I’ve wanted an Enduro for years. And I’ve wanted a second bike to add to the Ogre Ranch Stables. Finally brought it home. It’s a KTM 525 MXC… I’ve probably mentioned it before. Well, the deal is done and the bike is mine now.
The bike is in brand new – seriously, like it’s never been ridden, brand new condition with a ton of upgrades. First thing I have got to do to it though… is lower this beast. It’s tall. I’m talking, big time, Shaq Attack altitude. To give some perspective, here it is with my Superhawk…
The bikes were parked almost completely side by side, with the Rear Tires up on the concrete pad… The KTM is a big machine. My ZX-11 isn’t much bigger than the Hawk was in physical size, and the KTM is just dwarfing it. The riding position is very much upright. It’s like a Culture Shock Whiplash riding this thing. Of course, the hard part is getting it going… and by that I mean getting up on it. I’m about 2 inches too short for it, or so it feels. The bike was set up for Desert Racing, which it never had a chance to do, so it’s in Desert Attack Mode right now. Yeah, that’s going to have to be changed a bit. I need it in more “Dual Sport” mode. She’s Street Legal as she sits now, lights and everything… good to go. But Tires and Suspension are set for Baja 1000.
The big question: Why?
Man, I don’t know. I just always wanted an Enduro. I’ve been attracted to Adventure Touring. Go freaking anywhere. Up trails that disappear over mountains. That kinda stuff. Now I have the machine… I need to go do it. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.
The biggest thing I got to get over is riding on Dirt. I’ll be honest… it scares the shit out of me. I’ve not had good luck on dirt and gravel and such. So this is me overcoming my fear of Earth. Once I can do that – I’ll be in a much better place psychologically when it comes to riding, regardless of what I am on.
Eventually I will no longer be able to Ride. Bad knees and dizziness will catch up to me. Death and Taxes… they are going to happen.
I watched some guys ride past on Sport Touring machines this morning and I thought, man… I never want to give this up, as I rubbed the pain in my knees.
Then I saw a dude motor past on one of those Harley Trikes. I thought “Oh hell no!”. I’d have o give up riding first.
This depressed me all day. Like The Ghost of Christmas Future, it loomed over me threatening my inevitable doom.
On the way home I saw one of these Can-Am Spyders. Goofy looking… but still sporty, still zoomy.
Huh.
I could do one of those.
Okay, let’s say there is this titanic miracle that Cancer is Cured, Aides gets a Vaccine, and both George Lucas and Uwe Boll are no longer allowed to even look at Cameras or get within 200 yards of a movie set….
And Ron Paul gets elected president by a sudden popularity swell thanks to all the Facebook Pictures of his face and clever captions.
What do you think that Presidency will accomplish? Fix everything all the sudden? Or will he completely embody the term “Lame Duck President”? He would have Zero support in the House and the Senate and he has no Supreme Court Justices to back him up. He would accomplish Diddly Squat. His presidency would amount to Jack Shit.
For anyone to effect anything – He would have to have Infrastructure under him… a foundation. A martial artists talks about his Stance and that being where he gets his strength from. Same thing as this… A sudden 3rd party sweeping the Whitehouse – Neat trick. But useless because he has no foundation. He would be useless and be made to look foolish.
And for God’s Sake – Find someone that doesn’t look and sound like a fucking lunatic like Ron Paul. He has to have Charisma. He has to roll fucking 20’s on Charisma. Ron Paul is a gigantic dork that doesn’t even wear a suit that fits him. You need someone that will bring voters FLOCKING to him by the Stadium full.
Like this:
http://m.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/romneyryan-rally-planned-for-waukesha-sunday-night-096f6lt-165842666.html
You third party guys – Stop Aiming for the Whitehouse! It’s not TIME. You have to build your base. Get your guys into School Boards, City Councils, State Houses and Senates… Then go for Congress and once you have established a solid foundation – Then you go for the Whitehouse with a Chance in Hell to actually win it.
UNTIL THAT TIME –
Stop wasting our time and stop splitting our VOTE! You guys are being used… by Media Matters and the like to Split our Vote… You are termed “USEFULL IDIOTS” by the Left because you are Serving Their Purposes. You split our vote and that makes beating the GOP and staying in power all the easier!
A Better Plan? And Easier Plan?
Let’s FIX the GOP and put it in the RIGHT TRACK. Make the GOP Conservative again.
How? Take some Seats back from them and push the Lean back to the Right. It’s DOABLE. We’re seeing it already working in some states. It’s far easier to fix the GOP than it is to establish a 3rd Party.
This is not a Prop from the set of STARGATE. This is not Admiral Adama’s sniper rifle. This is not a mock up for the new HALO game. It’s the TC Dimension hunting rifle.
It’s “Wash Your Eyes Out With Bleach” ugly. The option of swapping barrels means nothing to me… So why do I like it?
