My Love Affair

My love affair with Indian Motorcycles began shortly after we moved to TN.  It was round about September, and my father in law (FIL) finally got me up on a bike.  He had a 2000 Honda Valkyrie; HUGE bike.  In CA, I had finally brought myself around to thinking it would be pretty fun to own a Can Am Spyder some day.  There was an outfit that rented them, and David and I had thrown around the idea of indulging in that one weekend.

First time I sat on an Indian ... love ...

Some of you know, when David and I met, he got me into riding ATV's.  We both bought Honda quads, and rode EVERY weekend we got the chance to.  I got pretty bold and confident; even got a little cocky once and ended up breaking my collar bone.  Still didn't stop us from riding though!  My quad was a 'sport utility' with a manual transmission, but an automatic clutch.  Which meant I had to shift like normal, but I didn't have to worry about choking it ever :)  We had a LOT of fun riding, and then I got pregnant with Kody.  From that point on, we more or less quit riding :(  David wanted to buy a motorcycle when Kody was about 7, but I talked him out of that and into buying a truck to go pick up my new HORSE with.  Obviously, I had to sell the horse to move to Cali, and I began to get that itch again; to get out and feel the wind.

We were so positive we were going to buy our own, we'd already bought helmets!

So the FIL took me for my first ride, and I cannot even describe the thrill it gave me!  I was simultaneously thrilled and terrified.  I may have even whooped once or twice.  From that moment on, I have become hooked.  My MIL had David ride her Honda Shadow out to our house from GA, and then she left it for about 2 weeks.  I rode with David on her bike for the first time, and we just had a BLAST.  East TN is motorcycle country, and there are tiny back roads GALORE around here.  It's also Harley Davidson territory, big time.  We live about 2 mins away from a dealer, and we decided to take a ride up there.  The bike I fell in love with is a Heritage Softail Classic, but I could NOT imagine EVER riding one myself.  And sadly, David just didn't like the feel of the bike.

Gorgeous.  Just not for us.

We were out and about one day just riding to every dealership that sells motorcycles we could think of, so David could sit on as many bikes as possible so he could figure out what he wanted.  We purposely went to the Honda dealer in Knoxville, then looked up the road and realized there was an Indian dealer up there as well.  Neither of us knew much, or had even looked at Indian before, so we headed up the hill to take a look.  Wow.  The super nice sales guy gave us the grand speech on the Springfield even though we told him we were NOT in the market for a new bike, EVER, lol.  I just fell in love.  They are beautiful, classic bikes.  Graceful curves, sleek lines, and deep, V-twin sound.  No, you don't see the crazy variety with Indian motorcycles that you do with Harleys, but that doesn't bother me at all.  I saw the Scout, and at first glance, it was not first love.  She's a classic, graceful bike, but not the fully dressed chromed out cruisers I'd developed a taste for.  At the time, I had no real plans to get my motorcycle license.  I was a complete, total, 100% beginner.  Heck, I wasn't even accustomed to driving with a manual clutch!  The Springfield became my 'dream' bike for David and I, and then I sat on the Scout.  Holy cow.  She was everything Harley Davidson wasn't.  I began to see visions of ME driving that bike.  The Scout is certainly CAPABLE of riding 2-up, but she's really not meant for that purpose, so David never really looked at her, but she became a fixture in my mind.

My dream baby

Fast forward to about 4 weeks ago, and I actually rode her for the first time.  COMPLETELY different animal than the H-D Street 500 bikes we learned on.  David was sort of steering me towards one of those, and we half way looked at them in the dealership.  I just don't like the looks of them.  To me, the Street 500, the Street 750, and all other styles that resemble that look turn me off.  Just not my cup of tea!  The advantage, she was a fairly easy bike to ride.  Nice smooth clutch pull, low seat height, and low weight.  But the Scout ... holy cow, she's a Cadillac!  SO comfortable to hold up, comfortable seating position (100% different than the Street 500), and a ROCKET when the clutch is at the sweet spot.  Took me about 1 minute to get comfortable with the forward controls, and the rest is history!

