It's electric

Yesterday at Pentecost our parents visited us and we had a nice BBQ. Today, we are installing some electronic systems on our motorcycles. But it didn't quite go as planned. The weather is nice. Both motorcycles are parked in the driveway. Marianne's motorcycle in on the center stand. Underneath it is a piece of red plastic, preventing parts to get lost in the gravel. The Koso MINI3 (clock, thermometer and voltmeter), Gerbing controller for our heated jackets and an extra 12 volt plug are ready to be installed. First take off the seat, plastic side covers and tank. Disconnect the battery. What's next? The plastic dashboard cover. But no matter how much we turn the two remaining bolts, it doens't move. Damn plastic! Sander curses the person that decided a motorcycle should have...

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Ascension Day Weekend

The tent is drying, sleeping bags are being ventilated and the washing machine is turning it's cycles. We have just returned from the annual Ascension Day weekend with our motorcycle friends (the Renegades). Altough most was old and familiar, something was different. This time we went on route with the Sena SMH10 (bluetooth bike-to-bike communication set) and we really liked it. It seemed convenient to us to have an intercom set for our trip. Making it easier to communicate with each other and listen to GPS instructions. In the past we had a bike-to-bike communication set, but it turned out to be very disappointing. So frankly we were a bit suspicious. Preferably we would have had the opportunity to try out different devices. But it turned out to be impossible. The fact that we...

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Appierun

Every year, in the vicinity of Hoofddorp, a ride (Appierun) is organized for the (mentally) disabled. Sander has been participating in this event for years now, so this year is no exception. It not only gives great satisfaction to contribute to such an event. But it also always is a meeting of old acquaintances. Next year will be the 10th edition, which is said to be greater than ever before. Unfortunately we won't be present, because of our plans. ...

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Offroad Weert

As a result of the ladies offroad training Marianne took in March, Paul organized an offroad trip in the vicinity of Weert today. Originally the trip was meant for the participants of the training and their partners. But it became more of a private ride. A great opportunity to test the off-road capability of the Transalp. It's a pity that from the Randstad it's always so far away before one can do a decent bit of offroading. But once you're in Limburg it's like one big playground. Paul has asked us to show up early. So again we take ours Alps on to the highway, even though they are not really suited for it. As we arrive at Paul, one of the participants appears to be ill. Therefore we're only with four today. In the morning we drive towards the BMW Boxer Toko. A bit of self-interest...

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Relocated

Since Marianne sold her house we are living as Live-in guardians. In this way we are not commited to anything and we can quickly save some extra money for our big trip. The only drawback is that we never know how long we can stay somewhere. And so it happened in Amsterdam. After having lived there for less than two months, we received the message that we had to vacate the building. Disappointed! Because we were just fine in a very large office building on top of a shopping mall. Sander's work within cycling distance and close to public transport. The only drawback was, that we couldn't park our motorbikes. Fortunately we were offered an alternative accommodation. After having viewed a number of properties, the choice was made for a manor near Utrecht. That may sound a little...

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V for Victory

Was today, over 65 years ago, our country liberated from the German occupation. This year we didn't notice a lot of the festivities to celebrate this fact. Yet we are victorious. The ultimate tank bag has been found! Early in the morning we set course to the east of our country. First destination Waypoint in Notter. Hoping they would have some demo bike-2-bike communication sets, that we could try out. In fact our experience with bike-2-bike communication sets is not very positive. And we want to avoid a new disappointment. But unfortunately there are no demo sets. Moreover, we don't really get the impression that the salesperson, who's helping us, knows all the ins and outs of the available devices. Too bad for a company that claims to...

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