Santy's HOG Ride

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16 December 2006 was forecasted to be a warm Saturday. Correction, make that an unseasonably warm December Saturday. Any December day that is above 60 degrees F yells for a motorcycle ride. I heard the call and started making arrangements on Thursday for the up coming Saturday. This wasn’t going to be an ordinary ride, this week I had been entertaining Santy, an associate from our sister company in the Philippines. This was his first trip to the US and I was trying to show him as much of it as possible in the 2 weeks he was going to be here. When I am in the Philippines, Santy and the rest of the staff there go out of their way to make sure I am comfortable. I try to make their trips special when they come here. Not only would this be his first ride on a big scooter but it would get him out into the countryside so he could see a little of rural Kansas. I had promised Santy if the weather gave us a good day on a weekend while he was here I would round up some of the HOG group and we would go for a spin on our Harleys. I think he had looked forward to going on a ride.

The first step in the plan was to call Gary P., he had promised to go when I previously talked to him about it. Gary was one of the first guys to really make me feel welcome in the HOG group and he was safe rider. It was Gary’s responsibility to come up with a route. I travel all over the US but don’t spend time running the local back roads. It was evident from the 06 EASTER EGG RIDE I had been on earlier in the year that I did not know the back roads of KS. Gary regularly runs the local roads and could come up with just the right route to suit our needs. We will have someone who isn’t used to riding on motorcycles at highway speeds. What motorcycles he has ridden on are mopeds. A 1450cc Harley will be a different experience. The Philippines has a ton of mopeds, but a bike as big as a 250cc is rare. Next was to round up some other people to ride, that proved hard to do as Christmas shopping, Christmas parties and other plans were obstacles that kept our group small. Roger D a fellow HOG member had recently had surgery on his leg but was ready to try going out for a ride.

When Saturday morning came it started early for me but I was overjoyed at 7AM when the temperature was already 61 degrees F. How lucky can I be? Effie my bike fired right up and was ready for the day. The roads were wet although I am not sure it rained as much as just ‘misted’ enough to get everything soaked. I stopped by Rogers house as we had planned to ride together to get Santy at the hotel then proceed to meet Gary.

Concerned about Santy getting cold I had requested that he layered clothing to keep warm. Dressing for warmth isn’t something most Filipinos know how to do, it just isn’t a survival skill they need much there. Santy had done well, he was wearing both the long sleeve and short sleeve Harley shirts he had got the first day he was here. And he was wearing 2 pair of pants. He had his jacket on and we packed the heavier coat in my saddlebag. Because I wasn’t really comfortable with wet roads nor riders, I had asked Roger if he would take Santy to Central HD. Santy climbed aboard Roger’s V-Rod and away we went. After a quick stop for gas we meet up with Gary P at Central Harley Davidson South in Olathe KS.

Reliable Gary was there, the only bike in the parking lot. Gary was enjoying a morning cigarette as he waited patiently for us. Gary, who previously had raided his daughters closet, quickly produced a bikers’ leather jacket and gauntlet gloves for Santy to use. A quick stop in the store for a dew rag, because every true biker has his dew rag. The selection was poor but as we are looking at them, the staff brings out more to hang up. One of the new ones they added to the rack was perfect, big letters spelled out HARLEY DAVIDSON and the font was filled in with graphics of the US flag, it would make a good souvenir. Once it was tied on his head a Kodak moment was upon us. Back out front we moved the bikes together and posed for a picture or two as a group. We decided Santy should ride with Gary as his was the ‘real’ Harley among the 3 bikes. J Actually Gary was the most experienced with having passengers and we felt more comfortable with him carrying Santy.

Gary had a route that would take us to Lawrence KS then straight south to Garnett and back up to Olathe. The plan was to then eat, play some billiards and enjoy the rest of the afternoon. On the way to Lawrence, Gary suggested we stop at the Wells Overlook Park. That was a great idea. The park features an observation tower which is at least 2 stories tall and is located on top of a large hill. The view at the top of the tower is impressive and inspired more Kodak moments. We stayed there for 20-30 minutes before continuing our ride.

