So it is Done.

I was in disbelief then when I had a healthy number of supporters and sponsors, the last people I expected to be supporters and sponsors, and I'm still in disbelief now at how my idea has jumped from the page, and into tangible reality.

All the wonderful people who, in some shape or form, have helped turn the bike into what is now, I will never forget them and their unbridled generosity. With them, what was a meaningful project for myself has become an effort of solidarity that I am proud to have been a part of. :)

From a Brainchild to a Labor of Love

Yesterday, just a few minutes before I left for work, I finally got the call I've been getting myself sick over for in the past month or so:

"The paint's ready for the decals."

Bob from Hope Custom Paint phoned me, letting me know that the first wave of the paint's been laid down and dry, so nearly all of the decals can finally be laid over before the clearcoat. Without thinking twice, I made the arrangement to spend the next morning in Bob's shop until all the decals were on the fairings.

I showed up at Bob's shop first thing this morning, and he greeted me with my workstation, complete with any tools I might need to put the decals on. I felt a bit silly walking in there with just a single squigee that Mike Hill (ACE Custom Graphics, the decal maker) gave me with the decals.


Oh, but this vinyl-laying business was no joke. If you've never done it before, you're in for a world of hurt. Sooner than midway through putting the first decal, I really started wishing I took up Mike on his offer to help lay the vinyl. If only he wasn't in Concord and the paint shop in Fremont...Nevertheless, I tackled the first big TAAF decal on one of the mid-panels, and it reeked of my vinyl-laying ignorance; a number of bubbles and a crease here. I felt mad at myself cause I was fucking up the beautiful paint job that Bob was doing.

I kept at it though and finished one side of the bike with the rest of the sponsorship decals, and I was turning them out better and better (relatively speaking). However, I made a fatal mistake on the other big TAAF decal, and basically, I had to ring up Mike and ask if he can churn out a replacement one today. Bob and his crew had to take a couple of hours off anyway to go to a show in Watsonville, so I thought that if Mike could do the replacements during that time, I can fly over to Concord and pick them up. Of course, the mensch that Mike is, he was happy to oblige. For good measure, I asked for another pair so I can re-do the other side I've already laid down. Bob was actually comforting, not having any quip about any "mistakes" I made, assuring me that at the end of it all, I will have an even bigger sense of ownership and pride.





My second favorite decal. :)


And this is my most favorite. Ironically, this was
the one I wanted to lay down perfectly, and didn't. :(
I completely underestimated vinyl-laying, but at least this project has now evolved from being just a brainchild of mine, into a labor of love. As a whole, the fairings are looking more and more like a definite manifestation of what I concocted, and even if anybody will notice the little mistakes I did in laying the vinyls, at least I can say, "Oh, I did that."

I did this. :)

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

Figure another week or two, at least, until I can have my bike put back together.

I feel bad for complaining, because after all, this was a self-imposed, good cause project on my bike, but I've been riding for nearly half a decade nearly every day, and this must be the longest I've been off my bike (winters including!). I've highsided off a motorcycle in one day, and literally back on two wheels the next day to have lunch with a riding friend. It's killing me that I can't ride, and it's killing me that I'm complaining I can't ride.

I know, I know, woe is me. But riding's been such an integral part of my daily life, it can't be helped but feel the absence of it now.

Man. Heaven forbid I name my first-born "Yamaha" or "R1."

I think I'll pull the silver tongue out and see if I can get a loaner bike from someone.

TAAF Bike. Final Draft

This should be what the bike will look like after the decals and the paint's done, sans one more sponsor that's to be determined since I did this draft.



Hopefully it'll all be ready and back on the bike before the US Round of MotoGP in Laguna Seca on the 25th of this month!

Progress

I can't believe that I've already dropped off my R1's fairings to the painter yesterday, when it was only about a week ago that I thought of my project.



