Custom Parts for the Harley

One of the disadvantages of living in Northern Utah is the cold, snowy winters and icey roads. NOT safe for motorcycles and definitely too cold for comfortable riding. I ride for fun and if I am concerned about how warm I am and if I can keep the "Shiney Side Up" I will just wait for warmer weather. So, in winter I add chrome and other custom parts. A lot of Marines use Tattoos to showcase the Corps and their unit affiliations......I never was much into ink and needles, so I engrave my Harley. Last year I ordered two custom engraved parts, and a third is supposedly coming this month.

The two parts below are the derby cover and the horn cover. You can click on the images for a larger, more detailed view. The derby cover has the US Marine Corps emblem and the words Chi Lai RVN '67 - '69 hand engraved into it. The horn cover has my Squadron emblem engraved into it....a diving Nighthawk. The part still due is the Point Inspection cover engraved with my rank insignia....a US Marine Corporal. I am just started on this bike as there is plenty of chrome left to engrave.....AND I have the tank and fenders for custom paint. Strangely, engraving is relatively inexpensive....custom paint can cost a ton of money. I just saw one custom paint job at the Harley Store that cost $4,700. Enjoy these....I DO!

Yellowstone Ride

Click on any image to get a larger view with more detail.

The first picture is of Jane and I next to a geyser pool, all decked out in our motorcycle riding best!

Jane and I moved to Logan, UT in October 2002 and every year afterwards, when the snow melted, we vowed to take a trip to Yellowstone National Park. I was there for an environmental conference about 15 years ago, and we have seen many History and National Geographic stories on this, the FIRST, National Park in the entire WORLD, but until October 2009 we had never been there together. That is inexcusable considering we only live about 260 miles from the park. So, to rectify that gross lack of National Pride, and to get Jane out on her first long motorcycle ride on my big black Harley, we headed out for a long weekend, the first week in October. As luck would have it, I was even able to get a cabin at the Old Faithful Lodge......we would be the last visitors of the 2009 season in the cabin. We discovered on arrival that the Park was shutting down, closing up and getting ready for its famous winters. However, they keep the main Lodge open, and provide "Snowbus" tours of the park, and local outfitters rent snowmobiles to lazy people incapable of using human power to get around in winter (are my biases showing yet!). The very hardy visitor can stay at the Lodge and cross country ski in virtually unlimited deep powder terrain.....however, that was not for us this time. The "bus" is parked in the front entrance of the main lodge.

We packed up the bike, both of us limited to one saddlebag and shared space in a rear rack bag, with a tank bag for maps and riding snacks. The plan was to take different scenic routes up and back. Up, we went through Tincup Pass to the Targhee National Forest, across through Jackson, Wyoming and into the Park; then through the Park to the Old Faithful area. Returning, it was out the a different Park gate and through Jackson again, but changing our return to travel through Star Valley, Montpelier, around Bear Lake and down Logan Canyon. We lucked out the entire trip with spectacular weather and the deciduous trees were changing colors all through the high mountain country. Literally every turn in the mountain highway gave us a new colorful vista of turning trees.

The ride up was fast and comfortable as we took what is the route of the Lotoja 205 mile bicycle race that leaves from Logan and terminates in Jackson every September. This is also something I have wanted to do as a part of a road bike relay team but there is a business event every year that falls on race weekend, so I haven't been able to do it. Elevation changes are steep, with miles and miles of narrow two lane "motorcycle road" through the mountains. We traveled up Swan Valley Highway, through the Palisades and past the Palisades Reservoir, stopping at an Alpine themed hotel that had a private park at the Junction of Rt 22 and Rt 34. The place was virtually empty and the owners kindly allowed us to rest and have our lunch in their park. From there we took Highway 22 to Jackson connecting with Highway 191 that runs along the border of the Grand Teton National Park. I had planned to enter the Grand Teton National Park and run through it, past Jenny Lake to view the spectacular Grand Teton peaks at their base but a huge fire was burning in the Park and the connecting road to Yellowstone was closed. We headed on up 191 and entered Yellowstone leaving about 35 miles from the Park entrance to our cabin site. Smoke from two major fires was making breathing a little difficult but the roads were still open. Shortly after entering the park we came upon a line of cars slowly moving along a winding section of the road with a cliff face on the right side. It was hard to determine what the hold-up was because the road had not been crowded prior to this section. It turned out to be a lone Bison (American Buffalo) walking in the road ditch beside the road....everyone in cars was slowing to take a picture, safely ensconced in their fully enclosed cars and motorhomes. On a motorcycle its a little different as we were about to pass a 2,000 pound wild animal with horns, that is easily spooked and can run faster than a horse.....and it was about 5-6 feet to our right side. This one seemed nearly asleep as we passed, although he was steadily plodding along. Too bad we didn't have a camera out as we could literally "see the whites of his eyes". Shortly afterwards I had my first riding challenge. The bike, with Jane, I and our bags, weighed something over 1100 pounds and it has highway tires....about 17 miles into the park there was a massive flashing sign that said "Motorcycles Take Care - Extreme Hazard" after which I came upon road work that lasted about 7 miles. The traffic was one way, escorted by park vehicles, and the road surface was "red clay, overlayed with gravel and sand. They were resurfacing the roadway and this was the only way into the park for us. I had never ridden on that kind of a surface, and it is about as bad as it gets for a cruising motorcycle. To make it even worse, they were spraying water on it to keep the dust under control. I quickly did a mental review of the techniques for riding on wet clay (visualize ice), gravel and sand; and then headed forward with Jane saying...."You can do it Honey".....she's always my biggest supporter, and considering she is sitting behind me with no personal control of the machine, she obviously had supreme confidence, even if mine was a bit shaky. The bike was more than just a little "squirrely" for seven miles, with not too many stops for traffic....and once we hit pavement again I felt much more confident regarding our return route.....which was over this same road. Another few miles and we rolled into the Old Faithful village just before it started getting dark.

