Hog Fanatic » Harley Owner Experiences

Bike Night At Quaker Steak & Lube

Harley Fan — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:07:59 +0000

Here in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area, Quaker Steak & Lube has a weekly motorcycle night that regularly attracts several hundred motorcycle enthusiasts for food, drinks and fun.

I had the opportunity to go to the Bike Night on Wednesday the 5th of August with some neighbors and friends of mine. We had 4 motorcycles in our convoy - my bike, a Victory, a Fat Boy, and an Ultra Classic.

My 2009 Road King Classic

The ride over was great, and the first time I'd really ridden with a group. We stayed in staggered formation the whole way from Elkhorn to Council Bluffs and had no problems.

We arrived pretty early - around 5 or so - and managed to score some good parking up front. There wasn't much of a crowd to begin with, but the parking lot was sectioned off for the motorcycles - if you had a car, you were kind of out of luck, because you had to walk a ways.

ID checks were done on the front patio, with wristbands given to those eligible. I had a kamikaze and called it a night, drinking-wise.

We went inside to eat when the band got started, but I managed to get a bunch of pictures of the event. Here they are, in no particular order:

Motorcycle Night At Quaker Steak and Lube Early On

Lot Full Of Motorcycles At Quaker Steak And Lube

More Motorcycles At Quaker Steak And Lube

Still More Motorcycles At Quaker Steak And Lube Bike Night

Lone Boss Hoss At The Motorcycle Night

Choppers In The Front Row Of Motorcycle Night

Chopper Row At Motorcycle Night

Awesome Chopper At QS&L

Another Awesome Chopper at QS&L

It was a great night, Quaker Steak and Lube made a point of having enough security on hand to keep everything running smoothly, the food was good and the people were friendly. After we left (a bit early, to take advantage of the remaining daylight) we had a nice 45 minute ride through Iowa's trees.

I'm looking forward to taking the wife with me next time we go.

Family Trip To Kansas City Made Even Better By Riding My Harley There And Back

Harley Fan — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:07:46 +0000

It had been a while since the family had gone anywhere together, so my wife decided that it would be a great idea to have the family drive down to Kansas City, rent three family rooms at Great Wolf Lodge and enjoy four days both there and at Worlds of Fun.

Of course, the first thing that popped into my head when she brought this idea up to me was:

Oh, hey. I could ride my new Harley down there.

Now, I wanted to ride the Harley because it would be fun, because I hadn't been on a real "long ride" before and because I wanted to see how a Harley-Davidson touring class bike really "toured."

I didn't want to ride the bike because a nearly 3-hour trip with a 5-year-old, a 3-year-old and a 8-month-old in a confined vehicle would be crazy. That wasn't on my mind at all.

I swear.

So I brought the idea up with the woman in charge, and somehow, my awesome wife agreed to let me ride the Harley down to Kansas City, following them the entire way.

551 Miles - before leaving on trip

On the morning of our trip, our entire party loaded up 4 vehicles with 9 people and luggage - a Durango, a mid-sized sedan, a Honda CRV and my 2009 Road King Classic. Everything went smoothly, which was a surprise in a way and wasn't a surprise in another way - my wife's a master of organization.

To say that I was looking forward to this ride was an understatement. I've never taken a long trip on a motorcycle, the longest being about an hour ride from Tecumseh to Omaha on my father-in-law's Honda Shadow Aero.

Since we started out at 9:20 on a Sunday morning, the traffic was light. That, combined with the great weather, put me in a damn good mood and I settled into the saddle of my 2009 Road King Classic for a good long ride.

I will admit that after about an hour of riding, I started to get a little sore.

After a few minutes more, I wanted to pull over for a bit.

I just couldn't get comfortable! I'd move around on the seat a bit, trying to adjust the pressure points for comfort's sake - but nothing worked for long. I tried standing on the footrests, lifting my legs, resting them on the engine guards. At most, I'd have 5 minutes of comfortable riding before I had to move again.

I think that if I had gone and picked up some decent highway footrests, I would have been a lot more comfortable on the ride down.

