My travels around Kentucky

[Rick Froscheiser_imp]

Great pictures. Thanks for sharing and good to hear you are enjoying riding again.

[Mick65_imp]

What does the number 120 denote on the sign post ?

[CA200_imp]

Great ride report. Like I said in the past had two of these and great all round bikes. Loved what you had to say about HD brakes.
When me and my wife had our last parts store( we sold aftermarket
parts for motorcycles) every once in a while a New HD customer that had come off a metric bike would come in asking how they could make the brakes better. We would just smile and say well that's the way they are.

[OldF7Guy_imp]

What does the number 120 denote on the sign post ?

That is a good question and I dont have the answer. Maybe someone else would know. We have these historic signs all over our country here Mick and I honestly have never even thought about that.

Great ride report. Like I said in the past had two of these and great all round bikes. Loved what you had to say about HD brakes.
When me and my wife had our last parts store( we sold aftermarket
parts for motorcycles) every once in a while a New HD customer that had come off a metric bike would come in asking how they could make the brakes better. We would just smile and say well that's the way they are.

CA, the brakes were so horrible that the rear was very near useless. It was that bad. Both were single discs by the way and I know the NH is a bit lighter but the rear drum brake on the rear of it feels like I have advanced light years ahead in braking technology. Yeah, I also asked what could be done and got pretty much the same answer you gave out.

[silverbub_imp]

thanks for your pics of Mr. Lincoln's boyhood cabin home...& your "swiss army knife of bikes"!...and giving us in west-central IL where Mr. Lincoln also slept/spoke/practiced law/won cases...that there is going to be an end to this winter & the bikes can come out from hibernation!...you helped to alleviate my cabin fever (temporarily)!...and just this morning i was looking over the official KY highway map...thinking about visiting John James Audubon State Park/museum; Mammoth Cave; Cumberland Gap National Park; Natural Bridge State Park & trying to stay on the twisty 2 state lanes for most part...we'll see if it can become reality...but, for now...I really enjoyed your "sharing your ride"...thanks again!...silverbub

[Gingersdaddy_imp]

Is that Hodgenville,

Mick, the knob creek farm is about 6-7 miles out of Hodgenville. Hodgenville however, is where Lincoln was born. From where I was at its a solid 5 miles in either direction just to get a gallon of gas or loaf of bread. 200 years ago, the knob creek farm really was in the sticks. Abe was said to have walked about 2 1/2 miles to go to school from there up through the hollow.

Beautiful setting for a beautiful bike. Glad you were able to get out and get some miles under your belt on the new ride. How does it feel?

I freaking love it. Remember, my point of reference is a rigid mount Sporty. There is nothing in common about them except they both have 2 wheels and a motor. The Honda is so smooth. I have a few things I need to address. I cant see out of the mirrors because they dont come out far enough. Mirror extensions are on the way. But oh, what a wonderful thing not to have them vibrating off the stem!! I can actually see out of them! Its a tad tall for me but so far I am managing. I am going to give that some more time before I consider shaving the seat a little.

I was a bit concerned about losing so much torque compared to the 1200 Sporty but its not an issue. This will sound strange but the Honda has more usable torque than the HD. in fact, I am scratching my head here thinking it might be geared a tad too low. I may go up 1 tooth on the front. Its perfect for 2 lane roads though. Places I had to down shift before I dont now. It makes no sense when you look at it on paper but in reality the Honda will just pull you out of a turn in high gear like its nothing. Of course, I am a pretty easy rider too these days. I think in an all out drag race the Nighthawk would take the Sportster but its pretty close. A 1200 Sportster is no slouch when you really flog it.

I know people talk about the drum brake not being that hot but boy its worlds better than what I was used too. Both brakes are a major upgrade for me so I am happy with them. Handling is predictable and feels planted. I am not a sport bike rider but this motorcycle gives me some confidence I didnt have before. It will out handle the rider on it in my case.

The chain is louder than a belt but I can live with it. Its pretty minor plus the Honda is so quiet that I am hearing things I never heard before. Its cold blooded as all get out it seems but I can live with that too. My complaints are pretty minor stuff. I took it out on a local parkway and had it up to 75 and the wind beat me to death. A fly screen may be in my future soon. Turns about 5K between 70-75 which I would like to lower just a bit. But it seemed like it would run like that all day long if it had to. The question is can I take it all day long at those speeds?

