naked Goldwing communication

I'm always amazed at how just one word can inspire, illuminate, engage, inflame, defuse, or in some other way alter comprehension. I was reminded of that when I decided to save myself $200 and change the timing belts on my 75 Honda Goldwing GL1000 myself.

One thing you have to do is get the engine flywheel to Top Dead Center. You look through a peephole in the top of the engine and line up two notches on the rim of the peephole with a line on the flywheel that says 1T. The problem I had was in knowing at what angle to view the notches in relation to the 1T line on the flywheel. If you looked in from directly above the peephole, the marks lined up differently than if you looked in from the side of the bike. I did a lot of reading on the subject but the light bulb wasn't coming on for my brain. The thing that clicked for me finally was the single word "perpendicular". I lined up my vision perpendicular to the flywheel and that helped me get unstuck.

Similarly, a picture or diagram is exactly what is needed for those of us who are visual learners, and aren't most of us becoming visual learners these days, even if we didn't start out that way?
I belong to an online forum called NGWclub where I get most of my help for working on my motorcycle. They have a detailed write-up on how to change your timing belts. One of the diagrams wasn't showing up on my Mac computer. When I mentioned that problem, I was directed to a PDF file that had been made of the instructions and there was the missing diagram that helped me comprehend what I needed.

The picture above of the wrench with the zip tie holding the pulley in place was a nifty idea that I got from the NGWclub site. I love the way that people get ideas about how to solve a problem and then they freely share them with others. This little trick of the trade keeps that pulley in place while you finish putting the belt on. That pulley wants to move but the wrench won't let it. If you're working by yourself it's ideas like that that give you a third or fourth hand and solve the problem.

What does a person get out of passing on tips and tricks and timely information? A thank you perhaps, or just the fun of being valuable and useful to another human being. Sometimes it doesn't take much, maybe just a single word.

Say ya to Rib Mountain

It's early March and all the snow has gone away in Indianapolis, but the snow is still flying in Wisconsin for late season skiing. TRH and I had planned to go skiing earlier in the year but I fell in my driveway like an uncoordinated oaf and then there were other conflicts so I began to wonder if we'd make it to the slopes. Never fear, Wisconsin is here,...or there,...or way up north in the frozen tundra.

I left on a Wednesday morning for a casual 8 hour drive. I stopped in Yorkville, IL to pick up TRH and we made a quick visit to Culver's for some butter burgers before setting off to Wausau, Wisconsin, the highest point in Wisconsin and our ski destination.

Arriving at the inn where I had booked our reservation was a happy surprise. In fact, here is a summary of what I liked about Wausau in ascending order.

3. Michaels Restaurant. It was hard to find, buried behind big snowbanks but it was a much finer quisine that I ever would have expected judging from the old grocery store exterior, the multiple ratty looking sets of doors which could have been "Get Smart" rejects. There were linen tablecloths and napkins. The menu was diverse and interesting. The owner was attentive, and our waitress was excellent too.

2. Rib Mountain Inn. This little inn had the most comfortable bed I've ever slept on in while away from home. The complimentary breakfast was made to order individually and served in a quaint dining hall with a real fire crackling in the fireplace. $79.00 for the night might have been a steal but it was freely offered. The Inn was staffed with genuinely friendly and helpful people and we were only about a snowball's throw from the slopes.

1. Granite Peak Ski area was a grade above other ski areas I've visited in Illinois and Wisconsin. For a midwestern ski experience it had a nice variety of runs for multiple skill levels and a scarcity of moguls which suited me fine. Colorado it ain't but for a quick trip in late season it was nearly perfect. We started out at 10 am on freshly groomed trails and then it started snowing so we finished up five hours later on 3 inches of fresh powder.

We skied into the afternoon, which made for a long and late drive home, arriving at 2 am, but what a satisfying day with my son.