W H A T ’ S
I N S I D E
MO NT HLY C O L U M NS Motorcycles, Travel & Adventure
FREE WHEELIN’ ..................................................4 WHATCHATHINKIN’ ...........................................5
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Brian Rathjen • Shira Kamil
ON THE MARK ....................................................6
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BACKROADS (ISSN 1087-2088) is published monthly by BACKROADS™, Inc. 2021. All rights reserved. BACKROADS™ may not be reproduced in any manner without specific written consent from the publisher. BACKROADS™ welcomes and encourages submissions (text and photos) and suggestions. Include phone number with submissions. BACKROADS™ will only return material with enclosed sufficient postage. The written articles and opinions printed in BACKROADS™ are not necessarily those of the publisher and should not be considered an endorsement. The Rip & Rides® published are ridden on the sole responsibilty of the rider. BACKROADS™ is not responsible for the conditions of the public roadways traversed. Please respect the environment, read your owner’s manual and wear proper protective gear and helmet. Ride within your limits, not over them.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
FREE WHEELIN’ BRIAN RATHJEN
Discontent “Now is the winter of our discontent” opens a quite stunning soliloquy by the young Richard, Duke of Gloucester. Well, for us here in the northeast it has been just that. It seemed that after a short New Year’s Day run, the bike would not just get parked for a good bit, but buried as well. The Groundhog Day Storm simply crushed any hopes I had of getting out – even for a short ride. Our town of Newton broke a 122-year-old Garden State record for snowfall in one day – coming in at around 36 inches. We couldn’t win the state football championship? For a bit, it seemed we had alternating days of sun and snow over and over again. Perhaps the Groundhog Day Storm was aptly named. For sure I did get behind my “go-to” machine for this time of year. 250ccs, wide handlebars, throttle, 6 forward gears (two reverse) and a dim headlight - the mighty Arien Snow Blower. Looking to be ‘Poser Extraordinaire’ – we spent a sleepy summer morning adding Backroads livery including some pinstriping and gold flames to the Arien. Yes, our snowblower got blinged. Knowing this might be the only thing I got to ride with handlebars for a bit I put on my Aerostich jacket for some extra protection from the frigid temperatures and the equally discontented squirrels that were eyeing me warily. It reminded me that spring would eventually be coming – but, still a long way off.
The Monday of the storm was the first time I truly felt confined and a bit sequestered. Up until then, other than the month of May, which seriously staggered both Shira and me, we had worn the pandemic lightly on our shoulders. We followed the rules; as laughable as some of them were. (Sitting at the restaurant table was okay, but walking to the bathroom required a mask – as if the virus lived only at the altitude of 6-feet or higher) The months became seasons and then we were in the dark deep of winter with the snow falling at an alarming rate. I don’t have to tell you this. You, more than likely, remember the whole thing. But it seemed to keep on coming. The Polar Bear Grand Tour, allowing for riders to create Plan B & C, still seemed to get out – they are a hardy and determined group. When I was able to ride the GS out into the snow on a sunny gift from the Weather Gods Zeus, Ba’al, or Raijin or simply a timely high-pressure front from Canada, I really could not head out that long as the sun was already heading to the far west – but it did allow for a great digital moment. Monday nights became more bikefriendly and both informative and refreshing as Ken Condon, from Riding in the Zone Motorcycle Training (as well as a columnist for MCN & Motorcyclist magazines), held weekly hourlong Zoom weminars touching on a wide variety of riding subjects – such as trail braking, counter-steering and other skills and techniques we could all ponder as we waited for that first real spring morning. Thank you Ken & Mike for doing this. Each day when and if it got warm enough to trudge to the barn I’d get out and play mechanic and over time took care of several nagging issues with our bikes and the required winter-time farkling – all in anticipation of the new season. Continued on Page 46
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
WHATCHATHINKIN’ SHIRA KAMIL
Don’t Be a DeBBie Downer Like many of you, each morning I get a smattering of e-news from a variety of sources; motorcycle, economic, food, science, etc. Some of these overlap, such as Popular Mechanics. The topics found in their teasers range from the hottest SUV to how difficult it would be to land the Perseverance on Mars. This particular Saturday, the topic that caught my eye was ‘The 7 Best Motorcycles to Ride This Year.’ Hell, I want to know, let’s take a look… Before seeing what Alexander George, author of this article, had to offer as his top seven, there was this: Editor’s Note: A motorcycle is a good way to travel without risking exposing yourself or others to COVID19. But riding is more dangerous than driving, which means every time we put on our leathers, we might need help from a doctor or EMT. Before you ride, check whether your area’s hospitals have recovered from recent outbreaks and can save you after a tank-slapper. Holy cow, Mr. George, way to be a Debbie Downer! Listen, as a magazine publisher and advocate of what many see as a dangerous pastime, lifestyle, mode of transportation, whatever you may call it, I realize that ‘we’ have to cover our asses and put up a firewall to possible lawsuits if someone who reads our words or follows our routes gets a boo-boo, but this just rubbed me the wrong way. It’s been a year now and, from almost the beginning of ‘social distancing,’ everyone who rides a motorcycle has said that it was the perfect way to practice it. One of the only good things that came of this was the temporary open roads when everyone was staying home and locking down, leaving we riders to explore unhindered and without some of the dangers brought on by careless drivers. Yes, we did still have to deal with the wildlife, which was out in abundance, but the quietness and serenity of entering Walpack Valley, stop-
Page 5 ping the bike and just hearing the ticking of the cooling motor was beyond. One of the first questions I ask someone who says, ‘I think I’m going to learn to ride a motorcycle’ is how they are as a car driver: aggressive or timid. More likely than not, an aggressive car driver will adapt nicely to the constant attention needed as a motorcycle rider. If they are a timid driver, that will not bode well as a motorcyclist. Quoting from Bernt Spiegel’s ‘The Upper Half of a Motorcycle’, ‘Intimidated riders are bad riders, and frightened riders are worse.’ I think that we as riders realize and take to heart the ‘potentials.’ But I don’t think that is in the forefront of each and every ride on which we embark. I really can’t think of any time I threw a leg over the saddle and thought, ‘I should check on the hospital situation before I head out.’ Similarly, the thought of a ‘tank-slapper’ is NEVER in the forefront of my riding. Because I continually take training and strive to better my riding, I hope that when I am riding on the open road I am implementing everything I’ve learned and concentrating on that, not ‘Holy Shit, I may crash at any second.’ I have been on rides and tours where there have been those ‘glass mostly empty’ people, always looking for the worst, worrying about the downfalls (literally) and, ultimately, having a pretty crappy time. The one that comes to mind is a ride we were on in Baja. The group was diverse, but most had at least some offroad experience. One fellow from Manhattan, let’s call him Bob, started out on a weird note when we had our first meal together and he pulled out an endangered fish list, off of which he would not eat. Notch one. When the rest of the group was ready to head out the next morning, Bob was nowhere to be seen. Brian went looking for him and found him meditating in his room. Notch two. Later on, in the trip, there was an option to ride some of the Baja 1000 route. Not being a fan of sand, I opted out and Brian, the fantastic husband that he is, chose to ride with me (I knew he really wanted to go with the boys…). Arriving at the appointed lunch meeting spot, we waited…and waited…and waited some more before Continued on Page 46
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
ON THE MARK MARK ByERS
Hello GooDBye If you have never been to a Backroads rally, you will not understand. Once you have been to one, you get the impression that you’ve been adopted by a big, weird, multifunctional family (some functional, some dis, but mostly workable). Not everyone gets along famously, but everyone gets along to a degree. Brian and Shira are the parents who understand the vagaries of their brood from long experience with some and brief acquaintance with others, but generally with love for all. You have to work really hard to be a total outcast. Oh sure, we have our cliques - people who enjoy riding with each other, perhaps because of a compatible pace or love for particular kinds of motorcycles, but when the day is done and the fire is lit, there’s a convocation. One of my fondest memories is of Jon bringing his Ovation guitar to the front porch of the Ghost to entertain us. Then Brian joined with the inn’s guitar, as did Roy, who plays incredible harmonica with
one hand while he manipulates a glass of good scotch with the other, and it became truly magical. Carina the innkeeper came out to share the good times and the fine whiskey flowed like the tunes and it was so special that I wanted to capture its magic lightning in a bottle. Our ancestors told tales around the fire since we communicated with grunts and gestures and cave paintings, and we’re no different. We might have gone our different ways during the day, but when evening comes and dinner is done and the wine flows, so does the conversation. “Where’d you go today?” and suddenly we’re exchanging tales about the whom and where and when and how far. Or maybe it’s personal time and we catch up on each other’s progress through this life we’re given. “How’s your daughter, you know, the one that came with us to the falcon place?” One of the amazing things about the Backroads crew is the incredible diversity of professions and classes and thoughts and lifestyles, all brought together under the aegis of motorcycling. Sometimes we pace like nervous parents awaiting kids overdue for curfew when one or more of the tribe hasn’t returned by the time we think they should. I remember three tardy souls staggering into a bowling alley, hours late, with a tale of flat tires and impromptu stream fords created for a Gold Wing. Fortunately, they’d called ahead to assure their friends that, while they were facing travails, they were going to be fine. We don’t like it when one of the children of the motorcycle is in peril. Sometimes that peril is very real and there’s a bike in the back of a truck at the end of the day. If it’s a non-injury mishap, we “take the piss” as our English friends say and the bike ends up in the back of a Sprinter van, swaddled in gauze hastily purchased for the occasion at the local pharmacy. The yuks are yuks of love and relief in those cases. We’ve been very fortunate that most of our mishaps have been minor ones, but the odd serious one causes the clan to rally around and make sure the unfortunate one is swaddled in the very real gauze of our concern and love. Even if a past mishap or illness means a family member has to come by car, they’re still celebrated as part of the group.
