Service Day...Again 🤣
14 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 84 °F
What happens when you ride a lot of miles in a day for a lot of days at a time? You spend a lot of time getting services 🤣. Today is my 60,000-mile service, and Desert Wind HD in Mesa slid me in their service lineup this morning.
A super nice guy Kent who's new at the dealership talk to me before they opened and I gave him my card. When they had their morning meeting, he told everybody else about me, so later the GM Sean asked to interview me. That minute or two interview I've linked on my social media sites if you want to take a look.
They got me done super quick and I was rolling by about 1300. I ran around the remainder of Phoenix collecting the rest of the dealerships, then headed north taking the Red Rock Scenic byway right at sunset, which I think is the best time to ride it because of how the setting sun really intensifies the color of the red stone. On the north end of that byway you pop out in Sedona, where there's a little HD T-shirt shop that is a real pain in the butt to get a picture of with the bike. I just wind up holding up traffic and making the pedestrians walk around me 🤣🤣.
I really push the bike to its fuel limit today because I forgot to get gas. I looked down at my partially obscured gauge and I had 44 miles remaining, so not quite to the low fuel warning, but much closer than I like to get. By the time I gassed up, I just had "LF" on the display. "Low Fuel", which I'm pretty sure means is under 10 mile left 🤣.
It was a good day despite the Phoenix traffic. I was hungry and tired so I stopped really early. But had I not stopped, then I would have done Devil's Highway in the dark with no auxiliary lights. That ain't happening. No way. With my luck, I'd wind up hitting a bear but not killing it and then it would eat me. No thanks, I'll stay here tonight 👍.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 59513
Ending odometer: 59835
Daily mileage: 322
2026 miles total: 13168Leer más
Why am I so hot when its only 80°F? 🤣
13 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F
Today was a huge day! Here were my photo stops 😱:
15 x AULDR
7 x HD
6 x RTE
1 x 15 Rides for 2026
1 x Capitol (Arizona) [2 of 49]
That doesn't even count gas stops!!
The run from Marfa to El Paso is 80 miles to I-10, then 85 miles per hour until you get there. Fast, smooth, and uneventful today. A quick pic at Barnett HD--which is on my Never Spend Money At list because of the extremely shoddy service they gave me TWICE--then I was blasting into New Mexico and not long after that, Arizona.
Another quick stop in the oldest section of Bisbee known as Lowell to take a pic of the "Harley-Davidson" there. The quotes are because this entire street is like a throw back to the 50's, and the "dealership" is a store front. This is a super cool place to stop and check out, and if you're there for breakfast or lunch, definitely eat at the Bisbee Breakfast Club. A locals' place that is absolutely fantastic!! 🤤🤤🤤
Then into Bisbee itself, which was jam packed with people because this week is Spring Break. The one I get here is tourists own it when they're there, but it's heart belongs to the hippies 🤣.
By the time I got to Tombstone, I was cooking. I had opened my riding suit as much as I could, which with all my sweats acted like a swamp cooler, but I was boiling. I figured it had to be in the 90°s, but when I looked at the weather on my gps, it only said 82°F! WTF?! Why would I be this hot if it's only 82°?! I guess I've been cold so long I forgot how to deal with the heat 🤣!!
I pushed really hard today, so when I got the photo of the dinosaur, which was at mcdonald's, I decided to go inside to eat and call my friend. I took about 30 minutes, which was longer than any other stop, but it was nice and with the heat I needed to take a break. Smart move.
I did some lane splitting in Tucson, which in Arizona can only be done if the posted speed limit is 45 mph or lower, including construction speed limits. For example, if you're on a road that's normally 55 but construction slows it down to 45, then it's legal to lane split because it's 45. Of course there are all the rules about not riding on the shoulder, how fast you can go when you do lane split which nobody adheres to, how many lanes there have to be on the road to lane split, where to position your bike when you lane split.... LSS, it kept me from having to boil while waiting for red lights because I could go to the front of the line. Awesome 👍.
In Tucson some of the vehicles moved over in their lanes if they had space so I could get between them. Thank you!! Phoenix? Not so much. The trucks and jeeps had the biggest problem and kept pulling over to block me instead of pulling over to let me through. Oh well, by the time I got to Phoenix it was dark, so the heat had dissipated somewhat and I wasn't sitting in the sun at red lights. But white 4-door truck Jeep owner: 🖕🖕🏻🖕🏼🖕🏽🖕🏾🖕🏿. You get one in every color 🤣.
Now I'm at desert wind HD tucked away in the back of the parking lot where I hope to get some good rest since I don't need to be up before 0600. They're sliding me in first thing in the morning for a 60,000-mile service. I absolutely love when dealerships take care of travelers like me. It's one of the things I love about owning a Harley.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 58562
Ending odometer: 59513
Daily mileage: 951
2026 miles total: 12846Leer más
Great Day in West Texas!!
12 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ 🌙 66 °F
I had a wonderful day today. Once I got past San Antonio and that crazy flying j scam of a gas station, I got out of traffic and set the cruise control to 10 over the speed limit, put my feet up on my highway pegs, and enjoyed the scenery while listening to my music. Today was one of the days that riding is all about.
