Missus Zip’s grandpa’s funeral was today. Found things I never knew about him. What a life. Went on a mission to Germany when Hitler had just come to power, served in the phillipines during WWII, came home, got married, built his home with his own hands, raised a family, was active in just about every community club around, and was an honest solid and genuinely good man. Tom Brokaw was right, it was the greatest generation. RIP John. Proud to have known you.
Between his mission and the war, he was the catch of a small Utah town. He was also shy and wanted to date (his wife to be) Arlene. He pulled in front of her house, and told the nearest family member he would like to date Arlene. When that message reached her, she said “if he wants to court me, he’ll have to ask him himself”. John did, and his whole life happened from there.
John and Arlene wrote love letters to each other all through his 4 year military stint. It was through these letters that he proposed, and they eventually started their life and family together. he was in Blythe california and told her to get a one way ticket to California, and she did. She tells a beautiful and romantic story of her courtship. John said “she drove me to the desert and all I could see for miles were sidewinders and cactus, so I chose the lesser evil and asked her to marry me”.
John Irwin lived to 96. I’ve only known him for 20 years or so, and wished I’d have known him more. He was a quiet guy, but his convictions were deep and solid. The test of time always proves that.
I got off of Steppenwolf for a long time. The whole born to be wild thing got a bit sour tasting somehow, but lately I’ve been enjoying them like I used to. This is a great song. I’ve had a few snowblind friends who would be cool to see again.
I just finished writing the scripts for the tour guides for Easy Rider. I’ve compiled a lotta info over the years, and it was kinda tricky to me to know what people would want to know about. I’m so close to the trees, tracking down clues that sometimes I lose track of the forest.
Eaglerider lauched the tour. We start in october. here’s the link.
Mayberry Riders MC. I’d roll that patch. Someone needs to the balls and vision to get that done. Andy Griffith walked the line, and where johnny cash fell black, Andy Griffith fell white….
Andy Griffiths died this week. Man, the first I’d heard of it I was surprised he was still alive. He was 86 years old. I grew up watching the Andy Griffith Show. I’m a channel surfer to the point I drive my wife nuts, and I gotta admit, if that show is on I stop and watch. Other than the color ones. I don’t know why. I don’t like seeing Opie and Aunt B in color. Somehow it cheapened the whole thing.
Don Knotts died in 2006. We used to watch his movies in grade school assemblies. The apple Dumpling gang and “gus” if I remember right. Do you remember Gus? He was a donkey that made the football team. The prick could kick a football. Yeah, thats what a Utah grade school education gives me. I have no regrets.
Andy Griffith was one of a kid. Ever seen “a face in the crowd”? 1957 was right when rock and roll was peaking, and he held his guns to play that part. It was almost foreshadowing of a time we’re all too familiar with now. Ahead of its time.
Rest in Peace Andy Griffith. 86 is a ripe old age. For a whole lotta years I’ve wished I lived in mayberrry. I gotta think you were honest and good through all the hollywood bullshit. I hope others can keep your way. Those are the people we honor, right?
98 percent of all creation is accident, and 1 percent is intellect. At least that what Dennis Hopper said. I think thats an extremely humble way to describe natural talent and desire. Hell, mostly desire. But then again, Dennis Hopper smoked a lot of pot.
I’ve watched American Chopper since it came out. Jesse James makes some killer bikes. Been to bike shows and seen some really custom bikes that just blow my mind, and a few make me just wonder why. Anyone who fabricates something out of metal and it ends up rideable and 2 wheels tho, has my respect. I can’t do it. I never tried, and its always been this goal of mine to get to a place in life that I could try. I think I could make something cool. Maybe an old school bobber from the 40s or 50’s. I love that history; Guys came home from WWII, started cutting off fenders and lightening up their bikes so they’d go faster. Thats when the custom bike was born. But what is the most famous custom ever? To me, its pretty easy. I bet most people can tell you what this bike is.