It’s a very sad day when a member of the brood is missing and, in hushed tones, their departure from this adventure is shared. Given our demographic, comprised of more experienced souls, it’s inevitable that the old hunter fate will eventually connect. Whether it’s “natural” or from a mishap or even just a farewell to the occupassion we call motorcycling, it’s a sad day when one of our family is no longer part of the gathering. The other thing that is sad is when our gatherings have to end. Departure mornings are a melancholy time because I want the magic lightning to continue. I want it to be the “Endless Summer” but life’s not like that. I’m frequently one of the last to leave, wistfully watching my family depart the parking lot, never knowing what life may bring to them…or me. Backroads rallies are a family reunion and the zeitgeist of them leads me to conclude that you should always say “Hello” like you haven’t seen someone in years and say “Goodbye” like it’s the last time ever. ,
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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BACKLASH What’s in a name? Hi Brian, I’ve been meaning to send you this photo for quite some time. It’s the first thing I thought of after reading your article on unique street names. By the way - this is in Lake Hiawatha, NJ. tom
My Hometown Brian and Shira, Greetings from frozen New Hampshire. I was interested to read your account of the Fall Fiesta 2020 in your recent edition, only to learn that your tour group stopped and had lunch right here in my little town of Wolfeboro. If I had known that you were going to be in town, I would have been happy to greet you and join you for lunch, in which case I might have been able to regale you with some of the history of our town, like how it got its name, for instance. It might have provided you with some material for your weird history pieces, which I always enjoy. Anyway, if you get up this way again I will keep my eyes and ears open as to whether you are passing through. Keep up the good work. Dave owen Dave, Believe me, when I realized our friend Jeff was bringing us to your town I thought of it, but had no way of contacting you. Really nice place you have! We hope to be back that way come the season. ~ed. Dear Shira and Brian, I writing you in support of how you both continued riding during the pandemic and did not curl up in the basement afraid to move on with your lives.
Letters to the Editor I recently retired as a deputy chief of a career fire/ EMS organization and one of my responsibilities was operating our EMS system. During the height of the pandemic it was overwhelming, however, our brave men and women continued to come to work. They didn’t call out sick and some did get the virus. When they recovered, they returned to duty. Many members still took vacations, used proper precautions and enjoyed themselves. I commend you for not living in fear and reliving your exciting experiences for us to enjoy. George Kuhn, Blairstown, nJ Hey guys, hope all is well. Love the rag, please keep it coming! I do have one suggestion/request. Can we eliminate the pics of you folks in masks? 1. It denies us the reader the pleasure of your smiles. 2. We get enough doses of the mask reality with all the political chicanery we have to wade through on a daily basis. 3. It’s just plain depressing in an uplifting sport such as ours. All the best, John “the Breeze” Furiato John, We agree – many of the images are from a few months back when things were a bit dire. Personally, I have gotten to the point that I, like so many – maybe you too – am done. We did all we were supposed to do and they keeping asking for more. My NEW mask I will wear costs hundreds of dollars, flips up and down and has a Backroads logo on it and is DOT-Approved. Thank you for a positive attitude and being in the total right direction!
Backroads Report Milestone Wow! 150 issues of TBR! That’s a terrific accomplishment. This has become one of my most anticipated Saturday morning reads. Love the variety it contains. I’m looking forward to the next 150 weekends! larry c.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
IN DU STRY INFOBITES 30TH ANNIVERSARY PARTNERSHIP FOR HONDA AND RIDE FOR KIDS On Sunday September 12, 2021, riders across the nation will join forces on a single day to support the 28,000 children and teens living in the United States with a brain tumor or central nervous system tumor. The new nationwide Ride for Kids Day announcement comes with the celebration of American Honda’s 30th anniversary as the presenting partner of Ride for Kids. As the nation’s longest running charitable motorcycle ride, Ride for Kids has raised millions of dollars to support research and family programs for children battling brain tumors. Local rides have traditionally taken place on various days throughout the year. After having to adjust in-person ride events to a virtual experience in 2020, the Ride for Kids community’s goal is to elevate awareness and fundraising by hosting every ride across the nation on September 12, 2021, and capitalizing on the outpour of support for children battling brain tumors during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Ride for Kids also offers a virtual doit-yourself component for riders anywhere who want to ride in support of children with brain tumors. For 30 years, Honda has walked alongside the PBTF in the search for a cure, providing critical funding for family support programs and medical research. According to PBTF, the investment of partners like Honda has allowed the organization to fund over $47 million in pediatric brain tumor research to date. “Since the first event/ride in 1991, Honda knew that this was a perfect match—motorcyclists around the country getting together and raising money
News from the Inside to help support the cure for childhood brain cancer. It’s a way for the on-road and off-road riding communities to team up for an important cause. One aspect of the Honda Philosophy is to be a company society wants to exist, and our partnering with the PBTF on Ride for Kids provides us the opportunity to keep strong bonds with society,” says Chuck Boderman, Vice President of General Administration, American Honda. Registrants and fundraisers can win Honda motorcycles, ATVs and/or sideby-sides, along with other fundraising incentives. The event offers top fundraisers additional incentives. National and local corporate sponsorship opportunities are also available. To take part in Ride for Kids, gather additional information or donate, visit www.rideforkids.org.
HONDA GOES ELECTRIC? The electric motorcycle industry is slowly growing. Manufacturers like Zero, Energica, and even Harley-Davidson have electric motorcycle products. But it appears that electric motorcycles are on the back burner for the “Big 4” Japanese manufacturers. Or are they? If a recent patent filing is any indication, Honda may be leading the electric Japanese pack. The application shows a profile view of a bike that looks quite similar to their existing CB125R internal combustion engine (ICE) bike. And if they can lift most of the non-powertrain components from their little bike, the path to production should be shorter.
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
MORE ELECTRIC FUTURE Honda announced that the company has signed a letter of intent with KTM AG, Piaggio & C SpA and Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. to set up a Swappable Batteries Consortium for Motorcycles and Light Electric Vehicles. In the context of the Paris Climate Agreement and the transition to electromobility, the founding members of the Consortium believe that the availability of a standardized swappable battery system would both promote the widespread use of light electric vehicles and contribute to a more sustainable lifecycle management of batteries used in the transport sector. The aim of the Consortium will, therefore, be to define the standardized technical specifications of the swappable battery system for vehicles belonging to the L-category; mopeds, motorcycles, tricycles and quadricycles. and services to customers through competition.
E-BIKE BUYERS GET TAX CREDIT THROUGH 2021 If you’re thinking about buying a new electric motorcycle this year, and you live in the USA, here’s some good news: the federal tax credit that went into effect for new electric bike models at the end of 2019 has been extended until January 1, 2022. Any electric motorcycle that can go at least 45 mph is eligible for a 10% tax credit, up to $2,500. Electric motorcycle owners new and old should also know that, at the same time that the electric motorcycle credit got extended, the 30% EV charger installation credit was re-upped by the federal government as well. For 2021, you’re eligible for a credit up to $1,000 for home installations and up to $30,000 for business installations on new EV chargers.
