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I’ve been exploring the custom luggage rack problem. The more I look into it, the more I realize that I don’t know enough about metals to make my own, so I’ve talked to some professionals. I talked to a welder in town, and he had a hard time coming up with a number. But he seems like a good guy. There were two kids dirt bikes up against the building, and a cruiser out back. He did seem interested in the problem, and knew what I was looking for. But said he’d have to spend at least an hour just staring at it to get a handle on what needs to be done. But when I let him know I wouldn’t hold him to a number, he said around $300. Then I decided to check into a custom motorcycle shop. Felt very awkward, but I got over it. Interestingly enough, the Chop Shop had just as hard a time coming up with a number. The project is apparently fiddly whether or not you done it before.  These guys have built custom racks for metric sport bikes. His number was higher, $500, but I got the impression he highballed it. He did say it might be less, and it definitely would be less in the winter.

So, now I’ve got some decisions to make.  The cost of the custom rack is reasonable no matter which number it turns out to be closer to. The question is: how long am I going to keep the bike? I love the Blast. It’s so much fun to ride, but I know that eventually I’m going to want a bigger bike. The Blast just isn’t long enough to carry clothing, camping gear and my photo equipment. And truth be told, I really like the Triumph Bonneville. I’m probably a good enough rider already to be comfortable with the Bonnie now. But, it’s twice the price of the Blast, so I’d not have much money after making payments. If I did buy a Bonneville, I’d still need to spend money on luggage racks, although there are off the shelf options. Plus, I’d want things like engine guards and highway pegs.

The main competitor for my motorcycling money is training. There’s the experienced rider course, the Women’s Riding School, Lee Parks Total Control, a dirt riding couse, maybe a cheap dirt bike for my own practice. Turns out riders with dirt experience are substantially under represented in motorcycle accident statistics. Since I don’t want to become a statistic myself, I want to know whatever it is that dirt riders know that keeps them out of accidents. And considering the kinds of “roads” I keep finding myself on, dirt experience is certainly transferable to the kind of riding I seem to do.

It’s going to be a difficult decision. I’ve always believed that tools don’t make the craftsman. And a skilled craftsman can make art with any tool available. But jobs are always easier when you match the tool, the job and the craftsman. I’ve matched the camera to me the budding photographer. While I can’t currently push the limits of the D200, and I may never do so, it’s comfortable for me, and never gets in my way. The limits are all mine. The Blast is just a ton of fun, but I’ve got a sense already what it’s limits are. The Bonneville looks to be the motorcycle equivalent of a prosumer SLR.

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

The higher seat came in today; I picked it up and rode it home. I secured the old seat across my tail bag by using the cargo net. Pretty odd looking. The guy at the parts counter said if anyone asks, I should just tell them it’s a three seater.

With the taller seat, it felt like a whole new bike. The seat is a bit hard, but the height feels pretty good. I think it really will solve the leg cramping problem. It’s gonna take some time to get used to it. It felt more like six inches than two. But I’m still flat footed at the lights.  I am glad that the Blast has a low center of gravity. But it’ll probably take a few hundred miles to get used to it.

So, since the bike is getting to be more what I want, the luggage problem really needs to be solved.  After looking at lots of Bonnie’s, the solo seat really caught my eye.  And I got to thinking that this sort of thing might be possible with the Blast. Take off the tail piece and you can get to the tail frame underneath. I’d need to have somebody fabricate some kind of new tail piece, but since I’d be getting the back of the stock seat cut off and rebuilt, what would be some more custom work. But as I spent a long time staring at the bike, a cheaper solution occurred to me.  I already own a lockable, waterproof hard case. It just isn’t a motorcycle case. The question has now become, how can I attach Pelican cases to the bike.  The first thing to do was to find a top loading Pelican case for the saddle bags. They make exactly 1 size of top loading cases. It’s about the same size as the 1500 case that I use for my camera stuff. The 1430 top loading case is deeper. But what would it look like on either side of the Blast? One cheap and easy way to find out. Camera, tripod, Photoshop.

I didn’t actually check the dimensions very carefully until this morning. I was mostly too impressed with my faked up boxes. The one I got completely wrong is the width of the side cases. I vastly underestimated it.  What I’ve got in the picture is about all the wider I want the cases to be. So, I spent a good bit of time rethinking the whole project. I looked at all sorts of cases: Givi E21’s, and Hepco-Becker Straykers both caught my eye. Both they both quickly run into serious money, and I’d still have to find someone to modify racks meant for other bikes. The only thing that would make these classy cases worthwhile is that I could then use them on any bike I purchased in the future. All I’d need to do would be to buy the racks for the new bike. But I’m still not ready to drop $500 plus to get cases right now. So back to the problem at hand; can I get Pelican cases to work?

