Heading down to the City

Setting off on a ride from NH down to NYC; from a beautiful lake side dirt driveway to paved concrete jungle surrounded by skyscrapers in one afternoon.

Yes, that is my 1982 issued U.S. Navy sea bag strapped to the back of the bike. I can't tell you how many suitcases I've gone through the years, how many fell apart getting through bagage claim, but those sea bags never wear out. Or at least not the old canvas version I had - years later in an airport I saw a recruit had a polyester sea bag - ugh!

My 2010 Harley Davidson Electra Glide - Police

My first Harley Davidson Motorcycle - a 2010 Electra Glide Police (FLHTP)

My 2010 FLHTP

The used 2010 FLHTP was purchased from Manchester Harley-Davidson Buell. It had the factory color option - only available for the Police model - of black with birch white panels and double silver pinstripes (detailing looks very sharp up close). This color schema is know as the Houston style - reportedly because that Texas police department initially order it. The bike was very well maintained.

The model was based on the Electra Glide (FLHT) with the following Police modifications (some due to removing police equipment to make street legal):

• Deluxe solo air saddle, special police type, breathable material covering, single air bladder suspension with reservoir and integral gauge: able to adjust air for desired ride comfort. In my opinion this is the most desirable feature of this model bike.
• Saddlebags utilizing police style speed latches - the hockey puck latch and outer hinges which make it easy to access content while seated - protected by chrome guard bars. This feature may reduce appearance but greatly improves usability of the bags - grabbing a water bottle from a bag while at a stop light is a simple process.
• The luggage rack is topped by a flat stamped steel plate, intended for mounting the (absent) police radio box, under which is mounted the reservoir, gauge, and fill tube for the air seat. This is a detraction from the bikes appearance, but something that can be address later.
• No radio/police radio removed. According to dealer it would be a "big deal" to drop in an HD radio but a generic maritime (cuz bikes get wet) radio would be easier and less than half the cost.
• Additional "red" hand controls supporting the (altered/absent) pursuit lights and sirens - made me expect to find the switch to fire rockets from the side bags or toggle the afterburner.
• Long stem true image mirrors - no "objects appear further away in rear view" here.
• No Harley Davidson emblem on the fuel tank (and yes, because of that I'd been asked what kind of bike it is - I quickly found emblems to put on the tank). The air cleaner, at least, included the Harley Davidson branding and even the "Police" model.

"Police" on air cleaner

The 2010 FLHTP had the traditional Harley Davidson air-cooled V-Twin, upgraded to 103 inch displacement and integrated oil-cooler. Drive train was a 6-Speed Cruise Drive with final ratio of 2.875. Weighed in excess of 794 lbs. With a ground clearance of 5.1 inches, and the higher than normal air seat height of 27-31 inches, this was definitively a "big" bike - a flat footed stance was possible but only advisable when engine/pipes are cool.

Handling and performance was excellent. Initially handling - likely tuned for a much lighter rider than I - was soggy, but a few quick adjustments of the air suspension and air seat resulted in a firm but comfortable ride. Low speed handling was excellent due to well tuned suspension/throttle/clutch/breaks - no bucking/jerking and easily supporting slow creeping turns. High speed cruising felt solid and connected to the road and the air seat help eat the occasional bumps. Power was good and what I'd want for a touring bike; strong off of the line - necessary to play in traffic with confidence - while long legged enough to be conformable at highway speeds. Advancing up to sixth gear was often an after thought.  Always enough "umph" in the tank to get up and go.

Links to related information:

• www.Harley-Davidson.com
• Police FLHTP Electra Glide
• www.squadfitters.com
• www.retiredpolicebikes.com

Time to ride again

When Suzee was in the recovery ward at the hospital, and our days full of hope and gratitude, we talked a lot about having a new lease on life.  How life was to short and uncertain not to be lived to its fullest. About the changes we would make, not the least of which was to just have more fun. For me, talking about having more fun included my desire to ride a motorcycle again.

To be clear, I knew that a motorcycle was totally impractical in New York City. Going for a ride meant stop-and-go traffic, crazy drivers, and awful road conditions. There was nowhere to park other than public garages, which were prohibitively expensive, and who knew what would happen there. Any "nice ride" would  require hours of highway travel before hitting the open back roads. For these reasons and more I'd sold my little BMW F650 before moving to the city.

However, being a rider (never a "biker", for me it was about riding, not the machine) was part of my identity. I'd gone years where a bike was my only transportation. I missed it. Suzee understood this, often retelling the stories of how happy she'd seen me with the F650, and told me to "just do it".

I'm not sure I would have gotten a bike while in the city had things turned out differently. It was unlikely that Suzee would have ridden in the city, either on the back of my bike or on her own, and I didn't want to spend weekends apart and there was plenty to do. It's more likely that I'd have lobbied to move out of the city prior to purchasing a bike. Then Suzee passed away and my life seemed empty of all purpose and full of grief.

Getting a motorcycle would not make me happy. I don't think "happy" was possible any time soon considering my loss. Rather, for me, riding is an affirmation of life. Riding is living in the now and overcoming adversity and fear.

And yes, for me, there was always a healthy fear when riding. My father died as a result of a motorcycle accident. I'd seen family and friends get hurt. I'd been in a few accidents myself over the years. I understood the danger of riding a motorcycle. But choosing to not ride would not make me immortal.

While I believed it was important to plan for the long term, it was equally important to live for the day, not to put life on hold for a someday that may never  come.   Ultimately it’s a very personal decision, one that logically may never make much sense to anyone else. For me, it was just time to ride again.