Category: general

One year with Red Fox – after six with Lazy Cat

It came up as a memory on Facebook, one year ago today I was posing with my new bike in Valencia. It was a big day as I had been trying to get rid of Lazy Cat for a few years, admittedly not wholeheartedly but I had, on and off, tried to swap it for another bike. As I feared the paperwork, I didn’t want to sell it myself but rather trade it in for a bike I wanted. This made it complicated as most places would offer very little for the Versys, for example, the local Kawasaki dealer only offered €1300 – however if I would fork out on a new Kawa they could “overvalue” Lazy Cat and give me a bit more. No thanks, a new Kawa was about the last thing I wanted, my mind was set on an old BMW. Therefore, I was absolutely thrilled when this red beauty showed up online. Everything happened very fast, I called the company on Thursday and Friday after work, I rode the 300km to Valencia and just managed to make it there before they closed. They did all the paperwork for me and paid €2300 for Lazy Cat, more than anyone had been willing to offer for it as the mileage was about 86000km. Now the bike was due for service, new tyres and new chain kit so it was very good deal and perfect timing on my behalf.

It was easy to let go of the Versys, I never really liked it that much, so I didn’t cry as I did when I traded in my last Ducati Monster. The Versys is a great all-round bike but very top heavy and vibey. The pillion seat is comfy, at least so I have been told, and it can take a shit load of luggage. We made a lot of memories Lazy Cat and I, travelled from Spain to Sweden, to Ireland, Estonia, Wales, Hungary, England and back to Spain during various trips to WIMA rallies or just road trips, and yes, we even emigrated together. The sales person laughed at the stamps in the service book, it had literally been serviced all over Europe. When the Versys came up for sale a few months later, they had done it up very nicely, new tyres and chain kit. Of course, all my stickers had gone and it was cleaner than it had ever been in my possession, cool that they choose to leave the rim stickers on.

For a bike I never really liked, we made a lot of amazing memories together. Lazy Cat lived with me in three countries and some 9 months as a motorcycle vagabond before returning to Spain.

  • Cursa de Tardor, Altafulla
  • The troll in Åmål, touring in Sweden
  • The emigration tour, leaving Madrid
  • Towel day tour 2014, back roads outside Madrid
  • Back roads in Catalunia
  • On our street in Villa de Gracia, Barcelona
  • The tulip tour, the Netherlands
  • Karlstad, my home town
  • Camping in Wales
  • Our last residence in London
  • Somewhere in Slovakia
  • Along the Mosel in Germany
  • Avila - may be in my neighbourhood again.
    Avila, first week with the Versys
  • Been there, done that got the sticker
    Grossglockner, on my way to the WIMA rally in Austria
  • Entry into Bruges
    Entry into Bruges

Since buying Red Fox, I’ve been touring Ireland and England, adding some bits of France on the way. I use it for my supermarket shopping, running my errands, commuting to class and going places.

Mazinger Z outside Reus
Once in a blue moon I even go for a Sunday ride – Mazinger Z outside Reus

Winter preservation

If it looks like this when you are doing your winter preservation, you have waited too long 🙂

It was with stiff fingers I screwed out all the screws… 16 or so I believe, and removed the panels to access the battery. Of course, it would have made sense to do this back in September when I permanently parked the bike for winter but, with mum’s funeral and all, I just couldn’t muster the energy. Nevertheless, I had hopes that the battery wasn’t badly damaged but could be recharged.

As much as I like the low weight distribution and the agility that the fuel tank under the saddle gives, I hate the thought of having to do this removal procedure to access the battery for a jump start somewhere in the rain while travelling. Better keep the battery well-maintained then 😉 I was thankful for the practice session I had put in the weekend before, when connecting the cable for the heated waistcoat to the battery of my 2007 GS in Spain, it did cut own the working time considerably. That was done on the street one sunny afternoon, if you really want to know.

Now, the battery is happily bubbling away, awaiting June when I’m next going to take the bike out. I bought myself one of these posh intelligent chargers, I hope it preserves the battery well.