most memorable event on your valk

[slider]

mine  happened the day I bought the gurl,traveling south on 540 to  Fort Smith  when a semi forced me off the road onto the grass..close call..I followed him to the the next exit where he got off,with me right behind him.I pulled up to where he parked and explained the error of his ways...he said he was sorry about 20 times and I  could tell he truly was....then told me he had to go to the bathroom   suddenly and badly .He didnt make it in time...messed all  over himself  .revenge is sweet

[Big Rig]

Had the Phat Girl for 15 years...too many memories...I will say the good ones far out number and out weigh the bad ones...

Ride Safe

[Oss]

just about any ride with friends or any ride where Bonnie is sitting behind me
or ride to visit friends across this great country has been memorable
but to answer honestly

Riding west out of the path of tornado around Salina KS and surviving the thunderstorm
and 91mph wind where I got caught past Limon Co in 2005 would have to be right up there
with memorableness

Riding down LOLO PASS in the freezing rain all the way to Washington State in 2012

Riding over Beartooth on a day you can see forever just for wow I cant believe I am still climbing


But any hot day I am riding and I feel the cool change of the air as I near a stream is memorable to me as well

[Willow]

You don't want to hear mine at this time of year.   

I've had a lot of good times and great memories on the Valkyries.  Unfortunately the most memorable has to do with lying on the asphalt quite convinced I was passing through the final minutes of my time on earth.

If you're interested in reading some of my Valkyrie memories or if you have some trouble falling asleep at night, you can find a few of the stories here:  Willow in the Wind (dot net)

[Jess Tolbirt]

met a woman online, rode the Valk to her place,,had a great time, came home told the wife to hit the road, moved the other woman in with me,,a month later told her to hit the road,,met another woman, rode the Valk out to her place.....

[The emperor has no clothes]

http://www.valkyrieforum.com/bbs/index.php/topic,62675.0.html
This was mine

[old2soon]

Any time I'm in the wind-ANYTIME!  50 miles or 700 miles during that day-It's all good. I spend 75% of my time riding by myself but I enjoy sharing wind with folks that KNOW how to ride. To me anyway the BEST times are on a big ride with a lot of other M/Cs and my 15 year old-soon 16 year old machine gets the looks and THEN when I tell them how old she is!!    KNOWING she is there and ALL I have to do is go out and turn the key and then the throttle!  PRICELESS.  RIDE SAFE.

[GiG]

I've had more than a few over 450000 Valk miles, but the strangest one was when Tweety Bird committed Hari Kari on Don's chest at 80 mph.
Ol Highbinder threw the bird up in the air  & Detn8r, following behind, reached out & caught the dead bird in mid air 

[..]

I've had more than a few over 450000 Valk miles, but the strangest one was when Tweety Bird committed Hari Kari on Don's chest at 80 mph.
Ol Highbinder threw the bird up in the air  & Detn8r, following behind, reached out & caught the dead bird in mid air 

Short arms with quick reactions 

[bigguy]

Talimena campout


I've got quite a few good memories on the Valk, but this one really stands out. Sharon and I just took a weekend to run up to Queen Wilhelmina State Park. We tent camped the first night and ran the scenic route several times the next day before heading home. This was late October and the fall weather was wonderful. The sky was competing with the leaves to produce the most color. Photos just can't capture that magical feel.
I almost got into trouble once. I'd entered a series of S curves going down at what I thought was a conservative speed. But I didn't have as much time to slough off speed between corners as I expected, so I hit each succeeding corner a little faster. By the time I came out of the last one, I was dragging pegs and seriously throwing a shower of sparks. By this time I was in the last corner, and incredibly, still in my lane. I knew if I just didn't panic, I'd make it. If there had been one more corner, I'd have been in real trouble. Fortunately, there wasn't. The adrenaline was certainly flowing, but I wasn't terrified. Mrs Sharon, on the other hand, didn't know whether or not I could hold it. I think you can still see her fingerprints on my back.
We've had a lot of good trips together on various bikes, and the sail boat. But I think that one is the one I'll remember most fondly.

[BF]

met a woman online, rode the Valk to her place,,had a great time, came home told the wife to hit the road, moved the other woman in with me,,a month later told her to hit the road,,met another woman, rode the Valk out to her place.....

