Hey Terry, I am a Motorcycle Crossroader who I think will be here quite a bit... Just kinda waiting to see if the rest of the crowd makes it...... HEY FOLKS, WHERE ARE YA'S ???

Hi Shane, Dennis here, just like the name says. Wonder if others from xroads will show up? We're here, thanks for this spot to hang out. Dennis

HEY! It works! Any port in a storm...Thanks to all involved for a decent place to rest. The CrossRoaders know I'll be back!

Good to see some familiar faces... I'll start a fire.. Someone else get the beer and we can get back to the business of shootin the stuff. I didn't get to use the "New" Crossroads much... Dang corporate firewalls... :-) Look forward to seeing ya'll again soon....

Hi guys looks like some of us are starting to gather from the old crossroads

Alright, some of the Crossroads folk are already here. This place is like that little out of the way pub nobody knows about. I see Dennis has stopped in. Hope he has fun at the dealer convention in Orlando (where he's in route to right now..lucky dog). Good scoops coming soon I hope. Hey Frank good to see ya and Shane..I'll take a brew. Paul, did you set this place up? Jon pointed us here. Love the out of the way location.

Out of the way! Ya mean we're some backwater hangout? Well, we're trying to change that. We got our childrenstory site on WebTV's main list and the main Spring page got about 60k hits in the last month, and the rest of the Spring gets about 5,000 to 10,000 impressions a day. We are getting diverse when motorcycles and bikes co-exist with Emily Bronte and women drooling over move and tv stars.

Not in the least Paul. I shoulda finished the sentence. This place is like that little out of the way pub nobody knows about, a new find that's a cool place to go and meet new people. With all the other conferences here to check out it'll cover most folks varied interests. Backwater..heck no. Where'd the name Spring come from. I got relatives north of Houston in the Humble area just south of Spring, TX. Any correlation? Lots and lots of pine trees. After three years in Texas, if I had to move back..it'd b Austin. Big city that's not too big, jumpin with a good night life, high tech companies for work, and some great hills and country roads all around for riding.

No, Kevin, it's out of Austin Texas, which is a long way from Spring. Better ask Terry where it came from. And you're right about Austin. I considered a position in Austin recently but decided that Colorado is home. There is better riding in the Texas Hill Country than in Colorado. The scenery is not as magnificent, though.

Better not let Stacey that dig at Colorado, she's our transplanted Austin Colorado gal (you'll usually find her in the food and fitness conferences). She doesn't have a bike, but she has some mean rollerblades. The name Spring didn't come from Spring, Texas, it came from a play on the WELL (another conferencing system) and from Barton Springs, Austin's famous watering hole. And I just liked that name and got it registered early in the game.

Hello all Another xroads soul doing the transfer, thanks to all involved in making it possible Sheb

Glad to see you Sheb, you're also on my AOL list (shebhd?)

Hey Paul... I do so have a bike. I just have to use my own power to make it go. I've ridden on the back of a motorcycle once. Scared the bejesus outta me at first but then I rather enjoyed it. Unless, I'm reading it wrong... nobody dissed Colorado. And power bike or not, the Texas hill country does have better riding. I do Love these mountians though!

Howdy Stacey! Yeah, riding on the back used to scare the bejeezus out of me too--riding on the front is much more fun.

Wish I had a bike when I was in Texas. East of Austin was so pretty with the hills and trees, then west of Austin had less foliage, but almost canyonland like along the Colorado River. I'd leave the Killeen area and head west on the way back to California to visit home and took the back roads as far as I could before hooking up on I10. Never did slide north to I20 and go thru San Angelo. I do think the ride all the way to California would be long on a bike..at least near the interstates. You'd have to hea thru N.NM and N.AZ. Colorado would be cool (literally and figuratively). I work for HP and there's a couple of sites there. Ft. Collins (N.W. of Denver) area and Colorado Springs. I could transfer. I'd have to get a snowmobile for sure then.

Why does everything have to have a motor? Speed is relative and if your crusing down a mountain on a mountain bike (all season BTW) you feel like you are going pretty damn fast!

But then you get those hills & inclines, and big cages...

When I moved out of NYC I used my old Ross 10-speed as daily transport, until a carload of "kids" bounced me off their door for laffs. That day I got a friend's little Yamaha 175 and *rode* to school for the rest of the year.

