New youngin from NJ
#1
03-19-2014, 03:18 AM
New youngin from NJ
hey all, my names Louis, im 20, and from north new jersey. i ride a 2001 FLHT. my father was big into bikes before i was born, and had to sell his bike when i was born to buy a house that wasnt next to a busy street. many years later, my dad finally gets a new bike. the 01 FLHT. it was beautiful, and ridden by the original owner until traded in on a trike. my dad was in love and it was the happiest ive ever seen him. my dad really did live to ride.
and he did. he put close to 10k miles on it the first year he had it. a few years later, my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. the chemo really took a toll on him, but he kept riding. he always said it was his escape from everything. he rode damn near every day. he even rode to the chemo treatments some times. he did chemo for about 2 years, then one day on his way home, he got into an accident. nobody knows what happened, and he didnt remember. but from the scene, the bike was on its side about 15 feet before an s turn, where my dad slid out and into a rock wall in a ditch. he was helicoptered to the nearest "big hospital" where he had a broken arm in 2 places, several cracked ribs, a collapsed lung, a ruptured spleen, and his right eye was completely blood shot, along with his face and head bruised from the helmet impacts. he almost didnt make it through the night, but my dad was a trooper and survived several surgeries and months of therapy.
the bike was about 100 bucks away from being totaled, but they managed to get it good as new.
now im gonna back track a little bit to anyone who is still reading this long story. when my dad was riding everyday, he actually went into remission. that means the cancer was gone. they were still going to do some more chemo just to make sure it stayed gone. he went 6 months no chemo no cancer. about 3 months before the accident, the cancer came back.
now after the accident, my dad was extremely weak. 3 times more, he went out on the bike. 2 of the 3, he dropped it at a stop. after that, my dad was too afraid to keep riding. he wouldnt even let me ride it. he was too afraid. so the bike stayed under a cover in my driveway (no garage) for about a year and a half. meanwhile, my dads health declined rapidly.
on december 18th 2012, my father passed away. the cancer spread over the course of a month from his colon, to his liver and ultimately to both his lungs. my dad was in the hospital on and off between october to december. during that time, sandy blew the cover off the harley, and nobody had time to cover it back up. it was dirty, the radio was ruined, and the battery was shot. on december 20th-ish, i bought a new battery, drained the tank and refilled it, and got it filled up again. i rode it to the carwash at 1am in the freezing cold, and was going to ride it to his funeral if it werent for the snow.
so at somepoint last year it became resto time. i did just enough to get it running good, and rode it for about a month. then i tore into it, and im planning on having it completely restored by riding season this year.
im really really sorry for the long post. but i find it impossible to tell the story without telling everything. but anyway, i hope this fourm can help me get dads bike back in tip top shape.
and he did. he put close to 10k miles on it the first year he had it. a few years later, my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. the chemo really took a toll on him, but he kept riding. he always said it was his escape from everything. he rode damn near every day. he even rode to the chemo treatments some times. he did chemo for about 2 years, then one day on his way home, he got into an accident. nobody knows what happened, and he didnt remember. but from the scene, the bike was on its side about 15 feet before an s turn, where my dad slid out and into a rock wall in a ditch. he was helicoptered to the nearest "big hospital" where he had a broken arm in 2 places, several cracked ribs, a collapsed lung, a ruptured spleen, and his right eye was completely blood shot, along with his face and head bruised from the helmet impacts. he almost didnt make it through the night, but my dad was a trooper and survived several surgeries and months of therapy.
the bike was about 100 bucks away from being totaled, but they managed to get it good as new.
now im gonna back track a little bit to anyone who is still reading this long story. when my dad was riding everyday, he actually went into remission. that means the cancer was gone. they were still going to do some more chemo just to make sure it stayed gone. he went 6 months no chemo no cancer. about 3 months before the accident, the cancer came back.
now after the accident, my dad was extremely weak. 3 times more, he went out on the bike. 2 of the 3, he dropped it at a stop. after that, my dad was too afraid to keep riding. he wouldnt even let me ride it. he was too afraid. so the bike stayed under a cover in my driveway (no garage) for about a year and a half. meanwhile, my dads health declined rapidly.
on december 18th 2012, my father passed away. the cancer spread over the course of a month from his colon, to his liver and ultimately to both his lungs. my dad was in the hospital on and off between october to december. during that time, sandy blew the cover off the harley, and nobody had time to cover it back up. it was dirty, the radio was ruined, and the battery was shot. on december 20th-ish, i bought a new battery, drained the tank and refilled it, and got it filled up again. i rode it to the carwash at 1am in the freezing cold, and was going to ride it to his funeral if it werent for the snow.
so at somepoint last year it became resto time. i did just enough to get it running good, and rode it for about a month. then i tore into it, and im planning on having it completely restored by riding season this year.
im really really sorry for the long post. but i find it impossible to tell the story without telling everything. but anyway, i hope this fourm can help me get dads bike back in tip top shape.
#3
03-19-2014, 05:02 AM
Welcome from NH... I lost my father when I was around your age so I feel for you..I wish you luck in your journey to restore it as well as look forward to following your posts...
#7
03-19-2014, 08:18 AM
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#8
03-19-2014, 10:56 AM
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A big welcome to you from sunny Southern California. Glad to have you on board.
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#9
03-19-2014, 11:10 AM
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