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Article By: Marjorie Kleiman Photos By: Marjorie Kleiman & Karan Andrea
acquired my 1982 FXRS Shovelhead in 2017. Since then, I’d only ridden her locally, but I’d dreamed of taking her on a real road trip. So when I heard about the Shovelhead Reunion that was taking place on June 26, it became my goal—to ride her the entire 850 miles to Milwaukee, the home of Harley-Davidson. My friend, Karan Andrea, joined me outside of Toledo on her 1974 FLH. I arrived at our designated meeting spot first, but not without some Shovelhead drama—my bike was seriously smoking where the regulator connects to the stator. Just as I neared our hotel, that smoke turned into flames shooting out of the case! I shut her down, let her cool
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AApril pril ‘22 - May ‘22 - CYCLE SOURCE MAGAZINE
off a bit, and then limped her into the parking lot. As I stared at the charred remains of the regulator connector plug, Karan pulled up on her Atomic Shovel, and, true to form, she was fully equipped with every tool you could imagine. After picking up the necessary supplies from an auto parts store, she proceeded to solder some new connectors onto the wiring. As a final check, I started up the bike. We could see flames inside the case, which told us that the stator was, by now, toast. Through the magic of social media, I found Thomas Orr, a kind soul from the volunteer group North American Biker Rescue. He towed my Shovel to Keyes Cycle Parts and Service in Toledo, a nearby shop that deals in
Cycle Electric products. Thanks to Jim, aka Wrencher, who replaced both stator and regulator (nice to have a matching set!) in record time, and to Cycle Electric, a fine American manufacturer that goes above and beyond to help its customers. While I stayed behind to tend to my ailing Shovel, Karan reluctantly continued on to Milwaukee, where she was able to partake in some of the Shovelhead Reunion pre-party activities. House of Harley-Davidson put on a party on Friday, June 25, with live music and beach vacation giveaways. House of Harley was also the official dealership for the Shovelhead Reunion merchandise, which helps support the event charity, the WeCare Fund. This was the dealership where Ron, the