While at the tower Gary & I had discussed the grand opening of Lawrence Riverview HD. We decided to detour on into Lawrence to the new store in hopes of getting a free lunch. On the way to the dealership Gary gave Santy a taste of the power available in his Harley. It was around 11AM when we got there and it was not busy. Lunch wasn’t being offered but we all enjoyed a donut or two, looked at bikes and checked out the new store. Roger was pleased that they had a V-Rod section on the motorcycle accessories wall. He was not even depressed that they only had 8 different parts in that section of the wall. The inclusion of a V-Rod section at all was enough to please him. Coming out of the dealership we decided to continue on to Garnett, but after short while I noticed Santy was not smiling ear to ear as usual so we changed the route to take us back to Olathe without the Garnett detour. The roads now are dry and although its pretty windy and the sky is still overcast, the ride is great. The rest of the ride was Hwy 59 south to Hwy 56 East and into Olathe stopping at Side Pockets for lunch. As we were dismounting the bikes and stowing gear I asked Santy a series of questions to determine what the problem was. I was right he was uncomfortable. But it wasn’t cause he needed lunch or he was getting saddle sore, it was because the helmet and wind was causing a headache. I have found when I am with the guys from the factory I need to be very aware of them because they will not complain about anything. Santy would have gone all afternoon wearing the helmet and fighting the wind so he did not spoil the ride for us. I was glad I had suggested we cut the ride short.

The bikes were filthy, riding on the wet roads had left a thick film of muck all over our rides. Roger got it the worst as he was the sweep. The Gary and Roger suggested that I should wash the bikes, but I suggested they take care of their dirty bike like I do mine. Ignore it until you can’t take it anymore, then put it in for service and let the dealership give it some TLC and a good cleaning. If its good enough weather to clean the bike then its good enough weather to ride it and that is where you will find me. I don’t clean my bike very often.

We ordered lunch and played pool for couple hours. I am not a pool player so I only played when the Roger and Gary went out for a smoke break. The game was 8 ball until Santy taught us a popular Filipino game of pool. In this game both players hit the balls into the pockets in sequential order with no care for solids or stripes. The rules have penalties if you hit one out of order, miss the ball or can’t make a shot at all. A little before 3PM we decided it was time to break up. We all had other chores to get done.

When the group broke up Santy became my passenger again. We rode up the road and checked start times for the IMAX show “Happy Feet” then headed back to the hotel to drop off Santy’s lunch leftovers and pick up a coupon he had been given for a free Harley Davidson t-shirt. We had time to make to the dealer and back if we did not dottle. A quick trip down US71 to Gail’s HD, in Grandview MO, to get the free t-shirt. It was a nice shirt and really cool since it was free. “Got Torque?” was the front graphic of the shirt with the Gail’s logo on the back. Gail’s closed at 4PM and the show was going to start at 4:50PM so we hurried back to the IMAX in Olathe KS.

After the show a little drive around to check out Christmas decorations and attempts to take pictures of them and then back to the hotel to drop Santy off. The day brought a nice ride for Santy of 138 miles . I think Santy enjoyed the ride. He made good company for the rest of us. It is always educational to spend time & talk with these guys, we have it so good in the US, it makes me appreciate what we have.

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Photos

Santy Tries Out a Bike
While at Riverview Harley Davidson Santy tries out one of the showroom bikes for size. Looks like it fits to me.

Santy's HOG Ride
This is at Central HD before we left. Thats Roger Donley, me, Santy and Gary Palmer.

Da Gang
A closer view. Smile Gary, it won't hurt. :)

Wells Overlook Park
Our first stop was the Wells Overlook Park to see the view from the tower.

Wells Overlook Park view
View from the tower. This is a picture Santy took.

Wells Overlook Park view 2
Another view from the tower. This is a picture Santy took.

Wells Overlook Park
Here are the guys at the top of the tower.

Side Pockets playing pool
Here is Santy in great form.

Side Pockets playing pool
Here is Roger in great form.

Side Pockets playing pool
Here is Gary in great form.

Side Pockets playing pool
Santy with his signature pose.

Comments

[Jun Medrano]

Santy's HOG Ride
I bet Santy will surely tell a lot stories about his HD bike ride and road trips when he get back to the Philippines....

[Anonymoose]

gee those bikes are dirty, I bet it was hard washing them all