The next day was to be our only full day in the Park. We started with a terrific breakfast in the main Lodge and headed towards the turnoff for the "Grand Canyon of Yellowstone". Unfortunately, it was "not to be", as the second large fire in the Park was burning near the connecting road. The Ranger told us we could proceed but if the road was closed we would have a 200+ mile diversion to get out of the Park then travel to Cody, Wyoming before we could head South and re-enter at the West entrance to return to our cabin area. At first we were going to give it a shot, and rode about 25 miles beyond the section of the road threatened by fire; but the wind seemed to be picking up and we decided there was plenty to see on the West side of the Park without the risk of a road closure. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. It is impossible to describe the different geysers and bubbling mud pots in any way that does them justice......you just have to see them. I thought this was an interesting picture of a lone pine next to bubbling mud pots.....how does it live!

After a full day of "touristing" on the bike we settled in for an evening with a "cheap dinner" at the Old Faithful grill. It was good that we did because it closed that night and was not open for breakfast the next morning......we were "forced" to use the main Lodge "again" and suffer through yet another fabulous full breakfast. This is the picture of a small part of the interior of the main lodge.

After breakfast we packed the bike, checked out and spent a few hours looking at sites that we had passed the day before. The only geyser we saw multiple times was Old Faithful, which was literally outside our cabin area and it spouted on a predictable cycle enabling us to view it several times. There is also a walkway that we took on our departure day, that covers the entire geyser field in that area.......allow plenty of time and go with the Ranger on the guided tour.....it all takes about three hours to complete the transit. Among them are flows of hot nutrient rich water that has bacteria in it. The Rangers can tell the temperature of the water by the color of the bacteria, such as this red bacteria....sorry I'm not a Ranger and can't help you with the obvious question.

These two images are of the Castle Geyser, one near the end of its erruption and one with Jane near it to establish the scale. It was once much larger but early tourists chipped off pieces as souveniers. It makes a loud roaring sound very different from the other geysers in the area. and it errupts almost as predictably as Old Faithful.

We found out several very interesting things:

1. Yellowstone is the first National Park ever established in the WORLD. The entire US National Park system finds its genesis in this fabulous place......as do the rest of the Parks around the world. The theme has always been conservation, not exploitation and the model set by Yellowstone has been responsible for National Parks being preserved for the ages rather than being exploited like Theme Parks.

2. It has the largest concentration of geysers in the world. Iceland was once a major geyser area but their national development of geothermal energy has killed all of the geysers in Iceland by tapping the sources and diverting it for the production of energy. This destruction of a National Treasure cannot be recovered because once a geyser is extinguished it rarely starts again. Some in Yellowstone met a similar fate when early tourists threw trash in them, or damaged them but they are rigorously protected now. There is a national effort to stop geothermal energy development in the surrounding States as nobody knows how extensive the feed water system for the geysers is....it may extend over hundreds of miles and hundreds of thousands of acres.......Iceland is the example of how poor attention to conservation can destroy something like a system of geysers for everyone.

3. All of Yellowstone National Park is essentially the caldera of a "super volcano" that is dormant.....but NOT EXTINCT! That is the reason for all of the activity....magma is just below the surface fueling that natural wonder.