DOUBLE-DIGIT MOTORCYCLES SALES DURING 2020 In spite of the economic and health uncertainty posed by the Coronavirus pandemic for the bulk of 2020, the powersports sector experienced an 18.4% increase in sales for the year. The double-digit growth was owed largely to a big bump in off-highway bikes and ATVs, which jumped 46.5% & 33.8% respectively, but new-model motorcycle and scooter sales were also up 11.4% over 2019, according to the Motorcycle Industry Council Retail Sales Report.
Page 9 “Overall, the industry had a good year under difficult circumstances,” noted Erik Pritchard, president and CEO of the Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC), stating; “The COVID-19 pandemic forced all of us to be nimble and to make the changes we needed to survive. In the end, many in the industry saw strong growth, and now our opportunity is to keep all of these new riders riding and to inspire even more people to join us on two, three, and four wheels.” This positive turn after years of dwindling sales figures, with the industry as a whole reaching in every possible direction to inspire a new generation of dedicated riders, is quite encouraging, and hopefully the trend will continue into the future.
MOTORCYCLE TAXI INDUSTRY CAUSING KIDS IN AFRICA TO QUIT SCHOOL Difficult times have forced African youngsters to put their studies aside in favor of making a living driving motorcycle taxis. Many people rely on motorcycle taxis to go about their daily lives, and this unconventional means of public transportation fuels the livelihood of many individuals in developing countries like Asia and Africa, with lots of people making a living solely from ferrying people around aboard their motorcycles. Now, the unfortunate global disaster caused a massive shutdown of nearly all schools, giving kids a lot of idle time as laborers were left jobless and without a stable income to support their families. So, students have begun dropping out of school and instead are getting into the motorcycle taxi business. As it turns out, kids would rather spend their time outside working, and ferrying food deliveries or people from point A to point B, than stay at home taking online classes. Idleness paired with affordable Chinese motorcycles has lured kids as young as fifteen to buy their own bikes as an investment to earn a living. Naturally, the key to a developing region is education, and an uneducated future population poses a severe challenge to an already struggling economy, but at this point in time it appears there’s simply nothing else the African youth can do to sustain themselves and their families until schools reopen.,
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
Frontline Eurosports Presents
B IG CITY GETAWAY aDventure aquarium 1 riversiDe Drive, camDen, nJ 08103 844-474-FisH • aDventureaquarium.com Several years ago, I was searching for a good book. I like getting recommendations as they point me in all different directions away from my go-to detective novels. This particular book was found at an overnight, where the exchanging of books was encouraged. The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery explores the emotional and physical world of the octopus and the friendships the author develops with the Enteroctopus dofleini, giant Pacific octopuses who live at the New England Aquarium in Boston. I found the insight into this creature fascinating, its intelligence amazing and the antics described very entertaining.
daytrip ideas to get out of the daily grind Since then, I was on the search for an octopus encounter. How incredible would it be to interact with them? While still looking, we came up with the next best thing; a trip to the Adventure Aquarium in Camden, NJ with their own Pacific octopus Callisto. Originally called the New Jersey State Aquarium, which opened in 1992, it was transformed and reopened in 2005 as the Adventure Aquarium featuring over 8,000 varied creatures with over 2 million gallons of tank space. The large and well laid-out facility sits on the Delaware River across from Philadelphia and very near the Battleship New Jersey (plan on a stop here if it is open). There is plenty of parking (at $10/day) across the street as well as a deli next door that will make you a smokin’ sandwich. Upon entry, you can pick up a map to guide you through the many sections on two floors. We chose the route taking us directly, more or less, to Callisto. Heading up, we entered Zone D and Hippo Haven. Button and Genny, the resident Nile Hippos, were busy doing laps in their large enclosure, stopping every now and then to pose for the required snapshot. These 3,000 lbs. mammoths are quite agile in the water but they are NOT swimming, as the children’s book Hippos Can’t Swim; and Other Fun Facts will tell you, they are kind of galloping through the water. While it appears as if they are swimming, they will always touch something while making their way around the enclo-
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
Page 11 sure, which is their source of propulsion. I thought they looked like portly astronauts doing a moon walk underwater. This was just one little tidbit but I found that I learned a GREAT deal in our day at the aquarium. Following the little footprints, we continued on to the 550,000-gallon Shark Realm. But right before we rounded the bend, we came to the raison d’etra, Callisto’s tank. I did a double-take as there was a sign saying, ‘Sorry I missed you, I’m on vacation.’ Hmm, where do octopuses go on vacation from an aquarium? While I was very disappointed to have missed my visit, I am a glass half or whole full kind of person, thus being happy to enjoy those creatures there and realize that I could make a return visit another day. The Shark Realm was totally immersive with over 20 sharks and 200 other animals. Walking through the 40-foot shark tunnel, it truly felt like you were in their world. There was one little tike there who was totally overwhelmed by these hunters seeming as if you could reach out and touch them. His squeals were hilarious and made the experience that much more enjoyable. Before leaving the world of the Selachimorpha, we made our way over the 81-foot Shark Bridge, a v-shaped rope suspension bridge over the Shark Realm. It gave a whole different view looking down on those dorsal fins. Usually, the gift shop is the last stop before the egress, but here it was so we made a quick pass through on our way to the other side of the first level. Here you will find the Piranha Falls, Little Blue Beach (home to Australia’s Little Blues, the smallest penguins in the world). Sea Turtle Cove, and the Ocean Realm. These two movie-screensized windows capturing the life within 760,000 gallons of seawater is mesmerizing. My personal favorites are the loggerhead sea turtles, and Bob, their female loggerhead,
Page 12 was certainly on point with her greeting duties this day. The remainder of the first level will have you petting sharks, stingrays and other critters and seeing some beautiful, strange and downright adorable creatures like Cottonwick Grunt and Rooster Hogfish (we were sure they had been in some spaghetti western at one time). The second level is geared more for the little ones but will have adults entertained as well. Perhaps the most fascinating creature I saw were the seahorses, a most delicate fish. No matter what your preference there will be something at Adventure Aquarium to keep you involved, entertained and saying, ‘Hey, I didn’t know that.’ As of this writing, date and time reservations are needed to visit. They are open every day, Monday-Friday 10am-4pm and Sat/Sun 9am-5pm. Admission is $31.99/adult. There is food available on-site. And please say hello to Callisto for me and tell him/her that I’ll be down to visit very soon. ,
APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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G REAT A LL AMERICA N DINE R RUN
tasty places to take your bike
tHe swinGinG BriDGe restaurant 16071 Paint BanK roaD, Paint BanK, va 24131 540-897-5099 • www.theswingingbridge.com Along the stunning bit of pavement that Old Dominion calls Route 311, near the intersection with Route 600, you will pass through the town of Paint Bank, which to us seems an odd name for such a pretty place. There’s a saying you may have seen on t-shirts “I survived Route 311” to reach “the end of the world—Paint Bank, Virginia.” This is both a humorous and a serious warning. Route 311 West, driving out of Roanoke or Salem, first crosses Catawba Mountain, and remains a winding, two-lane drive that offers risky encounters with deer, falling rocks, and hairpin turns for which signage will wisely advise speeds as low as 20 miles per hour. Slow, Look, Lean, and Roll! Paint Bank got its name from the iron ochre and red clay taken from the banks of Potts Creek that was used by Native Americans, notably the Cherokees, as war paint, and to make their pottery with a distinctive red color. The town was a bustling railroad depot nearly a hundred years ago and remained a small town with a baseball field and a few small businesses into the 1950s, but as the boys came home from WW2, soon followed by the younger brothers returning from the Korean Conflict, it became obvious that most of them only came home to visit. Just a fortunate few remain full-time residents, but hundreds more consider it home. Today, Paint Bank remains as a stroll back into another time, and is appreciated as a homecoming place for the generations descended from the founding families, as well as a popular destination for today’s motorcyclists - and our stop on this month’s Great All American Diner Run, The Swinging Bridge, makes an excellent stop for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Celebrating over 10 years of bringing serious homestyle good cookin’ with a Southern gourmet flare, The Swinging Bridge dining experience is well