Well, as stupidly hideous as the damn thing looks… it feels awesome when you bring the gun up to your shoulder. And the trigger… honestly, it’s one of the best “Hunting” triggers I’ve ever felt on a gun intended for actual hunting. It has some weight to it… but there is no movement and it breaks as crisp as any gunwriter metaphor can equate. It’s not a Bench Rest Trigger… but you don’t want that on a Field Gun. Too many people think they do… and those people are terribly wrong. You want a trigger that has a touch of deliberate intent, and then breaks exactly at the moment you want it to. Like this trigger. The height of the comb is perfect for when you mount any reasonable scope. This allows a good consistent cheek weld, consistent aim through the scope… and combine with that trigger… this is going to let you make those once in a life time shots all the time.
Don’t get me wrong… when it comes to shooting, I’m all about Cheating. I’ll take any advantage I can.
Such as this… The Zeiss Diarange rifle scope. It may not be cheap… but it’s like an FPS Cheat Code for real life.
It’s got a very solid mounting system, one like none other I’ve seen before… The adapters connect to any Pic or Weaver rail, which is fine…. easily adjustable to fit any length action. All good.
They slide in the groove under the scope body and can be turned around for optimal fitting as the shooter desires.
It has a built in laser rangefinder, 999 yards, hence the name… and combines that with the excellent Rapid-Z reticle system. This is an awesome combination. The only thing it can’t do is dope the wind for you. The glass is typically Zeiss quality… meaning it’s about as good as it gets. Eye relief, clarity, brightness, strength of the glass and action. It’s a great scope. The readout is clear and bright.
If there is anything wrong with the scope, it’s the price. It’s Tony Stark Level. But man… if you have the means… this is it. A good customer of ours came in and ordered this. Its not something we would have normally stocked. It’s that expensive. This is in a town where the rich guys will buy a teenager with a new license a Lotus Exige and their daughters trips to Paris for a Back to School Shopping Spree. But this is still one of those “If you want it, we’ll get it for you” things.
One of my friends here in Vernal rides a fairly unique machine. A Z750S. It’s not the biggest, or the fastest of machines. It’s not the coolest either. But it does just about everything. It is fast. It seems to handle well. And it cruises just fine. That’s what I like about it…. Versatility.
This one is M’s.
When I still had my Magna, I was allowed to put the kickstand up on it. The bike was fun and ran well. It reminded me of a Cafe Racer in it’s configuration. No wind protection and fairly aggressive riding position, especially compared my Magna. I liked it. It didn’t help me at all to avoid a Sports Bike bug. Kind of underpowered below 6,000 RPM, but once you get into the powerband… it’s all there.
Now, M’s machine has been modified. He’s moved his pegs, changed things around, and has improved wind protection by installing a Vetter Windjammer. It looks strange, I’ll have to say. And he will be the first to say so himself. But it works.
This photo was taken in Rangely Colorado. An hour’s drive from Vernal… but we made it a lot quicker. The Z750S, dubbed “The Enterprise” due to the bikes overall shape with the Vetter, had no problem cruising at 120 mph even on less than perfect rural roads. A testament to the Z750S suspension.
(The Blaze/AP) — Is a gun like a virus, tobacco or alcohol? According to “public health experts,“ who in the wake of recent mass shootings are calling for a fresh look at gun violence as a ”social disease,” it is.
What we need, they say, is a “public health approach” to the problem.
Dr. Garen Wintemute of University of California, Davis claims it is no longer enough to tackle gun violence by focusing solely on the people doing the shooting. Dr. Stephen Hargarten, who treated victims of the Sikh temple shootings at the emergency department he heads in Milwaukee, feels the same way.
“What I’m struggling with is, is this the new social norm?” he asked, before asserting: “This is what we’re going to have to live with if we have more personal access to firearms.”
He continued: “We have a public health issue to discuss. Do we wait for the next outbreak or is there something we can do to prevent it?”
About 260 million to 300 million firearms are owned by civilians in the United States; about one-third of American homes have one. Last year, 55 percent of Americans said gun laws should either remain the same or become more lenient.
There are some very serious issues with this man’s thinking. If we are going to look at it like a Disease, we need to look at the Vectors. What is causing this to spread? Because it does indeed seem like these shooting sprees are happening more often. If we are not allowed to look at the Shooter/Lunatic/Criminal as the source of the issue, then let’s look at this issue like we’ve examined other “Social Diseases” such as Smoking. It’s not fault of Tobacco, it’s just a leaf. And a firearm is nothing more than a tool. So again, social, not the object. Okay, with Cigarettes, the social vector was damn near every movie and tv show and advertising showed us that it was Cool to Smoke and Cool People Smoked, so if you wanted to be cool… you smoked. So they started limiting smoking in Films and such. That was a Social response. But that’s not happening with Gun Violence. In fact, just the opposite is happening.
When someone goes nuts and starts a shooting spree, the more public and dramatic the better. The news agencies cover the story in every direction and angle and we see the shooter’s face damn near everywhere. We know their names, where they lived, and we give them what they want… Fame. If we want to limit exposure and the glorification of committing a shooting spree… we need to turn our backs on the Shooters. Don’t make the shooters famous. Don’t say their names. Don’t show their pictures. Report the story, fine, but don’t go about it to make the criminal a pop-star. They need to be forgotten.
Psycho Killer, or Girl Afraid of Nothing?