The ride home took us over the section of the road under work (again).....but I was quite confident this time and didn't worry so much about the squirrely front wheel, over the connecting road to Grand Teton National Park, along the base of the Tetons.....unfortunately still a bit hazy with smoke, out the Teton Park entrance, through Jackson, Hoback Junction and Star Valley, then canyon carving through the high mountain passes of the Bridger National Forest was exciting. We saw most of the wildlife that we saw as we left the park, including this very large bison. Jane is in the foreground and the bison is across the river a couple of hundred meters away. Given that scale of reference you can see that this is a very large animal.

We stopped several times on the return and found ourselves having to push it a bit to get to Montpelier and around Bear Lake so that we could get out of the isolated areas before nightfall.

Here is the bike at the Bear Lake overlook to see the Lake just as the sun was about to set over the mountains. We decided not to wait for it as it was getting colder and by the time we would get through Logan Canyon it would be "well and truly" dark. A good dinner at a Logan Restaurant ended our ride on a positive note......when we got home the "cat" was still alive (we have a cat sitter) and the house was right where we left it. Jane told me she thoroughly enjoyed the ride and had new confidence in my ability to handle my big motorcycle......she is up for more long rides to natural wonders all over the State and surrounding areas so long as we keep it under 1,000 miles and three days. She really soldiered on with this trip.......750 miles in three days, through three National Forests and two National Parks. There is a lot to see around here that fits that criteria and you haven't seen the country until you are immersed in it on the back of a big iron horse.

Kitchen Renovation

NOTE: Click on any image to get a larger one for better detail.

After several years of living with "somebody else's kitchen" Jane and I decided to give this one a major workover. It is one of the things that has always bugged us about this house and one of the things we resolved to fix "someday". Well "someday came" about two months ago when the silicone seal around the sink failed and the Formica counter swelled from a water leak. The counter top was going to have to be changed and the problem with an older kitchen is if you change anything "ya gotta change everything". So we finally took the leap into those expensive "major home renovation" waters by heading for Lowes. The original owners "spared ALL expense" when they did the kitchen, using good appliances but with no attention to detail....everything was serviceable but the entire effect was "1970's cheap" even though the house was built in the late 1990's. As we are going to sell this place after I retire in three years and move to someplace "warm" we didn't want to spend the money to change the cabinets but everything else was "fair game".




Jane kept busy cleaning things up, as I worked, to keep the dust out of the rest of the house. We covered the furniture with drop cloths, and the doorways to the dining room and main hall with plastic sheeting, but it didn't stop the fine stuff from migrating.







Here is what it looked like before most of the work was done.....after I ripped out the counter top by slicing it into large pieces with a Skilsaw and then striped the Formica backsplash off the wall behind the range.










We elected to have the work "best done by professionals".....DONE BY PROFESSIONALS. So the granite counter top and the plumbing reworks were done by appropriate contractors. I have done plumbing but I try not to do it anymore, particularly on older existing plumbing. Something always breaks, doesn't fit, or leaks and if a professional does it they are liable to fix it....they also have all of the necessary tools and the parts are in their truck. In my "adventures in plumbing" I always make at least three trips to Lowes or Home Depot for even the simplest jobs. The granite counter tops were a no-brainer, particularly after Jane saw them do the work.....I came home to watch the final finishing work but she watched them bring the pieces in and level them. The counter top was 52 square feet and one single piece (of three) weighed over "seven hundred pounds" and it was hand carried and installed by five "very large" young Hispanic men....all of whom I am sure are destined to have back problems by age 40. The other two pieces were easier to bring in but fitting them and making the joint with the large piece was a work of art. They also installed the stainless steel undercounter double sink.....and the entire countertop job took them about 4 hours. They were followed by the plumber for the dishwasher and double sink, and the appliance installer for the refrigerator; leaving me the tasks of installing the trash compactor, gas range, microwave/hood, mosaic tile backsplash and the undercounter LED lighting.


The next weekend Jane and I vowed to finish the work and managed to get most of it done. The old gas range had a simple hood, with a carbon air filter. The new hood was integrated with a "huge" microwave oven and this involved installing a new electrical outlet in the cabinet above the microwave, then installing "hangers" on the wall. Once that was done Jane and I lifted the monster into place and bolted it to the base of the cabinet.


The next weekend was dedicated to doing the tile backsplash. It is two inch square natural river rock with a dove gray grout. This involved changing all of the "white" outlets to new decorator outlets with snap-on covers in a silver gray finish. I didn't realize how many double outlets had to be changed until I got started....there are five of them and when it came time to cut the tile it involved custom cutting six tiles for each of the outlets. Needless to say, the tiling job ran over into the week and I was working "after work" to get it all done so we could reclaim our kitchen.


The undercounter lighting was an adventure in itself. There was nothing available that was small enough, and subtle enough for this counter arrangement. I ended up purchasing some small LED arrays and custom wiring them into the undercounter edges, with the wiring running up through small conduits inside the cabinets, terminating at the new outlet I installed to power the microwave.

