First ride of the season

[GIBBY]

Went for my first ride of the season today. Rode from White Bear Lake to Wabasha and had lunch at Slippery's (made famous by the movie Grumpy Old Men), had a great catfish sandwich then rode back to White Bear Lake. It was a sunny 36 degrees when I left and 44 degrees when I got back, had the grips, seat and jacket liner all turned on and was nice and toasty. 190 miles total, not bad for a first ride.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by GIBBY

Went for my first ride of the season today. Rode from White Bear Lake to Wabasha and had lunch at Slippery's (made famous by the movie Grumpy Old Men), had a great catfish sandwich then rode back to White Bear Lake. It was a sunny 36 degrees when I left and 44 degrees when I got back, had the grips, seat a jacket liner all turned on and was nice and toasty. 190 miles total, not bad for a first ride.

i got out today also, but only for a very short ride. Enough to heat the engine up some.

Mostly today I did the weekend's "to-do" list so tomorrow is a free day to ride.

So, officially, I was able to ride again in March -- barely.

[recumbentbob]

Its great you guys got to ride. 43 and rainy today. But 62 & sunny tomorrow so I'll ride....

[haygrrr]

48 and rain here. 100% chance of rain tomorrow. Saw a Harley out in the rain earlier - he didn't look to thrilled. My first ride will be April again this year.

[glwilson]

I am heading out now to ride for a few hours. We'll see how it goes.

Gibby, given the condition of the roads around here, I am beginning to wonder how some the backroads we ride along the river are holding-up. They, typically, are very susceptible to weather damage.

I hope our Memorial Day ride is not screwed up by having to change routes all the time. We might run into a lot of chip-seal situations also; just like Labor Day weekend. I hope not.

Either way, we'll figure out a way to have fun.

[glwilson]

I did not do as many miles as I would have liked, but I made it past the first critical 100 miles of the break-in for the new engine.

I can tell a difference from the very first mile to the one-hundreth mile, as the engine seemed to settle-in rather nicely by the end. I do however, notice a slightly different cadence to the motor at idle than my '09. The new one seems to reveal the timing cadence of Harley more than my '09 did. Not sure why that is, other than the '09's idle might have been slightly higher.

This is my first reasonably long ride on the new '14 Ultra Limited. All other rides were short test-rides.

• The power increase of the new 103 is very noticeable. There is plenty of power to spare through all gears up to 80 mph -- with more room to run yet. (I didn't go faster than that on this break-in ride, and only did so once after 90 miles on the bike).
  
• The steering/handling is greatly improved. It handles like a completely different bike than the pre-14's. Many others have made this comment, and it is rather apparent.
  
• The hydraulic clutch does a great job smoothing-out the shifts and making the gear engagement more certain and deliberate -- which will be great when needing to shift a lot in the twisties at speed.
  
• The Linked-ABS brakes are great. This is the first bike I have had with ABS, and these are linked. Absolutely no complaints on these yet. I'll know more after running twisted roads at speed if I have any problems with them; or if I have to approach them differently than traditional brakes. I can definitely feel the linking between the front and rear brakes -- without a doubt -- however I like the way it feels. So the linked ABS get a thumbs-up from me so far.
  
• Today was too cool to really tell how much the wet-heads help on cooling the bike; however I rode far and long enough to have the bike fully heated and I did not feel any hint of heat. In looking back on my '09 on days like today, I do believe I would have felt some heat; certainly some at stops. Today, there was no heat to be felt at all. The true tests will come on days with high 80's and 90 degree temps.

Anyway... it was great to get a decent, but still short, ride in today. I hope many others who have been locked-in with this brutal winter were also able to get out!

[dshelly]

As I was reading you latest post it started a lovely rain/snow mix. It's supposed to get real nice here next week. that is if the weather guessers have it right.

Glad the bike is performing well for you. I've been paying close attention to the new HD's. I'm liking the looks of the New project Rushmore bikes and if all goes well I might even foresee a new HD in my Garage in the next year or so.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by dshelly

As I was reading you latest post it started a lovely rain/snow mix. It's supposed to get real nice here next week. that is if the weather guessers have it right.

Glad the bike is performing well for you. I've been paying close attention to the new HD's. I'm liking the looks of the New project Rushmore bikes and if all goes well I might even foresee a new HD in my Garage in the next year or so.

So far so good for me. I am very glad I got it. I am a bit concerned that the "Infotainment Center" will be like an 8-track tape player sooner than many expect though. They need to make those things modular so they can be upgraded; or else there are going be plenty of these bikes for sale in about 5-years that are going to be just like 8-track tape players -- obsolete as hell.

I am not one that is brand-loyal and do not drink the kool-aid, so if it has its problems I will be the first to bitch about it.

[GIBBY]

Happy to hear your first "real" ride went good. Does H.D. have a 500 mile service or something similar? Victory has a 500 mile first service that they strongly recommend having done by the dealer. Price is close to $300.00 for that first service, my dealer offers complimentary first service for all new bikes they sell. Am looking forward to seeing that new bike in person, maybe we will have to meet somewhere for lunch in the next month or so.

[ringadingh]

I seen four bikes out today, I'm hoping I'll have mine out by next weekend. I'd like to have a good rain to wash away the salt before I venture out.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by ringadingh

I seen four bikes out today, I'm hoping I'll have mine out by next weekend. I'd like to have a good rain to wash away the salt before I venture out.

Hope you do soon Steve. Most of the salt is gone around here, but a fine dust of it still remains.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by GIBBY

Happy to hear your first "real" ride went good. Does H.D. have a 500 mile service or something similar? Victory has a 500 mile first service that they strongly recommend having done by the dealer. Price is close to $300.00 for that first service, my dealer offers complimentary first service for all new bikes they sell. Am looking forward to seeing that new bike in person, maybe we will have to meet somewhere for lunch in the next month or so.

HD does... at 500 miles. I'd like to change the oil before that though; as many recommend on a new engine. Many recommend it to be done at 50 miles, just to clear-out any possible metal shavings that occur from the initial engine break-in.

I'll do so if I can get to it soon.

We can always find a half-way spot somewhere for lunch. Not sure where half-way is though...

[recumbentbob]

My victory 500 mile service will cost me $120 I got the price in writing when I picked it up
I changed the oil for the first time at 150 miles

[blowndodge]

next weekend will finally be my first ride of the month of April!

[recumbentbob]

Originally Posted by blowndodge

next weekend will finally be my first ride of the month of April!

Must be nice. Picked up the CCT on 2/28 and only have 206 miles on it. .