|
The emperor has no clothes
|
 |
« on: December 08, 2013, 05:01:04 PM » |
|
Flew to Tampa Tuesday, picked up the bike wed. Had Grumpy service the rear end for me and left town about 5. Weather was great and reports said it was gonna hit as far south as Dallas but would be ok on hiway 10 thru Houston and San Antonio. Only made it to Tallahassee that night because of heavy fog and several deer along the way. Took off next morning with weather report about the same, all was good till Beaumont then it started getting cold but no problem I was prepared for it (or so I thought). Battled my way thru Houston traffic and by then it was down to about 30. Spent the night a little outside of Houston. Weather reports getting a little sketchier but looks like it would be ok. Got about 100 miles out of San Antonio and its getting really cold but the hiway was still ok. Then all hell broke loose! Started getting ice on the bridges, overpasses, etc. Nowhere to stop! Started seeing vehicles coming from the west with snow & ice on them. Finally stop at a gas station and try to figure out what to do. People coming from the west were saying it wasn't freezing on the road just on the bridges, etc. and in a place called Van Horn was a hotel (100 miles away!). Gassed up and headed out. Man it was intense, saw 3 bad wrecks every bridge had ice building up to 5 or 6 inches. Windshield iced up and it's about 4 inches too tall for me, so I'm straining to see over it . Finally get thru the worst of the ice & slush. Met a trooper at a gas station and she said the road was good ahead but to get thru the mountains before much after dark because it could get black ice. Gobbled down a burger in about 5 minutes and headed out. Then the fog got so thick! Couldn't see 20 feet in the dark. Truckers blowing by doing 80! Followed a car at about 50 for 30 miles but his nerves must have got the best of him and he pulled off. Now I'm on my own cant see and trucks are just going like a bat out of hell. This was worse than the damn ice! Finally get to a hotel and I am just frazzled . Wake up in the morning to 1/4 inch of ice on every thing! Have breakfast hoping when it gets daylight it will melt. No such luck. Walk 1/2 mile up to the truck stop and talk to the truckers. Evidently the stretch I had come through had several more wrecks with pile ups on the road was shut down with cars and trucks backed up. Truckers coming from the west said the road was good after 20 miles or so. Take off on a glare ice parking lot and street! But once I got on the hiway it wasn't too bad. And after a ways it was dry. YooHoo! Drop down out of the mountains into El Paso and it warms up to 40. Feeling relieved and glad to be alive! Stop at at a Starbucks to get Brenda a cup, come out and the battery is dead! Manage to push start it and it stays running so I figure the alt. must be ok just a bad battery. Find a pep boys but they don't have a gel batt. that is charged only the regular ones that need to be charged. But I figure I can let the bike charge it as I ride. Get it jumped with their booster pack and off I go. All is well till I'm 30 miles out of town and it dies in no mans land! Get towed back to El Paso U Haul. $997 for a truck and trailer to home! I don't know if there is a moral to this story but I do know God looks out for fools!
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
Michael K (Az.)
Member
Posts: 2471
"You have to admire a healthy tomatillo!"
Glendale, AZ
|
|
« Reply #2 on: December 08, 2013, 06:29:42 PM » |
|
You have had a major adventure! I've been thru really funky weather including riding in a hurricane in Daytona 8 or 9 years ago but you were in the thick of some really scary crap! Glad ya made it. Sheesh!
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
"I'd never join a club that would have me as a member!" G.Marx  |
|
|
|
BigMac (SoCal)
|
|
« Reply #3 on: December 08, 2013, 06:56:02 PM » |
|
Boy that was something! Glad your home safe and sound. Now you can start looking over you new bike and getting it just the way you want it. It looks like Alternator brushes are in your future for sure. Post some pictures if you have any.
Dave
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Jess from VA
|
|
« Reply #4 on: December 08, 2013, 07:35:59 PM » |
|
What doesn't kill us makes us stronger..... but I think that was made up by guys who have not risked life and limb.
Pretty impressive determination on your part. Last Spring a group of us ended up riding in a sideways snowstorm in the WVa mountains..... It wasn't too bad, but I'd just as soon not do it again.
I think I'd still be back in that hotel in FL (but I'm getting old).
That snow and ice is here in NoVA now, and I'm not driving a car in it either.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Gary
|
|
« Reply #5 on: December 08, 2013, 10:23:56 PM » |
|
Wow! Glad to hear you made it back safely, and congrats. Another adventure for the books.
Looking forward to some pic's of the new addition.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
HayHauler
|
|
« Reply #6 on: December 09, 2013, 01:33:05 PM » |
|
Maybe the brushes froze in the alternator in a position where they were not touching? Man, what an adventure. I rode about 15 miles on ice back in 1984 here in Houston to get to work one night. They closed down the elevated freeway 20 minutes after I came through there. Glad you made it through TEXAS safe and sound. We have had some very strange weather here lately.. Wish I had known you were coming through Houston. Would have bought your dinner. Hay  Jimmyt |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
The emperor has no clothes
|
|
« Reply #7 on: December 09, 2013, 05:11:51 PM » |
|
Maybe the brushes froze in the alternator in a position where they were not touching? Man, what an adventure. I rode about 15 miles on ice back in 1984 here in Houston to get to work one night. They closed down the elevated freeway 20 minutes after I came through there. Glad you made it through TEXAS safe and sound. We have had some very strange weather here lately.. Wish I had known you were coming through Houston. Would have bought your dinner. Hay Jimmyt Hay hauler thanks for the offer. I don't know if I'm just a dumb small town dufus but that section of IS 10 coming out of Houston had me confused for miles. It kept dividing up in different sections for toll areas and I kept expecting to stop and have to pay somewhere but never did. For awhile their I wasn't even sure if I was still on 10. Traffic was brutal and I was trying to figure how I was gonna get to some cash quickly because I was so bundled up and wasn't expecting a toll area , which luckily I never had to worry about anyway. That section of hiway really confused me for awhile , luckily I just kept going straight and it worked out fine. |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
RichW
|
|
« Reply #8 on: December 09, 2013, 05:24:27 PM » |
|
Quite and adventure. Glad it all worked out.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
1999 Black Valkyrie
|
|
|
|
flsix
|
|
« Reply #9 on: December 09, 2013, 07:37:44 PM » |
|
That sounds like a really spooky time in the ice. I wouldn't want to tackle it on a bike. Glad you made it home OK.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
2013 F6B
ESCHEW OBFUSCATION
|
|
|
Tundra
Member
Posts: 3882
2014 Valkyrie 1800
Seminole, Florida
|
|
« Reply #10 on: December 10, 2013, 03:11:14 AM » |
|
Meathead, Glad you made it home in one piece. I know you didn't intend any humor, but your last paragraph had me spitting coffee. (been there) not as extreme, but brought back memories. May the rest of your Valkyrie ownership be much more enjoyable  |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
If you can't be a good example: be a WARNING!!
|
|
|
|
98pacecar
|
|
« Reply #11 on: December 10, 2013, 04:49:07 AM » |
|
Had a similar ride from N. H. to Wichita in 1974 on a 73 Z-1  Miserable, thought I was gonna freeze,,, ta death..  Glad ya made it,, alive... Post, a pic,,,, of yer new valk...  |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
