V-Strom | D. Brent Miller

December 29, 2021December 29, 2021

My Motorcycling Year in Review; Now What?

The weather forecast for the last couple of days of 2021 are a disappointment. Not good for riding. So, the mileage numbers are pretty much complete for the year, and that is somewhat disappointing also.

I decided to analyze my riding to see if a pattern emerged.

The first thing I noticed is that I rode my 2020 Moto Guzzi V7iii Rough twice as many miles as my 2017 Suzuki V-Strom 650. Really? Yes, really. The V-Strom is my third DL650, and I have loved each of them, but the Guzzi has overtaken the mileage. It is so easy to ride, to throw a leg over. And frankly, it is soulful.

I decided to look back to 2008 for motorcycling mileage. That’s when I bought the first V-Strom 650, and really started to really travel on two wheels. I put 66,386 miles on that yellow bike before trading it on a new 2015 V-Strom 650. That first one took me to many places and most of my 48-state rides.

In 2013, a distinct change occurred. I had one long tour to the southeast to work on my fill-in-the-states map, and that was one of my worst travels. I rode 2,400 miles round trip, five of the six days in rain. I was charged by a pit bull while taking a picture of crossing into the Georgia state line. Missed being involved in a multiple car accident by split seconds in Augusta, Georgia, because I was in the right lane and could take to shift to the highway shoulder. Took a bee sting in the face while traveling at 75 MPH next to a semi-truck and trailer on I-75. There were other incidents, but by the time I arrived home, I told my wife, “It was horrible. I’m selling that bike.” In her wisdom, she told me to wait a while. Smart woman.

In 2012, I started volunteering with an organization that serves disabled Veterans. Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc., is an incredible asset. The program teaches disabled Veterans all aspects of fly fishing—fly tying, casting techniques, rod building, and takes them fishing. As a Vietnam Veteran myself, I could relate. I got involved serving others. Sometimes, I would ride the motorcycle to events. It’s clear in my analysis that PHWFF was more important than long-distance motorcycling. I served for nine years, six as the program lead for Cincinnati.

Then there was covid and the pandemic. We hunkered down, and got our vaccinations as soon as we could, but we still practiced caution and did little traveling or socializing. Thank God for Zoom to stay in touch with motorcycling friends.

I started riding at the age of 15 in 1965 on a Lambretta scooter that my dad bought. More than 50 years of motorcycle ownership, and one at a time. There were a few years of non-ownership. I owned a 2004 Honda Shadow when I wrote a few articles for Road Runner Magazine. Since purchasing that 2008 V-Strom, I have owned a total of nine motorcycles, but never owned more than two at a time. Here is the list in the order of purchase and the miles I put on them:

2008 Suzuki V-Strom 650 (66,386 miles) (traded)
2014.5 Kawasaki KLR 650 (2,117 miles) (traded)
2015 Suzuki V-Strom 650 (12,303 miles) (traded)
2017 Suzuki SV650 (2,626 miles) (traded)
2017 Suzuki V-Strom 650 (7,059 miles)
2018 Kawasaki KLR 650 (4,600 miles) (regretted trading)
2014 Suzuki V-Strom 1000 (3,509 miles) (traded)
2019 Moto Guzzi V7iii Special (2,296 miles) (traded)
2020 Moto Guzzi V7iii Rough (3,001 miles)

My current rides, the 2017 V-Strom and 2020 Moto Guzzi V7iii.

So, here are the numbers. Since 2008, I have ridden 103,897 miles on two wheels. The years 2008-2012 totaled 57,434 for an average of 11,487 miles per year. The years 2013-2021 totaled 46,463 for an average of 5,162 miles per year. The year with the most miles was 2010 with 13,637 miles and the worst was 2015 with 3,551 miles, the year my Mom passed away.

Clearly, something or life choices made a huge difference in my motorcycling starting in 2013. Was it that horrible tour to the southeast? Or, was it refocused interest. For the most part, I think it was life choices and the opportunity to serve others that replaced my long-distance two-wheeled travel.

Now What?

Good question. Now what? At age 71, I am not ready to quit riding. I have ridden to and through all 48 states—all on V-Stroms. Looking at the numbers, it does not make sense to buy a third motorcycle when I would just be splitting miles with three bikes. And now that my PHWFF duties have changed, I have more time to get away. The easy decision is to make smaller two and three day rides and fishing trips, and that would be perfect for either of the bikes currently in the garage, the V-Strom and the Guzzi. In fact, I really want to take the Guzzi for a tour. It’s the perfect bike for two-lane highways.

See you on the highway.

Brent

March 10, 2021March 10, 2021

Motorcycling and abandoned airports

I’m a map guy. I love to study maps. Paper maps mostly, but the digital versions can be just as intriguing. There was an older BMW ad that I loved, even though I don’t own that brand of motorcycle it read: “My favorite author? Rand McNally.” That about says it right there.

Some time ago, I noticed on a paper map an airport that I had never seen. There it was on the map, and I have been past that location many times, but have never seen it. It even shows up on my Gaia GPS. The San Mar Gale Airport.

