Posts Tagged ‘motorcycle touring’

New motorcycle in the family!

Posted: May 13, 2014 in Motorcycle
Tags: , , , , , ,
1

After much discussion and checking of numbers Debbie and I have bought a new motorcycle. We are now the proud owners of a 2014 Harley Davidson “Rushmore” Ultra Limited! We traded our 2011 Ultra Limited and Debbie’s 883 Low. I was VERY surprised that see tossed her bike into the trade but she stated that she misses riding with me. Plus, she has mentioned a couple of times that, after popping her hamstring and the resulting physical therapy, she just does not feel secure when coming to a stop and holding up the bike.

We got quotes from multiple dealers and Frederick HD gave us the best deal. We did have a lot of “extras” added prior to delivery (with two still on back order), some of those items were:

Streamline grips, floorboards (the passenger boards are back ordered)

Screaming Eagle Stage 1 air cleaner

Screaming Eagle Thunder exhaust

Painted inner fairing (back order)

Air wing luggage rack LED light

XM Satellite radio module

Chrome hand controls. (they had to put grips on anyway)

Saddlebag rails

Mirrors on the fairing.

The infotainment system is easy to read, but is going to require some study to fully understand and use. For example, the default country was set to Canada and I have not yet found a way to change that, guess I need to read the manual.

After our first ride Debbie did mention that the ride is better than the old bike. She said the passenger area is roomier and more comfortable.

The bike is wearing the “limited edition” Daytona Blue paint. I am not sure how limited that paint really is but the metal flake (Debbie calls it sparkles) in the paint really shines in the sun.

Weather permitting; we will be taking a long trip to our niece’s high school graduation in a few weeks. That will be the first real test of the comfort and ride of the 2014 v. 2011.

20140513-082030.jpg

20140513-082124.jpg

20140513-112215.jpg

Motorcycle Rides: Well here is one website the Federal Government got right! America’s Byways.

Posted: March 11, 2014 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
6

plan a motorcycle ride

How did I just find out about this! The Federal Highway Administration (part of the US Department of Transportation) has an interactive website called America’s Byways.  It highlights the Scenic Byways of America and, no kidding, it is well done.  Now we have a new tool to help us plan our motorcycle rides.

The website describes itself this way; “The National Scenic Byways Program is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. The program is a grass-roots collaborative effort established to help recognize, preserve and enhance selected roads throughout the United States. The U.S. Secretary of Transportation recognizes certain roads as All-American Roads or National Scenic Byways based on one or more archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational and scenic qualities.”

America’s Byways is an interactive, map based, website that will provide you a listing of each of the 150 different roads.  Those roads are comprised of the National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. You can select the road from a national or state map to see basic information on the road (length, average time to travel the road and historical background) as well as route maps, directions and photos.

Another Motorcycle Ride to No Where in Particular (or, An Impact with a Stink Bug!)

Posted: October 7, 2013 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

My friend Doug and I linked up this past weekend to going riding.  We had no particular place in mind and decided to scoot over to Winchester Harley Davidson to look at the 2014 bikes.  

We rode west on US 7 and then cut across VA 601(the Secret Blue-Ridge Mountain Northern Stretch) to US 50 where we continued west until we reached the dealership.  We spent nearly an hour at the dealership looking at their bikes and merchandise.  They did not have very many of the “Project Rushmore” 2014 bikes, with the exception of Street Glides. They had six or seven of the new Street Glides in most of the available colors, in particular I really like the Big Blue Pearl paint.  As we were leaving the dealership we decided to visit the Gander Mountain outdoor center.  

Doug rides a Suzuki Intruder without a windscreen and on the way to Gander Mountain he had an olfactory impact with a stink bug at about 60 MPH.  His telling of the incident was particularly funny in that he was getting a strange smell, off and on, during the ride over to Gander Mountain and attributed it to the normal smells of riding.  Once in the store the smell was following him around until he noticed it was coming from his shirt!  A quick trip the restroom fixed that issue.  I am sure if we were members of a motorcycle club he would have a new nickname! 

After riding through “Old Town” Winchester we meandered through the border area of Virginia and West Virginia.  I would bet we crossed the state line no less than 10 times.  We traveled several “really” back roads including “Smokey Hollow Road” and “Il Pugh Road” until we emerged onto Route 11 (the same Route 11 as the Potato Chip ride).  We took Route 11 north to Charles Town, WV and then Route 9 (same Route 9 that Debbie and I rode) back to Leesburg. 

I put a bit over 175 miles on the bike that day and Doug and I both agree that we need to do it again soon.  Like a dummy I forgot to take pictures on this ride!

 

 

 

 

 

Motorcycle Ride to a Potato Chip Factory.

Posted: September 17, 2013 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

Last Saturday I rode with the Northern Virginia Motorcycle Club (NOVA MC) to the Route 11 Potato Chip factory.  Debbie had to work so she missed out on the fun.  WP_20130914_007

The start point was in Manassas, VA with a link up time of 8 AM but I left the house early in order to stop and have breakfast with Debbie.  We stopped at the Chick-fil-a in Leesburg to have a quick meal I then went to ride and she went off to work.

We had eleven bikes, several with passengers, show up for the ride.  After a short safety brief from the road captain “Chaz” we started to roll out…. But, one of the bikes had a malfunction, it would not start.  After a few attempts at “bump starting” it was apparent it was not going anywhere.  We confirmed that the rider had the issue covered and then set off.

It was a bit cool when we hit the road, around 60 degrees (Fahrenheit) and of course even cooler as we road down Interstate 66.  After the merge of I-66 and Interstate 81 we took the first exit (Route 11) and headed south.  We rode though the towns of Strasburg, Woodstock (where we noticed that the temperature was now around 55 degrees), Edinburg, and Mount Jackson.

Turns out that I-81 was the major interstate replacement for Route 11. 11 begins at the Canadian border at Rouses Point, NY and ends in Louisiana.  Route 11 is 1,645 miles or 2,647 KM in length.

Turning off Route 11 we hit Wissler Road (VA 720) and rode through Meems Bottom Covered Bridge.  The bridge was a bit tricky, it had raised wooden planks for cars to traverse, which caught me a bit off guard.  Going into a dark covered bridge with dark sun glasses trying to keep a good distance and pace while riding on raised planks….interesting!

A few miles from the covered bridge is the Route 11 Potato Chip factory.  It is out by itself, you have to want to go there, which we did.  They were not cooking chips that day but I have to admit that for a place that deep fries their product it was remarkably clean!  The owner gave us an overview of how the operation works which was interesting and we sampled all their different types of chips.

I liked the BBQ chips the most and bought a bag for myself.  I also bought a small bag of their “hot” chips, Mama Zuma’s!  Now that was a spicy potato chip!

After the visit to the chip plant we stopped for lunch at Johnny Appleseed’s restaurant.  The food was nice and the lunch conversation was better.  After we ate it was time to head back.  We took VA 340 North and I followed the same path as when Debbie and I visited New Market Battlefield (click here for that ride).

All in all it was another great ride with the NOVA MC!

The Bridges of Pennsylvania,,, A motorcycle ride.

Posted: July 29, 2013 in Motorcycle, Motorcycle Rides, motorcycle touring
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1
The Bridges of Pennsylvania,,, A motorcycle ride.

Foggy start to the day

This past weekend Debbie and I rode with the Northern Virginia Motorcycle Club (NOVA MC) to see and ride through a bunch of covered bridges in Pennsylvania.  This was an all-day ride; we left the house on a foggy Saturday morning at a few minutes after six AM to get to the rally point.  The club met up outside a Starbucks in Chantilly, VA before rolling out for the day.

Heading north on US Route 15 we crossed into Maryland at Point of Rocks passed through Frederick and quite soon entered Pennsylvania and the first stop. This bridge was literally just across the state line off of Route 15.  I am not sure where we stopped or the name of the bridge but the picture is below. From that point on we attempted to capture a picture of the name or historical marker.

After a bit we rolled out to see the other bridges.  About one o’clock we stopped for lunch at The Old Mountain Stone Inn in Bloomfield, PA.  The food was good, the company better but the show was the best (LOL).  About half way through our lunch a poker run arrived and they were having a lot of fun which made it a lot of fun for us to watch!!

The Bridges of Pennsylvania,,, A motorcycle ride.

Pennsylvania Amish country.

During lunch we also noticed that the incoming weather was getting much worse and decided to cut the ride a “bit” short.  We decided to visit the longest covered bridge (271 feet) in PA, the Academia Bridge.  From there we jumped on PA Route 75, which passed through the Pennsylvania Amish country.

Storm Chaser Powers ACTIVATE!

It was on Route 75 were we got the wettest!  While we had experienced sprinkles and light rain we got a downpour, and of course nowhere to really pull over.  We finally reached a gas station where Debbie and I did the group a big favor; we put on our rain suits, which normally guarantees the rain will stop.  We split off from the main group to head home shortly after that stop and we might have had ten rain drops from that point on!  I hope the others fared as well!

About Northern Virginia Motorcycle Club

NOVA MC is a “Meetup.com” group that “is for motorcycle enthusiasts who are interested in taking short jaunts, usually on weekends, around Virginia’s highways and byways.”  Debbie and I discovered them about a year ago and this was our second ride with the club.  I have to say that we have tried to ride more with them but life, schedules and other events have conspired to limit our experience with the club.  BUT, I can say that without hesitation, if your live in Northern Virginia and want to ride in a motorcycle agnostic environment and want to have a good time, check them out!

Newer Entries