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
worth the ride over the mountains and through the woods and is right along the way for this year’s Spring Break Rally. Besides…how many restaurants have an actual swinging bridge inside it? If you arrive early The Swinging Bridge offers superb breakfasts with dishes such as their delicious three-egg omelets and the Manly Man Breakfast: Two eggs, two buttermilk pancakes, two sausage patties or two strips of crispy bacon. Add in Josh’s Cheesy Grits and you will be set for the day. But, for something really special try one of The Swinging Bridge’s “Biscuit” breakfasts. Their biscuits are truly special. The Swinging Bridge features a variety of buffalo dishes, as well as delicious, mouth-watering BBQ ribs and chicken, perfectly prepared in their locomotive smoker. The Bison Burger was awesome. For the traditionalists, they have Sunday Dinner - Pan Fried Chicken - and many other family favorites, like their Blue-Plate Specials (Fridays) and Prime Rib Saturdays. During the warmer months, you can dine outdoors in the screenedin back porch that overlooks historic Tingler’s Mill, which is open for visitors. If there is a short wait for your table, enjoy some outdoor game time with horseshoes or corn hole, and work up your appetite! The Swinging Bridge is a very rider-friendly place and has become a popular stop for locals and touring riders in the know. On most Thursday nights during High Season, local musicians play great country and bluegrass music for your entertainment. After your meal, go upstairs to stroll across their real swinging bridge, check out the wildlife display and visit the General Store that is worth the ride all by itself. If you arrive later in the day you might want to take a look at The Depot Lodge just down the road as they have a number of lodging offerings including a caboose, glamping, an airstream trailer and a number of cabins. We highly recommend The Depot Lodge. (www.depotlodge.com) The Swinging Bridge is open Friday & Saturday from 8 am to 8 pm and Sunday 8 am to 5 pm for now, but come the Spring they will be open all week. Check hours before heading over. For those riding with us this May for the Backroads Spring Break here is a GPX route that will bring you through some serious backroads, a stop at Tuggles Gap Restaurant on the BRP, a stop at Frontline Eurosports in Salem, VA and lunch in Paint Bank. Side stands up at 9am for those who want to join me. , Link to download GPX and PDF printed route: www.sendspace.com/filegroup/ lHG9susDbfl5eoZqatGXcq
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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Morton’s BMW Motorcycles Presents Dr. Seymour O’Life’s MY STERI OUS AM ERI CA tHe DeatH oF assassin tHe HuntinG anD Final moments oF JoHn wilKes BootH Along Route 301, a rolling and picturesque roadway cutting east through Maryland, you will see a small historical sign. Most pass these by, but we make it a point to stop, for this one especially. The bold raised type simply says – Assassin’s End – and this began our quest for the end of the murderer of one of the United States most beloved presidents, Abraham Lincoln. As we all know, on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, Booth had come up behind President Lincoln at the Ford’s Theatre while he was enjoying the play Our American Cousin, and yelling “Sic Semper Tyrannus! (Thus always to tyrants!) The South is avenged,” he shot the President and then he jumped onto the stage, snapping his leg - yet he was still able to flee on horseback. While this was going on the mayhem that was occurring at Secretary of State William Henry Seward’s home deserves its own article. It was not good at all. Much of Booth’s escape route from Washington following the assassination was pre-planned. Supplies for his flight were left in advance at a tavern in Surratsville, Maryland, and under the guise of being interested in purchasing land in the area, Booth scouted possible routes through the Zekiah Swamps several times in the months prior to the assassination. What Booth didn’t plan on, however, was breaking his leg after leaping from Lincoln’s balcony onto the stage at the theater. In considerable pain,
Booth and Herold were forced to detour to Dr. Samuel Mudd’s house where his leg was set and a pair of crutches were procured. Even with his leg set, however, Booth and Herold’s escape was slowed and they were largely reliant on the charity of fellow Confederate sympathizers. The manhunt for John Wilkes Booth was the largest in U.S. history, to that time. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton directed the investigation, dispatching over 10,000 Union troops to conduct the search and placing a $50,000 bounty on Booth’s head (worth approximately $750,000 in 2021). The fugitives slowly made their way through southern Maryland and into Virginia and eventually arrived at the farm of Richard Garrett, a tobacco farmer near the town of Port Royal, on April 24th. Booth told Garrett that he
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was a wounded Confederate soldier by the name of “James W. Boyd” and that he and Herold were heading home after the Battle of Petersburg. Garrett later claimed that he was suspicious of Booth’s story but also unaware that Lincoln had been killed and that there was a manhunt for two assassins, so he provided the two men lodging in his tobacco barn. By then, Booth and Herold had been on the run for 12 days. Luther Baker, one of the detectives, told the two fugitives they had five minutes to come out, or the men would set the barn on fire. Booth asked for “a little time to consider it.” At that point, Booth and Herold weren’t even sure who their would-be captors were, apparently holding out hope that they might be sympathetic Southerners. Booth twice asked them to identify themselves but was told only, “It don’t make any difference who we are. We know who you are, and we want you. We want to take you prisoners.” Booth refused to come out, but attempted to negotiate, citing his leg injury: “I am a cripple. I have got but one leg. If you will withdraw your men in line 100 yards from the door, I will come out and fight you.” Told that the men who surrounded him hadn’t come to do battle but simply to arrest him, Booth tried again, this time asking for just 50 yards. Again, his request was rebuffed. “Well, my brave boys, prepare a stretcher for me!” Booth replied, in what the second detective, Everton Conger, remembered as a “singularly theatrical voice.” By now, Booth’s accomplice had decided to give himself up. After some bickering with Booth, who denounced him as a “damned coward,”
APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS Herold appeared at the barn door and surrendered. But Booth remained behind, hiding in the shadows, heavily armed with a pair of pistols, a large Bowie knife, and a carbine, or short-barreled rifle. Meanwhile, according to Conger’s account, the detective had snuck over to a corner of the barn, twisted a piece of rope into a fuse, and ignited some of the hay covering the barn floor. The fire spread rapidly, and Conger, peering through a crack between the barn’s slats, saw from Booth’s facial expressions that he realized it would be impossible to put out. Booth, Conger said, “relaxed his muscles and turned around and started for the door.” The next thing Conger heard was a shot. When Conger reached the barn door, he found detective Baker with Booth, who had suffered a serious neck wound. Conger first assumed that Booth had shot himself, but Baker told him he hadn’t. He was shot by a soldier named Boston Corbett. The two men carried Booth from the burning barn and set him down in the nearby grass. Soldiers moved Booth to the porch of the farmhouse belonging to the Garrett family, whose tobacco barn they had just torched. There, Booth struggled to sip water but managed to speak in a whisper. In unrelenting pain, he repeatedly begged his captors, “Kill me! Kill me!” A local doctor, summoned to the scene, pronounced Booth’s condition hopeless. He died at about 7 a.m. His body was swiftly taken to Washington, D.C., and secretly buried in the city’s Old Penitentiary, where Herold and three other Booth conspirators would later be hanged. Four years later, President Andrew Johnson returned Booth’s body to his family. Today, John Wilkes Booth is buried in an unmarked grave in the Booth family plot at Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. Thus ended the story of the largest manhunt in US history… and becoming part of Mysterious America. , ~ O’Life Out!
