In 1776, a few guys with some great big balls sent a list of grievances to the king of England. Knowing what it meant, they declared their independence. That letter reached England, and the shit hit the fan.
Kudos to our founding fathers. They fought for it, and ending up founding a nation with some pretty cool governing principles. It was an experiment in government: Something that hadn’t been done before, or since.
In my eyes, it was visionary.
Happy 4th of July to all you biker pricks out there 🙂
A guy on a buffalo bears no explanation. It’s a guy, on a buffalo. I gotta think, steering a buffalo might be a bitch. The whole thing made me laugh.
Changed the back tire on the Road king. It had run its course.
wrenching on your own bike is a religious experience. The MOCO wants $350 for a back tire replacement. Hell, they want $500 to do a 10,000 mile oil change. I’ve had enough kids out of some bike school who barely care wrench on my bike, and nobody cares more than I do. Found a killer price from Rocky Mountain ATV, who happens to live a few miles south of me, so I got a new back tire for $125.
Every year since I’ve been married, my wife’s family has a family reunion at the Lions Lodge in Morgan Utah. The last few years I’ve tried to make a ride out of it if I could. A few beautiful canyons, a lake and just a really enjoyable ride separate where I live from the camp spot, and last saturday I headed that way, like I’ve done the last 24 years. At the last minute I put on my windshield and threw my leathers in my saddlebags, and I was glad I did. It got colder than hell for a June when I hit the summit in Park City.
There’s always been a loose guideline with my girls that when they turn 11, we go on a long ride. Wendy and Megan have done thousands of miles on a bike, and when Bri turned 11 she told me it was her turn. She hadn’t ridden as much with me, and I was pretty happy and proud that she’d remembered. I gotta think the small moments like that are what they’ll remember, at least I hope so. It was with me, and my dad.
The weather up here is dumb. I’m still not used to wearing a jacket in June, let alone leathers. It was threatening rain, but very little dropped. Just a typical northern Utah cold front in spring I guess.
East Canyon is awesome. Some history here. I drank in what I could and tried to learn a thing from historical markers. I wanted to hit the Kozy Cafe in Echo to see if they still had their shingle out for business, but I decided to get to the reunion. I’d be really surprised if the Kozy is still open. Another time…
The reunion was fun. Bri was excited to ride, so we headed back sunday morning. Her first 100 mile ride. She’s a pro, just like her sisters. A cool moment for me.
Bri at the summit. She’s ready for a long ride now methinks.Took some moments to try and teach some of the history of the area.
Great little ride. She had fun and so did I. I got good kids.
She’s ready for a long weekend ride methinks. Her vote is Disneyland 🙂
Love the lyrics of this song. It’s been in my head all day.
The world is changing. I try and keep up on it. Some things I gotta figure won’t ever change… like family, a spirit of adventure, and the want to know and do more than the other shmo’s.
A weekend long family reunion in the mountains is a cheap excuse for a ride. Missus Zip is already up there. I promised her I’d get up there fast tomorrow, but I’m sure she knows me better than that. 2 of my kids have jobs and responsibilities and can’t go, which is how it should be at their age.
East Canyon is a beautiful ride. A great ride to just take your time….Up through the aspens, and great turns as you head into Morgan County. I look forward to this part. Just me and my bike. 88 miles in 6 hours. I’m gonna stop at any little thing of interest. Take a picture of that view. Breathe. Drink in the scenery. Enjoy that sweeping curve. Bark at that douche bag on his pedal bike for being in the middle of the road when he doesn’t need to be. Round a lake. Hit that side road that I’ve always wondered about. Stop at every historical marker that someone made in 1962.
Shit, now I can’t wait. A good ride is a beautiful thing. It’s warm up here, and the windshield is stored away for a while.
My youngest is 11, and I’ll pack a helmet and some sunglasses for her so she can ride back with her Dad. An opportunity. I gotta think those are the moments they’ll remember, at least I hope so. She’s a good kid.
A good deal of these guys were just Farm kids, who were raised a way and knew the right thing. A lot of them were kids from the Bronx, Chicago and LA. Volunteers a lot of em. Kids from Canada to California to Maine and Florida. They answered the call.
I gotta think, it was a different day and age.
Most of these guys are gone now, but a few remain. D-day is a reverent thing. 9,000 of them didn’t make it out.
Someone sent me this video. A colorized version of the D-day landings. Thought i’d pass it on.
I never really had a bucket list. I just think I found one, and this is at the top.
The lower 48 states in the most efficient route a guy could take. In a car, its supposedly 113 hours. You biker pricks know it’d take a lot longer for you.
6,872 miles. A guy named Steven Von Worley apparently did the math, and this is what he came up with. Starts in South Berwick Maine and ends in Taft, Montana.
Iron Butt Association, eat your heart out. Someone is gonna do it, if they already haven’t. You BMW/sporty-bike guys can eat a bag of hell. Someone needs to do this on American Iron.
It was important to my father that he wouldn’t be forgotten. Dad, I’m pretty sure that anyone who knew you hasn’t. An old pic of my dad as a young buck:
In 1776, a few guys with some great big balls sent a list of grievances to the king of England. Knowing what it meant, they declared their independence. That letter reached England, and the shit hit the fan.
