Way back in the olde-timey days (around 2005-ish), my Pops upgraded from his 'custom' Softtail - which was just one of those S&S Evo powered bikes that were flooding the market as 'custom' alternatives to the Harley brand - to a 2004 H-D Electra Glide Ultra Classic FI.
Up to this point, I had always owned sport bikes. Me & Pops always both liked motorcycles...but, although I had ridden his Softtail occasionally, I never really understood the whole allure of H-D. I was in my mid 30's...and liked the agility, performance & overall feel of a sport bike.
Then, one day when he was traveling (he was an OTR truck driver), he called and asked me to go by his house to get his Ultra Classic and take it to get a State Inspection for license plate renewal. I hesitantly agreed.
I went and got his bike, took it to get the Inspection, and sort of hated it - compared to my CBR929rr - the Ultra Classic was like trying to ride a wild cow. It was heavy, it was cumbersome, and just felt (again, comparatively) miserable.
But. Due to the timing, I took the bike back to my house and Pops said he'd come get it in about a week when he was back in town. Pops had an agenda. He knew what he was doing and I was clueless to his plan.
Over the course of the next week I figured I would take the Ultra Classic out and put a few more miles on it.
- It had a radio & CD player which was kind of nice.
- The Wifey, who never wanted anything to do with being a passenger on my sportbikes was open to going for a ride. And she enjoyed it.
- The thing didn't really handle that bad and it did have a good amount of torque compared to my 929rr that needed RPMs to get into power.
- It was far and away more comfortable on a long ride than my sport bike.
- The windshield & fairing made a huge difference, as I wasn't getting slammed with wind the entire time
- Lastly. I found that I didn't have be be riding 100MPH everywhere. I could travel at a reasonable speed and kinda of just relax and enjoy the ride.
Pops knew precisely what he was doing when he had told me to hold on to the bike for a while. He knew what I'd do. And he knew that my experience would be.
Therein began the journey.
Together Pops and I found a used, (slightly wrecked) Road King for me. I still remember going to look at it with him, and Pops asking "You think you can fix it?"...I lied and said "yeah, I can do this".
Over the course of the next 10 to 12 years, Pops and I shared the Harley experience...
I grabbed H-D Service Manuals for his Ultra Classic and for my 1999 Road King. His bike was a test subject for the Brembo (front) Brake swap, and for a compressor install with 'Corvette Shocks' for Air Ride.
I also did engine & head work, Power Commander install & mapping. Speaker upgrades, and countless accessory installations were things I did for his bike.
Meanwhile, I built my Road King into something that ended-up in Baggers Magazine...and then did more customization to it that is far too much to list in this post.
We also brought my sister's husband into our 'Harley family' with his own 2000 Road King that I performed all of the labor & custom work on.
Additionally, several of Pop's friends used me as their 'go to Harley guy'.
All-in-all...Pops getting the 2004 Ultra Classic was the catalyst for many years of a shared interest and bonding that I don't believe we would have had otherwise.
I'll fast-forward to more recent times. Pop's, myself & my brother-in-law all have bikes that are quite nice...and get attention every time they are taken out. But Pop's health isn't great, and he doesn't feel comfortable trying to ride...especially a bike as big as his Ultra.
Last summer I went and got the bike from Pop's house and brought it to my garage. I began the process of trying to 'remove anything that wasn't absolutely necessary', so it would be a bit lighter and more manageable for him
Tour Pac and all hardware was removed. Any non-necessary lights, chrome doo-dads & accessories were removed. Seat was swapped to a slimmer/lower alternative. Suspension was replaced with shorter shocks in an effort to get him a lower standover height.
Brakes pads were replaced. Brakes were flushed. Fluids were changed. Bike was basically went thru to get maintenance items up to date...and I also got new wheels, rotors and tires for him
All of this was done in an effort to try to get him back on the bike again...even if it were just once, so he and I could take a ride along side each other again.
On March 18th of this year my Pops passed away unexpectedly. His health was not great, but we were totally not expecting it.
Pops didn't get to see his bike in person...only thru a few pics I had shared with him. I, sadly, didn't get to tell him goodbye...let alone take another ride with him.
His bike is still in my garage sitting next to mine. I have taken it for rides. I find myself going out there to tinker-around with it and being overwhelmingly sad because whatever motorcycle stuff I was doing, he is who I'd talk to about it, and that's no longer possible.
My step-mother called me the other day to tell me that she was going thru some of Pop's things, and opened the briefcase he carried with him in his travels - and she told me that he still (almost 18 years later) had kept the copy of of the magazine my bike was in with him. That hit me pretty hard.
All of the above said. I'm still waiting to hear what is going to happen with Pop's bike. Whether It will end-up being sold, or if it will 'officially' become mine. Until then, my plan is to do a few more things to it and, fingers crossed, eventually finish it to the level that I had talked about with him.
If it does end-up being passed to me, it still won't ever be 'mine'...I'll just always be borrowing Pop's bike
Anyway. About a month ago, the world lost a truly good man. I lost my dad and I lost my friend.
Here's what his bike looked like when I brought it over here, before I started doing stuff to it...
Sorry for your loss,my Dad passed in Jan.1991 at age 80,I was only 34 at the time.
He rode Harleys in the late 20's and through the great depression and had told me stories of those days biking but he gave bikes up for aircraft and never rode again.
I think partially because a good friend crashed and died right in front of him going under a streetcar in Portland.
Needless to say I never got to ride bikes with him,nice that you can cherish those memories with your dad.
I don't know how old he was but having driven OTR myself I know it's not the healthiest lifestyle and how hard it is to be away from family so much.
Much respect to your old man.
But that was a Great story...!
Your Dad truly knew what he was doing and gave you one hell of a gift as a result... I salute him...
However, I have to say, I almost spit up my beverage when I read this part
Originally Posted by Jumpman
I went and got his bike, took it to get the Inspection, and sort of hated it - compared to my CBR929rr - the Ultra Classic was like trying to ride a wild cow.
I have read and heard a lot of "comparisons" used to try to explain what riding a Harley feels like..... but that is the first time I've heard it compared to riding "a wild cow".
I'll have to defer to your experience in such matters...
I have my pops 60 duo glide that he bought in 64. Pops and their bikes are special. Back in the old days, lol, i bought an 83 wideglide, i paid it off and bought an 88 cbr 1000 hurricane. I rode the wg much more than the cbr but loved the cbr and still have the wg... fast forward to 2015. I took delivery of a new T100 the week before i lost my pops. We were at my house and i had a house full of guests after the cemetery.. my sister goes into the garage and every light on the t100 was on. The garage was dark. I was like wtf.... i started it and shut it off and the bike unlit. The dealer came to get the bike, all was ok. I told them the story... they said its just an old biker checking in. Never happened again. Pops, they know everything...
Normally I pass on these longer posts, but yours drew me in. Thanks for sharing & so glad to hear you and your dad (Pops) had such a great bond with each other & bikes. Thoughts and prayers to you, and your family & whatever happens to that sweet Ultra - it's ready to ride-on for more memories.
04-26-2024, 01:56 PM
My Pop's 2004 Ultra Classic
