May
09

Harley Dropping the XR1200 in the U.S.

Tags: harley-davidson


Can't say I'm shocked but the MoCo is dropping the XR1200 within the U.S. market starting with the 2013 model year. They blew it. They had a great bike that could have attracted new customers-- riders who would never, ever, ride a cruiser. They did a miserable job at marketing this wonderful motorcycle.

Everywhere I go on my XR the bike gets noticed. People stare at it, express how they have never seen anything like it and that it looks like a Harley they could own. Too bad they never had a chance to learn about it...

So after four model years, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 the plug gets pulled on a great bike. No, they didn't sell enough here to support it, but again, that is a failure of marketing. What is going to happen to HD when all of their current crop of riders are in the grave?

For me, I've got the perfect pair of bikes in the garage. I love my traditional Harley but I also love having a bike with sporty performance and a quirky personality. I'll continue to enjoy having my unique bike, which will be even more unique in the years ahead.

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May
08

Government Knows Best

Tags: government

Government is so smart it can even screw up our gas cans.

Soap doesn’t work. Toilets don’t flush. Clothes washers don’t clean. Light bulbs don’t illuminate. Refrigerators break too soon. Paint discolors. Lawnmowers have to be hacked. It’s all caused by idiotic government regulations that are wrecking our lives one consumer product at a time, all in ways we hardly notice.

It’s like the barbarian invasions that wrecked Rome, taking away the gains we’ve made in bettering our lives. It’s the bureaucrats’ way of reminding market producers and consumers who is in charge.

What's interesting about the gas can is how it came to be screwed up. Check the link for the whole story. Why do we stand for these petty bureaucratic tyrants ruling our lives? Because it happens in ways that we don't even notice and before long nothing works. People that are old enough to remember when toilets actually flushed all of the waste away will die and their kids will simply think that toilets never worked right.

How arrogant are these people to think that they know best about EVERYTHING? That's the beauty of the free market. It doesn't rely on just a small group choosing what's right for everybody, but upon everybody to choose what's right for them. Products that don't work or are dangerous don't get purchased, while those that meet the needs of the buyer do.

Maybe we should get rid of politicians and have some sort of a public service draft. After all, anybody who wants the job should automatically be disqualified. That's how we end up with all of these arrogant assholes who get off on controlling every aspect of our lives. So let's dump the system and draft citizens to play the role of representative, senator and president.

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May
08

Time for Conservatives to File for Divorce?

Tags: election 2012

As I've stated a few times, the GOP and especially the RNC are no longer for me. I've been a registered Republican since I reached voting age and to continue to be able to vote in primaries, I'll probably remain a registered Republican but the party is getting nothing more than that from me. No money and I don't even view myself as a Republican.

I came of age when Reagan was POTUS and I proudly enlisted in the army to serve with him as CIC. Since that time, its been all downhill for the Republican party. Sure H.W. followed Reagan and his son W. was elected twice but neither of them believe in a smaller role for the federal government. Heck W. was up for spreading democracy throughout the entire world. He gave us the big and costly prescription drug coverage and only increased the size of government. The only POTUS since Reagan to reduce the size of government to any serious degree was Clinton. Not because he believed in it, in spite of his "the era of big government is over" speil but because the Congress had him by the balls and then they found out that an intern had them too.

Dole, McCain, Romney, the Bushs -- none of them believe in a reduced role of the federal government. Sadly the only viable alternative to the Democrats "liberal" agenda was the GOP in our stifling two party system. Ross Perot shook things up a bit but the only real choice has been between a bigger government or a MUCH bigger government. Those choices suck and it is time for conservatives to stop playing. The GOP counts on those conservative votes to gain and hold power and we stupidly keep giving in to them while they ignore us. Its time for the party to pay a dear price for that betrayal and if it means the Dems end up winning the election, so what. Continue Reading »

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May
01

May Washington PA Chapter Ride -- May 6

Tags: harley-davidson

The May scheduled ride for the Washington PA Harley Owners Group Chapter is May 6 with a schedule departure time of noon from the McDonalds on Race Track Road. I'm not sure where we'll be riding to in May but hopefully we have another day of great weather and safe riding. Rides are always scheduled for the very first Sunday of the month.

