Mechanical issues

When I looked out the window of the motel on Friday morning I realized that it had rained overnight, and I was glad that I wasn't camping at the rally. My first stop at the BMW Rally was at the Michelin booth to inquire about a front tire for the bike. The mechanic looked at the tire and said that it really didn't need replacing, and that it would be good for at least another couple of thousand miles, which should get me back to San Francisco. With that chore out of the way, I was free to wander the rally grounds, see what the many vendors had to offer, and attend seminars.

Tents are everywhere, and packed close together - one reason why I didn't camp at the rally

This colorful bike was at a booth for a company that does tours in Mexico

 There are usually between 4500 and 6000 people at the annual rally, and I suspect that this year drew at least the larger number. There was a large building devoted to shopping - at least six tour companies, several booths selling riding jackets and suits, gloves, boots, auxiliary lighting, camping gear, and just about anything you can think of related to motorcycling. In addition there were several dozen vendors in tents or under awnings outside on the rally grounds, as well as food services, and live bands in the evening. The seminars covered just about every topic related to motorcycle travel, and several that had nothing to do with motorcycling. I enjoyed a technical seminar on directions in motorcycle oils, and all of the 60 people there were paying close attention. Another seminar on motorcycle clothing has me rethinking my choice of outerwear.


That morning while riding to the rally I noticed a slight vibration in the rear of the bike that I put down to weird pavement. However, when I rode back to the motel I realized that the vibration was present over different surfaces, so I put the bike on the centerstand and rotated the rear wheel. There was a rough, grabbing feeling every nine inches of rotation, almost as though the rear brake were being applied. This was definitely not normal. The brake wasn't dragging and the only things I could think of were a bad bearing in the rear drive or a bad universal joint. One of the local dealers had their mechanics at the rally doing tire changes, so my first stop on Saturday morning was at the Metzler tire booth to ask a mechanic to look at the bike. He said there was definitely something wrong, but that the read end would have to come apart to determine the problem. He, too, thought that it might be a universal joint. He said that since all their mechanics were at the rally, the earliest someone could look at it would be on Tuesday. He also said that another dealer about 50 miles away might be able to look at the bike right away, and that they were open on Monday. I rode to the other shop in Monticello, only to find that neither BMW mechanic was available - one was at a class in Denver, the other was assisting at the rally. However, the service manager said that they would take apart the rear drive on Monday, let me know what needed to be done, get the parts, and get me back on the road.

Fortunately, there was an Enterprise car rental office a half mile away from the dealer, so I rented a car and headed west. I'm currently in Chamberlain, South Dakota and tomorrow I'll drive to Boulder to visit daughter Vanya. On Monday the shop will call and let me know if and when I can get the bike back - I figure Thursday at the earliest.

Last year at a gas stop in Rawlins, Wyoming, we (John and John and I) met a fellow BMW rider on an R1200R. She commented that she used to have a bike just like my R1150R, and we looked at each other and realized that we'd met at a gas station in Nevada on US 50 three years previously. We exchanged email addresses so we could keep each other apprised of our motorcycle travel plans to see if we might meet on the road again. Her trip this summer brought her out west again, but it didn't seem as though we would be in the same place at the same time. However, at a rest stop today I received a text from Leslie in which she said that she'd just passed through Chamberlain, SD and she was on I-90 heading east. I watched the eastbound side of I-90, and about 15 miles outside of Mitchell (home of the Corn Palace) I saw a rider on an R1200R wearing a Hi-viz yellow jacket and a yellow helmet. Last year Leslie was wearing a blue and gray Aerostich suit, so I didn't think it was her. After dinner tonight I called her cell. She had just checked into a motel in Minnesota, and she confirmed that she was wearing a different jacket this year and that it was she whom I saw. So, we came within a couple of hundred yards of meeting again this year.