Atomic Valdese Rides Again

Posted byKaran AndreaPosted inUncategorized

Atomic Shovel update: Took my sassy shovel out today to make sure the ignition was good to go. I only had time to do an hour loop, which may have been a blessing because I was about 5 miles from home when I noticed a new sound in the top end. About the same time, I was checking over my right shoulder and noticed oil splashed on the saddlebag. Ugh. Oil + noise. Sumbitch.

I was close enough to home that I just kept going, but I had a bunch of stuff to do when I got home, so I just had to roll the bike in and put the kickstand down.

I took a couple pics for what that’s worth, but tomorrow I will be chasing this demon.

I’m wondering if it’s a repeat of my rocker covers loosening up. That happened outside Tucumcari. I had oil everywhere, and we couldn’t tell if it was dire or not, so we heaved that greasy pig into Eric and Jenny Bass Cycles van and hauled it the rest of the way. I think it was 50 miles, and I didn’t feel good about limping it in without knowing what the issue was.

Anyway, all they could really find was some loose bolts.

Maybe since I rode through desert temps of 110 degrees after that, things loosened up again? No idea.

Tomorrow I will poke at it.

Well after cleaning up the Exxon Valdese, I mean Atomic Shovel, I started it up and ran it in the garage. One of the rocker box bolts began to leak, but I didn’t see anything else that was really obvious. It was smoking pretty good as the remaining residue burned off. I may take it around the block later, but I’m at a point where I have to make a decision.

A. Commit to fixing this bike even though I don’t know yet what the issue is and ride it 4,000 miles not really knowing if I got fixed.

B. Abandon the 74 and prep the Road King instead.

Going for Plan B. I’ve done multiple long trips on the ’74, and if were my only option I’d figure it out, BUT the ride to Sturgis for me is almost 1900 miles one way, with 8 to 10 hour days. That’s in the saddle. That doesn’t count stops or breakdowns. So 8 hours becomes 9 or 10. 10 hours becomes 11 or 12. That’s when, for me, it becomes not fun.

So plan B it is.

Now I just have to go over the Road King, and get a luggage setup for it, which is already on order.

Published by Karan Andrea

I ride motorcycles, I live motorcycles, and I write about motorcycles. Both of my blogs are written for motorcyclists: atomicshovel.blog tells the never-ending story of my 1974 Harley-Davidson FLH, which I have named the Atomic Shovel. My other blog coachk.home.blog is written for riders of all skill levels, but is primarily aimed toward the rider who is transitioning from the riding range where they learned basic skills, to the open road. This blog address the most common questions I see in the online groups and forums: dealing with anxiety - yes, that is the number one question, navigating traffic, parking, holding your bike on an incline, just to mention a few. Much of what I write is simply drawn from my own experiences - successes, failures, do-overs. Nothing in either blog should be construed as the absolute one and only approach; rather, look at them as a starting point for your own discovery process.

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