I was surprised how quickly the tread on the rear tire went away.  I was enjoying the curves - but I was not riding at the same pace I would have gone if I was riding solo (or chasing Oldfeller or MM).  I even pulled over a couple of times to let a few hotshots in cars pass me (they were obviously trying to show they could out corner a couple of senior citizens riding double!).  Riding a bike double does put the rider directly over the rear wheel, and that may result in the rear tire wearing much faster.

The roads around Suches were fun - but somewhat different than the stuff I go looking for when we are up in TN/NC.  Wolf Pen Gap has very tight corners on the east end - two of them are 180 degree turns that require dropping down to 1st gear and there is a pretty big elevation change going on at the same time.......the eastern section requires a lot of gear and speed changes.  The western end is more open and the curves are less tight, and there is more room between corners.  The other roads are a bit more open and great for riding double........there are plenty of curves to be found - but they are not as tight as the Dragon, 28 going into Georgia, or 281 between Tuskasegee and Lake Toxaway.  The traffic was very light on most of the roads, and it did seem that when I got behind a truck - it wasn't too long before there was a truck lane that allowed a pass (one semi pulled over and let a group of cars go by before he came to a big hill).  

I do believe there should be a group ride in the area for 2018!

If another trip were to Suches were to occur this year - it would have to be within a week or two of your Lynchburg event.  Near the end of September the temperatures at night begin to drop out of the 50's and into the 40's......too cold for me to be sleeping in a tent!

Yesterday I replaced the tires that we wore out at Suches.  The bike is a 2010 and I assumed the OEM tires were also - but I was wrong!  The rear tire code was 3409, which makes it 8 years old - the front tire code was 3108 which makes it 9 years old!  It is a bit incredible to me that the factory mounts a 2 year old tire when they build a new motorcycle!

The front tire removal and mounting was pretty normal.  The rear took a long time as the rear tire is hard to get off the bike as the rear fender and license plate mount drops really low and that makes it impossible to roll the tire out the back of the bike - it would be impossible if I didn't have a lift with a removal panel that allows the rear tire to drop through the hole in the floor of the lift.  The worn out Bridgestone was incredibly stiff - the first bead came off fine but getting the second one off was really difficult as the tire would not bend enough to allow me to get the tire spoons in place.

The new Michelin PR4 tires sure do ride a lot nicer than the old tires!

Yep, the rear tire on the Cafe' Savage or the Ninja 250 come out really easily.  The Honda makes it more difficult as the rear tire is tucked up inside the saddlebags and rear fender.  I had to loosen the exhaust to give room for the rear brake caliper to move outward and give room for the wheel to drop down.  It will go easier next time as I will know what to do - if I ride this thing as much as I plan to in the future....it is likely I will need a new back tire every 1-2 years!  The Honda is a Sport-Touring bike - but if I want to get 15,000 miles out of a tire - I am going to have to change my riding style and do a bit less "sport" and a bit more "touring" when I come to a corner!

Depending on the weather - I might just pack up the Honda with my gear and ride it down instead of hauling a bike down on my trailer.