As the final touch we changed all of the cabinet and drawer pulls from bright brass to brushed nickel......the brass just didn't "cut it" with all of the new stainless steel appliances.


The final result is below. It was finished in time for us to get familiar with it before our family appeared for a week over Christmas. The new appliances made cooking that big Christmas dinner much easier and the new kitchen both looks good and is easier to maintain than the old one was.


This is an overview of the entire kitchen. Behind me are windows looking out to the front of the house. The granite bar overhangs more than 12 inches, so I made supports to assure the granite will not crack and drop on someone sitting on the stools. A lot of people do not support overhanging granite but after reading a lot on-line I was convinced that it is unsafe if you do not support an overhang of greater than 12 inches.






The tile backsplash turned out to be one of the best features of the new kitchen and was well worth the effort.





















The undercounter lighting is particularly useful along the back wall, and the new undercounter stainless sinks make counter cleanup much easier. We went with a faucet that is also an integrated sprayer that pulls away on a stainless hose. Jane really likes the single handle for the faucet and the soap dispenser built in to the counter top. It makes for an uncluttered look with easy maintenance.

High School 45th Reunion-SS1000 Attempt

BACKGROUND STORY

I graduated from Chatsworth High School (CHS) - the Chancellors, in Chatsworth California in June '64....officially making me an "old fart" of the 4-point-5th degree. This reunion was not Chatsworth High School, so you may ask "Why in the hell was I going to the 45th reunion of the Hunters - Canoga Park High School (CPHS)?" Were there more good looking girls there in 1963/64, is the booze better at this reunion, was it cheaper....probably all of the above but NOT the reason. CHS was a new school and ours was the first class....a really small class...about 230----small by LA High School standards. CHS was formed from students transferred from 3 or 4 nearby schools and I was one of the transfers. It wasn't something anyone wanted to do in those days....start a new High School but choice was not part of the equation....if you were over the line on the map....you transferred. As time passed, the CHS reunions faded away because the class was so small, eventually resulting in combined reunions with classes before and after....all managed very efficiently and tastelessly by a Reunion planning company. Not my idea of a great reunion concept and probably why they eventually failed and CHS Class of S'64 is no more.

Below is me in 1964, most of us burn pictures like this but mine is forever in a yearbook!

ANYWAY, the Hunter's at CPHS are still going strong and they do their own reunions....very personal, somewhat quirky, with all of the "cliques" intact...don't-cha-love-it, and more memories to share than you can imagine. They also still consider us "lost waifs" as part of their Class.........we are without a living breathing class (not Classless, or lacking Class--if you please---just a lost Class without a home). So, I have been included at the last two reunions (40 and 45) and welcomed with hugs as though I never left them in 1963.

This year the Hunter Reunion was generously hosted by George and June Boskovich at their beautiful, expansive home in Camarillo, California. Donna Holden, with whom I had some prior contact for an MS150 bicycle ride sponsorship was the main organizer and with her gentle persuasion I decided to turn it into a long distance Harley ride over a long weekend. It is 1,600 miles from Smithfield, UT to Camarillo, CA, most of it high plains and desert Interstate highway riding. I planned to leave on a Friday at midday, stop in St George, UT for the night, then ride across the Mojave desert early Saturday in time for the reunion that evening at 5 pm. The return would involve another attempt at an Iron Butt 1,000 mile ride (which I failed at in June). Haller, my Marine Corps buddy decided to join me for the ride, and the IB attempt.

Discussions with other CPHS alums reminded us that several were Marines I had gone through Basic Training with in 1965. I prodded them and they agreed to attend the Reunion and make it into a quasi-Platoon 148 Reunion as well.

Haller showed up on his new Kawasaki Concours 14 on Thursday....looking thrashed after only 600 miles....we had 1,800 miles in three days to go. He said he didn't think he would do the Iron Butt but would stick with me for the ride down. We left about noon on Friday and on the way I did a short "service call" at a landfill in Layton, UT where one of my weather station customers was having a problem....30 minute stop, then on the road to St George. We spent the night on sleeping bags in my Mother's vacant house, then hit the road at about 6 am for California. Down I-15, to the Pearblossum Highway, across on Route 14, eventually to the Coast at Ventura and into Camarillo at about 3 pm. We had quick showers, were met by two Marines (Greg Erikson and Bill Hutton), then off to the party.

George and June's home was spectacular. Valet parking, open bar, Bar-B-Que dinner, D.J. with patio dancing and about 150 "Hunters" to have fun with. George is a Vintage Mustang collector and had about ten completely restored Mustangs, including Shelby versions at his home. George has "done well" in life and he deserves it........hard work and an honest life......good for you George.

