A couple of warmer days

This week has had a couple of warmer days so I got to take the Sporty out and do a couple of "Battery Charge" runs, in the middle of lot's of COLD, snowy days so far her in Jan.  Sunday the wife and I just hauled down South on I-25 to Colorado City and had tested out the pulled pork BBQ at Obies, BBQ and Bar. It's a nice set up with the cafe on one side and the bar on the other, so since we don't drink booze we enjoyed the 50's style diner and enjoyed a cold root beer and some decent BBQ! :) Tuesday was EXCELLENT, weather wise, close to 70 degrees (F) with little breeze and lot's of sun so I put on 150 miles and just enjoyed myself! :)

Weds. was fun too but the weather wasn't near as good, 50 F, partly sunny and VERY WINDY! Still the fun part was getting in a ride with my best friend Ed Wing. He's gota sweet Kawi Vulcan cruiser that looks like a Road Glide but it's only 900cc's so we are pretty compatiable on our 883 Sporty. We took the backroads behind the Pueblo Resivour and LOL, had to hold on for dear life as the WIND was kick'in hard! Stopped for a burger in Florence and then rode back to the Springs. He doesn't ride a lot anymore, in the old days we rode almost every weekend. Still it felt great to ride with him again, hopefully he'll decide to get out more often as the weather warms up! :)

My friend Ed Wing , his wife Diane and their Vulcan Cruiser! :)

Today is cloudy and chilly and their talking that damn 4-letter word, SNOW for Friday late into Saturday so it's not look'in like we will be able to ride for several days. Feb. and March aren't good weather months in So. Colorado but hopefully we can get in some runs to keep the battey alive and kick'in, LOL!! Hope your getting, "On the Road"! :)

10,000 miles of SMILES!

The weather has been the pitts lately but we got break last Sunday and put on 153 miles in mostly Sunny and 50 degree we finally managed to get the odometer to click over to 10,000 miles! Not a lot for some but it's a good total for the 1st. year and all the miles were, "double up" on our 2014 H-D 883 Sportster Super Low! Since we don't have a lot of income alot of our rides are 100-150 miles in length so it's not easy to get 10,000 in 12 months, (actually 11 months!).  We've found we need to upgrade some things, ie: 1 inch longer shocks with heavier springs, progressive hd fork springs, the H-D Sporster Touring Seat and some smaller items.

Just those 3 items are about $700 dollars and that's not including the "labor" to have them installed, OUCH. Oh well we will work on getting them on as soon as we can! :)  I'd love to add a "oil cooler" and forward controls but that's another $500 dollars+ labor so it's gona take us 2 to 3 years to get the Sporty upgraded like we want.  LOL, we really need to hit a Lotto or even the Colorado Cash5 ($20,000) but even though we PLAY, I don't see it coming our way, RATS! ;)  Sure hope this weather get's a bit better soon, we need to get a new rear tire put on so we can keep adding the miles of smiles! :)

Crazy Winter Weather and leaving HOG

Well yesterday, (Tuesday), I put on 106 miles of interstate and highway for a "battery charge run" in the 50's (F) with a lot of sunshine.  Today it started out with "freezing drizzle" and now is lightly snowing, arrugh! :(  We've had a LOT of quick snow stroms for the new year and very few days decent enough to ride semi-comforably so far!  I rode what we call the Loop Run, South on I-25 to Pueblo, then West to Hwy. 115 N and the tiny hamlet of Penrose, and head back to Colorado Springs.

This gives us 80% riding time at 60 to 75 mph. so it's a good battery charge run of which I try to accomplish a minimum of once every two weeks. We don't have an eletrical source we can plug in a trickle charger to at the storeage area so we NEED the weather to give us a "two day clearing" and that get's a bit dicey from Dec. to April.  Usually we can get a couple of days a month or so that can be ridden if I BUNDLE UP, sadly can't afford "electric gear" (vest, chaps, gloves, etc.) so I have to turn into a winter mummy with LOTS of layers.  We need 45 degrees (F) and sunny and that's usually max temp in Jan. and Feb. here in Southern CO.