I stopped in Langtry, TX, the former dominion of Judge Roy Bean, a Texas legend. He was so in love with the actress Lily Langtry that he named the town after her 🥰. The museum and visitor center is really cool in an Old West history way, but it's under renovation right now. Go see it next year when you take your trip to Big Bed National Park!!!
I didn't ride through the park this time, but I did stop to say hello to the Mayor of Lajitas, Clay Henry the Goat. No, not the Greatest Of All Time, but and actual 🐐. 🤣🤣🤣 Lajitas is probably one of the best run towns in the US 🤣.
The road in and out of Lajitas is Texas 170. It follows the twists, turns, ups, and downs of the Rio Grande. It's an amazing road to ride, technical but fun, with stunning scenery. Unfortunately, it's not so fun at night. Rocks and gravel in blind turns and arroyos that may or may not be covered with dirt and or water and or mud. There are also elk here, which are huge, as well as wild burros (saw one finally!), mule deer (also big), whitetail (yep, still big), and pronghorn antelope (not a big but they have really long pointy horns). None of these do I want to come across on 170. Fortunately, all I saw tonight were some small-ish deer, either whitetails or young mulies, diving into the bush.
I was going to camp at the Tepee Rest Area that is posted no camping but no one cares. But I decided to push through to Presidio so I didn't have to do the 40 more miles in the dark. Good move 👍.
Now I'm camping at a truck stop, which is noisy and well lit, but relatively safe. I hope there's hot food and coffee before I roll out in the morning ✌️.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 57729
Ending odometer: 58562
Daily mileage: 833
2026 miles total: 11895Leer más
Just Found the Next Corporate Scam
12 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F
Just watch the video. Fuckers 🤬
Monster Service Day
11 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ 🌧 70 °F
Well, it's a very good thing I didn't try to take my big ol' bike to my barn or I would probably still be there. Even by parking over at my relatives' driveway, I still had to make two hairy water crossings to get out to a fully paved road 😱. It was a very stressful first mile.
The best news of the day (so far) is that I didn't have to pack the bike in the rain. Not a drop. But as soon as I backed the bike up, the sky opened and it was torrential all the way to Tyler 😞.
Service rolled me straight in even though I was about an hour early. I grabbed what I needed off the bike, and set up my office by the coffee machine 🤣. I've been working with this new Garmin zumoXT3 all morning 🤬. These things are not all intuitive. It's like trying to operate an iPhone after you've only used Android. Very frustrating. Plus, it doesn't work with Basecamp--Garmin's own software. I've had to consolidate all my routes, then divide them up into 10-stop routes, then export them all, then upload them to Garmin Explore, then import them into the GPS device...each separately 🤦. My old zumoXT? Just drag and drop all the routes from Basecamp onto the device ,then import them on the device. This is soooo much better...NOT!!! 🤬🤬🤬
But it will solve the problems I've been having with the old unit. A couple of years ago, it decided I didn't need to know the number of the highway I needed, nor the exit number, nor which lane to be in. I learned to follow the line instead of reading the directions, which didn't always work, but close enough. Lately the mount has been intermittently powering on and off. Needless to say, I've been very stressed about possibly losing use of the GPS, so I got the new one, reluctantly.
I walked a couple of doors down to Taco Bueno 🤤. My go to is the taco burger, taco fixings placed on a burger bun. Yummy!!
Just after lunch, another Mile Monster rider, Honor Trip, came to say hi. We hung for a little bit, and she introduced me to everyone, then she had to roll.
Now (1630), they just told me the bike is done yay!!! Front and rear tires, rear brake pads, Screaming Eagle Lifter kit with adjustable push rods, new Garmin mount, sprocket bearing, and an adjusted sticky throttle.
-------
Update at 2030: Ooooo, the bike sounds so nice again!! And the throttle works better than it has for a while now. I didn't realize how bad it had slowly gotten. I left there at 1730, but only got 3 hours down the road before I just now dove into a hotel for the night. I dodged some pretty significant lightning, and my route was going to take me directly into the storm. Nope. Not tonight. I had some points to use, so a free stay out of the weather is fine by me 😁.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 57540
Ending odometer: 57729
Daily mileage: 189
2026 miles total: 11062Leer más
Made It Back to the Barn
10 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F
I was up at 0400 again this morning and rolling by 0430. My appreciation to the church parking lot that harbored me last night 👍.
I didn't have very many stops today. I rode the Cajun Corridor Byway for about 35 miles, popping up on I-10 in Lake Charles. From there I dropped down on the west side of Calcasieu Lake running LA-27 south and then east until I came to the ferry. I didn't cross, but turned around and headed back west, "turning" left to continue West on LA-82. That took me all the way to Port Arthur, TX. That route is the western portion of the Louisiana 50 Ride One Nation ride. I'll do the Eastern side when I get time later in the year, then I'll be able to claim it for the AULDR competition 💪.
After Beaumont HD, I had an early lunch and caught up on my photo submissions at Jax Hamburgers in Liberty, TX. Hands down, they have the best onion rings I've ever had. 🤤🤤🤤 The burger was awesome, too, but I could have been completely satisfied with just the onion rings.
I hit rain when I got to Nacogdoches and Lumberjack HD, and it stayed with me until I got about an hour from my town. But it wasn't too terrible, and only a few semis tried to kill me after I slowed down and they didn't.