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
WE’RE OUTTA HER E tHe lily inn anD tHe very Historic city oF BurlinGton, new Jersey As always, we are out searching for great escapes. An interesting inn, B&B, or hidden away hotel. Sometimes something special can be in plain sight. Especially if you are looking for a place with warmth, charm, and centered in a town with more history than you would think. Not many know that at one time New Jersey was actually two colonies. In 1664 King Charles II of England gave a large slice of American Seacoast to his brother James, Duke of York, who in turn presented the part we now call New Jersey to two Court friends, John Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. Both transactions were highly irregular if not downright illegal – for the land belonged to Holland. The King made it legal by declaring war on the Dutch and capturing New Amsterdam which he renamed New York. For nearly 40 years the Dutch had controlled New Netherlands from Manhattan Island while for a few years Swedes held sway on the Delaware. But with a stroke of a pen, Charles wiped Holland from the American map so that today there’s little to show that either
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a weekend destination keeping you on the backroads Dutch or Swedes, or even the original owners, the Lenape, ever lived in New Jersey. England dominated from Maine to the Carolinas. Founded in 1677, just 20 miles north of Philadelphia, along the shore of the Delaware River, Burlington is steeped in American history and was the capital of West New Jersey (for the record – Perth Amboy was the capital of East New Jersey). With historic sites like Burlington Island, the location of the first murder in New Jersey, to the birthplace of naval war hero Capt. James Lawrence House, who was famous for the saying “Don’t Give Up the Ship!” His home was next door to where James Fenimore Cooper was born, although he moved to upstate New York before he was two-years-old. The most famous resident of Burlington was surely Ulysses S. Grant. His home can be found at 309 Wood Street and is beautiful and far more humble than we thought it would be. He lived here with his family before his Civil War victories at Vicksburg and the Battle of the Wilderness. Having declined the Lincolns’ invitation to attend a play at Ford Theater, the Grants were on their way back to Burlington the night of President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. And there’s the storied Blue Anchor Inn, which hosted an arm-wrestling match be-
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
tween Ulysses S. Grant and Abraham Lincoln at its bar during Lincoln’s campaign for president. We have still not found out who won this match but Grant, at the time, weighed just 140 at 5’ 8” and Lincoln was a very big man for that time, at 6’ 4” and 180+ pounds. We’re putting our money on Lincoln even if he never lived in this great town. The oldest pharmacy in the state (1854) can be found here as well as a great number of restaurants, wonderful old homes, and buildings, one of which is a superb Bed & Breakfast called The Lily Inn. You’ll find The Lily Inn at 214 High Street, just east of the river, at the
beginning of the Historic Downtown section of town. This home is over 300 years old and is surrounded by history, but we think it deserves its own special mention. Rescued from a severely dilapidated state by Eugenia & Murray Sonstein, the couple purchased the building in October, 2007, to create Burlington’s first bed and breakfast. The Lily opened for business in March 2009 and continues to help preserve the past. They did a magnificent job. Sadly Murray, known official as the Town’s Hugger (they have a certificate), passed on, but Eugenia, who goes by Genie, keeps The Lily in stunning shape. Walking in is truly like stepping back in time. The home has original white cedar hardwood floors, 10’ ceilings and blue marble fireplaces. The inn offers five unique rooms, from the beautiful Mary Smith to their amazing suite, The J. Howard Pugh. All rooms have Wi-Fi, beautiful bathrooms, and feature stunning and period amenities. There is plenty of free on-street parking in front of the Inn or in the lots across the street. We stayed in the Mary Smith which has a comfortable four-poster queen bed and overlooks the garden. This room has a working gas fireplace, as well as a large walk-in shower with very comfortable and soft towels. The bed was very cozy and quite high. How those people from back in the day, who were smaller than us, ever did this I don’t know.
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
Page 19 There are sitting rooms and a large and relaxing outdoor area, which must be stunning in the other three seasons. In the morning, we enjoyed talking with Genie, and the company of Lucy, her little furry canine companion, and she offered us “The Best” coffee and packed a breakfast of great bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches, yogurt and juice, as we had miles to go that day. During normal times, a lovely breakfast is served in the dining room or outdoors when weather permits. Before we left Burlington, we grabbed a walking map of town and did a little history tour of the sites to be seen in this wonderful burg. The Lily Inn has that marvelous combination of being comfortable and inviting as well as having a strong dash of spectacular. Mix that with the gracious hostess, who truly welcomes motorcycles and motorcyclists, along with the town’s deep, deep history and you can see why we think The Lily Inn is simply a winner! As is this ride from one of our favorite restaurants in New Jersey - Thisilldous, in Belvidere. Say Hi to Mike (the one with the cool mustache) and enjoy a seriously great breakfast before heading south for 80 miles to the Lily Inn in historic Burlington. ,
the lily inn 214 High street, Burlington, nJ 08016 888-900-5459 • thelilyinn.com Download GPX: www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/i8e45l
We are looking forward to a great riding season in 2021 and want you to join us. Our Spring Break Rally is around the bend (May 16-22) - if you haven’t made reservations DO IT NOW as rooms are going fast. We will also be holding our Summer Squeeze in West Dover, VT August 16-18. Visit our Rally website (backroadsusa.com/rallies.html) for all the details.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
Petey wHeaty’s 145 s main st, new city, ny 10956 • 845-708-5030 • peteywheatys.com oPen tue-tHur 4-9Pm • Fri-sat 2-10P • sun 2:00-8:30Pm It’s been a year since the word ‘pandemic’ hit the streets. I can easily remember the date as it happened on my 60th birthday. Happy F’in Birthday to me! The country is moving on and testing the waters to opening its doors, getting back to some sort of full capacity and seeing who has kept their heads about them when so many have lost theirs. This statement will come in to play a little later… I keep a list – a very long list – of ice cream spots I’d like to get to some day. This particular one was not on it, but Brian, being the everdiligent sleuth, sniffed it out as it is a nice ride from Backroads Central. With the snow disappearing, the roads clearing up and the temps becoming bearable, it was time to get back on the bikes and out exploring some tasty destination for all of you. So this month’s Inside Scoop, care of Mr. Rathjen, not only features some great ice cream but some excellent fried chicken – a perfect combination, in my book. Petey Wheaty’s (not quite sure how they got this name) opened their doors in May of 2018 and has become a staple of the community. They occupy a corner on Main Street in New City, NY with parking and outdoor picnic tables to enjoy your meal, ice cream or both. They have about 30 handcrafted flavors from Gillette Creamery, in Gardiner, NY, including some dairy-free and soft serve. Getting back to the opening paragraph, a posting on their Facebook page from Feb. 27, 2021 says: ‘In March of 2020 we were all presented with the very scary and very real news that a global pandemic had struck. As a family of four, we noticed our town was nearly vacant. People were scared, without jobs, unsure of what was to come next. We decided as a family to open our doors earlier than any other year. We quickly updated online buying platforms, bought dozens of masks, gloves, bottles of sanitizer and thermometers and made strict guidelines to safely serve the town who has served us. Our customers have been a blessing. Thank you for believing in us. Thank you for spreading the word, leaving us kind reviews, ordering from us through our window, curbside and online services even with the financial hardships you yourself were going through. Thank you for laughing with us, giving us reasons to smile and being loyal and understanding. We are nothing without you. To all other small business out there… whether you were able to stay open or sadly had to close your doors… we are thinking of you today and always. We stand by you, we are rooting for you and truly understand what you have gone through.’
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
Page 21 With a work ethic and business outlook like this, how could you not want to visit Petey Wheaty’s for a big scoop of ice cream? And even more enticing are the creative flavors they have to offer – such as Devil Dawg, Graham Slam Cracker, Peanut Butter Craze and Trash Can. You can get any of their flavors in a beautifully-crafted sundae, ice cream sandwich, sandwich box or simply plopped in a waffle cone or cup. Their toppings are numerous and make for a very complete dessert. One of their signature dishes is the Shamster Shake – their take on a delicious thick ‘n creamy milkshake with your mix and match choices of their 30+ flavors and several toppings. According to them, there are over 450 possibilities – that will keep you coming back for a long time. Another creation on their menu is the Apple Pie Roll Sunday – not sure what’s in that, but it sure looks great. And they have recently started serving up, what they call, donuts to die for. Stick a scoop of ice cream on top of that and that’s what I’m talkin’ about!
Don’t forget that I mentioned their finger-lickin’ good fried chicken, which comes in 4, 8 or 12-piece servings with buttermilk biscuits. To go along with your Southern meal why not try one of their sides: mac & cheese, sweet mashed potatoes or southern baked beans? There are also some tasty dipping sauces should you opt for the chicken tender meals. If you are in the New City, NY area, or just looking for a nice lunch ride with some great ice cream for dessert, point your tires to Petey Wheaty’s. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. ,
DON’T SUFFER FROM FOMO FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR UP-TO-THE-MINUTE NEWS • IMPROMPTU RIDES
www.facebook.com/pages/Backroads-Motorcycle-Touring-Magazine
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A month or so ago, we posed the question on our Facebook page to all women riders: Why do you ride? Here’s what we heard…
Helene Darvick I ride for the fun factor, the huge grin that magically appears on my face as I let out the clutch and glide into first gear. I ride for the risk factor. I ride for the challenge of mastering the constantly
changing flow of everything around me. I ride for the moment. This moment; over and over. I ride for the thrill of the synchronicity that happens when moving on a beautiful backroad and even better on a mountain road in the middle of nowhere. I ride for the pure joy that it brings me. I ride for my life!
