Wrongway's “Lap” Around Florida
 

I just completed a “lap” around Florida.  Leaving the Panhandle and going down the west coast, crossing over thru the Everglades to Miami and continuing south to Key West, then traveling up the east coast to Jacksonville via US1 and A1A and back to Pensacola.  It worked out to something just short of 2,000 miles in 8.5 days.  I was able to spend 1 day in Key Largo, 2.5 days in Key West, and a day in Titusville to see the launch of Atlantis STS-125.

I’m not going to write a travel log, but I am going to share 2 situations that may be of some interest.

The first occurred in Key Largo.  It was day 2 of the trip and I had logged about 450 miles in 93 degree heat and I was ready for a shower and some air conditioning.  I had camping gear with me, but after the broiling ride my core temperature needed relief.  I pulled into the parking lot of a motel that had a neon “VACANCY” sign brightly lit.  Not seeing more than 2 or 3 cars in the parking lot you can imagine my surprise when I had barely parked the bike and turned around to see the “NO” sign in front of it turned on.   I looked past the glass front doors and saw someone staring back at me from behind the counter.  It was clear he didn’t want any bikers there.  No problem.  There’s a recession going on and I’m paying cash so it was his loss. 

Not a ¼ mile down the road I found another “VACANCY” sign brightly lit and a gravel driveway leading back to the office thru some truly tropical scenery some 75 yards from US1.  I parked the bike and walked up to the door to find it locked.  There was a sign off to the side that said “closed”.  It was only 5pm!  What motel closed at 5pm?  I looked around, but couldn’t find anyone from the office.  There were people sitting at a picnic table and I asked them if they knew where the owners were?  They just shrugged their shoulders.  Now I’m hot, tired, sweaty, covered in sun block and getting short tempered.  I fire up the bike and as I get back to US1 I see the “NO” lit in front of the “VACANCY”.  Now, everything I heard about the free and easy life style of the Keys just went out the window. 

Less than a mile down the road there are 3 motels in a row all with “VACANCY” signs.  I pulled into the first one a little more aggressively than I should have, letting the situation get to me some, marched into the office and told the young woman behind the counter I wanted a room.  She said very sheepishly she had none.  The veins in my neck and face must have popped out because she quickly followed with “…all we have are cabins and I can give you 20% off because you look like you should be a member of AARP.”  Well, that let the steam out of my boiler and I calmed down quickly.  We had quite a conversation and I learned that there were only a few anti-biker motels in the area and I had just the luck to hit 2 of them.  She gave me a few coupons for the seafood restaurant just after the motels, told me of the free kayaks they had for use, the sunset celebration they had starting at 7pm and of the continental breakfast in the morning followed by a host of other free activities.  As my son would say… “free is in my budget!”   If you are in the Key Largo area and want to spend the night, try the Sunset Cove Motel at 9360 US1.  Their cabins have 2 queen size beds and a complete kitchen.  Two couples could share the rent, have a free breakfast, make lunch and go out to diner for a reasonable amount of money while taking in the area known for its expensiveness.  Best of all, they are biker friendly.

Doc Reichenbach of ABATE of FL has been working on a biker anti-discrimination law in Tallahassee for a several years.  Now I know why. 

The second situation occurred 50 miles from Key West.  My “engine” light came on.  A quick check showed that I was running 16+ volts.  Then, all of a sudden, I was running 11.5 volts.  I figured it had to be the stator or the regulator or both.  It’s amazing how many things you process at that moment.  Whether to stop or go or turn back?  Did I bring the right tools for the job? Where is the closest parts store and/or repair shop?  If I stop, will the bike restart?  Most of the islands in the Keys are lucky to have a gas station.  My camp site was on Stock Island about 5 miles from Key West or 45 miles down the road and I thought I would have my best chance of repair in Key West.  And if I had to be stuck somewhere, why not Sloppy Joe’s!  I knew from a past experience that the Harley electronics will work at 6 volts but not 5.  How long can I go before I lose that much voltage and the control module and the electronics fail?  The last time I had a problem like this was about 5 years ago and I was in Georgia about 50 miles from Dothan, AL.  I made it 47 miles and had to be towed the last 3.  

I missed seeing a lot of the scenery because every few seconds I was staring at the volt meter trying to evaluate the slightest change, but it held and I made it to Boyd’s campground.   There, the Yellow Pages only shows 2 places that repair motorcycles and one is a Honda Dealer.  The other is JK Motorshop.  No HD dealer or HD repair shop.  Being a Life Member of HOG I called their road side assistance.  They informed me that my ride would have to be towed back to Miami at a cost of $550, but they would pay $100 of the bill.  I also learned that there is an add-on you can purchase from HD on a yearly basis if you want higher coverage.  So needless to say I called and talked to Jiri (pronounced iry) at JK.  He said he worked on Harleys and was less than a ½ mile away.  The bulk of his business is the little motor scooters that are so popular in the Keys, but there were also a dozen Harley’s, Yamaha’s, Suzuki’s and Honda’s in the mix of about 40 or more bikes parked in front of his shop. 

Here’s my problem.  I have a high out system that is not very common.  It’s Friday at 1pm.  JK closes at 2pm on Saturday or in 25 hours for the weekend and I need to be in Titusville on Monday for the Shuttle launch at 2pm.  Can you do it I asked?  Jiri made a few calls and said shipping will be expensive, but yes.  So I left my dresser with him and taxied into Key West for a Mallory Park sunset and Sloppy Joe’s.  When I returned to JK at 1:30 on Saturday Jiri was checking the air pressure of my tires with a grin on his face knowing he had met the challenge and won.  His work was first rate and at $59/hr was well below the average.  I know what these parts cost and I am confident he gave me a break on that cost as well.

The moral of the story is simple.  You don’t have to worry about breaking down in Key West 130 miles from the dealer or being raped by a tow company.  You have Jiri and JK Motorshop just off US1 at 5670 Laurel Ave on Stock Island.  Plug him into your cell phone (305 292 544) and ride with no worries.  He has a true bike shop with fair, honest, quality work and he can meet the challenge.  I would not hesitate to let him work on any part of my ride.  What more can you ask for!

And yes, I made it to Titusville and the launch .  Check out the photos.

Keep it in the wind…

Wrongway