August 6, 2011
Strange days and strange occurrences:
Yesterday, Mike and I pulled out of St. Ignace and headed out Highway 2 toward Ironwood, Michigan…which is a rock throw from the Wisconsin State Line. We had to pull over about 30 miles out to put more gear on…it was chilly, and riding along Lake Michigan added to the chill in the air. A short while later, Mike pulled over----his bike had rolled over 100,000 miles! Took pictures and saddled back up, and had an easy ride through little towns and farmland.
Strange days and strange occurrences:
Yesterday, Mike and I pulled out of St. Ignace and headed out Highway 2 toward Ironwood, Michigan…which is a rock throw from the Wisconsin State Line. We had to pull over about 30 miles out to put more gear on…it was chilly, and riding along Lake Michigan added to the chill in the air. A short while later, Mike pulled over----his bike had rolled over 100,000 miles! Took pictures and saddled back up, and had an easy ride through little towns and farmland.
MIKE'S BIKE AT 100,000 MILES!
JUST OUTSIDE OF ST IGNACE, MI
Suddenly I saw the Engine Warning Light on my speedo come on…off, on, off, on, off….Pulled over and checked the codes, called the nearest Harley dealer (90 miles away) and asked what the code was. He told me it was a battery voltage code…so I pulled the seat and checked the cables on my battery. Yep, they were a bit loose. Looks like the assholes at the Harley dealer in Knoxville never checked it when they “serviced” my bike (standard procedure, by the way…). Mike also mentioned that my headlight wasn’t working. Hmmmm.
The high beam still worked, so I knew I only needed a new bulb. With no Harley dealer anywhere near, I hoped I could just get a bulb at an auto parts store once we stopped for the day. I tightened the cables, cleared the codes, and off we went. Found a little café for lunch, and headed back out shortly after noon.
All was good until we came to a stoplight in the middle of nowhere, and I tried to downshift…but had NO SHIFTER! After a quick “what the hell?” moment, I nursed my scoot into a parking lot. Mike said I should find some shade and he would head back to look for it---but I said not to bother, as I had brought an extra one with me. Go figure, it was one of those “I’ll just throw it in the saddlebag in case” things when I was packing.
The high beam still worked, so I knew I only needed a new bulb. With no Harley dealer anywhere near, I hoped I could just get a bulb at an auto parts store once we stopped for the day. I tightened the cables, cleared the codes, and off we went. Found a little café for lunch, and headed back out shortly after noon.
All was good until we came to a stoplight in the middle of nowhere, and I tried to downshift…but had NO SHIFTER! After a quick “what the hell?” moment, I nursed my scoot into a parking lot. Mike said I should find some shade and he would head back to look for it---but I said not to bother, as I had brought an extra one with me. Go figure, it was one of those “I’ll just throw it in the saddlebag in case” things when I was packing.
ROADSIDE SURGERY
READY TO ROLL AGAIN!
About five minutes later we were cruising down the road. Got into Ironwood in the early afternoon & got checked in to the motel. Great little place, Mom & Pop-type of place, called the Budget Host Inn…big room, great price, and a few other bikers there. Even better, it was right next door to an auto parts store! (Special thanks to Chris at Urban Custom Bikes for telling me which type of bulb I needed…) But…the A/C quit working about ½ hour after checking in! Mike called the desk, the owner asked if we wanted another room, but since we had already unpacked and showered, Mike just asked if he had a fan we could use to get the air moving. He brought a big pedestal fan up, apologized all over the place and asked again if he could give us another room.
Headed off early the next morning, as we had planned a long day. Crossed the Wisconsin line almost immediately (yes, more pics) and set the cruise at 60, enjoying the morning ride through the countryside.
IRONWOOD, MI
WISCONSIN WELCOMES ME????
