Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Robmay]

I've been thinking of getting a triler to pull behind my bike since my first CVO GTG at CHL 5-6 years ago. I happened to meet Chief at his home and follow him to CHL from there. He had a Bushtec trailer (Turbo model, not sure which one) and it made me re-think the whole " I couldn't have a trailer" thing watching Chuck take those mountain curves as if that trailer wasn't even there.

Then my next door neighbor at the lodge just so happened to pick up a brand new, color matched (Turbo model as well) Bushtec on his way to the GTG. His name was Mark (MJZ I think) and it was a purty nanr yellow one.

Then at the mopst recent GTG (Ribfest), there were several Bushtecs to check out. I've been partial to a Roadstar for some reason and Tommy just happened to have one. Then I got to talking with Chip about his find. A used one in excellent condition for way less than retail.

Well, bikes have come and gone since then and now that I have one I think I my keep for awhile so after talking with Chip at length and thoroughly, I started my hunt. I looked so much I got sick of looking. Mostly on Craigslist...city....by city..... by city.... Then I thought "there has a to be a way to search all of Craigslist with one search. Google to the rescue. I found a link to the search ALL OF CRAIGSLIST and that made it much easier. http://www.adhuntr.com/

Next, I found a few I liked but they were either not much less than retail or not exactly what I wanted. I figured If I was going to spend some money on this, It would have to be very close to exactly what I wanted. I found a black one and white one but no cooler package. I found some others that were close, but not all there. Then I found one in Franklin NC. It was red (almost identical to my bike), was a Roadstar like I wanted, had a spare tire, chrome neck, cooler package, protective bra cover, luggage rack and upgraded color matched bumper with driving lights.

I sent the info to Chip to get his opinion on it. Next thing I know, I've made an offer, settled on a price and Chip offered to go get it for me! Wow. This triler was about 220 miles from Chip...one way. So I humbly accepted his offer, sent him a check and after a few days on his day off, he struck out to get it.

Here's the pics he sent me when he got it hooked up.






So now we have to get the trailer to it's rightful home before Chip sells it on Facebook....

More to come here in a sec....

[Robmay]

So Chip takes it home and cleans it up a little... a lot. Thanks Chip. He can post a couple of pics of that.

Then he wants to meet in the middle somewhere? What?? I can come get it Chip. You've done enough already.

He say's "Nah, how far are you from Savannah?" 250 miles I say. Me too he says. So we decide to meet in Savannah. Guess when?....yep...Memorial Day weekend.

Actually Annette and I went up Saturday and spent a day alone and Chip and Nancy were to ride up Sunday as he had to work Saturday.

So we're getting pretty much ready to pull out Saturday morning to head to Savannah and Chip sends me a text about maybe we should drive trucks. Something to do with the weather.

I check the radar on my phone....nothing anywhere. WTF are you talking about Chip? We're riding. After all I didn't just have this hitch put on my bike for nothing....






Here's how we decided to hide the wires

[Robmay]

So 120 ish miles and we stop for gas and a sub in Yulee FL


Then we stopped at a Piggly Wiggly for a water break. It was getting a little hot and I wanted to test an idea I read aout here. Wet your tshirt, then put your riding jacket on and when you get in the wind, it cools you down. It worked!

Piggly Wiggly in Townsend GA.


Phone shot of where we were on the map. Don't know why it turned pink after I loaded it to Webshots. This is where I remembered to text TN and let him know we were coming to his town.
We're the green dot in Townsend.


We head on in without anysnags and get checked in and head on down to River street.

If you've never been to Savannah, you have to go. It is a gorgeous town.

[Robmay]

So anyway, we are sitting in a Pub/Restaurant joint having some appetizers (which were spectacular BTW) at Fiddlers when I keep seeing the NOAA people and Weather Channel blah, blah, blah....

I check my phone radar again. Nothing really out there but a little blippy rain band. Pssshhh. First "storm" of the season, everyone's blowing it up.

Finish out the evening and head on back to the hotel. Next morning...still more NOAA, Weather Channel and blah, blah, ....what? Check my phone again...

WTF? Where did this come from?

As most you may or may not know, I live in Florida...straight across from Daytona in the center of the state. It is Sunday morning (the day Chip is heading out) and I plan on meeting up with him by later this afternoon, then heading back out for home Monday morning.

Here's the projected path of this storm.... again, sorry for the off colors.


I frantically start texting Chip to see if he's left yet and to concur on that driving the truck idea I scoughed at earlier. No reply. Damn. Their on the bike...

[Robmay]

So FINALLY  he texts me back and says they are indeed in the truck. Smart man.

