My wife and I are riding our Harleys there on or about the 4th of July this summer. We will be in that area (Fairbanks from Florida) for a few days so we will plan our run there by the weather. You guys talking about changing belts on the side of the road? You don't know what you are talking about. Belts don't tear up like that. Inspect your **** before you even leave. We have reservations for some hotels, cabin and a flight over Denali, etc on our whole trip. The run up to the Arctic Circle is just a part of it. Taking the Ferry from Haines to Bellingham on the way back. I've talked to guys who have run the whole way to Deadhorse and it is a tough trip on a big bike but can be done. It really is a matter of the weather and road conditions. I personnaly have no desire to go to deadhorse. It's not like you can ride down to the coast on your bike and get a snapshot. Access is controled. I'll have my wife post when she gets back.

Tom

 

Hey TFtom, no reason to get personal about this but if you don't think belts tear up you had better stay in that nice sand down in Florida. In the Rocky Mountains we have these things called rocks.

 

agreed the belts have been much improved. but rocks between the pulley and the belt is not good for either and have "probably" caused the demise of many.

 

Hiwaytime,

In 1981 when I was working as a harley mechanic in a dealership in Houston Texas I pulled a brand new 82 Police FLH out of the crate for a Houston cop. I watched him put almost a 100,000 miles on that belt. I've been a believer ever since. Belts have been developing through the years even more! Chance are very slim you will ever get a rock perfectly positioned to mess up a belt. Chains are lot more unreliable than a belt any day. I've put a 100 grand on my 85 FXWG before I changed it out when I went through a rebuild. Got 45Grand on my Road King I'm ridin to Alaska. Sand or any other small abrasive is probably the worst thing for them. Goes for chains as well. How many belts or chains have you worn out? I'll take that pepsi challenge any day!

 

TFtom
You are riding all the way to Alaska and you have jinxed yourself. Good Luck

 

Hiwaytime,

Jinxes, curses, gods, that is stuff for fools and children. I don't think we will make this trip without some type of issue but can't think of a long trip I've been on that doesn't. That's what it is all about isn't it? The adventure of it, the ride? I'll have two bikes prepped and ready to go and we deal with life as it comes. Know your bike and take care of it and it will take care of you.

Tom

 

The last time I was at Daytona Bike Week, I came to a rather disturbing realization. In the campground, I had BMW riders on one side of me and Harley riders on the other. By the end of the week, I realized that I got much more out of sitting around the campfire with the BMW riders than I did with the Harley riders. The BMW riders talked about the ride, the experience, the road. All the Harley riders wanted to do was pound their chests about who was "Super Biker". I don't understand why that is. If anyone would like to talk about Alaska, the Dalton, the Alcan, the Whittier Tunnel or the AMHS Columbia or the AMHS Chenega, I would love to. I was gone for 4 weeks on that trip and I would have lived my life for any one day of the trip. I am sitting here at 5200 ft in Utah with a foot of snow left and icesickles hanging of my house and I am just trying to pass the time because the melt is on and it is almost " Hiwaytime".

 

I like to talk about rides, too. As a school teacher I have more time than most to plan a ride. But for way to many Harley riders the yearly ride is to Sturgis or another large type biker rally. If you only get one vacation a year and you always go to a rally you are missing out on the best part of motorcycling.

Belts have come a long way and in most cases are trouble free. I put a rear belt on my '80 FLH in 1995 because I was tired of the caring for the chain on long trips. Still runnin' the same belt.
On my trip up the Alcan I measured a section of one or two week old tar and gravel that was 22 miles long. I would not have wanted to be one of the first ones through that on any bike. Some of those tar coated rocks don't bounce off. Before my trip I had read a post from a Harley rider that had ridden through a similar situation on his trip to Alaska. He had to replace his belt.
Good luck and be prepared. Go for it.

 

the good thing is that nothing up there is as remote as it once was, so if you do run into any kind of mechanical trouble, your not going to be totally screwed. It might take some time to get help or to get to a harley shop, but, I was surprised at how frequently we saw travelers (especially RVers who tend to be damn helpful folks) and how often we rode through decent size towns.

I agree with hiwaytime... I would give up almost anything to be back on even the most hellish day of that trip. Well... except the 60 mph wind and pouring rain storm in Denali... that really sucked! It did get it us stuck in a tiny little town at the weirdest hotel ever... good stories there!

 

Jimclaypool, or anyone else, did you make it to AK and back this summer?? I am Considering a 2012 ride from ND to Alaska. I have never rode to AK but based on what I am reading, I would probably ride up to Fairbanks and try to rent a Dualsport and ride it to the AC. Would like to hear how the trip went......