One Hell of a Ride

Even if you buy a brand new motorcycle and drive it off the stand from the official dealer store, sooner or later it will require a good wash. Even if you are that one lucky rider who has never been caught riding under the rain during the last 25 seasons, even if your garage is more sterile than the 8th Hospital in Zeytun (hey it’s totally feasible!), and even if you take a shower every time before saddling it, if you’re riding it you’ll get it dirty (no pun intended).

Tsakhkadzor, about 500km after the purchase

Moreover, if you just love doing it in dirt and gravel, the need to wash it will rise a lot more often than if you’re one of those cafe racer dudes with a Fireblade.

And by often I mean pretty damn often.

Urtsadzor, dirts of Khosrov Forest

So what do you do when the time comes? You know, when the rear suspension doesn’t work anymore because of all the dirt, the leather saddle and the handlebar grips conveniently stick to your pants and gloves like a candy, the turn signal button no longer works because of all the sand around, the mirrors show a blurred vision of a drunk person distantly resembling the reality behind you and she suddenly comes up with all these different reasons why she does not want to ride today? From that point (as well as from any ride that is more than 300km in Armenia) you have two options.

Option number one

Wash your motorcycle. Get some water running (better warm than cold), some dishwashing liquid detergent, a sponge and a bucket.

• Make sure the engine is not very hot
• Start with splashing buckets of water to essentially get the motorcycle very wet
• Spray the running water and try to get off as much dust and dirt by spraying as possible
• Get more water in the bucket and soap it using the detergent
• Starting with the top (the mirrors), go down sponging and soaping all the parts, taking care of the dead bugs and paying attention to every detail. Avoid rubbing the sponge against big pieces of dirt or sand, as this will scratch the paint.
• Clean the motorcycle chain using a commercial chain cleaner available in many stores including Honda’s Yerevan Dealership
• Rinse the bike using running water
• Let the motorcycle rest for a couple of minutes
• Dry it using a damp cloth
• Lubricate the chain!
• Go on a ride to dry off the remaining parts (enjoy)!

One thing to keep in mind is, do not direct high-pressure water on the carburetor, the front fork suspension rings or the engine radiator. These parts can easily be damaged by that.

Option number two

Have someone else wash your motorcycle. Many riders are feeling very strongly against someone else washing the motorcycle. Moreover, there is a shared belief that washing the motorcycle at a commercial no-contact car wash (aka “Karcher”) will damage some parts because of the extremely high-pressure water and air. However, in reality things are not so grim, if you take necessary precautions and warn the washer about some specifics.

Commercial no-contact car washes have two big advantages:

1. They do not accumulate any scratches to the paint, simply because pressurized air is used instead of a sponge
2. They are quick

Warn the fellow to not direct the stream of water at the radiator, the carburetor and the front fork UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES and always stay to supervise what’s he doing. Then pay your 2000 drams and get done with it.

I am personally going to this typical Yerevan car wash in a yard at Grigor Lusavorich street where a guy named Galoust (he’s in the photo above) has become my own personal bike washing expert. Here is where the place is located:

View Bike Wash in a larger map

Tell Galoust I said hi!

Riding is fun, and in order to make sure the machine serves long and without problems, we need to serve it on our part. One of the cornerstones of motorcycle maintenance is proper motorcycle storage between the seasons. This step–by–step guide is aimed at helping those who can’t following the regular guides available online due to non–availability of certain required products in their area (like myself).

Doing all of this with the help of a friend in a well organized manner should not take more than half a Saturday, usually turning into a fun and unique experience, but most importantly your motorcycle is certainly going to appreciate the effort!

Step 1: Go ride

Take your motorcycle out on a short ride, preferably to the nearest petrol station. Ride for at least 15 minutes to make sure the engine gets warm and good, ready to change some oil. Use the chance to enjoy the last moments of riding to the fullest!

Step 2: Full tank

Fill the tank with petrol fully. Make sure the petrol station is credible for high-quality fuel, as the petrol is going to stay in the tank during the winter and if there is water in it then it is going to separate over the long period. Note that while most of the online storage guides suggest emptying the tank and using a tank spray to prevent its rusting, since you presumably have no access to luxuries like the spray the tank is better off being full than empty.

Some guides also suggest emptying the carbs before storage. I believe the carb is better off staying full and being emptied just before taking the bike out from the storage.