While searching out more info on the Straykers, I wound up back on TriumphRat.net. Lo and behold, I’m not the first person to think of Pelican cases for a cheap solution to the lockable, waterproof cases. CatDaddy came up with super cheap brackets to hook 1400’s to the Bonneville. So, back to Pelican.com. While the top opening box is out, side opening cases might just do the trick. 1450’s are 14.5 liters of capacity, with outer dimensions of 16″x13″x6.9″, for $65 each at CaseClub. And I could even get Yellow! Seahorse has some competing cases. The most attractive one is the SE-520, which is just a little smaller at 13 liters, 14.9″x12.1″x6.8″. Just the case alone is $48, but they come with an option of locks on the latches. This would keep the cases looking a little less cheesy, because I wouldn’t need padlocks. $76 also at CaseClub.com. And as CatDaddy has done, all I really need is nuts and bolts, and a bent and drilled bit of 1″x1/8″ strapping.

For a top case, I can also run a couple of straps over the passenger seat and mount Givi’s E-250 universal adapter plate, and get a really nice trunk. Or in the short term, I could just buy some other giant Pelican, or Seahorse case to use as a hard tail box.

The problem with side opening saddle bags is that when you open them, the stuff will fall out. Pelican actually has some overpriced soft bags that fit the 1450. But I think screwing cargo netting into the cases will solve that problem much more cheaply. With all the holes I’d be putting into the cases, I might be compromising the waterproof quality of them. I think rubber gaskets and silicone sealant should solve that problem. The hard cases would give me plenty of room to put on new reflectors, or if I get ambitious, LEDs. I’d lose the place for my current helmet lock, but there’s plenty of room to hook up a new one.

After 2 months and almost 2000 miles, the bike and I are becoming one at last. So, of course, I’ve started thinking about the next bike. (Oh, the shame!) Yes, I’ve been unfaithful, letting my eyes wander to larger, more powerful bikes. I’ve even sat on a few. But there still just aren’t that many bikes in existence that I can consider riding. I’m going to get better as a rider, but my legs aren’t going to get any longer. So, no V-Strom, no Ulysses, no F650 GS. The F800 ST is still a possibility, but the cost just kills me. The Triumphs are still calling me. The Bonneville is a sweet ride, and is highly customizable. I can Scramblerize it, to make it a bit more dirt road friendly.

But one remarkable shop I stopped at, the salesman asked me, “Why do you want a new bike? The Blast is a great bike for you.” Not exactly the way to sell motorcycles, but an excellent attitude. I had a ready answer. After 200 miles, I feel pretty cramped. Actually, after about 100. And it’s really hard to haul much stuff on the bike. Since I like longer distance riding, both of these are an issue. The salesman had no easy answers for me, but I know by now that easy answers don’t exist.

I’ve been spending some on-line time over at TriumphRat.net. Lots of information in the twins forums, and I’ve been dreaming and drooling. But even if I bought a Bonny, I’d still have to spend a fair amount of scratch fitting it out. While I would be instantly granted room to stretch, the storage would still need to be addressed. There are plenty of options, but nothing cheap.

The only thing for it is to see what I can do to make my joyous little Blast, a bit more comfortable and functional. Firstly, I had a brainstorm to solve the helmet lock problem, both immediately and cheaply. It’s so very old school, and I’m kicking myself for not thinking of it sooner. Yes, there is a place to put a helmet lock under the seat of the Blast. Just not a “Helmet Lock.” Home Depot to the rescue.

I seem to recall this being a fairly common sight 20-25 years ago. Just your regular old padlock hanging under the seat. It’s out of the way enough that I can leave it there all the time.

OK, just one more. It doesn’t really show the lock, but it does show off the pretty lines of the bike.

I’ve ordered the standard seat from the dealership and it should arrive this week. I’m hoping the 2 extra inches will alleviate the legs cramping problem. I think I’ll still be able to back the bike up with the taller seat. It will also be a nice stepping stone for when I do go bigger. I can start zeroing in on my seat height limit.

And I added a bit a pure farkle. When looking around in the doo dads aisle, I found a small clock. It’s really just a small, waterproof pocket watch with  stickum on the back instead of a fob attachment. I don’t always remember to wear my watch, and when I do, it’s still a bit difficult to see when riding. Trying  to get the watch to peak out enough from under my jacket sleeve was starting to be a recipe for disaster. Too much time with my eyes off the road.  Now it’s just a quick glance away.

So, I’ve got some basic problems now sorted out. I no longer have to carry my helmet around with me everywhere I go. (I can’t believe it took me 2 months to think of a padlock. That’s the problem with the internet. With all that wonderful information at your fingertips, you can spend forever looking for a specific solution, instead of being forced to just use your brain.) Hopefully, two more inches will be significant in the comfort department. And I can see what time it is without killing myself.

Now, if I can only solve the problem of dry lockable storage! My tail bag is great, and it came through the torrential downpour with flying colors. But, it’s starting to fill with things I should always carry: rain gear, warmer kit bits, maps, tools, lens cleaner, water, etc. When I take my camera along, (and I always want my camera along) it’s really stuffed. Saddle bags are the best solution, but tricky to fit ones of useful size. And they still wouldn’t offer much deterrent to theft. Locking hard cases are the way to go if at all possible.

The internet is also a good thing. No, I didn’t find a pre-made solution, but all that time spent looking at 37 pages of pictures of Bonnevilles, most customized in some way, got the juices flowing.  Stayed tuned for more. . . .