PJPR01

Acosta is surely showing signs of being an exceptionally fast learner...he's got guts as well for such a young racer. I think Marquez sees himself in Acosta and enjoyed the battle out there. Like watching Federer vs. Nadal go at each other with their best stuff. Seeing Marquez go down all by himself, not even in a bump and grind situation was surprising indeed...I didn't really see an "error", but if mechanically something happened, he seemed to accept it. Either way, the Ducati was performing well enough for him to battle from 5th to 1st and ride to his limits, which was great to see again. Vinales was on another level altogether...but as said above, can be hot or cold, so very difficult to bet on him being "consistent" again at the remaining races. Either way, Moto GP just became exciting again...it was missing this last year.

Marquez almost pulled it off...just got a little too hot...but what a ride, the King of COTA almost made it back to his rightful position on the throne. The first 10 laps of the race were simply incredible. Acosta is spectacular, and shows great promise. Vinales rode the most amazing race of his career it seems...11th to 1st. This race was worth watching twice...

Last time I saw a nice collections of V11's assembled for the "group photo". I didn't have my Scura just yet by then...but shortly thereafter. I'll have to dig out a photo from the archives...maybe some folks here were assembled there.

I'll be there....likely on the Norge, not the Scura. Was there back in 2016 as well....should be a nice ride out and about.

Interesting...I like Knopfler...had a chance to see him just a couple of years ago here in Sugar Land south of Houston. He's quite the story teller and has a massive group of musicians with him. I'll have to give the new album a listen now...hopefully it's a good one!

I’ll take two!

I've had mixed results on 2 Shorai batteries I've used in the past. I love the weight savings, but ultimately I killed one inadvertently. I never kept either on a tender. Both didn't like the cold, but they did perform as expected. One eventually died, I was able to get it replaced with a refurbed battery by Shorai, the other still lives on my work bench as a spare/backup and seems to work just fine. I do use the Shorai charging system rather than the standard charger as they have a special port that attaches to the battery rather than to the terminals directly. I'm curious about the other brands mentioned above...will try one the next time my regular battery goes out on one of the Guzzis.

Crossing fingers that everything works when re-assembled. Presumably you have a new reverse threaded odometer reset screw as well to install! Those are proverbial needle in the haystack items!! Here's to another 33k miles!

I have grown to love the crinkly engine paint on my Scura…doesn’t bother me in the least. The flywheel was replaced by Mike at MPH several years ago with a single plate steel one…my original sounded hollow but I don’t recall seeing any cracks. Peace of mind however…it’s the smoothest and softest shifting bike of all of the Guzzi’s. I’m not racking up mega miles on it but for while I own it or if I ever pass it on to another owner at least the work has been done. I just equate the crinkly paint to some original patina…as long as it’s working mechanically perfectly I don’t mind a few minor aesthetic factory blemishes. With the lovely Alcántara seat I bought from Paul and some other farkles it’s a work of art in my view.

Docc…This is indeed one of the local favorites…quite a refreshing beer and one of the more commonly drunk in the summer. Shiner is a spot we somewhat frequently go thru on rides…they remind me a bit of Leinenkugel from Wisconsin (affectionately known as Leinys). Both go quite well with Bratwurst…sometimes my cousins and uncles in Wisconsin would marinate their brats for a day in beer and then cook them. Many small towns here have German, Czech and Polish origins…

The Gullwing Mercedes might just fit the bill! Some lovely specimens there to drool over!

My diffuser broke, I tried to fix it with super glue but it broke again. Are you planning to sell your existing headlight perhaps with the diffuser…if so and it’s working perfectly I’d be interested as I haven’t been able to find a replacement diffuser yet.

Gourmet Prix Fixe Chicane Rendezvous

Kindergarten another example Beer…Bier Salad…salat Bratwurst und so weiter…not to forget of course the famous VW ad…Fahrvergnügen!!

100%...ALSO allowing motos to get to the front of the line at a red stoplight would be wonderful.

This is beginning to feel more and more like Formula 1 now with drivers bouncing between constructors trying to find that elusive combination of mechanical advantage and good voodoo to win. I just hope we see Marquez on the podium a few times this year and even more hopefully Acosta on top in a few races as well.

FINALLY! An exciting race to watch again...that was entertaining. Let's hope Acosta doesn't burn up too fast in his exhuberance and is around for sometime to come. I'm dismayed at how poorly former super star Quartararo is doing these days. Great to see Marc contending again, and the track...a BEAUTY! Time to watch some replays and post race interviews in a few hours!

I wish I could do this as well...speaking of which, it's time to get the Griso registered now!

I'm assuming (maybe incorrectly) that the difference is related to their performance in Moto GP. Alex hasn't really done anything yet...will he in the future, who knows. I'm a little surprised they didn't get a nice Porsche 911 Turbo S...as much as I think the Audi's are absolutely bad ass Avant/Break/Stationwagon...there's nothing like ripping around in the 911. At last year's Porsche festival in The Woodlands, there was a color shifting RS6 Avant wagon...truly stunning. Only problem is I haven't seen if you can get them in a stick shift, everything is automatic/PDK these days...how boring!

Ahem...do you always take the short route home on the motorbike or sometimes the leisurely, meandering longer route? Which one is more enjoyable?

Exactly as John says above...a few minutes of relief every now and then to stretch the arms, hands, wrists w/o giving up the maintenance of speed is nice. None of my Guzzi's have it, but the Goldwing does and I'm using it from time to time on some of the longer straights. I also use a wide Crampbuster on all of my bikes, so there's virtually no tension in the wrist even on all day rides, but I must say that having the Cruise control option is nice, even if I use it not very frequently. Perhaps for the long stretches of I-10 it would be nice to set it and leave it for a few hours as there is virtually no interference required for those wide open spaces. An easy and intuitive cruise control...one button activate, one button set and one button toggle up or down on speed makes it very "user friendly". You can move your right hand around to other parts of the bike, rest it on the handlebar, brake fluid reservoir, on your knee, or stretch back a bit...all of that helps if you have cruise activated...or you can do all that and just slow down a bit and then resume...

Will be good to see you John…with bike or without! All my bikes are running nicely these days! I missed the Musk satellite show the last time… Put out the speakers and let’s hear some of your favorite Dead tunes!!

For those V11 or other Guzzi afficionados, you're probably already in the know, but for some new folks, Cedar Vale, Kansas rally scheduled at Hewins Park in May. See you guys there!

Damn...now I'm going to be tempted to pull a trailer...those single wheel ones are slick! Color coded to match no less!

Time for a test ride on the Beemer!