Grips...YES Grips

    If you love your bike, then you take care of it.  Yes, the oil changes and good tires are the most important; but, it is time to talk about one of the most overlooked and yet easy modifications to your ride. The hand grips! Frequently we hear "My hands are killing me!" , or "my bike is too buzzy". You might be surprised at how the overall character of your ride can be changed with new grips.  Replacing the hand grips is easy, CHEAP, and can improve the comfort of you ride by leaps and bounds; especially on a long ride.

  Most bikes come from the factory with average, black grips. They do the job adequately, but if yours have several hundred miles on them, or if you want to personalize your ride, you should check out the many options available. You can choose grips that can begin a theme, or just take your bike from hoo-hum to WOW for just a few bucks.
                                                                           

                                                                                    

                                   Retro metal flake, biker bling, or color matched to your paint job. 

                                   There are also many that we think are cool but defy categorization.

                                                                                       

   Comfort and style don't always go hand-in-hand. Some times you need to choose which is a priority. Some grips aren't the most amazing things to look at, but are incredibly comfortable. Sore Hands? Try a set of foam grips for $6.95!
                                                                       

We make sure to keep the sportbikes covered as well with lots of color choices being available.
                                                                               

Dirtbikes, dualsports, and ATV grips are kept on the shelf as well
                                                                             

    The cruiser crowd may have more to choose from than anyone.
                                                                              

     We have made a commitment this year to keeping plenty of these in stock at the shop. Some are fun, some squishy, some quite bright, but ALL are functional.


If you liked this blog, feel free to follow us here, on Facebook, Youtube, or on our Instagram. Or you can always stop by the shop to visit.

Third annual Shrinky Dink open house

    We decided to throw another little shindig in the middle of the Third Shrinky Dink Challenge. We had food, music, balloons and a bunch of folks stopped by.
     The commemorative annual shrinky dinks were out for all who attended. They have been seen on Christmas trees as ornaments, as talismans from evil, and even a few uses we haven't quite figured out yet.

   There was a long buffet with drinks and all sorts of food and goodies including cupcakes, and TWO cakes to choose from. (thanks Heather, Trish and Courtney)    

   

         We had a good turnout and this year we were happy to see a few more young customers stop in.     

      Our love of bikes came in our single digit years, and has stuck with us all these years. If you start them young, they will ride forever. The young man below spent time exercising his imagination on his scooter. He rode out to the rescue and carried everyone in the shop to safety. He is quite wise for his age as he started with the ladies first.             

     It always makes us smile to see bikes in the parking lot. Especially when there is snow on the ground. The roads were clear and dry and a few riders took advantage of the sunny day to ride over.

We even had a visit by the VERY RARE Princess Pony. A strange mythical beastie who, it has been said, woos riders with its charms.

     The fire was on, the coffee and hot chocolate were plentiful. The deserts that show up always amaze. A few of our regulars were missed due to snow engagements and broken car parts; but that just left more balloons for the rest of us.                              

      We are looking forward to Spring with plans for another two-digit ride, and a few events for new bikes being introduced from Genuine this year. As always, there will be shenanigans, squeezed in between the work hours. Remember, this is supposed to be fun! Be sure to keep your eyes on the Facebook page and our events page as well for upcoming events.

    

A little tire comparison on the Lance Cabo

     The last time we took the Lance Cabo offroad a bit, it was running a 50/50 dual purpose tire. The trails in that test were similar to what we selected today.

                                                            

 The 50/50 tire worked well, but since our daughter uses the Cabo 150 as a daily transport for school when the time came for a new tire we opted for a more street designated tire. The Shinko sr723 has been a good choice for the street so far; let's see how it does in the dirt.
                                                                        
                                                                         

     The tread on the new tire doesn't look that much less aggressive than the one it replaced, but let us assure you it is. As we took it off road there was a lot of slipping and sliding trying to climb a hill in the leaves. The leaves on the ground were wet and that made it a bit more difficult. We attempted this hill a couple of times, but the surface was too loose and slippery.                                                                                   

 

Final determination; this long steep hill was a "no go" with the new tires, so we decided to try a nice dry stream crossing.

We are happy to say, as long as the ground was dry the street tires held their own and after this pic the Cabo pulled right out of here, and we were on our way. Trying to find the next good spot for another pic we came across a scenic pond.

 
    With enough mud on the tires for one day, we made our way back to the hard-top road and headed home. The Cabo still did everything we expected of it, it was just the tires that weren't up to the task in some places. The bottom line? If you plan on exploring a few fishing trails and back roads. It will be best to stick to the 50/50 dirt and street tires. They don't last quite as long, but the trade off is good traction in the rough stuff. If dirt is not on the menu the 723 Shinko did a fine job. Either way, we know our tires here and can help you choose the right ones. We just love the testing part, too!

Shrinky Dink III

Welcome to the 3rd annual Shrinky Dink Ride. This is just a simple bit of fun to keep the hardy/ foolhardy riders enthused through the cold months of the year, and provide some fun to the others who want to watch the rest of us freeze.
      Challenge:  ride out in the coldest weather you can stand. Then ride as far as you like, and provide proof that you did.   Repeat.   Often.

                                                                     

The rules are pretty simple and loosely followed at best.

1) BE SAFE! You all know your limits, but don't risk life and limb, too much, for a good result. This is supposed to be FUN.

2.) The challenge will start on December 25th and run through March 21st.