Access to firearms is not a correlation to gun violence. Where I live – we have probably the highest per capita of gun ownership as any place in the nation. I live outside of a small town. We have a number of gun stores. 2 of the top ten of gun stores in the state, with the one I’m working at… last time I looked, we were 4th in the state. We’re also 3 hours from Population. One estimation is that we have on average 18 firearms per home. We have a lot of guns out here. Shooting sprees have not happened here. Shooting sprees don’t happen at gun shows either. Having guns doesn’t mean we’re going to have blood in the streets.
Another Social Issue that we have that allows these shooting sprees to propagate is the fallacy of “Gun Free Zones”. Most of these shootings happen in Gun Free Zones. Where good honest Victims are unable to defend themselves. At the Theater in Colorado. At the cafeteria in Ft. Hood. At the campus of Virginia Tech. The lack of guns in these gun free zones was a contributing factor here. Notice in each that the shootings only stopped when the guys with the guns showed up.
Guns Save Lives. Like Parachutes, Helmets, and Seatbelts. If we are going to cure this social issue… we need to make it cool to for people to Carry and get Training.
Training is the key here. Just like all other social issues – Education is the Solution. Learn to use your guns and have them with you. Have one on you.
The talk of potential civil unrest in America has been becoming more and more common even in quiet parts of town. I know it’s not a happy conversation that I have listened to more than once.
I’m talking to the Members of the Military here… Now, here’s the problem. The Tea Party is a non-partisan lose group of people who believe in the US Constitution. The same Constitution the US Military has sworn oaths to uphold and defend. If you disagree with them – if you take issue with them – then you hold your Oaths with treasonous hands.
This asshole’s scenario, of a Tea Party Insurrection – if these people are pissed enough to take some sort of action – there is probably a damn good reason and it’s probably one that you should be in support of. Because this has indeed happened before in the United State. Here’s a little piece of American History for you. After WWII, the Veterans came home to find some problems that peaceful means of resolution failed to correct.
Now, this is the very scenario that this Ahole is saying that the US Military needs to stop. Look at who these people are you are going to be fighting here… Your Brothers. Your fathers. Guys just like you after you “Get out”. Guys just like you, who have sworn the same Oaths. And these Oaths do not have an expiration date. The Oaths are never voided.
You guys in Uniform – You need to pick your sides. Do you hold your Oaths or are you an Oath Breaker and a Traitor to your Nation?
There is a new joint to eat in Vernal called “The Porch”. For the locals, it’s the new place that is occupying where “The Red Onion Grill” used to be. I was told this was “Cajun Food”, but it’s not. It’s “Southern Food”, and that’s not a bad thing, but it’s not Cajun. However they tried a couple Cajun things. Such as the Gumbo. Then a Po-Boy sandwich.
Let’s give you the run down. 20 minute wait to sit down, 30 minutes until food arrived. I ordered a cup of Gumbo and their Shrimp Po-Boy.
It was a tasty sausage soup… but it wasn’t Gumbo.
The sandwich though… Let’s just say that when it landed on the table, Jer, across the table looked at it and said, “Dude, I’m sorry.” It was an Embryonic Po-Boy… One that if it was left to come full term, could have grown into a Po-Boy, but as it was, it was just a sandwich. With 5 shrimp on bread not much bigger than Golden Coral’s dinner rolls.
A. This sandwich was 15 bucks. B. It wasn’t a Po-Boy.
It was a tasty sandwich if I had just ordered a 4 dollar shrimp sandwich. But I didn’t. I ordered a 15 dollar mother of all sandwiches called a “Po-Boy.” If you don’t know what that is… Watch this. It’s huge. It’s over-stuffed. Normal humans usually can’t finish one in a single sitting. You order one and you take half of it home with you – THAT is a Po-Boy. That’s what I paid for. But that’s not what I got. And the last time I had a real Po-Boy, it was 7 bucks and they kept the drinks topped off without question. 5 Shrimps… Five. WTF is that? 3 bucks per small undersized and overcooked shrimp.
So I left “THE PORCH” having dropped 23 bucks and the only real thing I got that I had ordered was the Sweet Tea. They made a good Sweet Tea.
Now, I can cut The Porch some slack for being slow. They were busy. But the prices and the portion size don’t line up. Dan ordered a Rib Eye. It was half fat and gristle. Fenris had a Shrimp stew, which looked just like the Gumbo but with more rice. Jer had a big bowl of Gumbo… but again… it wasn’t Gumbo. It was Soup. Soup and Gumbo are two different things. Gumbo is freaking Gumbo. Saying Gumbo is Soup is like saying Chilli is Soup too. This will get you a beating in some places.
Anyways… yeah… I’m not going back to The Porch. If they don’t know what a Po-Boy is… and had the audacity to charge 15 bucks for it… No. Not ever again. This makes me said as I really wanted to like this place. I went in excited about this place. The disappointment was staggering.
Unfortunately the adapter clamp wasn’t in the kit, so I can use it yet. But within moments of the ACP’s arrival, and my mentioning of this… SIG already has it on the way.
First impressions:
Yeah, its cool. If fact, I am not sure that SIG is going to get this unit back. I may have to buy it from them.
