RadioHowie]

When I feel some fatigue, I just stand up on the pegs ... but then my wife will grab my *** ... I forget all about being tired!

Be glad BustanutJoker wasn't there.....he'd have grabbed your sheep.

 

[Big-D]

I can ride 6-700 mile days for three days, then my *** is toast. IMHO, a good windshield and a great seat is the cure. Russell's is what I want, but now that the riding season is underway, the lead time is at least a couple months, maybe more!

Your ride was short and sweet. You'll get used to the stock seat for those rides. It's the multiple 500 mile plus rides that will get ya!

Oh, next time you stop for a rest, if you are on a downward hill, better per her in first or she'll roll and fall over.

 

[Wee Willy]

We. Ride. Nekkid.
...though +1 on the earplugs. I just had custom ones molded this past weekend. Have yet to test them out.

How much were they? And did you get the earphone inserts?

Curious,

W2

 

[Mount Rainier]

We all have different fatigue levels. I have found that this bike can be ridden for hours at a time without any significant fatige. My bike came to me with a Helibar riser and brakeaway cruise control, but has the stock seat. All in all a very comfortable ride. My longest ride so far has been just over 800 miles. Not exactly Iron butt, but enough to know that this bike is as comfortable as most.
I think the answer to your question is more riding will equal more riding comfort. If a 217 mile ride is a long ride for you, it will be a long ride on whatever bike you ride. My $.02.

+1 :clapping:

Keep Going!

 

[Lawrence]

Getting used to the m/c will help if you previously handled longer days.

Bicycle shorts do work well. Riding a bicycle can do wonders for extending your comfort range on the m/c. Even just using a stationary cycle in the gym for 30 minutes a day a few times a week will accustom your seat muscles/bones in a way that will make longer days in the saddle possible. I'm good for 50 mile bicycle rides, as well as being comfortable doing a 500-mile, 12 hour days with 1/2->2/3 of that being mountain riding (and I get irritated having to stop to refuel after 250+ miles, loved my old Concours ZG1000 300+ mile range). But after a week of that (last summer - Lap of California), I was getting tired and sore. stock seat, no cruise control, only comfort mod was the Rifle screen

So - your mileage may vary

At your height, helibars or other bar-risers seem like a reasonable thing to consider.

 

[FiveG]

Psssst...
G P S

Yeah, that was my wife's suggestion too.

Unfortunately, I just wandered over to four-page Zumowrestling thread, and walked out more dazed and confused than before. I'm left with impression that the Zumo 660 is still buggy, but it's the best of that type. Maybe best bet is not a mounted GPS for megabucks, but a cheaper handheld (with maps) that can save my bacon when I screw up like I did on that ride. Suggestions?

 

[wfooshee]

I used my phone with its GPS for a while, but it's really not much use if you have to stop, dismount, pull it out of the pocket/bag/compartment it's carried in, then use it to confirm that you're lost. I can look at it and say, "OK, head south on that road in about 14 miles," but by the time I get there I've forgotton which road. Was it 283 or 172-A? Stop, get phone, look it up, lose 5 minutes.

If you try to mount it and leave it on, you'll lose battery in just a couple of hours. If you try to rig up a car charger you'll have done all of the work of mounting a real GPS unit. And if it rains, you'll have to stop and put the phone away.

 

[twodogs]

I had a set of custom made earplugs that I had made for another noisy hobby of mine, but putting the helmet on, they kept getting knocked out.

This (the original one) will take care of that: https://www.cyclegadgets.com/Products/product.asp?item=SLIK

 

[FJRScrewball]

When I bought my bike it had a Corbin seat on it which I'm not sure is so great but I've not changed it. I had been out of motorcycling for about 14 years when I bought the FJR. Needless to say it took some time to build up to long rides again. I started to remember some of the things I used to do to relieve pain and fatique.

If I'm riding the slab and I ride to the point of my butt getting sore before taking a break it won't be long after the break before its sore again. Best thing for me is to take breaks before butt begins to hurt. Which for me and my Corbin is between 1-1 1/2 hours. Even if my break is only for a few minutes I'm good for another 1-1 1/2 hours.

If riding twisties the butt getting sore isn't a problem 'cause of constantly moving around on the seat. Here the problem is mental and vision fatique. I discovered while riding the BRP last Sept. that after a couple of hours my mind was not sharp and my riding started to get sloppy. When I stopped for a break I realized how slow my reactions were and almost dropped the bike. From that point on I started taking breaks about every hour.

Others may have better stamina but for me this is what works. I realize that a Russell seat would extend my seat time between breaks on the slab but from the looks of the seat it seems it would interfere with moving around on the seat while riding twisties. Its something I'm still thinking about.

 

[S76]

I could not ride the FJR for more than 1.5 hours without severe butt pain in my "sit" bones using the stock seat. It's not necessarily the bike as I have had the same problem with other bikes. So I concluded I must have a deffective butt and needed to make changes. I finally got a Russel seat this winter and my first ride out this spring was 3 hours without stopping, 3 hours without pain. I would have been extremely happy to have gotten a 50% improvement. The seat far exceeded my expectations.

I am having a hard time reaching the ground with my 32 inch legs and higher than stock suspension, but a trade-off well worth it.

 

[Mr Bill]

I am having a hard time reaching the ground with my 32 inch legs and higher than stock suspension, but a trade-off well worth it.

I can reach the ground fine, but the center stand won't take the wheel off the ground anymore. Did you raise the front and rear?

And back on topic, I always start my ride with advil or aleve.

 

[FJRScorpion]

Sorry if it's been mentioned elsewhere in this thread, but in addition to the Vista Cruise, Mayer Seat, risers, Aleve, and padded gloves, I've had modest success with "monkey butt" powder or "LD" motorcycle underwear for the three hour plus rides on warm to hot days. Even with all of that, I still can't tolerate more than a 4-hour ride without a long break. Oh yeah, I'm 5'8" 180lbs with an inseam around 30" inseam.

 

[RadioHowie]

Sorry if it's been mentioned elsewhere in this thread, but in addition to the Vista Cruise, Mayer Seat, risers, Aleve, and padded gloves, I've had modest success with "monkey butt" powder or "LD" motorcycle underwear for the three hour plus rides on warm to hot days. Even with all of that, I still can't tolerate more than a 4-hour ride without a long break. Oh yeah, I'm 5'8" 180lbs with an inseam around 30" inseam.

Aren't you stopping around hour #4 for gas anyway? Maybe even sooner?

Unless you're one of those IBA guys pullin' one of these

:yahoo: