Hey fellow forumites, Thought I'd share the latest chapter in my V-Rod story.
To recap, I had my 2002 VRSCA stolen on 6/18 at a Michigan Harleyfest show. Fought a little battle with Foremost Insurance which to sum up, don't expect more than about 25 cents on the dollar for your extras. I was happy with the blue book valuation, but I had $3500 of "extras" coverage on my bike, and $5,900 in receipts and documented extras which Foremost paid out $2,200 for. I didn't need to pay for the extra "extras" as the policy comes standard with $2,500 in "extras" coverage. On a positive note, Foremost DID have a check to me exactly 30 days after my loss. In the end, I am happy with them.
Soooo, I have been shopping Ebay for the past few weeks and I spot a 2004 "A" in smokey gold and black with only 1900 miles and still under warranty. It had all the extras I wanted including chrome engine package, hard saddlebags, touring windshield, chrome blade driver and passenger foot pegs, brake and shifter, swingarm bolt covers, completely chromed hand controls, reservoirs and switch bodies, chrome mirrors, leather windshield accessory bags (I would have never bought these, but boy are they handy!), "smart siren", chrome jiffy stand, chrome fork sliders, chrome passenger footrest brackets (sweeeet!!), chrome alternator cover, chrome master cylinder cover, you get the picture. Oh yeah, Vance & Hines exhaust with the SE16ga chip. Pretty much everything chrome except the swingarm and wheels.That's for a winter project. Bike is flawless, not even a single scratch. Another female owned bike, like my '02. Very well cared for by the owners father, who owns a nice little motorcycle repair shop. Synthetics at the 1K mile service. We hammer out a nice deal at $13,800 and I'm elated. As part of the allure, the bike is in Massachussets and I'm in Michigan. After working out the payoff, I fly to Providence R.I., and pick up the bike Wednesday at 3:30 pm and it's off to meet the wife and kids at Cedar Point.
Once small flaw. The bike has a stock seat and I'm determined to do the trip on back roads and experience my slice of Americana. 820 miles from MA to Sandusky OH. I had decided to take Highway 6 which goes from Marthas Vineyard out on the eastern most tip of MA all the way to the west coast through a lot of very small towns. Inspired by Val's heroic and grueling ride, I made an ambitious schedule to cover the 820 miles in less than 48 hours.
The first day started GREAT. I had planned to stop the first night in Hartford, Conneticut but since I got an earlier start than I thought I would, I blew through Hartford easily and set the ridiculous goal of making PA by nightfall. It wasn't going to happen. Here comes my first mistake. About 9pm I passed through the New York town of Danbury. Sweeeet little town. Tony little restaurants and nice looking hotels. I'm pretty beat, and my tailbone has been singing the blues since 4:30pm. But with about another hour of daylight, I decide to keep pushing. Well, right after Danbury, is Bear Mountain. Thousands of bikes on the road, but it turns dark before I get into the awesome twisties and I can only tell there is a 2000 foot dropoff right next to me by the lights twinkling way below. By the time I reach the next town (which I conveniently forget the name of), It is pitch black, and man am I tired and hungry. Best lodging I could find was this majorly crappy Days Inn for $90 in a smokers room that smelled awful and was very run down. I go find some little chinese restaurant and when they hand me my stuff in bags, I tell them no, It's for here. Oh no they say, we're closing. So I'm carrying this Chinese back to my crappy room in a plastic bag hanging from my arm as I ride. I should have overnighted in that gorgeous little Danbury from where I would have had a very nice meal, a great room, and experienced Bear Mountain by mornings first light. Ah well, live and learn.
