Posts Tagged ‘Harley’

Our motorcycle vacation continued! With a major repair tossed in.

Posted: August 9, 2016 in Motorcycle, motorcycle touring
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After the HOG Rolling Rally: History in the Hills was complete the second half of our motorcycle vacation started.  Debbie and I were going to go south of New Orleans to visit her sister for a few days and then head home via the Natchez Trace Parkway.

The intent was to “blast” our way south in order to maximize the amount of time we could visit with her sister. “Blasting south” meant interstate highways, hot concreate on hot days, drinking lots of water (which means lots of bio-breaks LOL).

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The compensating sprocket under the front sprocket.

The first leg of the ride we stopped for the evening to visit in-laws in Alabama.  The next morning back on the highway, but something was not quite right with the bike.  We made it to Tuscaloosa and pulled into T-Town Harley Davison.  The service tech took only seconds to state that the compensating sprocket was loose and the bike  went straight into the shop.

I am not sure what it does but if your compensating sprocket does not compensate then your transmission is having issues.

I have to give the team at T-Town a lot of praise. Knowing we were on a long trip they took us to the head of the service line. Worked with us on the cost (gaskets & transmission fluid) and had us on the road in about three hours (a chunk of which was the bike cooling down so they could work on it).  Debbie and I felt that they really cared about making sure we could get back on the road as soon as possible!

Ijustwant2ride.com

Can’t go to New Orleans without one of these pictures.

By the time we did get back on the road it was nearly 100F degrees and high 90s in humidity!  Once on the interstate it was quickly apparent that that the concrete was hotter than the ambient temperature, it had to be well over 100F. This was where we figured out when it was time to call it a day.  At a certain point in this heat we would begin to verbally snipe at each other.  When we started to argue about where do you what to eat, where do you want to stop, where do you want to sleep it was time for a cool room and long shower!

The rest of the ride to New Orleans was really uneventful.  We had a good time with Mark and Vicky, got to see a bunch of the local area including Alligators in the wild and a fishing trip/boat ride into the Gulf of Mexico.  Mark is a fishing guide and runs Hunting Red Fishing Charters, if you are into fishing check out what he has to offer

Too soon it was time to begin the trip back to Virginia.  My next post will be about our ride on the Natchez Trace Parkway.

Motorcycle Product Review: Bone Dry Seat Covers

Posted: July 30, 2016 in Motorcycle, Product Reviews
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Ijustwant2ride.com

I bought a Bone Dry Motorcycle Seat Cover for our 2014 Harley Davidson Ultra Limited just prior to our nearly 3700 mile vacation.  The impetuous for this purchase is the fact that it always rains on us when we ride and we do not really enjoy putting our butts on wet seats, especially after a good night’s sleep. We also knew that a hot seat, after stopping for lunch, can be a real pain in the butt.

I looked at several different manufactures and no one product jumped out more than another except for Bone Dry.  Their product comes in different colors other then all black and that is why I purchased their product.  We have a blue bike and the blue striped cover matched, simple as that.

In operation the cover worked as expected. The Bone Dry Motorcycle Seat Cover kept our seats dry through several storms and keep the seat cool in the hot sun.

CONS

Now there are a some drawbacks that would apply to any cover of this type.  The first drawback is that in the deep south of the United States there is a LOT of humidity. There was always some condensation under the cover, especially after a thunderstorm. This was expected so no big deal.

The second drawback was what to do with a wet seat cover after a storm or early morning condensation.  Our solution was to “spin” dry the cover a much as possible before stowing.

Lastly, just like most covers of this nature, Bone Dry makes the seat covers in generic sizes.  I am sure that their covers for a pre-2014 Harley would be perfect fit, but Harley Davidson slightly changed the seats on the “Rushmore” bikes.  This change forces the cover to be tightly stretched to fit the seat.

PROS

The cover looks great on the bike!

The cover folds into itself for storage, no need for a separate case to loose.

Made in the USA.

It worked.