By cutting off the Eastern 200 mi from the Louisiana 50 Rides route, I was able to get to my mailbox before they closed at 1700. My new Garmin zumo XT3 was there 😁, but not the cable to fix my auxiliary lights 🤬. Oh well. I'll have to check the box again on the next drive by.
Bonus: my relatives across the pasture have a nice firm gravel drive and a large parking pad in front of their garage. They let me park the bike there instead of trying to make my way through the mud again to get to my place. They even let me borrow one of their trucks to take myself and some things over to the barn. After I cleaned up a bit I went back over, and then they fed me dinner, too! Then they insisted I take the truck back for the night in case it's raining in the morning so I don't have to walk over in the rain. I love them so much. I'm very lucky they're so nice to me.
It can be very difficult not only to ride solo, but also not to have a partner at home to help with all the things that come up in life. Their help is invaluable to me. Not that I'm whining or anything 🤣.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 56973
Ending odometer: 57540
Daily mileage: 433
2026 miles total: 10873Leer más
I'm Over 10,000 Miles!!!
9 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F
I'm over 10,000 miles so far!! My trip meter rolled over as well 🤣.
Am absolutely crushed right now. Will update this later.
Good news: no rain 😁. Bad news: will have to cut off part of my ride tomorrow because I took too long today 😞. Soooo many stops.
UPDATE (it's later): I didn't make nearly the miles I was supposed to make today because I couldn't get out of Biloxi. First I took a photo with the lighthouse that's in the middle of the street for some reason. Then I got stuck in construction. Then I got held up by a train that completely stopped over the road. Then I did a u-ey getting back into the construction, but going down a few blocks until I could get around the end of the train. Then backtracked 7 miles or so to get to the Harley dealership up on I-10. Then I got 13 miles further west away from Biloxi thinking I was finally out when I realized I didn't get a dated business receipt for my lighthouse photo. So I did another u-ey, rode back East 13 miles until I got back into Biloxi, stopped at a Wendy's to get a quick bite that turned into a 20 minute ordeal, finally got my receipt, and got back on the road through the construction and into Gulfport. Nightmare.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 56218
Ending odometer: 56973
Daily mileage: 755
2026 miles total: 10306Leer más
Rainy Day
8 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F
After very little sleep--I have no idea why not--I left the hotel about 0530. At least I think that's when I left. Between my two phones, GPS, and bike, I had 4 clocks with 3 different times 🤦. Ah, the joy of daylight saving time 🤣.
By 0600, it was raining, and it didn't stop for about 500 miles 😞. Not fun.
I stopped at three lighthouses along the Florida Gulf Coast. One I had been to before (St Marks), which is a beautiful 10-mile drive from Hwy 98 all the way to the water. The second (Crooked River) was down a very sandy and wet road, which I did not go down. And the third (Cape San Blas) was in the town of Port St Joe. I'm enjoying this challenge.
After those, I turned north to go back to Montgomery, AL, because I goofed up my photo when I went there on my way to Virginia Beach. I didn't get a dated business receipt to prove when I was there 🤦. So, I added a 300-mile loop to go take the picture again AND get the receipt. Mission accomplished!
Now, I'm camped at a Harley dealership and crashing hard. Riding in the rain is exhausting.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 55359
Ending odometer: 56218
Daily mileage: 859
2026 miles total: 9551Leer más
Getting Ready to Ride
7 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F
Nothing happening today except me getting packed up and working on my routes. I leave for Arizona in the morning!!
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 55359
Ending odometer: 55359
Daily mileage: 0
2026 miles total: 8722Leer más
Where's My Credit Card?????
6 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F
I had breakfast this morning, met some more people, then went back to the room to get geared up so I could ride only a few miles away to pick up my brand new eyeglasses and sunglasses. I ordered them a few weeks ago in Cincinnati, and they mailed them down to a store here since I was going to be here for a few days. Too cool.
There was a nails place in the same shopping center, so I got a pedicure. When I went to pay, my credit card didn't work. I used my debit card, but after I paid I immediately went to my credit card app to see if something was wrong. I had recently paid the balance, so it wasn't maxed out. It didn't appear to be locked or suspended. Confused as to why it would not work, I asked the chatbot why my transaction was declined. The bot told me to call the number on the back of the card about that issue. So I turned the card over looked at the back and said, "That's not my name. If I have this guy's card, he must have gotten mine at the hotel bar last night. So I called the hotel and asked them to connect me to his room. They did, which meant he was still in the hotel and not checked out and traveling somewhere, but he didn't answer. When it sent me back to the front desk, I explained to the representative that I had his credit card and she told me that he had dropped off a card earlier that morning. Yay!!!! So I high-tailed it back to the hotel gave them his card and picked up mine. Disaster averted. Note to self: always check the card they give back to you 🤦.
The rest of the day I just hung out at the hotel talking to people, including that guy 🤣🤣🤣. Around 1600 we did some award presentations, then they served dinner at about 1730.
One of my friends wanted to sign my bike (and make a donation), which drummed up some other interest. It was a really neat evening and another great day!
