Big Sur on a Slash 2

[Jon_M]

Made a San Jose-LA trip Sunday on my '67 R69S. On his '83 R100, my brother rode with me on the first half of the trip, down the Big Sur coastline on Highway 1. There is a smattering of unedited pictures at:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/millejon/BigSurNacimientoRoadJuly2007

 

The pictures in the parking lot were taken at Lucia. The others were taken on Nacimiento Road, which snakes up over the coast range, through Fort Hunter Ligget military reservation, and over to 101. Those views are seen by probably less than 1% of the people who visit this part of California.

 

I did 450 flawless miles on the old beater, an unrestored original, with only a sore butt to complain about. The second-hand Corbin seat I recently bought looks good, fits great, and is just fine for the first 200 miles. Then it starts to feel like a 4X4 block of oak. There is no padding in it. Next time I go up North, I will stop in Hollister and let them work on it. It is nice and low, so I figure it can easily take an inch of memory foam without looking odd. Softer leather will help, too. The stuff on there now is like alligator and is very stiff.

 

The second half of the trip was through weekend traffic on 101. The bike held its own very well. It settles into a sweet groove at about 72 mph, which is a reasonable speed if you don't want to ride the fast lane. Got home after dark and thus can confirm that the 6V halogen bulb that Benchmark sells is much better than stock, but still woefully inadequate after getting used to the arc welders on the R12RT.

[keithb]

Jon

Thanks for the tale, the pics, and your great looking bike. I love Nacimiento Rd and have been on it many times. Now when the road crew leaves 1/2" of loose gravel after paving it, NOT SO MUCH!! That is another story for a later date.