It sure did feel good to get out on the scoot and LOL, I did get a lot of looks from the drivers on the Interstate! ;)  Well Midnight, (our H-D Sporty) is now tucked back into the "heated" storage area untill I can get a weather break and let her out of the barn again! :)   We've decided to "not" renew our national and local chapter Harley Owners Group (HOG) membership. We are very low income (under $35,000 a year) and HOG is really for folks with "MONEY" to go to all the rallies and event's so that's reason #1. we  are not staying with HOG. Pikes Peak HOG chapter #405 is a real good bunch of people but, we don't really care for "Group Riding", we like to ride our speed, stop when WE want and since we are riding "2 up" on 883 Sportster, we can't stay as comfortable as long as the "Glide" riders, (LOL, we call them Mobile Couches).  So weighing all the facts we are going "Independent".  We really enjoy riding a Harley-Davidson but HOG just isn't for us, jmho, ymmv. Stay Warm, Ride when you can! :)

Well we made the miles, sort of ;)

Found out that Pikes Peak H-D will do a "Service" at either 400 miles prior or 400 miles after the "mileage" so we did manage to get 9,640 miles on the Sporty and took it in for it's 10,000 mile check up last week so at $425.00 for the service we did good to get the miles in under our Pit Stop Service Pass/Program before our deadline in Feb. 2014!! :)

With winter coming in big time after Christmas Day, we will probably NOT get the 12,500 mile check up under the Pit Pass by Feb. 2015 so the next one and those after will be totally out of pocket, OUCH!!  We really like our Sporty and riding a H-D but WOW, the services are quite expensive next to the Oriental Cruisers we've owned in the past!!!  Oh well, we are still very glad we went with Harley-Davidson and will have to figure out how to budget the services in our meger earnings.

Right now it's snowing and blowing and in the teens, tonight, -8 degrees F and tommorow a balmly, 7 degrees F for a day time high!! So the Sporty is in the "heated" storeage area we use as a "garage", LOL, the folks there think were a bit nuts but they let us keep our bike in a no colder than 65 degrees F storage area so hopefully the battery can hang on till our next 40-45 degree, SUNNY day and we can get in at least a "battery charge" run! :)  Hope your getting out, Happy New Year from US to YOU and yours! :)

Rack'in up the MILES!!

Usually we don't "try" to get a certain amount of miles in a year, we are more, Flower Sniffer riders, than Iron Butt Riders, LOL! ;)  We purchased a Pitt Pass Program when we bought our 2014 H-D Sportster in Feb. 2014, it gives us all the "required" services within that year, no matter how many "miles" we put on the machine! Well we now have 9,020 miles and only 6 to 8 weeks left on our PPP and it's DECEMBER here in Southern CO. so we are trying to get to 10, 000 miles before the 15th. of Feb. 2015!!

We turned over 9,000 on Sat. took a 250 mile, eastern plains ride, out Hwy. 24 to Limon, CO., then CO. 71 S. to Rocky Ford, then Hwy. 50 W. into Pueblo and I-25 N. back to Colorado Springs, hoping to get some miles in during the week as Wed. and Thurs. look nice, high 50's (F) and sunshine. LOL, for us the getting of MILES, has to equal the amount of money we can dig up for GAS!! If we were labled by the hardcores, I guess we'd be either posers or RUBS, (Rich Urban Bikers), well we live on less than $35,000 a year so we'd have to be "PUBS", ie POOR Urban Bikers, LOL! ;)  So for the momnent it's more about "MILES", than journey, which is kinda a real bummer but the 10,000 mile service is EXPENSIVE so if we can get it in under the current PPP, we'd save $350.00 out of our tiny budget!!

Being poor and riding a motorcycle doesn't mix well but we do the best we can and try to ENJOY every mile. So wish us luck and GREAT weather for the rest of Dec. and Jan., yea, right! ;) We will let you know if we made the goal! :)