Dave & Teds Most Excellent Adventures 2013

[CyncySpyder]

Hey Dave, do you have pictures or a video of that installation? This sounds like a solution to many peoples heat problems.

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/a...p?albumid=2422

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/a...p?albumid=2368

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/a...p?albumid=2380

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/a...p?albumid=2382

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/a...p?albumid=3111

[CyncySpyder]

This weekend, on Saturday, Teddy & I met up with some other locals (Coz, Stan & Mark) & we did a nice group ryde out past Ripley on the Ohio side of the river and took the bridge across to the KY side at Maysville. Was a nice ryde, a little on the brisk side with clouds and some sun, but temps weren't too bad being around 50-55F. It was our first time to meet Mark (KYAce2003 here on SL) who has a 2013 RT-S without the heat problems many with the 13 RTs are reporting. Sure is a sweet ryde

Sadly, we only got to talk for a few minutes before the start of the ryde and then we were off, heading to Maysville for lunch. Unfortunately, as we were almost reaching our destination, my phone alerted me that my brother had called with a 911 message, so as soon as we got to Maysville, I had to stop and call him to find out what was the emergency. My other brother who had recently had surgery on his left arm for a staph infection was running a fever with temps around 106 and he was in alot of pain. I told my other brother to remove his bandages and check the surgery site, and sure enough, he said it was bright red meaning it was infected again I told him he needed to rush him back to the hospital cause it could lead to serious complications.

So Teddy & I had to cut our group ryde short, and we explained to the group what was going on, and that we needed to depart & make our way to the hospital

They reopened his wound and cleared out as much of the infection as they could, once again pumped him up full of anti-biotics and he had to stay over-night but was released again yesterday. Said he was feeling sore from the surgery again, but no where near as much pain as he was dealing with before, so all in all, hopefully this time will be the end of it

Sunday was about the same as Saturday, so after dealing with getting my brother settled back at home, Teddy and I just went off on our own and we must have done close to a hundred miles of all country backroads and parks, looking at all the wonderful colors as our areas trees are pretty much at peak for their color and we took a bunch of nice pics & even a few videos, tho I don't have any uploaded just yet to share, but it was a nice day for Spyder Ryding, that's for sure

[OldCowboy]

Dave, just so you know, anytime someone is running a fever above 102, and you can't reduce it with Tylenol or aspirin, it's time for a trip to the ER. 104 or higher means it's time for an immediate trip to the ER. Staph infections are never something to be trifled with. Before the advent of antibiotics, more people died from Staph infections than any other infection.

[CyncySpyder]

Our Local Channel 5 News claims they have the (Independently Verified) Most Accurate Weather Forcast in all of the Cincy Metro area, supposedly beating out our other 3 local channels for weather forcast accuracy. I'll be honest, before getting our original RT-S back in May of 2010, I never really paid all that much attention to the weather forcast. Once the Spyder came along, all that changed, and I now find I have 2 weather apps on my phone and check the forcast 2 or 3 times a day. Years past, we'd ryde in just about anything, but as some co-workers have stated, I think I'm starting to get 'soft' cause the appeal of ryding in cold-rain is no longer a desire of mine...... at all and I think that was a learning lesson from going to this years SpyderFest in pouring down 40F degree rain, and it being my 3rd season of using my 1stGear Thermo Ryding Suit & I learned the hard way, its water repellancy wears out after two seasons of use

I don't know about you, but I'm still struggling a bit to get readjusted to the time change and I can't stand the fact that it now gets dark around 5:30pm This time of the year is THE ONLY REASON I stay working on this early morning shift, cause I'm NOT a Morning Person at ALL But at least with getting off from work at 1:30 in the afternoon, as long as its dry out, Teddy & I can still get a couple of hours of good ryding in to apease our addiction before it gets too dark ...... and cold

Anyways, I watched like the 6pm news and they said the rain would not get here until tomorrow evening into Thursday, so I figured, YAY, I get to ryde in to work tomorrow & Wednesday and that made me happy with looking forward to the rydes

So imagine my surprise, when around 2am this morning, as Teddy & I are sound asleep, snuggled in our warm bed and all of a sudden we're awoken with the sound of damn pop-corn above our heads tap...tap tap....tap tap tap tap.....tap......tap tap tap........ UGH!!! Are you Freak'n serious??? I must be dreaming right? No rain, not until tomorrow evening But sure enough, it was rain starting to splatter down ontop of the SkyLites that are directly above our bed I'd Love to make the architect that designed this building sleep here overnight while its raining, or even better, thunderstorming & see if he thinks putting skylites over a bed is still a wise idea

[KatLen0405]

it looked good on paper!!!

I assume you and Teddy are going to be at Spyderfest next year. Lenny and I are planning on coming (already made our hotel reservations) and are going to bring Reese. She is doing really well on the motorcycle so far. I think she just sees it as a method to get attention and treats! But that is fine with me. She won't be able to be certified until next summer, when she turns one. In the mean time, I'm exposing her to as many people as I can so that she gets socialized. Thanks for all the tips when we were together in KY!

[CyncySpyder]

Sorry, I'm grumpy this morning.

