Dad says "let's get lunch", 230 miles later

[xorbe]

So Sunday my 63yo Dad pops in with his '83 Honda cruiser, and says "Hey let's ride 30 minutes that-a-way and have lunch!" I hop on my 250, and the next thing I know, we're near the base of Half Dome in Yosemite, still hungry, and his antique air-cooled bike has a dead battery, stuck in Memorial Day weekend traffic, some sort of emergency blocked all lanes in the park. People walking around asking for gas cans, everyone idling for so long ...



With no cell phone coverage, we waited about 30 minutes, hit the key, and it barely started. For some reason, at the next gas station, he turned it off with me me screaming DON'T TURN IT OFF!!! uselessly through my helmet. It would have died anyways.

So, it turns out we both have battery tender pig tails. (This was nice, since he requires tools to remove his bolted-on seat.) I wrenched my pig tail off, reversed the leads on the battery, took out the fuse on mine (his had no fuse), and plugged them together. (Yeah we had the maneuver the bikes very close together!) I got out the crescent wrench, jammed it where the fuse goes, and had him hit the started 3 seconds later. (Don't leave the pig tail wired backwards, the exposed hot can now touch the grounded frame.)

Turns out his old bike won't charge the battery unless the rpms are above a certain level. Known deficiency of that model. He had to ride with the rpms high for the next 80-freaking-5 miles else it would die! I had to jump that thing 3 times. But we made it back in time to give the dog its meds that night!! And damn, we were still hungry when we got back, lol.



Some time during that trip, my crank case to air box tube blew off, and splattered a bit of oil about. Found a clamp and fixed that asap.

[csmith12]

Sounds like time well spent to me.

[NevadaWolf]

Oh man, what an adventure!

My dad did something similar to me awhile back. "hey, here's this little loop we can explore." 130 miles of back country dirt road all day wheeling later, I comment "Little loop?!" Good times, good times.

Glad you both made it home despite the troubles.

[CC Cowboy]

Couldn't you just bump start it?

[xorbe]

Originally Posted by CC Cowboy

Couldn't you just bump start it?

The gas station was actually on small hill and we did bump start twice. But it wouldn't stay running for more than a second in order to get the rpms up to sustain itself. It just fizzled out each time. Even the dash lights didn't have a faint glimmer. Flat lined!

I should have practiced a bump start on the 250 there!

[Singh2jz]

I enjoyed reading that!

[Mocha Man]

My dad and I went up on our bikes to watch the local hill climb event (about an hour away from where we live). His bike (DRZ 400) died twice and we had to bump start it each time. Gotta love those bonding experiences!

[Kscreations08]

Jay, this is a happy thread and I will keep it that way. But, please, I am begging you, spend every minute you can with that man and then make more time available. This sounds like an amazing bonding experience and I can't think of anyone I would rather be stuck in traffic with than my dad.

[Mocha Man]

@Kscreations08 That. Was. Beautiful. My grandmother had a brain aneurysm recently and we thought she wouldn't make it. It really made me wish I spent more time with her (although I saw her a few days a week). Now she's making a recovery in the physical therapy section of a local hospital.

This thread is making me tear up lol

[Kscreations08]

Originally Posted by Mocha Man

@Kscreations08 That. Was. Beautiful. My grandmother had a brain aneurysm recently and we thought she wouldn't make it. It really made me wish I spent more time with her (although I saw her a few days a week). Now she's making a recovery in the physical therapy section of a local hospital.

This thread is making me tear up lol

I happy to hear she's ok We, as humans, become comfortable and complacent. When we take things like family for granted, it takes a big event to rock us out of that. You start remembering all the little things that you have been overlooking and realize that you are still missing a lot. Everyone's time is limited. I'm not going to get into this too much but I will say this. If someone matters to you make sure they know it. A hug and a simple "I love you" is all it takes.

@xorbe Go tell your dad you love him. Even if you just did it. Hug that man and hug him fierce.