The Lycan Project

    I loved motorcycles in my youth and was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to spend countless hours filling this need.  Motocross, observed trials, trail riding it was one big adventure from about the age of 12 until I turned 16.  Northeast Georgia was my playground.  Places with names like, The Greens, The Pipeline, Paradise Park, Ballards Bottoms, Sunshine to name a few, bring back memories of  wonderful adventures with childhood friends.  Through an intricate system of dirt roads, trails, railroad sidings, and a few paved roads I might end up 40 miles from home.   The occasional run in with the authorities, ducking off the side of the road into a creek and under a bridge to hide from the sheriff,  a14 year old boy with a 14 year old girl on the backs of a dirt bike.  What great adventures I had learning to live life.  The age of 16 came and I moved on to other adventures and motorcycles didn't seem quite so important.
        There is a movie that talks about having friends at that point in your life like you will never have again, no truer words were ever spoken.  My accomplice in many of these adventures was my best friend from the first grade until about the age of 16, he passed away a few years ago, diabetes caught up with him.  We had drifted apart over the years cars, girls, sports, other interest some legal some not so much had caused a divide.  As a pallbearer at his funeral I wondered if his life as well as mine might have been different if we had just kept riding those bikes.  We will never know but the lure of the motorcycle was calling from the distance haunting me for the next few years.
       The age of 50 came as much a gift as a wake up call that life was passing, not passing me by, but passing.  With all the other adventures I have had it was time to revisit the motorcycle while I still could.   I see so many people working and waiting to enjoy life until they retire only to have an illness, physical limitation, or financial adversity dash those dreams as they live out their lives with only the thoughts of what if.   My theory is that if I can afford it I will do it now for as long as I can then move on with no regrets. 
  So I purchased a street bike at the age of 50 and discovered I still absolutely love motorcycles!  All of them, but my true passion is street bikes.  It's as close to flying as you can get without leaving the ground.    Since I saw my first Cafe Racer I have thought, "I have to have one of those," so that brings us to "The Lycan Project". I have purchased a 1986 Suzuki Savage for the sum of $500!

 

The first name idea for this blog was "Resurrecting the Rented Mule", because this thing had been beaten like a rented mule.  The Lycan moniker seemed just a little more fitting as the transformation begins.  Below is the rendering of what I am hoping to achieve.

 

 

 

    There are kits to convert this bike available on line but I have a hard time justifing spending $3000 on a $500 bike.  Through a combination of using my own resources and purchasing some parts from the kits I plan to transform this bike into a new animal that meets my needs and fits into my life.   I hope to show the process of setting up the work area as well as disassembling the bike and creating the Lycan.  One other point I might need to make is that I intend to do this as cheaply as possible.  I have a friend that refers to me as frugal, lets cut to the the chase, I am cheap!  If I can save some money and do it my self I will.  So armed with a few tools, a shop manual, The University of YouTube, and very little practical motorcycle mechanical training I am risking total public ridicule and diving in head first.  This should be fun and a learning experience.