Tales From The Road: 2014 vs 2021- How it all started

Tales From the Road

Once upon a time. I was in the dealer network for 27 years. So I do know a little bit about motorcycles. I have a saying: “You don’t know what you don’t know!” I’ve never really given much thought about Suspension. I thought in the stock configuration, it worked/rode pretty well.

One day, I met Mike, the owner of Suspension Technologies. He told me more about Suspension than I would ever need to know. He told me that if I purchased a set of his shocks and I was not happy, he would refund my money, put my stock shocks back on, and send me a Christmas card. So, I purchased a set for my 2014 Ultra Limited. I was so impressed with them that I bought the front cartridges from him within a few months.

I couldn’t believe how much smoother my bike rode. The rear shocks were great, but when I added the front, the bike handled so much better. It followed the road. It stuck in the turns. When your wife, who is sitting on the back, tells you how much smoother the ride is, you know you got it made.

This story is supposed to be about Tales From The Road, so here we go. I have had Suspension Technologies suspension on my 2014 Ultra Limited for about six years.

In October 2021, my wife and I were taking a trip. We put our bike on the auto train from Sanford, Florida, to Lorton, Virginia. (I highly recommend the auto train, which is a tail for another time.) Once we arrived in Lorton, Virginia, we got our bike unloaded.

It’s a 65-mile trip to Front Royal, Virginia, the start of Skyline Drive. We were going to ride it to the end, continue onto the Blue Ridge Parkway, and then ride back to Florida.

I noticed my bike making a funny noise as we pulled onto Skyline Drive. It sounded like primary, and I knew it was not right. At this point, we had no choice but to continue. We rode to the Natural Bridge in Virginia and spent the night.

In the morning, I located the closest Harley-Davidson dealer. It was in Roanoke, Virginia. They were very friendly and took us right in; the news was not good, and they would have to keep my bike for a few days.

We ended up having to rent a bike to continue our trip. The dealership put us on a new 2021 Ultra Limited. Same bike as we have, but it only had 500 miles on it. We loaded up all of our stuff and got on the road. We headed back to the Blue Ridge Parkway.

When we got on the parkway, I really noticed how we could feel every bump in the road. We were riding a brand-new motorcycle! We put over 1000 miles on that 2021, and the ride did not improve the whole trip. When we went back and picked up our 2014, we were ecstatic. The ride difference was so noticeable right away. Remember, I had a saying, “You don’t know what you don’t know!” Well, I know that a good suspension makes all the difference.

I highly recommend Suspension Technologies. Yes, there are other suspension companies out there, but the significant differences between them and Suspension Technologies are: