| Author | Message | ||
     Ourdee |
Yes! | ||
| Ourdee |
6 hours 47 minutes and 456 miles to Tootal's from the stealership. 9 hours 48 minutes and 669 miles to R.D.'s from the stealership. 11 hours 18 minutes and 776 miles to home from the stealership. I hope Crusty makes it to Greg's today for some great recliner sleep and fellowship. That would leave 320 miles for tomorrow. | ||
| Crusty |
Waiting For Adventure! I just went to look for a cup of coffee. Nope. Nada. There’s none here at this Motel 6 and there’s no place close by where I could get a cup. Add that the cold front moved in last night and the current temperature is 34 F (1 C) and you can see that I won’t be getting my coffee for a while. So I bought a 20 oz. Pepsi from the machine and that’s going to have to be good enough. I don’t think I’m going to make a lot of distance today. I might, but I don’t imagine there will be too many places to stop in and warm up along the way. I did bring some warm gear, though not my winter riding gear Still, the lining is in my jacket and I’ve got my waterproof winter gloves and I even brought my neck warmer sleeve, so I shouldn’t be too cold. I’ve had a few people offer me places to eat, have a coffee or stay overnight, Thank you all. If I stopped at all the offered places, it would take a week to get home and I’d have to add a bunch of miles to the trip. I guess you folks aren’t too worried that I might be carrying the dreaded Wuhan Virus. If the weather were ideal, I’d just blow straight through to Cheviot. However, it’s a new bike and the weather is going to be cold, so short distances look to be the prudent course. I don’t think anybody has ever called me prudent; now that I think of it. I’m really tempted to visit with Greg near St. Louis. I just don’t know if I can ride there before dark. And RD wants me to stop at his place in Indianapolis for coffee, a meal or a place to sleep. But Indy is only a hundred miles from Cheviot… Well; I guess I’ll just play it by ear. If nothing else, this trip is going to be one to talk about. What a great way to break in a new (to me) bike! | ||
| Ourdee |
I can come visit you if you don't stop. I know how it is when there is only a 100 miles to go. Just concern yourself with what is good for Crusty. I won't be upset as long as you do what you want to do. Greg's does sound like a good choice. | ||
| 86129squids |
+1 for a Greg stop. That way your rest and nutritional needs (BBQ!!!) will be met.  | ||
| Cupcake_mike |
Here for ya if you need it. | ||
| Court |
Mike: assuming you are at Wolf Creek? I used to stop in Wllsville in the morning to pickup 2 co-workers when we were building LaCynge. If anybody gets an update on the traveling Crusticle ....post it up so we know he’s ok and on the move. | ||
| Crusty |
I feel like a Crust-sickle. I've stopped for today. An update shortly. Does the wind ever stop blowing in Kansas? | ||
| 86129squids |
Still looking for the popcorn... | ||
| Adrenaline_junkie |
Sister-in-law reports 4-6 inches of snow in Nebraska. But its melting fast. 65 degrees tomorrow. I'm not sure if that's good news or bad news but I'm glad Crusty has stopped for the day.  (Message edited by Adrenaline Junkie on April 17, 2020) | ||
| Court |
——>>> Does the wind ever stop blowing in Kansas? It does not. I once Road a Sportster from Oklahoma City to Topeka .... passed through Wichita during a tornado and was riding in 60-70mph winds when I stopped in Cassoday. Ride safe. Listen to your body. A day or two on the road.... is ok. Pushing adds risk. Play smart. | ||
| Crusty |
I’m Whipped! It’s all of 3:15 locally and I’ve put up for today. I’m in an old time motel in Emporia, Kansas and I’m not budging until tomorrow. Today has been a very long day, even though it’s only mid-afternoon. It started at 3:35 this morning. I woke up and looked at my watch and thought it said 7:15. So I got up and took a shower and did my usual morning routine. Then, I sat down and my laptop said it wasn’t even 4:00 AM. I stayed up for a little while and went back to bed for a couple of hours. I had talked with Shannon at Freedom Road yesterday and he was going to pick me up this morning on his way into work. At 9:00, he was at the Motel 6 and we went over to his shop. We went and looked at my new bike and Shannon started it up. It sounded good and the bike looks new; all except the clutch lever which is bent. That’s no problem; it doesn’t affect the way it works, and I’m going to be putting on a pair of black levers soon, anyhow. Shannon and I sat down and he printed out a dozen or two forms and I got to initial or sign every page of every one. But when we were finished, the bike was mine! I loaded my bag onto the back seat and bungeed it down, but when I hit the started button, it only would click. The