• RE: This Month's Camping

    From Rob Mccart@954:895/54 to MIKE DIPPEL on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 01:02:00
    In the past, we spent 2 weeks in three different locations in Ontario
    >so we could meet up with friends in each place. We saw Ottawa,
    >Peterborough, Kingston.

    Sounds like you've had some fun touring Canada. My sister lives just
    outside of Peterborough. I suppose you might have found some more
    variety in other provinces but Ontario is a big place with lots to see.

    As I've mentioned, in the past I've spent as long as 6 months at a time
    in the USA, the longer visits to Florida since my parents owned a Condo
    there for years for winter use.

    I also traveled around a lot for brief stays in other states when I was
    working with a motorcycle racing team who were competing in various states.

    The most memorable was probably Churchill Downs in Kentucky. Most people probably think that's just for horse races but we were running in Flat
    Track races there hitting 130 mph on Harleys in the longer straights..
    (That THAT Horses!) B)

    ---
    * SLMR Rob * The Ranger isn't gonna like it, Yogi...
    * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (954:895/54)
  • From Mike Dippel@954:895/1 to Rob Mccart on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 09:15:20
    On 3/26/2025 1:07 AM, Rob Mccart wrote to Mike Dippel:

    In the past, we spent 2 weeks in three different locations in Ontario
    >so we could meet up with friends in each place. We saw Ottawa,
    >Peterborough, Kingston.

    Sounds like you've had some fun touring Canada. My sister lives just
    outside of Peterborough. I suppose you might have found some more
    variety in other provinces but Ontario is a big place with lots to see.

    As I've mentioned, in the past I've spent as long as 6 months at a time
    in the USA, the longer visits to Florida since my parents owned a Condo there for years for winter use.

    I also traveled around a lot for brief stays in other states when I was working with a motorcycle racing team who were competing in various states.

    The most memorable was probably Churchill Downs in Kentucky. Most people probably think that's just for horse races but we were running in Flat
    Track races there hitting 130 mph on Harleys in the longer straights..
    (That THAT Horses!) B)

    130 MPH. That is a lot of horse power :)

    ---
    * SLMR Rob * The Ranger isn't gonna like it, Yogi...
    * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (954:895/54)

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  • From Rob Mccart@954:895/54 to MIKE DIPPEL on Friday, March 28, 2025 00:51:00
    I also traveled around a lot for brief stays in other states when I was
    >-> working with a motorcycle racing team who were competing in various states
    >->
    >-> The most memorable was probably Churchill Downs in Kentucky. Most people
    >-> probably think that's just for horse races but we were running in Flat
    >-> Track races there hitting 130 mph on Harleys in the longer straights..
    >-> (That THAT Horses!) B)

    130 MPH. That is a lot of horse power :)

    Most people think of other makes when talking about really fast bikes
    but that type of racing takes torque more than horsepower so Harleys
    do well in that sport. We also had some 500cc Yamaha single cylinder
    bikes for those races for other riders. One tiny young lady did fairly
    well riding one of those with us. Women riders were unusual back in the 80's.

    I didn't race, I was more pit crew when on the road and I custom painted
    the racing bikes for the group. It was fun for me and it got me parts
    for my own Harley at wholesale prices and labour for things I couldn't
    do myself. Also, unexpectedly, I ended up winning a first place in the
    Canadian International Motorcycle show (near Toronto) the largest bike
    show in Canada three years in a row.. It was nice to find out that others appreciated my paint work as well.. B)

    ---
    * SLMR Rob * It is bad luck to be superstitious...
    * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (954:895/54)
  • From Mike Dippel@954:895/1 to Rob Mccart on Friday, March 28, 2025 15:55:06
    On 3/28/2025 12:56 AM, Rob Mccart wrote to Mike Dippel:

    Most people think of other makes when talking about really fast bikes
    but that type of racing takes torque more than horsepower so Harleys
    do well in that sport. We also had some 500cc Yamaha single cylinder
    bikes for those races for other riders. One tiny young lady did fairly
    well riding one of those with us. Women riders were unusual back in the 80's.


    My only bike was a Honda 350 cc that I purchased new in 1974. The bike that seemed
    the fastest back then was the Kawasaki 500 I always wanted one, but after seeing what
    can happen on a bike, I no longer want one.

    I didn't race, I was more pit crew when on the road and I custom painted
    the racing bikes for the group. It was fun for me and it got me parts
    for my own Harley at wholesale prices and labour for things I couldn't
    do myself. Also, unexpectedly, I ended up winning a first place in the Canadian International Motorcycle show (near Toronto) the largest bike
    show in Canada three years in a row.. It was nice to find out that others appreciated my paint work as well.. B)

    Congrats!

    Mike Dippel

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  • From Rob Mccart@954:895/54 to MIKE DIPPEL on Sunday, March 30, 2025 01:44:00
    My only bike was a Honda 350 cc that I purchased new in 1974.
    >The bike that seemed the fastest back then was the Kawasaki 500
    > I always wanted one, but after seeing what can happen on a bike,
    >I no longer want one.

    I can understand that. That was the claim for the Kawasaki 500 but
    I had a Triumph which would do 135 mph, near as I could tell.
    The speedometer actually said I was doing near 160 mph, but I wasn't
    buying that so I went with engine RPM's at lower speeds vs RPM at
    the maximum speed I could get out of it to work out the speed.

    I rode bikes for about 16 years and had 3 accidents in that time.
    Very early on (age 16) I was doing 70 mph down a road I didn't know
    which topped a hill and suddenly turned to loose gravel and I dumped
    it with minor injuries to myself and the bike. A few years later I
    got racing (again on a road I didn't know) and I came over the top
    of a hill at 105 mph, wondering why my competition behind me was
    suddenly slowing dowm, and discovered at the bottom of the hill a
    gravel road (darned gravel roads!) crossed the road and there was
    gravel all over the pavement. I managed to get it down to about
    60 mph before I hit the gravel and went off the road into the trees..
    More damage to the bike that time but a big rock probably saved
    my life as it propelled me (and the bike) UP into a tree about
    10 or 12 feet which ate up all that momentum. I came down no worse
    than falling out of a tree and just had some bruises on my back.

    My slowest (worst) accident happened in a city at 40 mph when
    someone cut off the car in front of me which I was no doubt
    following a bit too closely. Unable to stop I ended up sliding
    the bike on its side to wedge under the back bumper of the car.
    I ended up with the weight on my bike on my leg and a lot of the
    car's weight on top of that. I tore most of the skin off the palm
    of my hand on the way down and I shattered my kneecap, which still
    bugs me in some weather 50 years later..

    Ironically I was a lot more into hot cars than bikes but never had
    a collision driving a car.. Well, once a low speed accident in my
    mothers car on black ice when I was 16 when some idiot abandoned
    their car totally blocking the road.. But I spent a lot of time
    driving a car at well over 130 mph on 'sideroads'.. B)

    ---
    * SLMR Rob * Study art & logic - learn to draw your own conclusions
    * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (954:895/54)