So, a few weeks ago I headed out to Florida from Michigan. Had my bags packed and ready to go, did a small test ride and found an empty parking lot with a full load to see how the bike would handle the day before leaving.

On the trip down I took I-75 and occasionally, I left the highway for some side roads to take in the view and the tranquility of the small towns that I passed through. Very relaxing, no schedule, no time crunch and no worries, loved it. Had no bad experiences, such as being cut off or tailgated, nothing, it was perfect... until I got on the Atlanta bypass. Found myself sitting in traffic, that didn't bother me, it actually gave me a chance to stand up and stretch when stopped and had a smoke or two while in the slower than parked traffic.

While sitting in the traffic I was attacked by a member of the blue hair brigade, she swerved right towards me and I am glad that the traffic was only going about 20-25MPH. No big deal, just took it in stride, gave a dirty look and pressed on. Got Florida just a few hours after passing through Atlanta and was able to see some family and relax for a few weeks.

Day 1 - while repacking to return to Michigan, I was reflecting on how much I enjoyed my trip down and was hoping to duplicate it on the way home. I left Gainesville at about 7pm and headed north, as I am driving something felt strange, so I pull off. My rear tire was low, so after checking the pressure again, I had lost some pressure, it was reading at barely 20psi. Filled it and kept going, checked it every time I stopped, did lose any more don't know the reason for the loss of air but didn't lose any more.

Feeling good, like I can get to at least to the TN/KY state line before stopping for some sleep, and I am only about 20 miles south of Atlanta by this time. When I hear a loud clang and a sudden power surge, so I start checking what I can while rolling and when I look down I see my horn bouncing off of my engine. I was able to get off the highway to inspect what happened, thought that I may have not tightened some nuts when I rewired the horn when I was in Florida. Nope, not the nuts. The mounting bracket for the horn/choke cable snapped off at the right angle by the upper motor mount. This is when I wound out that I had left my open ended wrenches and crescent wrench at home. Took me 2 hours to find somebody that had a wrench that I could use to remove the bracket that was still attached to the choke cable. The kind gentleman offered the help when he saw me pull out my knife (was going to cut the choke cable). Glad he offered, only took about 3 minutes to remove and zip-tie the wires up and out of the way. By the time I got back on the road it was almost 3am, I had already lost the will to try and push through TN, so I got a room for the night.

Day 2 - I woke up feeling a little used, but rested. I had fallen asleep at about 4am and woke up at 7. Three hours of refreshing sleep and I was back on the road. Ride through the rest of Georgia and Tennessee was awesome and relaxing, not much traffic. Temperature was good and I was only stopping for fuel, no pleasure stops on this leg of the trip. By the time I had gotten to the Kentucky state line I was regretting drink the amount of water I had. So, had to stop to take care of business. Staggering back out to my bike while trying to regain feeling in my legs had a quick smoke and shot the breeze with a few other riders. They left as I was checking my straps on my bags and putting my helmet back on. I sit down turn the ignition on, push the button and nothing. No death click, no wah-wah-wah... just plain ole won't start. That is when I started making a mental note of what else to put in my tool bag, and ohm meter. Called my insurance, they got me a truck and was told it would be about an hour until he arrived. About 2 hours later the truck get there, the driver was apologizing to me and felt bad that he had no way to get a hold of me to let me know he was delayed. He had explained that he had hit a deer on the way there, and had to wait for the police so he could file an accident report so he can do the whole insurance thing for repairs. I enjoyed the hour and a half ride back to Knoxville, the wrecker driver was a very funny man and help went above and beyond what he had to do. We finally get to the dealership and they had just closed maybe 45minutes before we had got there. So, had to get a room again. I started to tear down the bike while at the hotel, had a full tank of gas, so I lifted it as much as I could. Checked all of the electrical connections, tightened bolts, took apart the switches on the bars, all looked good. Then I took off the dash to check the ignition switch, all was fine but I noticed a small puddle of gas had collected under the dash and looked up. The overflow line at the top right side of the tank was broken, just shook my head put the bike back together and went to bed.

Day 3 - The shop had pick-up service and picked up the bike at about 10. I was worried that it was going to be something with the starter. Off loaded the bike and about 10 minutes later had it running. Carl, the tech, said it was definitely not the starter. He went inside and came back out with a wire crimp and a little 60 cent wire connector. The wire had broke off inside the plastic plug for the ignition relay, that was it, so I got his name and talked with him for a bit. I felt guilty, they didn't charge me a dime and wouldn't even let me tip them (I tried). Just told me to enjoy my ride and to stop in next time I am through Knoxville.