Lisa Veliath There are so many reasons why I ride, that it is hard to pin down all of them, but here is an attempt. I ride now because I was once an 8-year-old girl riding on the back of my Uncle Yezdi’s Road King 250cc 2stroke in South India and thought that was the absolute best thing I had experienced in my life. For me riding now is more than a hobby, but rather a lifestyle that I cannot imagine living without. It is fun and exhilarating riding a bike through a corner using a manual series of inputs and to feel the sensation of forces pulling at you. There is a feeling of unlimited independence and freedom by riding down the road not felt by any other mode of transport. Traveling by motorcycle to explore new local environments, is the best way to immerse yourself in new places, that doesn’t happen by car. There are times when riding has presented incredibly challenging circumstances, either from needing to ride through bad weather, or some physical obstacle. Later comes a feeling of pride and grit of getting through the hard times, that makes for a great memory and story. I love riding different types of bikes from supermotos to sportbikes since each have their unique performance strengths. I also have great satisfaction on wrenching on my bikes to maintain them and customize them. I have met so many people, and made many friends over the years through motorcycles and riding. I consider them to be as close as family (particularly the Backroads crew). There is no denying the huge social aspect of this sport,
despite it being a highly individual activity. In fact, I met my fiancée because of motorcycles. Lastly, I genuinely love the technical elements of self-improvement and life-long learning that this pastime provides, by going to a track school and honing your skill to become a better, more confident, safer rider. This includes the gratification of witnessing your skill improve over the years with checking off the things you can incrementally accomplish. But overall, I ride because nothing else provides me with quite the same feeling of pure joy, exhilaration, and fun.
Siouxzanne Harris I ride because I can! My HS sweetheart worked at a gas station pumping gas and wrenching on cars (remember when you could have your car serviced at a gas station?? I’m talking 1974) He also worked on cars at home .- primarily Saabs (the Saab 96 was popular then) Our relationship mainly consisted of me looking at his feet sticking out from under or the car bent over the engine compartment. I was charged with fetching. “Get me that 10mm 6 pointed wrench” or “get that torque wrench, set it to 70 ft/lbs” So I came to love working on cars. My first car was, of course, a 1967 Saab 96. 3 speed manual transmission: “Three on the tree” as it was called. I loved the feeling of changing gears and accelerating, watching the RPMs rise up until it was time to shift again. I loved the sound and developed a smooth progression through the gears. Drove that Saab from NY to Minnesota to go to Art college where I met a woman from NY who had a BSA Motorcycle. I became her friend and one day she asked if I wanted to ride the bike. We went to the Honeywell parking lot (it must have been a weekend because the lot was almost empty). She showed me the controls (shifter on the right, brake on the left) and off I went. Soon I was doing figure eights and grinning ear to ear. Shortly after that she came by one day and told me she had to move back to Long Island and did I know anyone who wanted to buy her bike. Well duh, well played. She had me hooked. I called my mom, told her I needed an extra $250 for text books (HAH!) and soon was the proud owner of a BSA Gold Star single. I loved that little bike - and with only one cylinder it was easy to take care of. Thus began my 47 years of riding motorcycles. I have had 17 motorcycles to date and still do most of my own wrenching. I enjoy the vestibular stimulation of shifting gears (I’ve always had manual
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021 transmission cars as well) and leaning into curves. I love feeling the temperature change on a country road when you ride from sunlight into shade. I love the smell of flowers and trees blooming, people having barbeques in their back yards, and dairy farms. When I am riding I cannot think about anything else. It is very Zen. No past, no future, just the here and now. I once tried listening to music on a ride. I hated it. I need to hear the engine and everything around me. I know these days there are lots of “women’s groups” with women riders talking about how they are a minority and how they are changing the face of motorcycling. I don’t consider myself a “woman rider” I never felt “special” because I rode a motorcycle. I just rode. I will continue to ride as long as I am physically able. I have slowed down a bit - being in my mid-sixties and surviving several accidents has caused me to be more cautious. Today’s drivers are so distracted I do my best to stay away from cars and traffic as much as possible. I prefer back roads and weekdays to main roads and weekends. I avoid riding in cities or urban sprawl. It’s still about the revs of the engine, the leaning into curves, and grinning ear to ear.
Shira Kamil This question was posed to me, and all of our female Backroads’ readers, by the person who is ultimately responsible for my riding a motorcycle. But the question, for me anyway, has two parts: Why I started to ride and why I continue to ride. I grew up in a traveling family. Dad was in the education field, so summers were spent away from home – in my early years Ithaca, NY and Burlington, VT, as well as a road trip out west and, later on we sojourned to Europe. So, the travel bug was part of my DNA and as I grew it took a firm hold to propel me around this wonderful globe.
Page 23 I dated a guy in high school who rode a Triumph – I believe it was a Bonneville – and I always looked forward to our outings on the bike. This was LONG before I knew anything about motorcycles, protective gear and touring. But that was my introduction and it held a place in my heart and memory. Putting these two pieces together brought me to why I ride. For those who have been reading these pages for a while, I have given my riding history so I’ll keep it brief. When I met Brian, the only mode of transportation he had was a Suzuki. When he asked me for our first date, which happened to be to Shea Stadium to see our beloved Mets, he assumed we would take my car. ‘Hell no!’ I said. ‘We are going on your motorcycles.’ The exhilaration and joy of those earlier times sitting pillion came flooding back. Fast forward some years, other motorcycles and many miles, when I decided that I should know how this two-wheeled conveyance operates should I need to use it at some point. Brian’s attempt to teach me did not go well so off to the MSF it was. Certificate and motorcycle-endorsement completed, I made the choice to move to the pilot’s seat and have never looked back. Backroads was born a few years after, which solidified my need to ride. But need and want are very different things. We need food for sustenance but we want great pizza on a Friday night. Backroads not only brought Brian and me around this incredible world but introduced us to some amazing and extraordinary people, many of whom we now call family rather than just friends. I have had the opportunity to ride many machines, to advance my riding skills and push my comfort envelope.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS I continue to ride because of all these things. I continue to ride for mental health. I continue to ride because there are places I have yet to visit. I continue to ride because there is more to learn and more to experience. I continue to ride because it is now a part of me, of who I am and what I want in my life for as long as I can.
Pamela Collins Why do I ride a motorcycle? A question posed to me recently about my 20-plus-yearold ‘recreational pursuit’ forced me to ponder my response because—well, there is no simple reason “why.” It just “is.” I just do. No questions, no wondering. Like breathing. After all these years I have absorbed the byproducts and effects of this sport like a body absorbs sunscreen, enjoying its benefits with no questions asked, expectations met. Now, let the reflection and navel-gazing begin. To start, I can say many of the typical reasons motorcyclists put on their “why I ride” list are not on mine. I don’t ride to feel the wind in my hair. I wear a full-face helmet and full protective gear and always have a windscreen on my motorcycle. I don’t find gusty windy weather pleasant, especially when trying to keep in my lane of traffic and not in the one with the semi-truck barreling the other way. Not to mention the knots in my hair. Nah—the wind imagery doesn’t work for me. I don’t ride to “rebel” or be “counter-culture” or show off my “independence.” I also don’t ride to be “cool.” I do what I like because I choose to, not to specifically please or displease anyone (go ahead, call me ornery). As to the perception of a woman rider being exceptionally sexy, or cool, or unique, or even special—just give it up. Aren’t we passed that yet? Honestly, the last thing on my mind while wearing an armored textile suit in sweltering heat or a drenching downpour is “sexy.” I also don’t ride to feel free. Surprised? Feeling free, to me, doesn’t involve intensely concentrating on road surfaces and cambers, left-turning traffic, a surprise 8-point buck running across the road, or avoiding a wet patch of leaves to stay alive. That requires focus, thought, command of body and mind, the opposite of a loosey-goosey, don’t-have-a-care-in-the-world, breezy roll down the highway. For that feeling point me toward some sand with a Margarita in my hand. Sure, motorcycling lets you break out of your
four walls into the outdoors, but I guess I’m fortunate my particular walls never feel trap-like. I also don’t ride because my significant other, my husband, in this case, wants me to ride. When he reentered the sport after a 30-year lapse, buying a Honda Shadow Ace edition, I supported him—as long as he let me be. I never thought/dreamed/wished/lusted about or after motorcycles. Period. So that’s my long list of non-reasons to ride. Back to the why. Mom and Pop, it’s all your fault. “Going for a ride” became a Sunday family ritual. Where? Nowhere in particular—really. Country or mountain roads in northeast Pennsylvania called and we answered, if only for short jaunts that might end with ice cream for one lucky kid. Safe to say, the anticipation of those Sunday rides never left me. Nor has the memories of that awesome-seeming world I first experienced, peeping out the backseat window of that brown 1960’s Chevy Impala. That anticipation especially returned when climbing on the pillion of my husband’s Honda ACE. Little rides turned into longer rides and I wholeheartedly enjoyed the experience. I told people I felt like I had just shaken the hand of life for the first time, saying “it’s nice to finally meet you.” Hooked, and content, on the back of the bike. So, Tim, yes you are partly to blame for this riding habit. Then, SHE happened. At Florida’s Biketoberfest she seductively curled her finger my way and I responded. Astride the just-unveiled silver and purple 1998 Yamaha V-Star 650 Special with low seat height and light weight, I bestowed the Goldilocks seal of approval. Just right. Twenty-three years, several hundred thousand miles, and nine bikes later I offer that, to you, as the reason why I ride. While every motorcycle journey has highpoints, low points, and points in between, they all present life on life’s wonderfully crazy, haphazard, and surprising terms--not mine. Some hit like a pie in the face, others quietly creep, but the adventure awaits, challenging me as to how I’ll respond and react. Humans very easily get caught up in themselves. Their private orbs spin full of personal problems and travails, feeling their life is a limited world. Myself included. But-Mountains, oceans, forests and farms, skyscrapertipped cities, or a charming small town. Ride a motorcycle and life slaps you across the face with a wake-up call, a cold-shower reminding that we are but a wee bit on this earth, and to get over ourselves. A big picture exists, we own just a tiny place in it. I’ve written about riding as long as I’ve ridden, and rereading past pieces one phrase turned up most often— “this gift.” Yes, I ride because motorcycling is a priceless gift to me that’s new every time I unwrap it, a bow-tied box filled with sagas and adventures, big and small, shared with people I love, some I’ve never met, or sometimes alone. But every mile that motorcycle odometer turns means one mile I haven’t sleepwalked through my life. Those miles add up to well-lived moments. Those moments turn into well-lived days. And all those days… make for a life well-lived. That’s why I ride. Thanks for asking. ,
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
PRODUCT REVIEW
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DENALI AUXILIARY LIGHTS & ACCESSORIES FROM TWISTED THROTTLE
Making the Perfect Motorcycle More Perfecter!
