So my buddy and I took a quick day trip out to the Sierras yesterday. We were itching to get out and decided to go check out this spot we've never been to. Its one of hundreds of little camp/OHV staging areas in the national forest just west of Yosemite. Its called Hull Creek so if you're ever in Ca and riding its definitely worth checking out.

We trailered out there and parked on a turn out. We spent the day exploring steep rocky climbs, some single track, old busted up and over grown asphalt roads and lots of fire roads. It was awesome, the weather was perfect and there were many good views. The Sierras are pretty sweet anywhere you end up and typical of the rugged mountains we ranged from 4,500 feet to 7,500 feet through out the day. Towards the end out our ride we decided to hang out by the Clavey River so we can relax, hydrate and eat a Cliff Bar. The entire time the Clavey was teasing me. California is in a REALLY bad drought and we barely had any snow fall this year. The River was low and surprisingly warm. Ok, it may have not been warm but it sure as hell wasn't freezing ***** from all the snow pack run off. Screw it, I geared up, tossed my friend the camera and said I'm crossing it. No biggie, lots of rocks, few feet deep, current didn't look to bad and it wasn't my first rodeo. I started to enter...it was a bit more rocky than I expected...now I'm committed...little slippery but no big deal...the bike started to bog but I kept feathering the clutch and keeping the revs up so it doesn't stall. I get about 7/8 of the way across and I can't keep it from stalling. I'm able to make it to what looks like good footing but I'm still in the river...now I'm trying to get the bike started and not fall over, the current wasn't crazy but it was sure as hell stronger than I realized. It keeps firing but won't run, I can't rev it with out choking it out and it won't idle. I thought it was flooded or maybe being finicky so I decided to wait and assess my situation. I knew water hadn't gotten in because I'm only standing in water just above my knees. Also, I've gone though many creek crossing and washed my bike enough times to know its most likely not electrical or anything else...well, to make a long story short my buddy was still on the shore and my Jeep was a few miles back that way so I decided to drag the 300 pound pig out of the water and try to get it going so we can head back. That was a battle in itself, I never thought how powerful water was but moving these 15-30 pound rocks out of the way was crazy, I'd move one and the water would tumble it a foot or two down stream. Once I got the bike back on dry ground after 15-20 minutes I tried to fire it. Nothing. Choke would barely work, cracking the throttle barely made a hiccup or anything. Figuring it was flooded I pulled the plug, luckily I carry a spare so I threw that in, it fired, I decided to let it run a few minutes to get hot and dry out. It would run fire up nicely and idle great each time I tried but it would never let me rev it above 2.5k...what the hell man...time to dig deeper so I started checking the basics, connections for water, the battery for loose terminals, spark plug wire for water and the emissions system for water intrusion. I know I have spark, air, fuel and compression because it runs but obviously its still not right...turns out draining the fuel bowl and running it then draining it again and running it fixed it. The carb never went under water or even got wet. The only thing I can think is some how one of those hoses that hang down sucked up some water. Its never been a problem before but maybe this time I was in the water for to long, thats all I can think of. I will way the clear hose on the right side of the carb had a lot of condensation in it after I rode the bike and it got hot. Runs like a scolded skunk now so thats good. Moral of the story is an allen key I keep on my bike to adjust my windscreen ironically fits the fuel bowl too, its staying on the bike for sure! My buddy was being lazy with the camera but the river is about 20 feet across, again, nothing crazy but I wish I had actually made it, I feel defeated. Well, it didn't happen with out pictures so here they are.

Trail head.


Bikes only.


I need better suspension already!


Nice view but if you come flying up the trial its a hard left or right...if you go straight its all that edge.


Lots of bear poo on this trail.


Almost...


Figuring it out.


Even found it on google earth!

 

Well, I finally got my suspension done. Had Dave at Smart Performance in Los Gatos CA completely rebuild and revalve my front and rear suspension. So far so good, I'm very happy with the results and I think its money well spent. I haven't had a chance to hit dirt, and probably won't for about a month, but thus far I've noticed the suspension is quicker and soaks up little imperfections like road reflectors and metal trench plates so well they're almost nonexistent. Under hard braking the bike doesn't dip as much and turn in on corner entry is clean and crisp. The bike feels more settled and over all the feed back is more precise and not as dull. I'm hoping the bike really shines when I hit the trails but only seat time will tell.

Until I get more seat time, here's photos!

All sexy and bagged up.


My bag'o olde junk!

I know a lot of people complain about the lack of lubrication on the KLX components but I didn't really see an issue, also, after 13k miles the seals and condition of all the bearings were pretty nice.

 

Have you done the T mod on the carb vent hoses yet?

 

Its done now!!!doh!

Haven't had a chance to test it out yet...and I thought the T mod was over rated when I read about it...apparently not...

 

You don't really need it... until you do!

 

^Just what I was thinking...
Works like a charm. Here in the NE, beavers often flood a trail overnight...the key is to know the trail and how deep the water is now, and where the trail was, compared to where the dam is...overnight and you can usually get through...a couple of nights and the T-mod is a savior...knee deep for 150' and no problems, just got to keep moving...

 

Don't you know about beavers? ITS TRUE!

 

a good funny

 

How much did it cost to have the suspension re worked?

 

I paid 647 for everything. I was hesitant at first but after adding up seals, bushings, Racetech Gold Valves, oil and my time I figured I'll let the professionals handle it. Plus this guy came with stellar reviews from a buddy of mine, so I was sold. You can Google his company and find stuff on forums but his web site is less then groovy and you can't even find the company on Google maps. But he's there, all word of mouth since 1998. Hope that helps!