We were in Tucson on May the 18th and knew we needed to get back home by the end of the weekend. Looking at the weather, we found out our home city was about to get a late-season snow storm (12” expected), so we decided to make the trip from Tucson to Colorado Springs in one day. Not too difficult, but it is over 800 miles, and that would be the longest my wife would do on the back of our HD Ultra Limited in a single day. I casually mentioned doing an IBA SS1000 and she jumped at the suggestion. So we planned out route and figured out how to extend it to the required 1000 miles… and off we went!
The ride was nothing exciting to talk about… good weather, temp under 90° at the high (typically around mid 70s), left at 4am in the morning, etc. We averaged 63 mph with stops, and even had a nice dinner with our youngest daughter. The only real downside is there were numerous fires in New Mexico that really made breathing in areas difficult (one area we were in dense smog for almost an hour), but the smoke was unavoidable so we just pressed on.
Lessons learned:
1) need better underwear for me. Do not discount the importance of well-fitting clothing while on a motorcycle, especially the under layer
2) Love’s sucks. The gas station itself is actually awesome, but on multiple instances they pre-authorized $125 for gas. Sure, I’ll get that back, but having the loss of credit access was frustrating to watch happen, especially when I o my put in about $25 worth each time.
3) Love’s sucks more. They don’t include an address on their receipts (an important bookkeeping requirement to certify with the IBA), so I’ll have to plan differently. Maybe Pilot stations… I like large gas stations while on the road (less chance of gravel, more food / purchase options/ usually cleaner restrooms), so I’ll have to explore more.
4) Harley-Davidson nav on the bike is missing a lot of stuff, especially gas stations. Not much to do about that I guess, but it impacts planning adjustments mid-trip
5) Having a pillion rider requires a lot more communication and coordination than you would think. Sequencing events (bathroom breaks, snack / drink purchases, length of the stop) does not just happen naturally.
Overall , this was a great ride. The next day I asked her her thoughts and she said that it wasn’t as difficult a ride as it sounded and it “was better than sitting around, just watching tv.”
Now we wait for certification.
The ride was nothing exciting to talk about… good weather, temp under 90° at the high (typically around mid 70s), left at 4am in the morning, etc. We averaged 63 mph with stops, and even had a nice dinner with our youngest daughter. The only real downside is there were numerous fires in New Mexico that really made breathing in areas difficult (one area we were in dense smog for almost an hour), but the smoke was unavoidable so we just pressed on.
Lessons learned:
1) need better underwear for me. Do not discount the importance of well-fitting clothing while on a motorcycle, especially the under layer
2) Love’s sucks. The gas station itself is actually awesome, but on multiple instances they pre-authorized $125 for gas. Sure, I’ll get that back, but having the loss of credit access was frustrating to watch happen, especially when I o my put in about $25 worth each time.
3) Love’s sucks more. They don’t include an address on their receipts (an important bookkeeping requirement to certify with the IBA), so I’ll have to plan differently. Maybe Pilot stations… I like large gas stations while on the road (less chance of gravel, more food / purchase options/ usually cleaner restrooms), so I’ll have to explore more.
4) Harley-Davidson nav on the bike is missing a lot of stuff, especially gas stations. Not much to do about that I guess, but it impacts planning adjustments mid-trip
5) Having a pillion rider requires a lot more communication and coordination than you would think. Sequencing events (bathroom breaks, snack / drink purchases, length of the stop) does not just happen naturally.
Overall , this was a great ride. The next day I asked her her thoughts and she said that it wasn’t as difficult a ride as it sounded and it “was better than sitting around, just watching tv.”
Now we wait for certification.
