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My experience with dirt roads and baggers is they are fine as long as the roads are more hard pack than loose. They can be scary in heavy rain. And the big thing to look for is when a dirt road has had the grader go over it. Now it's super loose and the front end likes to "snow plow" In upstate NY I will occasionally ride dirt to connect two points on a trip.
Loose dirt roads are etched in my mind forever after doing nearly 20-miles of it on the Wounded Knee Nation on a 2011 Ultra Limited, fully loaded - two up. Yes I'm stubborn, and was suckered into it by a local who said it was paved. Well the first mile on each end was, with nothing but dirt in between.
If you have to ride on dirt roads on a regular bases keep an eye on the drive belt and sprockets.
It may be time to look into some sort of Adventure Touring Bike, or pave the road to your house.
Hi all,
Montana boy here so while I don't like riding on gravel it happens here. If it's hard packed gravel its not an issue, soft or mushy is no good. I did pick up a small rock chip in my belt guard that put a 1/8" groove in the top of belt but not down to cord on my old RKC many years ago in a gravel parking lot. Shortly after that one indy told me he wouldn't ride one mile with a belt like that. Belt had 70,000 more miles put on it after damage was done when I sold the bike and no issues at all.
goldie
Looks like a party run we used to attend in southern Missouri, had a steam to cross and dirt track up a decent hill to get to get to it. Good times.
Yep, same thing here. Easy ride on my enduro, little harder on the Road King. Sank down a wee bit further in that creek crossing than I expected, forgot to factor in the weight, 😂
thinking of mounting some Kenda knobbies next year, and doing it again.
Yep, same thing here. Easy ride on my enduro, little harder on the Road King. Sank down a wee bit further in that creek crossing than I expected, forgot to factor in the weight, 😂
thinking of mounting some Kenda knobbies next year, and doing it again.
Yeah looked like you got a good dunk there.
Try that crossing on a chopper with skinny 21" and no fender , most of us looked like drowned rats.
Just thrown in one thing not mentioned. On of the nastiest injuries I ever had was from coming off mud back onto a paved road and not taking into consideration the camber at the side of the road. The gravel/mud collected on the sides, not center, of the tire and when I hit the camber, the bike slide from under me and we landed on two points, the engine bar and my knee which, although I was going slow, was a bit like kneeling on a course angle grinder.
Always been a little been a little cautious of doing the same again, eg try and run over some grass to clean the tires etc.
An FLH with knobbly tires? I suspect it's been done and would like to see it! Could lead to a whole new sport or genre ... of Bagger Enduro.
I'd be tempted to build a garage at the end of the path and have a dirt bike to get there. Or go rat.
I like riding the occasional dirt road, but I probably would not want 1.5 miles of dirt to get to my house. Messy and slippery when wet. Anyhow, my jagg oil cooler has taken quite a few hits and stones in belt drives are not good. Also there are openings in front of the rear tire that allow a lot of crap to get into the battery area and generally under the seat. Still,it’s fun.
I actually live on a gravel road with about 1/2 mile to the highway. Love living in the country! As others have mentioned it is impossible to keep the bike showroom clean due to the dust. Once I gave up trying to keep it showroom clean it got better. Lol.
I usually give it a complete detail once or twice a year. Would do it more often but I have very salty well water so have to wash it somewhere else. The first ride down the dirt road after detailing is painful lol.
At the end of the day you just have to get your head to accept that the bike is to ridden and enjoyed and not a garage queen. If you cant accept that it will drive you crazy.
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