Boxing Day: Wednesday, 26 December, 2012

A cool start to the day.

07:03am with mileage of 026,963 kilometers.

Decided to ride to Tagaytay / Silang, and perhaps stop for coffee en route. The traffic was reasonable but with the inevitable tricycles, jeepneys, etc., progress was only moderate. Stopped for Peso 300 worth of 95 Octane at a Petron station and continued climbing towards Lake Taal. The weather ahead was not looking good - it was getting decidedly cooler and the rain clouds were thickening. After another 5 minutes or so I decided a quick U turn was in order!I returned to the farm using the same route - this is never as satisfying as a circular route. However it was a good run for the R1150R and was I thankful for the heated grips (never thought I would be needing these in the Philippines)!

Felt significantly cooler towards Lake Taal

U turn and return by same route

Naïc, Cavite: Friday, 22 December, 2012

I set-off about 4:30pm and decided to ride to Naic, Cavite to visit the farm owned and being developed by a good friend. The ride was quite slow travelling towards Trece Martinez but once Governor's Drive was reached the road was wide and relatively traffic free. I spent a few minutes roaming the farm and then returned home. Dusk had fallen and I rode in the dark for the last few minutes. This was, I believe, the first time for me to ride the R1150R in the dark. To be frank, I was not overly impressed with the lights. This I am sure is due the age of the motorcycle as my Kawasaki has significantly stronger lights. 

Nevertheless, a hugely enjoyable ride in wonderful weather. Here's looking forward to the next opportunity. 

Lovely evening ride

Mileage at friend's farm 026,942 kilometers.

This had been the first ride for the R1150R for quite sometime. In the intervening period the motorcycle has been covered, left on the Optimate charger, and started periodically. Upon inspection, all was well with the exception that the oil level window was cloudy and opaque. I'm not sure why and will take to the dealer for a checkup after the holiday season. I posted a comment about this on r1150r.net discussion forum. The response was helpful and confirmed that seeing water in your oil comes from condensation. Occasionally running on the center stand is really not doing the motorcycle any favors. When you run it you need to take it out for a good 30 minute ride (at least) to burn the condensation out of the oil. I will change the oil and filter, and get the contaminated oil out of the motor, at the earliest opportunity.