Laconia is now only 2 weeks away. It officially begins on Saturday, June 9th, however I will not be arriving until Wednesday, June 13th and I’ll be there through the second weekend. While it’s not the largest or most popular motorcycle rally that goes on, it’s a biggie for us on the east coast because it’s easy to get to. It’s also one of the oldest rallies in the country, rivaling Daytona and Sturgis.

Here’s some other interesting facts:

• it’s usually held in June and typically ends Father’s Day weekend (except in 2008, when it’ll actually start on that weekend)
• motorcyclists began converging on Weirs Beach, NH in 1916
• it began as a weekend event for races, shows and hill climbs
• the popularity of the “biker” image caused a surge in attendance which extended it to “bike week”
• in the 60’s, Laconia saw troubled times when riots between bikers and the police broke out, causing a decline in attendance. The week-long eventually downgraded to only 3 days.
• in the 90’s local businesses, hoping to boost tourism, looked back to the bikers and reviving the week-long event, which is now run by the A.M.A
• 7 years ago, motorcycle week turned into a 9-day event and attracts 100,000 to 400,000 people
• I have been going for about the past 15 years

Hello kiddies…did everyone have a great weekend? I know I did! The weather here was gorgeous, the company was good and the adult beverages flowed plentiful!

I am having some minor issues with the bike lately, so I didn’t get as much riding in as I would have liked to. However, I did order some things for minor improvements, including some foot pegs and clamps to add to my highway bars, a Uni filter to help with the airflow issues I’ve been having and a jet kit.

I did accomplish a simple but cool modification: I lowered the bike 2.5 inches. It’s a a popular mod that a lot of people with Volusias/Boulevards do that’s really easy and effective. Two and a half inches doesn’t sound like a lot, but essentially it lowers your center of gravity for better control while riding. At first I barely noticed a difference, but riding next to other motorcycles I feel like they tower over me.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get a whole lot of pictures while doing the work because one of the bolts was really difficult to remove and I was getting super pissy…ha!

So, here’s one of me starting the work and another of me after it’s all over and done with.

 

OK, well I’m off to spend some time kibbitzing with other bloggers and to market, market, market to build up more traffic to this site! Nitey-nite!

This is a sketch from one of my favorite shows, Whitest Kids You Know (on Fuse TV).
Is it funny? yes.
Is it weird? yes.
Is it motorcycle related? sorta.

“Hell on wheels, heaven on earth that’s us. Isn’t that right Mama? That’s right daddy…“

Rippin-Kitten.com has been alive for almost 2 months now. I just want to take a bit of time to publicly thank everyone for continued support as I forge on with really trying to mold this site into something great. As of today 43,116 people have visited this site. Astonishing.

The official Rippin-Kitten myspace profile is gaining friends exponentially. If you haven’t added me as a friend, what are you waiting for?

And let’s not forget about my biker buds over at Bikerworlds (it’s a myspace for bikers!). Definitely a passionate, optimistic and good-hearted group of peeps. Oh, and someday soon you may see this blog (among others) featured as an RSS feed in their forums.

I’ve also made a lot of friends (and even picked up a stalker!) over at BlogCatalog.com. There are a lot of smart bloggers over there who are quite possibly some of the most supportive people on the world wide web. I never realized how large and diverse the blog-world really is.

If you haven’t done so already, make sure you get some Rippin-Kitten stickers while they’re hot! Response has been great so far! There’s a few ways you can get some of these bad-boys:

1. Send a self-addressed stamped envelope to:
Rippin-Kitten
c/o Frazier
P.O. Box 851
Salem, MA 01970

2. Next month look for me at the Laconia Bike Rally (details to follow!)

Again, I thank everyone for reading and caring about this site. Keep visiting!

Happiness is randomly looking at the calendar and realizing that in three weeks I will be at bike week in Laconia, NH! That makes me extremely happy! I have been going to Laconia for the past 15 years but I’ve never stayed for longer than a day trip. This time we’ll be there for four days (Wednesday through the last weekend).

So, anyone else going to be there that week?

Here’s a quickie (no pun intended) video of various reactions to the VibeRider. Enjoy watching! (although probably not as much as these ladies enjoyed their demo!)

So, how about some cute stickers for your helmet (or whatever else you like to put stickers on)?

Get your very own “Rippin-Kitten” stickers now while supplies last! Are these adorable or what???

This one is a 4.25″x1.37″size sticker

This one is a 1″x3″sticker-the perfect size to put on your helmet! Now all you have to do is send a self-addressed stamped envelope to:
RIPPIN-KITTEN
c/o Frazier
P.O. Box 851
Salem, MA 01970

This just doesn’t look safe! Is it me, or does this dog look really unhappy?

Lately I’ve been having a little bit of an issue with my bike, with air flow in particular. At first I thought maybe it was a gas issue and the sputtering was due to bad gas. I’ve been putting Sea Foam in the tank, thinking that it was because the bike had been sitting for a while over the winter. But as it turns out, that wasn’t it.

I scoured my motorcycle message board, VolusiaRiders.com to see if anyone else had a similar problem. After searching through multiple of threads I found out that when stock, my type of bike runs a bit lean and that I could adjust the carburetor mixture screw. But I had to drill out a piece in the carburetor to get to it.

I found a tutorial at The Rusks, grabbed the toolbox and my husband (because there was NO way I was going to do this alone) and headed outside!

I get really nervous at the idea of pulling everything apart because I never think I can get it all back together again.

First step: gotta take off the seat.

Then take off the speedo.

Starting on the tank.

Then lifting off the gas tank (my hubby helped me unhook all of the lines). I don’t know why I expected it to be really heavy but it wasn’t.

Drilling out the carb.

Here’s the piece drilled out.

And there’s the screw.

Stretching my legs before reassembly.

Putting the tank back on so that I can start the bike up and adjust the mixture (while my man holds the tank up for me to get the the screw).

Done!

We adjusted the mixture so that the bike runs a little richer and I’m ready to take it out for a spin. The adjustment helped a lot, but unfortunately it’s still not 100%. I think I’m going to have to replace the air filter (perhaps a UNI filter?) and my husband thinks that I should bite the bullet, get new exhaust pipes and rejet. I know that he’s probably right, but I’m procrastinating!

 

 

Well, we’re expecting thunder showers so the bike stayed home today. It was a gorgeous morning and I grumbled and cursed behind the wheel of my car as I drove to work. There were so many people out riding and it made me wonder if they checked the weather at all and if they had, did they care?

It’s funny how one has to become an amateur meteorologist as a motorcyclist. I check the weather so much more during the riding season than any other time of the year.

I’m not necessarily skittish if I have to ride in bad weather, I have the rain gear and I actually took my MSF course in the pouring rain. I just don’t want to if I don’t have to. Today’s one of those days. Plus, I didn’t want to ruin my hair!

Just kidding.