Stacey, I've never understood the "Motorbike Vs. Bike" argument. It's two entirely different deals. What you do is compare "Motorbike vs. Cars" and you'll find for the fun factor the motorcycle comes out WAAAY in front. Most people own cars and many people own bicycles (which I also enjoy), but Motorcycling puts you in a small and elite group. And besides, bicycles are suited for some situations and motorcycles others. Sure you can cover 600 miles on a bicycle and have a good time, but if you've got only a few days to spare and want to visit, say, Colorado, which are you going to take?

Good point. And yes, I would prefer motorbike over car (if I were a competent rider). Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintanence was a favorite read simply because they were on a trek to enjoy it not just to get from point A to pont B. I guess I just get my feathers ruffled because when I lived in Austin, MTBs and motorbikes would compete for some of the same trail space. Guess who lost? Here's a question. If anyone of you lays your bike down (accidently of course) can you get out from under it easily? Is that part of how you judge what is appropriate for you to ride? Or is it simply, the bigger the better?

I can think of no situation where any rider couldn't atleast get out from under the bike. Sure, I'm 6 foot 180 pounds and if I dropped my GoldWing I wouldn't be able to get it vertical again, but I wouldn't have a problem getting out from under it.

Where abouts in Colorado are you located, Stacey?

I live in Englewood and work in Denver. In case you're unfamiliar with the area, Englewood is just south of Denver and about 10 minutes from the foothills of Littleton. The area is beautiful and I've found several excellent trails within a very short distance from my home. Every morning I drive east into the tising sun and every afternoon I come home toward the mountains and the sunset.

Your ears must have been burning up, Stacey! I run in to Austin with the sun at my back in the morning on Hwy 71 and back to Cedar Creek with the sun behind me at night. It's a nice drive too. I saw a guy on a motorcycle this morning and he was really cruising along, couldn't tell the make/model though. It had those high bars. What do folsk think of high wide bars?

I know where Englewood is. I do contract work for a company in the Tech Center, but I live in Bailey. It's awesome to be up here in the mountains.

It's good to know we have another place to meet and still have the same good company. I plan to be posting more now that the weather is deteriorating in the East. The SWing has been sold and I have two empty spaces in my garage for junk to fill. I had an erie experience the other day watching someone else ride my bike.... Is that what it's like after your first bike? Anyway, I'm enjoying the Voyager and hopefully will try to start a chapter in the Mid-Atlantic area for the American Voyager Associatio . Tell your friends...................... Voyager

Well, here I am on this list. It's good to see a lot of the x-roaders here. I'm not on ICQ yet as my hard drive is so full I don't have enough room to download anything. Its not too good when you have less than 2 megs free disc space. As soon as I get a new one (I'm looking at a 6.4 Gig to replace my 500 meg)I'll give you all my ICQ #. Kathryn has been after me to get on ICQ for ages now. For those of you who don't know me, I live in Burnaby, BC, right next to Vancouver, about 125 miles north of Seattle. ride a '92 Goldwing, kind of an ironbutt sort of rider as I prefer long distance riding to short day trips. I sing with a men's Barbershop music chorus (at our last competition in Indianapolis,we placed as the best singing chorus in Canada, 17th in the world). I also enjoy photography and work for the local phone company in their data test center. Hope to hear from the rest of you X-Roaders quite a bit now that we have another home.

Another Xroader. Equal to myself,always late but there. Yves

I've heard of Bailey but am unsure of its exact location. Next time you're in the area, let me know!

O.K., Jon, I took your advice and am here. As the XRoaders know, I have two bicycles that work and a motorcycle that doesn't. I am currently over 1000 miles away from the bike and one of the bicycles, and will be until early next month. The bicycles are used for short distance commuting and general transport. I intend to use the motorcycle to travel long distances (> 10 miles) and over mountain roads to expand my horizons in my native Jamaica (I'm in Queretaro, Mexico now). I'm sorry that Faffi won't be here, but I expect to see most of the rest of XRoads here, at least until XRoads MkIII is ready (Are you listening, Jon?) 'Bye 4 now and Ride 4 Ever, Sam Blob

Man I feel like I walked in on a good party! Great going!

I forgot my password and re-registered.

*giggle* good going.

*giggle* ?? Jon, did you tell her what we do people that giggle? *grins* BTW, I thought the summmer was over. It was 89 degrees out today and mid 80s all weekend here in the Big Valley. What am I to do? There's a charity event both Sat and Sun called "Wheels & Hooves". It's a mc/horse rally charity that takes young people who need counseling and they give them a horse to take care of..one that was abused itself and has been taken from a negligent owner. It helps the young folk learn responsibility and self esteem and helps save horses who have been abused. Sounds interesting.. ove horses and motorbikes.