Captain America – Easy Rider
Man, I double dog dare you to find me a more recognizable bike. I can’t figure what that bike would be. Evel Knevel? Steve McQueen in the Great Escape? Both are great bikes, but would you know em if you saw em? Whether or not you’ve seen the movie, that bike is an icon. It’s a 1950’s panhead motorcycle ripped from its police bike frame (peter Fonda bought 4 old police bikes from ranging from 1952 to 1954 for the movie) , and then someone got all freaky creative with it. The rake is crazy, the fender is gone, and there is no rear suspension. Hell, there’s no front brake. I am not a chopper guy, but you gotta respect that teardrop gas tank, the king and queen seat and you’ll find waldo faster than you can find the rear shocks. Maybe I’ve got my head lodged up Easy Rider’s ass (and that may be true), but tell me a more famous bike. Either way, you can’t tell me a bike that influenced more people to ride, and start customizing.
When The Easy Rider concept was quickly made into form, Peter Fonda set out to get him a couple of bikes for the movie. There’s lots of controversy about who built these bikes. Some say Dan Haggerty, who was in the movie. The guy who painted the bikes, his son says it was him (his dad, that is). Some say it was Peter Fonda.
But the guy who built them was a guy named Ben Hardy. Ben was an African american man who knew Harleys, and knew what he was doing. When Cliff Vaughs was asked by Fonda to oversee the building of the bikes, Vaugh’s turned to Hardy who was well known (if you were black) in Los Angeles as the go to guy to build a killer bike, and do it right.
Ben Hardy was the man who built the Easy Rider bikes in 1968. A man lost in history, yet was one of the men who built the most famous bike ever built. Click on his picture for a cool story about someone who dealt with him.
Peter had only one thing he wanted on the bike. He wanted captain America to have a flag on his gas tank. Beyond that, the design was left to Vaughs. I gotta think tho… Peter was an experienced rider, and Dennis hopper wasn’t. That had to have come up in the conversation somewhere, because the Billy bike was a much easier bike to ride. I had a fat boy that was really close to the same configuration, and my brother has a friend with a Billy Bike replica. They’re easy bikes to ride. The captain America bike? Cut that steering head off and rake that bitch out like it is, throw in those long forks with no front brake and see how you fare. You don’t give that kind of bike to a beginner.
It was Cliff who actually first offered the name “Easy Rider” to Fonda. It was a term he used in the day. Whats an Easy Rider? that depends on who you ask. In the 1900s it meant a freeloader. A guy who mooched off you. To Dennis hopper, it meant a man who lived off the money of a whore. He got it from an old Mae West movie. Whatever cliff meant by it, I’m not sure. All I know is he redefined the word. To this day I think it is associated to Harley riders. Maybe because of cliff, but most definitely because of the movie. When you say Easy Rider, I think of the movie. I think of Harley’s.
Vaugh’s quickly took the idea to Ben Hardy. Peter bought four 1950’s panhead police bikes from auction, and got them to Hardy and Vaughs. Jim Buchanan fabricated the frames, The engines were built by Hardy, Dean Lanza did the paint (his son is adamant he built the entire bikes). 2 bikes were for filming, 2 were for the final sequence of the movie, which I’m fucking assuming you know about, otherwise you wouldn’t be here reading this. Hardy went to work, and the rest is history.
Ben Hardy’s shop, back in the day – Builder of the Easy Rider BikesBen Hardy Shop Today
Ben Died in 1994. Cliff is still alive today. Both men haven’t gotten the recognition they deserve— in my opinion, for building the most famous bikes in the world. Ben’s old shop is still around in Los Angeles if you want to see it.
The next time you’re at a gas station, and you’re staring down into your tank and pouring gasoline all over it, think of Ben Hardy and Cliff Vaughs. They made a killer movie as much as anyone else, and I dare say the most famous motorcycles ever built.
Man, half way down the canyon this morning I realized I forgot a huge thing yesterday. Hell, maybe the the most important on the list. Sunglasses. What was I thinking?
You got a pair that you love? The pair I wear I’ve had 3 pairs of over the last several years. Only lost one pair, and the others just got too scratched up to see through so I replaced em. I don’t know the name of em, but when I see em in the dealership I snatch up a spare pair if I’ve got the money.
