The End of Touring Life

The powers that be at the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America (BMWMOA) changed the date of the annual rally from mid July to mid June this year. It will most likely be viewed as a stroke of genius due to the fantastic weather in the Nashville area this weekend. The temperatures peaked out at about 90 degrees on Saturday with a pleasant breeze and low humidity. Thursday and Friday were a bit cooler and perfect for rally fun.

My brother and I rode in on our R 1200 GSAs at about 1:30 pm Friday afternoon. After visiting registration and dropping off our door prize tickets, we walked into the air conditioned vendor building. All of the usual suspects were present and my brother bought a new riding jacket. I was tempted by a aramid fiber enforced riding shirt to use when riding my Harley Davidson, but ultimately decided to wait on that purchase. The orange, black and white Shoei RF 1200 also drew my attention.

As you may or may not have noticed, my thoughts during the rally have been focused on my 2016 Harley Davidson Lowrider S. For those not in the Harley world, the bike is known as an FXDLS.

Visiting a northern Wisconsin Ranger Station

It is a completely different bike from my BMW and cannot come close to matching what the BMW offers. The FXDLS is the quintessential cruiser bike. I have mounted a couple of small bags to carry essentials for a day ride, but it does not have a windshield. It is not a bike that I would ride on 500 mile days, something that is a relatively easy ask on the BMW GSA.

So why have I been thinking Harley at a BMW rally? I have been thinking over the winter that my multi-day touring days are over. Since I started touring, about fourteen years ago, I have been to a lot of places. Several trips to the Black Hills, to include two Sturgis Rallies, three trips to the Dragon, and rides up Trail Ridge Road in the Rockies and the Mount Washington Auto Road in New Hampshire stand out. I have had a few different riding buddies and each trip hasH been a joy.

Hanging out in Pine Bluff prior to Slimey Crud Run

But I am beginning to feel a bit more homesick on each trip. My wife doesn't ride and I think I have seen enough of these beautiful United States without her. She has been very understanding of my wanderlust and desire to get out on the road with my bikes. I still plan to do that, but just for short overnight rides when I feel the need. Which brings me back to why I am thinking about my Harley this weekend.

The BMW, my first and only, has been a terrific bike. It has done everything I hoped it would, only better. The maintenance costs are higher than the Harley, but I knew that going in. But it is not a Harley Davidson. I had a Honda 160 Scrambler in high school and sold it when I left for US Army Basic Training. I did own a motorcycle for another 26 years. What drew me back in was the mid-nineties mystique of Harley Davidson. A 1996 Sportster Custom, which bought in 1998 was my entry back into bikes.

Since then, Harley has been the bike of my heart. It will not be possible for me to have only one bike and that bike not be a Harley Davidson. Either the FXDLS will meet my motorcycling needs or my needs will match the bike.

Taken on one of my Rustic Road riding trips

So as I ride home over the next couple of days, my thoghts will be of selling my BMW. I plan to keep my adventure riding gear for a period of time just in case I change my mind. But a muscle car made by the Blue Oval has caught my attention and may become a stablemate for the Harley in the near future.

The 2019 BMW National Rally

Sometimes the motorcycle gods are not certain whether or not to bless you. Yesterday it rained all day in Green Bay. I rode my 2011 R 1200 GSA from its home to my house and it sat in the rain all night. The day dawned dry, cold and cloudy. My alarm, or its operator, misfired so the day got off to a quick start. The day, in particular, was the the day I was on my way to the 2019 BMW National Rally in Lebanon, Tennessee.

I had planned to carefully load the bike in the morning due to the rain the day before. Due to the alarm issue it became a quick, but efficient load out. I was able to suck down only one cup of strong coffee, but when my brother arrived on his 2016 BMW R 1200 GSA I was ready to go.

Our route took us south on I 43 through Milwaukee. It was only in the low 50's, so I was grateful for my clothing choices. I wore a Nike thermal shirt along with two others and Under Armour 4.0 thermal layer pants under my jeans. My trusty Olympia AST, with liner, was up to the task.

