Saturday, July 03, 2010

I got the adventure I wanted

We rode all morning and came back to the motel for lunch and some rest.  Then we went for another ride, one that took us to a ferry across Table Rock Lake, through downtown Branson, and back to the motel.  However, something happened along the way.  In Branson.  Where our motorcycles always break down.  


Even from the back, you can tell Cliff is distraught.  Here's what happened:  We stopped at the McDonald's east of 65 in Branson to get ourselves a mocha frappé.  When we got on the motorcycle to leave, Cliff started it up and I said, "This thing is making a noise I've never heard."  
"That's just the fan," says Cliff, who not only can't hear well normally, but hears even less this weekend because he left his hearing aid at home.  
"No, I have NEVER heard this noise," I said, panicking.  
Finally he turned the key off.  But the starter wouldn't quit.  It was stuck.  
"Don't you want me to get off?"  I asked the question twice before he finally said yes.  
He got off, with the horrible noise still going on.  He did this thing and that thing, and finally disconnected the battery.  That stopped the noise.  
"Find that book with Gold Wing riders' names in it and see if there's anybody in Branson."  
I found three people, and he called one; there was no answer, but Cliff left a message.  While he was doing that, I suddenly remembered that his Kansas brother, Donald, was camped out at Table Rock Lake, not a half-hour away.  And he's a mechanic.  
"Cliff, you have a brother here right now," I told him.  
I saw instant relief on his face.  "Oh, yeah; that's right!"  


Never have two people been so happy to see my brother-in-law, Donald.  He would have had it fixed in five minutes, but Gold Wings are horrible to take apart.  So getting to the area he wanted to work on took awhile.  However, once there, he fixed it.


The starter relay was stuck.  Don hit it a few times with a pair of pliers and that fixed it.  Cliff will need to buy a new relay once we're home; but for now, it's working.  
Our vacation will proceed as planned.

6 comments:

  1. Glad to hear that Don got it fixed and he was near by!

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  2. Disaster adverted... Way to go Don!

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  3. Glad that Don was nearby and came to the rescue. Helen

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  4. My husband has worked on his father's Goldwing a few times. What a PAIN! It take longer to get to the problem than it does to fix the problem. Wow! Try changing the back tire! He did that 3 times in one month! Come to find out, there was something on the bike that was making it go flat.
    I'm glad you had your machanic close by. lol

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  5. That was great news! I know CLiff was relieved knowing his brother wasn't far away!

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  6. That was great news! I know CLiff was relieved knowing his brother wasn't far away!

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