They need to lock this thread down now 'cause I'm pretty sure nobody is gonna beat your story.   

[Otus]

I've had more than a few over 450000 Valk miles, but the strangest one was when Tweety Bird committed Hari Kari on Don's chest at 80 mph.
Ol Highbinder threw the bird up in the air  & Detn8r, following behind, reached out & caught the dead bird in mid air 

(Non valk) my last bike had spoke rims and I was going about 45 mph with some lady on my butt when a robin decided to swoop low across the road. Apparently a spoke wheel at that speed looks like something that you can fly through........NOPE.  The bird pretty much turned into a fine pink mist and a cloud of feathers.  Being blood and feathered kind of upset the lady that was riding my butt. She pulled up next to me at the next light and gave me a real dirty look. I smiled back at her and shrugged my shoulders. Wasn't like I planned it.   

[GiG]

Alright! Valks 3, Birds 0.
Saw a Vulture try to mate Sinkhead last year from behind. True story, LuLu seen it too, & maybe Henry008.
Damn thing was humpin him for a half mile down the road, Joe hardly flinched, I think he dug it a little Finally, Ol baldy turned around, looked the Vulture in the eye, and the nasty creature took off.
 The Vulture flew away too 
Another one of Sinkheads many talents: a Face to scare off Vultures   

[..]

Icefields Parkway.

Lotsa rides with lotsa riders.

[Hook#3287]

I got two, well actually many more than that, but these two are in the top.

1) Riding down the road heading to Gettysburg.  Early morning, sun just up, low clouds in the fields with pickets fences running through the clouds.  Thinking about all the men and boys that gave everything there.

2) Jan. 28th, 2002 was a rare day in New England, sunny and in the high 50's.

Called my Valk riding buddy, Del, and we got together and headed west to the Berkshires.

Heading south in CT on Rt 8 we were coming into Bridgeport, CT  and above us was a large sign with "NY CITY" and a arrow.

I looked at Del, he nodded, and off we went.

For those that have never had the opportunity to visit NY City, lets just say the roads and traffic are not the best.

We took I-95 to the GW bridge, than south down Henry Hudson Parkway to Battery Park.  We parked the bikes in the park among all the commuters bikes and walked north past the Wall St "Charging Bull", then the few blocks to the World Trade Center, then known as "Ground Zero".

They had a platform you could stand on to look in the hole, but you needed a pass.  To get the pass, you had walk 4 or 5 blocks to go to the "Pass Office".  We didn't.

What struck me the most, and it's hard to describe, was the feeling of devastation and loss.  You could see it in the faces.   But what else struck me was the friendliness of the people we talked too.

When we asked for direction, 3 or 4 people stopped from their running down the sidewalk, to help.

It was uncanny.  I had to ask Del, "Are we in NYC?"

We mossied around a bit trying to get a look at what was going on, but all the streets were blocked off and NY's finest were standing guard.

We walked up to a barrier and started talking with the young NYC cop stationed there.  I could see the debre up a block and the front (or back) of a bank, I think it was the Deutsche Bank, and said "That building doesn't look like it's that bad".  The cop said "You should see the other side, it's not there"

So, I asked him if we could.  He smiled and said "I like my job"

We laughed, shook his hand and moved along.

We walked back to our bikes, headed up Broadway (I think) with all the honking cars, cabs and delivery trucks, got back on the Henry Hudson, and got outta town.

Thing about those warm sunny winter days is, when the sun goes down, it's just winter.

Pretty sure I'll never ride my bike to NYC again and I'm not sure why we did, but I'm glad we did.

[Reb]

Meeting the wild bunch, and becoming one 

[Jess from VA]

Probably the day I hooked up with four fast moving BMWs with great riders thru a long technical mountain ride....... riding tail and keeping up pretty well all day except in the hardest leans with me dragging parts.  Hit 120 on two lanes a few times (which I'll never do again).  Stopping for gas and a break and getting some nice cudos on the bike and my riding.

How heavy is that thing anyway? (typical rocketeer question)

Around 850-900 lbs with gas and gear. (interstate supervalk)

Holy crap!

You want a real holy crap?

What is that?

Check out the Goodyear I run on the back.

All four walking around and looking...... HOLY crap!!!!

And at the same stop, needing my tools to fix a Beemer wiring issue.