We stopped at a Kwik Trip north of Milwaukee and then at the Lake Forest Oasis in Illinois.
I had anticipated a bit of rain, and Mother Nature did not disappoint. After a hearty breakfast of Dunkin' Donuts and coffee we merged back onto I 94 East. The rain continued intermittently from northern Illinois right through central Indiana. But by the time we neared Louisville, Kentucky there was abundant sunshine and temperatures in the low 70's.

We arrived at Fort Knox at about 1900 Eastern Daylight Time. The receptionists at the Newgarden Inn made registration a breeze and soon we were ensconced in our excellent accommodations. As an Army veteran it is always a pleasure to be back on a military installation.

At the Fort Knox Visitor Center.

A Day in Door County

After 45 years of marriage one would think that describing a wallet would not be too difficult. But for me, it was a bridge too far. Somehow I communicated to my patient wife that I wanted a wallet smaller than the one I have used for the past fifteen years. She contacted The Hide Side, a premium leather store in Fish Creek, WI, and ordered a beautifully made piece. However, due to my limited communication skills, it needed to be exchanged.

Fortunately, Fish Creek is located in picturesque Door County, about a 45 mile ride from my house. After taking care of a few duties around the house I carefully packed the wallet in the swingarm bag on my Harley Davidson Lowrider S and headed up to the Door.

Door County is a vacation hotspot during the summer, but the kids are in school yet and the small bayside towns are still a little sleepy. I rolled through Sturgeon Bay and noted that there were a lot sailboats still in dry dock at Skipper Bud's. Riding over the bridge on the bypass I saw the gulls swooping down over the channel looking for a late breakfast.

That thought made me a little hungry, so I stopped in at the Chocolate Chicken in Egg Harbor. This is one of my favorite stops and it did not let me down. I ordered a blueberry muffin and a cup of their Indonesian Black Satin Blend coffee. The sun was shining on the little table in front of the shop and I enjoyed late morning breakfast while watching a few retirees amble around town.

A great stop for coffee and pastry.

Soon enough it was time to get back on Highway 42 and continue on up to Fish Creek. The two lane highway was not too busy, but the drivers out there were not too eager to get where they were going. I adapted to the leisurely pace and enjoyed the sites. I could not tell whether is was the beginning or the end of the cherry blossom season, but several of the orchards were in full bloom.

The road drops steeply into Fish Creek. It makes a sharp right instead of flowing into the waters of Green Bay, but my destination was at the bottom of the hill. There was a parking spot right in front of The Hide Side, and before long I was perusing the fine leather wallets inside. The experienced clerk helped me find just what I wanted. Fortunately, the young woman behind the counter found a couple of cards that I had left in the one my wife gave me. We had tried it out before deciding to return it.

Just what I wanted!

Door County is a couples type of place, so I did not hang around too long. I rode down to the dock to check out the big boats and take a picture of the bay.

The dock at Fish Creek.

Then I went back up the big hill and south toward Egg Harbor. I stopped for lunch at Shipwrecked. The brew pub has a colorful history including stories about Al Capone, Chief Tecumseh, and ghosts. You can read all about it on their website. Unfortunately, it burned to the ground almost two years ago and it is now a completely new building. The cheeseburger, potato salad and coffee were all tasty.

View from the deck of Shipwrecked.

After paying my bill I took a slow walk out to my bike and took my time getting my riding gear on. It had been an excellent day in Door County and I wanted to make it last a few more moments. The ride home was as enjoyable as the rest of the day. It is early in the season and I plan to make a few more trips to Door County with my wife this summer.

Catholic Parish Rises and Falls in Maple Grove

The racing season at Road America begins in June. Each year I eagerly watch for a good riding day in May and head down to the track to pick up my new identification card. It's an opportunity for a ride and a chance to see what improvements Road America management has made. This year the weather was not very cooperative, but finally it cleared and I was on my way.

It is about a 50 mile ride on the back roads out of De Pere to Elkhart Lake, the home of Road America. While there are not a lot of curves, it goes past a nice park and some beautiful farmland. Farther south the route enters the flat land of Collins Marsh. The marsh was created by dams erected the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources many years ago. This was part of an effort to attract some of the migrating geese from the over crowded Horicon Marsh.

