18 Sept, 2010 Part III

getting near the end of the day we start going up these really well maintained mountain roads. canyon carving and switchbacks like I have only seen in SoCal on the Hansen Dam rides. I am like a kid in a candy store. The Triumph is just loving this and I am loving it even more. I have been babying the bike up to today and she is begging me to cut her loose. I did learn that even with the lower geared sprockets I am running she will hit the ton+. The RE's try to keep up, but it ain't happening unless I let it.

that is at least up until my clutch disintegrated. Coming up the last mountain, I started to notice some slip in the clutch. at the summit, the was nothing left. upon disassembly I found that all The screws holding the backside of the cush hub backed themselves out and it chewed the hell out of the clutch basket. it is salvageable, but my riding day was done. Had to pay a farmer to haul me 80 miles back to the house.

This is a good enough time to talk about the brotherhood of the motorcyclist. As much as I will never understand the cultural nuances of the people here in Korea, I can honestly say that the Royal Enfield Club of Korea are some of the most stand up folks that I have had the pleasure of riding with. When I broke, they went out of their way to help me fix it, even riding 30Km to the next town to try to find 15/16ths socket. When they could not source a tool, they got me a truck and driver and made sure that he did not rob me blind. And they stay with me on top of a mountain after dark even as it started to get cold. As much as I have read about RUB's and Posers that have flooded the roads with their stupidity, guys like this reaffirm my belief in humanity.