UNIVERSAL HIGHWAY CRASH BAR FOOT RESTS PEGS MOTORCYCLE

US $22.99

5d 4h 31m

NEW PAIR 1 1 2 CHROME 3 PC CLAMPS HIGHWAY PEGS LIGHTS

US $16.99

3d 3h 51m

CLAMP MOUNT HIGHWAY PEGS 1 OR 1 1 4 HARLEY FLT FLHT

US $27.99

6d 17h 50m

CHROME CLAMP ON HIGHWAY ENGINE GUARD FOOT PEGS HARLEY

US $37.95

6d 21h 23m

So I think I'll be looking at either eBay or checking with the parts guys over at Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson in the next few weeks for some good-looking highway pegs to put on the bike.

First Stop On Our Trip To Kansas City

Luckily for me, someone else decided that they needed to stop at one of the ubiquitous rest stops dotting the Missouri freeways.

I enjoyed the respite from the little more than an hour of riding that I'd done. I took off my helmet, stretched my legs a little, got a drink and took the above picture.

That done, our little convoy hit the road again.

Now, my wife asked me before we left if I had enough gas to make the trip. Since a 2009 Road King Classic has a 6 gallon fuel tank, and since I probably get between 40-50 miles per gallon, I figured that even if I did a little driving on the full tank of gas that I got on the Saturday before we left, I'd still have plenty of gas to get me to Kansas City.

I was wrong, sort of.

I watched my fuel indicator lights vanish, one by one, as we rode further. Finally, as I had one dot left and my fuel gauge warning light went on, I let the wife know that I needed to get some gas and pulled over at the next exit.

So, with the wife looking on and fuming that the convoy was being separated, I sheepishly filled up my gas tank, hopped back on, turned my iPhone back on and got back onto I-29.

Looking back, I probably had enough gas to make it into the hotel parking lot. I'm still glad that I stopped - it made the rest of the ride more comfortable.

Finally, after arriving in Kansas City, and after a brief stop at the Legends mall to eat at the T-Rex Cafe and to shop for and buy two leather jackets from Wilson's outlet store, we found our hotel.

760 Miles - arrived at Great Wolf Lodge

It was nice to get off the bike and stretch out for a while.

When I set out on the trip, the thing I was most worried about - and the thing my wife enjoyed pointing out the most as a reason I shouldn't take the motorcycle - was the potential for rain.

According to forecasts, rain on the way down to Kansas City wasn't going to be a problem. Once we were there, however, there was a 30 percent chance that there'd be significant thunderstorms - especially during the last two days.

It did rain heavily on Monday, starting with a light drizzle while the family and I were wandering around Worlds of Fun, and graduating to a full-blown lightning and thunder show later on that evening while we swam around in the Great Wolf Lodge indoor water park.

The bike got rained on, but oh well. Free bike wash.

While in Kansas City, I never really had a chance to take the motorcycle out for much of a cruise, although I did take it out to the local Walgreen's pharmacy to get some various and sundry items that the family needed.

The family drove to a few places to eat, and I did want to mention a place called Granny's Chicken Ranch - because it sticks in my mind as the worst meal I've had in a while. I ordered a three breast meal, and I'm not sure how, but they managed to make one piece taste overcooked and dry, the second merely decent and the third perfect.

The chicken strips for the kids were horrible, and I'm not a picky eater. If you have to down a few swallows of water to choke down a chicken strip meant for kids, there's something wrong.

Nobody else in the family had a problem with their meal at Granny's Chicken Ranch however, so these may have been isolated happenings.

799 Miles - About to head back home

Since we had a two-day pass to Worlds of Fun, and since the kids had such a good time visiting there the first time, we decided to stop by for a few hours before we hit the road and headed home.

799 Miles - sitting in the Worlds of Fun parking lot

We rode a few rides, and we had some funnel cake. I think the adults were all tired, but the kids had a lot of fun and that's really what matters.

The morning that we left, I checked the weather forecast and saw that there were nothing but clear skies in store for the ride back home.

Awesome.

My father in law left in the mid-size sedan earlier that morning. My sister-in-law and her friend and her friend's kid left in the CRV at about 4:30 in the afternoon, and I left a few minutes later, after changing into jeans and getting everything all situated.

I was worried about being tired for the ride home, but it turns out that fatigue wasn't even an issue. As soon as I got on the bike and headed for the interstate, I got that smile on my face once again and the tiredness just dropped away.

I was also a little worried that I'd be feeling that same fatigue on the ride back home that I had on the ride down.

Let me tell you...riding a motorcycle on a long ride while making sure you stay with a group of people in cars, and riding a motorcycle when you can go as fast as you want, stop when you want and start again when you want...these are totally different rides.

