So, today I said to hell with the possibility of getting another* heatstroke and decided that I'd install the new Zeta Handlebar adapters and the 1 1/8th inch Pro Taper Contour bars today. (CR Hi-Bend)
I like the CR Hi-Bend (or YZ Hi-Bend if it's in stock when I'm shopping) because it's about 1/2" wider than stock, has about 3/4" more rise to it, and has pretty much the same sweep back. Ad the 4/5th inch rise from the Zeta adapters, and you get a "not quite" 2 inch rise, which puts my arms in that perfect area where I am just slightly bent at the elbows. Not reaching forward for them, and I have just a smidgen more leverage.
The other day I tried to install them and couldn't because the darned Bark Buster parts that fit inside the handlebars just would
not come out of the OEM Bars. I fixed that today by threading in a longer bolt and tapping it pretty hard with a mallet. Worked like a champ. Here's a pic of the removal of the stock bars (obviously an easy job so I won't bore you with details)
I Installed the Zeta Adapters and made sure to use Loc-Tite blue on the mounting bolts so that they stay connected to the bottom part of the OEM clamps, which they mount to via four 5mm Allen Head bolts.
Here are the bars after installation. Note that I had to use the razor utility knife to make the cutout larger so the bar pad could be mounted.
Once that was completed, I decided to try 'em out since they were a bit different from the stockers.
I don't have any pics of the test ride because I didn't think I'd need the camera for that. It's a shame because the small test ride kinda morphed into a 150 mile loop from Millington down to "the bottoms" where Covington Pike meets I-240 on the northern side of Memphis.
I hit damn near every trail loop on the east side of Covington Pike and it took about 4 hours of riding before I realized a few things;
1 - The Pannier Mount I made out of a piece of Aluminum Bar Stock works like a frigging champ. I had 2 gallons of water in jugs in the left-side pannier to test with, and I had absolutely no problems with the bag fouling the rear suspension or tire. I think it's a case of superior design because I'm totally not above giving myself a pat on the back when I think I deserve it, LOL.
2 - My propensity to get sunburned has never diminished in my 43 years...With a heat index today of 113°F it was just too damn hot to truly be ATGATT. I tried my best though. I had my MX boots on; my MX pants with armor installed in knees and hips; had my Icon Armored vest with full spine armor; and my helmet & gloves, but I skipped the full length shirt and elbow armor. My arms, from just above the elbow to the wrist, are the most pretty shade of red right now and the pain is only beginning to set in. (Damn UV Index of 10!!!!!)
3 - I am very glad the "good" Yamaha shop (Performance Plus) is so close by. I damn near had another heat stroke on the trails so I poured 1 gallon of water all over myself and drank part of the other, then zipped over to the Yamaha Shop right as they were closing up. I asked them if they wouldn't mind letting me stealing a bit of their air conditioning so I could cool down. I asked Jim for change for a $5 so I could get a soda out of the machine and he said, "No.", then he pulled out 4 quarters from the register and told me to sit while he went and got me 2 cans of Dr Pepper (It's a southern thang) They let me sit there for about 35 minutes while they closed up around me and didn't say a single word to me about me needing to leave so they could close. Turned out to be a good thing too, since someone came in and put $5000 down on a new BMW650 Dual Sport. Now I don't feel so bad about putting them out.
I felt cooled down enough to make it home to my friend's house where I keep the bike so I split and made it to Karl's in about 30 minutes.
Got out of the MX pants and boots as fast as I could and grabbed the other jug of water and took another fast shower with it...it felt so damn cold and good, LOL.
Grabbed some dinner from the gas station (we have those gas stations that have a small restaurant-type area where they make all sorts of stuff like spaghetti, pizza, ribs, mac&cheese, etc.) and headed home, where I set my thermostat to 60°F and discovered this:
No clue how I got it but it bled like there was no tomorrow. Thought I was gonna have to put a zip-tie on my toe as a tourniquet. Doesn't hurt, but that could be because my sunburned arms are really starting to make a bid for my undivided attention right now, LOL
I put some Neosporin on the toe and slapped a Band-Aid on it and started uploading pics and writing this up as the cool air conditioning blows across my arms, making typing at least bearable for a while.
(*have had one in the past...not fun)
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You know the old saying 'The job's not done until there's a bit of bloodshed.' Hole in toe. Ow. Toe losing nail...BIG OW. DO NOT WANT!!! 
