Too tired to post yesterday. Here's Saturday and Sunday:
Met up with a group led by Smokin' Joe at the Travelodge in Clinton on Friday nite after 700 miles. Ate and then went to bed. Got up early to try and fix the rattling brake - no luck.
Met up at 8:30 and kickstands up from Hardees at 9:00 am for the trip to Lenoir. Joe led us on a great ride to the Blue Ridge parkway and rode a leisurely ride for him, which means I was doing everything I could to keep up with the group. On this area of the Parkway, you had to be very diligent and aware at all times. There was no time or place for you to drift off - full focus was required to keep the bike on the road. Even looking in the mirrors was chancey - that brief moment of not looking forward caused a couple of close calls by the rider just ahead of me (and he confirmed he was checking his mirrors when those incidents occurred). I did pretty well, in my opinion. Stayed up with the group, didn't fall behind, didn't have any brown pants moments.
We did come upon an accident during our trip where the road was blocked and we were detoured one direction at a time through an overlook area. Lots of emergency vehicles. Saw a BMW GS series on it's kickstand in the main road with damage on it. Found out later the rider had perished in that crash. Sad for his family.
We didn't eat lunch until around 3:00pm, so everyone was hungry and my sugar levels were not doing well. I was starting to get light-headed. After eating, felt some better and we headed back on the Blue Ridge parkway for the trip to Lenoir. Unfortunately, I was NOT feeling great and the day before's long ride was weighing down on me and my focus was not 100%. So I pulled over, waved the guys on and took my time riding with a plan to go directly to the hotel. Wimp came back and wanted to make sure I was OK and we then rode and met the rest of the group at an overlook. Joe was worried that I thought he was going too fast, etc, but I told him that I was just tired, wasn't 100% and I was not riding my ride. So, finally convinced everyone to go on and I took Highway 80 back, which was the twistiest road I've ever been on. At 10mph, I was scraping the pegs to make the turn. So much for taking an easy way back! After 10 miles of that, made it to I-40 and then on relatively straight roads back to the hotel. Visited with some of the riders gathered here. Got into a group having a spirited discussion about the darkside (they were against it) and then made a bee-line to the room, where a hot shower and a night of sleep beckoned me, and I obliged. I think I made it to 9PM EDT before sleeping.
Got up Sunday morning feeling a lot better. Went to the I/S and took off the caliper and found the clattering source - the retaining clip was bent back a bit and not contacting the brake shoe. A few bends with needlenose and - no more clatter! WOO-HOO!!!
Ate breakfast with another rider named Mark (2 years on his Valk). Britman was also there and I asked if there would be two groups (one fast - one for the slower riders) and he said no, just one group of about 30-35.
At 9:00am, our rider meeting took place. Britman said he had 3 rules:
1) It is not a race
2) If you can't see the guy behind you in your mirrors, pull over and wait. No man left behind ( I took out the colorful language, but with the British accent and use of words, it was great).
3) It is not a race.
With that, we lined up, the checkered flag was dropped and the race began.
The next 33 miles was twisties at 60 mph, up the mountain and back down. It was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. The number of bikes, the other traffic and the switchback nature of the road made me push my own limits.
Some of us flatlanders (Mitch and Linda from Illinois, Wendell from Iowa, Mike from Indiana and Frank from Arizona) stayed near the back of the pack. At the 33 mile stop and regroup point, Wendell's I/S started showing signs of a bad battery or alternator. He did get it started with the starter, but the lights were starting to dim. The main group took off but the gang of 5 waited to see if Wendell could continue. He said yes, the battery must be bad and he'd just keep it running. We then began trying to catch up with the group (rule 2 was not a rule, but a guideline).
The gang of 5 were all Interstates except for Frank - he was on an Ultra Classic.
4 miles later, just as we got to the entrance for the Blue Ridge parkway, his dashboard went blank and he pulled into a parking lot. The rest of the gang of 5 followed. We discussed the issue and figured the alternator was gone. Then all the saddlebags opened up and enough tools came out from every Valk to rebuild the Queen Mary. A backrest had to be removed before the seat could come off, so that was about a 20 minute process. A pickup stopped and loaned us jumper cables, so got the I/S started and then put a voltmeter across. Alternator dead was the diagnosis.