I stopped twice on the way back home. Once about 30 minutes outside KC for gas, once for a drink. Other than those quick stops, it was sheer riding pleasure.

I briefly hit 110 miles an hour while passing a few semi trucks.

There was no seat fatigue at all.

My bike ran flawlessly smooth.

It rocked.

I loved every second.

Back home with 1006 Miles on the odometer

My 2009 Road King Classic sitting in the driveway after our family vacation to Kansas City

While the ride home was absolutely fantastic, I was still happy to pull into my own driveway and chill out for a while. The wife's sister showed up in the CRV about 30 minutes after I got home, and the wife herself showed up a few hours later, so I had a good amount of downtime to myself.

If you're interested in long-distance riding, there's no better way to do it than on the back of a Harley-Davidson touring motorcycle. If you're in the market for a Harley and want to get a good price, you should definitely check out what people are selling theirs for on eBay.

Harley Davidson Touring SALVAGE 2009 HARLEY DAVIDSON STREET GLIDE

38 Bids

US $10,200.00

26m

Harley Davidson Touring Electra Glide Ultra 2006 Harley Davidson Touring with sidecar

31 Bids

US $17,000.00

2h 30m

Harley Davidson Touring FLHX TOURING 2009 HARLEY DAVIDSON STREET GLIDE CUSTOM ONE OFF

US $38,000.00

1d 2h 10m

Harley Davidson Touring FLHTC UI Harley Davidson Ultra Classic

25 Bids

US $7,800.00

21h 51m

Harley Davidson Touring Harley Davidson Ultra Classic 1 owner mint condition

25 Bids

US $12,500.00

1d 2h 19m

Harley Davidson Touring ROAD KING NO RESERVE 1995 ROAD KING 5K MILES LOADED WITH EXTRAS

25 Bids

US $8,001.00

2d 3h 54m

Every year, thousands and thousands of people buy and sell Harley-Davidson motorcycles on eBay. Try it and find yourself a great deal.

My Week Of Riding From The 11th To The 17th Of July

Harley Fan — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 03:30:38 +0000

Saturday was a good day to ride the Harley. A little overcast but with nothing falling from the sky, it was the kind of weather that makes for interesting scenery as you chug along. I took the bike to Owen and Logan's t-ball game, following behind the wife as she drove the Durango. She did not want me to do this, but she had no choice, as I am the man.

Here's the bike as it sat in the driveway, waiting for the wife to come home:

My ride on the driveway

Once I got home, it was time to get ready for work.

The weather in Omaha is...mercurial.

It changes, often quickly.

Quick changes in the weather can make my ride home not fun, so that's why I check the weather before I go. If there's a significant chance for rain on my ride home, I'll take the car.

No rain in the forecast for Saturday, so I took the bike.

After getting to work

On bike before setting off for home

There was rain in the forecast for Sunday, so I took the car, despite the fact that Sunday nights are the best day for riding home. Nobody on the road, nobody out drinking on a Sunday night, perfect riding conditions.

And, of course, it didn't rain like the weatherguys said it would.

So, despite the fact that there was a slight chance of rain in the forecast for Monday, I took the bike to work.

Before setting out for work

After I got to work

After I got home, I noticed that my new bike was creeping towards a nice, round number. A milestone, if you will.

Putting some miles on the bike

I didn't get a chance to ride to work that next day, and I took off Wednesday, so I just rode the bike over to my mom's house on Thursday, following the wife as she carted the kids in the Durango.

When I got there, I got there.

500 miles on my new motorcycle

Just got my first bill from the Harley credit guys, and I can say with all my heart that the 2009 Road King Classic I bought was worth every penny. I'm loving each day I get to ride it.

Riding To Work From July 5th To The 7th

Harley Fan — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:02:57 +0000

We had a beautiful week for riding motorcycles here in Omaha, so I took advantage of it as often as possible.

I missed riding to work on the 4th of July due to the fact that it was a holiday weekend and I figured there'd be more than the usual amount of idiots on the road - especially when I was riding home at 11:20 at night. So the first time I rode this week was the 5th - Sunday.

Awesome day. Sky was clear, not too hot, not a lot of traffic. I took my time and enjoyed it.

The ride home was especially nice. Almost nobody on the road, so I could relax and enjoy the ride more without having to match speeds with traffic.

