Recent heavy rains or how to park with out kickstand

[lakehunter]

Decided to try a New Years ride and realized with the heavy rains recently I should get the bike out of my work shed the day before ... and learned how to park a Valk without the kickstand. Made it up the hill about 20 feet and slid back toward the building with the front brake locked down, knew the building wasn't going to move so the only thing I could think of was dump the clutch and bury the back wheel to stop the back slide. Well ... the ground was soft, sank deeper than intended, and that's how to park without the kickstand  . Took my buddy and his 4x4 / winch to get me to the hill top and hard driveway. Much hose work to blast off the mud and I did finally make the traditional New Year's Day ride. Ate way too much at the Cheeseburger House in Ninety Six, SC. Hope everyone had a great holiday season !

Mike

[Rams]

Innovation can be the key to success or, the path to great frustration.

Glad it all worked out.   

Rams

[scooperhsd]

Just a little damp eh  ?

[cookiedough]

someone either needs some gravel or less of an appetite for a cheeseburger.....

I put up my 350lb. cycle in my trailer recently and thought the ground was frozen, thought wrong.  I drove it in my backyard grass and right before running it up the ramps,  did a slip and slide rear tire going  NOWHERE.  I put a 2 inch rut in my yard, never knew a 250cc cycle could do a burnout, although not on pavement, just soft grass.   

never bothered getting the mud off the rear tire having to get off the cycle and giving it throttle and a PUSH forward to go on the rear trailer ramp.  Luckily is not 750+ lbs. otherwise would have no luck pushing it forward already in a 2 inch rut.    Am sure my 275lb. frame pushing rear suspension down onto the grass did not help any either.....

[Jess from VA]

If my bike was at the bottom of my back yard at this time, I'd need a winch to get it out too.

My 8" goretex work boots are waterproof, until the water is deeper than 8" (not including the mud).  

So I had to buy a pair of these the other day.



I've got a fun project of digging out some drainage canals at the bottom of the yard, to let the water out better (and also discovered my wheelbarrow wheel has rotted off).

Man, that happens a lot with old stuff.    

[hubcapsc]

Hmmm... time to walk back out to the swamp!



-Mike "probably more water there now..."

[cookiedough]

Hmmm... time to walk back out to the swamp!



-Mike "probably more water there now..."

cool pic, where is that boardwalk at going thru the swampy area?

Once in Alabama near Florida in Gulf Shores we walked thru at that alligator farm that had 100's of LIVE gators below a wooden boardwalk only about 6 feet up past the swamp with metal wire sides so as to not fall in.  First time I have seen an alligator up close and personal.  I sort of teased a few trying to get them to spring up into the air to try snap at me, but they were either well fed or bored at seeing people all day long.  Creeped me out though the handlers would go right up to the show at feeding time and all the alligators (HUGE ONES over 12 feet long big boys) would come out of the water and walk within 3-4 feet of the handler with the microphone and feed them by hand a hog leg hearing crunching BONES sort of cool yet freaky to hear.  Am sure if the alligators wanted a person snack,  having 5 to 8 of them within 4-5 feet away would have got the guy since heard gators can travel quicker than a person on land for a short distance anyways.  First time I tried deep fried alligator meat, not great, but surely edible.  

[hubcapsc]

cool pic, where is that boardwalk at going thru the swampy area?

We were in the 25,000 acre Congaree Swamp near Columbia SC... within the
Congaree forest (we were in a Cypress/Tupelo part of the forest in the picture) is
the largest remaining section of old growth hardwood bottom land forest left in the US.

-Mike

[..]

 

Been close to that on a KLR which is light enough you can muscle it out.

[lakehunter]

cool pic, where is that boardwalk at going thru the swampy area?

We were in the 25,000 acre Congaree Swamp near Columbia SC... within the
Congaree forest (we were in a Cypress/Tupelo part of the forest in the picture) is
the largest remaining section of old growth hardwood bottom land forest left in the US.

-Mike

Oh you are refering to this trip,




That was a fun ride, really special place. Has been closed recently due to heavy rains and high river levels, should be open fully again soon.

[hubcapsc]

Shuffling down the boardwalk and then touching a cypress knee caused
an audible electric static discharge...



-Mike

[..]

Shuffling down the boardwalk and then touching a cypress knee caused
an audible electric static discharge...



-Mike

Plastic boardwalk?

[hubcapsc]

Plastic boardwalk?

Seemed like plain old treated yellow pine...

-Mike

[..]

Plastic boardwalk?

Seemed like plain old treated yellow pine...

-Mike

Your electric personality?

I've seen lightning fly from my fingertip when I used to work in dry carpeted offices. Used to have to put anything metal on a desk rather than hand it to another person otherwise they would get zapped.

[Pappy!]

Saw that swamp picture and immediately thought how the heck did they get on the hunting property in Alabama?
We had a section like that on the property....photo looked exactly like it until I saw the boardwalk.
Sorry for the hijack of the thread!!!