LOP - Cruising the Coast - Barbers

Well the third trip this season is over. I got back from Leeds Alabama last evening after a 650 mile day on Monday and a 700 mile day on Tuesday. Around 3500 miles total.





Fatalities for the trip include a chipped kickstart pawl when starting the bike on a cool Sunday morning when leaving the LOP rally. I removed it and re-ground it in the carriage house behind the Excelsior Hotel in Jefferson Texas. Thanks to the support of Kay - the manager of the hotel for making the facilities available.



Somewhere near Gulfport Miss I got a rock in the headlight which made a nice little "bullet" hole in the lens.

More motor than car.



I arrived in Leeds on Wednesday evening after cruising out to Tallahassee to kill some time.





Lots of good racing



Here is Maurice and Kenny. Premier 500 #1 and #2. Proof that age and treachery beats wild hair. :twisted:



Len Gregory, Leo Goff and myself at Barbers.



I had to replace the drive belt on Sunday before I left. The big motor is making life tough for the primary drive belt and it was starting to slip a bit under hard acceleration.

I also replaced the alternator fuse holder that had obviously been a little loose and caused it to melt and discharge the battery. I was cruising down the highway a couple days earlier and noticed the speedo quit working. Luckily I took an exit and rode up a steep hill when I saw the gauge said the battery voltage was very low. I had to coast the bike down the hill to start it after a quick roadside squeeze on the fuseholder to restore the connection.

Overall the bike performed very well with the only real concern being the high oil consumption. It used 6 quarts of 20-50 on the trip. Normal cruising speed was 80 mph. I got one speed warning in Oklahoma on the last day. 79 mph in a 70 mph zone. The officer was more interested in the bike than the speed.

Here is a link to the photos I took on the trip. Jim

http://s658.photobucket.com/user/comnoz ... t=3&page=1

I like the fact that you really put some miles on your bike. No point in all that complex design and machine work if the creation doesn't get used, or just does the occasional Sunday Parade ride, so Good on ya! There is nothing like a real road test to learn what works and what doesn't.
The Brits built something like 24 mks of the Spitfire during WW2 and the last few were light years beyond the original. The Germans were doing the same with their aircraft, but fortunately the Brits stayed ahead for the most part.
You could think of your Norton as your personal Spitfire. What Mk are you on? :mrgreen:

Glen

worntorn said:

You could think of your Norton as your personal Spitfire. What Mk are you on? :mrgreen:

Glen

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I guess since this makes 34 years I have been riding the bike I am further along than the Britts.

Thanks for the pics, Jim. Yamando !?!?! Howdiditdo?

xbacksideslider said:

Thanks for the pics, Jim. Yamando !?!?! Howdiditdo?

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I am not 100% sure -but I think he broke his transmission.

It was a convergence of Norton masters in the Barber Paddock. Big smile when Comstock, Becker, Goff, and Gregory were all shooting the breeze under our EZ Up.

Jim always comes, parks his bike, roams around, and always makes himself useful at the proper moments. On Sunday as we were packing up he mumbled something about using some of our tools for a few moments to make some "tweaks" for his massive journey back home. He worked quietly off to the side, and then started his mighty beast up and rode off. Glad you made it home, Jim.

Such an amazing weekend. It actually begins to desensitize a person. If I saw a Norton riding down the street in the city I'd chase the person down and strike up a conversation with them. At Barber there are a thousand Nortons at any given time.

-KC

Damn comnoz, 700 mile days is a grind on my super smooth Honda Valkyrie!

I've never even come close to those kind of miles on my Norton. 400 or so a day is the limit for me.
Then again, I don't take the old bike on the interstate unless there is no other route. Give me the deserted
two lanes, the twistier the better.

It makes me happy when I hear of people actually riding their old bikes. Keep it up!

Mark said:

Damn comnoz, 700 mile days is a grind on my super smooth Honda Valkyrie!

I've never even come close to those kind of miles on my Norton. 400 or so a day is the limit for me.
Then again, I don't take the old bike on the interstate unless there is no other route. Give me the deserted
two lanes, the twistier the better.

It makes me happy when I hear of people actually riding their old bikes. Keep it up!

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I agree on the interstate bit. I stuck with nice uncontrolled entry roads for most of the ride but when I left Birmingham I needed to get home -so interstate it was from Memphis to Oklahoma City. Then back to secondary roads and even a nice 27 mile stretch of loose gravel road in SW Co. Jim