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 55334
Ending odometer: 55359
Daily mileage: 25
2026 miles total: 8722Leer más
Day Off (but still on a bike)
5 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F
I didn't log any miles today, but I did ride...on the back of my friend's trike 🤣. We hit some dealerships and a couple of other places to do the Harley Owners Group Daytona challenge, and we ended at the Daytona International Speedway where the HOG area was set up. We picked up our token, a challenge coin, and got to give a hug to two of the HOG regional managers. Cool. We also walked around the Daytona HD nearby where I was able to get some patches sewn on my vest, and we got to visit with my friends at Wild Ass motorcycle cushions! I even helped them sell a cushion 😁!!
We rode the hour and a half back up to Jacksonville and had some drinks and dinner at the bar with a whole bunch of other folks who are also here for the Iron Butt Association awards ceremony tomorrow. Great day!!!
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 55334
Ending odometer: 55334
Daily mileage: 0
2026 miles total: 8697Leer más
Friends From Ohio!!
4 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ⛅ 79 °F
I spent the morning at Crystal HD, first waiting for them to open, then waiting to see what they had to say about the bike. Just as I was getting the bike checked in, I received a text from the assistant service manager at Barracuda Harley. How convenient. I called him back to let him know about my troubles and he said to call him back after Crystal looked at it. Fortunately, the only problem was the oil filter was just about to fall off. They tightened it up, added some oil, and charged me a hundred bucks 😱. I called Barracuda back and they took care of the bill. Good on them. Some places won't do that, specifically Warhawk HD in Monroe, LA. Don't get service done there!
Anyway, while I was waiting for Crystal to open, a friend texted me. She saw my video about being at Crystal and even though they live in Ohio, they were literally 5 miles away from the dealership! So, I rolled out about 1030 and went to see them. They took me to a wonderful restaurant called the Freezer, which had the freshest peel & eat shrimp I think I've ever had and amazingly delicious New England style clam chowder 🤤🤤🤤. It was so wonderful to see them!!
We had to cut it short though because I had to be in Jacksonville this evening and I had about 300 miles to go because of my squiggling around to get photographs. The best one today was the Ecopassage Observation Boardwalk because...and I kid you now...there were buffalo! Who knew you could see 🦬🦬🦬 in Florida 🤯 ?!?! So cool!
I got to Jacksonville about 1900, and my roomie had already turned on the a/c for me 🤣. She knows me well! Really great day with no idiot drivers trying to kill me, even on I-10 👍.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 55041
Ending odometer: 55334
Daily mileage: 293
2026 miles total: 8697Leer más
Dammit, the tracker again
3 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F
Well, I forgot to turn on my tracker after leaving my friend's in Oviedo 😞. I've manually plugged in some locations where I took photos. If you want to see exactly where I went, try here:https://spotwalla.com/trip/9740-22f9cba-1c31/view.
I was up this morning and packed by 0600, then went to breakfast at Kimmy D's Diner just down the road. Ooooo super good food and the best coffee I've had in quite a while! I talked to the server and a couple of gentlemen locals about my ride. Check them out when you're in Clearwater: https://maps.app.goo.gl/R9reJ6s3eUhUbkkP8
After breakfast, I came back to Barracuda HD and rolled right into the service bay. Josh and the team got me in straight away for my 55,000-mile service. It's so very nice when dealerships help travelers. I've come across a few who don't--and they're now on my never-spend-money-here list--but the vast majority do what they can, which is usually enough.
I rolled out right at 1030, ready to take on traffic for the rest of the day. Quite literally. My aux lights are not working again, so people just don't see me, even when I run my high beams. And although my horn is really loud, it's not strobing the aux lights since they're out 😞. I have to get these fixed. It's like I'm invisible, and although I haven't had as close a call as I had the other morning, there have been several times I've had to hard brake or change lanes to avoid being taken out.
Florida has over 30 HDs, and I'm hitting all of them that I can get the bike in front of. WarHorse in Ocala was really cool because they let me pull the bike inside where they take photos with folks who buy a bike from them. Yay!!
I stopped at 2000 because when I got to Crystal HD, I noticed oil under the bike 🤬😞🤢. Maybe something just didn't get tightened down enough. Whatever it is, I'm not going anywhere else, so I'm camped in the parking lot. Let's see what the puddle looks like in the morning and hopefully Crystal HD can help me out and bill Barracuda HD for it. 🤞
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 54721
Ending odometer: 55041
Daily mileage: 360
2026 miles total: 8404Leer más
But I finally got through it
2 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
I was up at 0400 and rolling 0430. The only way to get photos taken in Key West is before everybody's awake, and it worked out very well this morning. The only issue was that I got caught in the morning traffic leaving Key West. Most of the 120 miles is only one lane on each side of the road and the average speed limit is 45. It's horrible, but I finally got through it.
I enjoy the ride through the Everglades, usually. Unfortunately, this time most of it was under construction. But I finally got through it.
I stopped at the tiniest post office, which is one of the Harley Owners Group's 15 rides for the year. Later in the day I stopped at two lighthouses very close to one another. One of them I had to ride through sand to get a photo with the bike, which was very nerve-wracking. But I finally got through it.
When I-75 isn't a racetrack--with the right lane running faster than the left and the center lane going about 10 mph under the speed limit--it's a parking lot. Today always no exception. But I finally got through it.
