Crazy motorcycle ride home.

[protoolman]

Left work today and it was raining a bit so I figured I might get a bit wet on the bike but oh well. Just as I hit the overpass at the edge of town It started hailing pretty hard and fast. Luckily the helmet saved my head and I had a heavy jacket on. Unfortunately my helmet is open faced so the hail was hitting my face pretty hard. I wear glasses so none hitting my eyes anyway. Just when I was getting plastered pretty hard I was only a block from the house and I heard a car honking at me as it passed. I looked up and the car passing me was the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile! What a weird day. Pulled into the garage and actually sloughed off a whole pile of hailstones that had collected on my lap. I guess the good weather is over for a few days, I better drive the pickup tomorrow.

 

[skeeter]

And how many days in February have you ridden your motorcycle in North Dakota? What a strange year.

 

[JFB]

...February ...motorcycle in North Dakota?

Riding in a hail storm
Weiner Mobile


I think some one is pulling my leg :shock:

 

[bogus bill]

........And honking at you! Dont suppose Anthony Weiner got a job driving that Weinermobile? That would be scary!

 

[blackduck]

Nice feburary warm up put about sixty miles on the scoot sat.

 

[protoolman]

Actually it was the first day warm enough to ride this year. I did see a few guys out yesterday too. Snow later in the week so I guess the bike is going back in the garage.

 

[bogus bill]

What kind of wheels do you have?

 

[Cholo]

Pulled into the garage and actually sloughed off a whole pile of hailstones that had collected on my lap.

In '73 I was on my bike heading west out of Deadwood, SD and into WY. I could see 3 separate storms going on. I thought I'd miss them. When the 1st penny sized hail ball hit me on the arm, it was like it was shot out of a slingshot. I soon found a bridge to hide out under. I had a pile of hail between my legs that looked like stacked cannon balls

 

[bogus bill]

About November of 1967 or 1968 I and a GF took a week end ride. I had a 1963 Harley dresser. We were headed for Death Valley and I thought it would be okay.
Out of Scotty`s Castle I hit a snow storm on the way to Vegas. there wasnt one vehicle on the highway, it must have been closed. I literately had to walk the bike through drifts. Raised in Wisconsin but this was as bad as any storm I had seen. Old Marge was in bad shape. We were freezing and wet. The snow was heavy and wet and would clog my goggles as I couldnt get enough speed to blow it over the sheild and my head. Had to take the goggles off and it would snow my eyes shut! Finaly I came up to a lone gas station with nothing else in sight. Just the owner was there. He came out and said, "I see it but I don't believe it!" I looked back at the bike and you could hardly tell it was a motorcycle. The front end was a wall of snow!
Marge was wearing those Wellington type boots. I poured snow water out of them, got some shop rags and stuffed them around her ankles in the boots. We left for Vegas and the weather let up some. Still didn't meet a vehicle almost to Vegas. Had the Harley wide open to 90 finally the last 70 or 100 miles. We are having fun, aint we!

 

[bogus bill]

This is that 1963 Hawg I had then.


This is a 1964 I had later.



A 1967.


Got wounded on this one.

 

[vito]

Getting hit in the face with hail, or even rain at highway speed is no fun. That's why when I am on a trip away from home I always wear a modular helmet. It lets me keep the lid up when it is hot and I want maximum air flow to my face, but if get caught in the rain or worse I can flip the lid down and be protected. Its not only the discomfort, it makes seeing what is around you much harder when you are squinting to avoid the raindrops or hail smacking right into your eyeballs. And I never travel without a decent rainsuit in the saddle bag.

 

[sasu]

Was it something like this?

https://winterride.com/

 

[Cholo]

I want to be bogus bill when I grow up

 

[Bull Barrel]

Now...get a full face hat. It protects yer face against weather and bugs and road rash.

Function before form.

 

[gunzo]

Good gosh, I've ridden in rain storms that would drown a fish, but no way no how I'm riding in hail.

Just took a better look at the Trans Am pic.......a GTO or Malibu next door & a 57 Belair across the street. Ahh, the good ole days. And of course the Hi-Fi Blue & Birch White panhead as the center piece. 8) 8)

 

[427mach1]

At least you weren't covered by mustard and ketchup from the weiner mobile.....

