My Yamaha YZF-R1 - Fantastic Bike
My Yamaha YZF-R1 has 20,000 varied kilometers in its first year – a mixture of road, track, and touring. The fantastic Yamaha engine has had a little work to make it even more drivable. Graves velocity stacks, Power Commander 3, air-filter and Tadao racing canister add extra horses and midrange torque. 152 horsepower @ 12,700rpm and plenty of torque are the result. A few additional cosmetic enhancements, some non-adjustable rearsets and some raised clip-ons tailor it for everyday use. We've had some amazing times and the Yamaha YZF-R1 has catapulted me to the tropical islands in the South and the mountainous areas of the north more times than fingers I have on one hand.The Yamaha YZF-R1 was pretty spot-on last years, around this time. Still wheeled out for the occasional ride, rainy tasks consisted of keeping corrosion at bay. After a schoolboy disc-lock error that wiped out my painted front mudguard, I resorted to a spare carbon-fiber item. A month later the disc-lock at the front claimed another victim. How stupid can I be.
My to-do list for the raining season is to get another front mudguard fitted – or better still, to have the while motorcycle re-painted. Again. What else is there to do? My Yamaha R1 goes p erectly, it stops perfectly, it's recently been serviced and nothing is broken besides the mudguard. The GPR rotary steering damper has developed an air leak for the second time and needs a bleed.
My other bike, a Yamaha YZF-R6 is almost exactly how I'd like it which leaves plenty of time to make excuses not to do any of the above to the Yamaha R1. The steering damper I've already removed ready for me to leave on the shelf for six months and there are other priorities all vying for time. There's a shed to be erected so I can make some working room in the garage, and another R6 for the wife to get road-worthy again. All it needs is the new battery, which I bought already two months ago, fitting. I'll get round to it well before the first the end of the raining season. Probably. Maybe.
My toolbox is reasonably well-equipped with a box that's grown steadily over the last few years. That huge top yoke socket I thought I'd only use once has saved my bacon many times. Need a mains-powered drill though – the cordless version just doesn't have the juice.
You know, days are short, the nights are long, the garage is dark. Lightning for the garage is on the list and a sound system for the iPhone has just been ordered.
