Full blown winter here. I plowed the driveway twice yesterday and once this morning. Drove home up the canyon 25 in a 55. I could see the road better with my lights off, in the driving snow.
I love what I do. I feel most days, that I’m in full stride. To be involved and with my nose to the grindstone, making good decisions and contributing….. man, that’s a good day, and they string together. I’ve found my family. Blood is thick, and they share common ground that you just can’t explain. Eyes are on me here. Bring it on. Coming up here is good for me, and I can’t help but know that is good for my own family.
But man, I keep looking at weather.com for a break in the weather. I almost took my bike to work at 2 degrees in the morning, down the canyon. I’d have done it if I was positive the roads weren’t icy. I wasnt. Fuck it, I don’t care if I look like the Michelin man on a bike….. I’m jonesing to ride, and its only January.
Can’t wait for the Easy Rider tour in May with Eagle Rider. Hopefully my stories are right, my company is sure and beyond that I’ll figure it out.
Yesterday was a good day. I signed some papers that ended a 2 year struggle and put some finality, and even some justification to the worst period of my life. Even today, I feel like king of my mountain.
I settled the biggest debt of my life yesterday. It’s such a relief. 2 years of work to pay for the biggest mistake maybe I’ve ever made. Life seems pretty good right now.
The biggest mistake of my life, for the record was not trusting my instincts and trusting a partner to take care of the books. Long story short, he didn’t. I got lazy, things crashed, and he went into hiding. I decided to face the music. At the time, I felt I couldn’t live that way, and I’m glad I didn’t. Its been a stress on my family of dealing with the IRS, one creditor after another, and a whole slew of others.
Got the taxes settled yesterday.Hopefully the final step in starting over, and trying to maybe build something good again. A little wiser, and lessons learned. Things have been tight, my wife and kids have stuck with me. Can’t ask for more, and life seems good again.
I feel bad for my poor ex business partner to be honest. Hiding ain’t no way to live. I hid for a while, but no more. I’m kinda learning that life is pretty sweet when you move to hit it head on.
He’s right. What a wonderful world. If you play the cards you’re dealt right, you’ll wake up just glad to be born. Play em right. aye laddie, what a wonderful world.
I love seeing these old pricks on stage. this is jammin.
Good to see Jason Bonham pay tribute to his old man. He’s not nearly as good – not as heavy handed as his dad, but no matter what he was the right choice. He keeps the beat, and the rest of these guys seem happy to be playing together. Again.
Check out the look on John Paul Jones face. he’s in the zone. he’s working.
Jimmy page…. Maybe the greatest guitar player of all time, old and weathered. Still, pulls his guitar out of the rack and plays it perfectly. Beyond it, actually. Like its 1975.
Robert Plant. Maybe the hardest part. He’s fronting it, and sings it better than the old concerts. I’m not sure how old he is, but he owns it all here. Sounds great
back it all out, and this is a great song, and a great version.
Its inspiring. You can re-live the old days, no matter what anyone says. These guys definitely prove it. Good things really never die.
Glad i got a killer wife, whos rolled with me for 20 plus years.
Glad i have kids who know who they are, and enjoy watching them come into their own.
Glad i found riding.
Sitting by my smoker, typing a post on my phone, smoking a thankgiving turkey and studying up on some really good nfo i just found about Easy Rider. Might make the ride come alive for someone in May. Shivering as i post this lol. Fuck me, life is good. Thanksgiving isnt telling me something i already know 🙂
Great song. Winter is here in Heber. Not sure I trust the roads in my car at times, let alone my bike. So she’s covered. This is new to me. Need to find my way back to the desert. Someday. Right now I have things to do.
the Road King before
The Road King after…
Full tank to prevent condensation and a little fuel treatment, battery tender plugged in. She will start fine in the spring methinks. New back tire. Really, this kind of sucks. It is what is is.
Got some road trips in mind, come spring. Getting acclimated to this north thing, and finding my legs. This wendover air field needs to be explored more, and maybe a little cowboy history. Its not route 66, but there are ghosts out there. Ill find em. The road king begs to ride.
It has been a long time. Since my business crashed and burned over a year ago, I just haven’t had the or money time to ride. Its in me to keep my family straight, and that’s my sacred trust to them. I guess second to riding.
I had her covered up and put away. Trickle charger in place, covered properly. Fuel additive, fuel tank….. ready for winter. Thank god the weather broke, and maybe my mojo.
