It's Justified... (Not Always!!!)

[DDT (12)]

It’s Justified…

Cabin fever is… well, anyone reading this already knows more than they care to about that egregious plight of riders everywhere… Anyway, I have that going on in a major way. Nothing new there, really, only this time it truly has been an unusually long time since last I rode to amount to anything… Indeed, it’s been a couple of weeks since last my tush has even felt the comfy saddle on our girl… (Pardon me while I wipe a tear…)

So, I’m pondering on taking a little jaunt today… Nothing strenuous, of course, or lengthy either. Just a day ride to grab a bite someplace and to feel a little wind in my face… and to re-bond with our girl. Not hard to justify an easy, relatively short ride on a gorgeous day like today! Harder, in fact, to justify not taking a more ambitious ride!

It is still a wee bit brisk outside, so most of the ‘real riders’ hereabouts will be finding other things to do this day to justify not getting out at all… Heck, truth be told, part of the reason for my serious ponderment right now is actually a thinly disguised form of procrastination. That is justified, however, due to my delicate condition and still early stage of recovery in progress…

I even called my ‘all-things-technical advisor’ a little while ago to bounce the idea off him. I also wanted to check on Troutdude’s condition and prognosis for things to come as this year unfolds… OK, I also was killing a bit more time, too… Ever notice how slowly the mercury can be to creep-up inside that special tube? This time of year, anyway… in a few months it will seem to ‘shoot-up’!

I don’t need to be rushing anything… I’ve already tried that and suffered the consequences. I could easily justify putting this ride notion off a while longer… However, I can just as easily justify taking a couple of baby-steps now and then to ‘aid’ in my physical recovery… I could also justify making this piece much longer, because of the therapeutic aspects writing about riding stuff provides…

Shucks, I can justify doing dang near anything! I think I’ll just… I’ll get back to y'all later on this… as soon as I know what I did, I’ll let y’all know… Whatever that might turn out to be, though, you can bet the farm it will be justified!

DDT

[Oss]

24 when I took a 3 mile walk this morning  Sunny not tooo windy

When I came back I tried to start the BMW but it failed to start, battery too drained so its on the smart charger and hopefully will get it out for a warm up run before twilight and the road freezes again   I charge my 01 every week and just forgot about the bmw since new years  The 99 under the cover is still surrounded by copious amount of snow drifts

My trip to western florida (wizzed by your area northeast bound on 75 I think or the connector roads to 95) was pretty nice.  That Naples area is fine and I like my morning walks on the beach when nobody is around

Who knows, maybe someday we will start spending winters down there, Just need to find a rental that I can bring a motorcycle

Post a pic of your ride Bruce, so I can live vicariously

[The emperor has no clothes]

I ain’t got no farm. But if I did, I’d bet it. I’d forgot how much I need riding. Even a 450 mile blast across the desert was therapeutic. Take care my friend.  

[..]

Hijack.

I enjoyed it

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justified_(TV_series)

Time flies!!!

[DDT (12)]

Totally Unjustified!

I felt pretty doggone dumb when I realized... Dang, I'd just made all the needed preparations, too: I’d donned my chaps, leather jacket, etc., even placed my fiberglass bonnet upon my noggin' and thrown a leg over the saddle to back our girl out of the garage... Don't ask me why, but for some reason I reached for the key before actually descending the slight grade; just in case, I suppose, to avoid having to push her back uphill if anything... Double dang! It had!!!

The key was 'on' already! It must have been so, apparently, since last I'd parked her, too… about two weeks ago! To be sure, the battery was as dead as a politician's moral compass... No way this could be justified!  So, no ride for now... I did justify that sad outcome, though, as Karma possibly looking out for me, since I obviously wasn't.

I foraged around in the garage and found my battery-charger... Drats, the end of the cord with the two clips had been... somehow mysteriously removed... No telling how or when that might have happened... New battery time? Probably. Sure would have liked to have tried the charge thing, though... just to see what happened for future reference. Hmmm, how about…?

Sure, I’d hook up that gelded geek power thingy and see what happened… Man, that wondrous device has bailed me out of some tough scraps before, and just maybe… Naturally, it had been so long since I’d needed that marvelous portable power unit, that its internal battery was also discharged, so… I hooked it up for a charge.

