THE THUMPERGARAGE PAGE OF THE FOUR-STROKE SINGLES NATIONAL OWNERS CLUB WEBSITE - visit all the other pages before you head for the house! This site is updated for the world of motorcycling on each Thursday evening, don't miss out, visit us weekly and tell your friends, no password, no secret code word, just come, pull up a chair and see what's happenin'... if you'd enjoy belonging to this national organization, see the membership application page. Thank You and Keep On Thumpin', it's what we do! - #000
P.S. If you are a FSSNOC member and have some input, email us here at the ThumperGarage with your comments. Note that if we have a response to your email, it will be posted here the following Thursday evening during our weekly update, so please note that you will NOT receive a response by email, only here on the glowing rectangle. [email protected]
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SEE PAGE 28 - 29 IN TN#156 - MOTO-QUIZ ... it was Ben's letter that I so mutilated ... Thank you, Ben!
Dear Jack, I enjoyed the use of my letter in #156. Feel free to modify my stuff any way you please. I trust your judgement and I have a very good sense of humor. My dear Norie often told me that I was “ just a poor dumb boy”, said with love and affection, but usually correct.
Great issue, as usual! Loved your story about your Royal Enfield Himalayan.
The new 450 Himalayan is coming next month. Got a great write up in Bike magazine!
I’m thinking I will not be able to resist the black one with gold tubeless tires. My friend Keith who owns Motozilli will let me know when it's about to arrive. Might have to ride up for a test ride. Is there any hope for us? I think not. I have my trade-in all ready to go. No hope for me.
Best to you and Carrie ...Ben Crawford #5462
P.S. Dear Trizippious,
You mentioned than your Himalayan was much improved after 30,000 miles.
Could you please be more specific as to what the improvement was. Much appreciated
P.P.S. Dear jack, please order the all cotton shirt for me. Size XL.
Can’t stand 50/50. Hot in summer, cold in winter. What good is that?
I’m very patient. Not worried about time.
Thanks very much. Ben, 5462
(REPLY TO BEN)
Hi ya, Ben! - Uhhh, okay ... here is an example of the Enfield's improvement. Early on, the Enfield 411cc would labor at 60mph into the Kansas wind, even more so if going up a grade, and even more yet in the Springtime when the wind has lots of drag ... no more throttle rotation remaining was the result, so shift to fourth, and force it to spin to maintain even 55 mph, which it doesn't appreciate ... a spinner, it is not, never will be in its standard state of tune and build ... in India, gas mileage is the supreme KING.
BTW - the photo above is today's gas mileage (Himalayan) after Carrie and I returned to the house from our MOTO-COFFEE engagement of 115 miles. Carrie rode her Piaggio Scooter...
I know our club motto is "1000 MILES FOR LUNCH" (grin) but for coffee and a couple of donuts, not so much. We rode the 55 miles to Whitewater, Ks initially, to dine at Mom's Cafe on main street, but, alas, Mom has apparently closed the door and disappeared into the night, something this small town did NOT need ... sad. I didn't do a door count, but my impression is that the "CLOSED" doors in town easily out-number the "OPEN" doors.
However, with that said, just up (north) the street was a new trendy coffee shop in an old building with a new front; limestone, tinted glass, and wrought iron ... I stepped inside but they lost me when I spotted a chalk-board price list that began with $5.75 for a coffee.
Anyway, so plan "B" was for our group to "thump" the 15 mile ride back to Newton to stop in at the Newton Donut Shop, for what? Yeah, a donut ... actually I had a maple twist AND an apple turnover which I later found out was a cherry turnover ... superb ... whatever it was! Oh yeah, the coffee? $1.50 and free refills.
We hung-out for awhile, shooting the proverbial breeze. Jerry, from the local motorcycle repair across the street stopped by when he noticed our row of riderless Thumpers out front ... it was great fun to visit with him!
What was I talking about?
Oh yeah, the Himalayan ... my choice of ride for this day. Over the miles, likely one mile at a time, it has slowly grown in its ability to pull into the wind without maximum throttle rotation ... it reminds me of motorcycles of yesteryear that actually required, by today's standards, a rather long break-in period and to go through that break-in and the miles that came after that would slowly reward one with a smoother, more powerful, more reliable, and more enjoyable conveyance ... and so it has been with the Himalayan (and my bright red Continental GT535 as well, which was much improved after 21,000 miles. At that point, I traded it in on my present day 350 Classic R.E. The original selling dealer was so impressed with it that he commissioned a video for You-Tube) ... I recall the day I bought the Conti, it would hardly go up the hill outside of Marne, IA - at 21,000 miles it would just chug up the hill with a smile.
When I buy Royal Enfield, I think long term ... but ... as I see R.E. evolving into making a product just like its competitors, (the new 450 with the pointy styling, etc.) that may not remain the case ... all that "progress" may not yield the same "old time" character that I and others love about the old-school Enfields.
As it is has been said for reported centuries, "Time and Tide wait for no man..."