Overall, I am a very happy camper with it and this is what I should have bought back in 03 but I feel into the HD trap and had to have one. Its a mistake I wont repeat again. The NH works good in town and is at its best on 2 lane state roads. It will do interstate duty if it has to. Its the swiss knife of motorcycles imo. I love the big gas tank and no valve adjustments and especially like how smooth everything is on it. Its a major upgrade from what I have been used to and I can only imagine how good a CB1100 is.

Mick, the knob creek farm is about 6-7 miles out of Hodgenville. Hodgenville however, is where Lincoln was born. From where I was at its a solid 5 miles in either direction just to get a gallon of gas or loaf of bread. 200 years ago, the knob creek farm really was in the sticks. Abe was said to have walked about 2 1/2 miles to go to school from there up through the hollow.

Beautiful setting for a beautiful bike. Glad you were able to get out and get some miles under your belt on the new ride. How does it feel?

I freaking love it. Remember, my point of reference is a rigid mount Sporty. There is nothing in common about them except they both have 2 wheels and a motor. The Honda is so smooth. I have a few things I need to address. I cant see out of the mirrors because they dont come out far enough. Mirror extensions are on the way. But oh, what a wonderful thing not to have them vibrating off the stem!! I can actually see out of them! Its a tad tall for me but so far I am managing. I am going to give that some more time before I consider shaving the seat a little.

I was a bit concerned about losing so much torque compared to the 1200 Sporty but its not an issue. This will sound strange but the Honda has more usable torque than the HD. in fact, I am scratching my head here thinking it might be geared a tad too low. I may go up 1 tooth on the front. Its perfect for 2 lane roads though. Places I had to down shift before I dont now. It makes no sense when you look at it on paper but in reality the Honda will just pull you out of a turn in high gear like its nothing. Of course, I am a pretty easy rider too these days. I think in an all out drag race the Nighthawk would take the Sportster but its pretty close. A 1200 Sportster is no slouch when you really flog it.

I know people talk about the drum brake not being that hot but boy its worlds better than what I was used too. Both brakes are a major upgrade for me so I am happy with them. Handling is predictable and feels planted. I am not a sport bike rider but this motorcycle gives me some confidence I didnt have before. It will out handle the rider on it in my case.

The chain is louder than a belt but I can live with it. Its pretty minor plus the Honda is so quiet that I am hearing things I never heard before. Its cold blooded as all get out it seems but I can live with that too. My complaints are pretty minor stuff. I took it out on a local parkway and had it up to 75 and the wind beat me to death. A fly screen may be in my future soon. Turns about 5K between 70-75 which I would like to lower just a bit. But it seemed like it would run like that all day long if it had to. The question is can I take it all day long at those speeds?

Overall, I am a very happy camper with it and this is what I should have bought back in 03 but I feel into the HD trap and had to have one. Its a mistake I wont repeat again. The NH works good in town and is at its best on 2 lane state roads. It will do interstate duty if it has to. Its the swiss knife of motorcycles imo. I love the big gas tank and no valve adjustments and especially like how smooth everything is on it. Its a major upgrade from what I have been used to and I can only imagine how good a CB1100 is.
Great Pictures, That's a sweet Nighthawk. I added the mirror extensions to my CB, made all the difference in the world.

[emptysea]

Thanks for this post. I will be exploring Kentucky and Tennessee (and Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and North Carolina) in a little over 10 weeks from today. This post makes the wind and the fog and the rain abit more tolerable.

[OldF7Guy_imp]

Thanks for this post. I will be exploring Kentucky and Tennessee (and Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and North Carolina) in a little over 10 weeks from today. This post makes the wind and the fog and the rain abit more tolerable.

Keep us posted on your trip. I may be able to meet up with you somewhere you never know. Do you have anything planned yet to see here?

[emptysea]

I do have plans set, somewhat. I will post some details in my Chicago to Gatlinburg thread in Seat Time. With a little luck, we will meet with Ferret near Cincy and he will lead us down into KY a bit. If plans go really well, he will join us for breakfast. Once I have a few things nailed down, I'll post them.