I don’t know what they are. Bones, or some shit. They just feel right on my fat little head. Made by Harley, I love these glasses.
They have strong hinges and I’ve never had to do that thing where I stick a toothpick in where the screw worked out to keep em going. The shade is just right – not too dark and not too light. They’re tall enough they deflect a lot of wind. I hope I can keep finding pairs of these over the years.
For clears, I got some ones I really like for fathers day. Transitional lenses, and although not dark enough for my taste during the day, they’re killer at night. By panoptyx, before they got bought out by 7eye:
Panoptx/7eye transitional glasses. Eye cups. Those are like Jock Cups for your eyeballs. Good for when you wanna drop the windshield and not ride like you’re cutting an onion.
I have terrible night vision. I don’t know why, but cheap clears at night just fuck with my head. Like I can’t process the info thats getting thrown at me. Plus, to be honest I don’t want to die at night because I didnt see something. Your reaction time is so much shorter at night, so I’ll always stick with more expensive clears than regular glasses. These have the eye cups which are nice when you take the windshield off. I don’t get watery eyes so bad and have to stop from the wind. Ive had these for a few years, and they’re solid. Hats off to whoever you are now…. I like how you make glasses.
I really want a third pair. For rain. I’ve been eyeing those pugz goggles you see in Maverik’s and 7-11’s. They’re cheap, but I gotta think for rain glasses they’d be the best investment in the world. maybe I’ll get a pair for 13 bucks and have my kids hit me with the garden hose as I run up and down the street. They’d love that. Thats real life beta testing yah? Ya gotta think it’d work.
I have a few other pairs in my little hutch in the garage I keep my bike treasures. I got old maps in there, bungee cords of varying sizes, spare sunglass cases, I think a few toothbrushes and tools, and 2 more pairs of sunglasses that somehow I horse traded over the years with other bikers. One of em are expensive Vuarnet’s with these deep ass eye cups. I don’t know where he got them, but the lenses are great and you could eat a small bowl of cereal out of those eye cups. Great in the wind. Maybe good in the rain. I should give those a second try, maybe tomorrow. I also got a cheap pair that I keep when I missplace my good ones, and they’ll always be there when I get too impatient to keep looking and I just wanna get the bike out of the garage.
I think tomorrow I’ll talk about long ride saddle bag must-have’s. Most of what I need I’ve committed to memory, and about half of that I don’t bring because I get ants in my pants or just plain forget. Maybe my wife is right…. Maybe, but I’ll be damned if I ever admit that to her.
You got a preference on what kinda shades you wear when riding?
You know, I love my ride to work. It’s 20 miles down a canyon paralleling the river that cut it, pine trees and a lot of waterfalls. I get a great chance to gear up for work, and gear down on my way home. Couldn’t ask for a better ride to start and end my day. Good thinking time. Lately, I been thinking mostly about the software update the company is doing, and the problems I gotta solve. But in the background, I been thinking about biking gear.
I don’t go to harley message boards. I swear to god, every third thread is about if they should wave to other bikers or not, or if fingerless gloves and assless chaps are ok to be seen in. When I ride, yep… my wallet is attached to me with a chain. I take my chaps off when its no longer cold. I got something to say about the subject. I’ve ridden all over the place, and like most riders you figure out a gear system. Here’s mine. I’m not gonna be humble here. Its good, and its mostly from epic failures.
The gear DO’s:
the most important gear is a good jacket. I like the old school 50’s ones, mostly because I bought one a few years ago off a clearance rack that is thick. the pockets are worn through but its warm, and got those side cinch leather laces on the sides for back support. It dips down in the back below the belt to keep wind out of my ass crack. zip out liner. Man, she’s like an old friend. I should probably replace it, but the fucker works good and I see no need. Its also a pillow or a blanket at night, or something warm for your girl if she decides to go with you today. There are no rules on a jacket. Just get a warm one you like.