The ONLY reason I am giving it 4 and not 5 stars is that we had to stretch the cover to fit our seat more than I would like.  Over time, I really think that the stitching will become strained because of the difference in the pre/post 2014 seat sizes. But, I am willing to bet that this is an issue with many, if not all other covers  so this should not restrict you from buying the Bone Dry Motorcycle Seat Cover.  If you are in the market for a motorcycle seat cover, I suggest you consider Bone Dry.

4 out 5 stars

5 Motorcycle Things that interested me this week.

Posted: July 20, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle advocacy, Motorcycle news
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Bikers viewed more attractive than drivers! 

A Motocross expert, a tight rope walker and a stunt pilot meet in the desert what happens next?

This Mercedes-Benz 240D Motorcycle And Sidecar Is Bewilderingly Wonderful 

Nova Scotia motorcyclist, 96, doesn’t plan to slow down anytime soon 

Actor Nichols Cage is not dead!

Day 7 HOG National Rolling Rally History in the Hills

Posted: July 10, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring, Rally
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ijustwant2ride.comWe awoke to day seven of our motorcycle vacation with both excitement and a bit of sadness. This day had a lot of great riding on the schedule but was also the last day riding with the Harley Owner’s Group “History in the Hills” national rally and the last day with our new friends.

After a quick breakfast, loading the bike and performing the motorcycle safety Ijustwant2ride.comchecks we were kickstands up and on the “Moonshiners 28”!  28 has some awesome sections of twisty roads interspaced by small towns and great scenic vistas.  The first stop on this ride was Bridal Veil Falls which was a bit underwhelming as there had not been much rain in the area but it is very easy to see how if got its name.

Still on the moonshiner our next destination was Fontana Dam.  This dam was built as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority electrification effort but also as the primary electrical supply of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the race to build the atomic bomb.  As far as dam’s go it was pretty spectacular and you can still ride across the top a pleasant surprise in this day and age of high security.

ijustwant2ride.comOn the way to Fontana Dam I kept wanting to really run the turns and twisties.  I would get a mile maybe two of fun and then I would get behind a slower bike or car, after getting around that person I would get another mile or two and end up behind an even slower vehicle!  This went on until I was riding up an ascending right hand turn behind a fellow biker in 1st gear.  At that point I leaned back and told Debbie that God must be trying to tell me to slow down and enjoy the view … which we did.

Literally, less than five minutes later I said that we happened upon a crash!  Another participant of the History in the Hills ride, riding in a small group, was on the ground.  It was not a multi vehicle accident or a rider exceeding their ability but a true ACT OF GOD!  A very large tree limb broke and fell upon them as they past under causing them to wreak.  The passenger took the brunt of the falling limb and suffered, we found out later, a broken collar bone, mild concussion, and a multitude of cuts and abrasions.  The rider fared better but did have some minor injuries while the bike appeared to have a bunch of cosmetic damage.  This was the only serious injury of the entire HOG event.

After stopping at the Dam we were back on the road towards Deals Gap and theijustwant2ride.com start of the Tail of the Dragon.  Debbie and I have ridden the Tail of the Dragon in the past and boy is it a lot of fun.  Before hitting the road we had a snack of onion rings at the Deal’s Gap dinner and of course the mandatory swag from the gift shop.  As much as I enjoy the Tail of the Dragon I do have to point out that there are many similar places in my home state of West Virginia just without the hype.

Eleven miles and 318 turns later we bested the Tail of the Dragon again and onto our next stop, lunch at Knoxville Harley Davidson West.  The dealership served ups BBQ sandwiches with all the fix’ns.  But because it was hot we wanted to do the last few mile to our hotel in Oak Ridge so we left fairly quickly.

It is at this point I have to point out and highly commend the organizers of this rally.  The Harley Owners Group had chosen RUSH LLC to develop, promote, lead and run this event and they did a fabulous job.  This job well done was top with a giant cherry ….. an actual visit to the grounds of the national lab and to the nuclear reactor that help create the nuclear/atomic age.