[Hook#3287]

All four walking around and looking...... HOLY crap!!!!  2funny

And at the same stop, needing my tools to fix a Beemer wiring issue.

[JDWhite]

Being that I just bought her, I don't have many stories to tell except the day I bought it.
Being that my mind was made up on the phone talking to the prior/original owner, I had a riding buddy of mine drive me down just across the state line In to Alabama to strike a deal.
It was love at first sight! After the title was signed and and hands were shook I mounted the ole girl for the 120 mile ride home..
Eased down the back roads that lead the the interstate all along thinking "can't wait till I can open up the throttle to she what she can do".
Felt my heart speed up just a bit as I started down the entrance ramp to interstate 65 heading north.
My buddy was behind me in his car as we sped up to 75-80 mph....
Not much traffic on a Saturday morning and figured "why not"..twisted the throttle and felt as if I had been fired out of a cannon! No hesitation, no easing in to it she was up to the challenge and before I could look down and the speedo I was at 110. The ride, even at 100+ was smooth as glass. I looked in my mirror and could barely see my buddy's car 
I figured I had better ease her back down. The rest of the ride was cruising around 80.
Thank God she has a windshield or else I may have been picking bugs out of my teeth from smiling the whole way home..can't wait till spring so I can take some weekend rides to random places.

[Detn8er]

I've had more than a few over 450000 Valk miles, but the strangest one was when Tweety Bird committed Hari Kari on Don's chest at 80 mph.
Ol Highbinder threw the bird up in the air  & Detn8r, following behind, reached out & caught the dead bird in mid air 

Short arms with quick reactions 

I remember that ride....Good times.       

[HayHauler]

Racing through Spearfish Canyon, chasing 5_19 (TJ), headed towards the town of Spearfish.  Those perfect turns with a constant radius and reaching upwards of 100 MPH on the straight aways.   On his standard, he would pull away from me on the straight aways with me on my IS.  He had lowered the pegs, well he IS 5 foot 19 inches.    And I would catch him in the curves.  
Most fun I have ever had with my pants on!  

Hay
Jimmyt

[Stanley Steamer]

Lots of them......one was when a group of us on Smokin Joe's Labor Day ride up the BRP with my buddy Scott(Mo) and Thumper trying to keep up with us....it was getting dark the closer we got to Roanoke, the faster we got since we were trying to get there to find a room and place to eat.....speeds got kind of "throw you under the jail" but man we were having a hoot of a time......

[Clark]

when I was at the GRAND OPENING of the new harley shop and the local radio station was there.during a radio interview I called out the VP of the local mc gang who had some Arlen Ness bike with a 120 cu.in S&S and he claimed nobody on a cruiser could touch him and bet him a thousand dollars and the proceeds going to a cancer kids charity. he and his possee along with about 200 others  wearin all their black leather jackets and chaps met at the local airstrip the next day before the charity run for the kids and I showed up on my 98 supercharged tourer wearing a light blue polyester 1 piece jumpsuit and I WAXED HIS ASS..needless to say..HE WAS PISSED.. heeheee  

[Bighead]

My most memorable event was about ten years ago and I was about 800 miles from home it was 98degrees plus and I had just filed up and was standing in the corner of a parking lot at the gas station drinking a bottle of water and a guy in a mini van pulls up and asks if I a m having trouble and I reply no just hydrating and his wife said I told you he wasn't having trouble he is Riding a HONDA. I got a big chuckle out of that.

[Jess from VA]

Hey Clark, where does one find a light blue one-piece polyester jump suit?

And how does one have waxed his ass, in the same sentence?   

Great story BTW.   

[Hoser]

Rapid City SD to Topeka, Ks. Solo, non stop in 100 degree temperature.  Memorable, but not in a good way!  Hoser  

I guess memorable in a good way would be the first ride over the Mackinac bridge from lower to upper Michigan.  Hoser 

[crow]

I may have told this before, not sure.  At bike week, on A1A, at a stop light, was reving the engine a little. Bad gas at last fuel stop.   A young man,  late 20's pulled beside me.   He hears me, revs the engine on his 60k custom mc, (that probally couldnt go fifty miles without getting fuel, )
and says hey u wana race?  I said SURE,  her to Kansas City right now!  He gave me the finger and peeled away when the light turned green.

