Thanks all for the warm welcome. My online time is now occupied by all things Tiger 800 and seeing what the popular mods are, along with maintenance and common issues. Can't wait to get the bike in my garage.
Welcome fljab from another newbie on here ..... I’m not surprised you put so many miles on the FJR....I had one for a work bike, it was great riding and getting paid for it... I’m on the right at the head of a military funeral
The FJR was my first non HD in many yrs, and it transformed both how I ride and how I think about riding. Truly a phenomenal bike for many things you want to do on the road. I had no plans to replace the '09 but found such a great deal on the '18 that I jumped on it. With the Tiger, my stable of bikes will be updated for a long time. Funeral escort must carry with it big responsibility to the families and how what you do is carried out. I am retired USN so know the impact of what you do. Thank you for being there.
Welcome to a terrific forum and motorcycle community, @fljab! Congrats on that new Triumph Tiger! A very nice stable full of bikes you have. And we forum members always appreciate photos. I particularly like the picture of you and your Street Glide in front of the Black Hills National Forest sign. Although I grew up in Minnesota, I'd never been to the Black Hills until this past August when a small group of us rode from Arizona to Sturgis for the first time. What a beautiful place! Seems we have a few things in common in addition to being Americans. I also have a Street Glide along with my Triumph Speed Triple. And I lived in San Diego from 1983--1991 (in San Diego just east of downtown for some years then north San Diego County for several years). I lived in Florida for one year back in 2001-2002--Gainesville--and really enjoyed my time in that state. I still have some friends there and we're thinking about making a trip there to see them. You also mentioned that you're "looking forward to trips out west, doing some back roads, exploring ghost towns. I love living in the west and there are definitely lots of great back roads and ghost towns near Tucson where I now live. Let me know if you ever get out this way! My hubby and I can show you some terrific riding roads in our 'hood. Again, welcome to the forum!
Welcome aboard! I just picked up a used Tiger 800 SC ABS. Bike was spotless. Gotta either lengthen my legs or fit a lower seat to make it perfect.
Sandi, thank you. It sounds like we probably crossed paths somewhere in the past. I went to San Diego after I got out of the Navy the first time. My brother owned a shop out in Santee but I always lived in East San Diego. After a bit in his shop, I started working shipyards down by the Navy Base - the primary one being NAASCO. Lots of stories there, but I came to Florida for a job @ Kennedy Space Center and never left. I also concurrently finished my USN/R career in the reserves mostly out of Orlando. Regarding Sturgis; I live near Daytona so the rally isn't that big a deal to me. I have a good friend that has gone to the rally every yr for (?), butt something like 15 yrs in a row. He knows those roads and area like the proverbial back of his hand, so I've been out there with him several times. What we do is get there the weekend before the rally starts. Everything is picking up, vendors are coming in, but it's not crazy like the week of. We leave for home (or other non Sturgis destination) the first weekend of rally and get out of the crowds. It's a great time doing it like that and the only way I'll consider doing it in the future. One thing to note, like me, he's a converted HD rider. He also has a VStrom 650 and one yr took that (I didn't go that yr). He said it was great as he could do all the dirt road shortcuts. Now that I'll have the Tiger, will look at doing that next time. Thanks for the offer of good roads guide; I hope to take you and hubby up on that. This yr has proved a bust for any LD riding, but plan to jump back in it next yr if the world is still here and the revolution isn't.
Thank you. Wifey & I have been to UK a number of times, and in fact were supposed to be there as of last week at this writing. I see you're from Wales. I have a paternal Grandmother (2 or 3x) from Wales and next trip hope to track down her home town. Who knows, we might be related! Probably a better gig for me than you lol. Thanks for the warm welcome, this forum is great!
We are not sure just yet, still trying to research. She left from Holyhead in 1868 for Cobh in Ireland, then on to New York. I see that Holyhead only goes to Dublin today, but unsure what it was like back then. Her maiden name was Jones which is very common. She was born in 1851 and her Dad's name was Henry. It gets confusing to say the least, but if we could find her hometown, we'd go there and dig around a bit, or at least see the town for ourselves. The records we've seen so far have all been at the ports. If we can figure out how to access US Immigration records, that may list her hometown but so far haven't cracked it. For that matter, I wonder if records from either Cobh or Holyhead would have that info and is accessible?
Wow, thank you. Let me confer with my advisor (aka wifey) and will let you know. Man, I'm feeling a family reunion with Triumphs involved!
Hi @fljab. Yes, I suspect we did cross paths somewhere in the past. Especially near the navy base. Did you ever happen to see the horse & carriages that went out of Seaport Village? I drove one of those for six years--three years full time as my only job and then part-time for three years when I became a teacher and taught at San Dieguito High School in Encinitas. I lived in Golden Hill for the bulk of the time I was in San Diego County and the last couple of years was in Encinitas. From the Google map I pulled up, it looks like you are right on the coast. I certainly do miss the ocean having lived near it for about ten years. My hubby and I scuba dive but the vast majority of our time is spent in the desert--which I love--however, the closest ocean is either the Pacific six hours away or the Sea of Cortez a minimum of three hours away depending on where you go in Mexico. It's cool that your friend knows those Sturgis-area roads so well and also that he can take unpaved back roads, too. My husband and our buddy, Larry, really enjoyed our time at Sturgis last year. We found a great little hotel for a great little price (amazing!) in Lead and somehow managed to stay out of the fray for the most part. Deadwood was a favorite for us as was Spearfish Canyon. I don't know that we feel the need to go back again but it was good to have gone once in our lifetimes. We may be "one and done". There are some rallies in our neck of the woods that we love and do annually (like Las Vegas Bike Fest and Cave Creek Bike Week/AZ Bike Week) but this year certainly has been a bust. Have fun with that new Tiger!!
Update: We have the US Immigration notes, but it doesn't say a lot. I was wrong about leaving from Holyhead; she left from Liverpool on the ship John Bright and arrived in the US 6 June 1866. It does say her place of origin was from Wales. The John Bright most likely stopped in Cobh, but this document doesn't list it. Let me see if we can find something on the ship. More later...
Sandi, Mims is near the coast, but there is an estuary in between us and the ocean. The closest beaches are either New Smyrna Beach, or to go on the federal Playalinda which is accessible via Titusville or going up to NSB and going down that way. Wife & I have been talking about selling out here and moving to beachside Daytona Beach. Still good values there and believe we could pay for it with the equity in our house. Great idea, but I have so much "stuff" as in old trucks, cars, and tools, that I need to do a huge sell off to make it happen. And, with all the craziness that's going on in the world, US, and locally, our neighborhood is pretty calm. We all have 2 acres or more and know pretty much who is supposed to be back here, Anyway, yes, Sturgis rally is something that only needs to be done once. As said earlier, because I live near Daytona and have been going up there for yrs during rally and yr round, that part of it doesn't attract me to Sturgis. There really are some great roads in the area, and I can't wait to take the Tiger there and explore areas that were difficult for me on the Street Glide and FJR. It's been a while since I was through Tucson, but if I get that way again, will give you a message and maybe you and hubby can meet for a cup of coffee or something.
Henry was not on that trip. We think he went over first, earned some money, then sent for the rest, altho not sure mother's name, but she's not on there either. On board was Sarah age 15, Eleanor age 23, Margaret age 19, and Joseph age 14 and occupation listed as printer.