UP FRONT Denali D4 2.0 and DM 2.0 TriOptic LED Lights and Denali SoundBomb Air Horn At first, I thought of just installing the set of Denali D4 lights, but after seeing them on, they not only added additional lighting but made the bike stand out in traffic so I opted for both sets. With the larger D4 lights mounted on the upper engine guards and the smaller D2 lights on the forks.
When I took possession of a new 2021 BMW R1250GS I promised I would not go overboard with farkles, gadgets, and upgrades. But, as this long winter showed up and settles in I found myself perusing the web in the usual dangerous spots, one being Twisted Throttle. I had spent a bit of time riding last season with GPS-Maven Paul Donoghue and freelance writer Jeff Kurtzman, with both of their GS machines having identical Denali Lights from Twisted and both were running white light up top and Denali D4 2.0 • $399 smaller amber lights down below. These made them extremely noticeable These LED lights come with DataDim technology and are and very easy to keep track of when I glanced in my mirrors. incredibly powerful, shining over 800 feet down My last GS had several tiny upgrades about it and though I did promise the road to the edges and beyond. myself I would not jump into the Pond of Farkle, it seems that promises were The D4s have four 10-watt made to be broken. Cree XPL Hi-LEDs that proAlthough the new GS has far more impressive illumination than previous duce a piercing beam of models, lighting is also about conspicuity. I want drivers and pedestrians to light, yet combine to use just SEE ME – even if it annoys them a bit. So, it was not long before I began to 6.6 amps for both lamps. talk with Twisted Throttle about what they had and what would work well The new 2.0 generation on this machine. features the industry-leading Thus, began a long process of ordering additional lighting both upfront TriOptic lens system. Right and in the back, along with a far superior horn. out of the box the D4 is fitLet’s go over the bright additions one at a time. But, before I do, please ted with True-Hybrid lenses note that this particular machine, a BMW, has a CANbus electrical system, but any of these Denali Lights or accessories can be used on just about any machine as well. 1269 DOLSONTOWN RD The Controller just makes it that much easier. MIDDLETOWN NY 10940 Denali CANsmart Controller • $259 Being a CANbus machine it would need an additional ‘Controller’ to help all these additions play nicely with each other. The BMW is a fairly “smart” machine and this small controller allows you to harness the flexibility and intelligence of your BMW motorcycle’s CANbus electrical system to make installation of accessories drastically cleaner and easier.
Truthfully, simply plug the various accessories into the correct, color-coded plugs and everything works – perfectly. Any shade-tree mechanic with common sense and the ability to read directions can install the Denali CANsmart Controller and the brake light, LED lights, and horn. The Controller provides plug-n-play installation and integrated control of up to four accessories to enable dozens of customizable settings that can be controlled right from the BMW “WonderWheel” or the CANsmart Accessory Manager Software. The CANsmart’s four circuits are preprogrammed to connect and independently control two sets of DENALI 2.0 lights, a SoundBomb horn, and their B6 auxiliary brake light. However, their Circuit Function Selector will let you run any accessory of your choice on any of the four circuits. This small and easily mounted device can be re-programmed to suit your need with a PC or Mac laptop and is hidden easily under the saddle or another convenient place, is truly amazing and well worth the investment as it allows for so many options that I will mention as we go forward.
845-343-2552 • WWW.CYCLEMOTIONINC.COM Cycle Motion is your provider of motorcycles, ATVs, scooters, and utility vehicles by Kawasaki, Suzuki, Polaris, yamaha and Can-Am. With a large parts department, qualified service technicians and a full shop of parts and accessories, we're here to meet all your power sport needs. For every rider - on or off road, whether they like doing it in the dirt, carving the twisties, or cruising the backroads, we have their weapon of choice.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
providing a combination of spot and flood patterns in each lamp. This configuration gives you 560 feet of forward light and 140 feet of visibility to the side. That’s almost 600 feet to read a road sign and 140 feet to see the deer lurking among the bushes. Also in the box are lenses that convert all four LEDs in each lamp to a spot pattern resulting in a tight distance-focused beam brilliant out to 800 feet while still retaining a 110 foot beamwidth. Want a third option? Do what I did - install one of each lens to your D4 pair to get a Spot-Hybrid configuration that offers 625 feet of maximum distance with a 140 foot beam width. Using the brackets, also available from Twisted Throttle, they mounted easily and simply plug into the corresponding plug from the Denali CANsmart Controller – as everything else did as well. Denali DM 2.0 LED Lights • $285 I bought these more for conspicuity than actual light down the road as they are small and light enough to comfortably mount on a fender – yet still throw out considerable illumination. The DM Lights are built into aluminum housings that are only 1.7 inches in diameter and 2.4 inches long, yet they contain powerful 10-watt Cree LEDs providing nearly 400 feet of useful confidence-inspiring light. These Denali D2s Lights feature durable black powdercoated finishes and special cooling fins to make sure the LED itself runs cool and bright. We (myself and ‘tech in training’ Shira) first switched from the clear lenses to a set of amber ones and then mounted the DM Lights low on the forks, near the brake calipers. From the front, the GS has a very distinctive look during the day and especially at night with the Denali Lights making a pyramid-style display of illumination that is very, very noticeable. The CANsmart Controller allows me to control what lights are on, allowing them to dim when I have a turn signal on, or even flash at a high rate for a few seconds if I need to grab someone’s attention. All from the left-hand BMW controls. It is amazing, seamless, and truly a Plug & Play operation. Denali SoundBomb Air Horn • $79.98 While we were at it, we added Denali’s SoundBomb Horn Air Horn. Bomb?! Oh, sure, you betcha. Although the BMW stock horn is far better than most other motorcycle horns (some are truly laughable), the Denali SoundBomb is in a league of its own. To be honest, I was concerned when I first held it, as it is far bigger than the stock unit, but as promised if fit neatly up under the steering stem, tucked in nicely with the appropriate bracket. This, too, plugged
right into the Controller and the bike now blasts both the SoundBomb and the stock unit. I am not a real ‘lay on the horn’ sort of rider, but there are times when grabbing the attention of an inattentive driver is necessary. This will be fun; especially as the Controller not only sets off the SoundBomb’s 120dp blast but flashes all the LED lights at the same time. IN THE BACK Denali B6 Auxiliary LED License Plate Bracket Light • $99.99 It seemed silly to have added so much additional conspicuity upfront and to ignore the rear of the GS – especially since phone chatting, asleep at the wheel drivers run into motorcycles at an alarming rate. The B6 LED brake light easily mounts to your existing license plate brake and, again, plugs into the Controller. This extra brake light was purposebuilt to create the most amount of light from the most compact low-profile housing possible. Six 1-watt LEDs are super bright when simply riding around, acting as a running light, but become like the Sun when the brakes are applied. Very, very bright! Think bright. Okay, now think brighter. Depending on your wishes, with the Denali CANsmart Controller, you can program the B6 to flash a bit before staying a solid and bright red or have it simply as an additional brake light. You can also have the light illuminate when your bike is decelerating hard, allowing following riders and drivers to know you are slowing down, even if you are not actually on the brakes.