Watched the news again before bed and they said showers shouldn't start tomorrow (now today) til around 3pm or a little later, so I was thinking ......... YAY, I get off at 1:30pm so I can ryde in tomorrow without worrying about getting wet

Woke up this morning and turned on the news while I was getting ready and hear ........ "The rain should be starting late this morning, right around 10 or 11am"

[CyncySpyder]

it looked good on paper!!! I assume you and Teddy are going to be at Spyderfest next year. Lenny and I are planning on coming (already made our hotel reservations) and are going to bring Reese. She is doing really well on the motorcycle so far. I think she just sees it as a method to get attention and treats! But that is fine with me. She won't be able to be certified until next summer, when she turns one. In the mean time, I'm exposing her to as many people as I can so that she gets socialized. Thanks for all the tips when we were together in KY!

One way or another, and I'm really not sure how, but YES, Teddy & I do hope to be attending SpyderFest2014

Guess I've been dragging my feet long enough & need to face reality and just do what needs to be done, tho I'm not exactly sure what all that entails. Facts are facts tho, and with taking the almost 8 grand hit to get out of our 2010 RT-S that was a nightmare, and the whole Spyder experience NOT being planned for at all, and at a time that I was still trying to recover from the apartment fire where I lost just about everything I owned, and then soon after the purchase of the Spyder from Hell, getting all our overtime cut out at work reality is we can't continue to live the way we do, so we have to make some.......... dramatic changes

Just about anything that could be cut, has been cut, so now I guess its time to start getting what I can fixed, painted and spruced up with the condo & look at putting it on the market & see how that goes Never been in such a situation, but everything happens for a reason & one way or another, it will all work its way out. Even thinking about possibly getting a room mate to help offset the cost of all the needed updating that the condo needs just to be competitive on the market, but I'm just not good with living with other folks, and have had a few not so desireable experiences in the past, but we'll see...............

On a more postitive note that's great news about Reese just take your time and be really committed to the training, and I'm sure you'll both do just fine

[CyncySpyder]

So yesterday, I didn't ryde into work cause the weather report 1st claimed rain wouldn't start til around 3pm but while I was getting ready for work yesterday morning, the weather girl said that the cold front had moved faster than projected & that the rain would start right around 10 or 11am, so I drove the car for a second day in a row

My co-worker smokes and has to go outside to do so, so when I'd see her coming back in after 10am, I'd ask if it were raining yet, and each time she said "Nope, just cloudy & overcast as usual." So along comes 1pm & quitting time & I figured for sure it must be raining by now, so I asked one last time as she returned from her last smoke break & got the same answer as before "Just cloudy, no rain."

I'm usually a pretty positive type of guy, but I have to admit, I was a little 'Hot Under The Collar' at hearing this I know I know, I shouldn't let little crap like this bother me, but Spyder Ryde'n IS MY THERAPY & it just makes me such a happier person in general when I DO get to ryde as I'm sure many of you can relate

So we're walking thru the plant from our department to the exit for our parking lot and I'm stewing pretty good the intire 7 minute walk (big plant) thinking just how lowsy our weather forcasters are, and as soon as we walk out the door and start walking thru the turn-styles ......... splat....splat splat splat......... splat...... then it was almost like a hose let loose..........

Have to admit, that cooled me right down from being 'Hot Under the Collar' cause sure enough, if I had ridden in yesterday, I woulda got caught in it pretty fiercely all the way home, and it would've been a COLD WET Ryde for sure

[CyncySpyder]

OK, so yesterday was a day for the ducks, off and on (mostly on) raining pretty much as soon as I walked out the door of work til I woke up this morning, so no ryding for Teddy or I yesterday So I figured I'd take advantage of the blah day and get back to working on our Shields for Teds Red Sled

You may remember, way back in April of 2011, right before SpyderFest, was when we first picked up Teds Red Sled from Len (then @ Cowtown now @ PitBull PowerSports) which is the very 1st 2011 SpyderFest Eddition (#1 of 5) RT-S that Len ever built and we thankfully traded our 2010 Black RT-S that I deemed the Spyder from Hell cause the original dealer set the unit up so poorly, along with the SE5 recall, it was one nightmare after another We actually broke down on the side of the Interstate on the way to Cowtown 4 different times on that trip alone...... I mean, that unit needed alot of help & I'll admit, while I loved ryding it when we could, it left a bitter taste in my mouth & I've said it many times before, if it weren't for Len I honestly don't think Teddy & I would be here today
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Anyways, many of you newer members to the Spyder family may not be aware, but 2010 was the introduction year for the RT into the Spyder Line-up joining the GS (Renamed RS) as the only two models offered at the time. For a walk down memory lane, or just for kicks, here's a link to a 1st Review of the newly introduced 2010 Spyder RT done way back in Sept. of 2009 ... http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/97/459...irst-Ride.aspx

With the newly introduced 2010 RT, BRP outfitted all of them with a HUGE barn-door of a windscreen to the tune of
2-27-11 021.jpg
STOCK2010: 26.5 X 25 X 19

Now that's what I'd call a barn-door of a shield for any bike, less alone one with power adjustments that can raise that door even further up in the air like our RTs do And I think BRP realized the sheer size of the original shield was too dang large when many of the owners after a few thousand miles started reporting broken Wind-Shield Center Support Mounts that were breaking & having to be replaced under warranty
IMG_20111203_120854.jpgIMG_20111203_120900.jpg
and the very next year in 2011 they reduced all the RT shields down to
STOCK2011: 25 X 26 X 18

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So they went from 26.5 inches tall down to 25 inches tall and also narrowed the shield by an inch at the top as well. Personally, after putting almost 14,000 miles on our 2010 RT-S before we traded it, Teddy & I had gotten used to having the larger barn-door of a shield, and I remember noticing the difference right away on our return trip from Cowtown, after leaving Len our 2010 Nightmare & picking up the Red Sled, as soon as we got on the Interstate Even at the fully raised position, the new shorter, narrower shield didn't provide nearly the same wind protection as its earlier, larger counterpart that it replaced did

TBC.................. work work work

[CyncySpyder]

So why the history lesson you may ask

So you can understand where we've been and where we are now, in reference to our experiences with different shields on Teds Red Sled Who knows, maybe reading about our experiences may help some of you in the many decisions that you face when it comes to 'Farkling' out your own Spyder to better suit your personal needs and wants right???