Yeah, Kev, we're tough bikers. We do not giggle!

Hehe, it is kind of refreshing though...

I am proud to be a giggler, cackler, chuckler, grinner and laugher. Any combination of the aforementioned actions seems to brighten the bright times and make the darker days go by more swiftly. *smile*

What did you do, Terry, go to the Whole Life Expo just to take pictures of the women? (Grin)

Mostly, as you can see I had a great time there. I got a great massage from one of the best. I got zapped, tinctured, potioned, hyssopped, candled, rocked, taroted, i-chinged and you name it! What a fun event. It may be the best event of the year in Austin.

Typical Paul... typical! *smile*

What, no giggle this time?

I have to be tickled in appropriate places to constitute a giggle!

Uh, how about *here*?

LOL That was almost too funny, deserved more than a giggle.

hello, i am over here from Terry's link at the Well, i have enjoyed seeing all the webcam events on the Spring front door, thought i should stop in and say hi. i am considering buying a small motorbike next spring, is there a particular topic i should be posting in, to ask questions and get some suggestions?

Welcome in the marvelous world of motorcycling. People over here aren't close minded and so are topics. So feel free to post were you think is best but it's not that important. Or ask Terry to add a new topic for newbiers. Yves

Great idea Yves, it's topic creation time. Would you like to create a new topic mirmir? Glad you're joing us, welcome!

Have you ever ridden a motorcycle before, Mir? If not, have you ever ridden a bicycle? I'm a beginner myself; I have been for most of this year. I bought a non-running bike from my employers and was going to get it fixed (after having done all that I could do myself!) when I left home for a four-month course in M�xico (I go back home this Saturday!) I do NOT recommend that you do what I did (unless you have masochistic tendencies!) What I do recommend is that you take some test rides (I hear that dealers don't allow this usually, but that test rides are available at bike rallies) and see what you like. You say you want a small bike; I would therefore suggest you try the Honda Nighthawk 250, the Rebel 250, the Yamaha Virago 250, and the MZ Silver Star (discontinued, but still in showrooms). If you are interested in dual-purpose bikes (for use on- or off- road), Yamaha, Honda nad Suzuki all make small D-Ps (but Kawasaki doesn t, and Yamaha only makes small ones.) If your pocket is shallow, as mine is, you will probably be buying a used bike. If you have any friends who ride, get their advice about ANY used bike you're interested in, especially if they maintain their own rides. This will help you avoid pieces of old junk posing as prospective rides and may lead you to a bargain that the seller doesn't appreciate. Do NOT buy a bike on impulse or emotion (I learned this the hard way!) Jon and the others should have something to add; they have experience with may different kinds of bikes and gan give you more details as to what to look for and what to avoid.

started topic 16 and copied some posts over there.

Great, notice americ just introduced himself in the vc conference, I hope some folks welcome him!

Hey I'm a 44 year old geezer who should know better but in process of buying 93 ZX 11.

Oh yeah, my wife hates motorcycles

Hey, terry. I came over here from the Well. Cool spot. I'll stay.

Hey Bub, good to see you. My wife also thinks bikes are for undergrown adults. Remember, keep those magazines away from her, or the ZX might disappear!

Hi! I've been reading here the last couple of weeks and finally realized I haven't posted as yet. As a CrossRoader, it's good to see so many in this spot. Kathryn.

Howdy, I've been looking for a place to talk about riding. I have been riding motorcycles for 37 years now, still can't get enough. I know there are others out like me. My wife and I just got back to Virginia after picking our bike up in California. It was a great trip as all are. Always meet the nicest people on a motorcycle! I'm looking forward to kicking tires with you. Ride safe.

What bike did you have to go to California to get? Tell us more.

Larry, great to "see" you here! Sound like a riders' rider! Would love to hear of a cross country excursion from somewhere other than a Salvadori article!

Larry Mueller...You're not with U2, are you (then again, is anyone in U2 old enough to have been riding 37 years?) Cannonballing the U.S.; that's probably more riding than I'll do all of next year! Sounds interesting!

Hi there, It's great to be here, it sounds like you guys have been around the block once of twice as well. We have been on BMW's mostly however had to leave them when we moved to Virginia 5 years ago. We inherited the Susuki GS850L that we picked up in California. That's one tough bike for those of you not familar with them. It's an 1983 modle and had been in storage for 6 years before jumping on it and heading East. What a ride, as always it was to short, only 3 thousand miles. Just a note about the trip then I have to hit the hay (I work nights). We left the San Francisco bay area, almost due East up to Sonora CA and on over Sonora Pass. I have been all over the states by bike and there are few Passes that compair, just all around beatiful. From there into Carson City, NV. There is a story here I have to tell. So I'll finish for now and see you all later.

