Kawasaki ZRX 1100 & KLR 650
Kawasaki ZRX 1100
The 1999 ZRX 1100 was found and bid on at E-Bay were I bought the bike in February of 2006 in Saint Augustine, Florida from a private individual. The bike was bought to explore the Florida Peninsula and finally drive it into Mexico to be converted into a Streetfighter style custom bike.
The bike was stolen from me in November 2006 in Gilchrist County, Florida while parked on the side of the road 11:00 am with a flat tire. The bike was recovered by the Police around Gainesville, Florida in March of 2007 while someone was riding it at 02:00 am without a license plate. The bike was then fixed with the help of a friend.
In June 2007, days before I was going to drive the bike to Mexico a lady in Lake City, Florida did not yield a stop sign and rammed me square in the side causing me to crash along with the bike. I got busted up a bit, as was the bike, making it impossible to drive it to Mexico two days later. Once again I left it with a good friend one more time, buying the parts needed for the repair on E-Bay and will got it fixed again ... and then drove it to Mexico.
In March of 2008 I finally drove the bike down to Playa del Carmen. After visiting bike week in Daytona Florida I went on to Texas and New Mexico to visit Carlsbad Caverns for my 45th birthday. Creel at Copper Canyon in Mexico was on the list for four days with all the twisty roads and awesome scenery. Following the Pacific coast through Puerto Vallarta where I spend four days with friends in Sayulita for Easter I continued down to Acapulco then crossing the country to Veracruz via Mexico City and Puebla to hug the Gulf coast through Ciudad del Carmen and Campeche, on to Merida and through Valadolid finally to Playa del Carmen. Distance covered was 8500 kilometers / 5151 miles in three weeks.
In May and June of 2008 I converted and changed my Rex into a Streetfighter type bike. There is still room for improvement but she will stay like that for a while to be ridden and enjoyed.
In May of 2009 I had an almost identical accident with the Rex in Playa del Carmen as I had in June of 2007 in Lake City, Florida. I was in the right of way as a lady taxi driver stopped and I thought she is seeing me but as I was almost in front of her she started to move causing me to crash at a very slow speed twisting me and the bike up a bit.
Prior to transformation into a Streetfighter
Kawasaki KLR 650
I did buy the KLR 650 in mid 2006 for my brother Robert to have it fixed up and ready to go for our planned trip in February and March 2007 to Costa Rica. I found the bike in Playa del Carmen, she was made in 1998 was looking cosmetically not to good but mechanically sound.
The trip to Costa Rica went well but on the way back the chain broke the second time in Bacalar, without being able to fix it. First time the chain broke in Guatemala in the mountains surrounding Lago Atitlan.
After the bike got back on the back of a pickup truck she sat for a long time untill the new chain and sprocket arrived in August 2007. When my brother decided to sell her end of September 2007 I could not resist and bought her.
She was sitting around and never been driven but I kept her. I was dreaming for years about a sidecar rig and when I found one in Merida I decided to use the KLR to get my rig. The KLR is a very unlikely candidate to become attached to a street sidecar, but who cares. The rig is fun to drive and adventually I will place a smaller wheel into the front end of the KLR and put on some street tires .... maybe.
Prior to transformation into a sidecar chop
