Premium Member 2and3cylinders Posted March 9, 2021 Premium Member Share Posted March 9, 2021 Finally got out for a little putt! 66ﾟ believe it or not but there's still snow on the ground everywhere Up in mid-north Lake County Illinois Stopped at one of my favourite BBQ joints on the way, Captain Porky's in Wadsworth Found a park district community centre to have a picnic Macaroni and lobster and BBQd pulled pork really hit the spot... I'll take the slow route back from here and get back before dark 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member 1moreroad Posted March 9, 2021 Premium Member Share Posted March 9, 2021 41 minutes ago, 2and3cylinders said: Found a park district community centre to have a picnic Macaroni and lobster and BBQd pulled pork is really hit the spot... I'll take the slow route back from here and get back before dark This reads like some beatnik poetry. Nice rhythm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick123 Posted March 9, 2021 Share Posted March 9, 2021 10-11C sunny day so I took her out for 3 hours and 200 km. Ice cream anyone? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevada72 Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Got out for another short jaunt. Not bad at 65 degrees. Even stopped for an ice cream cone! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member texscottyd Posted March 10, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted March 10, 2021 On 3/9/2021 at 1:04 PM, Schumy said: My only concern is around the reliability as I hope the Tracer will prove in time to be as good as the FJR and the TDM (there are plenty of both models 100k+ miles problem free). Glad your initial impressions are all positive. The lighter weight of the Tracer/FJ, along with that hypnotic CP3 engine, make it a really entertaining bike to ride in most real world situations. What it lacks in refinement, it makes up for with character: There are certainly better bikes for touring cross-country, but it seems to fall into a unique hooligan-sport-touring category that suits me perfectly. Regarding the reliability question, there are several folks here with well over 100K miles on their bike. They seem to be very reliable overall, although I suppose you can always find someone with a story that's the exception to the rule. The only semi-consistent complaint I've heard is very tight exhaust valve clearance at the first 24K service interval. My bike is coming due for that service, so I'll be interested to see what I find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wintersdark Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 On 3/9/2021 at 12:04 PM, Schumy said: It's a great bike, very different - sporty- compared to my last one (a 2005 Yamaha TDM 900 - I know it wasn't sold in North America, but it is supposed to be the predecessor of the Tracers, as the TDM 850 was the first crossover bike back at the beginnings of the 90's). I was amazed by how light it felt (the Tracer is about 20 kg/ 44 lbs lighter) and how easy it would flick around corners (17' vs 18' front wheel and a shorter wheelbase). For now I'm glad I chose the Tracer against an FJR (gen II). I previously owned two (a 2003 gen I and a 2007 gen II) and it was a great bike for long highway rides, but it was heavy and not very fast around bendy roads. I think the Tracer is a better option for me as I exclusively ride solo and the roads around me are the curvy type. My only concern is around the reliability as I hope the Tracer will prove in time to be as good as the FJR and the TDM (there are plenty of both models 100k+ miles problem free). I've never seen (or, honestly, even heard of) a TDM, but the FJR is a fantastic machine, shockingly different from the Tracer. I strongly prefer the Tracer, but I totally get the FJR appeal for long highway cruises. @texscottyd puts it perfectly: Quote There are certainly better bikes for touring cross-country, but it seems to fall into a unique hooligan-sport-touring category that suits me perfectly. I absolutely *love* screaming through bendy roads at unsafe speeds on the Tracer. It's so very happy at lean, and is super easy to flick from side to side. And that down low torque makes accelerating hard out of super tight corners an absolute joy. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garybinnyc Posted March 11, 2021 Share Posted March 11, 2021 Almost 60 in NY today.. rode to work.. no traffic and was able to cruise… expecting nearly 70 later and will def take the long way home. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schumy Posted March 11, 2021 Share Posted March 11, 2021 21 hours ago, texscottyd said: Glad your initial impressions are all positive. The lighter weight of the Tracer/FJ, along with that hypnotic CP3 engine, make it a really entertaining bike to ride in most real world situations. What it lacks in refinement, it makes up for with character: There are certainly better bikes for touring cross-country, but it seems to fall into a unique hooligan-sport-touring category that suits me perfectly. Regarding the reliability question, there are several folks here with well over 100K miles on their bike. They seem to be very reliable overall, although I suppose you can always find someone with a story that's the exception to the rule. The only semi-consistent complaint I've heard is very tight exhaust valve clearance at the first 24K service interval. My bike is coming due for that service, so I'll be interested to see what I find. Honestly, I made a decision and bought the Tracer in about two weeks. I read a lot of reviews and owner feedbacks in that short period of time, but I haven't seen many with very high mileage. The only high mileage review I found was about a german owner who rode it for 120.000 km/ 75.000 miles and it was almost problem free (some injection problem after the 40k km/24k miles big service and the gear indicator doesn't always shows the 4th and 6th gear). I read about the tight exhaust valves and I was thinking checking them in the near future. I still have a few miles left (I'm around 32k km/20k miles mark) but I don't see any problem about servicing them sooner. 20 hours ago, Wintersdark said: I've never seen (or, honestly, even heard of) a TDM... I think there are maybe a couple in all North America (if I remember correctly, I saw on Advrider Forum a long time ago somebody imported one in the US), but in Europe they are very popular, mainly in the UK, Italy and Greece. Even the France law enforcements still use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteinpa Posted March 11, 2021 Share Posted March 11, 2021 I've ridden a TDM850. Buddy had one back in the day. Don't remember much about it except that it was tame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick123 Posted March 11, 2021 Share Posted March 11, 2021 Even better today. From 11 to 5pm 18-19C . Sunny entire day and another greate backroads ride of 300 km. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted March 12, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted March 12, 2021 I rode up to White Pass Ski Resort today - still packed with skiers, beautiful sunny weather, close to 60F at lower elevations (almost summer weather in the Pacific Northwest) The twisty roads up to the summit were clear, mostly dry and free of sand. 😎 4 2 ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member 2and3cylinders Posted March 12, 2021 Premium Member Share Posted March 12, 2021 Yikes Brian, what elevation is that ski area and what's their snowfall a season?! Do you notice a difference in power up there vs at sea level? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member 2and3cylinders Posted March 12, 2021 Premium Member Share Posted March 12, 2021 On 3/10/2021 at 3:51 PM, nevada72 said: Got out for another short jaunt. Not bad at 65 degrees. Even stopped for an ice cream cone! What bay is that Bob? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted March 12, 2021 Supporting Member Share Posted March 12, 2021 Just now, 2and3cylinders said: Yikes Brian, what elevation is that ski area and what's their snowfall a season?! Do you notice a difference in power up there vs at sea level? This summit is 4500' and there are several higher summits in Washington, I live at sea level and ride the passes regularly when they are free of show and don't notice a loss in power. I have ridden Lizard Head Pass at just over 10k, Beartooth Pass at almost 11k and Red Mountain Pass at over 11k and the bike worked great, a little down on power when overtaking a slower vehicle on a long grade, often requiring downshifting 2 gears but in those conditions the +2 tooth rear sprocket really helps. ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevada72 Posted March 12, 2021 Share Posted March 12, 2021 10 hours ago, 2and3cylinders said: What bay is that Bob? That is the east end of Pewaukee Lake. Very close to my home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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