mother
Race Dog
- Joined
- Aug 3, 2009
- Messages
- 3,236
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- Location
- Cape Town
- Bike
- Harley Davidson (all models)
Riding across the USA on a Harley
I had a dream to ride a bike across America one day; here is the story of my dream that became a reality
NEW YORK 6/9/2010
(Always wanted to go see the, so called, best city in the world)
We landed in Atlanta via Delta airlines 15 hr flight from Johannesburg then it was 2 hrs to New York
Arrived at our hotel near Central Park about mid day on Monday which was the USA Labour Day long weekend
After freshening up we spent the afternoon mixing with the locals and walking around Central Park .It was laid back and enjoyable seeing all the new Yorkers out and about in the park…frizzbies/ kites etc and people just chilling it was contagious and we had a great time floating around eating ice cream and taking in this beautiful place so far from home…police presence was noticeable everywhere, the black and white cars of NYPD and now and again we saw some of the NYPD on horseback. Strolling around the park…the atmosphere was very relaxing though
An early night to rid the jet lag and the next day saw us off shopping and getting a closer look of NY...Although my SA phone was on roaming we couldn’t use it …got to do with a 3 bandwidth vs a 4 bandwidth in the States. So I bought an unblocked Iphone and we where back in business communicating with family and friends
We had lunch on top of Lucy’s a Mexican restaurant in the middle of NYC it was great just relaxing there and checking out the folks of NY
We visited the empire state building late in the afternoon and I officially asked my long time girlfriend, Leonie, to marry me on the top (86 floors) (thort it would be memorable…lucky she said yes)
We stayed on top of the ESB till late to see the lights of NY then later we went to see Times Square, it was pumping with people , bright lights and bill boards…there was such a vibe it’s hard to explain.
We found the NY subway a tad confusing in the beginning and took one or two wrong trains before we finally got it sorted…the public system rocks to get around and fairly cheap too
Next day we where up early to take a taxi to JFK as we where on our way to Orlando (two and a half hr flight)to pick up our rented Harley and chill a few days at Disney etc
ORLANDO 9/9/12010
When we landed it was clear skies but hot …very very hot and humid…we stayed at the Galleria hotel just outside the Disney resorts.
After freshening up, we took a taxi to down town Disney resort and later had the best ribs ever at the Planet Hollywood restaurant.
Next day we dedicated to sorting out our rental and getting some Harley stuff I wanted. We left the hotel early via taxi and $90 later found ourselves at the wrong branch of Orlando Harley so after a bit of shopping…the dealer arranged for us to get to the proper branch………….
I had booked a Road King as I have one back in SA .We had bought our own luggage roll to just pop on the sissy bar…I was frustrated when they showed us a plain Rd King.. no touring seat or sissy bar for Leonie and then to top it all gave me a hard time….for wanting to fit an cigarette adapter to power my GPS....so long story short we changed the bike at the same rate , to a standard Electra Glide…which im also used too as I also have a Electra Glide Ultra Classic Limited at home…this one was basic with 96 cubes vs. mine a little more grunt at 103cubes….this was as good as it was going to get and I was more worried about riding on the right hand side…..although later I did miss the highway pegs which gives one the opportunity to stretch ones legs while on the ride
By the way the best advise ever given to me by one of the Wild dogs on the forum was taking a GPS….that was the best advice ever and we never got lost and wasted holiday time running around in circles
We met Chad at the Orlando dealership who I had spoken to from SA and it was nice just meeting some helpful folks
We had a slight dilemma with our luggage roll and some excess shopping we had done in NY and on the advice of my mate John who lives in both Washington and San Francisco….our afternoons first ride on the bike was in search of a post office…thanks again GPS…..we ended up posting 2 boxes of stuff to Johns office in San Francisco…cheap, and our problem of too much luggage was now solved….we would get it from him at the end of our trip..
Day three in Orlando we spent at Universal studio resorts doing all the rides and shows we could fit in…it was a gas and the highlight was the Harry Potter ride in spite of waiting 1hr in the queue…well worth a visit and if you into this you can spend a whole week there…some of the rides/shows we saw where MIB/Disaster Movie show/Twister/Terminator 3D/Posiedon/Jurassic park water ride/Spider man 3D it cost us $112 each for the day for two parks…and our day was full….reminded me a lot of Euro Disney when I took my daughter Nicola for her 13th birthday…We just did one venue in Orlando ,there are lots more…but we where here to ride a Harley from one side of America to the other….