So we started out with the original 26.5 inch OEM barn-door from the 2010 RTs
Then we went to the smaller 25 inch shield that came stock on the 2011 RTs

Personally, as I was stating in our previous post, I felt less shielded and protected with the smaller OEM shield, so when I saw a post from another SpyderLover that wanted to trade his original OEM shield from his 2010 RT for the newer smaller shield of the 2011s, Teddy told me to jump on it, and we made a road-trip to Indiana to make the exchange.

So we had gotten back to having the 26.5 inch barn-door then, on Teds Red Sled and we were both much happier with the amount of percieved protection it gave us compared to the narrower 25 inch shield that the 2011s downsized to.

Something that might be of interest to some (maybe not) Teddy absolutely REFUSES (we've tried) to wear a helmet, and I personally don't usually wear one either (I know, I know) unless its cold, wet or we're on a long distance road-trip & have to do mostly Highway travel or of course, in a state that requires such

(I know/understand the risks and I accept them, so please, don't feel the need to educate me here and allow us to make our own choices as we allow you to do so as well Thanks)

I bring this up cause, while ryding, I always wear a baseball cap with the bill forward, not backwards like many do, and because of this, I'm very accutely aware of just how much wind turbulence that I'm being subjected to I'll admit especially early on in the process of learning and getting acclimated to 'Open Top' touring on a Spyder, I've lost a hat or two and had to go back to retrieve them cause I might've looked up and the brim of the cap was above the top of the shield, and the air-stream would just strip it right off my head

Admittedly, I usually learn the hardway but quickly One thing to remember while wearing a cap.... NEVER look UP when passing a semi .............. Anyways, a ball-cap with the brim forward gives a person a really good measuring stick when it comes to the amount of wind turbulence you feel when ryding and gives you a good gage of which shields provide better coverage, protection and more or less turbulence.

One thing I noticed & learned about on our very first long distance road-trip that Teddy & I took, way back in July of 2010, when we took the 'Spyder From Hell' on a 2,500 mile round-trip ryde from Cincy to Florida was about 'Back-Pressure' Mind you now, neither of us at the time had EVER been on a motorcycle before, so this whole trip was one BIG learning lesson, cause we had only been ryding the 'Spyder From Hell' for a total of about 9 days of ryding experience before departing on this 2500 mile journey

'Foolish' you may be thinking.....
You bet yur @$$ it was, cause we didn't know yet what we didn't know. We also didn't know about the SpyderLovers forum yet and didn't have the benifit of all this collective knowledge that resides here But it didn't matter The Spyder was an addiction for us then, just as much as it is now We didn't have a choice, we had to ryde & it was time for vacation so off we went

Fresh & Naive as the winters first snow-fall, we headed out on our first Spyder Ryde'n Adventure... and we learned alot on that trip, some that we'll NEVER forget, some that we'd LOVE NOTHING MORE THAN TO FORGET, but more over, we EARNED our scars......... and burns (sorry Teddy) the hard way & they'll never be forgotten and are a part of what makes us who we are today

2010-06-29-Teddy4.jpgWow, this is the VERY 1st pic I ever posted on SpyderLovers
IMG_20100930_LickTrain.jpgTeddy 'Lick'n his Chops' on a ryde out to Augusta KY a day before our road-trip to Florida
2010-07-20 19.46.03.jpgHe took right to ryde'n the Spyder, no training involved, he loved it as much as I did
2010-06-29-Teddy-Doggles2.jpgWith his ear 'cocked' to the side, he looks like he's drunk or something ....
3-9-11-ALL 027.jpgThis was our very first 2010 RT-S AKA: 'Spyder From Hell' & the trailer too

[CyncySpyder]

As I was saying, about our Very First Spyder Adventure and heading off to Florida without a clue about ryding, less alone Spyders in general, we learned alot

Being a cross country road-trip, I wore my full-face helmet (which I had only gotten the week before while taking my MSF class to get my license) and I surely wasn't used to having something so large around my head and neck and how the wind and turbulence would interact and effect it, thats for dang sure Like if you get a big cross-wind, how it can sometimes 'snap' your neck in a different direction cause the helmet makes your head a much larger surface area for the wind to force in different directions yeah didn't like that at all

Anyways, away we went and I soon found, while at highway speeds, and using the RTs power adjustment to keep the shield fully up, it gave us the best wind protection with the least amount of turbulence, but I was also experiencing an effect that was totally new to me and wasn't sure what it was and even tho I was heading forward at 70 miles per hour, it almost seemed like someone was pulling at the back of my helmet, and I kept looking back, knowing Teddy was the only one behind me, and that their was no way he could be pulling back on my helmet but I kept feeling that sensation

