Washed bike and she died on me

[slowshadow]

Today we had a memorial ride for the service members who were shot here in Chattanooga.
Well over 500 bikes turned out and almost as many cages.
I thought since I have not washed my bike since I bought her in May...this would be a good time to do it. Previous owner said he had never washed it with a hose.
Since I drive in rain and construction zones to work each day she needed a good hosing down.
I did not drown any part of it but I did rinse all parts with a hose while washing.
She turned over a few extra times upon initial fire up after washing, but seemed fine until she slowly died after about 8 miles while doing 60-65 mph on the freeway.
She would turn over but not fire until after the big black cloud over me dumped all of its rain right on me.
Well I was soaked and thought I might as well try to start it again anyway. She started right up, I put the side cover and seat back on and she didn't miss a lick the rest of the day.
My hearing is poor and I had my full face helmet on so I can't tell if the R&M fuel pump had stopped or if it may have just been a problem elsewhere.
Anybody know of a common place to avoid getting wet while washing that could have caused this?

[salty1]

A fuel pump? Stock configuration is a gravity flow system. Do you have a belly tank? Your description would make one believe it was starved for fuel.

[Gryphon Rider]

The fuel pumps on R&M Works belly tanks have been known to fail.

[slowshadow]

I thought about getting the pump that Farther is offering.
Haven't read about R&M pump's reliability until now.
She ran well for the rest of the day.
Has anyone described intermittent failure leading up to complete failure of fuel pump?
I may need to see if he still has it. 

[Jess from VA]

You didn't remove the seat and/or side covers during the wash, did you?

Next wash, use only a misting hose, not full blast.

I always dry with five minutes of Stihl gas blower (before towel) when done.  That blows out most hidden H2O.  

[slowshadow]

Nope. I removed the seat and side covers on the side of the freeway.
I was just trying to make myself seem useful. I had no idea what I was going to do once I took them off.
I know better than to wash my bike right before a ride. My old Nomad did the same thing to me last year.

[gordonv]

I don't know if I read right. You washed the bike, then took it out for a drive later. While driving, during a downpour, the bike quite. You removed the side covers so it could dry out faster. Later it fired back up, and didn't happen again.

My first thought was water in the spark plug holes. Insure that the drains are free flowing. Remove your plug wires. Take a wire, and poke up from the bottom to into the drain holes, to clear them.  Vacuum any "crap" that comes out. Then revers, to insure they are clear from the top side.

If this is caused by riding in the rain, it could be your main wire harness connector, somewhere under the battery at the bottom of the bike.

The last would be the drool tube. Have you drained it? Try it again, see if there is any liquid there.

[Patrick]

I'm confused as to when the engine quit.
If it quit prior to the rain, sometimes too much moisture near an airbag/filter will drown them and not allow them start. Had many a road call for that, but, never on a Valk. But it seems yours started and ran for awhile.
If it quit in the rain, then it could be the vent line [ along with other things]. If the vent line is too long or if there is a problem with the ' T ' the vent may not work properly.

[Dave Weaver]

Yet another reason I subscribe to the Daniel Meyer bike wash method:  NEVER!!!

[Momz]

Yet another reason I subscribe to the Daniel Meyer bike wash method:  NEVER!!!

AGREED!!!! 
Or at least not more than once a year

[Paladin528]

I have resigned to NEVER using a hose.  I use a spray bottle for the heavier dirt and a dry wash / wax to get her spotless.

[Steve K (IA)]

I have been hosing my Valks down several times a year for 15 years and no problems.  I just have to remember to put a sandwich bag over the radio controller on the I/S before I start.

[biguglyman]

I rinse with a hose...never a problem. Riding home from Inzane last year through thunderstorms/downpours that had cages pulling to the side to wait it out...never as much as a hiccup. I think the fuel pump idea has merit.

[BradValk48237]

My bet is the spark plug drains..... I have had it happen on this bike 00' Valkwhen I first bought it and on my 85 1200 Wing...... Its freaky when it happens, but the heat of the motor often clears it up.... then it can happen again.. but once it happens you learn to clean em out once in a while.


Brad

[Icelander]

Nah! you got it all wrong.

You got her wet and she didn't appreciate it. So... She just made sure you knew how she was feeling by leaving you out in the rain storm.

Hope you figure it out.

Icelander

[RonW]

I dry the bike with this (Metro Vacuum SK-1 Air Force Blaster Sidekick, $75 Amazon, etc.). It's a converted dog dryer which produces a slightly warm air but the blast isn't that super powerful that it'll damage oil seals etc. if used properly. A caution though is you'd have to thoroughly rinse the soapy water off the bike otherwise it'll leave soap streaks. Also, there's been customers' reviews of people breaking off the legs or I guess the point where the legs screw into the body. I still have to run the engine or take the bike out for a brief ride.

[The emperor has no clothes]

Well you could always move to AZ. It will dry in about 1.2 seconds. 

[Jess from VA]

Well you could always move to AZ. It will dry in about 1.2 seconds. 

Everyone always says it a dry heat.