Anyone gonna call Nick?? (o;}

Eirik might be interested too, but he's kicked the bulletin-board habit :-}

Yeah, what happened to Nick?

Howdy Jon, Blob, Frank, and company. First post here. Decided to take the plunge since XRoads was fritzing on me (hope it's not gone?). Anyway, for those who don't know me, I'm a 36 year old economist (what's that?), married, no kids (none planned), have two awesome dogs (a Doberman and a Beagle), and I ride my Harley Road King whenever, and where ever I can (trailers are for boats)! Aren't introductions awkward? Where's the chips and dip? hehe

The bold symbols will work here too, Brad! Yep, XRoads is gone! I e-mailed Jon this morning and he said that either they pulled the plug or the page has crashed; and there's no-one left to fix it.

Brad: "I ride my Harley Road King whenever, and where ever I can (trailers are for boats)!" That doesn't include to & from work, does it? What does an economist carry to & from work that can't fit in an RK's saddlebags?

Oh, sure it does Sam. At least on dress down day! hehe It's about a 90 mile round trip for me, along a very nice parkway, so I really enjoy it. As far as what I need to bring--just the briefcase, which tucks right into one of the bags just fine--leaves room for chaps, etc...in the other one. Can I check your ID buddy!

Yup, that looks like the Brad we XRoaders all know! Welcome aboard!

Good to see ya Brad! We need more!

Thanks Sammy. You're a true scholar and a gentleBlob! ;-]

Don't worry, they'll come when they realize XRoads is gone. Jon, d'ya have any idea when (or if) another XRoads (Mk III) can be floated?

Glad to be on (this) line Frank. BTW, enjoyed the wrap session this morning. XRoads R.I.P.

Thanks Sammy. You're a true scholar and a gentleBlob! ;-]

BRAD!!! Man, have I missed our Harley banter... Good to see ya bud... Shane

Maybe I need a little help here. Should I be posting my ride in another area or is this just for introducions? As you Know I'm new here. thanks

I don't know what happened to XRoads MKII, and there are no plans currently for a MKIII. Right now I'm working from home so it wouldn't be possible, with my 28.8 modem, to run it here. Perhaps in three or four months. Spring is great in the meantime, though. I didn't know you were an economist. Of what school of thought? Not a Keynsian, I hope.... ;-)

We don't follow the topics too closely, Larry. There is, however, a "my current ride is a ________ " section, which you may want to use. But don't worry--no one is going to get mad if you post it here.

Well, amazingly enough, XRoads Mk II is back, but I don't know for how long.

Shane--glad to be here and see you too--thanks! Jon, I am of my own school of thought, but I was trained in both Keynesian (under grad) and Classical (grad) approaches. Of course, now most theories about inflation, unemployment, etc. are less valuable than the paper they were written on. Then again, economists have always be great at making up new theories to explain the future based on what they didn't know about the past! hehe Back to the Future, Part 3?

Hi all, been away but would like to continue my story of my trip to VA from CA. I had last mentioned riding into Carson City, Nevada. Here we had some trouble with the carburetors , as you may remember this bike had been in storage for six years before starting our trip. We had completely cleaned the Carbs or so we thought. We found a place and mechanic that is worthy of lavish praise. The place Carson City Yamaha, the mechanic is Jack. The work and charges were great. Jack is a trained motorcycle mechani from the old school, this means to me, one who gets you back on the rode (somehow) with out gouging your wallet. I highly recommend if you should ever have bike problems in their neck of the woods, look them up, no matter what machine you're on. Headed east on Hgwy.. 50, mighty lonely road out there, for those of you unfamiliar with it. As Jack the mechanic said he's seen Jack Rabbits out there carrying canteens. Actually today there are watering holes about every fifty miles, so not as bad as I had remembered from five years earlier when my brothers and I had made that same run. This is still no place to be low on gas or with out a bottle of water. The weather was definitely on our side, not too hot or cold. We stayed on 50 right on into Utah. This where Nora caught up with us, but was pretty much played out. We had a sprinkly ride through some gorgeous country in Utah, anyone that's been their knows. Hgwy. 50 is a little north of the really beautiful scenery that Utah has to offer but no complaints here. We are only averaging 300 miles a day, we don't like to rush when ride. I'm sorry I hadn't mentioned it before but where that bike and I go so go s my wife. She loves to ride (only as a passenger) almost as much as I. From the sounds of some of the other riders whose wives don't even like bikes, I consider myself very lucky. Have to run, to be continued. Ride Safe.