Step 3: Tire pressures

On the way back, check the tire pressures at any tire maintenance spot. Inflate both tires to the maximum pressure levels recommended for the motorcycle. Flat tires rot or get permanent dark patch spots that nobody wants to get.

Step 4: Clean and tidy

Dirt, mud, oil and dead bugs deteriorate the surface of the motorcycle over time by eating into the paint. Wash the motorcycle thoroughly making sure that it is completely clean before proceeding. Do not forget the tires and the leathers as well as the chrome parts. All of these need special care and attention.

Step 5: Lubricate

Lubricate the chain and everything else that needs to be lubricated, to avoid corrosion and rusting.

Step 6: Oil

Oil and the oil filter do need to be changed. These need to be changed even if you rode only a couple of kilometers since the last change. If you are storing the motorcycle for more than 4 months, you will have to change the oil again before you start riding it again. Otherwise, you are just going to ride with your winter oil on the next season (before another change of oil is needed) and it is perfectly fine.

I am assuming here that you do know how to change the oil and the filter, and I will write a separate guide someday for those who don’t.

Step 6a: Pistons

This step applies only to the cases when the motorcycle is going to be idle for more than 4 months.

Remove the spark plugs and fill a tablespoon of oil into each cylinder. Crank the engine with the starter to spread the oil evenly on the cylinder walls. This is a common and nice method to avoid rusting in the cylinders. Shut the plug holes with clean rags and take the spark plugs home.

Step 7: Battery

You generally do not have nor can you find a trickle charger in your country, so your battery is going to die and there is nothing you can do about it. But to make it less painful, you definitely want to take it off the motorcycle, take it home with you and slowly deplete it by plugging a 12V bulb or something else to the contacts.

If you have a chance to charge it with a charger once it’s depleted, and then go depleting it again, that is just wonderful (that is essentially what the trickle charger does). Otherwise, you will have to start the motorcycle with the help of another battery, charging your own from there.

Step 8: Removables

Besides removing the battery, you also want to remove the air filter and some of the leather parts, taking it all home with you. I personally remove all I can contain safer at home, including the mirrors, the leather sits of both the rider and the pillion and any accessories I have added. Some maniacs take home the entire carb and disassemble it.

Step 9: Ventilation

Close the exhaust pipe hermetically so no air gets into it causing rusting. This is an important step. Do not just stick some rugs into the hole, as clothes breathe pretty well and you do not need that. Similarly shut the air filter hole to avoid ventilation where it shouldn’t occur.

Step 10: Placement

Placement is important. Keep the motorcycle in a dark and dry place with minimal temperature variations between the day and the night. It is also very much preferred that the temperature does not get below zero.

Since you presumably do not have a motorcycle lift and CBF500 does not have a center stand by default, simply lean the motorcycle on its sidestand and make sure that the tires do not touch concrete. It is best to put sheets of thick paper under the tires to be crystal sure that no tire rotting can happen. Moving the motorcycle every 2–3 weeks a little forward and backward so the wheels don’t change their round shape under the weight is much desired.

Finally, cover the motorcycle with a blanket or a specialized motorcycle cover. Do not cover it with a plastic cover, or anything else that does not breathe and locks the moisture.

Other parts of the series can be found here.

I really loved the Honda Shadow. I kinda hated the one in Honda’s European model lineup, but the American model was my dream bike. I was riding my Rebel and dreaming a Shadow, so much that at times I got real close at purchasing one!

Honda Shadow VLX on the road to Yeraskh

At times I considered purchasing other cruisers…

Suzuki Marauder

But in the end it was really Honda’s Shadow that had my heart.

So I rode my little cruiser getting annoyed with its low CCs, thinking of switching it with a big cruiser instead. I remember a friend telling me that my age is not yet that of a cruiser and that I should enjoy other types of motorcycles before I’m 40, but I didn’t pay attention to that until my business trip to Germany. In Bielefeld I had an opportunity to rent a motorcycle (thanks to my colleague Mr. Klein), and when they said they didn’t have a Shadow, I immediately recalled my friend’s sayings, thinking that I should give the naked bikes a shot. The guy on the phone said I could rent a Suzuki Bandit 600, and I went with it.