I realize many of you are probably laughing, cause you've known all about this 'feeling' that I'm talking about, from your many years of previous ryding experience, especially on 2 wheelers but try in remember, we had never ridden before and this (at the time) was ALL new for us

Also, with everything being new and not knowing anyone else that rode, even a 2 wheeler, and not knowing about this forum, we had no one to learn any of this from and we were essentially on our own How I didn't kill Teddy durring this trip, still amazes me to this day

You see, I talked with his Vet before leaving & got her suggestions & approval to take him on this Inaugural Cross Country Trip, and she insisted on a few things before we left. One was that Teddy HAD to wear 'Doggles' to protect his eyes I thought just mainly from drying out & flying debris just like for us humans But she also informed me there was another very important reason, and that was because of the constant air-pressure Teddy's eyes would be subjected to on the back of the Spyder & she further explained how the constant air-pressure against a dogs eyes could cause pre-mature Glaucoma Most dogs, ryding with their heads sticking out the window of a car or truck aren't in that much danger, cause they are usually sticking their heads in and out, changing the pressure all the time. But with Teddy being wide-open on the back of the byke, he'd be subjected constantly to the wind and that could cause major issues over the long term if not properly protected

The second thing she suggested was to shave Teddy's top coat, otherwise his long hair (Pomeranain) would end up becoming a rats nest of tangles, and when I'd go to brush him out, I'd most probably end up actually pulling his hair out in the effort of getting it untangled. As she explained, "A long haired dog on the back of a byke doing 80 down the express-way, there's not much else you can do" and she explained how Poms have a double coat and if I shaved his top coat, just down to his bottom coat, and not to his skin then she thought he should do just fine and there would be no worries of tangles and just to make sure to take a doggy-shirt/sweater with us just in case he got chilled

Again, at the time, we still didn't know all the things that we didn't know, so most of it was trial & error for us. His Vet also insisted that in NO WAY, SHAPE or FORM was I to use a regular Collar on Teddy and that he had to have a special harness made specifically for automotive travel which I had no clue back then that there was such a thing But sure enough, she took me out into the PetsMart store (His Vet is inside PetsMart at Banfield) and she showed & explained all about the Easy Rider Auto Harness made specifically for dogs that ryde in cars/trucks or MotorCycles & how they were different from regular harnesses & that he HAD TO BE TEATHERED in some way to the Spyder so he couldn't go flying off especially durring emergency situations otherwise he could easily be hurt or killed

So with all that being newly done, shaving his top-coat, getting him acclimated to wearing 'Doggles' (which he still hates but tollerates to this day) and also getting him used to wearing his Easy Rider Harness and being teathered to the bike, we headed out for many more learning lessons.

Of which, and I'm ashamed to admit but I honestly didn't know any better at the time, one was that all the protection poor little Teddy had from the elements was ............... nothing more than his plush little doggy bed That's it, nothing else

At the time, I was thinking since he's ryding directly behind me, that my body would be blocking almost all of the air, so I didn't think he really needed anything else & the only reason I even used his doggy bed for the trip, was cause I was afraid his nails might puncture the vinyl of the seat. So I took a nylon strap and securely attatched it to under the seat of the RT and ran it up the 'Black Hole' at the rear of the seat, and I put a small hole in the back/bottom area of one of Teddy's doggy beds that I had also sewn in some battery powered blue LED Lights into, and that was it, all the protection from the elements the poor lil guy had on a 2500 mile road trip to Florida ............. IN JULY
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As I read this, I'm worried someone is going to be calling the SPCA on me for Cruelty to Animals, cause now, over 3 years later, I clearly see the error of my ways And YES, poor little Teddy had to pay for my mistakes back then Cause without having any top or side protection from the elements, he not only got soaking wet when we got caught in a severe thunderstorm in the mountains of Georgia, where there were no over-passes to pull under and stop to get protection from the rain, he also had no protection from the scorching hot Florida sun in July WOW Talking about Living & Learning
2010-07-14 13.34.49.jpg

TBC.................. work work work

[CyncySpyder]

WoW Talking about getting W A Y off the topic Sorry about that Back to the subject matter of Shields

On that first long road-trip to Florida, I discovered if I had the original OEM 2010 Shield (26.5") raised all the way, I would feel a constant, repetitive 'slap' against the back of my helmet, and I now know that is a result of 'Back-Pressure' This didn't become clear to me however until we got caught in pouring down rain, and I didn't understand (at the time) how or why I was seeing rain water coming from behind me and going around/over my helmet I mean, going 60-70 MPH forward, logic was telling me everything (wind/rain/debris) should be rushing past me, not coming from behind me and overtaking my helmet Yeah, I never really watched Nascar back then either We Live & We Learn But I soon discovered that if I hit the LOWER button on the controls and bumped the shield down twice, that gave me just about as perfect as an experience as I could get with that particular shield. Meaning, it blocked the majority of the direct wind from the front and sides, and I also didn't noticeably experience the 'Head-Slap' phoenamena of the back-pressure So fully raised and then 2 bumps down was the position of choice for that shield