In meantime, TN calls and he's on the way....without his "wife" of course. He finds us on River street and we jump in to help find a parking place for his truck.

In the meantime Annette starts giving him the whatfor about not bringing his wife and she probably doesn't really exist and on and on. I join in and thats it...

"Awight goh-dammit" and next thing I know we are being kidnapped and headed for the Poderosa....without calling his wife Karen to let her know he's fixing to show
up to their house with two total strangers...and she's doing housework....in her house work uniform. Annette and I finally convince him to call and let her know we are coming.

So we show up and sure enough she is real!! We finally got to meet the Mrs. TN. We call her Karen. A very lovely and gracious woman. We spent some time there and got to know Karen and scooby.

I have a picture of Scooby and Karen, but I know better than to post pictures of most woman folk so you will have to settle for Scooby. TN rescued him the day before coming to Ribfest.


Then TN broke out some of his historical finds. Shark teeth (one HUGE one), some Civil War era ammo, some fired and some not fired, and some other items that were very old. One dating back to the 1600's I believe.
He finds all of this with his metal detector.

Anyway, thank you TN and Ms. Karen for your hospitality! We look forward to seeing you both again real soon.

[Robmay]

It's about this time I get a call from Chip. They have arrived! So like a kid on Christmas eve, i say my goodbyes and TN drives us back to our hotel.
I hope Chip took some pictures of the trailer in the back of his truck because i forgot to. My bike was on one level of the parking garage and his truck with my trailer on another so I couldn't get them side by side for a comparison yet.

But...finally the time comes and we get it unloaded and hooked to the bike!

[Robmay]

So the time comes this morning to strike out.

We are now at the blue dot and have to go to the green dot.

Notice that Flash Flood warning square around Jacksonville? We have to drive pretty much..... thru there....

[Robmay]

So we strike out a while later, near 11am and get on I-95 south to 295W to I-10W.....

We stop between Atlanta and Brunswick to gas up and check the trailer. All is fine...with the trailer. I can't find my cell phone.

Mutha-Mutha!! where is it?? I unload the trailer, look in the cooler, the saddlebags, the trunk. I use my wifes phone and call it. Nothing.

I remember I put it in my GPS holder and could have sworn I put it in my saddlebag. I must have laid it ON the bag and drove off and let it fly.

I called the hotel, they check. Nothing. I hangup and call the phone to see if they can hear it ring. Leave a voice mail so it will beep. I call them back. Nothing.

Annette asks if I want to go back. Nope. I'll call Verizon and have them shut it off. Can you check my saddlebag once more. BINGO! She found it! Why is it a man can look for something (I mean really look for it not like most of the time), run his hand all down on the bottom and sides of the saddle bag with nothing else in the bag and not find it and a woman can find it first try?? I love her.

So, obviously no pictures there.

Next stop, Baldwin Florida!!! Pretty much the worst is behind us now. Still very windy (and gusty) but not much rain from there to the house.
Here we are gassing up there.


Notice no tag. Chip drove it 220 miles home and we towed it 250 and not one stop. Thank goodness. We had all the paperwork to show we just purchased it and may have been let off but I am sure it is still not legal to do so now that I think about it.


We made it home safe and sound about 3:30. We made excellent time considering the storm.

[Robmay]

well, my first time pulling a trailer. As most all others I have heard or read about, I have to echo the term "you don't even know it's back there when towing". I was curious as to how I would really feel about towing a trailer. I knew no other than a Bushtec would work for me after reading and reviewing but more importantly, talking with a lot of you that have them. These trailers are first class. I am glad to finally have one. I hope we are blessed enough to get many, many miles out of her.

Thank you to Chip, Tommy, Chief, Mark and all the others I have talked with about these. Your input helped me spend even more money on this bike!!! Just when I thought I was done, now I'm buying chit that doesn't even go on the bike! 

[OBB]

Great story all around.  Been watching it the last hour or so waiting to reply after your last post.

[SBB]

now I'm buying chit that doesn't even go on the bike! 

Now that's funny.
But true!
 

Look, two Bushtec's in the garage.

SBB

[SBB]

So it was time to get the trailer to Rob.
But Rob look at the weather.
Original plan was to take the bike but weather.com said NO!
OK, load it up in the truck.
So we head south.

SBB

[SBB]

Going to Savannah was 250 miles with 50 of them in rain.
Not to bad.
Weather was good when we got there.
We walked River Street after we checked in at the motel.
The weather was good then.

SBB

[SBB]

I was wondering why Don sold the red bike.
I'm thinking it was to buy one of these.
Do they come in red?

 

SBB

[SBB]

When in doubt about the weather, ask these guys.

 

SBB