So I loaded up the Road King. I think the last time I was in Wendover Nevada was 1982, when I got certified in scuba diving. I was just a kid, and I don’t remember much about the town. I just needed a ride. Things are starting to break for me again, and opening up a throttle over a new stretch of road seemed kinda right to me. I was right. The night before I found where the Enola Gay had taken off from Wendover, and that there was an Air Museum there and a whole lot of WWII buildings that haven’t changed much since the war. Perfect.
The Enola Gay was the bomber that dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan. Obviously, you know this. I don’t know why I’m even typing it out.
About 40 miles out of town I got this image in my head that still haunts me. It was an old man. Obviously a biker (once you get it, you never really stop being one) who saw my bike with a sleeping bag on back who just kept staring at me. After a few stop lights, he rolled down the window at the last intersection before I got on the freeway, and twisted his body around to give me the thumbs up. I could see how old he was up close now. I gave him the thumbs up back and he kept his in the air, and I wished I coulda taken a picture of his face. he was serious and waved me on as I got on the freeway. I opened her up, and thought about that old man for the next 50 miles. That might be me someday; old, can’t keep my bike vertical in the garage let alone a freeway, and being hauled around in a cage by someone who has no idea what the open road looks like. I almost wish I coulda gone back to that moment and shook his hand. I can tell a fake, and this guy wasn’t. He’d weathered some miles before. I don’t know why it struck me so much. I’ve had the looks before. The nervous moms peeking sideways at the bearded biker next to their car. The young kid who just wants to be free and can’t tell the difference between a Honda and a Harley The girls who just want to wave…. the guy who’s got a bike in his garage, Harley sticker on his truck and just wants to show me up…. This guy was the real deal. I’ll never know his stories, but I’d bet my paycheck he had some great ones. I could see it in his eyes.
Rode up through Fairfield Utah, Found a place to put a few rounds through my 9, and felt myself starting to breathe. Remembered why I love riding so much. It was almost a religious experience.
Near Fairfield Utah
There is new territory up here. I’ll be honest, I miss the desert. The history is different up here, and the terrain lends to different riding. Some people think a long straight road in Nevada is like having their appendix removed. To me, its good. The weather was cool and there wasn’t many bikes on the road. I hit Tooele, hung a left and headed through the salt flats. More history…
Bonneville Salt Flats
Man, I gotta say… I might have been converted from a Street Glide to a Road King. Either way, I love this bike. I opened her up a couple times, and she’s pretty comfortable at 120. Speedo got pegged, and she had more in her. The RK is a pleasure to tour on.
Got pulled over on the Nevada side for not having a helmet, grabbed a burger and a bottle of good scotch and headed back to the KOA to pitch my tent and sum up what I’d just learned, Again. I can’t go too long without a good ride. I swear to god it puts years on my life.
Home for the night. Wendover Nevada KOA
Took this picture because it reminded me of Easy Rider. Remember that shot?
The next morning I waited for it to warm up, packed the bike slow and headed out by 10. Went down to Wendover Airfield.
Really cool little museum.
Colonol Paul Tibbets Signature on a replica of little boy, the first atomic bomb
The rest of the base was almost the best part. You can tell it has struggled on funding, and to me that’s half the appeal. Its rusty gold, cleaned up but nowhere polished. Maybe the closest thing to being in 1945. Some of the buildings were sold off after the war, and others just have signs and are waiting for money before they can restore them. Either way, you can walk through it all and get a feel of what it was like to live on this base during the great war. This was where all the training happened for what ended world war II. The whole place reeks of history. Man, Awesome.
Original Air Tower, Wendover Air Field.
Long View of part of the Old Wendover Air Base
one of the planes from the Movie “Con Air”
The Enola Gay Hanger
From even a couple of years ago, the Enola Gay Hanger was falling in on itself. They’ve spent some money to restore it. I could only see it from the outside. There’s an 8 hour tour they do once a year, and I suspect I’ll be the only guy without gray hair that goes to it. (fuck if I know If I have any gray hair, I got no hair!). Either way, I’ll go next year. This place has a lot of ghosts.
The rest was great. I had planned to spend more time, but got a call from my family that needed my attention and forced me to head home earlier than I wanted. All good. I’ll come back. Wendover is no ones vacation but mine I think.