So it's Sunday, we are 37 miles from a town in the mountains and we need an alternator. Usually, that would be a problem, except I have kept a spare in my saddlebags since before going to Inzane last year. And now, it became useful.
Mitch is a diesel engine mechanic in his work life, so he immediately started working. In 10 minutes, he had the dead alternator out (didn't remove the center panel either). He and Mike unhooked the cables, then they took the MARS unit I had, reattached and in about 15 minutes had the new one back in. Used a little engine oil off of the dipstick to get the o-ring on the alternator to slip in a bit easier. In 30 minutes, the alternator was switched out and he had never done it before. Impressive.
Frank took lots of pictures to show his HD buddies and for a goldwing friend who gives him grief about his HD. Pretty funny.
The seat was put on for a test and we push-started Wendell. Once the bike was running, the lights were bright and he did a u-turn, came back to us and..... turned off the bike. As all of us were yelling "NO". So, we turned him around again, push started and this time, he left the bike running with his throttle lock holding 2000 rpm. Parts taken off during repair were re-installed, the bike was shut off and then we waited a minute until Wendell hit the starter button and it started. Life is good. How often to you get a real mechanic, all the tools you need and the part you need all together at the right time? Life is good. God is good.
Both Wendell and I had programmed in the route, so we knew where everyone went. So, I began leading the ride on the Blue Ridge parkway and did so for the next 50 miles until a programmed gas stop. We rode on twisty roads with no vision around the turn, gravel in the turns, etc. When we got to the gas stop, there was no sign of the main group. We stopped following the route shortly thereafter and tried to cut off some of the ride to go to points where we thought they might be. One or two stops for recalibration and then Wendell took the lead with his GPS. After travelling a while, we got to a turn off and my body said "time to pee". Right as we stopped, we saw one of the riders from the main group. No one else was ready to potty, so I waived them on and went. I knew the route, so no big deal.
After refreshing myself, I took off again. Twisty after twisty, I was picking up speed. After 30 minutes of hard riding, I caught the gang of 4 (now 5 again). They had not found the main group.
We stopped and discussed another shortcut and I had the lead again. We ended up going down Hwy 80 again, the same road I had been on the day before. Still the nastiest, twistiest road I've ever been on. This waypoint did not find the main group, so we decided to head back to the motel, as we were not going to catch anyone at this rate.
It was funny coming back. I pulled over on Hwy 70 to do a regroup and Linda (Mitch's wife) said she and Mitch were talking about how a drunk must have designed Hwy 70, since it was the only straight road around.
Arrived back at the hotel and Wendell brought out the beer. He was very grateful and gracious to us all and after all of us cleaned up, we walked across the street to the Mayflower Seafood Restaurant and bought all of us dinner as thanks for our help. The food was piled high - no one cleaned their plate.
We then walked back across the street and found many had returned from the main group. There was one spill in the main group but no one was injured. Walked around a bit, found out my alternator was the talk of the town and pointed at Mitch being the reason we were back on the road so quickly.
Wendell didn't have a good handle (he called himself CoOpMan) but he got a new one today - PushStart.
It's about 7:00pm, my belly is full and I'm tired, so I came back to my room to rest for a little bit before joining the beer drinking and bs sessions. I figured 15 minutes would do it. I woke up at midnight. Was more tired than I thought.
So now I am on the computer.
Here's pictures from the last 2 days. Not a complete picture log, but the Blackberry battery doesn't hold up all day when the reception is poor - uses too much juice to update.
Santa Tom wishing me a Merry Ride at breakfast Saturday
Gathering at Hardees
LaserPat was on the ride, too.
First stop Saturday morning for a "break" in Pigeon Forge
Second stop - the border.
What trip is complete without a visit by Santa to SantaLand in Cherokee, TN?
3rd Stop - highest point marker
Sunday morning - day of the Britman Memorial Day Ride
The 3 rules speech
We went on a ride and a wrench party broke out
Fits like a glove
and then, the battery on my Blackberry got too low so shut it off to use in case of emergency.
Tomorrow (today - it's 3:05am) heading into Virginia for an overnight stop, then on to Wash DC and Arlington National. The rest of the trip is up in the air due to tropical storm Beryl. Plan to stop in Raliegh, NC on Tuesday night to visit with old fraternity brother, but will then set my sights to the west on I-20 to try and stay drier than if I went further south.
More tonight.
RainMaker