About a year later, there was alot of chatter here on the Forum about the Cal-Sci WindShields that have a whole in them and someone had done a review of one that they had gotten for their RT, and I think it was a Medium sized shield that they reviewed. I had never heard of Cal-Sci at the time, and didn't understand why a company would make a shield with a hole in it that's meant to 'BLOCK' wind just didn't seem logical to me So I went to their web-site and got myself some education about all things 'Shield/AirFlow' related, cause they really know their stuff and what their doing when making shields, and have most of the info posted there on their site to help educate people why they make their shields the way they do Now I'm NOT saying they make the BEST Shields on the market by any means I don't have enough experience nor knowledge to make any such claim cause I've also heard that the F4 shields are Top-Notch as well, but haven't tried any to know the difference

So after a few more postively glowing reviews from other forum members, my interest was piqued in the Cal-Sci's and I found myself drooling over the 'next new thing' but also couldn't afford to purchase a new one Luckily for us, I'm on here just about every day, and soon after BRP came out with their new shields with the adjustable vents in them (which we also couldn't afford) I got lucky when a fellow forum member posted his Cal-Sci shield in the FOR SALE Forum cause he had purchased the new BRP offering and no longer needed the Cal-Sci that he had. Since it was used, but still in great shape, he offered it for less than 1/2 the original price & Teddy once again told me to jump on that deal and I did And within a week, we had our brand new (to us) Cal-Sci Medium Shield in our garage

First impressions, I was not all that impressed to be honest. As some other forum members had posted, it looked as if the shield was..... unfinished Meaning that on the BRP shields that we've had, all the edges are pollished and rounded, while the Cal-Sci shields edges seem to be raw (for lack of a better word) almost like it was just cut out of a larger piece of plastic & the edges were maybe sanded a bit, but no where near the look of the BRP shields, not pollished nor rounded, just raw edges really, but not jagged, if that makes any since

Anyways, even tho I had read thru all of their scientific papers explaining about 'Eddies & Turbulence & Vortices etc'... I still thought that a shield having a whole in it was weird, but the science behind it made since, even if it didn't seem all that logical to me at the time If you read thru their site, you'll understand exactly what I'm talking about.... very informative site

So the used Cal-Sci Shield we got was the Medium which measures 21.5" Tall 29.5" Wide at Bottom 24" Wide at Top and we were going from the BRP OEM Original Shield from the 2010s of 26.5"Tall 25" Bottom 19" Top so as you can see by the numbers, the new Cal-Sci shield was 5 inches shorter 4.5 inches wider at the bottom and 5 inches wider at the top So alot shorter and alot wider When comparing the 2 shields side by side & sitting one over-top the other, my first thought was that I had made a BIG mistake There's no way this little shield can be nearly as effective as the barn-door it was replacing But I figured it was already done, and all the reviews I had read were mostly positive, saying that the Cal-Sci's greatly reduced the wind noise, buffeting & turbulence, especially from the sides, that many RT owners were experiencing and complaining about.

We've not had a chance yet to personally experience the new 2013 BRP OEM stock shields, as compared to their previous year conterparts, but on the 2013 shields, BRP started putting 2 holes at the bottom of the shields that match up with the adjustable mounting bracket on the RT, I believe for the same reason that Cal-Sci puts a whole in the lower center of theirs, in an effort to reduce 'Back-Pressure' and also reduce the amount of exposure to turbulence that the ryder is subjected to. Not to mention, reducing the back-pressure should take some strain off of the center mounting bracket support that many RT owners are finding with cracks in them and are breaking.

Didn't know it at the time, & then it wasn't, but this photo here shows the new holes in the OEM 2013 RT Shields. Photo compliments of 3 Wheel Addict's RT-S before it was his & still on the show-room floor, as we just found out yesterday WoW, Teddy got to test out his byke before he did ..........


TBC ...................... work work work

[CyncySpyder]

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/showthread.php?60243-SpyderQuest-2014-**-Dates-and-Official-Host-Hotel-Info-**

[CyncySpyder]

Can you tell that its usually just me an Teddy, so I don't get the chance to really conversate alot when its just us home alone, and when I actually get to have a conversation with another adult, it seems my mouth just doesn't know when or how to stop itself ... I must admit .....Teddy actually reminds me of this fact quite often

So back to our experience with shields. When we originally got our Medium Sized Cal-Sci shield, my index finger was messed up & I was going thru PT to help it work better, but sadly, was in too much of a rush to try out our new (to us) shield and went about installing it as soon as we got it. Unfortunately, upon doing so, I also inadvertantly tried installing the 'Chrome' top covers on upside down at first, and in doing so, and with my index finger not cooperating, I ended up scratching the living hell out of the shield at the lower part on each side. Seems these shields are not all that hard, as compared to say a poly-carbonate shield, and if you read thru Cal-Sci's site, they list the information on there explaining exactly why this is. So yeah, in a rush, I basically ruined a perfectly good shield At least we got it used and a great discount as compared to new, and although it IS scratched up and doesn't look the greatest, that doesn't impact its usefulness or ability to perform in any way

So I kicked myself a couple of times for being stubborn and impatient & racked it up (hopefully) to another Life Lesson Learned, and went about seeing just how did this shorter, wider shield with a hole in it perform, compared to our stock OEM Barn Door As I stated, first impressions before actual use was that I had made a mistake But I have to tell you, after just digging out & re-installing our OEM Barn door this past weekend, so I could mod our Medium Cal-Sci shield ........... WOW OH WOW OH WOW!!! What a H U G E difference

