Facing the Inevitable

© Ken Bingenheimer / RumBum.com

Would your friends leave you alone? Would you let them?

Things break. It's a fact of live and we all know it. And it's a fact that does apply to motorcycles. What do you do when a bunch of guys are off on a weeklong trip and someone's bike breaks down? You're not going to abandon your buddy but at the same time, his misfortune shouldn't put the kibosh on all your plans.

Fortunately, in more than 20 years of summer trips, the OFMC has never had to deal with this issue; our bikes have been amazingly reliable. Sure there was the one time I had taken my CB750 in for service, with plenty of time to have it completed, and the creeps at the shop had put off starting on it until the day we were planning to leave. At that point John and Bill did the only thing they could do, they left without me. I met up with them four days later at the Grand Canyon.

There was another time when John and I left without Bill. On the way over to meet up with us for the start of our trip, his stator died. (A stator is the motorcycle equivalent of an alternator.) We got him running so he could get to the shop and then we left without him. As it worked out, the shop would not be able to get a replacement for several days so a couple days later Bill took off to meet up with us in Thermopolis, Wy, with his headlight fuse removed and a trickle charger. The plan was to minimize electrical use, charge the battery every night, and don't ride at night. It worked.

Some years later, after others had joined the group, John's son Johnathon was riding the old Virago John had started out on. Two days before leaving the Virago developed a serious problem and there was no way it would be rideable in time. Fortunately, by that time I had two bikes and I loaned him my CB while I rode the Kawasaki.

Having two bikes was a lifesaver for me another time as well. I had the Kawi all loaded and ready to go but when I pushed the starter button it had a hard time starting. When I got on and rode away it ran like a dog. I went about a mile before I made my decision and turned my course toward the dealer. Leaving the bike with them to suss out, I took a cab home, loaded everything on the CB, and raced off the meet up with the guys, who were wondering where the heck I was. I'm not usually late.

The amazing thing about all these incidents is that they happened before we left town. We've never had a bike die out on the road. The closest we've come was just a couple years ago, when Jason was riding his brand new Harley. We were spending a couple days in Taos and some of the guys decided they wanted to ride down a dirt road to a hot springs they had heard about. The road turned out to be a lot rougher than expected, the hot springs was a lot less than expected, and afterward Jason's bike was not running well. But it did run.

We were headed through Durango the next day, and we knew there was a Harley dealer there. Jason and a few others left early, after apprising the shop that he was coming. In a touring mecca like Durango they understand that you need the bike fixed immediately but there were half a dozen other bikes in line ahead of Jason. Still, a few hours later, the problem--a busted electrical connection caused by bouncing on the rough road--was fixed and they were on their way.

So we keep our fingers crossed. What will we do if it finally happens that someone breaks down en route? There's really no question in our minds. We'll make sure they are somewhere the bike can be worked on and we'll say "Sorry dude, bad luck, we're out of here." And the person who gets left behind wouldn't have it any other way.