Mileage before ride

Mileage After Ride

Mileage after ride home

Same riding atmosphere for Monday the 6th of July - a little more traffic, but that meant I could change lanes a bit more. The Road King Classic is riding like a Cadillac. It doesn't have much in the way of lean, but it's as stable as anything I've ever ridden.

Mileage after getting to work

Mileage after getting home

I was a bit more rushed on the 7th. I intended to try out my other helmet - a 3/4 Harley Davidson Jet II helmet that I'd bought a while back from Holstein's Harley.

After I was all suited up and ready to go, I put on the Jet II and rode to work.

A few things I liked about the Jet II:

It feels like it would protect better if the bike goes down
It cuts down wind noise
The face shield protects against bugs and rocks
It would be great in the rain

Yeah, it feels more solid than the 1/2 helmet that I have. Right after I got on the interstate, I was hit by a small rock or a large bug - right in the face. If I hadn't had the faceshield, it might have hurt a bit. As it was, I just saw it, it hit, and then it was gone. No harm, no foul.

The wind noise was very different while I had the Jet II on. I hit 75 miles per hour without even blinking twice, and it felt like I was moving along at about 40 miles per hour. About a 30 mile per hour difference there.

A few things I didn't like about the Harley Davidson Jet II:

It cuts my hearing down by at least 60-70 percent
You can't feel the ride as much

Wearing the Jet II made me feel like I had a pair of earmuffs over my ears, it cut down the noise so much. It wouldn't be so bad if there were maybe...earholes...or something. Like a football helmet. My wife says that would look really, really silly, but she has a white and turquoise half-helmet that looks like it came out of a Barbie catalog, so what does she know?

After riding with the Jet 2 helmet, I didn't think it cut down my vision at all, but I did feel like I wasn't part of the ride. There was a definite disconnect between me and the road that I didn't like at all.

I'll be sticking with the half-helmet in the future, unless the rain is coming down.

Mileage before ride home

Mileage After Arriving Home

Jet II 3/4 Helmets for sale on eBay:

Harley Davidson Mens Jet II 3 4 Helmet 98012 06V

US $150.00

7d 18h 14m

Harley Davidson Jet II 3 4 Motorcycle Helmet Black

US $135.00

24d 17h 9m

Harley Davidson Jet II 3 4 Motorcycle Helmet Silver

US $135.00

24d 19h 32m

HARLEY DAVIDSON® MENS JET II 3 4 HELMET 98012 06V XS

US $132.99

28d 18h 58m

HARLEY DAVIDSON® MENS JET II 3 4 HELMET 98012 06V S

US $132.99

28d 18h 59m

HARLEY DAVIDSON® MENS JET II 3 4 HELMET 98012 06V M

US $132.99

28d 19h

More Women Riding Motorcycles Than Ever

Harley Fan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:00:40 +0000

If you're like me, you've been trying to get your wife to try riding her own motorcycle for a change instead of sitting on the back of yours.

Some people manage it, others don't. For those who have succeeded in getting your wife on a motorcycle of her own, you're not alone.

I came across a great story featured in the El Paso Times this afternoon and had to share it with my readers - who may or may not be surprised by the numbers shown in the article.

Road Queens

Apparently the Motorcycle Industry Council has released statistics showing that more than 5.75 million women have made the move from the passenger's seat to behind the handlebars.

From the article:

Tim Buche, who represents the Motorcycle Industry Council, Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, and Motorcycle Safety Foundation, said that in 1998, the percentage of women riders in the U.S. was only 8.2 percent, but it rose to 9.6 percent in 2003 and 12.3 percent in 2008. Even more significant, of about 2.5 million people who rode motorcycles in the United States in 2008, 23 percent - or 5.75 million - were women.

Very nice! I would imagine that more of those women would be in their 40's or older, especially with the cost of entry barrier that a Harley has, but those more mature women can hopefully lead the way for their younger counterparts.

From the article:

Cindy Barba said she enjoys the independence that riding a motorcycle gives her. According to Barba, "We are a small group and we help support each other," she said. "I am a single mother, so this is my time, this is my hobby, this is my alone time. All these girls are doing the same thing. This is their time on the bike and we all share the same interest, just being out there on our own with the wind in our face."

Sounds good to me. The more people that are on the road with two wheels, the better off all motorcycle enthusiasts.

