Story and photos by Gail Banaszkiewicz

Any Canadian who attended the Open Road Tour in Barry in September 2002 was bound to feel suspicious of Harley's efforts for the Ride Home from Canada. With many displays left at home and even then only half of what was brought set up, is it any wonder that our disappointment and lack of stunt riders in Barry made us feel like the red headed step-child of Harley's attention? Fortunately, the Ride Home was destined to be a much more fulfilling event.

It was a cold morning, and our puffy layers showed it. Upon waking for the big day, the temperature was a mere 10 degrees C. But we're tough (I guess), and we headed out almost on time with the wheels pointed toward Kingston.

After about an hour and a half on a country highway, we reached the 401. When I got off the back at our first gas stop, I realized how much my butt hurt. I had forgotten how uncomfortable the back seat can get after riding any longer than half an hour. My poor dad can't understand why; his part of the seat is gel padded! Nonetheless, we were mere minutes away from our first destination, and the 401 was our ticket there, so off we went.

A short hop away was the day's first official Ride Home stop, Kingston Motosport Plus. We pulled in to see a parking lot full of motorcycles, a sure sign of healthy participation. After stripping off a few layers, we picked up our package inside which, for now, was most important for proving registration in order to get breakfast.

It turned out that since only one of us was registered (and it wasn't me), we were only eligible for one breakfast. We could buy a second one, but Dad wasn't hungry anyway, so I got the ticket and we headed for the line. Although it was a tad long, it was enjoyable because a local blues band entertained us while we stood.

We shared a small and quick breakfast of pancakes, muffins, and coffee and spotted many people from Ottawa. As we would later discover, most of these people were heading home right afterwards rather than continuing on to Toronto. We also took a quick look through the shop and noticed a nice little Buel Blast that was the exact colour of Dad's T-Sport. Wouldn't that be cute – me and Dad on matching bikes.

With nobody we knew heading to Oshawa, and no riding groups forming in the Kingston parking lot, we decided we may as well head out onto the 401 once again. It was definitely getting warmer, so more layers came off, and then we left.