Black flagged

Well, today started out nicely. It was in the mid-40s and the motorcycle is functioning again, so I figured I'd have a last blast before Winter truly stopped me from riding the bike. The boy begged me to take him to school on the bike and I was running late anyway, so I tossed him on the back and off we went!

The bike was running nicely. Smooth and without any problems. Dropped him off at school and took off through Spanish Fork to hit the freeway. On the freeway, I quickly accelerated to 70 and moved to the slow lane. It seems 70 is slow for the morning commute, but I'm not comfortable going too much faster than that. So here I am cruising at 70 in the slow lane wishing I had heavier duty gauntlets to keep my fingers warm when BANG there was a sudden clatter from below me and I ceased to have any power. I immediately grabbed the clutch and began slowing in the breakdown lane.

Well, that lane is well and truly named. I was broken down! After a perfunctory examination found no interior parts on the exterior, I moved the kickstart lever to see if I can fire the beast back up. Uh-oh, that moved way too easily. And with a clatter. We have had a dramatic disconnect of various internal engine parts that have resulted in my vehicle no longer functioning...this Winter will be the rebuild, it appears.