So, how to orchestrate the move. It was tricky because I have a car, a trailer and a motorcycle and I'm moving 30 miles away. The plan was to leave the Tahoe and trailer at the campground, then return there later in the week so the guys could help me load it onto the trailer. I took down the tent, packed/organized everything into two piles - one to leave in the Tahoe and one to take with me to the hotel. Was in the middle of strapping bags to the motorcycle when a rain storm approached, so I opted to put everything in the Tahoe and drive that to the hotel. A good decision. Drove the whole way in rain but got checked in to a brand new hotel and then drove back to the campground.
Here's where the trouble began. I started the bike, drove about 10 feet and it just died. Now I'm no mechanic and I only know a few basic things to check (like is it a dead battery etc). Battery wasn't dead. The bike just had its 5000 mile check-up 2 weeks ago, so I was perplexed. I've mentioned bikers are nice and I have to say, guys really seem to like lady bikers so I wasn't surprised when several guys in the campground gathered around the bike to diagnose the problem. Now this is where it gets tricky because, while you're thankful people are so helpful, you really don't know who to trust....you're asking yourself "do any of these guys really know anything I don't?". And they didn't, but that's ok. I enjoyed their concern and willingness to help! Oh, I didn't mention the two guys I had been riding with headed for the hills (literally) earlier in the morning, so they weren't there.
So I do what any smart woman would do (I think), I googled Harley Davidson locations (yeah, IPhone!) , got the number for the Rapid City shop and called them. Here's the recording "due to high numbers of bikers this week, we are not accepting phone calls". Great. Now what? I called Matt (always there to help me :) and it was great having his moral support via phone. I called the HD shop at home and Bill was great. He's so calm and patient. He walked me through a few other checks I hadn't tried but unfortunately, they didn't work. So I decide to just take the bike to Rapid City (where I had just come from) hoping the service guys there would take pity on me and help me (this is the only HD shop in the area and there are an extra 400,000 or so motorcycles in the area, so I wasn't really optimistic).
Next task - getting the bike loaded on the trailer - minimally a 2-man job, maybe 3. I look around the campground to see who had a trailer, thinking if they trailered their own bikes, they could surely help me get mine on the trailer. Got some volunteers who got the bike on the trailer (Terry, I need to buy you a new red cover for taillight - I'll explain this when I see you but let me just say there was an "off track" launch Light works fine but it is cracked :(
I drive back to Rapid City. At this point I'm thinking I'm probably going to have to cut my Sturgis trip short and drive home with a broken bike. I'm pretty sad. But I give myself a pep talk on the drive...nobody is dead (that's my motto for most things - having been a nurse at a trauma center), I had 4 great days of riding and covered almost all the territory on my list. And, imagine if this problem had occurred while I was 50 miles away, riding alone in the Black Hills somewhere!
I get to the HD shop and you'd have to be there to witness how they organize the incoming bike and car traffic (remember, 400,000 bikers and most stop here at least once during their trip). I knew there was a service line because I'd been there earlier in the week. I explain my bike is broken to 3 or 4 different traffic conrol guys and they continue to guide me to the service area. Here's where I got an "up close and personal" customer service experience that still amazes me, 9 hrs later. They park me right at the front and instruct me to go find a "tech". I say "where do I find a tech?". A little cutie (age 20?) walks me over. The tech, Doug, is on a break, but he walks back with me to the bike. I explain the situation. He starts checking a few things and to make a long story slightly less long, he takes off the seat, pulls out a fuse, walks back to the shop to get a new one and the next thing you know, the bike starts. 5 - 10 min max. I was so surprised and emotional I told told him I needed a hug. Had he not been married I'd have brought him home (he hails from Peoria, by the way). He was just what the doctor ordered - not only an expert diagnostician, but just the right personality for me at that moment. Calm and gentle and informative. I asked him how much I owed and where to pay and he says "no charge".
As a side-note for my medical friends, he said they get so many bikes in their shop due to bike week that they encounter high numbers of weird bike issues, so their diagnostic skills are fine-tuned (my words, not his). In my mind no different than a physician who may or may not have enough experience to diagnose a medical problem.
To close out the day, I now have ended up with both the car and bike at the hotel (Doug offered to get guys to unload the bike but I wasn't sure how I'd get to and from the hotel with both). I tell Matt, if I can't sweet talk some guys into helping me unload the bike, I'll be driving home tomorrow morning. This is a frustrating situation for someone like me who doesn't encounter too many things I can't take care of myself. I'm walking down the hallway of the hotel and two guys and a gal are walking the opposite direction. I explain the situation and ask if they'd be willing to help me - "honey, you bet we'll help you". We get to the Tahoe and who comes roaring into the lot but Lynn and Rooney, the two guys from Champaign. The bike gets unloaded and I'm back in business. I am grateful for all the help - so many people jumping in to help a stranger. We find out the other guys are from St. Louis. And guess what they do for a hobby...they build bikes.
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