Gloves. Get a bunch. I have 3 pairs I mix in and out, depending on the season. Fingerless gloves are the shit. They keep the sun off your hands and you can pick your nose, adjust your ipod and deal with copenhagen properly and itch your nuts at 80 mph. IMO, the coolest are the yellow buckskin ones you can buy at any truck stop. Dennis Hopper is never wrong. Then I got me a pair of thick winter gauntlets for when its freezing outside. I hate em, but they’re good when its cold. The cheaper the better. Harley ones fall apart the fastest.
Boots. Man, a guy who rides a motorcycle in flip flops should be drawn and quartered by his own kin. I buy em on ebay, and get a pair a year. Buy em a size bigger so you can wear winter socks, and i’ve even stuck those heat packs in mine and been glad. Plus, a good pair of heavy leather boots keep the wind from blowing your feet around so you can relax more when you ride. The rubber soled ones keep you from slipping at an oily intersection. A good pair of boots is a religious experience to me anymore.
Chaps. My chaps are disgusting. Man, I love em. I hit a swarm of grasshoppers once on on the road that covered em yellow. I don’t wash em, they seams have ripped and I keep sewing them back together. Also, you know what? Chaps are for when its cold. If you wear them to social events, then you just got yourself a village people award, and you’re either queer as a football bat, or just a moron. They’re not a fashion statement. If I had the money, I’d buy me a good pair of leather pants. I’m 45, but still sexually active with the wife and honestly, I can’t afford to have my balls freeze.
This one is controversial: a wallet with a chain on it. For years, I’ve taken shit for having a wallet with a chain on it. I bought mine for 20 bucks at a pittsburgh penguins game in the burgh, and now and again it needs some surgery, but it has a purpose. My brother skeezix quit laughing at me when he lost his wallet on a ride. Plus, they don’t fold up your money and you have to sit on it for 400 miles, all lop sided. If you get a 3 foot chain, then you watch too much sons of anarchy or are the biker enthusiast version of a metro sexual. This ain’t zoot suit riot, and you want your wallet to fall out to your side with enough chain to pay for your nacho’s at the choke and puke, but not too long it falls out, hits your spokes and gets chopped up and you’re slightly more retarded who has a folded wallet and rides. I take that back, you’re way more retarded. I won’t apologize for having a chain on my wallet. It was invented clearly by a guy who rides a lot.
A vest. Man, I fought em for years, but I do love my vest. Mostly because I got deep pockets in mine to put stuff in. My wallet. My phone. My 9mm. Whatever I want. I kinda splurged in mine and I like my vest. Chain extenders look kinda gay too, but they’re nice when you need the pockets and want the wind to flow. A good vest is a good thing.
A beanie. I got no hair by choice, so this is my hair when its cold. The harley ones, again are shitty. They always fly off my head. Get yourself a good wool knit one. I had a friend from Canada give me one and those fuckers know what its like to be cold. It stays put, and is warm. I suppose a helmet does the same thing, but I only wear those in states where its required. That’s all I’ll wear. I don’t really like bandana’s
A neck muffler. Mines fleece, and I only wear it if its 20-30 degrees and I gotta make some mines. What a lifesaver. Its nice to be warm. The skull bandana one? ehhh, I dunno. If you’re in a gang, I have a hard time believing it. Maybe you are. I just won’t wear one.
Sunscreen. Lots of it, wash your hands right after. I end up going blind in one eye after I put a finger to an eye if I don’t.
This list is making me think of all kinds of other crap i put in my saddle bags for a trip. Maybe thats the ride thought for tomorrow.
Seems like I’ve been working a lot lately. Things hit a break, just in time for my wifes annual family reunion. We’ve been since before we were married, and now that I live closer I figured it a good time to see if I could find some back roads to the annual event.
I was the guy in st george who knew every single road for 500 miles. The guy who planned poker runs, weekend trips and went nuts to see where that road jutted out from a backroad, and where it went. Man, I’m not up here. It kind of drives me nuts. Up here, I ask a lot of questions, Mostly to the old timers, who are glad to tell you their stories and tell you some background that’s interesting to me. I’ts nice to learn a whole new set of roads, do some exploring and hopefully share it with someone else down the road. Summers are short here, so you gotta make hay while the sun shines.
