There's another large trip in my future: the 2007 Sport-Touring.net National Meet, in Custer, North Dakota.  So a bit of a longer ride than the last one.  I'm leaving for this trip in 6 days, early in the morning of Saturday the 9th, and I'll be on the road until the following Sunday.  It's a ton of miles, and hopefully in the company of some really excellent people. 

In order to get ready, I've been working on the bike fairly regularly.  Last weekend Kaylee got new tires (Michelin Anakees, which I've been quite happy with so far) and a JB-Weld patch job for the minor wound in the bottom of the crankcase that I sustained in the gravel on my last trip.

 Before on the left, after on the right:

This weekend, I took steps to ensure that the above incident doesn't repeat itself, with a skid plate and case guard combo from Pat Walsh Designs.  For about $300 after shipping, the lucky Vstrom owner gets this:

...along with installation instructions and all the required hardware.  The installation process was relatively simple, although it is impossible if you don't have a way of supporting the bike that isn't the sidestand.  I did have to really crank on the bolts for the crossbar; it seems that the bars are a little off from a perfect fit.  Also, the bars really do sing at around 6000 RPM; I assume this is some frame vibration being transferred through them.  If I didn't wear earplugs before, I certainly would have started after installing these bars.  They do look like they provide great protection, though, and they'll help out inordinately when I'm off-road.

Installed, they look like this:

I also took the time today to resynchronize the throttle bodies, check the throttle position sensor (dead on, which is good because my instructions on how to adjust it were sketchy at best), replace the spark plugs with shiny new ones, and pull out the secondary throttle plates.  For the uninitiated, the throttle on the VStrom opens and closes a set of valves in the intakes which control airflow to the cylinders.  However, the bike also has a secondary set of valves, which the computer controls.  They're supposed to keep the throttle performance smooth, but word on the street is that all they really do is sap power and acceleration, and that the bike is greatly improved by their removal.  Since it's a simple matter to put them back in, I figured I'd give it a shot.  Removing them was the work of about a minute, the only sketchy thing being the utter importance of not losing one of the tiny plate screws in the engine.  A little magnetic probe took care of keeping them under control for me.

From a first brief ride, I honestly can't tell much of a difference.  It feels like there's more power in first and second, but honestly it may be psychological.  I need to spend more time on the road to be sure.

Finally, I moved the windscreen up to the Ultra Double Secret Fourth Position, in an attempt to minimize buffeting on the freeway.  So far, so good.  Again, I'll need time to tell whether it's actually working.

Also, now that I'm broke, I'm intending to camp on the way.  My camping gear was a little bit short, so I've picked up a new tent from Mountain Hardwear; a Viperine 3 free-standing tent that looks kind of like a modern art sculpture.  Yeah, it's a very large tent for a single touring motorcyclist, but I'm hopeful that Jen and Ember and I can get some short backpacks in, now that we've got a portable shelter of some sort.  Space for the puppy meant a 3-man tent, and honestly the 7 pounds won't be a real big problem on a 1000cc bike.

Now, to start thinking about routes...