The Breakfast Club: Grandview Campground Campout: Day 3
Sunday
We were up around sunrise, breaking camp for the trip home. The plan was to get 100 miles out of the way before breakfast in Lee Vining. The goal was to get home earlyish. Funny things, goals. In any case, we were on the road shortly after 8:00. As Tom noted… it’s a good trip when you get to ride Westgard pass 4 times in 3 days!
We gassed up at the station near the junction of Tioga Pass and 395. It was significantly cheaper than the gas in Lee Vining proper. Apparently everyone knows that as there was a wait for pump access. I used the wait time to get rid of the garbage I’d carried for the last 100 miles, carted out of the campground.
Once gassed and fed we headed north on 395 to 108 where Carl waved us ahead. I took off at a moderate pace with Tom following. All was well up the east side of the pass. On the downhill side Tom started falling behind. I though he was going to wait for Carl to catch up. At about Kennedy meadows I lost sight of Tom. OK, I pulled over and got my camera ready, figuring I’d catch some action shots of both as they rode by. While waiting I took some pics of the horses in the coral across the road from where I stopped.
After 20 or 30 minutes of waiting I finally realized that they were not coming. I put the camera gear away and got back on the bike, riding toward Kennedy Meadows. About 2 miles from my stopping point I saw Carl and Tom on the side of the road. The tank was off of Tom’s bike.
Tom had lost power coming down the pass. He was falling behind not to wait for Carl, but because he was coasting down hill. I broke out my meter and checked the fuses. OK. Tom mentioned that the bike lost power when he turned on his headlamp. Carl asked to to turn it on now, to check. The light worked, but was very dim. I put the meter across the battery and all was explained… less than 9.5 volts.
It looks like Tom had a shorted cell and the other cells were weak. The plan was to keep the headlamp off, jumpt the bike from Carl’s, then head toward Sonora and the nearest Walmart. Walmart carries motorcycle batteries. We started Tom’s bike, loaded it up, and Tom left while Carl and I packed up our bikes and headed after him.
Tom made it as far as Strawberry, a much better place to break down with a store, restaurant, cold beer, etc. When Carl and I got there we removed Tom’s battery and stuck it on my bike for the trip to Walmart, about 40 miles away. Carl and I rode to Walmart where we found a battery that was too small, but would likely work. It happened to be the same AGM battery used in my GS. Back to Strawberry we rode. We folded up some cardboard to make the battery fit the compartment. Once sure it would fit we dumped the acid into the battery then went across the street for a sandwich… the battery has to sit for 30-60 minutes. No problem.
After our very late lunch we put the battery in Tom’s bike and checked that the bike would start. Yep. From there we rode to Oakdale for gas, then slogged it home. As for our goal of getting home early… I pulled into my driveway about 8:30 PM, about 4 hours later than my original estimate.
But all’s well that end’s well. We might do the same trip in the future, but this time on one of the weekends when the camp ground isn’t full.
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