Bike is great, car, not so much! BMW E90 Sedan

Well friends,

I've been riding as much as I can the past few weeks.  It is rapidly getting cold and the season is nearly over for riding (or possibly, completely over!?).  The bike is running well, with the stator, voltage regulator, and radiator fan all being replaced - at a cost of about $700.  Sadly, it's been cold and I've been taking the car to work, my 2011 BMW 328i xDrive.

Yesterday however, congestion was really bad, and I opted to take the back roads home after work.  Sadly, upon trying to cross a four-way stop, I guess I didn't see a black car (I have no clue how I missed the headlights and it being "stopped" at a stop sign - unless it actually ran the stop??) and drove head on into it.  The other car wasn't too badly damaged but mine was:

 There was a good amount of frontal damage, the bumper is toast.  I didn't look at the fog lights but they might be damaged.  The headlights are on and running but some of the plastic went flying.  The hood also clearly got messed up and it does not lay flat like normal.  The driver side airbag deployed, as well as the passenger side curtain airbag (??!).  I realize now that the airbag is pretty violent, as it left some burns, deep bruises, and cuts on my arm and knuckles:

This image shows the injury hours after the accident, but immediately after it looked horrendous, and VERY purple and bruised.  I first thought I was going to need stitches, but it turned out a layer of skin was ripped off, not so much a deep cut.

I hope my car isn't totaled, but personally I am estimating at least $10,000 of damage easily.  I think they will total it at 15,000, so I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!  It is a real pity that I had it perfect just two days prior....waxed vacuumed and beautiful:

I guess I'll find out in the next few days what is going on!  Wish me luck.

- Pandabear

Update:  The car was totaled :(  There was $22,000 dollars of damage so they took her away.  I managed to get the same car in Tasman Green, oyster dakota leather, with an upgrade of Navigation, bluetooth, and Xenon headlights!  The new(er) car is actually in better condition - and of course, I tinted the windows!  I will snap a good picture when conditions clear up and I can finally wash and wax the new girl!

Alpinestars Archer Gloves, Tail of the Dragon, Warranties, Near Misses!

Hey friends,

A lot has been happening lately!  I haven't been able to make any videos or post lately due to work and just life in general.  So here's what has been going on!

I had to RMA a few items.  My RS Taichi Eheat gloves weren't properly heating my fingers, so I had to send them in.  Fortunately, Motoliberty and RS Taichi were great to me, and they replaced the gloves even though they were out of warranty (1 year period).  Also, my GMX motion jacket's liner buttons were defective, so they replaced them too.

Then..my SENA headset had some frayed wires and the unit was shorting.  SENA sent me a brand new headset, just in time for my trip.  I am ecstatic!  I just installed everything and updated it to version 5.0, which allows phone and intercom simultaneously.  I can't wait to try it out!

I got another new set of tires put on.  The local shop charged me $150 dollars plus tire recycle and tax to mount two tires.  It's effin robbery!  I used to pay $80 bucks for both tires installed at Motor-Vation in Mechanicsburg.  I'm going to ride over there next time and give them my business.  Anyways, everything is going well with the new tires.  I definitely got used to them a lot quicker than the last set.  I guess knowing that they would be "twitchy" helped me prepare for the difference.  Everything feels so smooth now!

I did have a near miss a few weeks ago.  I was riding down the middle of a road and a cargo van at a stop sign pulled out trying to cross the road.  I guess they weren't paying attention because I was going straight! I gunned it and swerved in front of them.  My heart was racing but I made it around, safe and sound! People need to pay ATTENTION!!

While my e-heat gloves were getting warrantied I ended up buying a new pair of gloves.  I got the Alpinestars Archer gloves, the top of the line "tech touring" gloves.  They are a tad bit big for me compared to the RS Taichi gloves (even in size small!) but I'm getting used to them.  I didn't get a chance to ride in a downpour yet but I did ride in some light rain and fog.  I'll do a full review soon, but what I can say so far is that the visor wipe on the left thumb works like a charm!  It was practically a windshield wiper, and it got ever last drop off my visor.  Love it to death, and worth every penny!

And lastly, on Wednesday, I am starting my trip to Tail of the Dragon!  My buddy and I are riding down, taking Skyline drive and Blue Ridge Parkway all the way down.   I have been packing my stuff, making sure everything fits.  So far so good, having a tail pack is really helping me.  I remember the Chicago trip with a full tank bag, which was nice to rest my chin on but for these upcoming twisties, it'll be nice to have it at half size to remain out of the way.  The Kriega US-20 is a great addition to my luggage!

Videos to come!

Ride Safe,

Pandabear!