All I can say, is you have to try it for yourself and not take our word for it..... YOU WILL BE IMPRESSED If I had the funds (which I don't) I'd tell anyone that if they ordered one and didn't feel the difference for themselves, I'd buy it from you myself Seriously, that good and NO, Teddy nor I work for that company nor recieve any kind of kick-back from them for giving them our glowing endorsement, just not the case

Once again, I'm NOT stating its the BEST Shield on the market, cause we haven't tried ALL the others. Just the OEM 2010 Barn-Door & the OEM 2011 smaller Barn-Door, but compared to both of those, the Cal-Sci is a HOME RUN

It all has to do with being wider than OEM all the way thru the shield, as opposed to the OEM's that are wider at the bottom but narrower at the top, and then the Cal-Sci having that hole at the center bottom to help releave the noise from the back-pressure and turbulence. Now we haven't had chance yet to try the new 2013 OEM smaller Barn-Door shield that BRP offers with the 2 small holes at the mounting brackets, but I'd still wager that with the Cal-Sci being wider the full length of the shield, that it would still beat BRPs newer shield as well, at least when it comes to wind noise from turbulence

Now a little over a month ago, Teddy also got a great deal on another used Cal-Sci shield, and this one was what they call their Tinted Shorty, made to give the RT a more aggressive, sporty look & I personally think it does just that




Again, ryding being relatively new for Teddy & I, our only experience so far has all been in the realm of the Spyder world, and until then, neither of us had ever heard mention of a Spyder having a tinted shield, not saying their NOT out there, just not something we had really seen or read about being discussed that much at all on the forum. So when it came up in the For-Sale forum and we found it was our buddy we had previously met with before, and he gave Teddy an EXCELLENT deal well, we couldn't resist that temptation & jumped on it

I really like the more sporty & aggressive look that it lends to Teds Red Sled, especially going with our color scheme of the sled basically matching Teddy (Black & Red) and being blacked out as much as possible (if you notice, most the OEM gray castings are now BLACK) along with the Viper Red matching his Mow-Hawk & tail, and then the chrome bits & lights to match the little patches of white the pup has, like his 3 white toes & blaze of white chest hair, and as he ages, he's getting more & more white right around his muzzle area just like a white goatee

So we switched from the Cal-Sci Medium which is 21.5H 29.5WBottom 24WTop to the Tinted Shorty being 19H 25WBottom 21WTop and the plastic is also a tad bit thinner on the Tinted Shorty as compared to the other Cal-Sci offerings. We really liked the look that it gave to Teds Red Sled, and as expected, with it being so much smaller than even their next closest in size, the Medium that we also have, it did provide less coverage than their medium. But you know what ............ In the full upright position, it STILL PROVIDED MORE WIND PROTECTION and LESS NOISE & TURBULENCE than either of our BRP OEM Shields that we've had prior experience with As unbelievable as it sounds, its true

If it weren't getting down to freezing, especially overnight & when I have to ryde INTO work at 4:30 in the morning, when its usually the coldest, we'd still have it on the sled today even Now with ALL that said, the tinted shorty does have a couple of drawbacks, and namely, those are that it is TINTED & a SHORTY DUH!!!

Yeah, let me explain what I mean by that. Being so darkly tinted, durring the daytime, even on cloudy days, you can still see THRU the shield, if you need to, just fine, but at dark, like at 4:30 in the morning when I'm ryding into work, that dark tint does make it difficult if not impractical to actually SEE THRU THE SHIELD Which, I know, no need for bashing me, most 'real' MC ryders claim that your 'NOT SUPPOSE TO LOOK THRU A SHIELD' Fine, whatever, you ryde your ryde & I'll ryde my ryde & we'll leave it at that, ok? Personally, if its cold & I need/want more wind protection, I'll put the shield all the way up to get maximum coverage, and on most shields (except the tinted shorty) that puts me looking thru the shield, & you know what, I've been doing it that way since day one, and in over 3 years of doing it that way, I've not had an issue so I say, to each their own

(OK, full disclosure here Back in 2010, our first winter of ryding, doing a hundred mile one way road-trip to Indy from Cincy in 28 degree weather, we ran thru a fog bank that froze our shield & incrusted it in a solid sheet of ice & their was no looking thru that thing & no cleaning it off at the time either. So I had no choice but to sit fully up-right in the saddle so I could look OVER top of the Original OEM Barn-door of a shield to see So YES, I 'get it' & understand why most MC ryders preach this, but that was one occasion out of countless )



TBC ....................

[CyncySpyder]

Sorry, long winded & this work thing keeps getting in the way, but hopefully this is the last chapter on shields

Another 'issue' with the tinted shorty, and this may just be my own personal annoyance with it, is just how, not neccessarily how 'Short' it is, but how narrow it is at the bottom, compared to all other shields. Normally, as long as it persformed well, this wouldn't bother me, but this is just a total case of asthectics in my opinion. When you look at the sled, with the tinted shorty on it, or any other RT for that matter, its not wide enough at the bottom to 'hide' the upper wind-deflectors and they kind of stick out, like a kid with a smallish head but who's ears are to big to look 'right' If that makes any sense. Look in this picture below, and I think you'll be able to understand what I'm saying

Again, this is just totally cosmetic, as it doesn't hamper how the shield works, but to me, all the other shields, after-market & OEM, hide these upper deflectors BEHIND the shields, so they aren't really noticeable. But with the Cal-Sci Tinted Shorty being so 'narrow' well, they stick out like clear ears, detracting from the over-all look of an otherwise Aggressive Look'n Sled
Again, just my personal opinion & little more than a matter of asthetics & you know what Teddy figured out just how to correct that 'lil' problem with the Sleds ears sticking out ......................