I thought that it would take me awhile to gather up the funds needed from myself and my direct family, but between a generous sponsorship from another riding friend, and a custom painter with a heart of gold, my week-old idea is merely another week or so from becoming a reality!

Sevens

They really are fortuitous. :)


Three years ago, on 07/2007, I must happen to simply have a few dollars at my disposal, and decided to buy some Series EE Bonds for myself. They went from my safe deposit box since, and into my dresser these days. I just remembered them last night, and today, on 07/07, I've decided to use them towards my project bike for TAAF and my brother. And in the spirit of honoring my brother, I think I'll include his sons' names on the bike as well.

I don't know what I was saving these bonds for this whole time, but I know this cause is as great as any. :)

TAAF. My Brother. My Bike.

The Aneurysm and AVM Foudnation (TAAF) is a nonprofit organization created as support network, and proponents of improved medical care for those affected by aneurysm and other vascular malformations of the brain.


My brother to my right, circa 2006.
In 2006, my older brother JayDee suffered from brain hemorrhage whilst having lunch. He simply passed out, and the only warning signs he reported prior to the incident were common headaches. He was rushed to the nearby hospital where the doctors worked hours to clear his brain tissues of the blood that spread. They were successful in preventing a fatality, but the hemorrhage left my brother in near paralysis and virtually bed-ridden ever since. His hemorrhage stemmed from being afflicted with Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM), a fact we didn't know until it was too late. His recovery and rehabilitation is at a very slow rate, but my family and I continue to hope for the best as his primary caregiver at our home.

What does this have to do with my bike?


Motorcycling has been my long-time passion; I am on the bike virtually every time that I'm not asleep. I ride it to work daily, I ride recreationally during the weekends, I hang out at the popular local motorsport spots, I volunteer in group rides, I do a number of trackdays per year, etc. So in wanting to do something for TAAF in my own unique way and simultaneously honor my brother, I thought, wouldn't it be a more effective and lasting effort to create awareness for the foundation if I used my bike as a moving billboard? I mean let's face it, even a common sportsbike that's parked turns more heads than your common car.

This would be my idea of a gift that keeps on giving. :)


The TAAF Bike.


But of course a matching suit.
It's a complete package! :)

I had already passed on this idea to the foundation, hoping that I would be able to use their logo and name. Admittedly, I was a bit worried that they may be apprehensive to allow association with sport motorcycling, given the common stigma sport riders have. To my surprise, the response I received from the foundation's executive director was one of equal enthusiasm and excitement to my own!

I know this is a permanent change, much like a tattoo, and I know that with the foundation having approved of my idea, I have practically volunteered myself to be a full-time ambassador of the cause whenever I'm on the bike, which means I have to be more cognizant of my actions while riding (*cough*wheelies!*cough*).

But I want to do this, at the very least to honor my brother.

Little known fact is four years ago before I started riding, I didn't see myself as a sport rider. I initially thought of myself a cruiser rider. Matter of fact, the first bike I threw a leg over when I was shopping for a bike was a Harley Davidson Sportster. I went home with the pamphlet and everything! It was my brother who simply told me, "Get a sportsbike. You'll like it more." By the time that week was over, he was in the hospital after his hemorrhage.

Of course I then followed his advice.

Four years later, nearly a dozen sportbikes owned, countless trackdays and miles as a sport rider, and he was right. I am the rider that I am now because of him. So strictly as a rider, it's time I do something for him. Motorcycling has been an individual passion for me that only indulged myself.

Now I have a chance to put this passion into greater use. And of more important personal note, I have a chance to truly honor my brother, who in his own serendipitous way, started me down the path that led me to this.

I also think that it would be of greater effect if I can do this as a community effort, as a show of solidarity for my cause, the foundation and their cause, and ultimately for my brother and his plight. As much as I am used to doing things on my own, relinquishing this passion of mine to a higher calling would be better achieved if I open it to those who support my cause in one way or another.

Here's to seeing this idea come to fruition and life, one that I believe deserves to, more than anything else I've ever conjured. :)