I rode the Harley over, Haller rode with Erikson, and they allowed me to park the bike against the house rather than on the street......a kindness I appreciated. As usual, the reunion was more than just a success....because it was handled by volunteers who really cared that it be special. There was even a side benefit in that Haller has some hearing damage from service related exposure to jet engines and Bill Hutton is a National coordinator for Vietnam Vets with the V.A. Hutton volunteered to help Haller get the disability qualification he rates for his service.

Here is a picture of the Marines at the party.

Erikson, Hutton, Haller, Me

I avoided drinking alcohol after about 7 pm and we called it a night about 11. Up early, gassed up, got our mileage certifications for the IB ride and we headed for Santa Ana to have brunch with another Marine buddy. Mike Allen was one of VMA(AW)533 in Chu Lai, and a close friend of Haller and I. He missed the Squadron Reunion in June, so we decided to see him on the return.....we needed another 200 miles on the return leg to make 1,000 and Mike's place was placed just about right. We got there about 10 or 11 am and had a good hour or so, then off we went to Blythe, CA, via Riverside. The ride was hotter than you can imagine, probably about 105-110 at points. Fortunately, Haller and I were wearing evaporative cooling vests. They are made of a polymer impregnated material that soaks up about 3 quarts of water, then evaporates as you ride. The cooling effect is almost like having the A/C on in a car. When the core of the body is cooled the cool blood circulates and cools the extremities....really works. You can recharge the vests every 2 hours or so and stay quite comfortable during desert summer rides.

As we left Blythe the sky was clear and the air HOT. We headed up Route 95 towards Needles and crossed a "whole-lotta-nothing" for about 60 miles before the sky developed rain bearing clouds over the distant mountains. As we got nearer it was apparent there might be a problem. The storm missed us but the lightning did not and a flash flood was filling the dips in the highway. We had no choice but to go forward because Needles was only 25-30 miles in front of us and we had to get away from the lightning as there was no cover. Lightning is a serious hazard to a motorcyclist and the protocol is to stop the bike, get into a building or under a bridge and wait it out....unfortunately there was no cover, so we opted for Plan B and tried to ride out of it. The road dips ranged from a few feet to many feet deep and the water ranged from inches to about 14 inches deep....and the deep areas were small rivers filled with branches, rocks and sand. Our bikes performed quite differently in the water. my open framed Harley Dyna let the water flow through the frame, with the "bow wave" from the tire flowing up over my boots and chaps, drenching my seat and jeans but not my upper body. Haller's Concours was fully faired in front and the bow wave literally flowed over his bike, including his helmet and he was completely drenched with every water entry.....hilarious to watch (him submerging under that muddy water) but not so funny for poor Haller.

We quickly discovered that the best riding method in the dips was to enter them at low speed, to avoid hydroplaning, then gently accelerate to keep the front wheel on top of the sand. That worked for about twenty+ dips until my front wheel hit a submerged rock and I dropped the bike in about 12-14 inches of rushing water. The bike was crosswise in the water, on a slight uphill slope, with a river flowing over it (and me). After three attempts to lift all 800 pounds of it I was joined by two young girls (20's), who got out of their car and waded into the water. They had been waiting for the water to drop with several other cars and an 18 wheeler. The three of us lifted it easily, they assured themselves I was OK and I was able to restart the drowned bike and power my way through the submerged sand to the roadbed. This was one time when the knight on his charger was rescued by the damsels. Haller was waiting about 200 yards up the road, where he was able to find a spot to stop and was walking back to help when I caught up to him. We elected to press on to Needles as the lightning danger was still there. After another ten water filled dips we crested the mountains and headed down to Needles. I considered myself very lucky until I stopped for fuel in Needles and noticed a pint or so of watery oil under my bike.....inspection indicated a finger sized hole in the primary engine cover and loss of all of the oil that lubricated the chain and clutch.....fortunately, the crankcase was not damaged and the engine oil was clean.

At this point I got to experience the Harley HOG support network. It was 5 pm, Sunday night in Needles, CA (that is two blocks from the end of the world). A call to HOG and the following happened:

1. A motorcycle tow truck appeared the next morning at about noon and took me 66 miles to Kingman, AZ (the nearest Harley Dealer)---Mother Road H-D.

2. A new primary engine cover was overnighted from "somewhere" in the H-D system, arriving before 10 am Tuesday.

3. Mother Road H-D mechanics put all other work aside and my bike was on the road by noon that day.

COST: List price for parts, no expediting or overnight costs, one hours labor, a quart of oil and two gaskets. UNBELIEVABLE-----H-D ROCKS.

Monday night was spent at a motel near Mother Road H-D and I can recommend a great Biker Bar nearby. Cold beer, lots of local characters, a friendly bartender and good Bratwurst. If you are in Kingman stop at Mad Dogs for Brats and beer.