TBC............ This work thing is .................

[CyncySpyder]

So I didn't like how the clear upper wind deflectors stuck out of the Cal-Sci Tinted Shorty, especially with it being tinted almost black, the clear ears sticking out looked out of place. So Teddy grabbed my ear & suggested that we make them once again 'dissapear' & when I explained removing them allowed more air to flow thru & that wasn't what we wanted, he clued me in that that wasn't how he was suggesting that we make them dissapear. He then went over to the paint shelf and knocked over a can of black Plasti-Dip that we had left over from other projects Oh! Now I get it! Make them dissapear and blend into the black of the dash-console area, and no one would really notice them sticking out any more

If only I were as smart as Teddy I feel bad that he has to deal with me on a 24/7 basis probably so GLAD when I go off to work and give him some peace & quiet for 9 hours a day But yeah, he had a great idea, cause with the Plasti-dip, if we didn't like the results, you just peel it off & there's no sign it was ever on there ........... WIN WIN So I promptly took the pups suggestion & took off the clear 'ears' & we set about me coating them with a couple of coats of the BLACK Plati-dip (while Teddy supervised of course) & I have to admit, the pups ideal was spot on, and once we put those 'ears back on the sled, they did just as he suggested, and you don't really see them any more at all...... 'Ear' problem solved & no longer a problem, so now when we put on our Tinted Shorty, it all blends in really well together and nothing 'odd' sticks out.

So this got me to thinking ....... sorry Teddy and I couldn't leave well enought alone, and figured, hey, if it works that well on the plastic, then why not do the Cal-Sci Medium shield in Plasti-Dip, but this time, unlike the attempt with the 'NightShades' and doing the entire shield, which basically made it useless and unable to see thru it, I'll just do the bottom lower portion of the Medium shield, that way it will mostly hide the scratches I accidently put into it, but also give it somewhat of the aggressive look, just like the Tinded Shorty gave us.

While this is still a project in the works, our first attempt wasn't all that bad, but I did it higher than what looked right, so we've taken it down some and we're still working on the angles to make it look better suited to the mounting bracket and the 'lines' on the front of Teds Red Sled, but its getting there, & I think it'll turn out pretty darn good, giving us a compromise of the best of both worlds.... more aggressive look & also the larger sized medium shield for better cold-weather coverage throughout our winter ryding

Idealistically, if we had the money, we'd order a brand new Cal-Sci in the Large size & have it sent directly to Pete, at PowerSports Wraps and have him do his magic on it, adding the soild bottom to hyde the windshield bracket along with denoting somehow how Teds Red Sled is a 2011 SpyderFest Eddition #1 of 5 & then (not that I know he can or not) but see if he can somehow do the rest of the shield in a light black tint, just to help set it more apart than all the others out there

Bottom line to all this ranting & raving is, The Cal-Sci's in our opinion are definitely worth a try

If you've tried another after-market shield and noticed a HUGE IMPROVEMENT over the stock shield, PLEASE, List it here for everyone to know about. As I've said, we've not tried the F4 shields, but have heard good things about them, and we also haven't tried the newer OEM Shields with the adjustable vents in them. So if you have experience in them, we'd like to hear about it...... Please Share

Once I get done and upload some pics, we'll share them with y'all

[CyncySpyder]

This past weekend, yesterday actually, Sunday, Teddy & I met up with a few other locals for a group ryde out to Cynthiana KY which is not really a destination place, but does make for just a nice ryde out in the country It was mostly sunny and in the lower to mid 50's and a bit on the windy side, as we have an arctic front moving in tonight & suppose to be dropping us about 15-20F degrees below average so I'm sure none of us are looking forward to that so Sunday made for a good reason to get a good one in before winter decides to come a knock'n

And this time, my brother was checked on before hand, and found to be mending well & left with instructions to NOT bother us unless death was knocking at his door this time j/k ..... mostly, but he understood, we needed this ryde and away time with other Spyder Ryders, unlike last week when we got half way there & had to leave before lunch or any socializing got to take place

It was a nice group with myself & Teddy, Coz as usual, and then we had some newer locals join us as well, like 3 wheel addict (Eric, I think) with his 2013 Yellow RT-S (that we didn't know Teddy had already tested his saddle out when his machine was still on the showroom floor) made the trip down to join us & we also got to meet HBHays (I think it is) from the Milford area, for the 1st time, who's got a sweet 2013 Silver RS. Then there was kyace2003 which is Mark (from the Florence area) that we got to meet last week with his sweet white 2013 RT-L, and also I think GrandPa In Cincy & his wife on the Blue RT as well.

If I got any of the above wrong, I'm sorry, as my memory is very bad, and y'all got to see how with Teddy & I its usually a circus of people all around us, so keeping things straight can be somewhat difficult

But all in all, think we had 4 RTs & 2 RSs and we stopped and had a really good lunch. The little place was packed with sunday church goes and mostly older folks, and I thought we were going to have issues when I put Teddy in his high chair at the table and ppl started to stare Tho once we explained all about Teddy, most were just amazed, and I overheard the comment more than once about how well behaved Teddy was & that he minded better than most ppl's children

Had plenty of folks stop to pet him and chat & take pics..... was a good time. I'll have to get the pics I took of the group of our Spyders in the parking lot uploaded for y'all to see.