battery died, that quickly. So Shannon had his son run (drive) over and get a new battery and put it in. By the time that was done and I reloaded the bike, it was after 11:00. The temperature had warmed up to almost 40 F (4 C) and I set out. I kept seeing wet stretches of roadway, but it wasn’t raining. I finally stopped at a Service Area on the Turnpike and got gas, looked at a map, and ate a BBQ Brisket sandwich that was hot in the store and had a bottle of Pepsi. I went about 40 or 50 miles more and pulled into another Service Area where I bought a cup of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee. I drank the coffee inside the building where it was warm and stopped shivering. I saw a rack of those “Motel Discount coupons” and looked through one of the books and saw one for the Budget Host Inn for $33.99. I got back out on the road, but the cold was really getting to me, as was the light rain that came and went, so when I got to exit 133, I pulled off and got a room. I think when the MoFoCo designed the new Roadster, they were trying to answer the question, how can we take a good bike with better brakes and improved suspension and make it so the people who like such things won’t enjoy riding it? The fenders are a joke. The front fender ensures that you’ll get maximum spray from the front tire, while the rear fender guarantees you’ll have a “Skunk Stripe” down your back. The seat is a thinly upholstered board and the handlebars will cause arm pain within an hour. However; I still like it. Once I make a few changes, it’ll be a great Sport-Tourer. The modifications will happen as fast as finances allow. The bars will be changed as soon as I get a new set of grips to put on the bars that are at home waiting. I’ll probably put the Sundowner seat on it that’s on my 05. That’ll improve things a lot. Everything else will happen as money allows; the list of changes just keeps on growing. But once it’s done, she’ll be both Beautiful and Functional; my idea of what a motorcycle should be. So; I’m hoping to make it to St. Louis for tomorrow evening. If Greg is still offering the recliner for an evening, I’d love to take him up on it. And if he knows a decent BBQ joint that’s cranking out orders to go, that would be even more to look forward to. Mike; once again, I’m going to have to pass on visiting with you, just as I have to pass on visiting with Jerry and Carol. But there’s always Labor Day Weekend. There are going to be three Nationals at Springfield. The TT on Friday evening and the Miles on Saturday and Sunday. Maybe Jerry and Carol would like to have another Pre-Race Party on Thursday evening? That was fun, last year. Well; that’s it for now. | ||
| Cupcake_mike |
Court, yes wolf creek...going on a decade now. Crusty, I've lived in kansas for 18 of my 38 years and frankly the wind has always been a thing, but the last 5 years or so it seems like its gotten worse. Glad to you made it to emporia, dont mind the lockdown, cause you aint missing nothing, its a real a shithole. Tomorrow should be in the 60s and sunny most of the day. If I didnt have to work I'd pace you as you passed through on my new CR. Safe travels, buddy. (Message edited by cupcake_mike on April 17, 2020) | ||
| Crusty |
I'm in St. Louis at Greg's (Tootal) house . I should be home tomorrow. The handlebars and seat really suck if you're riding for any length of time. I'll give a full report after I get home. | ||
| Ourdee |
 | ||
| 86129squids |
How was the Q? | ||
| Ourdee |
The ribs were sold out. | ||
| Tootal |
The driveway into the place was blocked by a large sign that just said, SOLD OUT! There was a car coming out of the drive thru, must have been the last customer! Missed it by that much!! We settled for some home made chili instead. So the Crustified one has left the building. Looks like the rain is all South of us so hopefully he'll make it home dry. | ||
| Ourdee |
I will watch for him. While it would be nice to see him, I prefer visiting when he is fresh and not antsy to get home. I will make sure to have a cup of joe ready just in case. Remind me not to yack too much.  | ||
| Ourdee |
If he is going to stop, it should be in the next within the next hour. | ||
| Ourdee |
There have been a couple of drops of rain so far. But, not enough to wet the pavement here. I hope the Crusty is making good time. I talked to him on Greg's phone last night. We were on the same page. We do not need to fellowship as much as we need Crusty home from the adventure so he can unwind. I am looking forward to a good snippet. | ||
| Tootal |
From the looks of that seat and the handlebar position he will definitely be ready to get off that torture machine! | ||
| Tootal |
