I found some rain gloves today that I think will end up working out for me.  Shopping around on all the motorcycle sites for a solution I really couldn’t come up with much and what there was cost more than either my rain jacket or pants did.  Instead I headed over to Harbor Freight and snagged a pair of PVC gloves dipped in sand so they have some grip to them.  It is a pretty tight fit over my regular riding gloves but they do fit.  And only cost a few bucks.

I also had to already make use of the kickstand pad today.  Went out to dinner with the family and as we’re out on the patio area I happen to glance over at the rex and the stand was sinking into the asphalt of the parking lot.  I hurried out there and put the pad under to stabilize the bike as it had already gone about 3/4 of an inch into the asphalt.

The last of some new gear came in today and some that I’ve had for a while was finally put on the bike.

I’ve had these shock spools sitting around for a few months and never got around to putting them on but finally took a couple minutes and installed them.  The stock acorn nuts for the upper shock mount had lost their luster and the washers were rusting.  I replaced them with some spools that could also be used as a bungee/netting fasten point.  I had to re-use the stock washers because I didn’t have any around of the right size so I’ll have to go get some nice new stainless ones next time I hit the hardware store.

Next up was some rain gear that I’ve been putting off for way too long.  Until I got caught in two torrential downpours a couple days apart a couple weeks ago.  So I bit the bullet and picked up some Frogg Toggs Road Toad jacket & pants.  They roll up and compress nicely to toss into a small carry bag and stow under the seat.  I now just need to find a decent pair of over gloves that aren’t crazy expensive or lobster claw design.

I also grabbed a Kyptonite 5-S2 disc lock to put on the rotor for when I’m out & about and have to be away from the bike for any extended period of time.  Snagged a little stand pad at the same time for any occasion that I have to park where it’s soft and need more surface area for the kickstand to rest on.

And finally, some replacement overpants came in along with a new pair of boots.  My old overpants were quite literally falling off of me when I tried to put them on due to all the recent weight loss, these are nice and snug.  Next up to replace is the jacket that’s gotten loose for the same reason, just waiting for more stock to come in.  The new boots are the Xelement Executioners.  I like the styling and look of them over the jump boots I use for everyday wear, plus no laces to deal with.

I finally got around to installing the new radiator today.  It’s a bit of a different look being plain aluminum instead of painted black.

Took it out for a ride after getting the coolant system bled as the sun was out and an overall nice day.  That didn’t last long though as one of those awesome sudden southern thunderstorms decided to drop the bottom out of the sky in a torrential thunderstorm.  So by the time I made it back home, eeeeeeverything was completely soaked through.  My gloves and jacket sleeves were so full of water that it actually just poured out of them when I moved my arms taking everything off.  No telling how long it’s going to take to get all this dried out again.  On the upside, I found out that my SGS5 really is water resistant.