Easy to learn on, not what I want to own.

Can't believe I actually own her now, I didn't even think I would get my LICENSE any time soon, much less have a brand new Indian Scout sitting in my garage.  Her engine is technically "bigger" than the Vulcan even though the Scout is smaller.  I can say I finally have my "pony", lol!!  My petite little powerhouse pony.  I'm an Indian fan for life; can't wait to buy David a Chieftan in a few years (we've completely bypassed the Springfield, thanks to the demo truck, lol) <3

Somebody pinch me!

Chieftan, just wants one without the ape hangers!

Indian Motorcycles Demo Truck

So, when I was searching for info on the Indian Demo Truck, there wasn't much info out there.  There were a few YouTube videos about some of the demo ride routes, but no other real information as to How. It. Works. which is what I like to KNOW in advance :)  So, just thought I'd blog about the day!

We got up there about 20 minutes before the event began.  Let me preface this by saying ... it was COLD this morning; low 40's.  The dealership was wide open, and the motorcycles were all up by the truck.  Such a cool and impressive setup, I LOVE it!

Everyone was very nice.  They directed us to the table in the back where we were able to go through the sign up/sign in process.  We got a few freebies as well!  Signed us up on the iPad, entered our info, clicked "Accept", and we were given cards with our electronic info that at the next event, all we have to do is scan them.  Requirements for the demo ride are a class "M" license, age 18 or over, long pants, closed toe shoe, and I believe a long sleeved shirt as well.  They had some helmets you could borrow if you needed to.  The words were, "You're responsible for yourself, we're responsible for the bikes".  There was no charge/fees of any sort, and there was no test to complete on your level of experience, lol.  They do NOT ask you for your insurance information!  I feel like there's a great bit of mis-information out there from people that are ASSuming, and haven't actually participated.

This one was set up for "extended reach", so I couldn't ride her :(

This morning, it was just me, David, one other guy, and the leader/sweeper.  Since I have zero road riding experience, I wanted to follow David AND be at the back of the line.  I was so nervous/excited/nervous, but David assured me I was ready.  He said the state of TN had declared me knowledgeable enough and competent enough to have my "M", so I was certainly capable.

As we headed out, I power walked through the turn which was guided by cones, and thank goodness there was a gentleman holding our lane for us.  The dealership is off a BUSY main hwy in Knoxville.  Then it was on the road!  David was right; I was 148% fine.  Going in a straight line on the hwy is the easy part.  Making the turns are intuitive and simple, especially with 22 years of experience driving cars.  I was worried I would have tunnel vision and not be able to focus on everything around me, but I found myself exhilarated but relaxed.  I remembered everything I had been taught about friction zone, looking ahead, looking up, and braking smoothly with both front and back.  I'd like to think I rocked it :D

David rode the Chieftan first, and he absolutely fell in love.  He didn't care as much for the Springfield as compared to the Vulcan; he actually liked his Vulcan better.  The Chieftan, however, he said he'd switch to.

The route took us 20 minutes in the morning and made a few right hand turns with a short trek up the Interstate.  By the afternoon, that route was taking 30 minutes due to all the traffic :(  SO glad I had the time early on to "warm up".  The Scout is an AMAZING bike for a novice.  I'm short, and I feel so comfortable holding her up at stops.  2 weeks ago, I just took her for slow parking lot maneuvers.  Today, I opened her up on the road.  VERY easy clutch pull, easy throttle engagement, smooth braking.  I was not on an ABS bike.  I love how I can feel when I'm down in first gear.  It helps that the readout on the bike also lets you know what gear you're in :)  However, once you pull the clutch in you just have to count, lol!  I definitely like windshield vs. no windshield.  I rode both the smaller engine Scout Sixty and the bigger engine Scout.  No discernible difference in handling; in fact, I preferred the Sixty because it had the windshield.  Going 80 mph on the interstate without one is NOT my cup of tea.  I did feel some movement from the wind on the interstate; I don't think I would enjoy a long, straight highway ride on the Scout.  The smaller backroads/curves are more where I will enjoy her.