[Woton]

Riding across the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco last summer - a "pinch me" moment.

No SF lifestyle jokes, please... 

[The emperor has no clothes]

Riding across the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco last summer - a "pinch me" moment.

No SF lifestyle jokes, please... 

I'll never forget the first time I rode across the Golden Gate Bridge

[Momz]

1. When I first read an article back in 1995 about a possible "super cruiser" based on the GW1500 motor. The pictures had me mesmerized.
    I told myself that if Honda builds it,.....I will own one.

2. The day I bought my first Valk (I/S) and rode it home in on a gray, cold Saturay afternoon in strong winds and snow flurries.

[Jess Tolbirt]

Hey Clark, where does one find a light blue one-piece polyester jump suit?

And how does one have waxed his ass, in the same sentence?   

Great story BTW.   

i was thinking the same thing,,i dont believe i will be waxing anyones ass anytime soon,,either on or off the bike,,

[Red Diamond]

This past August, 4855 miles of great weather and riding. Met travelers from as far away as, Germany, The Uk, Spain, France and Mexico. Hope to do it again this summer, this time a little farther.

[Dark]

I too am just getting started in the Valk memories department having just picked her up in early Oct.
The ride home is a favorite memory. I flew up to Grand Rapids MI to get her.  Got in to Grand Rapids mid afternoon, took care of the paper work side of the deal & headed south. I had never ridden a valk or Goldwing before & man I was happy, big grin inside that full face helmet. Everything I expected & more.
I had a great time & made it to Columbus OH that day. I would have been happy to keep going but it was getting cold & I don’t like to ride at night after mid sept because of deer.  
Got started again the next day, still giddy like a kid w a new toy. I thought “this is so smooth, must be the big fat grips” moved my hand to another area of the handle bar “nope not the grips, just a darn smooth motor”. I was running down I77 & couldn’t help myself from hopping off on the Parkway for a bit even though I was anxious to get home so the wife & kids could see it. Given that it was a Thur afternoon the Parkway was pretty empty. I ran for a bit and realized she handled better than I could have imagined. I stopped at an overlook at took this pic to always remind we what a great start the Valk & I got off to.
I know there will be many more “favorite” memories to come. I'm really thrilled to have this bike.

[Davet261]

One of too many.

http://youtu.be/KcUpztNTlRw

[DarkSideR]

Too many memories but here is a funny one.

While on a Labor Day weekend ride, my 14 year daughter and I were leading our group of 13 Valkyries up the "Million Dollar" highway from Ouray to Silverton Colorado. My daughter told me she was suddenly very worried that we would scrape the pegs and crash.

I tried to tell her that scrapping the pegs is no big deal, and for the next couple of miles went flying around every switch back and corner to show her how far you could push the bike in a turn. With the daughter satisfied that we were not going to die if a peg scrapped, I looked back and to my horror didn't see anyone behind me.

My spirited ride put me way ahead of the pack. My daughter and I rode at 10mph for what seemed like an eternity before the group caught up. Needless to say the stop in Silverton wasn't too fun for me.

[Pappy!]

Probably the day I bought it.................mid December a few years ago.
Did a Fly & Ride. Austin Tx.  
First time on a Valk and first time for a dark side ride. In the middle of a cold front (with some really cold rain)  facing an 1100 mile ride home ......loved it! Took about a day and 3/4.

[Popeye]

Took my youngest son to the Grand Canyon, nice little two week trip.
Called home every night to check in with Lizzie.  Every night, Mark got the same question "You ready to come home?"  Reply was the same each night "No mom, having to much fun".  Two hours of rain in fourteen days. 

Took all three boys on a bike trip but the GC was the only one on the Valk.

[RainMaker]

First time riding the Tail of the Dragon, mid week, light traffic.  What a rush!

[Billinva]

Rounding  curve on highway  92 north of Gunnison National Park and seeing a full size bear standing my lane.

No Wait! Maybe, three days earlier, hitting and killing a deer that jumped a guard rail and plowed into the Valk near Howard, Colorado.

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

InZane in Eureka Springs, Arkansas ...Hotter than the hinges of hell and cooked like a tater chip from the sun and still having to ride home. I'll never forget that ride and for all the wrong reasons.