This was a really big thing, I had a job working a contract at the lab a few years ago they just do not let regular people in very often.  The RUSH folks said it took about seven months to do all the coordination and get the individual badges issued and I fully believe it.  Awesome job RUSH.

The reactor was the one where all the materials to create the two bombs thatijustwant2ride.com ended WWII and was in operation until 1967.  After the war better reactors were created and this one used to help develop and support nuclear medicine.  Nearly everything in the medical field that you use today that has a nuclear component can, most likely, trace it origin to the Oak Ridge National Lab and this reactor.  A very cool way to end this trip.

The buses then took us to our farewell diner.   This was a fun but bittersweet event.  We shared our table with the same folks that we shared the table during the opening diner.  Two of the other couples and Debbie and I had become friends during the event and the other guys (Moe, Larry, and Curly) were great guys and good sports that we happened upon almost daily.

As this was our first, but highly unlikely last, trip with the HOG rolling rally and RUSH crew.

Harley Owners Group Rolling Rally: History in the Hills Day 4

Posted: June 21, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring, Rally
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Today’s HOG motorcycle tour started early.  We were on the road a couple minutes after 7AM (tomorrow will be earlier).  Pulling out of the motel parking lot we headed towards Natural Chimneys State Park, the first stop of the day.  

It took us a few days to figure this out but this HOG event is really an unstructured structured event.  You can go to as many of the stops as you want or none of the stops. You can follow the pre-planned routes or set your own.  We all just start and stop at the same location each day.  This day we chose to skip the State Park and go directly to the second stop the Museum of the Confederacy. 

On the way we had multiple animals try to kill themselves by throwing themselves at our motorcycle.  A rabbit, a squirrel, a blue bird, yellow bird, robins and a couple other critters all threw themselves at us, luckily they all missed by quite a bit.  

WP_20160620_10_45_40_RichThe Museum of the Confederacy is laid out in a fashion that walks you through from what leads up to the succession to the aftermath of the civil war.  In addition to the main museum there are several outdoor features including a “log cabin” built in 1832 and used as a home up until the 1960s. 

From there we headed to Lynchburg Harley Davison.  The Lynchburg HOG chapterWP_20160620_23_08_39_Rich was hosting us for lunch and we had to be there between 12 and 1.  I enjoyed the brat’s and thanked the HOG crew for their hospitality.  By the way, I now have yet another dealer pin for my collection. 

After lunch we remounted the Ultra and headed towards the National D-Day WP_20160620_13_18_32_RichMemorial.  The memorial honors all the soldiers, from twelve nations, that participated in the invasion of Europe in WWII.  As a retired soldier I can say the memorial was quite impressive and provide a poignant reminder of the cost of that invasion.  If you are in the area a few minutes of your time to visit this site would be a good idea. 

Debbie and I skipped the next stop, Foamhenge.  Turns out I wish we had not. Apparently the display will be removed in a couple months.  Oh, well. 

The last stop on this leg of the motorcycle rally, and our hotel, is the Natural Bridge Park and Historic Hotel.  The Natural Bridge is really a bridge with traffic running across the top.  Down below you can hike under the bridge and admire the vista in the same manner as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.  As part of our package we also got to view a light show projected upon the face of the cliffs.  About 10PM we were in our bed with dreams of the  next day.  

To see what happened on day one check out that post!

Harley Owners Group Rolling Rally: History in the Hills Day 1

Posted: June 18, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring
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Ijustwant2ride.com

This year Debbie and I decided to try out the national Harley Davidson HOG Rolling Rally.  It has been occurring for the last seven years and this year it is close to home. The theme for this year is “History in the Hills”. 

The start of the rally is Gettysburg, PA and it end a week later in Oak Ridge, TN.  In between there will be the chance to stop at numerous points to fulfill the title of “History in the Hills”. 

Today was the rally registration sign in, a trip to a special event at the Seminary Ridge Museum and the kickoff diner. Our sign in point was Battlefield Harley Davison. It was well organized and took us know time to get signed in, collect our kit of items and talk with some of the folks who are participating in the ride. 