 

[bogus bill]

I guess I was making up for a deprived childhood. Now I am two months from 76 with two heart stents for Christmas. Some broker is coming for my airplane tomorrow.
It`s a sad, sad day for me. Just got back from the airport. Got it gassed up, aired up etc for the brokers to fly it off to Provo for some prospects. This is a couple year old video of it I think when I picked it up in California to fly it here after my friend restored it. My wife came out this morning and finished putting the wheel fairings on for me as I am about dead. Whats that old saying? If I knew I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself. Oh well. We still like riding our old polaris RZR.

 

[CGDustDevil]

I want to be bogus bill when I grow up

I was gonna say the same thing. The '63 would do it for me. I'll dump everything else. Don't need anything else.

Unless it's a Knuckle...

 

[t-reg]

On MC + passed by Weinermobile = A long look at how your livin'.

 

[bogus bill]

That 63 cost me a even $1,000`s in 1966. Of course I was making a little less than $2.00`s a hour. I made a round trip from California to Wisconsin and back on it. I put a lot of miles on it. I bought another, a 1967 in 1969 and sold the 63 to a guy who killed himself on it. I remember buying that blue and white 1964 in about 1977 for $1,500. Later sold it for $2,500 and just a couple years later seen it advertised in the paper and the guy I sold it to was asking $10,000`s! I had some Britt bikes too. Triumph, couple Royal Enfield Interceptors, and another 1958 Royal Enfield with the Indian name on it. That one was one of 11 that was imported to the states the last year they made them for Indian. They were a single carb 700 CC. The later Interceptors were dual carbs 750 CC. They were claimed to be the hottest motorcycle made back then. I got racing some hot car and broke my 120 MPH speedometer and the tach too. Now days that wouldn't be a big deal but it was back then. Also had a 700 Moto Guzzi. Had three bad wrecks on motorcycles that should have killed me.

 

[bogus bill]

This was a 1967 that I had a wreck on. I found someone that was making a chopper and bought his fenders and tanks for not much. Had a friend that painted it black and blue lace trim.

 

[bogus bill]

Have any of you ever heard of Kitty O`neil? She was billed as the fastest woman in the world back around 1977. She was born deaf and started out as a Hollywood stunt woman. She held a record for driving a rocket car 618 MPH! She gave me this belt buckle and her record is wrote on the back. I flew a wide world of sports photographer to film another record attempt she made. It was something to see!
That was at dry Lake Mirage California. Think the record was made on the Salt Flats prior. Think it might have been Hal Needham who asked me to fly the photographer for her attempt to break her own record. She didnt quite break it. She also gave me a shirt with her records on it. Think I wore it out!


http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/deaf-stuntwoman-kitty-oneil-sets-womens-land-speed-record

 

[protoolman]

I drive some weird stuff I used to ride a Benelli and the hail incident the other day I was on my Kawasaki Super Sherpa. To be clear I wasn't riding so slow I was passed by a wienermobile it was in the other lane approaching me. Didn't want you guys to think I was so lame I lost a race with the wienermobile!

 

[exavid]

I confess, I was a Goldwinger for quite a few years. One of the longest days I spent on a bike was on my 2001 GL1800 riding from Stockton, CA to Tacoma, WA in one day. Unfortunately that fall day was full of strong winds, rain, heavy at times but steady the whole 880 miles. Temps in the 40s. I was gong to stop in Medford and overnight but was pretty comfortable in my Frogg Toggs, 3/4 helmet with face shield and heated grips. I passed a couple guys North of Grant's pass, they were on HDs with Ape hangers and beanie helmets. Chugging along about 35mph, slow because of the rain-in-the-face problem. Me snug behind my windshield cruised by those real hard shell bikers at 70mph and gave them a salute with a can of Diet Pepsi. Shortly after that I had a bike problem. The number two CD started skipping so I had to press the button to bring up number three disk. That worked okay. The rain was heavy enough that when I got home my bike was pretty clean once it dried off.

 

[bogus bill]

