Delaware to Michigan on a Harley Fat Boy 6/25/2007
The Route: Start: Hockessin, DE
End: Okemos, MI
615 miles in one day.
The Bike:
2003 Harley-Davidson FLSTFI Fat Boy.
The Conditions:
Sunny and 80 degrees.
And the ride begins...
My buddy Michael had bought a 2003 Harley Fat Boy and was keeping it in Delaware while he was working out of the country for almost a year. After he returned and got settled in he wanted to bring the bike out to Michigan. We came up with the idea that we'd take the bike and my truck, switching off at each gas stop, and then I'd return by myself with something special in the back of my truck (more on that later).
We left on a Saturday morning. Here are the two vehicles that morning, the Harley and my Dodge Ram pickup.
The first half of the route took us across the lower part of Pennsylvania via the PA turnpike. Traffic was light and the weather was perfect.
Michael took the Harley for the first leg while I followed in the truck. Our plan was to switch at each gas stop.
Here I am at a rest stop. We fueled up and I took my turn on the bike.
All puffed up, my vented jacket didn't ventilate as much air as I would have liked!
I didn't care though. It was a beautiful day and I gave a big thumbs up to the camera!
Stopping for lunch, we pulled the cooler of food and drinks out of my truck and laid everything out on the tailgate.
Michael and his bike.
The second half of the trip took us through the northern part of Ohio and into Michigan.
Michael steady cruising.
A quick video. The bike sounds nice doesn't it?
Our final destination, Okemos, MI. Here is the owner and his bike posing for a photo in the driveway.
Saturday evening a coupe of us went out to a local bar for dinner and drinks. Ok, make that several drinks. Sunday morning I woke with a slight hangover, but I still had enough energy to load something heavy in the back of my truck for the long trip home...
A 1998 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-7R!
The Ninja was Michael's bike prior to buying the Harley. Super nice bike, but he just didn't have time to ride it. I would have liked to ride it back to Delaware from Michigan, but the bike had been sitting in storage for several years with fuel in the tank and the result was that it didn't run very well. Although in need of some carburetor work, the bike only had 3,000 miles on it and the rest of it was in mint condition.
The drive back to Delaware went well and was uneventful. Here's the bike and I cruising down the PA Turnpike.
Once I got back, I unloaded the Ninja and gave it a bath. Looks nice doesn't it? After cleaning the carbs and replacing some o-rings it ran like a raped ape.
Well, that's the end of the story. We rode a bike from Delaware to Michigan in one day, partied that night, and I drove home the next day with a cool new tow. It was tiring, but lots of fun.
