Off Again!

It's been a while since I rode any further than to work and back since returning from Washington last May. However, since the demise of my old motorcycle, I have purchased a new one...in Florida!

How, you may ask, did my old motorcycle die? Well, I'll give you the short version. On a Friday, about three weeks ago, as I was returning to my office from a meeting on the main A&M campus, a woman pulled out in front of me...said she never saw me...and in order to avoid her I went down. I fared pretty well...five broken ribs and a punctured lung...but the motorcycle did not. The insurance company did not take very long to decide that is was a total loss.

I went down to the tow yard only a week after the accident, removed my personal belongings from the ruined saddlebags and said goodbye. I never got to take a trip with the new fairing...I can only assume that it was going to work as advertised.

After I received the insurance settlement check, I quickly began to look around eventually going with a bike I found on the Internet that was listed substantially below blue book retail value. Oh, one other item of interest to some of you...I have now crossed over to the dark side. The new motorcycle is a Harley, as shown in the pictures attached.

The hardest part of this purchase has been dealing with a dealer on the east coast and a credit union on the west coast. As of today, I finally think the credit union is satisfied with everything, although I have yet to receive the final confirmation call.

I sure hope the credit union end of the deal works out because I've already made my airline reservations...non-transferable and non-refundable...down to West Palm Beach where the dealer will pick me up. I'm planning on a leisurely three-day ride back to College Station after that.

I invite you to follow along once again as I tread new territory...or at least territory I haven't seen in 15-20 years. I'm sure a lot has changed along the various interstates and highways I'll be traveling so it will almost seem like new territory to me.

I fly out of Houston on October 5th. Until then, there will only be emails and phone calls tying up in loose ends....I hope.