3.) The ride will have two classes. Motorcycles and Scooters; if you have one of those wierd in between bikes we will make it up as we go. DON'T WORRY! We have this covered; just ride SOMETHING!

4.) This pretty simple, the coldest temperature wins, sort of. TRY to take a pic in front of a temperature sign somewhere. We realize this isn't always possible, so you CAN use your phone in a pinch. NO CHEATING! We are putting you on your honour to be fair.

5.) The ride has to be 5 miles or longer to count (total length). The longer the ride the more points it gets. We have a formula worked out for this. It's math stuff, don't worry we have that under control. So, if you do 11 miles in -2 and some nut does 80 miles in 3 degrees. He/she MIGHT just beat you. There are extra points for stupidity (just remember rule#1)

6.) This contest is open to residents of the U.S. only.

7.)If you think it is too warm where you live? Do it anyway, remember points are awarded for originality, stupidity, and bravery. This is supposed to be FUN. The first year the Shrinky Dink was won by a southern rider who got lucky on a cold snap in the south.

     That's it for the rules we think. Ride. email your pics to us atcarlislecycleandscooter@gmail.com. We will post a few for fun, but will save the results till the end. There will be a chat about the rides here on our Facebook page during the event. Also feel free to post comments here.

Yes, there will be prizes. They may or may not be amazing. Ride now. ride often.

   There will be an open house at Carlisle Cycle and Scooter on Saturday January 30th.  It is part of our winter riding contest There will be some snacks and lots of warm beverages to keep you toasty. IF the weather is decent some folks will ride in. If you want to arrive on 4 wheels that is just fine,too. Stop by and enjoy the people riding in. There will be lots of shenanigans, and some short rides around the block as well. The sidecar rig will be out and running no matter what the weather (we have snow tires). The shop will be staying open late; stop by, laugh, ask questions, talk bikes and scooters. There will be movies later in the evening on the projector if you would like to stay.

    The weather hasn't cooperated yet, but it is coming. Remember, BE SAFE out there, and have fun.Remember, you don't have to win for this to be fun. It is all about the ride!

    A little tip: If its over 32 degrees it doesn't count. But you can ride anyway. Be sure to post ALL of your rides below 32. They all add up.

Riding the roads that are no longer there

      We have a love for abandoned roads. They all went somewhere important at one time. Sometimes they lead you to great places. The end of the macadam is often a great place to start.

Often you need a good dual-sport to follow the toughest, but sometimes a good reliable scooter will do the trick. You can see the "new" highway in the background.    

                                                                                    
                                         The trees in the water are at the edge of the old highway.

                                                                                   
         At this point we have reached the end of the road. We will be back with dual-sports with larger tires and some higher clearance. We could still see the edges of the road under the water. It looks like it doesn't get more than about 2 feet deep; so we will be back to finish this one.                

Holiday Specials

    Once again it is time for our annual holiday specials for the month of December on Facebook. Be sure to keep on eye on them as we will add a new one everyday till December 24th. They are good all month and are often the best deals we have all year long.

                     

So far we have:

#10 $500 off Stellauto and Sym HD200 in stock

#9 Gogo armoured hoodies $99

#8 $2 off any pair of grips

#7 $30 off of Mobile electric gear in stock

#6 $200 off new blue and white bikes in stock

#5 Lightning power packs $99

#4 10" tires and tubes full set, just $100

#3 Sunglasses BOGO 50% off

#2 Red scooters in stock $200 off

#1 $200 off ANY Genuine till Dec. 25

Scooter Jousting

    Sometimes an innocent idea turns into a thing. We had salvaged two of the cheap throwaway scoots from the dumpster. They didn't run, and really weren't worth fixing, but what to do with them? So, the idea of having a few friends over to joust was born. We spent a few bucks and way too much time to make these scooters run; so we had to do it. Then...the idea grew.

     It became an idea for an event. A Facebook page was created and friends were invited. There was some brief talk about safety and someone even mentioned rules. We set the date; were blessed with some good weather, and had a full house.

     A row of leftover scooter packing crates were placed in the middle of the grass lot to form a list. The jousting lances were built from PVC and pool noodles for "safety". A few helmets and face masks were available if you felt the need, and we were off. Oh yes, we were "off" all right.

                                                       A well prepared Knight on his mount.

    A water bottle was taped to the helmets of the competitors as they lined up. The object was to knock the taped bottle off of your opponent's head. This system need to be improved for next year, but this was our first run.
                                                                           

 

                                         The choices of armour were varied in looks and effectiveness   

                                                                           
                                      Individual combat also broke out on the sidelines, all in good fun.                         

                                          At times the techniques MAY have been questionable.                                 

                                                                        
                                       We were thrilled that everyone seemed to have a good time        

    This event was set-up to be fun for everyone, but the extreme fun did take its toll on the machines. This was the same trusty steed as above at the end of the event.

    The event began with  the use of the lists and the tilt did maintain proper jousting technique for a time.

                                                                           

                As you would expect, for our group at the shop; it rapidly devolved into shenanigans.

                                                                               

   We ended the evening with a nice fire and food shared with good friends. Upon asking if we should do this event again, we were greeted with a resounding "YES", so this may just become an annual event.

 For a viewpoint from another participant, we also appeared in a nice article on Scooterfile.

A special THANK YOU to Heather Holmes Snyder, Tim Snyder and Denny Magdule for the pictures and video!