CSC Blog

I’ve  always loved Moto Guzzi motorcycles, so when Gerry showed me this one earlier today I had to grab a few photos for the blog…

One of these days.  Nah, not really.   That bike is too big for me, but it sure is pretty.

Take a look at this, folks…

I remember those folks interviewing me. It was a great show and we had a lot of fun.

Baja…it’s only a few weeks away!

We love reading about other people’s adventure rides and we especially love it when small bikes are involved.  This one popped up a few days ago, and it’s about a ride in Africa on a 125cc motorcycle.  It’s a cool story, and you can read it here.

It just goes to show you that you don’t have to have a big bike to have fun, which is something real world adventure riders know.   Take a look at this story; we think it’s one you will enjoy.

This is the last of the 2017 RX3s, folks, and I just can’t believe what Steve is doing here.   It’s a very low mileage demo bike in blue (the fastest color, according to Orlando C from Texas), it’s got the big front brake kit (that’s a $300 option), and Steve is selling it for just $2995 with a full warranty.  Check out this gorgeous RX3!

Give us a call at 909 445 0900, ask for Steve or TK, and this beautiful bike can be yours.   Buy it and ride Baja with us!

I checked on getting our visas for the upcoming Baja trip online, and it looks like that’s not a good idea.  I checked with my good buddy Geoff at BajaBound.com Insurance, and he advised against it.  Getting the visas immediately after we cross the border at the Mexican Customs office in TJ is a better approach.   The visas are $28, and they take US dollars.  That’s what we’ll do.  You’ll need a current US passport to get your Mexican visa.

We’re going to wrap up our CSC postal match this month, folks, and I’d sure like to encourage you to enter.  First place gets you CSC T-shirt in your size and a signed copy of Riding China (written by yours truly).  It’s one of my favorite books and that adventure was one of my all-time favorite rides, but then, all of them were.  But I digress…back to the match.

So here’s the deal…you can shoot any military-style rifle from any position (standing, sitting, prone, or from the bench) at the standard SR1 target at a distance of 50 yards.  We’ve kept the rules simple and you’re on the honor system.  It’s 20 shots in 20 minutes or less.  All we ask is that you get a photo of your rifle and your target to us not later than 31 January 2018.  We’ve got three entries so far, and we’d like to bump that number up.  You don’t have to ride a CSC motorcycle…all you need to do is be a CSC blog reader and a shooter!

Our first entry was my good buddy Rob, who rode with us on many rides.  In fact, it was right after the Destinations Ride that Rob and I went to the West End Gun Club range and Rob fired a 178-3X score with his 9mm M1 Carbine.  Right now, Rob is the man to beat…he’s holding the first place position so far.

My good buddy Bob sent in this nice note with a photo of his rifle and his target…

Hi Joe,

Thanks for sending the SR-1 target out! I picked up a few extra targets from Alco since my buddies joined me at the range.

My rifle of choice for this competition is a Finnish M39, using 147gr Tula ammo. This “new to me” rifle is a 1941 Sako manufactured rifle (using a 1897 dated receiver) on a wartime stock. It is accurate, but my aging eyes didn’t do to well at that distance. But… the results are what they are (as presented below.)

Now my buddy’s M1 Garand with its rear aperture sight was fantastically clear and very accurate. (He may chose to submit his results to you… you may remember him as he was with me when I first came out to Azusa to see the RX3).

Thanks for setting up this virtual competition!

Bob

That’s nice shooting, Bob.  I personally favor the Mosins in the military surplus rifle category.  I think they have great accuracy and at their current prices, they are one hell of a value.

We also received an entry from our good buddy Russ, shooting an M1 Garand…

Good evening Joe,

I am sending you my results from shooting an HRA M1 Garand. The rifle came from CMP and has a serial number of 4.7 million, meaning it was produced in ’54.

My results leave much to be desired, but I am new to rifle shooting and this was my first time shooting my new-to-me M1. The score appears to be 161.

Thanks for setting this this up.

Russ

Russ, thank you for sending your entry in.   The M1 is a great rifle…it’s one of my favorites. That’s great shooting!

So there you have it, folks…three entries so far and we’re expecting more.   TK and Willie are shooting with us on the 28th, and we’d like to encourage more of you to do the same in your area and send your photos and targets to us (email them to info@cscmotorcycles.com). We look forward to receiving your entries!

Wow.   50,000 km!   I would love to ride Turkey some day!  I’ve been to Turkey many times and it is a beautiful country.

We see some very interesting paint artistry on the bikes that come through CSC.   Take a look at this custom Harley-Davidson…

You have to really look closely at the paintwork to see the forms and the art.  It’s fascinating.   By the way, this is another bike for sale here at CSC.  Interesting stuff.

We do get exotic bikes on the CSC showroom floor, folks.   Check this one out…it’s an Aprilia V4R APRC…a four-cylinder, fire-breathing, magnificent, and beautiful roadburner. It is perhaps the ultimate naked sport bike…

The Aprilia makes a little bit more power at the rear wheel than my RX3 (Cycle World dyno tested it at 154 hp) and it has a little more top end (the wizards at Cycle World clocked 166 mph), but the suspension travel is about the same as my RX3 at just over 5 inches and it actually is quite a bit heavier.  I expect that keyboard commandos all over the Internet will be setting their hair on fire over that.

This particular Aprilia is a 2013 model with (get this) less than a thousand miles on the clock, and yes, it’s available.  I’m tempted, but my 250cc RX3 is fast enough for me!  If you want something with a bit more power, though, this could be just your ticket. Give us a call at 909 445 0900 if you want to make this thoroughbred yours.

Ever wonder what’s on the other side of the San Gabriel Mountains?   Well, it’s the Mojave Desert, and the roads running along the northern edge of the San Gabriels (between the desert and the mountains) are great.  They’re just what the doctor ordered for a great motorcycle ride, and this ride is one of my favorites.

I took a scouting run this weekend just to make sure everything was as I remembered it.  I’ve done this ride before, but it has been a couple of years and I wanted to see if it was feasible for our next Dual Sports and Donuts ride.  Our next CSC ride will be on 3 February (weather permitting).  It’s a 160-mile trek, with stops in Wrightwood for breakfast and the Devil’s Punchbowl County Park in Juniper Hills.

Here’s hint of what we’ll get to see on our next ride…

We’ll pass through Valyermo, a nice spot to stop for a photo…

Ever wonder what the San Andreas Fault actually looks like?  Well, here it is, and we’ll get to ride right over it…

And of course, there’s the Devil’s Punchbowl County Park. It’s a very cool rock formation with a great hiking trail (although we won’t take the time to hike it on our ride).   The Devil’s Punchbowl is a great spot to grab a few photos…

The Devil’s Punchbowl County Park has a few interesting critters you can photograph, too, like my good buddy Squinty, and a few others…

If you would like to ride with us on the 3rd of February, you can sign up on our Meetup.com page.   It’s going to be a great ride!