The next day I hit the road at 12:30 and was home in bed 12 hours later. One thing I did enjoy about the return ride was crossing over Boulder Dam. The Dam is still open to cars and motorcycles but closed to trucks and cars pulling trailers. Homeland Security is checking everyone as the Dam is a strategic installation and has appropriate security. People warned me I was looking at an hour of traffic but there was none. I literally rode through the security stop and over the dam....no stops except to take a couple of pictures. They are building a huge highway bridge over the gorge in front of the dam and it is spectacular.

Soooooooooo, my IB attempt FAILED again but we will try once again this year before the first snow falls.

Haller left me in Needles by mutual agreement and he DID do his IB successfully, starting in Needles and ending in Baker City, OR (1010 miles).

Lesson learned.....don't try to turn a road Harley into a boat!

Miles covered 1850 over 4.5 days....including 1.5 days down with a "dead" motorcycle.

VMA(AW)533 Reunion

I haven't spent much time on this blog (like NONE) but I have "other" things to do most days. Family and friends have been bugging me to write up my recent cross country motorcycle trip. It was "quite a trip" but mainly because of the worst weather I've experienced in many years....I'd do it again, even knowing that.
















Here I was at the start---clean, rested and READY!

Anyway....

PROLOGUE

Last year (2008), was the second of now three reunions of my Vietnam Era Marine Squadron. We started with three brothers in Philly in '07, in Memphis '08 we had twelve, and this year there were 20 of us with five wives/companions (total of 25). At last count, we have located about 40, with two known deceased.

In '08, one brother (Steve Brooks) showed up on a Harley Dyna and reawakened my old dream of owning a big bore motorcycle. When I got out of the Corps in '69 my roommate had a 650 Triumph that I occasionally rode.....my (then) girlfriend Jane (now wife of 38 years) even rode with me once or twice. I wanted to buy a 650 cc Bonneville then, but with little money, a new marriage, and later two children I kept putting it off and eventually the desire faded. Where I now work there are a lot of bikers and even my young female Product Manager rides a chopped Harley Sportster.


Looking over Brooks' bike at the June '08 reunion I started thinking about it again and in July '08 I bought a Harley (Sportster) Nightster (1200 cc twin), got my license endorsement, and relearned how to ride. Subsequent emails with Brooks and another buddy (Steve Haller) resulted in a crazy plan to ride to the Washington DC Reunion in June '09.


When November came I tucked my "Sporty" away for the Winter (it is suicidal to ride a motorcycle in in Winter here). All winter, Haller and Brooks kept telling me that riding that far on a Sporty was a little nutty because it needs another gear for highway speeds and a little more engine.......THEN Harley came out with a "deal" where you could trade in any Sporty for a bigger bore bike with 100% credit for the original price. That was too good to pass, so off came the motorcycle cover and I rode it down to the Harley Store where I swapped it for a 1574 cc (96 ci) Dyna Street Bob. That was the best decision I have made in years. The Dyna has a longer wheelbase, one more gear and a much bigger engine.....the difference in the highway ride is significant. So....BIG BORE machine under me I was READY TO RIDE!! Haller eventually dropped out due to a family issue (he made the reunion but couldn't take the two weeks for the ride), leaving Brooks and I to show the rest of the "old farts" what you can do at 60+.

THE TRIP

I loaded the bike (looked like a two wheeled Gypsy wagon) and left from work on a Friday afternoon, making Rawlins, Wyoming (rode through Logan Canyon, around Bear Lake and on to I-80) that evening. Weather was forecast as wet and windy, so I was going to skip my plan to ride through the Northern Rockies. However, in the morning the weather cleared and I backtracked 45 miles to head South and into Colorado. I rode across high prairie with pronghorn antelope running alongside the road and finally got to the Northern Rocky mountains. Lunch was in Steamboat Springs (the ski resort) and then I meandered through a number of mountain towns before deciding to attempt crossing the Continental Divide at Milner Pass (12,000 feet). That involved riding through the Rocky Mountain National Park. The Ranger at the park entrance took my $10 and gave me one of those "are you sure you know what you are doing" looks, then warned me to take care and watch out for road damage. I later realized the park must have just opened after a severe winter because the road was under repair and in very bad shape. There were Elk all over the park, most in pretty bad shape (starving) from the winter and it got colder as the altitude increased. The park has had a severe pine beetle infestation for about 20 years and has a lot of dead trees but it is still beautiful.

This image is near the Pass.