More info about the chapter can be found here:

http://www.washingtonpahog.com/

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Apr
28

Thoughts From a Reformed Video Gamer

Tags: games

I'm a geek and I love gadgets and computers and hacking on servers. I used to love playing video games. I'd spend hours and hours immersed within the world generated by my XBox360 or Playstation 3. Call of Duty could easily make an entire Saturday disappear. There was nothing I enjoyed more than blasting away bad guys with virtual guns. I was also a big fan of race games. Flying around the track at crazy speeds and working hard to better my times. These things were fun and for millions of people they still represent time spent having fun. But then something changed.

No, I didn't grow up. I didn't have a case of sudden middle age maturity or go through a crazy midlife crisis. I simply discovered that doing things in the real world beats the hell out of doing them in the pretend world. Why master shooting pretend guns in Call of Duty when I could shoot the real things? Why play at something I could actually go and do? So that's what I did and that's what I do now. No more Saturday afternoons slaying terrorists using a red-dot sight on my computer generated M4. Its much more satisfying to hear the crack of a cartridge exploding in the chamber of one of my AR-15s. Feeling the rifle buck against my shoulder and smell the burnt powder is now what brings a smile and not lobbing a pretend grenade into a room of zombies.


Oh I still love to shoot zombies, but instead of doing it via a video game console, I staple some zombie targets up on the pistol range and practice shooting one of my growing collection of 9mm pistols. Placing that perfect head shot is much easier using the game controller but putting a real bullet down range and right between the eyes of a hideous undead monster is more challenging and more rewarding. Continue Reading »

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Apr
26

A Romney Loss For a Better America

Tags: obama

I'm not looking forward to enjoying four more years of an Obama administration. Having this guy as POTUS has been painful, from his wife's lavish vacations to the time he spends playing golf, it doesn't seem like he even really likes the job. Oh, it has its perks and he has been able to take care of his friends with nice juicy loans they don't have to pay back, but being president is hard work and if there is one thing Obama doesn't like, it is hard work.

Yes, having this lazy, incompetent, radical, arrogant asshole as president for four more years will be better for the country than 4 or 8 years of a Romney administration. I'm not going to vote for Obama but I won't be voting for Romney and after reading Shikha Dalmia's column, I don't even feel guilty about it.

For example, on "crony capitalism" which Romney has been speaking out about and which is near and dear to the friends of Obama, she has this to say:

But, tellingly, the financial bailout was just fine with him. That’s no coincidence. He is, after all, the ultimate Wall Street insider, receiving millions of dollars in subsidies and government handouts for companies he was trying to rescue as CEO of Bain Capital. He might not be running with the intention of helping his corporate pals, but it is inevitable that they’ll have his ear. Someone less naturally suited to shutting the revolving door between Wall Street and Washington is hardly imaginable.

If you think Romney will shut out all of his old clients and friends, you should have your head examined. It will be more of the same, regardless of what he spouts on the campaign trail.

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Apr
25

Not Romney

Yesterday was the PA primary and even though it doesn't much matter, I stopped over to say hello to the nice older women who work the polls and to cast my vote. I wish I could have voted for Johnson or Perry but at least I could cast a vote for somebody who isn't Romney. I ended up voting for Newt rather than Paul even though Newt is a creep. I just hope there is enough delegates out there for Not-Romney to make the convention interesting...

Depending upon how many people feel strong enough about Romney to refuse to swallow the establishment's forced medicine, Obama in spite of being totally incompetent and a complete failure may get to play golf as POTUS for a few more years. As long as the house doesn't fall to the Dems it won't matter all that much except for the possible supreme court justices the next president may get to pick.

