Back in May, prior to the trip to WV, I did a spring maintenance (spark plugs, air filter, oild + filter, etc.). Around that time, I vaguely remember talking with a buddy about how the gas stations locally all started having ethanol stickers for the first time, or stickers changed wording from "may contain up to 10%" to "contains up to...". I started having some rough idling, noticed a drop in mileage (from a city/freeway high of 46 to a low of 39) and the bike would stall out when I left work in the afternoon without letting it warm up. I also would get something that I assume is the same as what was described elsewhere on this forum as "lean popping".
The problem went away on the trip, but came back and I had it all summer here in TN. I redid my maintenance and tried a can of sea foam even.
Now on the trip to GA and back last week, the problem went away again, but came back when I filled up in TN gas. I have decided it's because of the ethanol due to any othe good ideas. In researching the matter, it sounds like it's a common problem in an motor other than a modern, big car engine. Bikes, boats, lawn equipment all misbehave and lose efficiency. Heck, even today's Consumer Reports news update was sympathetic on the issue.
So...anyone else really having heartburn over this issue? Any way to overcome the side effects of this misguided attempt to reduce petroleum use?