At points there were 12 to 14 foot snow drifts, no guard rails and it was a narrow two lane road. Some of the drivers were obviously concerned judging by the strained looks on their faces. However, it was nothing for me riding at only 20-25 mph, well dressed for the cold and too dumb to know it was dangerous.....with no top or sides to my vehicle I had the best view of all and it was spectacular. After I crossed the Divide the weather improved and I dropped down into Estes Park where I was canyon carving with local riders on "rice burners" until I reached I-25 where I turned North to Wyoming, finally shutting down at Cheyenne. I called Brooks and discovered he was a day ahead of schedule and was already in Lincoln, Nebraska (our meeting point). It turned out he hit town when there was a Classic Car Cruise-in and so he rode his shiny "PURPLE" Harley down the street in the parade with all of the locals. You never know what will happen when you hit a town and a Harley is a "ticket" into anything HAPPENIN'.

The next day I rode at 80-90 mph out of Wyoming and across Nebraska to meet him on Sunday at the Harley dealership in Lincoln. That was quite a place, with what seemed like hundreds of bikes. We got our "blue tooth" bike-to-bike communications linked and hit the road, stopping in Davenport, Iowa that evening. Weather had been on and off rain shortly after leaving Lincoln but we always seemed to be in the dry "hole" in the clouds. When we headed out the next day our weather luck held but the main bridge over the Mississippi River was closed, so we had to bypass, costing us some time. We eventually made it to Milwaukee, Wisconsin and checked into the outstanding IRON HORSE HOTEL, just across from the Harley Davidson Museum.

One disconcerting event on the road into Milwaukee shows the stupidity of some drivers and how a motorcyclist has to stay alert. We passed a young woman with a small girl in her car. The girl was not wearing a seat belt, leaning over her mother's shoulder from the back seat, holding the steering wheel while "mom" (and I use the word loosely) was sending a text message on her phone.....at 75 mph on a major roadway. I gave her an "are you crazy look" and she got angry "at ME".......pleas tell me, who is breeding this species of human and how do we get them to stop?

The Iron Horse Hotel caters to bikers but at $200 a night it's not for the average rider. The bikes are parked in special lighted, covered stalls, with 24 hour security....the cars park in a general parking lot.

Brooks & I with our Iron Horses

We had a great dinner, followed by a quiet night of good sleep to prepare us for the Harley Museum.

In the Hotel Lobby with a Custom Iron Horse

Harley Museum

Biker Parking ONLY in front

Four hours at the Museum and we hit the road for our next stop at a Squadron buddies (Roger Philbrook) house in Indiana. He couldn't make the reunion but offered a bed for the night. We crossed, the lower end of Wisconsin and into Illinois (going through Chicago at rush hour), where we had our only near misses of the trip. I was riding in lane 2 of 4 lanes, with nowhere to go, when a Car pulling a house trailer decided to move into my lane. The driver had a change of mind when he looked over to see my motorcycle boot about to crash into his window.....one advantage of a big bore Harley is you are riding above eye level with a car driver and that boot looks very large at that angle......it scared the crap out of him and he quickly corrected his lane change; then Brooks had a young woman in a "bitty car" try to T-bone him at an interchange with another freeway......she saw him, actually aimed her car and literally drove right at him, horn blaring......his angry look changed her mind. We cleared the "windy city" alive and and shut down at Roger Philbrook's place in Indiana for the night.

We had a good restaurant dinner with Roger (he don't cook and neither do we.....), a night of old stories and a few beers, then Roger got a bonus of a CD with pictures of Vietnam that I made for the Reunion group. He appreciated the CD as he had lost his pictures in one of his moves. Brooks and I were off the next morning early, shutting down 100 miles outside Washington, DC. At this point our luck with the weather ended. We left the hotel for dinner at a shopping mall under an almost clear evening sky, only to have it open up as a deluge when we left the restaurant....in T-shirts and jeans..no rain gear.

The next morning found us rolling into DC about noon, over the Potomac River along Massachusetts Avenue, down Embassy Row, to the elegant Fairfax Hotel. President's and Kings have stayed there, Hillery Clinton announced her decision to run for the Presidency there and there were no shortages of Admirals, Generals and politicians in the three days we were there....VERY nice place to hang a hat for the night. The valet could not park the bikes (nor would be have let him), so he walked ahead of us into the bowels of the hotel underground lot where we tucked our iron horses away for the next three days.

THE REUNION

The pictures pretty much say it all.

Iwo Jima Memorial Arlington National Cemetery

Me outside the Marine Museum

Museum of the Marine Corps Entrance

Vietnam Memorial
"Grunts"

The Wall

We did "Marine Things" for three days. Looked each other in the eye and said "Hello Brother" again.....ate, drank, met wives and girlfriends, talked of our families, toasted our dead left in Vietnam, and those that have died since. These are my "brothers" and always will be. We shared bunkers as the mortars and rockets slammed in around us during TET'68, dug fighting holes, filled millions of sandbags, stood watch over our "big ugly" warplanes under a clear Southeast Asian night sky with stars seemingly so close you could touch them; worked 12 hours a day 6-7 days a week for over two years, raised hell on R & R, "relocated" Army and Seabee equipment when our unit needed it, played endless poker games, drank hard, worked hard and lived a life few will ever know.........SEMPER FI BROTHERS!