Thursday morning, my tailbone is screaming at me within the first half hour. I'm changing cheeks as I ride to help cut the pain, and switch my stop schedules from 120 miles for gas and water, to 60 miles for gas, then 60 for water, etc. It's all I can bear. The stock seat truly sucks for all day riding. I make it into PA well before lunch, which I skip anyway. I've decided to try to make Cleveland by dark so I can have a few martinis before bed to help ease the pain in my lower back. I'm in Kane PA by 6pm so it looks possible. Here comes my second mistake. The gas gauge has been incredibly reliable, not doing the last-half-tank-nosedive like my '02 and actually still reading a hair over empty at 130 miles so I'm pushing the limit on her. With this Vance & Hines and top on setup, I'm averaging 38 mpg's too! Well, as I roll out into the most western 1/10th of PA, I forget that I'm deep in the heart of Amish country. The Amish don't have much need for Gas, and I keep having flashbacks of that gas station I passed with 60 miles of gas left as the countryside ticks by, no station to be seen. Now if the V could run on horse apples, i'd have been all set. Dusk turns to dark and the gauge has been glowing red for some time. I start to panic when 6 West turns south for about 15 miles. I'm not getting closer to Cleveland this way! With no more than 20 miles in the tank, I FINALLY spot a gas station, but it apparently just closed. Great, it's only 10pm. There is a State Trooper in the lot though, so I pull in. I asked him if there was a station ANYWHERE within 20 miles, and he tells me I JUST might make it if I stay on 6. I'm thinking he was mistaken or pulling my chain as there is an open station 5 miles down the road. Turns out the girl running the store that day was chatting with her boyfriend so kept the place open an extra 15 minutes. Lucky for me. That was a close one.
So I do make Cleveland, well, East Cleveland, but it is 11pm and I'm worried about being so tired so I spot a nice looking Holiday Inn at the 6/2 interchange and wheel in. Not wanting to face another bike ripped off, I boldly park the bike on the sidewalk about 30 feet from the lobby overhang. A maintenance guy walks over and is admiring the bike so I tell him it's my replacement for an '02 that got ripped off last month. I go to check in and mention my need for a BIG martini and something to eat. Seems the restaurant stopped serving food 10 minutes ago so the manager phones down and talks the chef into sticking around. She gives me the room right next to the restaurant so I can martini myself to death and only have a short stumble to my room. I get to the restaurant and the chef has already made me an awesome Pork Tenderloin and it's sitting on a table with a big frosty Bombay Sapphire martini. Sweet. Phone rings. It's for me. HUH?!? Nobody even knows I'm here! It's the manager. The maintenance guy has told her about my last V-rod getting ripped off, so she is calling to tell me it's going to rain tonight, so would I please park my bike DIRECTLY UNDER THE CANOPY in front of the doors so they can keep their eyes on it for me while I sleep. Man, THIS is service. Very nice room with a big bathtub with jacuzzi jets. Come midnight, I'm 3 martinis to the wind, well fed, and I know the bike is safe. I sleep the sleep of the dead till 10am. Thanks to Orest of this forum, I am forewarned that highway 6 goes through some very rough neighborhoods on the east side of Cleveland so after a nice breakfast and coffee, I took route 2 into downtown Cleveland for a little sightseeing, presents for the wife and kids, and mosey the rest of the way down highway 6 into Sandusky. It's only a little after noon, and the wife and kids aren't going to arrive with the camper until about 5 so I find a quaint bar overlooking Lake Erie to enjoy 2 beers and 4 lemonades while I wait. 25 hours of saddle time in 45 hours to do 820 miles. Whew. I only wish I had had the seat that's on my FLH for the trip.
Except for a truck overshooting a turn at high speed and almost overturning in front of me back in Western PA on 6, it was a very uneventful ride. I talked to some very interesting folks along the way and saw a great deal of this part of America. It was a very awesome trip. I enjoyed 3 days of rest and camping with the family before having to make the last 140 mile ride home. What a feeling as I wheeled the new V-rod into the big, sad, empty hole in the garage formerly occupied by my '02. I'd post pics, but the bike is covered with bugs and needs a bath in the worstest way before I entertain such thoughts. Anyways, I'm back in the saddle again, and boy does it feel GREAT!
