[goodideadave]

Actually, I got caught in the rain. It was not supposed to rain until late this evening, and this morning was beautiful and clear. It clouded up at lunch time and started to rain steadily around 4 pm. To quote another great American, "Doh!"

I am definitely a fair-weather rider. I first got licensed in January, and had never ridden in the wet. I considered calling my wife for a ride home and leaving the scooter at work, but I wasn't confident it would still be there tomorrow. So on the way home from work, I switched my route from major surface streets to mostly residential neighborhood streets, 25 mph tops. I was pleasantly surprised how stable the Maj was on wet pavement. I kept expecting her to skid or slide out from underneath me, and I was certainly riding like I had a bowl of goldfish on the dashboard, but I made it home with no close calls. Turns were interesting. And slow. Also, I can vouch for the quality of Olympia Motosports Airglide pants and jacket and Scorpion helmets. I was warm and dry the whole way home.

Oh, and there were two other bikes in the motorcycle parking spaces this morning when I arrived. One is a Suzuki crotch rocket, he was gone by the time I came out. The other is a huge Vulcan which looks like it should be on display behind a velvet rope at a motorcycle show. I'm not much on big bikes but this one is a beauty. Perfect chrome, leather saddle and saddlebags. The owner seems like a nice guy; we've chatted a bit. It was still there when I went out. I'll bet he is just hating life now. I wiped the Majesty down when I got home, and the rain even rinsed off the bird poop I picked up Sunday. It's a good day.

 

[PCM84]

Do you also have TWO Majesty's?

I just picked up an 05 Charcoal Silver Majesty -- by far the fastest color.

 

[aa6vh]

I think you guys are just jealous because you could not find one of the faster blue models....

And Dave, did you also have to dodge the shotgun toting crazies? I heard about the excitement you had recently. Sure was brave of that female LEO who used her body to shield one of the victims from additional harm.

And I think we are getting your rain storm today down here on Southern California.

Dave

 

[PCM84]

Canadian Motorcycle Guide and Cycle World have both done emperical testing and the Charcoal Gray is not only faster, it gets better mileage and rides better. Blue did come in a close second.

 

[goodideadave]

Yes, we have a pair of the charcoal gray ones. I also remember a report in Motorcycle Today.com that says that owners of gray scooters tend to look younger, as well. I will look around for the link and post it.

Yes, I had dinner in that same plaza Friday night. The Chili's parking lot fronts on Laguna Blvd where one person was shot. For those who haven't heard, on Saturday night some nut went on a shooting spree in the bedroom community where I live. Link here: http://www.kcra.com/news/8288436/detail.html. He shot three people and killed one of them. Yes, when I'm high on meth, unemployed, and my wife dumps me, the first thing that comes to mind is to grab my shotgun and blast away at total strangers. Moron had to drive an hour from his home in Yuba city to get here. He must have had a death wish or been from out of town because on Saturday night there are probably 50 cops of various flavors within a mile of the crime scene. The Sheriff's fortress is about a mile east, city hall where the city cops hang out is a half-mile south, and CHP is always going on and off Hwy 99 there. I heard it was a real mess, with the police closing Laguna Blvd and ordering people out of their cars while they dealt with the situation.

 

[texascycle]

I have been very impressed with the wet weather manners of the Majesty. I have ridden in some very nasty storms over the years and although I don't like them, I have come to learn to deal with them. On the way back from the MotoGP event at Laguna Seca last July, I baked in the desert for a day, cooled of in the mountains for a day, then bathed in heavy down pours from Roswell to San Antonio. My FZ1 has very little rain protection and I was subsequently soaked from neck to calf, while my boots were simply overflowing with water. It wasn't fun at all, but was slightly better than going through Needles, CA with my Casio watch (in the shade) indicating 118 degrees. The FZ1 handled the water fine, though, and hydro-planing was a non-issue. I kept a quick pace of around 85-90mph most of the way in the rain and besides being wet, I felt stable and safe (relatively, of course).

A few weeks after my return, I was eager to do some riding on my Majesty. A couple of friends wanted to do a run to the TX coast and just get out of town for a bit. We ran into some light rain at first. An hour later, I was still completely dry while my buddies reminded me of the story above. They were soaked. Later, the rain got even harder and besides a few drops that crept up the windshield opening or dripped over the top of the windscreen, I was still competely dry. We entered a section of road that had some twisities, so I put my focus face on and tried my best to keep the most upright line as possible (love the goldfish tank analogy). A short while later I realized that I was alone. I had left my buddies somewhere in the distant past. I waited under an awning for quite some time until they came by. I was still dry. To this day, they comment on how the Majesty is such an awesome machine. The other bikes were a Honda Valkyrie, Kawsaki ZX12R, and Star V-Star Custom 1100. Not likely company for a scoot ... not likely company to get whipped by a scoot ... even on a rainy day.

(FYI ... I have proven the same ability to escape from these same bikes even in dry conditions, but in the wet, the story has more impact.)

 

[glennd]

I'm not doing something right.Did 50 miles in BIG downpour last week and I was soaked head to toe. Mainly Interstate at 75mph and was even going forward¿

 

[gpsnut2003]

I'm not doing something right.Did 50 miles in BIG downpour last week and I was soaked head to toe. Mainly Interstate at 75mph and was even going forward¿

what type of wet weather gear were you wearing ?

i regularly ride in the rain (i have no choice. the majesty is my only transport) and with the right gear on, im very seldom wet. my hands get the wettest, but even then, it's not too bad.

jason.

 

[Blexcroid]

I've been caught in some rather substantial Texas downpours and the only thing that gets wet is my hair that hangs out of the helmet (if I forget to tuck it inside my 'Stich).
I wear an Aerostich Roadcrafter (one piece) suit. It also is cool in the summer and warm in the winter. :mrgreen:

 

[glennd]

Was wearing a leather jacket, pants and gloves. Stopped and put the jacket under the seat. Was definitely not prepared for it. The good news is I was only in the heavy rain for about 50 miles. Have some nice rain gear, buut it was dry at the house.

 

[Blexcroid]

Frogg Toggs are very light weight and are compact enough to store in the larger glove compartment. You may want to think about something like that to keep onboard at all times for those summer pop-up showers! :toothy2: