December 29th, 2019

     Well it's almost a new year and time to add to this thing. As I said in my last post I had plans to take the Hurricane to Vashon island this summer to show her off. I was still having problems with the plugs getting fouled pretty quick and was a bit nervous that it would strand me in front of everyone so I did some trial runs around town of over 30 miles at a time as that is about the length of the run on Vashon. Well it turns out that the problem with fouled plugs was I wasn't running her hard or long enough at a stretch. The longer I rode her the better she runs. With new found confidence I got my trailer ready and loaded her up for the journey north. I had arranged to stay with my brother Chris who lives near the island plus he has a much newer motorcycle and wanted to go with me to the rally. I got to his house Friday night and put the bike in his garage for the night.

Getting gassed up before we hit the road

     We got up Saturday and went to breakfast before heading over to the Island for a little pre-rally fun and to see the lay of the land. The rally wasn't till Sunday. It was overcast and threatened to rain so we cut the day short and were back to his house around lunch time. We did manage to meet up with some of my friends that were staying on the island and made plans to meet up again tomorrow.
     Turned out it was good we got home as it started to rain a little after we were safe at home. And by rain let me say it poured, a lot, also the biggest thunder and lighting storm to hit the area in years. If you read my other posts you might remember that on the day I first rode this bike it thundered pretty heavy after I put her away. I said it then and think it still true that it was Wayne riding by to say hello. He was never very subtle in life so why would death be any different.

Chris and I Sunday morning

      It rained all night but started to slow down by the time we set out on Sunday morning. We made it to the ferry dock without incident but there was lots of debris on the road so we took it slow. Going into the main part of the island to get registered it occurred to me that its a good thing I have a full face helmet because I was grinning like an idiot the whole time. When I pulled over near the starting point and parked the bike it immediately gathered a group of people who either knew what it was or wanted to know. The attention she got was so much fun and peoples reaction to seeing such a rare bike running was more than I hoped for. We got signed up and set out on the poker run around the island. The bike ran great and whenever we stopped she again got lots of attention. The weather also kept getting better as the day wore on with cloudy skies but no rain. The sun even peeked out a little.

Pulling into the last checkpoint
of the run

Me and the little red haired girl
in downtown Vashon

In front of the house my Grandpa owned
when I was a kid

     I decided to put her in the judging concourse because the parking would be better and it only cost a few dollars to enter. I then went to get some food and watch the field events with the rest of the folks. This was a lot of fun and we had good seating above the field with friends everywhere. Then it was time for the results of the judging.
     First they gave out door prizes and I won a BMW shirt and key fob. BMW's are OK but not my brand, too reliable, no challenge in that so I traded with another guy for a can of brake clean. Next came the awards for different classes. I won the trophy for "best unrestored" and when it was announced he said "of course goes to the Hurricane". I was beside myself with pride and again with the grinning, this time no helmet to hide it. But the big shock came when I won another trophy for "people's choice". That one means so much because there were several very nice bikes in the concourse. It didn't hurt that I have lots of friends that were there but I think it also shows how much people agree with the "ride em, don't hide em" idea. Of course the capper was that I also won the best poker hand prize of $100 cash. Chris and I decided that we better get off the island in a hurry before I got mugged and beat up. Chris took great joy in telling people that he only came along so he could carry tools and spare parts for my old rundown bike because of the side bags his bike has. I took more joy in having him carry all my trophys home because I couldn't possibly do that on my own.

Both trophys, proper way to
rep rockers northwest

     We got back across the sound and were about two blocks from Chris' house when it started to lightly rain again, the perfect way to end an awesome day. I am hoping that next year all of my brothers will go on this rally with me. Four of us own or have owned bikes it the past , and the fifth is an avid bicycle rider. When we were kids our grandpa lived on Vashon so it is special for that as well. In early February I am going to put the Hurricane on display at a local show that includes about 200 bikes from all over the area and beyond. Stay tuned for another update after that, thanks for reading.

Waynes Problem

July 2019

      Hello again and welcome to positive earth. I felt like writing again but have been unsure where to start. I have had fun taking Wayne's bikes out for rides around the city and showing them off as much as the weather and time allows. On the subject of the Hurricane I decided to call her "the little red haired girl" from Charlie Brown, his elusive crush that was always out of reach.
     She is running pretty good but fouls the plugs too soon. I think I need to pull the carbs off and adjust the needle placement, but till then I keep spare plugs on hand just in case. I put electronic ignition so she would be more reliable especially because she will be sitting more than the other bikes. Because of the time she spent sleeping I tore down the primary to the clutch and replaced all of the seals and gaskets. I have been riding her without a current registration so I decided to bite the bullet and spend the better part of a morning in the DMV. The tags on the plate expired in 1982, and as a bonus the plate was from another bike so the Hurricane had never been registered at all. The plate is the old colors and as Wayne rode illegally with it when he had her running I really wanted to keep that plate. The kind people at the DMV allowed me to transfer the plate and she is a special interest bike so for $101 she is good forever. Technically because Wayne never had a title and never had a proper tag on her she is a one owner bike now.
     It's always fun to go out and show her off. I am hoping to take her to a motorcycle rally on Vashon Island later this summer where she will shine for sure.

Arranged the garage to make it easier to take them out.
Backed in for quick getaways.

     I have gotten the Bonneville, Margret, to be a reliable rider and never hesitate to take it to work or play. The work thing is telling because with my job I can't be late even 5 seconds. I did have one incident of note this last year on her. The realtor that bought Wayne's house had a bunch of work done to it in hopes of renting out the upper floors as a large air b&b. He also put an apartment in the basement for his own space to live. A bunch of Wayne's friends and family went through the house on a tour and I rode Margret there. Afterward my friend Dale and I went out to lunch and all was good. We talked about how Wayne would have hated to see all the wood trim under a fresh coat of paint, but agreed that it was nice that the house will be around for more years to come. When I went out to go home the bike started fine but died when I put her in gear. Something came loose in the clutch so I had to call my son for a ride home, got my trailer, and towed her home. When I got home I called some expert help and found a nut had backed of the main shaft in the transmission moving the entire clutch out of place. A locking tab washer that was supposed to be there was not. It cost me some time and about $3 to fix and I'm sure it was Wayne messing with me for going into his house without his permission. I vowed to never set foot in there again, especially if I'm on one of his bikes.

Margret from the top floor of Wayne's house.
If you look close you can see Wayne backing the mainshaft nut off.

           Most recently a friend has been visiting from Costa Rica and she and I have taken both Triumphs out on the town. This is I'm sure the first time ever that both bikes have gone anywhere together, but certainly not the last. It's a little like taking my garage out in the world to share so that's awesome.

Up on Mt. Tabor.

We were half of a British Invasion at See See's coffee.
Looked like rain so the Hurricane hid under the awning.

    In closing I want to thank my bride, Angela, for asking me to add to this blog. She puts up with me spending too much time in the garage.  Well I think that's all for now, safe journeys to all,

ride em, don"t hide em.

Wayne's problem