Growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional!

It seemed like the remaining miles were clocking up painfully slowly although the cruise control was locked at a solid 80mph (130Kmh). Here we are then, the Capo and I heading back to the UK and currently passing through Verdun, a section of motorway with bends and hills – certainly a touch more interesting than the bland featureless flat-lands of Northern France that’s for sure. Finally the odometer clicks over one more mile and we’ve done it – 100,000 miles!

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid 100000 milesI pop the hazards on and roll to a halt on the hard-shoulder. The traffic is light and I’m only stopping long enough for a quick photo, I know I shouldn’t, but this one’s a biggie!

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid 100,000 milesWe’re not the first by a long chalk …. Capo’s around the world have hit 100K miles since the late 2000’s. One in Italy did 125K+ and one in the USA 135k+ and there are others most definitely. But the number is low and I’m proud that my Capo and I have joined this small band of owners that have proved the reliability and longevity of our wonderful bikes. As I write this, the Capo now shows 102,698 miles and is all set for a bit of TLC after the ceaseless battering of rain it endured over the last three weeks. Along the way it gained a new MOT, a set of Anakee Wild tyres and a fresh pair of Brembo 07BB2035 brake pads for the rear caliper. In return it ran faultlessly, even in the face of rain the like of which I’ve not come across in many a  year.

Way too close for comfort …..

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid - Brembo 07BB05-SA brake padsYes, I put my hand up; I screwed up on this one! I’m normally pretty good at keeping on top of the Capo maintenance, but this time I let the brake pad checks slip by while doing a full service a few weeks ago. So the other day I decided to drop the front calipers (Brembo P4/34 triple-bridge), took one look at the pads, swallowed … and squeaked a silent ‘bugger!’  Thankfully I could engage smug-mode as I already had a new set of pads (front & rear) hidden away in the parts-pantry after stocking up on all sorts of Capo-consumables at the back end of last year. The new pads are 7.5mm thick; with approx. 4.5mm of material ……. the best of the old ones was about 1mm on its tippy-toes. 😯 Way too close for comfort, so I took myself around the back of the barn and gave myself a jolly good talking too! 😳

Anyway that’s another job out of the way. Total mileage on the old pads worked out at 18,150, not too shabby really. And the rear? Doing fine, thanks for asking …. although by the time it’s pads are ready for a change, my guess is the disk will be as well. It measures a hairs width over the 4.5mm limit, so time to look for a replacement I think.