Near-new fully farkled GT for sale in Australia

[wordsmith]

2 hours ago, dazzler24 said:

@wordsmith - All true wordy, however it does mean that your are now officially engaged!  And that's because he'd chosen to wear your ring. 😲

I wouldn't have minded so much, but he left his watch behind....

[captainscarlet]

12 hours ago, wordsmith said:

Thanks, nh - that's not a bad idea at all!   It so happens that the next three months or so - our summer - are usually hot, humid, wet, steamy, and not at all conducive to enjoyable motorcycling-for-pleasure.   Sort-of Florida like, I believe, 90/ 90.   

I well recall that my last Tracer - lovely Lava Red - was collected by me on December 23rd or thereabouts last year, and sat rarely used for the better part of three months.   I cannot handle heat and humidity at all well - even standing in the garage trying to pull my helmet on over a sweaty forehead, ATGATT already clinging damply to my bod, is a summertime chore that takes the pleasure out of riding.   I suspect that much the same will occur this coming summer, which is already making its presence felt. 

I shall ponder on same, nh - thanks for your kind observation.   Nothing that contributed to my decision 'happened' on my recent tour, but I am left with some lingering muscular strains (I assume) and pains in my right arm that makes bike handling tricky at present - even using the mouse as I type this is painful.   So a decent amount of time off would probably help things - I'll try it, while leaving the GT 'for sale' still.   (The painful and restricting shoulder bursitis seems to have been fixed).

Sorry to hear this Wordsmith.  However perhaps you don't need to sell.  Obviously I'm not aware of your full physical status but maybe it's ok to keep the bike and just use it less frequently and for shorter trips?

I'm a somewhat later model than you (1972) and as yet don't appear to have any/too many ailments.  Like you the weather forces me for a certain number of months to leave the bike in the garage.  In my case its bloody freezing and in your case its bloody boiling.  If I'm honest I prefer your scenario.  However the upside of this climatic arrangement is that for half the year I have loads of tinkering time.  I've come to understand from your many posts that tinkering is as much a passion for you as riding.  Think of the hot summer months as top tinkering time with no pressure to ride the bike.

When riding season comes around I tend to ride frequently but over shorter distances.  Typically I will try to ride to work every day (ca 20 km one way) and do slightly longer rides at weekends/evenings if I feel like it.  I rarely do big rides and in fact the only really long ride to date (6500 km over 2 weeks this past summer) is the first such trip in my biking career, which began in 1996.  I found that after the long trip I was a little stiff here and there and frankly it's no surprise because your forcing your body to adopt more or less the same position for long periods of time.  

As I said I don't know your physical status, but perhaps the above is a way of still enjoying the biking life a little while longer.  It seems such a shame to get ride of that beautiful GT you've created.

CS

[wordsmith]

Thanks very much, cs: nice to hear from you again.   I'm gonna try a temporary 'hibernation' from riding in a kind-of reverse rationale to you northern hemisphere Blokes for whom winter months are a no-go: for me it might be this coming summer!

Clearly, even if this works my days of long distance multi-consecutive riding days are over (if I have any sense!), but I'm already reconciled to that and quite accepting of it.   After all, I have been there and done that in spades. 

'Tinkering' as a way of remaining bonded with the GT over the summer months seems hardly possible as I think I've done, or had done, everything possible: maybe I might strip the bike down to it's out-of-the-box state, then start again - (only maybe!).🙄 

But I do genuinely appreciate all the supportive comments made here, and have taken them all on-board, believe me.

[flyfifer]

I am glad to hear you are going to "sleep on it" for a while and hopefully your discomfort will ease over those hot sticky months.

 

[captainscarlet]

2 hours ago, wordsmith said:

'Tinkering' as a way of remaining bonded with the GT over the summer months seems hardly possible as I think I've done, or had done, everything possible: maybe I might strip the bike down to it's out-of-the-box state, then start again - (only maybe!).🙄 

 

[wordsmith]

While I greatly appreciate all the good wishes here, I’d like to clarify that I am in fact in good overall health, just that I have some ‘wellbeing’ issues that conflict with the requirements of safe and enjoyable motorbiking.   I would not like any of you to lose sleep on my account, but misquoting Mark Twain - reports of my imminent death are greatly exaggerated!

I use the term ‘wellbeing’ - maybe incorrectly – in the sense of ‘feeling well’ as opposed to being ill or sick or having some dread disease (other than incurable Farkling Syndrome)!  

I never had any intention or desire to still be riding at age 80 – it kinda crept up on me.    I’m not sure what age draws the line ‘tween infancy and senility, but I hope I’m not there yet.   Mrs Wordsmith and I (she’s three years younger than me) were recently bemoaning the fact that between us we have seen our GP more times in the past two years than in all the preceding twenty: it’s not much fun getting old. 

My mobiking-related wellbeing issues are, reading from top to bottom: first - an eye problem called Dry Eye Syndrome, an Irish term to describe the fact that my eyes can ‘tear-up’ at any time, blur my vision somewhat, and give a feeling that tears are about to run down my face.   They don’t, and it’s totally painless, but pretty distracting as you might imagine, it being quite helpful to see what’s going on around one on the road.   And it’s not an easy thing to administer eye-drops at 100kph ‘neath helmet and visor and sunnies.   I'm seeing my specialist in a few days time in hope that she can fix it - last visit she spoke of a new laser treatment.

Issue number two is definitely age-related, in that I am finding it increasing tricky to climb on and off the GT without looking as if I’m a near-drowned sailor desperately trying to climb into a floating lifeboat.   And although long-legged giraffes and flamingos might find it easy to mount and dismount if the panniers are fitted, I don’t.  