11/9/2010
We left very early to avoid traffic and for me to get used to riding on the wrong side of the road…the plan was to go 80miles in the wrong direction east to the Atlantic and Daytona Beach as I wanted to start from coast to coast
It was very hot and humid around 98 degrees Fahrenheit
From Daytona beach we headed up to Jacksonville then west towards New Orleans on the Interstate 10, speed limit was 70 miles on the open road and 55 mil in town on flyovers and off ramps speed limit was 45miles …I was blown away by the 6 lane highways in some places and the interstates are two lanes one way and two lanes the other
Petrol prices where around $2.99 and $2.80 per gallon and there are 3.89 litres in a gallon and 1 mile =1.6km…you do the math at the time of our trip the rand to dollar was around 7.5 I budgeted around 8 to 1
Day one was a long day and we could not make New Orleans so we decided to head for Pensacola beach a total of 600 miles or 960km for the day...this was the only time it rained on our trip and there was a brief afternoon down pour the relief from the heat was welcome we didn’t even use our rain suits
Pensacola had a nice holiday fibe and was full of local tourists for the weekend...we stayed at the Days Inn on the beach as many places where full...we swam in the pool and walked on the beach...this being the Gulf of Mexico. That evening we had crab for the first time at a restaurant called Crabs
The next day was a short day and we only did around 200miles to New Orleans
When one crosses into a State for the first time, they have info centres at the rest areas and we stopped here to ask as to where was the best places to stay and the best things to see on a short visit....the people where always very helpful and with the help of the GPS we where at our chosen destination in no time
Rest area
In new Orleans we stayed at a little hotel in the French quarter which is the place to stay in down town New Orleans...this is where the Mardigrah takes place and the famous Bourbon street is...the night life was amazing with live music everywhere....this place certainly rocked...we stayed 2 days here.
Had always wanted to go down the mighty Mississippi in a steam boat so that evening we took the sundowners cruise trip which included a meal on the Natchez ...it is hard to explain the experience...jazz/blues band on board...traditional food and decor...lazing down the Mississippi ....an experience I will never forget
Our last day we spent in town and riding the tram through the suburbs of NO the houses look just like in the movies with the porches and American flags hanging
We spent the evening having supper and going from bar to bar in Bourbon street experiencing the live music and the vibe NO had to offer
Both of us learnt how to greet NO style.......”Who Dat!!!” Like “Howzit!!” in SA
Here is part 2
https://wilddog.net.za/forum/index.php?topic=58812.msg0#new
I had a dream to ride a bike across America one day; here is the story of my dream that became a reality
NEW YORK 6/9/2010
(Always wanted to go see the, so called, best city in the world)
We landed in Atlanta via Delta airlines 15 hr flight from Johannesburg then it was 2 hrs to New York
Arrived at our hotel near Central Park about mid day on Monday which was the USA Labour Day long weekend
After freshening up we spent the afternoon mixing with the locals and walking around Central Park .It was laid back and enjoyable seeing all the new Yorkers out and about in the park…frizzbies/ kites etc and people just chilling it was contagious and we had a great time floating around eating ice cream and taking in this beautiful place so far from home…police presence was noticeable everywhere, the black and white cars of NYPD and now and again we saw some of the NYPD on horseback. Strolling around the park…the atmosphere was very relaxing though
An early night to rid the jet lag and the next day saw us off shopping and getting a closer look of NY...Although my SA phone was on roaming we couldn’t use it …got to do with a 3 bandwidth vs a 4 bandwidth in the States. So I bought an unblocked Iphone and we where back in business communicating with family and friends
We had lunch on top of Lucy’s a Mexican restaurant in the middle of NYC it was great just relaxing there and checking out the folks of NY
We visited the empire state building late in the afternoon and I officially asked my long time girlfriend, Leonie, to marry me on the top (86 floors) (thort it would be memorable…lucky she said yes)
We stayed on top of the ESB till late to see the lights of NY then later we went to see Times Square, it was pumping with people , bright lights and bill boards…there was such a vibe it’s hard to explain.
We found the NY subway a tad confusing in the beginning and took one or two wrong trains before we finally got it sorted…the public system rocks to get around and fairly cheap too
Next day we where up early to take a taxi to JFK as we where on our way to Orlando (two and a half hr flight)to pick up our rented Harley and chill a few days at Disney etc
ORLANDO 9/9/12010
When we landed it was clear skies but hot …very very hot and humid…we stayed at the Galleria hotel just outside the Disney resorts.
After freshening up, we took a taxi to down town Disney resort and later had the best ribs ever at the Planet Hollywood restaurant.