Of course, the airport is closed now, and this is what it looks like from Waynesville Road nearest the end of what was the airstrip. The strip is just over the back end of my V-Strom.

I had to do a little searching to find out that the airport was closed in the 1990s. It was probably a grass strip, which made it easy to convert to agriculture. It had an official airport designation, but I could not find a record of that.

There are a couple of other private, abandoned airfields in Warren County, and they most likely were on farms, much like this one. It is exploration like this, and detailed maps like the DeLorme Gazeteers and Gaia GPS that reveal opportunities for a motorcycle adventure.

See you on the highway.

Brent

February 24, 2021

A quick ride on the V-Strom

We have had an incredible warm up. The temps reached 65+ and I have been lusting for a motorcycle ride. So, I aired up the tires, checked the chain, and fired up the V-Strom for a ride around the block. Okay, it was a long block, but much needed.

And of course, I found a church for a photo in Goshen.

See you on the highway.

Brent

January 8, 2021

Dreaming of the Oregon Trail

For some strange reason, I awoke this morning dreaming of my 2012 ride on the Oregon Trail. It was a 6,000-mile, 21 day adventure. But, why this morning? Maybe I’m just dreaming of another motorcycle adventure.

See you on the highway.

Brent

June 29, 2020

A Conversation with Myself

When I was 30 or even 40, I never asked myself how long I thought I would continue to ride motorcycles. My friends, about the same age, never considered such a question either. But as I “matured” into my 60s, the question popped into my head. And now that I am only months away from 70, it is a question I have been asking myself and others. “How long do you plan to keep riding?”

I have been riding since age 15. Unofficially, of course on that Lambretta motor scooter that dad brought home. When I turned 16 with a new driver’s license, that Lambretta was mine to ride. Riding has always been my passion. It’s the freedom of the road, wind in your face experience. Even though I have had three accidents (one seriously) I never felt like I would quit riding.

My first owned motorcycle was a 1963 Harley Davidson Sprint Scrambler 250cc made by Aermacchi. It needed a lot of work. When I returned from Vietnam in 1971, I bought a brand new Honda Scrambler CL350. Then another Honda, and another Honda, and so on, including a 1976 Honda GL1000 Gold Wing that I partially restored to its original standard configuration in the early 1990s.

In the “old days,” all motorcycles were standards. You bought them and then modified them to do what you wanted with it. Today, there are so many different types of bikes, niche bikes. There are dirt bikes, motocross bikes, dual sports, adventure bikes, touring bikes, cruisers, and many variations thereof.

Technology has entered the scene with ABS brakes, traction control, and even cruise control, making motorcycles safer and more expensive. My 2017 Suzuki V-Strom DL650 has ABS and traction control, and is much more capable than my riding skills. It, and my previous DL650s, has taken me anywhere and everywhere I’ve wanted to go, including all 48 states of the USA.

So, I’ve been through a few motorcycles in the past decade, looking for that perfect vehicle, and more recently asking about ability to keep riding. I concluded that tall, heavy adventure bikes may not be the right bike for me as I get older. I am not the fit young man of my earlier years. A little arthritis and reduced flexibility remind me often of that, even if 70 is the new 50. It has become a little more difficult to throw a leg over a motorcycle and prepare for launch.

I needed to make some changes. I started by selling my V-Strom 1000. It was a great bike with plenty of power. Lots of power and torque. But, it was tall and top heavy. It will be a great bike for its new owner, who seems to be happy. I plan to keep the V-Strom 650 for a while. It is lighter, more economical, and frankly the better bike.

I also renewed my interest in a smaller bike, one easier to mount, and I returned to my previous research and interest. I found a great deal on an inventory clearance sale on a 2019 Moto Guzzi V7iii Special. Old school bike with modern technology.

The bike and I are just getting to know each other, and I am quite happy. I have also learned a couple of things. The Guzzi draws a little attention. Both of my brothers said they wanted to ride it even before I offered them a ride. They never did that with my previous bikes. One of them invoked the hallowed name of Steve McQueen. There is something to an old school, standard bike.

Another thing I learned, or should I say re-learned, is the true joy of motorcycling. The V-Stroms and the KLRs are great bikes, as are many other adventure bikes, but when I started riding the Guzzi, I noticed something. The Guzzi is wide open. Naked. More exposed to the elements, the environment, the road. All of that which we identify with the joy of motorcycling. And, it dawned on me that when riding the adventure bikes, I feel like I’m in a cockpit on two wheels. Fairing and wind screen with a seat that dips quite lower than the fuel tank. Yes. A cockpit.

This is what I want riding into the future as long and as far as I can. Something easy to ride that brings the joy of motorcycling. Downsizing is good as long as it works toward the goal. Who knows? Maybe the last scoot will be a Vespa. I hope I’m still riding through my 70s and into 80. That is only ten more years.

Fill ‘er up. I’ve got some riding to do.

See you on the highway.

Brent