I'm camped at Barracuda HD tonight and am hoping to get a 5,000-mile service done in the morning. Wish me luck 🤞.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 54081
Ending odometer: 54721
Daily mileage: 640
2026 miles total: 8044Leer más
Late start, later finish
1 de marzo, Estados Unidos ⋅ 🌙 75 °F
I was up really late last night or very early this morning depending on how you look at it. So I slept through my alarm and I didn't get going until about 1000 this morning.
I forgot how much the A1A sucks. It's bumper to bumper traffic with a thousand traffic lights that are longer than anywhere else in the States and they're all stupid...both the lights and the drivers, but I'm talking about the lights. They don't recognize when no one's there. They just change to let the invisible cars go while stopping the actual cars. And they don't time out when no cars are going through the intersection. It's really terrible and it's the whole state not just a particular area. Anyway, I got through it.
One of the worst rides is, again, on the A1A through the Keys down to Key West...during daytime. It's wonderful at night. So my timing worked out very well as I began the trek from Homestead right at 2200. Unfortunately, I was a little too late, and after almost falling asleep on the bike, I decided to stop about 50 miles before Key West.
I'm in a gravel parking lot next to my last photo stop. It's basically midnight and I've only set up my cot. It's a nice night, I don't think it's going to rain, so I'm not pulling everything else out. Time to pass out.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 53555
Ending odometer: 54081
Daily mileage: 526
2026 miles total: 7404Leer más
Saturday is a hashing day!
28 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F
No riding today because today is a hashing day!
It's wonderful to spend time with my friend! We had a blast today even though we got stuck by a train. It was maneuvering cars, so we walked around the front of it.
After the hash, just about all of us went to a Mexican restaurant nearby for food and libations. After that, a few came back to my friend's house and the night eventually devolved into Jenga the drinking version and Disney karaoke 🤣🤣🤣. It was a great time!!!Leer más
Babe's Blue Room. Yes, it is 🤣
27 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 82 °F
Yesterday, I ate fried green tomatoes at Ben's Neighborhood Pub & Grill, but I forgot to take a photo of the bike in front of the place. So this morning, I went back 13 miles back into Savannah to get that pic, then headed south.
US-17 is a lovely drive down the coast...if you have the time to go through every little town (speed trap) and are willing to put up with the road construction. Today, I was neither, so I stuck to I-95 as much as possible.
With only three photos before Jacksonville, I made great time, so I decided to add on some stops further south of my final destination of St. Augustine. I wound up 85 miles further south🤣.
On the way, I stopped for lunch at Babe's Blue Room, and it is definitely blue. And a tiny, single room with a bar, a pool table, 4 gambling machines, 4 tables, 30 locals, and ashtrays 🤢. The food was decent...I had a grilled cheese with tomato on rye and fries...but it's still a smoking place. The bathroom smelled better than sitting at a table. But I got through it and out of it as quick as I could.
With all photos successfully collected, I was on my way north but still about 30 miles south of the St. Augustine HD when the skies opened up. There was enough rain that it even slowed down the semi trucks, which is a lot of rain.
I made it to dinner without incident, but the rain never stopped. I'm staying with my dear friend who I met 16 years ago in Okinawa. But she's in Orlando, 175 miles away from St. Augustine 😞. It was not a fun ride.
My Aerostich riding suit is not waterproof and my crotch was soaked by the time I made it to her house. But despite falling asleep on the highway...those loud divots on the shoulder snapped me back...I made it to her place in one piece. So good to see her.
Here's hoping the rain stops before I head south Sunday 🤞🤞🤞.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 52967
Ending odometer: 53555
Daily mileage: 578
2026 miles total: 6878Leer más
I'm Still Alive
26 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F
I came this close 🤏 to crashing this morning. It's night dark and I only have the lights the bike came with, not my auxiliary lights. I'm going about the speed limit (45 I think). I have a green light. A white sedan makes an unprotected left turn in front of me. Right in front of me. Despite having ABS, I heard my rear wheel squeel as I slammed on the brakes. Just when I thought I was going to wind up in his back seat, I jogged the bars to the left. But not enough, so I knew I would go down when his rear bumper grabbed my right saddle bag. I clenched my teeth for the impact...which never came. I was past him, upright, still slowing down, and panting. I didn't pull over because I thought I might not keep going, so I kept going, still panting. It took a while to catch my breath. It was the closest miss yet. I don't know how we didn't connect, but I'm really glad we didn't.
The rest of the day was fine...in comparison 🤣. Last night, I fell asleep really early, so I woke up really early and was on the road before 0530. I guess that's why I missed the rain that everyone was talking about at dinner tonight. Cool. Oh! And the weather finally warmed up enough that I could take off my heated gear! Yay!
I made it down to Hilton Head, an island South of Charleston but north of Savannah, to find the Harley dealership T-shirt shop was shut down. That's the fifth closed down HD I've come across this year. Disappointing. But I had a lovely piece of coconut cream pie at one of my Ride To Eat stops and delicious fried green tomatoes for a late lunch at another stop. Winning!
