As I mentioned in earlier posts, I consider myself a seasoned motorcycle camper. When my brother and I were talking a few weeks ago, we were reflecting on the numerous trips we have done and the various bikes we have ridden. Realizing that we couldn't put dates and years on some of the trips, we decided to start a spreadsheet to see if we could fill in the gaps. While I won't delve into all of the details, I thought it would be fun to share some of the highlights as well as the evolution of our bike ownership over the next few posts.
Steve and I both started riding in high school. It's actually kind of surprising that our parents didn't protest to this as neither of them ever ridden or owned motorcycles. I started out on a 50cc Honda scooter that I rode nearly year round as it was my only transportation at the time. After a couple years, I moved on to a 1972 Honda 500 Four, which has become a collector bike, had I only known then! I believe Steve started off on a Yamaha FJ 1200 that he bought from his high school gym teacher. I don't remember much about our riding from back then, other than the fact that before I started college, I took my first long trip on that bike with a Duluth portage pack on my back. The seeds for a lifelong passion were planted for sure!
Once I became a poor college student, I ended up selling my motorcycle and wouldn't come back to the fold until years later. Steve did the same and it was his reentry to the activity in 1999 that rekindled my interest as well. At the time, Steve was riding a Harley Davidson Road King and I soon followed with a Yamaha Road Star. We made our way to Sturgis on those bikes (Steve twice) and also made our first trip to the Smoky Mountains and the infamous Tail of the Dragon. That first trip to the Smokies included our first stay at the Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge, a motorcycle focused campground near the Tail of the Dragon that had recently opened. Over the years, we have returned to the Ironhorse several times as the location and the motorcycle friendly environment is hard to beat.
Steve and I both started riding in high school. It's actually kind of surprising that our parents didn't protest to this as neither of them ever ridden or owned motorcycles. I started out on a 50cc Honda scooter that I rode nearly year round as it was my only transportation at the time. After a couple years, I moved on to a 1972 Honda 500 Four, which has become a collector bike, had I only known then! I believe Steve started off on a Yamaha FJ 1200 that he bought from his high school gym teacher. I don't remember much about our riding from back then, other than the fact that before I started college, I took my first long trip on that bike with a Duluth portage pack on my back. The seeds for a lifelong passion were planted for sure!
Once I became a poor college student, I ended up selling my motorcycle and wouldn't come back to the fold until years later. Steve did the same and it was his reentry to the activity in 1999 that rekindled my interest as well. At the time, Steve was riding a Harley Davidson Road King and I soon followed with a Yamaha Road Star. We made our way to Sturgis on those bikes (Steve twice) and also made our first trip to the Smoky Mountains and the infamous Tail of the Dragon. That first trip to the Smokies included our first stay at the Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge, a motorcycle focused campground near the Tail of the Dragon that had recently opened. Over the years, we have returned to the Ironhorse several times as the location and the motorcycle friendly environment is hard to beat.
For that first Trip to the Smokies, I was even pulling a trailer with the Road Star - and yes, I rode the Dragon with the trailer in tow. The main contents of that trailer was a huge tent, we jokingly called it the "TajmaTent" (I'll have to find a picture of that to post). Crazy looking back at that now...
Needless to say, there was quite a learning curve with those first trips in terms of tweaking bike ergonomics, adjusting daily mileage, routing (interstate versus lesser traveled roads), packing, acquiring appropriate gear and lodging choices (some camping split up by a motel stay here and there). I would soon decide that a cruiser was not the right style of bike for the riding I wanted to do. Steve would stay with the cruiser/bagger style for awhile, but our riding continued to evolve with each additional trip.
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