Hey guys. Am I the last XROADer hold-out? I think they pulled the plug just as I was doing a wonderful response to Brad...it was a little long...answering Brad about his statement for turning a shovelhead into a decent ride. Anyway, over here, thought I would try a real name for a while. I have completely come down in steps...first it was Master Blaster, then the Blast Man, then Blaster Ed, and now, jsut plain Ed. It is hard to grow up. Anyway, good to see familiar faces here. For SheBee...Any plans solidifying for you making it over here for Sturgis? The Gold Wing will be ready to roll...I am leaving VA BEACH the PM of 31 July. Guess the "official" dates for Sturgis '98 is 3-9 August. I expect to roll in the evening of the 4th. Anyway folks, glad to be here. Ed

Not taking the Harley, Ed?

Yeah Jon, the Harley is going, but I had offered up the Gold Wing for SheBee's use when she said she would like to come over and go to Sturgis, but didn't know about a rental bike (I offered it up for her use for the price of a new front tire). Last time she and I posted direct, it was still a very up in the air thing...whether or not she thought she could ride an older Wing, due to the nature of the seating. Ed

Hi Ed, Thought I'd introduce myself, I'm Larry and I too live in Virginia (Fredricksburg). Please excuse my ignorance but I have no idea what a XDOADer is, can you fill me in. I've got a few years of riding under my belt and always curious. Hope you have fun in Sturgis.

An XRoader is someone who used to hang out at "Motorcycle Crossroads", a bulletin board for bikers (like Ed) and others just interested in bikes (like self, though I hope that'll change by Christmas!) I got on XRoads on Friday, in Mexico, but I can't seem to get it here! I'm not entirely certain that it's down for the count, but it seems to be on a standing-8 just now!

Hi Ed. Gee, sorry I missed your response on Shovels at XRoads. As I remember, Shebee pointed out that despite the AMF reputation, not all Shovels were $^%$. I agree. In fact, everything I read and hear suggests that the AMF Shovels can be made very reliable if you know what you're doing. Would love to get your perspective on it. Glad to see you here. Call me a Blockhead, but I'm certainly not afraid of Shovels! hehe

Hey Ed, long time no see, good to have you here on a board I can actually access..... hehehe Shane

Hey Shane, Brad, Larry, Sam...good to see you all. Larry, I always have fun at Sturgis, and other places, too. Fun is where you make it. Brad...I figured the AMF Harleys got a bad rap. Harley made some compromises that cost them, but it was still HD engineering, and HD parts. The shovelhead was more advanced than the pan, and certainly better than the knuckle. Just like anything, if you use it hard, it wears out. When that happens, you either get rid of it, or fix it with something a little bit bett r. Thanks for aftermarket! Because of the direction HD has gone, they don't have to play to a tough crowd. I want to stay off my soapbox here, because I know this is introductions. Catch you in some other thread. Ed

"Home is where the heart is"? No, "Fun is where your bike is". For those keeping up with the XRoads saga, I don't know why it's been coming and going, but they're going to take the server completely down "sometime in the next two weeks".

Greetings ! My name is Stu, and I work at Motorcycle Mechanics Inst. in Phoenix, AZ. Good to see a number of X roaders here keepin' the Faith ! Looking forward to join you all as soon as I catch up !

Hey Stu! Ain't seen you in a while. Good to have you back.

Looks like the gangs all here for the most part. Yeah, I noticed XRoads going in and out. Just logged on and there are no new posts to read. Guess I'll just stop looking there and coming here instead. Larry, great ride cross-country. I did Colorado from California this year and came back on the Loneliest Highway (US50). Gas about every 100 miles..don't miss filling up. Can't wait to read about the segment from Utah to Virginia. I see Brad finally made it in here along with Ed and Kathryn..Stu too. It's nice to see some new blood as well. Hope us bikers don't keep the women out..very nice to see those posts.

What are you talking about? Shebee and Kathryn are always sure to keep us in (out of?) line!

And I'll post frequently enough to be the monkey in the wrench!

Watch it she'll throw a monkey in the wrench.

Hey Stu good to see ya, Katherine Howdy as well.......

Hey, Stu...good to see you hear. Ed

Just looked at my last post...can't seem to spell as good here as I used to in XROADS....I am so embarassed... Ed

That's O.K., Ed, we know you ain't that stoopid.

Hoping that we are not on a spelling exam, I'll never pass Yves