There currently is a late burst of near summer weather. So I went for a ride to visit Yamaha in Shizuoka. Mostly highway but I detoured a couple of times to try my luck at two highly rated Mt Fuji view locations to break it up. I would not call […]
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Despite some discomfort from my previous broken collar bone I am heading out to ride north. Day one Kanagawa to Fukushima A typhoon has just pass through so I am not sure how bad the roads will be but I decide to take the express way for most of today […]
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A small update here while I am not riding. I decided to look for a new helmet but despite being in Japan am not taken with any of the jet style helmets on the shelf here. The Arai and Shoei are comfortable but lack venting compared to my Nolan N43 […]
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I had been set to start this ride a couple months ago then broke my collar bone in a fall on some stairs. The doctor said no riding for 6 months but I was having none of that and did a test ride on my FJR and decided I would […]
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I updated my previous cool to cold weather Alpinestars ST-5 Drystar pants to the new Andes Tourer drystar pants. So far however I have not found them very good. The pants have a permeant rain liner in adventure styling. Alpinestars use a material they call Drystar but in my experience […]
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The importance of being earnest wearing ear plugs cannot be overstated. I used to be one of the guys who scoffed at the idea and claimed they were uncomfortable or I could not bear to ride with them. Then came the day I knew I had damaged my hearing. Here […]
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I had been ready to embark on a extended tour overseas (prior to breaking my collar bone) heading to cold and wet places like Scandinavia so decided to invest in a set of waterproof boots which I thought would also be pretty handy for tours here in Japan. Prior to […]
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Earlier in the year I went looking for something suitable for 3 season touring for future ride plans and by chance I came across the Andes jacket from Alpinestars in my local store. Foreign brands are not common here and local jackets are too short in the arms so I […]
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I have not been able to do much motorcycle riding in Japan this year. The weather has been cold with rain for months. Last year was apparently an odd one with low rainfall but this one seems wet so far. Seems in Japan there normally is no dry season. Basically […]
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It has been a long winter. 6 months of cold and rain. A rare fine day arrived so I decided to try my luck at seeing Mt Fuji. I have a poor record on this after my first ride in Japan in 2008 it has been always been obscured by […]
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I think I had a touch of cabin fever. Too much time indoors hiding from the cold. Something I am not accustom to coming from the tropics. Nothing like a motorcycle ride to shake the blues. This is the Tokyo bay Aqua line highway that goes from Yokohama across the […]
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I tried my first true winter ride last week and it was better than I expected. The temperatures have been around 4 degrees daytime but clear and sunny. So when a milder 11 degree day was forecast I decided it was time to charge the battery with a ride. It […]
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