This issue is one of lack of flexibility in my hip, knees ankles.   I used to be super-fit and have good flexibility, being a keen distance runner in the past, and having run distances up to the full 42.2km Marathon and many half Marathons and lesser distances – nowadays I can’t even run a bath! 

Being a bit of a tinkerer, I’m considering creating a kind-of crane on the back of the bike to allow me to hoist myself up and down as required, much as Middle Ages armoured knights needed help to enable them to mount their horses. 

And the third problem is a hereditary neurological condition passed-on from my mother (thanks, mum!) called Peripheral Neuropathy.   In effect and in as few words as possible, I have lost almost all feeling in my feet and lower legs.   When considering how much and how often a mobike rider uses both feet, to balance on the bike as well as change gear and brake, and – hopefully – to lower the feet when stopping, this is not at all helpful.  

And when I walk on or encounter uneven ground I stagger around like a drunk – not a pretty sight!   My mother lived to be 101, even though quite severely immobilized in her later years a result of this affliction, but it is one of those many age-related conditions that will not kill, but has no known cause or remedy.   Though medical specialists will cheerfully take hundreds off one in explaining these facts!   

My recent long tour with relatively little time off the bike really took it out of me, physically and I think mentally too, as it had been some time since I last took such an extended trip, and I wasn’t really up to it, which I realised too late.   I’m still dealing with muscle soreness in my shoulder (though the recent treatment has improved it) and in my lower arms, which are still quite painful, a kind-of RSI there, I think.   I’m definitely not yet up to riding more than a very short distance, and wise counsel would probably be not even to contemplate that – so I probably won’t until all these symptoms are gone, at which point I can consider my two-wheeled future.  Overall, I think it’s reasonable that I’ve also lost a little confidence on (not in) the bike, and the ability to concentrate hard and at length, which in my book is one of the strongest weapons in the motorcyclist's armoury of self-preservation.   

All these words possibly make me seem like a hypochondriac: I’m not, I think, but then I’ve never been 80 before, and it all seems to come with the territory.   Aaarrrggghhhhh!!

 

Edited November 22, 2019 by wordsmith

[texscottyd]

Hey there @wordsmith...  I’ve been thinking about how to respond to this for days, but everything I come up with seems horribly cliche.  It’s interesting that - for those of us who have been lucky enough to truly experience a lifetime enriched by motorcycling -  years and age are somewhat arbitrary, but the almost religious enlightenment it provides sticks with you forever.  

I’ve been riding since I was 8, and will be 55 next month.   My father, who passed away a few years back, rode for the better part of 60 years...  I feel genuinely blessed to have grown up in a family where motorcycles were an integral part of who we were.  The story of my father’s  last ride is epic, involving my 83 year old Dad and my Kawasaki 636 race bike.  We should all be so lucky.   

So, best wishes to you, and my full support for you doing whatever is right for you.   We’ll be here regardless, and will always look forward to hearing your insight & wisdom.   

[Guest]

@wordsmith if it’s still fun keep going when it gets to feel like a chore time to call it a day. You’ll know. Doesn’t have to be all or nothing and sometimes the answer changes from day to day. Either way please keep visiting us on the forum. Your words and comments are always enjoyable and something I look forward to on a thread. To get back to Mark Twain, “a measure of a man’s genius is how much his opinion agrees with mine.” 

Edited November 22, 2019 by Guest

[captainscarlet]

10 hours ago, wordsmith said:

Being a bit of a tinkerer, I’m considering creating a kind-of crane on the back of the bike to allow me to hoist myself up and down as required, much as Middle Ages armoured knights needed help to enable them to mount their horses.  

You see, you haven't finished tinkering. Good job we hadn't got around to burning you yet! 😉

My own personal view is keep the bike until you really, really can't ride it or really, really need the money.  Perhaps you're not riding it as much as you used to or for such long distances.  Nevertheless when the mood takes you the bike is there and even if you just take it for a spin around the block that can still provide that warm fuzzy feeling inside......"What the hell is this man talking about, has he been drinking?"

All IMHO.

CS

Edited November 22, 2019 by captainscarlet

[BugsInTeeth]

All I can think of to say, is "Press On".....that's what Chuck Yeager believed, and I do also...

I haven't been reading your stuff for long, but have come to enjoy your posts and wit WordMan,

so , "Press On"  however you can....

and in your case for SURE , as well as mine I hope, it will be with Style and grace.....Good on ya Mate !

[piotrek]

[wordsmith]

9 hours ago, captainscarlet said:

My own personal view is keep the bike until you really, really can't ride it or really, really need the money.  Perhaps you're not riding it as much as you used to or for such long distances.  Nevertheless when the mood takes you the bike is there and even if you just take it for a spin around the block that can still provide that warm fuzzy feeling inside......"What the hell is this man talking about, has he been drinking?"

All IMHO.

CS

Thanks, cs - and all the others who have boosted my fading spirits.    I intend to follow this broad advice, yet limiting my outings to what I can handle physically and enjoy spiritually.   Thank you all indeed - sometimes a man needs input from others to reveal to himself what makes him tick...

[TTR Ignition]

Hanging up the hat is really hard. I haven't raced since '05, and I finally sold my TZ125 a few years ago. My health may someday improve to the point where I can be trusted in a car on a public road, but I've had to accept that I've turned my last lap on a GP bike. 😟

[BBB]

Let me know what you want to do with the thread @wordsmith. I can close, lock, hide, edit the thread title or just leave it as it is; your call.

[fr8dog]

I'm a little late. Didn't realize you had sold the Tracer. Bummer. When you get yourself right you have room for that Guzzi!