In 1974 we were headed back home from a bike ride out to Washington DC. to see some friends. Five bikes in total, three chopper hogs, one Honda 750, and me on a Honda 450. The hog riders wanted a bet of a case of beer going to the brand bikes that made it back home first, HD vs Honda's. One hog broke down the first 100 miles out of DC. They rented a U haul to haul it back home to MN. The other two hog riders laid them down on curves with brand new fresh blacktop, that was wet from rain. Three not so happy hog riders driving behind two Honda's in a rented truck.
It started to rain in Ill. and it rained hard. I had a Jammer to hide behind in the rain, the other guy just had a small windshield in front of him. The guys in the truck wanted to check into a room for the night, we on the bikes wanted to keep riding all night. We waved at them as they pulled off the freeway in search of a soft bed to crash in.
I was always the lead bike, the other guy could never read a map or plan a trip out. Late at night about 100 miles from home we ran into fog. The fog was so bad that the only way you could see the road was to look down near your Lt foot-peg so you could see the lines on the road. Then the fog started to brake up, white fog then total black of night, then back into fog again. On and off again as you headed down the road. Most of the time I just kept looking near the foot-peg at the yellow line. About 40 miles from home I raised my head to look into the fog ahead of me. Just then the fog lifted, and straight in front of me was a horse standing broadside in the road in my lane. I heave leaned Rt and Lt just in time to make it around the horse. I put on my brakes and slowed to pull over. The other guy was right behind me. He pulled up to me and asked what was wrong because I looked as white as a sheet. I said we almost hit the horse! WHAT HORSE he asked. Follow me I yield as I started driving back real slow looking for the beast. Found it, still standing there in the road.
I pulled my bike over by the horse, and when the other rider seen the horse- he turned white as a sheet also. All this time riding in the fog he was only watching my taillight, and following it mile after mile. He never saw the horse the first time, and was thinking I was trying to pull a joke over on him telling him about the horse.
So to this day I will call him up on the phone and when he says hello, I yell HORSE.
( Come to think of it, we never did get the case of beer from the hog riders!)
It started to rain in Ill. and it rained hard. I had a Jammer to hide behind in the rain, the other guy just had a small windshield in front of him. The guys in the truck wanted to check into a room for the night, we on the bikes wanted to keep riding all night. We waved at them as they pulled off the freeway in search of a soft bed to crash in.
I was always the lead bike, the other guy could never read a map or plan a trip out. Late at night about 100 miles from home we ran into fog. The fog was so bad that the only way you could see the road was to look down near your Lt foot-peg so you could see the lines on the road. Then the fog started to brake up, white fog then total black of night, then back into fog again. On and off again as you headed down the road. Most of the time I just kept looking near the foot-peg at the yellow line. About 40 miles from home I raised my head to look into the fog ahead of me. Just then the fog lifted, and straight in front of me was a horse standing broadside in the road in my lane. I heave leaned Rt and Lt just in time to make it around the horse. I put on my brakes and slowed to pull over. The other guy was right behind me. He pulled up to me and asked what was wrong because I looked as white as a sheet. I said we almost hit the horse! WHAT HORSE he asked. Follow me I yield as I started driving back real slow looking for the beast. Found it, still standing there in the road.
I pulled my bike over by the horse, and when the other rider seen the horse- he turned white as a sheet also. All this time riding in the fog he was only watching my taillight, and following it mile after mile. He never saw the horse the first time, and was thinking I was trying to pull a joke over on him telling him about the horse.
So to this day I will call him up on the phone and when he says hello, I yell HORSE.
( Come to think of it, we never did get the case of beer from the hog riders!)
