Lake Louise, AB >> breakdown >> Golden, BC 20 miles/40 minutes (+75-mile tow to Golden, BC)
Shortly after setting off this morning, the battery low charge light came on and I ignored it. Not the best decision, as the bike completely shut down halfway to Banff a few minutes later. While trying to diagnose the issue on the side of the road, Richard, a Harley rider on vacation from Florida, pulled over and gave me a jump but the charge wouldn’t stick; my bike stalled when I gunned it. The battery appeared to be out of water. Richard headed off to the next town to call a tow truck for me. (This was around 9.30a Alberta time.)
Around 11am, with no tow truck in sight, I flagged down a second Harley and the couple on it promised to call a tow truck when they reached civilization.
Eventually, a tow truck appeared and made a sweeping three-point turn in the middle of the two-lane highway. The driver asked how long I’d been waiting. “Just until you got here,” I replied. No use complaining. (FYI, the old me would have complained.)
Then things got weird. Once lowered, the flatbed was at a 45-degree angle to the ground. The driver, in all seriousness, asked me: “You gonna push it up there?” Granted, I was wearing about seven layers of clothes, so my normally slender physique looked more muscular than usual, but still, we’re talking about 550 pounds of dead weight not including all the crap I had strapped to the bike. Plus, the flatbed had an oil slick running right up the middle of it; kiss any potential traction good-bye.
“Don’t you have a winch for that?” I asked. He responded with hems and haws, so I gave it a half-hearted effort and basked in the absurdity of it all… After all, if I could get the bike on the truck, I might as well carry it to the next town!
Eventually seeing the futility of the situation, my savior put a hook through the front tire and I kept the bike upright while he hauled it onto the back of the truck. As soon as the bike was on, he raised/flattened the bed and I pushed it forward. Then his wife came out to help tie it down. I made my way to the cab, where the couple’s four-year-old daughter was entertaining herself with a coloring book and an assortment of toys. Before we started for Golden, the driver asked me several times if I was a cop, then once convinced I wasn’t, tried to sell me weed. I politely declined. Could this ride get any more bizarre?
En route to Golden, BC, we drove through a one-lane construction zone, which partially explained his delay. Plus, it turns out he didn’t leave Golden ‘til noon (1pm Alberta time) to pick me up. And to top it off, he passed a Triumph rider that was broken down closer to Golden that he thought might have been me. Thank god that got cleared up… I might still be waiting for a lift! It was about 2pm when we arrived at Mayhem Motorcycle in Golden (3p in Alberta time). Pretty full day, eh?
With the bike in the shop, it looks like I’ll be staying here overnight, perhaps for the weekend. Jeff – the shop owner – and his wife Lisa are leaving for a wedding tomorrow at 3p and if parts don’t come in before then, I’m stuck. Not promising. Guess I should’ve had the bike looked at more closely in Fairbanks; just thought it’d hold ‘til Minot.
Hopefully it’ll stay sunny ‘til I get back on the road. Jeff and Lisa offered me a lift to the campground in town, awfully nice of them. Forecast for tomorrow is thunderstorms: 60%, then showers through Tuesday. Sunny again on Wed.
Around 3.30p, I had my first meal of the day: a chocolate shake from the McDonald’s located across the street from Mayhem. Not feeling so good. But at least they have the Weather Channel. If it’s a fuel filter issue, mine could last me to Minot, I suppose… Really not feeling so confident about the trip right now.
The bike isn’t recharging the battery, which Jeff says is an alternator/regulator and stator issue. I thought the guys in Maine had addressed a stator issue four years ago, but Jeff said it’s one of those things that goes without warning. No third-party manufacturers had them in stock, so we ordered the parts from Honda in Calgary and they’ll arrive on Tuesday; the regulator was $380, the stator was $280. With labor, the bill will exceed $1,100! Plus the tow, that’s ~$1,500. And I have to spend money in Golden for four days and not be moving forward. *sigh*
But at least a fix is in the works. Jeff’s doing his best to get me back on the road ASAP, and Lisa even offered to let me borrow her bicycle so I could get around town quicker! (The stereotype of friendly Canadians is being reinforced at every turn, I’m happy to report.)