If you aren't happy with having to choose between the guy who ate dogs and the guy who strapped one to his roof, consider voting for Johnson. Say what you will about crazy libertarians but you can be sure they won't be trying to tell you how to live our life and that's good enough for me.

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Apr
23

New Advanced Rider Course

Tags: motorcycle

If you ride motorcycles and live in PA there is a new Advanced Rider course(ARC) being offered this year. On April 15th, I and 7 other riders participated in the very first class offered within the state. The content of the class is based upon the Motor Cycle Safety Foundation's Advanced Rider course and is half classroom and half on a controlled riding range.

PA used to have a Beginner course for which you only needed to be able to balance on two wheels and an experienced rider course for which you should have had 1,000 miles of experience. This was changed last year so that the state now has the same Basic Rider course but the former experienced rider course is now called the Basic Rider course 2. Confusing hu?

Basically as it stands now you can take any of these classes as a PA resident for no additional cost. The cost involved with these classes are covered by the license fees we pay for motocycle permits and our class M licenses. The classes are:

  1. Basic Rider Course -- no motorcycle experience required at all, you just need your permit. The bikes are supplied. At the end of the course you can receive your license if you pass the test. This course is usually offered as two evenings of classroom and two 1/2 days of riding on the range.
  2. Basic Rider Course 2 -- you need to supply your own motorcycle and at the end if you pass the test you get your license. This is a one day course.
  3. Advanced Rider Course -- you need to supply your own motorcycle, this is a one day course and you also need to have your class M license. This course doesn't lead to a license as it is for advanced, experienced riders.
Continue Reading »

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Apr
20

Is a Vote for Johnson a Vote for Obama?

Tags: election 2012

If you believe most of the conservative comments over at HotAir.com, voting for Johnson is exactly the same as casting a vote for Obama's second term. With polls showing Romney and Obama tied at 47% and Johnson pulling the remaining 6% some Republicans are starting to worry that Johnson could screw things up for the Republican establishment's plan to coronate Romney.

Certainly casting a vote for Johnson and not for either of the candidates of the blessed two parties takes a vote away from one of them but does not constitute a vote for the other. I'm tired of being forced to choose between dumb and dumber. I'm tired of having to eat the shit that tastes the least like the shit it is and I'm not going to vote for a guy like Romney who only stands for one thing -- getting elected.

Romney says whatever he needs to say to the group he is currently trying to win over. Yes many if not most politicians do exactly this but Romney's radical flip-flops mean that he can't be trusted. Personally I'm done with the RNC, they'll never get another dime from me. I'm done falling for the line about voting for their guy because he sucks less than the other guy. Done. No, I don't agree with Johnson 100% but for those things that I don't agree at least I know where the man stands. Plus one thing you can say about libertarians is that their first inclination is to freedom and not more government control. That's the right way to approach things and one that is anathema to the current slime that infects Washington.

Don't let them ram Romney down your throat. Stand up and vote for who you truly believe represents the best leadership for the country and let the chips fall where they may. That's exactly what I intend to do come November and that's why Johnson is going to get my vote. Continue Reading »

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Apr
19

The EPA simply Inspirational

Tags: environment

Michelle Malkin mentioned the EPA's request for us subjects to submit 6 word essays singing their praises. Some of her suggestions which point out the hypocrisy of many of our betters are quite amusing. There's nothing like a long line of gas hogging SUVs idling at the curb waiting for one of our betters to leave a meeting or awarding a prize for a $50.00 light bulb nobody wants, to demonstrate the fact that these people don't care about the environment at all. They care about control of our lives. Control the very light we use to see and the toilets we use to flush our waste and the types of cars we are allowed to buy.

In case you don't want to visit their blog, here's the graphic from their header. Notice the mercury filled expensive light bulb wrapped in green leaves. I hate the light provided by those damn things. Isn't it great that we are no longer allowed to buy 100 watt incandescent light bulbs that cost almost nothing and provide light and warmth?