Link to Original Story: Worlds colllide: More women taking to road on motorcycles

First Week With My New Harley Absolutely Rocked

Harley Fan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:38:10 +0000

After riding my 2009 Road King Classic into work for a week, I have come to the conclusion that it's the best way to get to work I can think of. I've actually been looking forward to going to work, because I get to ride the bike there.

Of course, when I'm there I can think of nothing but when I get to leave and ride home...

I filled up the gas tank on Sunday the 28th of June. Love the flush-mounted gas caps, especially since the fuel level is nicely presented in blue LED's on the left. When I stopped for gas, I had to take a few pictures. And yes, the iPhone camera sucks and blurred most of my pictures, so here is the best one:

My 2009 Road King Classic At Gas Station

From what I can tell, people seem to like the bike as much as I do. Quotes from co-workers went along a pretty constant line:

That's a sweet-ass bike.
I've so got to get a motorcycle, man.
I love the color of your new bike.
The vote is unanimous. That's a nice bike, but it's far too nice for you.

Problems?

When I originally came home at night, I had to get off the motorcycle and use the keypad to open the garage door, then start up the bike again and wheel it inside. Since the motorcycle is a bit loud, there's a good chance I'll be waking up the baby - at which point the wife will go to sleep and make me stay up with the baby.

I need some easy way to open the garage door while I'm approaching the house. I'm open to ideas. Until I figure something out, I'll keep the car's garage door opener in my jacket pocket. I just feel around for the button through my jacket and press it.

Some motorcycle garage door openers on eBay:

Harley Garage Door Opener 91558 01

13 Bids

US $81.00

2d 4h 5m

Flash 2 pass garage door opener brand new

US $59.99

2d 16h 21m

FLASH 2 PASS FLASH PASS MOTORCYCLE GARAGE DOOR OPENER

US $64.89

4d 21h 3m

FLASH 2 PASS FLASH PASS GARAGE DOOR OPENER TRANSMITTER

US $33.99

13d 20h 54m

My oldest son says that he thinks my new motorcycle makes too much noise and that it scares him, but told me later that he likes to look at it. I'm going to see if he'll get on the back sometime. He did sit on it with me the day I got it, but when I turned it on he just about freaked out.

My youngest son likes to park his tricycle next to it. I came out to go to work one day and found this:

My Ride And My 3-Year-Old Son's Ride Side-By-Side

My Son's Tricycle And My Motorcycle

Pictures of the odometer during this week's riding:

Taken after arriving to work on the 28th

Taken after arriving at home on the 28th

Taken after arriving to work on the 29th

Taken after arriving home on the 29th

Taken after arriving to work on the 30th

Taken after arriving to work on the 1st of July

I had a great ride last night. Road over to Dillon Harley, chatted with Jason Davis for a while, then headed over to my parent's house to see what they were doing. Mom told me she'd ride with me if I put the passenger seat on it, which I promised to do.

Then I rode out to Yutan.

View Larger Map

If I'd been in a car during this trip, I'd be counting the minutes until I was there. You really notice more of the road and the scenery while riding a motorcycle. It was an awesome experience that I'll be doing more of in the near future.

Until next time.

My First Ride To Work

Harley Fan — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:36:41 +0000

Rode into work on Saturday.

I'd already ridden for about an hour that morning.

I made a quick stop to check out the new Dillon Yamaha/Honda/Suzuki/Kawasaki dealership that opened up today right next to the Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson dealership.

Mileage before ride

I quickly realized a few things:

Don't let your shirt hang open while you ride. Button it up. Sucks at highway speeds to have your shirt blowing around.
Secure saddlebags before you go.
I need the Detachable Solo Luggage Rack ASAP.
If you have the Harley Profile Sunglasses/Goggles, don't forget to bring the case containing the clear lenses for the ride home at 11 at night.

Mileage after ride

Great ride home. Lots of fun. I went the long way, via surface streets and took my time.

Harley Touring Road King Luggage RackPassBack Rest

8 Bids

US $179.50

5h 54m

HARLEY TOURING DETACHABLE TWO UP LUGGAGE RACK 09 11

23 Bids

US $175.01

3h 10m

HARLEY TOURING LUGGAGE RACK FOR DETACHABLE BACKREST

16 Bids

US $85.50

3h 26m

Harley Four Channel Luggage Rack Sissy Road King S44

7 Bids

US $142.50

1h 56m