I debated with myself about riding down River Street in Savannah. It's cobblestones with a set of train tracks running down it. I've been down it on my other bikes, but this Road Glide is so massive and so heavy that I was pretty nervous. But considering how I began the day, I said, "F*** it, I'm doing it!" It worked out fine, and I didn't have to cross the tracks. So that got me the River Street HD T-shirt shop photo. Plus, I grabbed a shot of the Savannah harbor light that counts as one of my lighthouses. Again, winning!
All in all a good day and better one because I survived it.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 52572
Ending odometer: 52967
Daily mileage: 395
2026 miles total: 6300Leer más

ViajeroSo glad that you kept the rubber side down! It’s hard to keep your mind on always being prepared for the idiots who managed to get approved for a drivers license when you’re driving hundreds of miles almost daily for weeks at a time.!
Short but good
25 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F
My ride from Fayetteville NC to Columbia SC was another cold day, so I cut it short, dropped all the routing points for the recommended rally route, and beelined stop to stop. I wound up getting to Haven HD Northwest of Columbia around 1130.
After finishing a couple of adulting things that had to be done, I went to Cycle Gear. I have a headset on my helmet that Bluetooths to the motorcycle, and the microphone literally broke off a couple of days before I left on this trip. I searched a couple of the Harley dealerships for a replacement, but it's an older model that they don't sell anymore. It's Sena; they only sell Cardo now.
I wanted to get the same model so that I could use the old receiver on the new base. Since I listen to music non-stop while I'm riding, my receiver's power supply only lasts about half the day. Having a new receiver base that also fits my old receiver would give me two receivers, which theoretically should last me the whole day.
Amazingly enough, Cycle Gear had a newer version of my headset, and my old receiver fits on the new base! The great news is now I have two receivers! The horrible news is every time I switch them, I have to forget the Bluetooth connection and pair the new set. Every single time I change them. I didn't have time to mess with it tonight, but there's got to be a better way. An easier way. 🤞
We had a really great dinner at Haven HD, barbecue with all the fixings. I met a representative of Law Tigers named Jay who did a quick little video of my story, and I'm hoping he can put me in touch with some of his counterparts who perhaps can do a little sponsoring by gas cards or something like that to help ease the cost of this massive ride.
Also, one of my long distance riding buddies lives nearby--Haven is his Harley dealership--so he popped in right as we were finishing up and we got to chat a bit before they kicked us out.
I putzed around my bike until everybody left, then I set up camp and I am just about to crash. It was a good day.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 52300
Ending odometer: 52572
Daily mileage: 272
2026 miles total: 5905Leer más
Outer Banks and Pamlico Scenic Byway
24 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 41 °F
I had a lovely ride today through the Outer Banks and across the Pamlico Scenic Byway. Lots of sunshine, but it was bitterly cold all day. My heated gear got a workout 🥶. And sooo windy! But it was still a great ride!!
I didn't have time to go all the way down Cape Hatteras, but I did dip into it far enough to visit the Bodie Lighthouse. The last time I rode down Cape Hatteras was during a tropical storm and the road was so flooded that I had to ride the double yellow line because that's all I could see. That was something 🤣.
Running the Pamlico Scenic Byway is an experience all its own. This is what the website says about it, which is spot on. This is a must ride if you're over on the east coast of North Carolina.
"The Pamlico Scenic Byway centers around the river and sound with the same name. Pamlico was the name of an Indian tribe who once lived in this area....
Towns with colonial history dot the route and offer stories for curious visitors. The unique architecture of old buildings is available to the watchful eye. A rural way of life along the coast and swamplands is preserved along this byway.
Scenes of waterways, rivers, and shoreline provide a variety of views. Just past the town of Scranton travelers enjoy an unusual stretch of road where drainage canals and trees on either side form a unique and protective seven-mile tunnel with views of vast fields and tree farms on either side." (https://scenicbyways.info/byway/12836.html)
After that I swung by Seymour Johnson Air Force Base to take a photo of the British Spitfire static display aircraft, then grabbed some lunch at Tacos and Wings in Mt Olive 🤤 yum. Once I hit Fayetteville I took a photo of Iron Mike in front of the Airborne & Special Operations Museum. This is another must see location if you have any interest in military history.
Around 1700, we, the just shy of 100 rally riders, met up at Fort Bragg Harley-Davidson for some chili dogs, fellowship, and raffle prizes. Since the temperature was forecasted to drop down to about 35°F, I decided not to camp again and to splurge on a hotel. Hopefully, tomorrow will be warmer and I can go back to camping to save money.
Man, was it great to be out of the rain finally!!
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 51896
Ending odometer: 52300
Daily mileage: 404
2026 miles total: 5633Leer más
Short Loop
23 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 39 °F
Today was just a short loop for some AULDR photos and some adulting. Bank, UPS store, and laundry all had to be done today. Plus, I needed to make that call to Denali electronics about the auxiliary lights dimmer switch.
I got an extra 26 miles in today when I realized that although I had taken photos of my bike with two lighthouses, I had failed to add the pictures into my Spotwalla tracker correctly 🤦. So when I finished laundry, I rode the 13 miles back to Fort Story for a do-over 🤣.
Around 1600 I made it to Southside Harley-Davidson for the kickoff dinner of the Run to Daytona HOG touring rally. I got to catch up with some old friends and meet some new ones. Really nice!
