About Me

Welcome to hdriderblog.  

I’ve ridden motorcycles off and on for almost 50 years.  Too much off and not enough on.  But that’s changed.  For the past 20 years I’ve ridden a Harley-Davidson of one kind or another. I’ve gone through three Ultra Classics, two of them had 100,000 miles on them and the third had 50,000.  I averaged about 25,000 miles a year on my scoot until a few years agor.

I’ve ridden a motorcycle in 49 of the 50 U.S. states (no bridge to Hawaii yet), all the Canadian provinces and the Yukon Territory and a (very) brief foray into Mexico.

In 2013 my wife Marilyn rode her 2007 Deluxe and I rode my 2013 Ultra Classic from Key West to Fairbanks, Alaska, and back, a once-in-a-lifetime trip that covered more than 13,000 scenic miles and lasted two amazing months.

In 2014, I rode solo from our summer home in North Carolina to Newfoundland and Labrador, a 7,500-mile adventure that occupied a month.  In the fall of 2014, I led a group of 10 Harley riders on a nine-day, 2,000-mile ride that visited eight Civil War Battlefield sites.

In 2015 I soloed in the Rocky Mountains.  All of them.  I looped from the southern end of the Rocky Mountains in New Mexico to the northern end at the Liard River in Yukon Territory.   In the process, I crossed and re-crossed the Continental Divide more than a dozen times as I explored the wonderous and “aaahhh” inspiring geology of western North America.

In 2016 a return trip took me back to Alaska  with a recently retired riding buddy.  I saw some of the same sights Marilyn and I saw, but also added some new roads and some new adventures.

In 2017, an anniversary trip to Europe limited my riding and in 2018 I returned to Alaska for a memorable fishing trip but once again not on two wheels.

In 2019, at 71 years old, I rode solo and followed the 1804-1806 route of Lewis and Clark as they explored the Louisiana Purchase and points west.  This ride combined my love of riding with my passion for history and allowed me to explore once again my geographic and intellectual horizons.

Covid-19 restrictions reduced my riding in 2020 and 2021, but in 2022, on a new (to me) 2019 Harley Softail Heritage Classic I’m headed for Canada again, but this time I’m doing all 10 provinces in a single, 11,000 mile ride.

I can’t wait to get on the road again.