I do have something negative to say about Battlefield HD.  When have been here several times over the years and have always found the folks polite and friendly, willing to go give a hand.  Today that promise of the past did not hold course.  I had forgotten to check the preload on my motorcycles rear shocks and could use a pound or two of additional air to get a better ride.  In the trip from the house to Gettysburg I realized that I needed the additional air and thought I would be able to borrow a pump to add the additional pressure.  NOPE, the service representative said that someone had “borrowed” their pump in the past and did not bring it back thus they did not have a pump for me to use.  Hummm, a complete service center did not have a pump to add air to a motorcycle shock. 

After that we road over to our hotel to check-in.  NOPE, the room is not read, come back after 3PM. Oh and do not park your motorcycle in front of the hotel. We reminded not to park out front at least 3 times.  OK Country Inns and Suites of Gettysburg, I get it you don’t want us to park out front. 

So onto Seminary Ridge and the museum.  We have been to Gettysburg many times and have never been to this museum and plan to take the full tour on day two.  Today the HOG folks (the tour is run my RUSH LLC) had arraigned a special presentation for the group.  We were broke in 4 groups of about 40-50 people and had a round robin education on Civil War soldiers backgrounds and the 1st day of the battle, ambulance wagons, the Seminary itself and a demonstration of how Civil War soldiers formed and marched.  It was quite nice. 

After the presentation were over we rolled over to the Pike Restaurant for the welcome dinner.  The food was good and the folks we shared our table with were awesome.  We had two highlights during the dinner, I was chosen (because I pulled a small prank) to be the first to wear the “HAT”.  The hat is the stereotypical “hillbilly” had from the comics and shows like “Hew Haw”.  I was told that last year the hat was a lobster, so at least I do not have to wear seafood.  I get to pass the hat on to someone else tomorrow….. Let’s see who that will be. 

The other highlight was that we won a $25 Harley Davison gift certificate.  All said we have had a great day and are looking forward to tomorrow’s events.

Motorcycle TV: Ride with Norman Reedus

Posted: April 26, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, Motorcycle TV
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The “Walking Dead” star gets his own motorcycle themed show on AMC this summer.  The show will premier June the 12th at 10PM (EST).

If you did not know it by the way he has built and rode motorcycles on the Walking Dead Norman is a fan of the two wheel life.  So much so he was able to get AMC to produce a six episode series titled “Ride with Norman Reedus”.

Norman states this is not going to be a gearhead show but on where he and friends “explore local biker culture and celebrate the best and brightest collectors, mechanics and craftsmen around the country. Each episode will feature Reedus and a riding companion – a fellow actor, musician, friend or local chopper fanatic – as they journey to custom bike shops, tattoo parlors, collector’s warehouses, or a roadside smokehouse… with plenty of time for unplanned detours and tire changes”

But unlike us average joes Norman’s friends include Peter Fonda, Robert Rodriguez and Balthazar Getty. Guess I will have to wait for my own TV show to ride with those guys!

I LIKE TO DRAW ATTENTION TO MY REAR END! Product Review: Custom Dynamics HD LED Tour Pak GEN2 Magic Brake Light Flasher for Harley Davidson Motorcycles

Posted: April 18, 2016 in Motorcycle, motorcycle safety, motorcycle touring, Product Reviews
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“Baby got back” and I cannot lie that it fits the Ultra Limited and I want to try to get drivers to see my motorcycle’s rear end. OK.. that is Ultra Bad.

In the age of distracted driving I want folks to have a better chance at seeing me when I am stopped, breaking, or slowing.  So I looked around for a device that would cause my rear lights to flash when the breaks are applied.  There are more than a few of these devices for nearly any motorcycle on the market but I went with the Custom Dynamics Magic Brake Light Flasher.WP_20160417_11_44_23_Rich

I will admit that my section of the Custom Dynamic product was influenced by my earlier purchase of their  LED Turn Signals .  That product was easy to install and has worked well.