Been riding with some of the locals lately, so was able to stay off the interstate and mozy toward my goal. I found a lot of historical markers I passed, some railway markers, and even hit a short spurt of the old Lincoln Highway. Things I’ll explore later, because they’ll fill in the blanks and make the ride more exciting later. Right now, I was going macro. We’ll go micro later.
Riding alone, for me is relaxing. I set my own pace, worry about my own shit and stop at random curiosities when I want. The weather is nice now. It’s time to step it up.
Kamas utah is an old utah farming town and is just a great ride. Oakley, Peoa, all great riding. Coalville needs to be explored, but I just rubbernecked through it and see its alive and kicking, much like an old route 66 town. I rounded rockport lake, at what what was clearly the old road (Spotting old, per interstate highways has become old hat), crossed under the freeway that goes to Evanston Wyoming and soon I was in Echo Utah.
Echo was a significant place during the heyday of the railroad. It held coal, and helper trains up the Wasatch. It was at the mouth of the main artery from Wyoming, and Salt Lake. Echo still holds rail cars at its junction, but not much else. As you ride by, you can smell the unique grease and metal that only railroads produce. It told me that something interesting was coming up, and escorted me out of town. It was US Route 30, and It’s high point was world war II. As of now, its just a trailer park. it has ghosts. Man, I felt like I was on route 66. this cafe was just full of questions for me. . I figured my inlaws who were born in this area would have some stories.
The Kozy Cafe, Echo Utah – Click all these pictures for more detailModern Motel
The dining room neon.Specialties. We all love specialties.
Frank’s Echo service, just next door. It’s modern gas pumps tells that frank was swinging hard, till the end. Lots of service happened here. Frank did not fail.The Kozy Cafe, Echo Utah200 grand and its yours.I love this shotNo way I’d have not stopped here. Makes me wish I’d have lived 20 years ago, let alone in its heyday.The Kozy Cafe, Echo UtahThe business man in me says he’s a little proud of his place. Sorry bro, the freeway sliced that price all to hell.Welcome to the Kozy Motel. I’d stay here now…Lots of stories here I bet…The kozy had gas, food and lodging. You don’t need much more…The Kozy Cafe and Motel Echo UtahThe Kozy Cafe and Motel Echo UtahThe Echo Cafe, Echo utah. Right next door the the Kozy. Cold Beer!I love a guinness at room temperature, but refuse to not stop at a neon sign proclaiming cold beer. They just don’t do it like this anymore.
I hit the reunion with my phone pictures, and I did get a few stories. Mostly they were surprised I thought so much of the place. To them, it was just a place growing up. it’s 200 yards from the interstate, and a mile of backroads to get to it for no reason. The fact that the Kozy survived so many years later is a testament to itself. Former employees claim its haunted. The last thing I found was that it was open as late as 2009. I wished I’d have ate there. I’d have swung wide to help keep a place like this open. Kinda sad.
After the reunion I doubled back with my oldest daughter on the back of the bike, and my wife and other kids following. We found a new road, and I noticed some junctions I need to chase down, with some local advice on where they go and how beautiful they are. These are my next road goals. I’m going to find em, take some pictures and post em on the blog. I got no doubt I’ll come back with something good.
I just decided, right now that I’m going to write a blog post every night till I get it back. This is the first.
I’m not sure why. To be honest, life has never been better, but I dare should say when i’ve been more involved and working. I’m in a spot now where, when this next goal is over, I’m going to take some time out and get me a ride in. I just can’t right now. Too many people are relying on me and a weekend off isn’t happening. All good. I’ve had the opposite before.
See you tomorrow. Motherfuck, I’ll get my mojo back. Even if just writing about it gets me to riding somewhere, smoking a fat cigar under the stars with my bike pinging and cooling down next to me.
Went with a couple guys from my BACA chapter on a ride. Great road. Maybe the best I’ve been to since I’ve been up here. Had lunch and a couple of beers in Hanna, got to know friends a little better and had a great time. Did some shooting and the cops showed up. He was cool. Ya gotta love wasatch County. I’ll do this ride again and take pictures next time. It really was a good one.