Next notice the tag line. This is the EPA's blog about our world. Yes, the US EPA is out to save the world. No wonder CO2 is now a pollutant and hundreds of coal fired electric generators will be going off line. These people and their ilk won't be satisfied until they control every little aspect of our lives. Make no mistake about it, the environmental movement is more of a danger to our freedom than any cave dwelling Islamic terrorist. Thanks to them we get to buy expensive bulbs that don't actually provide light you can read by. We get to drive light weight cars forced upon us by the fuel consumption regulations. We have to use toilets that don't use enough water to be able to flush our crap away. Yes, even our daily constitutional is controlled by our betters. Continue Reading »

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Apr
16

The Bestest of Gloves

Tags: motorcycle

Since bestest isn't a word, I'll revise that to my favorite pair of gloves. I wear gloves whenever I ride no matter if the temperature is such that they are not needed for warmth. Gloves provide protection of your hands in the event of a mishap but more often they provide protection against flying road debris. I've been smacked on my hands numerous times from everything from massive insects to tiny pebbles and having that extra layer of skin protecting those hands stuck out there in that 75 mph wind is simply good sense.

I'm a bit fussy when it comes to gloves. I like them to fit perfectly and feel right. Feeling right means they provide a comfortable and confident grip while riding. That lack of feel is why I don't wear my Olympia gauntlets at all. They are warm and fit well but to me they make the hold on the grips feel slippery and that means I grip them too hard and that leads to pain in the hands after just a short ride. I've tried many similar gloves and while some do the trick, there is one pair that I use every time that I ride unless the temperature approaches 80 F or beyond. The DeerTours gloves from Lee Park Designs are simply amazing. Continue Reading »

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Apr
14

Three Years with an XR1200

Tags: harley-davidson

XR1200
XR1200
I tend to be an early adopter and I don't need lots of outside validation to make a decision on new technologies and new products. When Harley Davidson released the Sportster XR1200 in the United States for the 2009 model year, I jumped right into the seat and twisted the throttle. I've now had the XR1200 for about three years and I've ridden it for about 10k miles. The XR isn't my only bike, it shares the garage with a Heritage Softail. Since I use the Heritage for longer rides and trips, it has more than double the miles of the XR over the same period of time. I enjoy riding the XR, however, I wouldn't want it to be my only two wheeled friend.

The XR has grin producing performance and a quirky personality all its own but one thing it isn't is comfortable. The seat is a pain in the ass, literally. Since it only has a 3.5 gallon gas tank, you can't ride it for very long without needing to gas up, which is usually about the time that my ass tells me to give it a break. Although with its small size it is easy to gas it up without ever getting off of the bike.

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Apr
12

Sig Sauer Range Bag Review

Tags: sig
Wrote this up for my bag focused site, bagidiot.com. We sell handbags, backpacks, luggage and even as you can see range bags. You can find shotgun cases, tactical backpacks, single pistol cases, multi-pistol cases etc. etc. etc. Here's my take on the Sig large competition range bag.

Large Competition Range Bag
Large Competition Range Bag
Sig Sauer makes some of the finest pistols available today. Their pistols have been used by elite law enforcement units and by members of the United States SEALs. To complement their pistol line and help get the gear required for a range trip to and from the range, they offer both the large competition range bag and a smaller range bag. This review features the large competition bag.

Durability

10 out of 10
Since purchasing this bag three years ago it has been taken to the range more than 100 different times and it is holding up perfectly under such use. I'm a little harder on the bag than the average shooter because it doesn't ride to the range safely tucked away on the back seat or the trunk of a car, rather it is bungeed to the back of a motorcycle. The bag is showing no wear and all of the zippers work as they should. After such heavy use the bag is in virtually the same condition as when it was brand new, just broken in and smelling of gun oil and gun powder.
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