Many of us hadn't seen each other for over 40 years yet it was like we just walked out of a room and then returned.....the old stories brought back memories (good and bad). It gave us a chance to correct our "tales" by comparing memories and weeding out the parts we had "filled in" over the years. Next year is in planning now and it will be bigger than ever. We were even joined by Charlie Kazinski, a member of VMA-533 in 1943. Charlie heard about our reunion through a VFW notice and came down to join us from New York City. At age 87, he was our oldest "brother" so we added him to our group and listened to his stories of our Squadron's exploits long before many of us were born. We also had a brief visit from one of our Sargent's, who couldn't stay but dropped in for dinner one evening. In the days there, we saw the Iwo Jima Memorial, the Vietnam Wall, the Korea Memorial, WW-2 Memorial, the Marine Museum at Quantico, and attended the Marine Barracks 8th & I Street Evening Parade as Unit Guests. Some of us had a Congressional Tour of the White House and Congress that took most of one day. All-in-all, it was a GREAT event and one we will remember for a long while.

THE RETURN

Brooks and I loaded up Sunday morning, said our goodbye's and headed West. We made Indianapolis by early afternoon in time for him to attend Church while I found a cheap motel. The next day we parted company, after a 30 minute search to find my motorcycle key. Brooks headed home to Alabama (with a stop at the Corvette Museum) and I headed back to Utah via Peoria, Illinois. Jane and I have been concerned about her parents, so I diverted a hundred miles or so to see them overnight. That made for a short day of only 250 miles or so....weather still was my friend but that was soon to end.

One of my goals for the ride was to get my Iron Butt Certification (Iron Butt Association - IBA) for either a 1500 mile (in 36 hours) or 1000 mile (in 24 hours) ride. I saved this for last and my father-in-law certified my departure from his house at 8 am. I rode like crazy but about 250 miles into the days' ride I came on another Harley rider and his wife broken down in the middle of nowhere with a dead cellphone battery. He was homeward bound after a couple of weeks out West and had a blown engine and a dead cellphone battery. He used my phone to arrange for a tow and a repair at the nearest Harley Store (in Des Moines, Iowa). They had been down for an hour and nobody had stopped, so they were walking to a nearby offramp which I knew had no services........his comment, "only another biker would stop to help". It cost me an hour and was the first of several things that doomed my IBA ride to failure. Later that night at the 750 mile mark the sky opened up and I was riding in a torrential downpour, only able to make 40 mph at night on I-80.......CRAZINESS, so I shut down for the night. With less than a thousand miles left on the ride home there was no chance to make the numbers work and I got a good night's sleep, abandoning my IB attempt. The night brought nearby tornado's, heavy rain and hail but a relatively clear morning. I hit the road and ran into patches of heavy rain (wall clouds would appear and buckets of rain then fell), often with pea sized hail (not a problem with my "crash jacket", a rain suit and a full face helmet....but annoying anyway. Just west of Rock Springs, Wyoming I hit heavy rain and lightning striking in the fields next to the road, so I pulled under a road bridge and waited it out. Another Harley rider and his son (son riding pillion) on a Road Glide rolled under just after I did, so we talked until I left. They were from Nashville, Tennessee doing a Western National Parks Tour and I know many of the Parks, so I was able to give some advice. Finally, the lightning stopped so I started again in the rain, eventually leaving I-80, headed to Bear Lake and down beautiful Logan Canyon, arriving home in Smithfield about 6 pm. I suspect Jane was glad to see me because the garage door opened as I rounded the corner to the driveway with my bike running on fumes (I didn't want to even stop for gas the last few miles), both the bike and I were filthy dirty and I was very tired.

STATS

4,775 miles round trip

Longest day 750 miles, with at least three over 600 miles

Crossed or rode through 11 States and the District of Columbia

5 days outbound

3.5 days return

Hundreds of waves from other riders....lots of good road advice at rest stops....two kids with their Dad's "checked out" the bike........noticed that bikers are not like people in cars.......they "talk to each other"!

NO major incidents and I would do it again....maybe taking a few days longer each way!!

Anyone ready to go with me is welcome......a basic requirement is you have to have a motorcycle. I'm planning a run up to Yellowstone and back, and West Coast ride (probably St George-to-Vegas-to-San Diego and back) before the end of the riding year.