We're headed to Utah

My Brother Gary and I head out on our annual May Trip. This year I'm riding the Honda Africa Twin from Oregon to Utah! But first we have to get there. Thanks to Revzilla for sponsoring this Series.

In the first episode we left Portland, OR and headed to the “start” of our official Utah Trip. Including a tasty stop at the Liberty Theatre Cafe in La Grande, OR, fixing up our picnic table in the overflow camping at Bruneau Dunes State Park, and searching for a dry campsite in Logan Canyon before settling for a lack luster KOA in Garden City. We then have a chill travel day down to the National 9 Inn in Wellington Utah where we close out this episode.

We made a few gear upgrades for this trip.

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I made myself a CUSTOM Hat Harness to keep my new Stetson Safe.

I also got the new Scorpion EXO AT960 Modular Helmet to test out.

Last but not least I also upgraded the Africa Twin with some SW-Motech Engine Guards and Saddlebag Racks that means I can now carry all my favorite Wolfman Luggage again! YAY!

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Riding Gear + Luggage List

• Scorpion EXO AT960 Helmet: https://imp.i104546.net/4Prne0

• NoNoise Earplugs: https://imp.i104546.net/153erx

• REV'IT! Sand 4 H2O Women's Jacket https://imp.i104546.net/Kedyvv

• REV'IT! Sand 4 H2O Women's Pants https://imp.i104546.net/mgyoJy

• Forma Terra Evo Dry-X Boots: https://imp.i104546.net/JrvX77

• REV'IT! Sand 4 Gloves https://imp.i104546.net/Eag17Q

• Klim Adventure GTX Women's Gloves https://imp.i104546.net/doJ5P3

• Wolfman Luggage Blackhawk Tank Bag: https://imp.i104546.net/QOvL76

• Wolfman Rocky Mountain Expedition Saddle Bags WP https://imp.i104546.net/R5OjKy

• Wolfman Luggage Zip-R Bag WP Large: https://imp.i104546.net/n1MVM6

• Wolfman Luggage Expedition Dry Duffel Bag WP Large: https://imp.i104546.net/LPyB70

• SW-Motech Engine Guards & Racks: https://imp.i104546.net/jrnkV5

Links in this post are affiliate links.

A Love Letter to an Old Bike

There is satisfaction and a kind of peace in manual labor. 

Something that can’t be found by looking at a screen. 

Taking something broken and making it work again. 

Peace is something that’s pretty illusive when we’re all screaming our opinions at each other trying to validate our self worth to people who don’t really care. 

But working on this bike, feeling the metal, being able to see the immediate reaction of mechanical parts is something that brings me peace. 

Not all the parts are original, and they don’t all fit perfectly, but they all work together. 

Yes, fuel injection tends to be more reliable. Less hassle. Less maintenance. But how many people can say they can diagnose and fix it when it breaks in the middle of nowhere. How long do you have to wait for special, proprietary parts to be shipped to you. How many special tools do you need just to get to the heart of the problem. 

Everything is give and take. There are good parts, there are bad parts. You can’t have one without the other. 

It needs more attention, more troubleshooting. But in return you know that you breathed life back into it. It responds in kind, takes you places you didn’t think possible. All the while being your constant companion. Letting you know you’re not alone. 

Like any companion though, they need love, they need your attention. 

To get it right you need to focus on it. There’s no room for worrying about other problems. It needs your whole attention. It’s a different kind of meditation. Solving Problems, and then solving them again when you find out you were wrong. 

Two Years REVIEW of the Scorpion EXO AT950

Alright you guys asked for this. One of the most repeated questions I get in the comments is what is the helmet? Or What do you think of the AT950?

So I’m here I am answering.

As always I want to make a note that I don’t do technical reviews, this is purely my opinion. Take it all with a grain of salt. 

Here are my thoughts on the Scorpion EXO AT950 after two years of use. 

So I don’t have a lot of other helmets to compare this to, this has been my first ADV style helmet, before this I had the Icon Airframe Pro which is a full pound lighter than the Scorpion, and before that I had a pretty crappy Biltwell Helmet I bought because it a full face under a hundred bucks. 

The AT950 is about 4 lbs which yes does make it a bit heavy, but it’s also in the under $300 range. Anywhere from $200 to $290 depending on the version you get. To be totally honest I got this helmet while I was working at a motorcycle dealership so I got a decent discount on it, which is also why I have the full Scorpion Yosemite suit, because I got them for way cheaper than I could have gotten a full suit of Klim or Rev’IT. I am not sponsored by Scorpion, they don’t know I’m making this review. Although I have been trying to get their attention for a while so if any of you want to send this to them that would be cool ;) 

Anyway! I’ve definitely become accustomed to the weight, it doesn’t become bothersome until after a solid 5-6 hours of riding. I tend to take my helmet off when I take breaks so it’s more like pacing myself so I never get to the point where my neck starts to hurt from the weight. 

I’m a fan of the modular design, it means if I do a quick stop at a gas station I can pop the top to more easily talk to attendants and I can scarf a snack before hitting the road again without the extra time to take off and put on my helmet. After two years of ownership the points where the modular clips into the metal pegs has become a little hard to engage, so it takes a little extra oomph to get it to close now, or you have to carefully hold the release button and release it when it's closed which takes a little extra minute to complete. Not a big deal over all but when you're tired after a long day it can get annoying.

It will be hard to go back to a non modular helmet. 

A note on the Safety rating, it is only rated DOT, which means like all other Modular Helmets, the weak point is the chin bar if you get into an accident and your face hits the pavement straight on. 

I had never had a Visor before, and that's also something it would be hard to give up, even pounding slab. Being able to dip your head a little and create shade for your eyeballs is ten times better than any sunglasses ever. Yes it can be a wind sail, but only when the wind is BAD, like worse than the Gorge bad. Even going down the freeway at 70 I really don’t notice the pull, I’m sure it’s there but I’ve been wearing it so long I don’t notice it anymore. However! If that is something that worries you the Visor is easily removable. 

Speaking of Sunglasses, something I didn’t think I would care that much about is the drop down sunshade. It has actually become really nice, especially after doing a fair bit of “desert” riding last year. However the Sunshade does have a tendency to gather dust when riding lots of dirt roads through the vents, and it can be a bit of a pain in the ass to clean. 

It does have cut outs for speakers, which keeps the speakers from creating pressure on your ears which means no pressure headaches. 

The Scorpion does fit my head a bit better because it’s more for rounder heads whereas Icon is pretty exclusively Oval so I used to get pressure headaches after a 3-4 hours or so. It was also nicer to upgrade to a helmet with a much wider Eye Port than the Airframe Pro, the Chin bar is pretty thick on the Icon. 

Last but not least I will say that it’s a bit loud, which I attribute to the visor catching wind. It means it can be a little hard to hear my speakers when going over 60, and noise fatigue is a real thing. Earplugs are pretty vital for trips longer than 5 hours. I can hear music ok on the highway, but I can’t listen to Audiobooks if I’m going over 55. I would rate the airflow somewhere in the middle, if it’s over 90 it can get pretty stifling in there, but  it also means it makes a good 3 season helmet because you don’t really have to tape over the vents to keep out cold air in the late Fall, Early Spring. 

Alright in Review:

PROS:

• -Modular

• -Drop Down Sun Shade

• -Headphone Cut Outs

• -Removable Visor

• -Wide Eye Port & Relatively small chin bar

• -Removable and Washable Cushions

• -Amount of features for the money

CONS:

• -Weight

• -Not Snell Rated

• -Sun Shade Gathers Dust from Vents

• -Loud