Will do on that XL cotton t-shirt, Ben... Keep On Thumpin' - Jack, #000
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Greetings #000,
Just wanted to let you know that I finally did get all my FSSNOC swag; although it did come like the old Johnny Cash song says “One Piece at a Time”. After sending a check in mid-June to cover my club dues and a new style club sweatshirt I received the sweatshirt about 2 weeks ago. Next came Thumper News #156 last Wednesday (July 17th). Then Friday (July 19th) a letter showed up with my membership card, and club decal in it. Then on Monday (July 22nd) a package arrived with my new style club T-shirt and ANOTHER membership card and club decal. With (2) membership cards I guess I must be in really good standing as a FSSNOC member!! :-) :-)
Speaking of club sweatshirts & T-shirts; why are we hiding that excellent, colorful club log on the back of the shirts? I personally think they’d get much more exposure on the front of the shirt. Lots of time, especially with the sweatshirts, if it’s cool enough to have the sweatshirt on you’re probably wearing a vest or light jacket and the FSSNOC logo is completely covered up. Past and recent club T-shirts have had the logo/design on the front of the shirts; with the logo on the front folks can see us coming, not going away! Just a thought. Carry on!!
Neil Hemenway a.k.a. “Maynard”
FSSNOC # 5208 Wisconsin
(REPLY TO MAYNARD) - Roger that, Good Sir. Glad to hear your stuff arrived... Thump On! - #000.
***************** from last week, see below*************************************************************************
"DON'T CRY FOR ME, ARGENTINA"
... Can you hear it now?
I couldn't help but recall this song after "talking" to the Red Honda's energetic rider at a fuel stop for both he and we ... He couldn't understand us, we couldn't understand him! But that didn't keep us from having a lively and animated fun moto-inspired conversation where neither of us could speak the counterpart but I can tell you this ... we were for sure on the same page at that gas pump!
He could say, "TNT" which we interpreted as being the TransAmericaTrail, the dirt road "avenue" that starts at Tellico Plains, Tenn and winds its way westward without asphalt toward its conclusion at Battle Rock in Port Orford in Oregon.
We also understood clearly that he was from Argentina ... and we both most certainly understood that we were all mounted on Four-Stroke Singles!
Apparently, earlier, he had had another rider with him that was from North Carolina ... but yesterday, he fell and broke his ankle and had returned home to mend.
This left our happy Honda rider without a companion for the remainder of the trip but he did not appear discouraged. He had a big grin on his unshaven face all the time we visited ... and when he dramatically rode off, he stood up on the pegs and spiritedly motored off down the street in search of a place, as he had acted out with his folded hands, closed eyes, and laid-down head, to sleep for the night ... all this without ever fastening his helmet strap!
What a glorious moment of celebration we all shared that day on our own wayward way to Bluff, Utah ...
Sometimes verbally compatible conversation can get in our way, it might seem, eh?
In yet another strange twist of fortune and fate, and still unbeknownst to us at the time, as we paused at the pump for another moment or two, wondering where the red Honda rider might sleep for the night, our typically predictable semi-urban society future was about to deliver us with a similar problem...
Will we share it with you in TN#157... if we survived the night? - #000.
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Hey there Jack,
I know that you’ve been a busy man, what with all the FSSNOC get-togethers lately and all, but I’m still waiting on my 2024/2025 (13th year) FSSNOC membership card and club T-shirt. I got my new club sweatshirt about 10 days ago, but no membership card and no T-shirt. I figured that everything would be in the sweatshirt package, but only the sweatshirt was in there. How about an update?
All’s well here in west central Wisconsin and I’m thumping’ on average at least twice a week. Had a front suspension issue with my 1978 SR500 with Race Tech internals, and FINALLY got the straight scoop from Matt Wiley (Race Tech’s vintage bike tech) on the proper setup. Now it rides like a real motorcycle, not a lumber truck. :-)
Time to go lube the chain on said SR500. Keep me posted on the membership and club T-shirt issue. Carry on!!
Neil Hemenway a.k.a. “Maynard”
FSSNOC #5208 Wisconsin
(REPLY) Hi Ya, Maynard ... I'll check things out and will likely fire a shirt, etc. to you as early as this Friday, but at this point, if it should show up or has showed up after your above email, let me know. I'll need to go through the recent P.O. mail-out receipts ... and, but ... by the way, that was one GREAT looking sweatshirt! Slip it on and send us a photo? It might sell us some FSSNOC gear for the upcoming season? (grin)
- A thousand pardons in advance for the delay! - #000
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And speaking of the upcoming season, I have good news!
Thumper News #156, our beautiful Autumn Issue, has been mailed to our national membership ... note that it may arrive well ahead of the actual Fall weather, at least that is what we hope for (grin).
Thank You to ALL FSSNOC MEMBERS who jumped-in and contributed content to help alleviate some of the aforementioned busyness that comes with a national event happening each month for four months straight ... but I gotta say, "What Fun This IS!!"
At this point, only two luncheon opportunities remain ... yes, just two ... already! Mitchell, South Dakota and Bluff, Utah are recent history.
Only the August 15th luncheon in Meers, Oklahoma and the Sept. 25th luncheon in El Dorado, Illinois are left on our schedule for 2024. If you plan to attend, we need to alert our event hosts with a head-count so that they may serve us ... please respond if you think that you are coming to one or both ... again, such fun this is! - #000
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