Reflections on the past riding season and a summary

I suppose it is appropriate to reflect back on the year, now that the new year is here. :-)

This was officially my first full riding season, since I bought the bike at the end of July 2006. I missed out on some riding because of various events (6 weeks of recovery for surgery, wedding planning, etc.). I think I got a good bit of experience though. I felt very comfortable on the bike, riding every day to work. Our longest trip was the one we took to Estes Park via parts of the peak to peak highway. That was lots of fun. I hope we can do more of that kind of riding. Colorado is such a great place to be; we should take more advantage of our home state.

I also managed to add some accessories this season, making the bike more mine. That was cool. I've got a to do list for more of that but I'm also thinking about a new bike so I'm not sure how much I'll focus on the Rebel accessories right now. That and we are looking to buy a house so these extra expenses might have to wait.

The bike gave me no trouble. We haven't done any winter maintenance yet so I'm a bit worried about that. We may fire them up today and add some Seafoam to the tanks with fresh gas. Should probably change the oil but we'll see.

I started last season with the Additional Rider Course offered by MSF. I wanted to brush up on the things I'd learned in the BRC so this fit ok. I didn't learn anything new but it was good practice to reinforce the things I'd learned. Next year I think I'll do the Experienced Rider Course. I like starting off the season by getting the bugs out before riding again. I do better in a formal course rather than practicing on my own. But we'll see. May also come down to cost and time.

In the new riding season I'd like to ride over a mountain pass. That's my goal for 2008. :-) I should also focus more on preventive maintenance this year. I'm hoping to continue putting many miles on the bike.

It was a good year. Got many more miles than last year but that was to be expected since I did get to commute more often.

Maintenance done:
new battery in July
new chain and sprockets
oil changes
new CDI box last year (from Jack's)

Accessories:
Spotlight bar
relocated the front turn signals to the spotlight bar
saddle bags
Spitfire windshield
larger fairing shield (jury is still out on that one)
Stopper license plate additional brake light

Total miles: 3,896 (May - December)

Happy New Year!