Next day we dedicated to sorting out our rental and getting some Harley stuff I wanted. We left the hotel early via taxi and $90 later found ourselves at the wrong branch of Orlando Harley so after a bit of shopping…the dealer arranged for us to get to the proper branch………….
I had booked a Road King as I have one back in SA .We had bought our own luggage roll to just pop on the sissy bar…I was frustrated when they showed us a plain Rd King.. no touring seat or sissy bar for Leonie and then to top it all gave me a hard time….for wanting to fit an cigarette adapter to power my GPS....so long story short we changed the bike at the same rate , to a standard Electra Glide…which im also used too as I also have a Electra Glide Ultra Classic Limited at home…this one was basic with 96 cubes vs. mine a little more grunt at 103cubes….this was as good as it was going to get and I was more worried about riding on the right hand side…..although later I did miss the highway pegs which gives one the opportunity to stretch ones legs while on the ride
By the way the best advise ever given to me by one of the Wild dogs on the forum was taking a GPS….that was the best advice ever and we never got lost and wasted holiday time running around in circles
We met Chad at the Orlando dealership who I had spoken to from SA and it was nice just meeting some helpful folks
We had a slight dilemma with our luggage roll and some excess shopping we had done in NY and on the advice of my mate John who lives in both Washington and San Francisco….our afternoons first ride on the bike was in search of a post office…thanks again GPS…..we ended up posting 2 boxes of stuff to Johns office in San Francisco…cheap, and our problem of too much luggage was now solved….we would get it from him at the end of our trip..
Day three in Orlando we spent at Universal studio resorts doing all the rides and shows we could fit in…it was a gas and the highlight was the Harry Potter ride in spite of waiting 1hr in the queue…well worth a visit and if you into this you can spend a whole week there…some of the rides/shows we saw where MIB/Disaster Movie show/Twister/Terminator 3D/Posiedon/Jurassic park water ride/Spider man 3D it cost us $112 each for the day for two parks…and our day was full….reminded me a lot of Euro Disney when I took my daughter Nicola for her 13th birthday…We just did one venue in Orlando ,there are lots more…but we where here to ride a Harley from one side of America to the other….
11/9/2010
We left very early to avoid traffic and for me to get used to riding on the wrong side of the road…the plan was to go 80miles in the wrong direction east to the Atlantic and Daytona Beach as I wanted to start from coast to coast
It was very hot and humid around 98 degrees Fahrenheit
From Daytona beach we headed up to Jacksonville then west towards New Orleans on the Interstate 10, speed limit was 70 miles on the open road and 55 mil in town on flyovers and off ramps speed limit was 45miles …I was blown away by the 6 lane highways in some places and the interstates are two lanes one way and two lanes the other
Petrol prices where around $2.99 and $2.80 per gallon and there are 3.89 litres in a gallon and 1 mile =1.6km…you do the math at the time of our trip the rand to dollar was around 7.5 I budgeted around 8 to 1
Day one was a long day and we could not make New Orleans so we decided to head for Pensacola beach a total of 600 miles or 960km for the day...this was the only time it rained on our trip and there was a brief afternoon down pour the relief from the heat was welcome we didn’t even use our rain suits
Pensacola had a nice holiday fibe and was full of local tourists for the weekend...we stayed at the Days Inn on the beach as many places where full...we swam in the pool and walked on the beach...this being the Gulf of Mexico. That evening we had crab for the first time at a restaurant called Crabs
The next day was a short day and we only did around 200miles to New Orleans
When one crosses into a State for the first time, they have info centres at the rest areas and we stopped here to ask as to where was the best places to stay and the best things to see on a short visit....the people where always very helpful and with the help of the GPS we where at our chosen destination in no time
Rest area
In new Orleans we stayed at a little hotel in the French quarter which is the place to stay in down town New Orleans...this is where the Mardigrah takes place and the famous Bourbon street is...the night life was amazing with live music everywhere....this place certainly rocked...we stayed 2 days here.
Had always wanted to go down the mighty Mississippi in a steam boat so that evening we took the sundowners cruise trip which included a meal on the Natchez ...it is hard to explain the experience...jazz/blues band on board...traditional food and decor...lazing down the Mississippi ....an experience I will never forget
Our last day we spent in town and riding the tram through the suburbs of NO the houses look just like in the movies with the porches and American flags hanging
We spent the evening having supper and going from bar to bar in Bourbon street experiencing the live music and the vibe NO had to offer
Both of us learnt how to greet NO style.......”Who Dat!!!” Like “Howzit!!” in SA
Here is part 2
https://wilddog.net.za/forum/index.php?topic=58812.msg0#new
