Jerry and I planned our 2024 ride, likely our last long ride together, after more than 50 years of riding together. After meeting in Ogden, we’d head for Idaho’s mountains. My tires needed replacing, so I visited the local Honda shop, ordered tires and new 90 degree valve stems that point to the right. Sadly, when they brought it out, the stems pointed to the left side. That should have sounded a warning. But they quickly fixed it, I took it on our local freeway, up to maybe 72, and it felt smooth.
Until I passed St. George on I-15…
Read MoreEven when loving people, I need relief from them. Even when loving the comforts of civilization, like warm showers and soft beds, I need the relief of more primitive living. Even when loving the ease of modern life, I need the relief of challenge. Of going up high. Of going beyond beaten paths…
Read MoreFor decades, music played little role in my long rides. Most bikes didn’t have the technology then, or the wind drowned out the sound. For three years I did listen some with earbuds to Pandora on my Goldwing, but to be frank, I loved the sounds of silence more than the distractions of other people’s thoughts in music. Silence gave time to ponder, to examine my past and myself, both good and bad. Often the topic of why I made various choices came up. Why did my romantic relationships only last three months? Why did I not pursue some options for marriage, ones that sometimes came close? I always had jobs and paid the bills, but no jobs captivated me.
But the silence of the road…
Read MoreNot long ago, a very good friend and solid Christian put this meme up, and it struck me…about how badly it misses the essence of following Jesus. The meme’s foundation proclaims that as far as feeding, animals and humans are the same. If we give either food, we make them dependent and they lose self-motivation. Therefore, we treat humans like we treat wild animals: we don’t feed them, we allow them to stand on own. I often hear, they made bad decisions that put them in that condition. They deserve it. But the question, especially at Christmas, does this match reality and Jesus?
Read MoreLast May one of the most boring stretches of road I’ve ever been on gave a lesson. Jerry and I left Meridian, Idaho, about 8 in the morning, fleeing the sun on I-84. Near Ontario, Oregon, we split, he continuing west on Highway 20 to his home near Salem, me turning south on Highway 395 to my Temecula abode. To be brief, much of 395 in that part of Oregon consists of boring brush. Blah scenery. Mostly straight roads. The bike didn’t match my previous Goldwing for wind protection at 80, so music wasn’t an option. I did outline some Unconventional posts in my mind to write down that evening, like this one. But I got bored and tired and a bit sleepy.
Then…
Read MoreI’d ridden a dirtbike once, didn’t even know how to shift. Then “Easy Rider” captivated me with the freedom of the open road, so I bought a Honda 350 Scrambler with plans to head to Canada to see a college roommate. I knew nothing, and a month after the purchase I took off. An idiot. But I became a sponge, reading motorcycle mags, talking to experienced riders. And during every ride, I’d analyze what worked, what didn’t. How to set up a curve safely to do it fast. How to brake most effectively without flipping or laying down the bike. And the experts proclaimed…
Read MoreThomas Wolfe’s novel You Can’t Go Home Again has become a catchphrase, a metaphor of the impossibility because people and places inevitably change. After six decades of three annual trips to the Sierras, I then entirely missed three years, for various reasons. So I eagerly expected a great return to my beloved Rock Creek above Tom’s Place. A relatively minor change in my favorite camping spot should have brought Wolfe’s line to mind on greater changes. It did…
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