After a week getting back home, I thought I would try and wrap-up the 2023 Cannonball with one final reflection.
3,856 miles on a 100 year old motorcycle; riding from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific ocean. Sixteen days to complete, that’s an average of 241 miles per day. Sounds easy, eh! Well let me tell you.
The 2023 event was open to all bikes 90 years old and older. There was a 90-99 year class and a 100 year and older class. I was in the 100 year class with the 2023 Harley J I rode. A total of 77 riders started the event. There were riders from the USA, Australia, Germany, and Italy. The oldest bike was a 1909 Indian single, chain drive, mechanical intake.
This was the third Cannonball Run I have participated in as a rider. The 2018 event I rode my 1911 Excelsior, leather belt drive, 4 HP, 30 c.i., atmospheric intake. The next run in 2021 I rode a 1923 Harley-Davidson J model; 61 c.i., three speed, battery ignition. These two events I fell short of a perfect score due to mechanical issues along the way.
The third event was held in September 2023 and I rode the 1923 J once again after having the engine rebuilt. The third time was a charm, and I finished with a perfect score in 7th place (out of 77) overall, and in 4th place in my class. I was thrilled to finally get “all the miles” after three attempts. Riders who finished above me all had bikes older than 2023. The older the bike the more handicap points they received.
Fellow AMCA Badger Heritage members also participating; Wade & Cathy in their sidecar, and John Bartman who also rode a 1923 J. Wade & Cathy and I crossed paths every day, while I rode with Bartman and Pat Olson each leg of the event. We had the right rhythm and groove as a team as we clipped off the miles.
We began the event in Virginia Beach, VA on the pier where the mayor wished us a safe journey across the USA. Nightly stops along the way included:
- Greenville, NC
- Concord, NC
- Maryville, TN
- Clarksville, TN
- Cape Girardeau, MO
- Branson, MO
- Wichita, KS
- Garden City, KS
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Montrose, CO
- Green River, UT
- Kanab, UT
- Henderson, NV
- Palm Desert, CA
- Oceanside, CA
Each day presented challenges from severe rain, extreme wind, and scorching heat. A typical day consisted of departing the hotel (in stages based on the class you were in) around 8 a.m. We then had to check in around 5 p.m. that night. At the halfway point in Wichita, we had a day off. My day off consisted of doing laundry and a more thorough maintenance check on the bike. This included adjusting the primary and final drive chain, cleaning and adjusting the exposed rear band brakes, and changing the rear tire to ensure I would be OK with tire wear. This was in addition to the regular maintenance I did each night of the event.
Some of the highlights included starting from the Virginia Beach pier, climbing the Smoky Mountains, and having lunch at Wheels Through Time. Then climbing 11,314 feet to cross Monarch Pass (Continental Divide) in Colorado, and then navigate Skyline Drive in Cañon City, CO. (The road is one-way only as there are no guard rails or markers, just steep drop offs on the cliff face on either side). We also drove over the Royal Gorge bridge, a 955 foot high suspension bridge which is the highest in the USA. This bridge is 1,260 feet long and has 1,292 wooden planks to drive over.
We also drove through several National Parks: Colorado National Monument, Capital Reef, Bryce, and Zion. Spectacular scenery. In Zion we had the daunting task to navigate through a 1.1-mile-long tunnel that is completely dark. I had installed two very bright additional lights just for this tunnel. After that we drove over Hoover Dam and made our way to Sitgreaves Pass in AZ. This pass is an eight mile stretch that has 191 curves, peaking at 3,586 foot elevation, with little to no guardrails. Then a stop in Oatman for an ice cream.
With just two days of riding left we next drove through Joshua Tree National Park, and a long hot ride through the Mohave desert. On the last day we had one last 4,000 foot climb as we made our way to the finish line in Oceanside, CA. I was proud to have finished in 7th place overall, and 4th in my class. The third try was a charm for a perfect score.
The only serious issue I had was the day we drove from Garden City, KS to Colorado Springs. This day we climbed considerable elevation. Just after lunch we climbed a long stretch and when we arrived at the top my bike was running very poorly. Bartman stopped with me, and I told him to keep going. A support rider stopped, and we diagnosed a few things from a coil, spark plugs, carb adjustments, and finally I looked at the points. They were closed and there was no gap where there should be 0.020” gap. The adjusting stud was seized and would not move; therefore, I could not attain a point gap. So, what can we do to get a point gap? After thinking out loud together we came up with the idea to tie a zip strap around the fiber rubbing block on the points arm to give us a gap, albeit too much, the bike did run. Time was of the essence as we raced to the checkpoint that night. I made it in with minutes to spare. Final repairs to the points were made that evening.
After a year of planning, and six months of something to do daily, and finally the last 30 days before the event with hours each day dedicated to properly prepare, it was finally time to get going. It is a consuming event and one of the hardest things I have done in my life. It is a true test of man and machine. I chose to do this third Cannonball with no support crew to further test my abilities. John Bartman was gracious to let me store my bike and spare parts in his trailer during the event.
In conclusion, I am thrilled to have completed this event with only one issue. Properly prepared and equipped with the right tools and spare parts, I was able to finish with a perfect score. The hard part now is getting back to “normal” after being in the Cannonball mode for a year.
Cannonball, Chase, 1911 Excelsior, 1923 Harley J tales 