Day one: The ride home.

I bought a 1981 Suzuki GS750. I must say that I was overjoyed. This is the third motorcycle that I have owned. I spent a lot of time looking the bike over and making sure that is was what I wanted, making sure that there was no hidden problems, no leak, no timing or compression issues. The owner of the bike ran a repair shop and he said that he just tuned it up. It ran well. He also said that the bike was really cold blooded. I’ve heard this about bikes before. I wasn’t very concerned about it. The ride home was a dream. Motorcycling is fantastic. I imagine that it’s not for everyone, but to me it’s the best. I could do it all day everyday. I hadn’t been on a bike in almost two years. I was totally excited, flying on a cloud.

Day two: Cold blooded.

It won’t start. It won’t start. It won’t start. The battery has just died. I am totally frustrated.

Day three: Rise from your grave.

I buy a battery charger. I find a manual. I buy some starting fluid. I go online and read everything I can about a motorcycle being cold blooded. After the battery finishes charging I try to start it again. I wear the battery down again and it smells like the carbs are flooded. I start charging the battery again and realize that I didn’t pull the choke. I’m feeling like a prize idiot. The battery finishes charging again and I pull the choke, spray some starting fluid in the air filters and push the button. The bike instantly springs to life. I am so happy that I could cry.

Day four: Vicious Cycle.

I bring the bike into Vicious Cycle which is the best old bike shop in Portland. They instantly recognize something that I missed. The air filters may be the culprit. It turns out that the previous owner took the stock air box and filter off and replaced it with four cannister filters. The previous owner never adjusted the fuel air mixture so that it would start when it’s cold. I ask them to do a compression test and some other things that may be making it hard to start. When I get home, I go on ebay and find an airbox and filter and bid on it.

Day five: The wait.

I won the auction. I’ve never actually done the Ebay thing before. I pay for the part and now I’m waiting. In the mean time I’m using starting fluid to start the bike in the morning and then starting it every two hours to keep it warm during the day. I’m hopeful that when the part get’s here that I’ll be able to fix it up properly and that will be the end of the cold blooded bike. I’m hopeful that the parts get here. I’ve been able to find most of my motorcycling gear from two years ago. Some of it still fits, the helmets and gloves. Unfortunately I can’t find my rain clothes anywhere. This is Portland in springtime. It is wet almost all the time. Since I can’t find my rain gear I’m wet most of the time too. I finally got paid and I’m going to head over to the goodwill and see if I can find some new gear. It is raining like crazy today. I am totally soaked. Being cold and wet definitely sucks, but being on the bike is still the best thing ever.

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