To recap, I had my 2002 VRSCA stolen on 6/18 at a Michigan Harleyfest show. Fought a little battle with Foremost Insurance which to sum up, don't expect more than about 25 cents on the dollar for your extras. I was happy with the blue book valuation, but I had $3500 of "extras" coverage on my bike, and $5,900 in receipts and documented extras which Foremost paid out $2,200 for. I didn't need to pay for the extra "extras" as the policy comes standard with $2,500 in "extras" coverage. On a positive note, Foremost DID have a check to me exactly 30 days after my loss. In the end, I am happy with them.
Soooo, I have been shopping Ebay for the past few weeks and I spot a 2004 "A" in smokey gold and black with only 1900 miles and still under warranty. It had all the extras I wanted including chrome engine package, hard saddlebags, touring windshield, chrome blade driver and passenger foot pegs, brake and shifter, swingarm bolt covers, completely chromed hand controls, reservoirs and switch bodies, chrome mirrors, leather windshield accessory bags (I would have never bought these, but boy are they handy!), "smart siren", chrome jiffy stand, chrome fork sliders, chrome passenger footrest brackets (sweeeet!!), chrome alternator cover, chrome master cylinder cover, you get the picture. Oh yeah, Vance & Hines exhaust with the SE16ga chip. Pretty much everything chrome except the swingarm and wheels.That's for a winter project. Bike is flawless, not even a single scratch. Another female owned bike, like my '02. Very well cared for by the owners father, who owns a nice little motorcycle repair shop. Synthetics at the 1K mile service. We hammer out a nice deal at $13,800 and I'm elated. As part of the allure, the bike is in Massachussets and I'm in Michigan. After working out the payoff, I fly to Providence R.I., and pick up the bike Wednesday at 3:30 pm and it's off to meet the wife and kids at Cedar Point.
Once small flaw. The bike has a stock seat and I'm determined to do the trip on back roads and experience my slice of Americana. 820 miles from MA to Sandusky OH. I had decided to take Highway 6 which goes from Marthas Vineyard out on the eastern most tip of MA all the way to the west coast through a lot of very small towns. Inspired by Val's heroic and grueling ride, I made an ambitious schedule to cover the 820 miles in less than 48 hours.
The first day started GREAT. I had planned to stop the first night in Hartford, Conneticut but since I got an earlier start than I thought I would, I blew through Hartford easily and set the ridiculous goal of making PA by nightfall. It wasn't going to happen. Here comes my first mistake. About 9pm I passed through the New York town of Danbury. Sweeeet little town. Tony little restaurants and nice looking hotels. I'm pretty beat, and my tailbone has been singing the blues since 4:30pm. But with about another hour of daylight, I decide to keep pushing. Well, right after Danbury, is Bear Mountain. Thousands of bikes on the road, but it turns dark before I get into the awesome twisties and I can only tell there is a 2000 foot dropoff right next to me by the lights twinkling way below. By the time I reach the next town (which I conveniently forget the name of), It is pitch black, and man am I tired and hungry. Best lodging I could find was this majorly crappy Days Inn for $90 in a smokers room that smelled awful and was very run down. I go find some little chinese restaurant and when they hand me my stuff in bags, I tell them no, It's for here. Oh no they say, we're closing. So I'm carrying this Chinese back to my crappy room in a plastic bag hanging from my arm as I ride. I should have overnighted in that gorgeous little Danbury from where I would have had a very nice meal, a great room, and experienced Bear Mountain by mornings first light. Ah well, live and learn.
