An old motorcycle Christmas story.

[solo1]

It's been lying around so I thought that members might enjoy it.

                                       .Christmas and my Harley Davidson


It was close to Christmas. I was working for my brother-in-law in his body shop in Ohio City,
Ohio. I commuted back and forth from Ft. Wayne by bus since I didn’t have a car.

. In my group, I was the only one that didn't
have a motorcycle. However, there was one for sale that cold day in Ohio. It was a 1935 Harley 45
cubic inch side valve  with a "suicide clutch" and hand shift It was in bad shape but it
ran. Sorta like a pickup truck previously owned by about 10 guys. "Rode Hard and Put away
Wet"
In my youthful ignorance, it looked great. The shifting gate had been removed because the
linkage and tranny were worn out and more room was needed for the shifting.. This helped in getting the ole HD into 2nd and third gear with an occasional shift to first depending on the attitude of this old clunker. No front brake (who needs it?), the knob on the ignition switch was long gone and someone had stuck a hairpin(ladies bobby pin) on it. Remember them??
A lot of other things were wrong with the Harley but, what the hey, it looked good to this 19 year
old. I bought it on the spot for $75.00. Now to get it home.
It was snowing when I left with a temperature of about 28 degrees. However, this Harley did have
a short windshield on it. I figured that this would keep me warm on that 50 mile trip back to Ft.
Wayne.
So after checking the oil (had to add two quarts of 70 weight into the tank) I was ready to hit the road(figuratively speaking)
After having some trouble with the shifting and that @#$A&* clutch, I was off.
The ride from Ohio City to Van Wert was COLD. There were a few places on the road where the
snow had started to drift and that  tightened up my young butt but all in all, not too bad. Ah, the confidence of youth!
Arriving in downtown Van Wert, a chilly blustery 10 miles, I hung a left onto Lincoln Highway and stumbled and rattled my
way through town. Not too bad, I thought. Nothing to it!
However, once I got out of town, the wind was fierce and I was riding into it. The snow hadn't
fully covered the road yet but going past the windbreaks like barns, trees, and such, it was a
different matter. The Harley was perfectly content to cruise at a stately 50 miles per hour with an
occasional a**  puckering drop to 40 to get through the snow. It was a good thing that it liked
this speed since both rods were loose and they seemed the quietest at this pace. The windshield
helped some but still it was cold. My knees took a permanent set at about a 90 degree angle. I
know, since I looked down at them regularly to see if they were still there since I couldn't
feel them. My face was numb, my hands were past that even though I had heavy gloves on. I kept
talking to myself, asking why I was doing this.
One thing that I'll say for that Harley. It never missed a beat, just kept rattling along putting out that Patato beat through its worn out rusted exhaust
Except for being cold, the ride was good. I was on top of the world with an honest to God real
Motorcycle under me! Much better than my Whizzer motorbike and almost as fast!
Another story though was the worn out WWII field jacket, the wool pants, and the work boots, they just weren’t getting the job done. No good motorcycle cold weather gear back then.
Now it's snowing harder as I hit the city limits of Ft. Wayne. I still have to manuever down about
ten different streets on the east side before I get home to Mom and Dad.  The streets are
covered in snow. It's getting dicey some sliding but no big deal,  not enough power to slide her sideways if I gunned it. I arrived home with my butt puckered up so far that it was all I could do to unfold my
stiff knees. When I got off the bike, I did a fair imitation of Groucho Mark's duckwalk but I was
  HOME.  That old Harley got me home in time for Christmas.

[Valker]

Wow, thanks for another one. I am doing my third 12 hour day here at school (no overtime here) this week, just took a short break and you had me WAY out of here. Thanks again. Now, gotta finish this stuff!

[John Schmidt]

Great story Wayne, also brings back some memories for me as well.

One October I was hitchhiking from Iowa back to northern Maine in the early 60's where I was stationed. I got as far as the PA Turnpike with rides and seemed to hit a wall once my ride stopped at a service plaza. I was in my uniform and standing near the plaza exit when this kid pulls up on an old beater of a Harley, asked where I was headed. He then asked if I knew how to ride a bike, since I hadn't had a ride in nearly two hours my answer was "yes." It wasn't a lie, I had ridden any number of the "oldies" similar to the one you described. This kid didn't have a back seat or any padding there, so I bundled up so stuff from my bag and sat on that....and away we went, headed east.  I don't think we ever went over 55 except maybe downhill, but it was ooohhh so cold. Every 50 miles we switched places and I'd drive while he crouched down behind me(no windshield either). There wasn't any snow on the ground, just a strong wind and 25 degree temps without figuring any chill factor. We made it to his house in Stamford, Conn. riding through the night, his brother took me to the Grayhound station and I rode the rest of the way via bus. I think I'm still thawing from that ride, nearly 500 miles of cold misery.

[..]

F'in brilliant. Thanks fer the memories. 

[Popeye]

Great story, thanks for sharing.  Keep em coming.

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

Great read  

[Thunderbolt]

I always enjoy the way you put it together.  I remember the picture that you posted several years ago of the trip on the Blue Ridge Parkway just after it was started.

[Karen]

Thanks, I could feel the ache as I read. That beats the hell out of my 2 & 1/2 day ride from Fort McClellan Alabama to Detroit on my 50cc motor scooter in the summer of 63, but the pucker factor when hitting the wind at the end  of a barn even at 30mph  was considerable. Please keep writing, you are a National Treasure!

[Normandog]

Thanks Wayne. That was a good read. Now excuse me while I go stand by the fire and thaw out my knees. 

[JimL]

Interesting story Wayne, thanks for sharing it!  Anyone who has seen the movies of the Marx Brothers knows exactly what you mean by "Groucho duckwalk", however with each passing year there are fewer and fewer folks that would understand it.

[Charlie McCready]

" I kept
talking to myself, asking why I was doing this.".......been there, done that many times !!!!    Good write Wayne.....thanks.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

Really enjoyed that story. Just got back from a few days at deer camp and I could feel the cold again as I read.