Afterwards, I came back to the hotel, packed up all my stuff, and loaded the bike so I'm ready to roll in the morning. I usually ride with other people on these rallies, but I have a lot of photo stops to make tomorrow, so I'm going solo.
The forecast says the weather is going to warm up, but it's still going to be around freezing in the morning, so I'm definitely wearing the heated gear and plugging them in. Fingers crossed there's no wet on top of the cold...again.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 51817
Ending odometer: 51896
Daily mileage: 79
2026 miles total: 5229Leer más
Today was grody to the max
22 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F
I'm not whining, but what a terrible, horrible, frustrating, cold, wet, nasty day I had today. All day long nothing but cold, wet, stinging, drip into your visor rain. From being woken up at 2:30 by thunder and lightning that I thought was going to take me out, to a forecast of 3 inches of snow in Virginia Beach tonight, today has been not a good day.
When I got rolling, it was about 60°F and wet, and I expected a lot of road spray and, from the forecast, a little bit of drizzle here and there. The Weatherman that wrote that forecast was obviously on crack. The temperature dropped down to 39°F, which of course with the wind chill at 60 mph maybe 70 mph (we won't say any higher than that) in the rain, it was cold. And when I hit Virginia, it started raining, like, for real. (Oh, I just threw in a little '80s colloquialism. I've been listening to Sirius XM 80s on 8 for 10 hours today. You're fersure lucky you're only getting one colloquialism. Psych! Take a chill pill; it'll be fine. Totally.)
Despite the weather, I was still able to get in a few photo stops, mostly at dealerships. When I started out this morning at 0600, I still had on my lightweight boots and my lightweight gloves. It was not long before I changed to my heated gloves. And then later I put on my heated jacket so I could turn on my gloves. And then I turned on my jacket. And then I changed into my cold weather boots, which included changing my socks because they were wet. Despite wearing my Aerostich rain boot covers, my lightweight boots are Air Force combat boots, so suede and mesh tend to soak up the spray.
But again, my Aerostich riding suit kept me 100% dry today and all day. It was absolutely amazing. I've had I don't know how many sets of rain gear, some from Harley some from other places, and nothing has done as well as this suit. I also broke out my Aerostich glove covers, which only have three fingers, kind of like a mitten with a Vulcan cut. My gloves at the end of all day in the rain we're completely dry.
Because we're supposed to get 3 in of snow tonight, I have settled myself into a hotel room for the next two nights. The first thing I did was take a hot shower. The second thing I did was order Door Dash 🤣🤣🤣.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 51374
Ending odometer: 51817
Daily mileage: 443
2026 miles total: 5150Leer más
First wet day for the Aerostich suit
21 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ 🌧 54 °F
I was up at 6:00 and rolling at 6:30. No sooner had I pulled out of the dealership, when it started to rain. And rain. And rain. I still kept stopping at all my planned photo locations, but it just seemed to take forever. When I got to one of my Ride To Eat locations, I actually ate there. I have been riding for almost 6 hours and had not even gotten 200 mi down. Very frustrating.
Despite all the rain, though, my Aerostich riding suit kept me almost completely dry. It's not waterproof, but it's extremely water resistant. After 6 hours in the rain and road spray, it had only just begun to look saturated and then only in small patches. By the end of the day it was completely dry.
I say it kept me almost completely dry because it doesn't seem to matter whether I have on a riding suit, a two-piece rain gear set, or a one piece rain coverall, they all seem to let the water in right at the crotch. Disappointing.
After lunch, I stopped for some gas. When I started the bike back up, my auxiliary lights went out again. And then they came back on. And then just the big white ones went out. Then they all went out. Then just the little yellow ones came on. Anyway, I stopped at Timm's Harley-Davidson in Anderson, SC, and they rolled it back into service to see if they could figure out what was going on. Not half an hour later they told me there was a problem with the wires going into the controller. The controller is both the power switch and a dimmer switch for both sets of lights. Apparently something is loose, melted, shorted, whatever, but it wasn't anything they could fix or even hotwire around. But at least now I know what the problem is. I'll have to work with Denali to figure out how to fix it since the controller is hardwired into the entire wiring harness.
The lights still come on and off, but it seems to be whenever they feel like it, which of course is not when I would feel like it. I had them a little bit tonight in the dark, which was awesome, but they were only on when I turned on my brights, so every time I turned off my brights for oncoming vehicles, I couldn't see the road at all. Not. At. All. A couple of times it was pretty scary and I almost came to a complete stop because I didn't know what I was going to run over. I have got to get these fixed.
I stopped at 2100 tonight, much earlier than last night, so I pulled out all of my camping stuff. And I'm just about to settle down in my sleeping bag. I'll be in Virginia Beach tomorrow, just in time for the storm 🤣.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 50895
Ending odometer: 51374
Daily mileage: 479
2026 miles total: 4707Leer más
Monster Day
20 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F
This will be a short one because I'm exhausted. I was up at 3:30 because the wind was shaking my tent too much. It had rained at some time during the night, but by the time I got up everything was pretty much dry.
I rolled at exactly 4:00. I only have one hard rule when I ride and that is that I do not ride between the hours of 0200 and 0400. That's my natural down cycle and I am at my slowest and weakest during these hours. So leaving today at 4:00 was perfect.