I WILL own one, it's only a question of "when"?  David really enjoyed getting to ride several other models; he even tried one with apes!  Not his thing, lol.  We rode a total of 6 times.  By early afternoon, they were getting more crowded and the traffic around the dealership was becoming horrendous.  We headed out the long way home around Tellico Lake.  Gorgeous day!  Thanks to IMOK for the great time!  We look forward to doing the demo truck every time it rolls into anywhere CLOSE to town, haha! :D

The GORGEOUS new Chieftan Limited; it's already sold!

Falling away from summer

These 2 are my life!

Halloween, and hence, the end of October, is tomorrow.  TOMORROW.  Where has the year gone?

We're dealing with the inevitable Fall colds.  Kody picked up a nasty stomach bug that kept him down for 5 days.  It got me for one day, and Colton has picked up the first of hopefully NOT many snotty nose head colds.  We went last weekend to this secluded little spot called McCloud Mountain Resort to eat lunch.  Let me tell y'all, it was SPECTACULAR.  The above pic is the view from our table.  

The best part, is it was NOT expensive.  McCloud Mountain is actually a gated community, and in order to experience the view you just have to make reservations at the restaurant.  Lunch fare wasn't terribly expensive at ALL, and because of the reservation system, there was literally zero crowd to deal with.

We are so enjoying exploring the beautiful state of Tennessee.  It's not nearly as diverse as California, but it holds it's own as a lovely and peaceful place to be.

I'm going to confess something.  I'm really enjoying my horse break.  I worked in the business for SO long that when we got to CA, I just wanted to enjoy it as an amateur.  Problem with that for ME is that I can't afford to simply buy a horse and pay to play.  I have to work to play, in any fashion.  I had a super sweet deal in CA that I found for myself and WORKED for, and as a result I got to ride some amazing horses.  However, I'm sure any of my other hard working horse sisters know, it's not always "enough" simply to ride every now and then.  You get competitive, you want to get out and DO.  Go cross country schooling, go on trail rides/poker rides/hunter paces/horse shows, etc.  And when you're working just to get on every now and then, those sorts of things DON'T happen.  Me having a new baby as well as a teenager and a husband means I do NOT pay for a hobby that only I can get out to enjoy.  It just feels selfish to me, so for now it's a horsey hiatus.

What we HAVE discovered together as a couple is riding the IRON horse.  Before Kody, David and I rode ATV's almost every weekend.  We each had our own, an we rode all over GA and even into surrounding states.  Once Kody was born, we stopped riding because it's a lot of work to load the ATV's, trailer out to wherever, unload, put on all your gear, ride, come home, clean up, etc.  Motorcycles are different.  Put on your helmet, fire that baby up, and GO!  I've never had the opportunity to ride, and my FIL finally took me on the back of his Honda about 2 months ago.  One ride and I was HOOKED.  

My MIL let us borrow HER Honda for a few weeks to get out and ride around on.  It has been so amazing.  I definitely feel so ALIVE, and it gives you a whole new perspective (and respect) for the road.  Sadly, last week, my FIL was riding back to our house from Cades Cove, and was cut off by a young girl who then slammed her brakes on.  He laid the bike down in an effort to avoid fully slamming into her and is still in the hospital with 5 broken ribs as a result.  It's a sobering reality; he has not had any type of accident in MANY years, 20+.  I worry about riding, especially having 2 young kids, but at the end of the day I don't believe you can live your life in fear.  Riding horses is every bit as dangerous, and just like with that activity, I wear all the protective gear I can.

Don't even have a bike yet, and already invested in brand new helmets!

Tennessee is a motorcycle state, and I'm looking forward to buying a bike and experiencing a whole different world of riding.  Prayers for the FIL are appreciated; he's almost ready to come home, he just has to get a little more pain free first.  We pray to God each and every day for His protection, and when on the bike I feel like I'm in a constant state of prayer the whole time!  Grateful for the desire and the opportunity to spend time with my other half, and loving life as a new mom again.  

Me with the hubs (L) and Kody with the FIL (R)

Shriner's Circus last week

My "someday" wishful thinking bike!