My Suzuki Bandit parked in Bielefeld

I remember the first feelings of the high-rev sporty engine in my hands and that was the moment I figured out that the naked streetbikes were way sexier than the cruisers. They were created for urban riding and urban riding was what I was mostly doing. Agile in the traffic among the cars, fast to accelerate and to brake, and finally — sexy almost like the sportbikes! I rode my Bandit a lot. I rode it on the german Autobahns and for commuting locally as well as cross-town tripping and just riding around. The class had proven to be very comfortable for tarmac and I loved the little slice of performance that it offered.

Naked was sexy because the engine was out for anyone to see and it made the motorcycle look very straightforward, rational and somewhat aggressively beautiful. The plastic fenders, covers and fairings of the sportbikes made them look like plastic toys in my eyes and so inside my brain the streetfighters actually beat the sportbikes in terms of the style. And man was that retro headlight hot!

Aside from the style, streetbikes seemed cool because they were created for being ridden in the city. Adding this to the naked engine style, their intent was put out so daringly that an engineer type of a person like myself was in love at once!

I rode the motorcycle for two weeks in North-Rhine Westfalia and flew back to Yerevan determined that my next bike is going to be something like the Bandit, except it had to carry Honda’s logo on the fuel tank. After coming to terms with my finances for a while, I paid a visit to the local Honda dealership and saw this:

Honda CBF500

Other parts of the series can be found here.

I did my first wheelie on a motorcycle yesterday. Enough said!!

It was a real wheelie… Almost 90 degrees vertical, it was fantastic! After the wheelie my hands were shaking for many minutes, my heart was jumping out of my throat and I could hardly speak through my excitement!

I think I am entering another level of mastering my machine!

I’m planning my next wave of major purchases.

And I am going to kick it with a new helmet — I desperately need to change my current Lazer helmet.

Lazer Tempo

Most importantly, it is already around 5 years old (and helms do need to be replaced every 3 years as they lose their protective capabilities); it’s a cruiser helmet (I want something more streetfigher-fitting with my CBF500) and it’s a Lazer (I want a better brand).

I contacted my dear local dealer and here are the options they offered:

$290

$290

$320

$320

My heart currently goes with the first option, as it looks very stylish to me (besides having a great pilot look!).. However I am not sure how would it actually look on my wonderful head, so at times the more conservative options number 3 and 4 look ‘safer’ to order.

Oh, and agv is awesome!

So, TGIF, the day is done and you’re pondering about the upcoming evening as well as the two upcoming days. Important: you have a motorcycle, and it is, afterall, a fun machine. So you want to have as much fun as possible during two days and an evening, to prepare for a wild biz week starting Monday.

Naturally, after a dinner you start with a visit to the Burnt Ministry (Varvac Ministrutyun, Վառված Մինիստրություն). You meet with the fellow motorized fun colleagues, discuss some motorbike–related topics and kick a sweet small ride across Yerevan and the suburbs, enjoying the dusk, the rumbling of the cruiser’s engine behind and the whizzing of the sportbike’s engine ahead.

You then schedule a ride to Ijevan for Saturday and go clubbing till 5 in the morning.

In the morning you pack and head out to start the Ijevan ride.

You move out at around 11, ride on the M4 across a freezing wind, and take a short lahmajo / tea break in Dilijan.

Then you warm up and start riding to Ijevan, around 40 kilometers.

In Ijevan you meet a friend who invites you to his house in Gandzakar, where you meet some very nice people.

And enjoy a freshly slain (sorry nature activists) lamb BBQ

With some home–produced vodka

And awesome stories.

You then receive a call from another friend who invites you to join him in Dilijan and ride a section to Sevan. So you ride back to Dilijan, join him with his car and his company, then on the Shorzha intersection you turn to stack up with more friends at Sevan.

You spend the night playing a guitar, watching the stars and the fire, and in the morning you swallow some wonderful omelet after watching a new boat being put into the lake.

Afterwards you receive a call inviting you to a racing event in Arzni, you pack again and head out to meet more friends

..and watch some outstanding fun action!!

You watch some very fast cars

Meet some very fast motorcycles

And of course meet me who has incidentally been also doing exactly everything that was described above!

Then you ride with me to Yerevan for a coctail at a favorite cafe, go home for a shower and just when you want to go back to more clubbing, you drop dead sleeping.

Great weekend: [ SUCCESS ]

My motorcycle – the awesome Honda CBF500 on the road from Tsakhkadzor to Bjni.

The short trip to Tsakhkadzor on the free Friday was amazing, and an extensive post will follow, but here is something for those who can’t wait to see stuff.