My longest, hardest ride was June 6th 1968. I recall that because on a gas stop I heard Robert Kennedy was just shot. That was the round trip that I wrote about when I rode that 63 Harley a round trip from California to Wisconsin and back. I had a GF watching my house and feeding my dog. I checked in with her while was at a motel in Jackson Wyoming on the way back. It was exactly 1,000 miles from Jackson to where I lived in southern California on my speedometer. She said someone had broke in my house and stole all my guns! I left early the next morning and made home in exactly 24 hours. On the way I had to get a rear tire put on in Salt Lake city. That took quite awhile as I tried to put it on myself to save money. Finally the dealer wanted to close and go home so out of pity put it on for me.
I was going to overnight at Vegas but was close to broke and after I walked around for awhile I rewoke and decided to go home. At the old Whiskey Pete filling station/casino much smaller then, the gas guy told me Kennedy was shot.
When I got home about 7 am I left the bike unpacked, walked in the house in a riding position, didnt take off my jeans and crashed! Later I found one revolver gone that I had left the girl friend was gone. I had hid all my rifles and shotguns when I left and had thought I told her. I found those. That tire I had put on was a recap! I never heard of one on a motorcycle being used before. Being almost broke I went for it. About a week later the GF and I were riding and it blew or peeled apart all the way around like it was cut with a knife! It wiped out the wiring in my rear fender but I didn't lose it. Another time with the same GF and Harley I had a chain fly off. I went off a off ramp and couldn't stop! The chain had cut my rear brake line! Fortunately there was no traffic. I laid it almost down through the stop sign and coasted to a stop. I have had my accidents on motors but I had a incident that scared me more without crashing. I, the GF and two other couples went for a ride. Both of my friends were motor officers. We all had our own Harleys. We were on the grapevine. I stupidly had put my GF in front of me to let her run the Harley for the first and last time. She was doing good so I took my hands off the bars. We passed one couple and I sort of leaned around to wave to my buddy cop as we went around him and his wife. Then I notided we were heading for the side of the cliff! There was a built up curb maybe 5 inchs high and the same width as the tire.
I tried to bat Marg`s hands off the bars but she was frozen in terror. Same time I leaned hard. we Hit the curb and it bounded us over but back into the curb again which bounced us back away yet we hit it again! Finaly I got some control and we rode the top of the curb back down on the freeway maybe 15 or 20yards. Down to our right was death as it was a mountain cliff! Must have been blood pressure but it sounded like a freight train was going by in my ears! Our friends said we both were beet red!

 

[bogus bill]

I bought a war surplus rain suit before I made that trip. I never opened the package until I hit a rain storm in Colorado. It was brittle with age and blew off me in a couple miles. Except for a short break or two that rain storm followed me all the way to Wisconsin. I was wearing a cheap plastic imitation police motorcycle jacket but that was far better than some real deal heavy police motorcycle jackets I have had. It being plastic totally sealed out the weather, wind and rain and kept me warm. The problem with them is when you took them off you smelled pretty funky. I think a cloud of smelly steam came out when you unzipped. I see I am wearing it in that first picture. I wouldn't want to do that same trip today under the same circumstance`s if someone paid me $5,000`s. I probably wouldst survive it. Now in better weather---

 

[Slyk Willy]

Yeah, hail hurts! I too had the bike out last weekend. 60+ in mid-Feb. in Michigan, who-da-thunk.
I let the Valkyrie open up and sure felt good.
I'll be able to get more windage this weekend, just a bit cooler (mid 30s but sun)

 

[exavid]

Fine bike that fat lady! I rode a Valk several times and nearly bought one but needed the cargo capacity of the Goldwing. I've heard that if you park a Valk in front of a tavern all the HDs will have pools of water under them. And they aren't even water cooled. It's that big flat six jugger engine, just scares the P out of them.

 

[Mike J]

Protoolman I don't envy you a bit getting caught in a hail storm. It is bad enough if you are riding open & get caught in a hard rain without having a jacket with you. Ouch!

Bogus Bill - Beautiful bikes. I am envious.

I used to ride a little. I had a couple of rice burners. The first was a Honda Nighthawk 650. I used it to get comfortable riding on the street then I upgraded to a '79 model Yamaha XS-11 (this was in the early 90's). The Yamaha had a full fairing. I enjoyed it a lot. I let a friend whose car was broke down borrow the Yamaha for a few days until he could work out something else on some transportation. He went out to get a loaf of bread & stopped at a red light on his way back home. While sitting stopped at the light he & my bike were ran over by an 80 year old man. Thankfully the friend survived but sadly the motorcycle didn't.

 

[Slyk Willy]

Fine bike that fat lady! I rode a Valk several times and nearly bought one but needed the cargo capacity of the Goldwing. I've heard that if you park a Valk in front of a tavern all the HDs will have pools of water under them. And they aren't even water cooled. It's that big flat six jugger engine, just scares the P out of them.

Thnx for the kind words, I enjoy mine, it's a 2K I/S with 98K on the clock, all the capacity, guts and looks I can handle. I've sat hundreds of other bikes but don't find anything that fits me better.