After a quick stop for coffee in Iron River, WI; almost immediately I saw the Engine Light on again! Round two: scan the codes (same one), pull the seat, check the cables, clear the code, hit the road…and after about 20 miles, it happened again. OK, this is not good, I told Mike we were going to get it checked in Duluth at the Harley shop there…or so I thought.
Got into Duluth a little after 9am, got to Harley-Davidson Sport Center and checked in with the service writer…who promptly told me he couldn’t get to my bike and suggested I go back to Superior (Wisconsin, across the bay) to an independent shop there called Color and Chrome. Of course, by this time my Tourette’s was in danger of kicking in….but, we found our way back to Superior, and Terry and Mike got my bike right in and checked it out---I had a charging system that had gone tits up, just what I was afraid of. Even more troubling, I noticed my back tire was damn near bald---ANOTHER thanks to the assholes in Knoxville who didn’t bother to tell me I was in need of a new tire! The guys at Color and Chrome ran into Duluth to get the parts, and Mike (their technician) got busy tearing my scoot down. Great guys, really cool old-school bike shop, nothing fancy at all…but these guys knew their stuff! They got the stator and voltage regulator replaced and put on a new rear tire, and had me back on the road about 2pm.
Got into Duluth a little after 9am, got to Harley-Davidson Sport Center and checked in with the service writer…who promptly told me he couldn’t get to my bike and suggested I go back to Superior (Wisconsin, across the bay) to an independent shop there called Color and Chrome. Of course, by this time my Tourette’s was in danger of kicking in….but, we found our way back to Superior, and Terry and Mike got my bike right in and checked it out---I had a charging system that had gone tits up, just what I was afraid of. Even more troubling, I noticed my back tire was damn near bald---ANOTHER thanks to the assholes in Knoxville who didn’t bother to tell me I was in need of a new tire! The guys at Color and Chrome ran into Duluth to get the parts, and Mike (their technician) got busy tearing my scoot down. Great guys, really cool old-school bike shop, nothing fancy at all…but these guys knew their stuff! They got the stator and voltage regulator replaced and put on a new rear tire, and had me back on the road about 2pm.
A LITTLE MORE ROAD SURGERY
YEAH, IT'S THE MIDDLE OF THE BRIDGE
COLOR & CHROME BIKE SHOP, SUPERIOR, WI
TERRY & MIKE WORKING ON MY FAVORITE SCOOT
Lesson #1 learned: if in Duluth, don’t bother with Harley-Davidson Sport Center, hit the guys up at Color and Chrome in Superior instead. Lesson #2 learned: DON’T let the guys at Knoxville Harley-Davidson anywhere near your ride!
HARLEY-DAVIDSON SPORTS CENTER IN DULUTH. THEY SUCK
By the time we got ready to roll, the rain and thunder had moved in with a vengeance! We slogged our way back over to Duluth to grab a motel, only to find “no vacancy” signs all over the place. While we were riding around Duluth looking for a motel, MY scoot turned over the 100,000 mile mark! We rolled up into a Dairy Queen parking lot and grabbed a few quick pics, and splashed up the road to an Econolodge , where the clerk told us there were NO rooms available in town at all. At this point, our only choice was to head west toward Grand Rapids, about 70 miles away. So, we swam---I mean rode-- out of Duluth in the driving rain, but about 20 miles out of town the clouds broke and the rain stopped. Cruising into a little town called Floodwood about 4pm, we saw a small place on the left called the Stardust Motel, with a vacancy sign! Got checked in and got the wet gear off. Definitely recommend this place: clean rooms, fridge, and microwave, right between two restaurants and across the street from a gas station/store. Got parked, unpacked and dried off…and had a drink!
100,000 MILES ON MY 2006 ROAD KING!
STARDUST MOTEL, FLOODWOOD MN
FLOODWOOD, MN-MOST ALL OF IT!
ST LOUIS BAY, OFF LAKE SUPERIOR BETWEEN SUPERIOR WI & DULUTH MN
CHEERS!