The installation of the break light flasher was easier than I expected.  Once the seat was off and you can see the Tour Pak wiring it was almost a no brainer.  Once the device was installed we had to choose the flash pattern.  It comes with 10 patterns of varying complexity.  The video shows you all the patterns, and while it might be less than evident on the video the lights are quite bright. We went with the “Blaster X Consistent” pattern.

When I showed our upgrade to my daughter, as she pulled into the driveway, she stated “that’s distracting”.  I took that as a job well done!

Now it is hard to review whether or not this is a good safety product, if I never get rear ended did the flasher help or did I just get lucky.  But I can review it on ease of installation and my subjective thoughts.  This product does what it says it is going to do, it was easy to install, and I think it is going to help draw attention (thank you daughter).  Based on that I am giving the Custom Dynamics HD LED Tour Pak GEN2 Magic Brake Light Flasher for Harley Davidson Motorcycles 5 out of 5 stars.

5 star

 

 

5 Motorcycle Things that interested me this week.

Posted: March 4, 2016 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle news, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle safety, Uncategorized
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5 Tech advances that have made motorcycle safer.

The next motorcycle safety tech…Side View Assist?

Motorcycle Good Deeds Films

A horse riding a horse motorcycle… WTF stupid but fun!

Burn Calories while riding a Motorcycle!

2016 Timonium Motorcycle Show and Expo

Posted: February 26, 2016 in custom motorcycle, Motorcycle, Motorcycle advocacy, Motorcycle news, motorcycle safety
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 timonium

Debbie and I attended the largest Motorcycle Show and Expo in the mid-Atlantic region a few weeks ago.  Held at the Maryland State Fairground, I think there were more folks at this year’s expo than attended in 2015.   

As has been in past years Harley Davidson of Baltimore took the premier spot on the floor, directly inside the entrance.  As we walked through the Harley display it looked like they were even selling one or at least were in serious negotiations.  Just behind the HD exhibition were the Indian and BMW Motorrad displays.  Turning to the right and moving like salmon swimming upstream is the accessories and product section.  

Ijustwant2ride.comThere were all the normal stuff like jackets, vests, chaps and biker themed jewelry.  One vendor caught my eye was producing, on site, LED signs… we might be ordering one or two of those as gifts.  At the end of the road contestants for the Miss Timonium title were “showing their talents” to the crowd.  Debbie was not too impressed, I tried to not let on I was watching, LOL!

 ijustwant2ride.comSimilar to last year the Expo was including adventure traveling companies & vendors along with guest speakers.  Debbie and I stopped and listened to the “2 Ride the World” discussion. Their 13 year, 400,000 mile, around the world story compressed into a 30 minute confab was very entertaining, and left the audience wanting more.  Highly recommend you check out their story!  I am looking forward to a book or even a movie! 

ijustwant2rideThe organizers also had, similar to the adventure traveling section, an area where vendors were showing off their new stuff on stage. We stopped to find out what Sena was releasing in the New Year.  Turns out they are going to release their own “smart” helmet with active noise cancellation and full integration of their product line.  If you are invested in the Sena products you should check out this new helmet when it arrives, cost will be about $500US.

Ijustwant2ride.comMy highlight of the day occurred at the KTM display.  As we were walking buy Debbie remarked that KTM was the bike that Ryan Dungy of Supercross rode (a 450) and that she wanted to see what that bike looked like in person.  She walked up to the salesman and asked if they had one at the show, they didn’t but a minute later she was climbing on a KTM 350 of similar size.  I almost laughed when the guy looked at me with a “how does she know all this Supercorss stuff” look on his face.

 The bikes on display for show were all very nice and some were just plain spectacular. The custom “muscle bagger” by Sick Sledz took best in show!  I have a couple pictures of it just below.  

We spent about four hours looking at all the stuff on the floor before heading home.  I hope this year’s event was a success for the vendors and show participants.  Debbie and I had a good time and plan on going back in 2017.

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