A little about myself and how the klrdash came to mind:
My name is Lonny Snowden I live in Southern Utah with my family of 3 kids. Which most have grown and left the nest. I love the area and what it has to offer for adventure on the KLR 650. With 5 national parks and 45
State parks in Utah we are truly lucky to live in this area.
Enough of me here’s how the klrdash came to pass. In preparation for an extended trip up the coast on the 08 KLR 650, I needed to figure a way to mount my GPS and power monitor and not have it on the handle bars of the bike. I wanted the instruments to be directly in site of the road. So thru necessity I needed to move the windscreen up and out of the way of the new dash. For me this was no problem, I have a sheet metal company so I slapped together what I had in my mind. Needless to say it was a little on the generic side but it worked. Besides I had no time to tweak anything I had to get on the road.
I live in southern Utah and was to meet my brother in Tonopah Nevada to start our planned 4,200 mile trek. The first stretch of road was a lonely ride down the Extraterrestrial Hwy. During that time I had right in front of me a cool little dash. But I discovered that the risers were going to be the most important thing for this long ride. I found myself stretching my body up and down in and out of the wind. At this point I was still a little embarrassed about the whole contraption that was mounted on the front of my brand new 08 KLR 650. When I arrived to Tonopah my brother just looked at it and was wondering what the heck that thing was. Well a long story short, I have never had so many other KLR riders stop to look at the bike and wonder “Where did this guy get this thing”. I think they understood. So thru a few forums like klrworld.com and advrider.com I showed the idea to some folks and they liked it. I even sent some out to them for free to try it out and give me some feedback on the idea. Through several version that I lost track of, we got down to the best height and size and angle. So the klrdash.com site was born. As I made the klrdash and risers people started to send emails telling me stories about the kit. One said the new risers move the windshield up and away from my face. Another said he can now move his aftermarket handle bars forward for a better standing position and he was able to turn his bars without brush guards hitting the windshield.
And of course others enjoy the wind protection.
So what is the future of the klrdash and risers. I never did this project to make a bunch of money. In fact through my research I found out that I probably won’t. My personality is this. I like to help the next guy as much as he would help me. I have never found this to be more true than with especially the type of person who rides the KLR. If you own one you understand what I mean about KLR riders.
I have been working on the klrdash idea since my first ride in April of 08. And I am the first to admit that the risers are not the prettiest thing in the world. But after you install them and take them for a ride they are the most beautiful thing on the bike. If your ever in Southern Utah call me I would love to take you on a ride and show you the area.
Thanks my friends,
Lonny