Randomness and boredom

Life I've learned is built on a multitude of layers infinitely stretching outwards as well as inwards. You may look at it both through a telescope as well as a microscope. Our fates reminiscent of quantum trajectories in particle accelerators where fools try and get a peek at the big why and how. Yet as with everything the harder you look the weirder and more unexplainable it gets. I can't say that life at the ranch is spectacular or grand, just like everyday life everywhere else it's plagued by its routines. Every so often followed by brief moments of true awareness or introspection thrown in for good measure. Wake up, feed, eat, water, zombie out, feed, eat and dream. I often wonder if I'll ever be able to readjust to the "norm" or if I've crossed a line which cannot be uncrossed. After a year and change of being freed from the cage of security living moment to moment, day by day; staying put brings forth an immense uneasiness and sense of unfulfillment. It's hard to wake up knowing exactly what your day will bring, at least for me. Even so I try to break the pattern where possible, be it spending time with my caged four legged friends, watching a sunset from the back of the hay truck, having pointless philosophical discussions with my adopted kun-fu master feline, going for walks through the snow or wrenching on Marla and day dreaming of crossing that border come spring. My future is unwritten and every new encounter, situation and most importantly choice brings forth unimaginable possibilities. I'm here now without a why but only a sense or feeling that this is a step towards the next step in an endless cycle of circumstances which I'll never understand nor need to. The only thing I see when I close my eyes is Marla and I rolling the length of south America, enduring countless hardships and adventuress to finally peer out into the infinite horizon of the south Pacific from the place which has overwhelmed my thoughts since first hearing of it. Patagonia. One day at a time, that's all we get! everything since and forth is nothing but air.

Sorry Marla but it is what it is

Marla

  So after running into some Utah "mud" recently which is more like quick set cement and the fact that Marla just clicked off 31,000 miles her clutch finally decided to go. First time she has ever left me walking and since the failure was more my fault than anything I really can't complain.    I picked up a EBC heavy duty disc set as well as their heavier springs and the install was a breeze, clutch pull is only slightly harder. Since for the right case to come off the water pump had to be disassembled and I already had the parts I went ahead and swapped all its seals as well. Supposedly they go around 30k or so and I had ordered the parts a while back as insurance. But since my philosophy has always been "If it ain't broke don't fuck with it!" I hadn't gotten in there to mess with them. While down there I also noticed that the clutch cable was on it's last leg and went ahead and replaced it as well. 

   One thing that blew my mind after pulling the case is once again how clean the internals of this motor look. All visible bearings and gears look practically new with hardly any wear or discoloration. This is the third time this case has been out including when it was installed at the factory. The second and last time I personally had it off was back in miami over a year ago when my girl was only 5k. So to see the internals looking exactly as they did 26,000 hard miles ago brought a huge smile to my face. Not to mention reinforced my "faith" in not only Marla but KLR's in general. This also goes to show that these bikes just like the tractors that they are love plain diesel oil and all the hype about overpriced synthetics and moto specific oil is just that hype! Rotella 15W40 from 5,000 miles on and changed religiously every 2k, that's all it takes.

The poor girl has been through alot this passed year and even so has never skipped a beat and has always taken me anywhere I wanted to go. Looking at her sometimes it's hard to believe she's the same pristine machine I started this journey with but then again neither am I. To twenty six thousand amazing miles of the greatest riding anyone could ever ask for and many more to come!

Marla Singer

And to all the KTM/BMW riding KLR haters and bashers out there (and you know exactly who you are) Marla and I gladly give you the double finger salute! Keep your orange, flashy, overpriced, over hyped, badly engineered and over complicated poor european excuses of a motorcycle and all the bullshit that comes with them. When it's all said and done and zombies take over the world Marla and I will be riding around decapitating the walking dead long after your tightly scheduled valve adjustments, disintegrating wheel bearings, dead fuel pumps, blown shocks, self destructing 2nd gears and exploded final drives leave you on the side of the road for zombie food.

Utah and beyond.....

Life after Moab....The only way I know how, one day at a time.......

"When everything goes wrong, that's when the adventure begins"

Sunshine

Pai Mei

I recently got a gig to volunteer and live in a horse ranch outside salt lake city, UT. Something I've always wanted to do is work at a farm/ranch and learn to handle and work with animals. So after being here for a a couple of weeks I'm pretty stoked but at the same being cautious. Unfortunately in this day and age it seems that some people are more than eager to take advantage of an honest person's good nature. Sadly this was the case last time I volunteered in Big Sur California through workaway. The ranch is in the beautiful Tooele valley and surrounded by mountain ranges. Great trail riding is only a few miles away and Marla and I have already gone out and gotten into some trouble. Winter is definitely setting in and as seen in the first couple of shots the day of my arrival was interesting to say the least. More pics, stories and a complete update of the entire blog is in the works. 


"The best journeys answer questions which in the beginning you didn't think to ask."

Moab 2.0

Moab!

Almost one year to the week I find my self in the twilight zone once again. Lockhart Basin and White rim along with a few others in store. Keep watching for updates.....

White Rim Trail (Canyonlands Natl. Park)

Pucker Pass by moonlight




While I enjoyed another lonely and desolate birthday in the canyons around Moab, so did Marla who just clicked off 30,000 while tackling the White Rim.



Just another sunrise behind the La sal's.


Ice cream parlor action



Stoked Hessian after a 5.8+ "crack"