Thursday morning, my tailbone is screaming at me within the first half hour. I'm changing cheeks as I ride to help cut the pain, and switch my stop schedules from 120 miles for gas and water, to 60 miles for gas, then 60 for water, etc. It's all I can bear. The stock seat truly sucks for all day riding. I make it into PA well before lunch, which I skip anyway. I've decided to try to make Cleveland by dark so I can have a few martinis before bed to help ease the pain in my lower back. I'm in Kane PA by 6pm so it looks possible. Here comes my second mistake. The gas gauge has been incredibly reliable, not doing the last-half-tank-nosedive like my '02 and actually still reading a hair over empty at 130 miles so I'm pushing the limit on her. With this Vance & Hines and top on setup, I'm averaging 38 mpg's too! Well, as I roll out into the most western 1/10th of PA, I forget that I'm deep in the heart of Amish country. The Amish don't have much need for Gas, and I keep having flashbacks of that gas station I passed with 60 miles of gas left as the countryside ticks by, no station to be seen. Now if the V could run on horse apples, i'd have been all set. Dusk turns to dark and the gauge has been glowing red for some time. I start to panic when 6 West turns south for about 15 miles. I'm not getting closer to Cleveland this way! With no more than 20 miles in the tank, I FINALLY spot a gas station, but it apparently just closed. Great, it's only 10pm. There is a State Trooper in the lot though, so I pull in. I asked him if there was a station ANYWHERE within 20 miles, and he tells me I JUST might make it if I stay on 6. I'm thinking he was mistaken or pulling my chain as there is an open station 5 miles down the road. Turns out the girl running the store that day was chatting with her boyfriend so kept the place open an extra 15 minutes. Lucky for me. That was a close one.
So I do make Cleveland, well, East Cleveland, but it is 11pm and I'm worried about being so tired so I spot a nice looking Holiday Inn at the 6/2 interchange and wheel in. Not wanting to face another bike ripped off, I boldly park the bike on the sidewalk about 30 feet from the lobby overhang. A maintenance guy walks over and is admiring the bike so I tell him it's my replacement for an '02 that got ripped off last month. I go to check in and mention my need for a BIG martini and something to eat. Seems the restaurant stopped serving food 10 minutes ago so the manager phones down and talks the chef into sticking around. She gives me the room right next to the restaurant so I can martini myself to death and only have a short stumble to my room. I get to the restaurant and the chef has already made me an awesome Pork Tenderloin and it's sitting on a table with a big frosty Bombay Sapphire martini. Sweet. Phone rings. It's for me. HUH?!? Nobody even knows I'm here! It's the manager. The maintenance guy has told her about my last V-rod getting ripped off, so she is calling to tell me it's going to rain tonight, so would I please park my bike DIRECTLY UNDER THE CANOPY in front of the doors so they can keep their eyes on it for me while I sleep. Man, THIS is service. Very nice room with a big bathtub with jacuzzi jets. Come midnight, I'm 3 martinis to the wind, well fed, and I know the bike is safe. I sleep the sleep of the dead till 10am. Thanks to Orest of this forum, I am forewarned that highway 6 goes through some very rough neighborhoods on the east side of Cleveland so after a nice breakfast and coffee, I took route 2 into downtown Cleveland for a little sightseeing, presents for the wife and kids, and mosey the rest of the way down highway 6 into Sandusky. It's only a little after noon, and the wife and kids aren't going to arrive with the camper until about 5 so I find a quaint bar overlooking Lake Erie to enjoy 2 beers and 4 lemonades while I wait. 25 hours of saddle time in 45 hours to do 820 miles. Whew. I only wish I had had the seat that's on my FLH for the trip.
Except for a truck overshooting a turn at high speed and almost overturning in front of me back in Western PA on 6, it was a very uneventful ride. I talked to some very interesting folks along the way and saw a great deal of this part of America. It was a very awesome trip. I enjoyed 3 days of rest and camping with the family before having to make the last 140 mile ride home. What a feeling as I wheeled the new V-rod into the big, sad, empty hole in the garage formerly occupied by my '02. I'd post pics, but the bike is covered with bugs and needs a bath in the worstest way before I entertain such thoughts. Anyways, I'm back in the saddle again, and boy does it feel GREAT!
Very nice! Glad you found a replacement so soon. You tend to think these insurance claims will drag on.