On this day, prior to reaching the marsh, there was a detour. There was some work being done on County W and I was forced east on County K. The detour turned south at County G and led into the little town of Maple Grove. I saw the old church and school and guided my BMW R 1200 GSA into the worn parking lot.

St. Patrick Church in Maple Grove

Thirty years ago I was teaching middle school at the Catholic school in Brillion, which is about ten miles to the west. At that time all of the little towns along US Highway 10 had a Catholic school. In addition to Brillion, they were in Holland, Reedsville, Whitelaw, Clarks Mills, St. Nazianz and Maple Grove. By the late 1980's the Maple Grove school had been closed, but the parish supported the school in Reedsville.

How many students passed through this entrance?

After a few years of teaching I began my work on a Master's degree in Educational Administration. The principal's position at St. Mary Reedsville/St. Patrick Maple Grove came open. A co-worker and I both interviewed for job and she was selected. I took a principal's position at a different Catholic school later that spring, this one on the far east end of US 10 in Francis Creek.

Plaque provides a history of the parish and school.

I had never been to the Maple Grove campus and found it interesting to walk around the site. The plaque in front of the church provided a history of the church and school. The Irish immigrants in the area started the parish and the church was built in 1868. The school was built in 1912 and educated students all the way through high school up until 1956. The school closed in 1981. The church continued through the turn of the century and the last Mass was celebrated on March 17th, St. Patrick's Day, in 2002.

As I walked around I could imagine all of the families and their children who had been Baptized, celebrated First Communions, Confirmations, graduations, weddings and finally burials on these grounds. Descendants of the first settlers purchased the convent and the church and have established a tree park. It is a very beautiful and peaceful site.

The history of the school was not all what it seems. Although I did not get the principal's position at the school, I kept in touch with my co worker through diocesan meetings and professional development sessions. Each of these little schools had their own stories and mysteries, and this one was no different. Most of them are closed now. Brillion combined with Reedsville and there are students there. Clarks Mills has a few students and continues to operate. The St. Nazianz school just closed within the past year. The others are gone, but on a quiet spring day it is still possible to imagine the families that spent the arc of their lives within the confines of these old parishes

New Bike from Harley Davidson

Harley-Davidson has been busy covering all of their bases over the past year or two. There has been the tremendous hype over their electric bike, the LiveWire. They have floated pictures of a streetfighter bike and a big adventure bike. The FXDR showed up in dealerships last fall and was advertised with videos of the bike on a race track. Now the Motor Company is reaching back into its roots with the latest version of the Electra Glide Standard.

The EGS has not been in the model lineup for several years. If a buyer wanted a touring bike with a fairing the only choices included at least a radio and speakers. The Road King continued to be available, but it only has a windshield. So the new EGS is offered as a bike for those who want the comfort and advantages of a full touring motorcycle at a reduced price.

As noted, one major difference is the lack of an entertainment and Bluetooth system. The hole is there in the dash if a buyer wants to install a system. It seems as though Harley could have manufactured some sort of cover for the gaping hole so it could be useful for storage. The bike does not come with driving lights, only the single halogen headlamp. The 107 cubic inch engine is the only option and will be more than enough power for most riders. The suspension is identical to the other touring bikes in the lineup.

An interesting note about the introduction of this bike is that no one, not even the dealers, knew it was coming. I spoke to a salesman at my dealership, Vandervest Harley Davidson in Green Bay, and they found out about it the day before it showed up. It must have something to do with marketing and sales of the new products when the decisions are made about announcing their arrival.

I have not had an opportunity to ride this new bike, but I plan to try it out this summer.

How Late is Late?

As early March turned into mid-March I became more and more anxious to get out and begin the 2019 motorcycling season. The prior two months had produced some impressive, if not quite record breaking, amounts of snow. The March temperatures were not doing much to melt it all and the riding season got shorter by the minute. It was not until March 21st that I was able to get out on my 2011 BMW R1200 GSA for a ride. I put on 150 cold and windy miles, but at least I was riding again.

In the next few days I commented to a few people that it was the latest I had gotten out in quite some time. Their disinterest in my observation was quite obvious, but I began to wonder if what I felt was really true. Fortunately, I have a trove of riding data that I could examine.