I get back to my trip, make it to and through Kentucky as smooth as could be. Cross into Ohio, fill up and head back out and get through Cincinnati and I am near a small town called Franklin. This is where I found out what sounds scarily similar to an IED blowing up; I was at about the half way point while passing a semi, intently watching the idiot in front of me on his phone, swerving and tapping his brake peddle every 1/2 second. That's when it happened, inside tire on the back trailer axle blew; a quick scream and a shart, scared me so bad, almost laid my bike down right there. I had to pull off and regain my composure, almost forgot to put down the stand when I was dismounting the bike. And when I finally got off of the bike, my legs gave out on me and almost bounced my face off of the sidewalk. Thanks to a few people that had seen the what happened, they were nice enough to talk with me and not let me get back on road until I had calmed down enough to ride. Well, I know me and I know how long it takes to come down from an anxiety episode, so I got another room.

Day 4 - Made it home in one piece, and the bike in a few more than it left in. I chalk it up to a learning experience and a great one at that. Did one more final inspection on the bike before I put it in the garage for the night. Found oil all over the engine, have a small seep somewhere on the front/right side of the engine, not bad considering I rode it harder than a $5 ***** on $2 night. I am quite impressed with this little machine, they are tough little bastards and I love every minute that I get to ride it.

Sorry this was so long, but thank you for reading it!

 

Well it sounds as if you had a fairly epic trip. Glad that you had fun and that the breakdown was not anything serious.

 

thanks for sharing. sounds like it was a great ride. i think the truck tire blow-out would have scared the crap out of me too. a lot of gaters laying in the road as the summer starts. sounds like you got great service at the dealer that fixed your wires. its actions like that, that really set some dealers apart from others. you ought to throw them in the good dealer section.

cass

 

Nice write-up. Glad you're alright and made it one piece. Sounds eventful! Lesson learned- have enough money for unexpected hotel rooms

 

Sounds like fun. All that was missing was you laying a kung-fu beating on someone (like on T.V.)

 

Sounds like you had a good time and a few bumps in the road..All the reasons we ride for as these life experiences are what it is all about..expect the unexpected..

 

You had an Adventure Ride. Congrats! When are you heading out again?

 

its those crazy thing that you'll remember later in life as great as the trip was it the **** happens thing that youll laugh about.

 

Great write-up, thanks for sharing. These are always my favorite kinds of threads.

 

Amazing in that I had similar experiences on a tour last month from Alabama to South Dakota and Wyoming.

At one point in Nebraska, on our way back, I noticed my Street Glide handling strangely, but attributed it to heavy rains and 50mph winds. The next morning I realized I had been riding on a flat, or at least near flat rear tire as it was completely flat. I already had one plug in it, so I was pleased when it held after I inflated it at a nearby station. We rode 40 miles back out of the way (west) to a dealer I had spotted through the rain and got it replaced. Then in Kansas about 50 miles north of Wichita, the Dyna my son had been riding had another similar experience as yours. We had stopped for him to change from tinted to clear glasses, and when he turned the key back on - nothing. My diagnosis, which later turned out to be correct, was just a battery connection.

After stripping off all the bags, I realized the handy tool kit and survival tool - both specifically designed for Harleys - could not even get to the seat screw, nor could the little socket set get to the nuts so we could remove the luggage rack and sissy bar to make it easy to get to the seat screw. I went inside the gas station to buy a real screwdriver, but my son came in and said never mind, he had "fixed it." Turns out he had gotten so mad he kicked it, and that had re-joined the connection.

This fix held just long enough for us to get to Wichita for a late supper at Cracker Barrel. Across the street from the Cracker Barrel we stopped to fill up, as the plan was to push on down to Oklahoma. But again the gages would not illuminate when he turned on the key. I got directions to the local WalMart and rode there to get some real tools. When I got back my son had again stripped the luggage, and we were able to get the seat off with one of those S-shaped screwdrivers. The problem was that the female threaded hole in the battery that holds the positive bolt had worked apart so far there was no connection. We fixed it with some channel lock pliers by squeezing that soft material back together. By now it was 11:30pm, so we just rode to a motel. I replaced the battery when we got back.

We were SO LUCKY that the final breakdown occurred at a very well lit gas station, and not in the dark in the middle of nowhere.

This is our fourth long trip on these Harleys, and the first time I had decided to pare down my usual bulky kit to just these small ineffective units. My lessons learned:

(1) First day back I put back together my old bulky tool kit for touring, including the small units but not relying on them completely.

(2) Stop and check it out when the bike starts handling funny, even if conditions are unfamiliar.