October - Red Hot Riders

The Newsletter of the Red Hot Riders Motorcycle Club - San Diego, CA
October, 2002
Honda Riders Club of America z Southern California Motorcycling Association z American Motorcyclist Association
Baby Butt 1000
San Diego to Laughlin the long way
The 2002 Baby Butt 1000 was a great success!
100 riders signed up, 9 were women. The trip
went through Kernville, up the west side of the
Sierra’s, east through Yosemite (Tioga Pass was
the halfway point), south to Bishop, east into
Nevada, south to Parump, east to Las Vegas and
finally south to Laughlin, NV. Thanks to Eric Levy
for heading up the committee again and all those
that helped with the route, sponsors, arrangements, etc.
Who will forget the wooden road hazard on I15? That empty stomach feeling on a pitch black
Kernville was the first mandated gas stop. We overwhelmed the gas station
with bikes for about 45 minutes.
rollercoaster ride called HW 168? Those looooong
straight stretches of NV highway? The dudes on
HDs with ape-hangers (they finished!)? Eric Levy’s
mathematical perspective of the event? Can’t wait
for 2003 . . .
FJR1300 Spotted!
by Andy Mansker
Gee I’m a lucky guy! FJ enthusiasts
have been talking about this bike since
long before it was released in Europe
two years ago. Amy Holland of FrictionZone Magazine had one on loan from
Yamaha and offered to take David May
and myself, both FJ riders, for a test
ride. The bad news is Dave couldn’t
make it. The good news is that gave me
more time in the saddle. From Hemet to
Idylwild to Banning and back to Idylwild can you imagine a better 70 mile jaunt?!
Did I mention that Amy has put 40k on
her personal ‘89 FJ1200? Thanks again
Amy! Red Hot Riders - don’t forget to
pick up your FREE copy of Friction Zone
at the House of Motorcycles.
Eat your
heart out
Joel!
Thanks to the 2002 Baby Butt 1000
development committee! Your hard work is
greatly appreciated by all of us that attended!
The Sunday brunch and award ceremony at the River Palms Hotel was a
culinary delight. Door prizes included Chatterboxes, Keith Code riding school,
Friction-Zone T-shirts/subscription and much more. THANKS to all our
sponsors!
Product Review
Helmet Guardian
By George Devereaux
The Helmet Guardian is two helmet locks
mounted on the ends of a bar of steel that's about
1/8" thick and 2" high. The bar is designed to be
mounted on the only flat space that's just about
guaranteed to be available on any bike, between
the license plate and it's bracket. It includes a pair
of security bolts, nuts and a special Allen wrench.
The security bolts have Allen heads with a small
rod in the center that prevents using a standard
Allen wrench. The nuts have a nylon insert that
eliminates the need to use lock washers.
The actual installation should take 15 minutes
max. First you remove your old plate screws and
then the plate. Using a 10mm wrench to hold the
nut, insert the security bolt thought the plate,
then the Helmet Guardian, then the license
mounting bracket and finally screw it into the nut.
Only tighten this enough to hold it on. Do the
other side. Now center the setup and tighten both
bolts.
On the downside, a pry bar could probably
take the whole assembly out within a second or
two. I'm guessing that even the smallest bolt
cutters could get through the lock itself, also
within seconds. Someone recently told me that
they'd lost a helmet when someone just cut the
strap to the D-ring. Opinion was that the dastardly
deed was done to get the helmet speakers and
mike. Then again, the straps can be replaced in
most helmets.
If you want to use a helmet lock and don't
have one, this is a good bet.
Terry Ashcraft
Teresa Ashcraft
James Branch
Celia Germond
Joel Keller
Libby Keller
Arlette Bruce
Helen Proo
Ed Krugman
Judy Krugman
Todd Maes
Tony Paige
Chey Tamashiro
Eric Levy
Look for photos on the RHR web site soon.
Andy Mansker in FJ Nirvana.
Speaker Report
Chatterbox Rep - Pat Matter
Pat Matter, Co-owner of Tony Matter
Enterprises, gave us the inside scoop
on everything we always wanted to know
about Chatterbox radios for communication. She was very upfront about some
reliability issues with recent products,
but assured us that Chatterbox has an
excellent customer relations department
to help resolve warranty issues.
Pat set up a special discount deal
through the House of Motorcycles for the
Saturday before the Baby Butt 1000.
David May and I bought a pair of the X1s and she did the installation on the
spot! The store had sold out of the X-1
Kits, but Pat and the HOMC staff
finaggled parts from multiple sources to
make full sets for both of us. That meant
the hassle of half-empty boxes, returns
to the manufacturer and tweaking the
cash register records. I want to
personally thank all of them for going out
of their ways to help us out! This kind of
service is why we chose the House of
Motorcycles to be our sponsors!
The device leaves plenty of room
for two full face helmets and
appears to be durable.
Instructions
Ease of use
Build quality
Usefulness
Aesthetics
N/A
Rating
4.75
1 = poor
2 = fair
3 = good
4 = very good
5 = excellent
Pat Matter discusses some of the products
she reps after the RHR meeting.
Eric Levy Recognized at Meeting
Club Meetings
Club meetings take place on the second
Wednesday of the month at:
Acapulco Restaurant and Cantina
8998 Miramar Road
(858) 578-6390
Dinner:
6:00 pm
Meeting:
7:00 pm
By Ed and Judy Krugman
Shortly after joining the Red Hot Riders, Eric
volunteered to be our treasurer. Shortly after that
he bought a brand new BMW. After several
months of doubts, the money was still in our
account. After many years of service to the club,
Eric has taken a position in Denver. His hard work
on behalf of the Red Hot Riders will be missed,
but not as much as his friendship.
Officers 2001-2002
president .............................................. Jim
Branch
Chris Crawford
secretary ...................................... Michael Gorga
treasurer ........................................... Ed Krugman
rider education chairman .................. Keith Knapp
activities chairman .................... Richard French
merchandise chairman ..... George Devereaux
publication chairman .................... Andy Mansker
membership chairman ............... Chris Crawford
HRCA Liaison .................................... Keith Knapp
referee ........................................................... vacant
legislative officer ........................................... vacant
vice president .............................
EarPlugs USA Makes Custom Ear
Plugs for Red Hot Riders
Earplugs USA visited
our club meeting to make
custom earplugs. Linda
Lender will return to our
October meeting to
complete the member
list. Come a bit early so
we can squeeze everyone
in. I can personally attest
to the ease of installation
and effectiveness of
these earplugs . . . much
better than my old
foamies.
Newsletter Submission
Please email articles/photos to:
newsletter@redhotriders.com or
call Andy at (760) 746-8382.
Eric Levy and Celia Germond with the killer goodbye cake presented to him
at the last Red Hot Riders meeting.
George Devereaux having his
earplugs molded by Linda at the
September meeting.
MotoPr
o
MotoPro
House of Motorcycles
1425 South Coast Highway
Oceanside, CA 92054
(760) 433-4333
EVENT CALENDAR
Nov
Dec
Dec
13 Wed ............ Club Meeting
2 Mon ............ Track Day
(Willow Springs)
11 Wed ............ Club Meeting
Next Meeting: 10/9/02
Our guest speakers next week will be Chris Steward and
Nancy Emde of Trail Boss Tours (http://www.trailbosstours.com).
Chris and Nancy will be speaking about the joys of dual sport/off
road riding in Baja and the western states, and how Trail Boss
Tours can facilitate an organized ride.....regardless of preference
for dirt or street.
Red Hot Riders
6357 Lake Aral Dr.
San Diego, CA 92119