Mark, or if anyone else got pics of Teddy at the table, please feel free to post them here to share. As usual, I was too busy being the pupetmaster behind the scenes to take any myself. And yes, I know..... Teddy just lets ME think I'm the PuppetMaster, but I really know who's the boss .......... still, good times

[granpa in Cincy]

Wasn't us. Unfortunately we spent the entire day raking and bagging leaves and cleaning gutters. Would rather have been riding but it wasn't to be.

[coz]

that was tony and maddie, from sunman, indiana. they're relatively new to the spyder world. they read spyderlovers, but haven't joined. nice folks. the 13 rs rider was hchays.

[CyncySpyder]

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[CyncySpyder]

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[CyncySpyder]

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[CyncySpyder]

I pretty much anticipated waking up to our area's first snowfall of the season, and from the weatherman's description last night, said it was to start around midnight and end around 3 or 4am, right when I'm waking up and getting ready for work. So I had mentally and emotionally prepaired myself for cage'n it in to work today. They forcasted it to be more of a neusance than anything, really only covering the grass, cars and buildings but leaving the roadways only wet, with slight chances of black-ice on the bridges and overpasses.

When I awoke this morning, and looking out the bedroom windows, I saw nothing of the sort. I remember hearing the sprinkles against the skylites as Teddy & I laid down to sleep, and that was right around 10pm, so I thought for sure it would be changing over from light rain to light snow, but upon waking, that's not what I saw, at least from the upper windows.

Upon taking Teddy out before leaving however, there were a light dusting on the rear of he cars in the driveway and the bunches of leaves had a little snow here and there, but even the grass in our area close to the river, was little more than just wet.

I debated wether or not to ryde in, and in years past, I would have. But I just didn't want to deal with the visual issue of ryding on the wet highway. On backroads, you can easily pace yourself far enough back to where the road-spray from the vehicle in front of you doesn't really hamper your view that much, but on the Interstate, at much higher speeds, its like a crap-shoot if someone is going to cut right in front of you, and usually not realize how much their 'wake' makes your view of the road and everything around all that much more difficult.

I really wish there was a product like Rain-X that was MADE for use on Plastic Shields. I find it hard to believe, with all of todays technology, that this product hasn't been developed yet. The market is there and begging for it. Personally, in the past 3+ years of ryding, I know I've tried at least 3 or 4 different products that 'Claim' they help with water shedding capabilities for plastic shields, but none (at least that I've tried) have really lived up to those claims.

Actually, the best thing I've tried that actually worked really well was using the Multi-Purpose Pledge in the blue metal can. It worked really well at shedding the water as soon as it hit my visor or shield, but frustratingly, it didn't last very long at all & I have no clue how long term applications would effect the shields, if it would cause 'crazing' or fogging or those tiny little micro-scratches that add up over time.

If anyone knows either of a shield that works well for water shedding, or a product MADE for Plastic/PolyCarbonite applications that 'Claims' to add water shedding capibilities and THAT ACTUALLY WORKS, PLEASE ................. Inform me

If it weren't for being tired of fighting that battle, I wouldn't have an issue with ryding when its wet..... like this morning. But as it stands, that's just not a battle I choose to continue to fight, at least not when its just my choice and not really a NEED, like on a road-trip or a HAVE-TO situation.

Maybe my buddy & co-workers ARE right & I'm just get'n soft ...............

[Magdave]

Dave I use Rejex on everything. Entire cars including windshield, windows.I have used it on my Corvettes and once a year keeps it easy to wipe clean with a California duster. I have it on My RT Sheild as well and it is similar to Rainex without the hassles. It also makes cleaning bugs(most of the time) an easy spray with water/wipe off. It is a little pricey but a little goes along way and is very easy to apply. Got to leave it out of the sun overnight after applying it needs to be UV free until cured. Remember to do the inside of the shield too it is weird but I get as much or more blow back on the inside. I guess it has to do with the vacuum it creates. I use a microfiber towel to wipe it.

http://www.rejex.com/rejex.html

[CyncySpyder]

Dave I use Rejex on everything. Entire cars including windshield, windows.I have used it on my Corvettes and once a year keeps it easy to wipe clean with a California duster. I have it on My RT Sheild as well and it is similar to Rainex without the hassles. It also makes cleaning bugs(most of the time) an easy spray with water/wipe off. It is a little pricey but a little goes along way and is very easy to apply. Got to leave it out of the sun overnight after applying it needs to be UV free until cured. Remember to do the inside of the shield too it is weird but I get as much or more blow back on the inside. I guess it has to do with the vacuum it creates. I use a microfiber towel to wipe it. http://www.rejex.com/rejex.html

Thanks for the tip and after your glowing endorsement and a little more on-line research, we have a bottle on the way & should be here on Thursday. Are you using this on the 13s stock OEM shield that has the 2 smallish holes cut out at the bottom matching the mount & have you noticed any ill effects? The reason I ask is cause we have the 2010 Barn-door OEM Shield that's 26.5" tall & then we also have the Cal-Sci Tinted Shorty & Cal-Sci Medium, both of which have a center hole cut-out. Their plastic is softer than our OEM shield, so I'm a little concerned if this chemical would have any adverse effects. But by reading thru their site info, it doesn't really seem to state that it would be an issue