I spent all day just chasing photographs. The coolest one was the Alabama State Capitol building in Montgomery, my first of 49 Capitol buildings. I'm doing them in alphabetical order by state, so the next one is Arizona in Phoenix.
It is now 0035, and I just set up my tent right as the sprinkles were starting. Glad it only takes 2 minutes to set it all up.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 50028
Ending odometer: 50895
Daily mileage: 867
2026 miles total: 4228Leer más
Update: Still in Ohio...Not!
19 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
Buffalo Bob is such a great friend! Not just letting me stay at his place last night, but also picking me up and bringing me back today.
The bike is stripped down to expose the wiring and the tech is tracing lines right now. They've already ruled out any specific component causing the problem, so there must be an exposed wire somewhere. Fingers and toes crossed they find it soon 🤞🤞🤞.
I was supposed to be in San Antonio tomorrow night, but I've replanned my route to go straight from here to Virginia Beach...via Montgomery, AL 🤣. About 2,000 miles with a whole bunch of stops at Harley dealerships and for the AULDR challenge. I'm hoping to get to VA Beach by dinner time on the 22nd. If I can get out of here this evening, I should make it. Just. Wish me luck 🤞.
Update at 2234:
They found the wire! It was under the metal plate in the bottom of the tour pack, the wire going into the power port. Wow, of all places! They spent another couple of hours adjusting all the tour pack wiring and heat shrinking it anywhere it might rub. Awesome!
I made it out of the Keg at 1700, but it took almost an hour and a half to get south of the Greater Cincinnati area because of traffic.
After riding through Louisville, Bowling Green, and downtown Nashville, I'm camped at the north end of Tennessee's Natchez Trace Parkway. I was going to ride the Trace for a while, but all I see in the tree line are the beady eyes of curious deer. Nope, y'all can have the road. I'm stopped.
It's about 70°F right now and only supposed to drop to 60, so I only set up my tent and cot. The cot is really a chaise lounge and has a small pillow attached to it. I'm pretty tired, so I know I'll sleep just fine.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 49675
Ending odometer: 50028
Daily mileage: 353
2026 miles total: 3361Leer más

ViajeroThanks for posting the photo and the Kind words/shout-out letting your "Peeps" know Buffalo-Bob in Cincinnati is here to support you on your journey Nancy! Looking forward to tracking you on FindPenguins site Vroom Vroom...

Nancy Webb...Pat BonetarYou were definitely my hero, Buffalo Bob!! I hope to see you on my next run through Cincy!!
One More Day
18 de febrero, Estados Unidos ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F
After a good sleep in a decent bed and a hearty breakfast, I was back at Powder Keg Harley-Davidson. The rotor came in as scheduled and by noon, the tech was just about ready to take the bike out on a test ride.
The loss of my accessories on Sunday was a blown 20 amp fuse. Oddly enough, once the fuse was replaced, the auxiliary lights began working as well. But they're not on the same line as the fuse because I've blown that fuse before and didn't lose the lights. Very strange. Oh well, they work now. They didn't do any trouble shooting with the GPS mount, but it works, too. If I do lose power to it permanently, I have my routes loaded on the bike and I have waterproof paper I can write my directions on and tape to the dash.
They finally finished up with the bike around 1600 this afternoon. I reloaded the bike and was getting my music set up before rolling out when bam! The fuse popped again. They replaced it and bam! again. And again. By 1700, it was to the point where even turning on the bike would pop it. So, I unloaded and they rolled him back in the service bay 😞.
One of my friends, Buffalo Bob, came to the rescue, picked me up, and gave me a place to crash tonight. Angel. He's taking me back around lunch tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed for me 🤞.
Hope to see you on the road! Remember, NO WHINING! ✌️
https://popl.co/profile/catchtheldrbug
https://dunloptires.com/
https://www.aerostich.com/
https://powderkeghd.com/
https://allamericanharley.com/
https://www.wild-ass.com/
2026 starting odometer: 46667
Starting odometer: 49675
Ending odometer: 49675
Daily mileage: 0
2026 miles total: 3008Leer más










































































































































































































































































I was just on Red Rock Scenic Byway last week. The 89A out of Sedona to Flagstaff is a really nice canyon drive too. [Balls Deep]
Nancy Webb...Pat BonetarI love both, but you can't be in a hurry on either 🤣. There must've been 30 cars in front of me going towards Flagstaff 🤣. I never saw the one that was holding everyone up. Too far ahead I guess 🤣. Hugs, buddy [insert puffin emoji here]!!