Looked like no ride that day after all. Funny how so many times we agonize over a decision, then have it made for us by fate… All that fretting over what to do, unjustified it turns out, because destiny had its own idea about an appropriate answer… and it does have a way of getting its way!

Just as well, I reckon… No need to rush things on the physical front just to ease other things on the emotional front… Never look a gift horse in the mouth, it’s been said, and I’ve learned countless times that prayers can also be happily answered by us not getting what we had thought we’d wanted…

After the geek power unit had been fully charged, I then hooked it up so it could work its magic upon ALI’s battery. Things all seemed OK, so I left them alone… a technical technique non-techies probably should employee a lot more often…

Later before retiring for the evening, I checked yet again to see how things had progressed… Everything continued to look good, and the headlight burned brightly when I turned on the key! I’d hooked the geek thing to a wall socket, and I’d attached the clips to the bike’s battery, so I wasn’t sure if the bike battery might really be ready or not. I decided to just leave everything hooked up overnight before making the ultimate test…

I went out just a while ago for another looksee, and… all looked good still. Nothing melted, no odd smells, the gauge read 100%... I decided to continue doing nothing for a while longer… Who knows, there just possibly could be a little ride squeezed in later today! Or maybe I’ll just take the hint and forget that idea for the next several days… Hard to justify rushing things unnecessarily, ya know… Besides, I rather like the way fate has treated me so far…

DDT

[Oss]

lol

Got the bike started and a small ride before the sun got too low in the sky

Make today the day you get out, doesnt have to be a full coddlewimple just a miniwimple should do the trick

[Bigwolf]

Bruce,
You seem to have a good attitude about that ‘no ride for you today’ occurrence.  I suspect it took a while to recover that attitude.  I would most likely have been in a stomping ugly attitude for a while if that had happened to me...........at the very least till I got my riding gear back off!

Sometimes in my life those hateful fateful events have worked to my benefit too, but that never eases the frustration in the moment it is happening.  It does speed the attitude recovery though.

Tomorrow is another opportunity!


Bigwolf

[Willow]

What?  No jumper cables?

Isn't that geek thingy supposed to work for jumping the battery and not just charging?

[DDT (12)]

What?  No jumper cables?

Isn't that geek thingy supposed to work for jumping the battery and not just charging?

Carl,

Of course. And, it works well for that. That was not my primary concern, though... I didn't want to get out yonder someplace and not be able to restart, or to have to jump our girl again in order to limp home... Besides, I'd never really put the 'charge' application to the test, so... I did.

I wasn't all that committed anyway to getting out by the time I'd 'undressed', rummaged around the garage, and hooked everything up... I was, however, very curious about whether or not ALI would next leave the garage with a new battery, or whether or not one discharged that badly could be revived. Useful info, possibly, for down the road experiences. Besides, I also couldn't rule-out the possibility fate was using this means to steer me away from something undesirable.

I left everything hooked up overnight... a bit more than twenty-four hours, actually... Then the big test... After disconnecting the geek, I gave the starter button a push... I fully expected her lights to come on, the engine to turn over a few times, but for there not to be enough juice to actually fire her up... I was wrong! She cranked right up on the second try! No geek attached or anything else aiding the crank... she was on her own!

I decided to procrastinate some more, due partly to the cool-ish temps and to my own general weakness, so I justified waiting to go KSU by rationalizing I'd let her sit for a day and see if she would still start... I'll know in another couple of hours about that.

I have used that device for quick jump-starts. I've also had to hook the thing up and drive with it in place when the alternator has gone kaflooie... It has worked well in both cases. I've used the air pump feature several times, and it has performed well on that score, too. I'd never, however, tested its recharge ability for a battery gone completely dead... until now. So far, I'm impressed with that as well!

If she starts, I may take her for a miniwomple. If she doesn't, I'll go buy another battery. Whatever happens, however, I'll know more than I did, and knowing that could come in handy out yonder someplace...

DDT


P.S. Special thanks to Punisher for introducing me to that gadget! I've been carrying my geek with us on all of our riding since, and it has surely come in handy on several occasions! Allan is a for-real techie, so naturally I take his perspective and advice most seriously. I'm mighty glad to have found such a good friend and information source through my ongoing travels with our girl...