| Guzzis, Morro Bay, and a broken throttle cable |
 Over Halloween weekend, several NORCAL Guzzitisti and rode south to beautiful Morro Bay, CA for two days of kicking back and enjoying time away from the daily routine. We had planned this several weeks in advance and were all watching the weather with much anticipation. California coastal weather is subject to changing rapidly, but this particular weekend the rain gods smiled upon us! Another advantage of going there in the fall is it's off season, so the little beach towns are virtually empty with exception of the locals.  This was my first time to visit Morro Bay, located just south of San Simeon and the famous Hearst Castle off the famous California Highway 1. From the East Bay area and for three of us, it was an uneventful ride down to Carmel Valley, where we gassed up and met our two colleagues, Barry and Carey, on their matching red, 1981 V-50 Monza’s. These are really cool little 500cc Moto Guzzis and very capable little bikes. The next stop was lunch at The River Inn in Big Sur. This is one of several very quaint and scenic restaurants along the redwoods and the river on Highway 156 West, on the way to Highway 1. A short distance from Big Sur, Highway 156 turns into Highway 1 and the real ride begins. California Highway 1 or PCH, (Pacific Coast Highway 1) has to be without a doubt one of the top ten motorcycle destinations in the USA. On a clear, cool day it is true awe inspiring. Heading south, with the vast blue ocean on your right and rugged mountains and cliffs nearby makes for one sweet ride. Again, because it was in off season the traffic was light.  We all arrived safely in Morro Bay a few hours later, secured the bikes, checked into the hotel and just sat on the patio and enjoyed the magnificent view of the bay. Later that night, we dined at DORN’S Seafood and sat outside on the patio, marveling at the sunset and bay views. The food and service was excellent. The next day, we took our time getting up and several of us walked up the street to the local espresso bar for a shot of caffeine and a morning crumpet. We took our time, enjoying the sights and sounds of sleepy, off-season Morro Bay. About 10:00am, we decided to suit up and RIDE! Team-leader BSA-Barry was going to take us for about a 125 mile ride through the back roads and twisties of the central coast wine country. Barry had experience in the areas as the Northern BSA Owners Club had previously scheduled several vintage rides in the vicinity. We were in about 35 miles, deep in the hills going past many local wineries and vineyards and enjoying the morning ride. Trailing Barry and Carey on their light and nimble V50-Monzas, they seemed the perfect bikes for these roads. Then, while grabbing for a “just little more throttle” I heard a “PING” and my Le Mans dropped 50% in power. I looked down to see one of two throttle cables snapped clean. I could do nothing but signal to pull off the road and feather the bike to a stop. Toni and Mike were right behind me and Barry and Carey turned around after a few minutes. We quickly assessed the situation and our options and decided to remove the broken cable along the remaining good cable and ride into Paso Robles, the nearest town, to see if we could get one of the local motorcycle shops to make a cable for us. Toni was nice enough to let me borrow his V11 Ballabio and he and Carey stayed with my Le Mans. During this time, a lady that was the owner of one of the vineyard just one mile down the road stopped and offered to put my bike there if we could not get it fixed. With the hospitality option in my pocket Barry, Mike and I went to fix some cables. The first shop laughed at us, and the owner said “Attach the cable to a stick and pull it.” Not the sort of advice I expected but the reality was he just didn't want to deal with it. The second shop, Miller HONDA in Paso Robles was more helpful. The mechanic there offered to solder / make a new cable for us.  During this time, we sorted through many Honda OEM cables looking for a match, but decided to just modify the existing  cables. We eating at QUIZNOS, another minor catastrophe occurred! I hung my ballistic-fabric, Cordura riding jacket on the right handlebar of Toni’s V11 – and guess what?!? I failed to see that it was also touching the right header pipe and over lunch, it attached itself to the very hot header and melted a six inch-square into the liner of my jacket. The worst part about it was that it left a trail of black melted “goo” on Toni’s right header exhaust! I was thoroughly depressed now, mainly because this happened to Toni’s pretty Ballabio!!Back at the shop we talked with the mechanic, and with no Honda OEM cable match we decided to try and modify the broken cable by removing a metal spacer and shortening the cable by ½”. If this worked, and the newly soldered ferrell end held, we would duplicate this with the remaining cable balancing the length of both cables. We even went to Radio Shack to get the right solder flux, because of concerns of the solder not slowing and holding the new ferrell. Long story short, it worked, and the ferrell held secure. Repeating the process to the other cable, we deemed both tight and workable before grinding the newly attached ferrell to match the old one. When we returned to the bike, the cable length seemed fine but the two new ferrell ends were still too big to fit into the holes of the throttle body! Another challenge, so out came two trusty folding UPT or Utility Pocket Tools. Complete with a file, and we took turns and filed those brass ferrell ends for about 30 minutes until they fit. Roadside craftsmanship at its finest! Upon lubing the cables using the dipstick from my bike, assembling the throttle assembly, hooking the cables up to the twin, Del’Orto pumper carbs we tossed the tank back on and the Le Mans fired right up. I gingerly feathered it back to the hotel and we all agreed that things could have been much worse.  After showering and cleaning up, we waited for another Guzzitisti from Fresno, Jamileh, who rode her Rossa Corsa down to join us for dinner and stay the night. She arrived about 6:15pm and after she secured her bike we all walked down to restaurant row, found another nice spot and just tore it up – my treat. We sampled the local seafood and Central Coast wines, which were excellent. Life was good and we all vowed to make this ride an annual event. Everyone turned in early and the next morning we were up and off to the local espresso café. I was on the road by 8:15am, taking PCH north as the weather and light traffic were just too good to pass up. After breakfast, we jammed down 156 west and then on the 101 super-slab for home. In total, I rode a total of 530 miles and averaged 41.8 MPG.. Not too shabby for a 26-year old Le Mans 850! The weather was outstanding and the company of good friends, all enthusiastic riders and passionate Guzzitisti, made for a fabulous weekend. The broken throttle cable issue was just part of the memory and the adventure. So until next time, RIDE SAFE and never be afraid to ride your vintage bike ANYWHERE! JJ Cerilli |