Crusterific has made it home. He called me about an hour ago and is exhausted. Last 100 miles in stop and go light rain. A hot shower and he's probably in the recliner! Mission accomplished! | ||
| Ourdee |
I bet he gets up in the middle of the night to go look at the bike. | ||
| Tootal |
Only to swap seats with the 05! | ||
| Crusty |
836.6 Miles I’m home. I’m stiff, sore and generally feel whipped. It was only 836.6 miles (1346.4 Km.) and it took me three days to do it, but I’ve done 1200 mile rides straight through that weren’t as tough. But I did it. Maybe I’m getting soft and maybe I’m getting old and maybe the Roadster in it’s present configuration is a bad design for long rides, but, as Gunny Highway said, I “Improvised, overcame and adapted”. I wrote about Friday in my last Snippet. Yesterday, (Saturday) was a much nicer day, weather wise, The temps were about 20º warmer and the sun was out. I had a pretty good day and could have run for a good bit longer, but I wanted to visit with Greg. I arrived and we talked for a bit, then we went out to get some BBQ. When we got to the joint, they had a big sign blocking the drive through that said, “SOLD OUT”. So we went back to Greg’s house and had some pretty tasty Chili. We watched a bunch of videos on Greg’s TV and shot the bull. One of the videos we watched was some cute honey working on the engine of her Audi (it’s pronounced “Odd-ee”, not “Ow-dee”, BTW. That really frosts US Audi owners, but the German engineers who designed the cars pronounce it that way) Anyhow, this attractive honey was sometimes showing great cleavage and making suggestive comments and she cleaned everything she touched. She’d never make much dough if she worked in a garage, but the things she worked on would be fixed right and would be spotless.There was also a video where someone took the Indian Challenge. His personal bike is a 2019 H-D bagger and he took out one of the new water cooled engine Indians. His noted that they both made the same torque, but the Chief made more horsepower. He pointed out the plusses each one had over the other, and by numbers, the Indian won. But we don’t ride numbers, we ride motorcycles. If numbers were the only criteria, then almost everybody would beat H-Ds in sales. Instead, H-D beats everybody in their category combined. The conclusion the tester reached was that he preferred his Harley to the Indian. Today was a very tough day for me. I was stiff and sore when I set out from Greg’s house and that just increased as the miles rolled past. Yesterday was the long day, so I figured today might be a little better. Well; the temperature was about 10 degrees colder and I hit light, intermittent rain for the last 100 miles. I had wanted to stop and visit with R.D., but since I didn’t have my phone with me and hadn’t written his address on paper, I didn’t know where to go. or how to reach him. So I just beat it for home. As soon as I got home, I took a long, hot shower to get the chill out of my body, then took a short (1/2 hour) nap. I woke up and fixed dinner and I’m just keeping a low profile. I’m going to write a Snippet about how Harley can build some of the best bikes I’ve ever ridden, while being some of the worst bikes I’ve ever ridden at the same time; but not right now. I’m too tired and I can’t think straight. My wrists, arms, shoulders, neck and upper back all are hurting, and my butt is especially sore (get your mind out of that gutter!). I have a set of bars downstairs that I can throw on the bike, and I think I’ll pull the Sundowner seat off the Roadster temporally and use it on the Express until I can afford a new Saddleman Wide seat for it. Those are the first changes I’m going to make. I like the fuel injection and the suspension is a whole lot better than the older forks and shocks. I don’t care for the little tank that means stopping for gas every 100 miles, but I have a Custom tank that’s waiting for me to POR 15 it and have Joe paint it along with the new fenders that I still have to get. There’s a lot more that needs doing, but it can wait until the money appears. I’ll just keep chipping away at it. So That’s where everything is at for the present. I’m home with my new bike. I’m very stiff and sore from the bike, but I still like it a lot anyhow and I’m going to personalize it until it’s right. It is, after all, a Harley. Nobody leaves one 100% stock. | ||
| Ourdee |
 | ||
| Pwnzor |
Very glad you made it home safely, and looking forward to the evolution of the New Gentleman's Express. | ||
| 86129squids |
"Can't get home on Chrome"... (a) Rest. (b) Eat well, look after your old carcass. You rode an old/Newish boneshaker with a pee-nut tank from Wichita, home. PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN. Again, rest and replentish as needed. | ||
| Blake |
The 1916-1918 flu pandemic began with burning pig manure in Kansas. |