At Christmas in 2000 a friend gave me a leather bound Harley Davidson Hog Log. The book features photographs from the Harley Davidson archives, maps and pages for logging anything you want about your motorcycle and riding it. My first entry is from April 4, 2001, and describes putting in the battery and taking it out for a short ride. The last sentence of the entry is one that shows up often in the next seventeen years: "It was cold".

I have kept a journal of my riding adventures ever since April 2001. There were years when I would miss a few weeks of notes and then try to catch up. But after reading through them all again recently I get a flavor of what each summer was like. Those years took me through job changes, beginning retirement, the passing of my parents and a new bike or two. Around the beginning of 2013 I had filled the Hog Log. I went on a search for a new one, but they were only made for a short period of time and are long out of print. Any that are still in new condition bring a premium price, so I began using a small spiral bound notebook.

Even though there may have been some gaps in my notes through a particular season, I was particular about noting when I began riding each season and when I took the last ride. So I thought it would be interesting to find out if in fact I was out later this year than other years. I went through each of the log books beginning in 2001 and all the way through to the spring of this year. Armed with this data I built a spreadsheet to include beginning date, ending date and miles ridden.

The results of my examination showed that while I was out a little later than recent years, there is a likely explanation for it. First, I can say that 61% of the time my first ride was later than this year and was, in fact, in April 40% of the time. Further analysis shows that of the seven years that I rode earlier than March 21st, four of them have come since I retired in 2014. When I was working I usually had to wait for a weekend riding opportunity, but in the last few years I have been able to ride whenever the weather allows it.

So it is true that the weather prevented me from getting out as early as recent years. I recall those last years of my work life, watching motorcycles rumble by on the first decent day of the spring. I often thought that soon I would be out there too, and I am happy that I have been taking advantage of any early riding opportunities.

Winter Musings

This Wisconsin winter is one that would make even the most diehard "change of seasons" lover think about becoming a snowbird. The winter weather did not start until New Year's Eve when we received about five inches of snow, but that was a harbinger of what we would endure over the next two months. Instead of the old saw about it's not the heat, it's the humidity, this winter it's not the snow, it's the ice. Bags of salt and sand are in short supply in the local hardware and convenience stores. Yesterday there was a 131 car pileup on the local interstate and a 25 year veteran of the sheriff's department said it was worst driving conditions he had ever seen.

It has been a good weather for snow biking, though. The trails at the Brown County Reforestation Camp have gotten better each week and I have enjoyed my rides. As a newbie at this activity, it has taken me a while to figure out just how much air pressure to have in the tires. Right now I am down to five pounds and that seems about right. The park department does a great job of grooming the trails and encouraging riders to run with low air pressure.

Sharing the road with bicycles

The Chicago International Motorcycle Show was held a couple of weekends ago and that is an excellent mid winter bike fix. Some of the manufacturers passed up the show this year and I suppose it is due to a weaker market than they would like. BMW was there, though, and they showed off the latest iteration of the S 1000 RR. The bike has been almost completely redone and the one they brought had all of the high speed M parts installed. The reps on hand had no information on how much it will cost, but it is rumored that it will be in showrooms by September. They were not letting anyone sit on or otherwise caress this beautiful motorcycle.

2020 BMW S 1000 RR

I picked up a few brochures from the vendors at the show and one was from Michelin. Since my 2016 Harley Davidson Lowrider S is shod with Michelin's I thought it would be interesting to read a bit about the rubber I entrust my safety to each time I ride. After looking through the pamphlet my curiosity was piqued and I went out to the garage to inspect my tires. The bike is hooked to a Battery Tender and covered up in a cold garage. I pulled the cover back and knelt down to look at the rear tire. Surprisingly, the tire appeared to be flat. A quick check with a gauge confirmed this and I soon found that I had run over a nail or something that punctured the tire. It must have happened on one of my last rides of the fall before I put it away. My local dealer will pick it up and replace the tire once the driveway is clear of ice.

Which brings me back where I started. March is only a couple of days away and the first day of spring is within sight. Tomorrow I will be back in the woods on my fatbike trying to make the best of another Wisconsin winter.