While we were at it we added another B6 Brake Light to Shira’s Suzuki VStrom 650XT – which was a bit more difficult as it is a standard electrical system and we had some bodywork to remove. We had to wait for a harness adapter which we both thought was necessary to make the installation clean and tidy. This, with her Denali D2 2.0 which she has been running for the last few seasons, makes it a bright and noticeable machine while dealing with traffic, rural riding at dusk, and riding at night. These Denali Lights are very powerful as well, illuminating well over 500 feet down the road, and are made from a special Impact PC corrosion-proof bezel that ensures your lights will continue to look great even after repeated stone and debris impacts. With the addition of all these extra lights we are quite confident that, not only can we illuminate the road in front of us, but let others know we are there whether they are approaching from the front or the rear. The phrase goes “See & Be Seen!” Denali and Twisted Throttle make it easy. Log onto twistedthrottle.com or visit their store at 570 Nooseneck Hill Road in Exeter, Rhode Island, which is well worth making the trip. ~ Brian Rathjen
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
On August 14, 1971, I met my wife Carol at a bar in Brooklyn called the Homeport. She came in with a few other girls, one of whom I knew. The bar was an oval, and she sat down across from my date and me. I was dazzled. When my date went to the ladies’ room, I went around and got introduced. When my date came back, I told her that I did not feel well, and I took her home. I went back to the bar and told Carol that ”I had come back for her”, followed by “Do you want to take a ride on my motorcycle?” (1971 Honda CB-750 K1) The Homeport featured rock bands, probably playing Grand Funk Railroad’s song ‘I’m Your Captain’ which mentions a home port, as we left. (“If you return me to my home port, I will kiss you, Mother Earth. Take me back now, take me back now to the port of my birth.”) Aside from that night, my favorite memories of the Homeport, which was my pub throughout my single years, was their putting a bottle of expensive Scotch (Chivas Regal Royal Salute) on the bar in front of me the last night before I left for Vietnam, and again the first night when I returned, to just help myself. That fateful night, we went to a quieter pub where we could talk. After a while, I took her for a ride through the ‘canyons’ of Wall Street, an eerie and impressive place to be after midnight on a Saturday. We then took the Staten Island Ferry (first kiss!!!), crossed the Verrazano Bridge and went to my parents’ house in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. There we sat on the floor in their living room, listened to music and talked until about 10 AM. I took her home, but she had me drop her off at the corner of her block. I had not shaved nor had a haircut since I returned from Vietnam. Between that, the bike and the time of day, I think that she was afraid to have her mother meet me. I had come home from Cam Ranh Bay in May of 1970 with a 1969 Honda CL-350. I upgraded after about 9,000 miles to the 750, after I realized that the 350 was too small for travel. I rode it one day from Washington D.C. to Brewster, NY, 300 miles, and that convinced me. I was so thrilled with the 750 that I put 1,000 miles on it the first week I had it without ever leaving NYC. I had come home from VN with a dream of riding crosscountry. I was back in college at Columbia University, and I was working my way through school as a high steel ironworker working with my father and brother. After we had been dating for a few months, I told Carol that in the spring of 1972, after I had accumulated $500, I was going to ride to California and back. If she wanted to come, I welcomed her, but I was going to do it. She decided to come along, but with one condition. I had to see ‘Easy Rider’ before we left. After I did, I shaved and got a haircut. Even with that, we two kids on a conservative Honda were often followed by the only cop in small towns from when we entered until we were gone. Any motorcycle was considered suspicious in those days. Carol usually says that she so wanted us to be together that if we were to have travelled by camel, she would have gone. Around July 1st, we headed out. Upon leaving I had the $500 in my pocket, no credit cards and no cell phones. We carried sleeping bags, a tent and minimal clothing, having left NY in hot weather and not being too smart about what to expect ahead. In fact, Carol was wearing a halter top, hip-hugger
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jeans and sneakers. I had on a pocket t-shirt and jeans, gloves and boots. We did have open face three-quarter helmets. The bike had a handlebar fairing, a highway bar, a sissy bar (on which the tent and sleeping bags were tied) and a one-piece pair of nylon saddlebags, which were actually made for a bicycle. Carol sat on the center compartment, which allowed her to move things around at stops to change her pressure points. The trip was uneventful until we got to Badlands National Monument (now a National Park) in South Dakota. The wind gusts out there on the plains were unreal. That night could be described as trying to sleep in a beach ball during a volleyball game. The next morning, when we got on the road, I was panicked by the lack of performance of the bike. I was going full bore at 60 MPH. Then, as we came around a wide sweeping curve, we found ourselves leaned over way too far for comfort into what had been a powerful headwind and which was now a crosswind. We had by then realized that we did not have warm enough clothes with us. We went into a Salvation Army store and bought a couple of sweaters. For wind protection we cut 3 holes in Hefty Bags and wore them. That night, after visiting Mount Rushmore, we rented a room in a hotel in downtown Deadwood for about $5. It had no window, just a skylight, and I had to guard the door at the down-the-hall bathroom when Carol was in there. We visited Wild Bill Hickock’s and Calamity Jane’s graves before we left. From there, we crossed into Wyoming. As we crossed the high plains, we suddenly saw this awe-inspiring wall in front of us. It seemed to appear out of nowhere. It was the Big Horn Range of the Rockies. We climbed up on Route 14 into the clouds, and then into the snow on Alt. 14, crossing our first cattle guards and weaving around the beasts on occasion. We were freezing our butts off. Finally, we came to a lodge/cafe where we sat at the counter and wrapping our hands around the cups of hot coffee.
Page 28 As we sat at the counter, too cold to go on and too poor to take a room, we struck up a conversation with two college students from the University of Iowa. They were doing anthropological research at a Native American sacred site nearby. We were absolutely thrilled to accept their invitation to spend the night in their cabin. One of the guys actually slept on the floor and gave us his bed.
APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS Shortly after we had settled in, as is common in the mountains, the sun came out. The guys offered to show us their work site. They took us on a thrilling and beautiful Jeep ride up into the back country on a road like those in cartoons, rock strewn, precipitous and scary. We saw elk in the meadows below us, and climbed to the top of a mountain, where there was a large circle of stones with lines of them forming spokes as well. To see how it appears today Google “The Bighorn Medicine Wheel”, now a National Historic Landmark with a paved road leading up to it. When we left our guardian angels, on our way to Yellowstone, they suggested that we divert North to Red Lodge, Montana and come down to Yellowstone over the Beartooth Highway. It was a brilliant idea. The Beartooth, rising nearly 11,000 feet, is one of the most beautiful roads in the world. We arrived near the Northeast entrance to Yellowstone and it was literally freezing out. Instead of camping, we rented a log cabin for $2 for the night. Inside the cabin there was a bed with a bare mattress, a pot belly stove, some firewood and a bucket. We were warm and dry (and admittedly did not go out in the cold to use the outhouse). The next morning the temp was in the high 20s. I had to clear ice off the bike before we headed into the park. Yellowstone was and is fantastic. The scenery and wildlife are unsurpassed in America. There were signs everywhere not to approach the animals, and to keep your windows up if you see bears. Of course, we had no windows. When we saw a young
black bear, my Brooklyn honey “had to” get a picture. Young and dumb, we approached the bear on the bike while she got her shots. Our next stop was Jackson Hole. Unfortunately, Carol was feeling like she was getting a cold, so I looked for indoor lodging, but it was Frontier Day and there was nothing to be had. Carol had the bright idea to use her health insurance to get us indoors. We went to the ER hoping that she would be admitted. However, the hospital was rather full too, and she was not ill enough to get in. The ER doctor had told her to disrobe to be examined, but when he came back, he thought that she was a different person. She had been wearing all my shirts, my USAF jacket and a Hefty Bag. He took a liking to us and offered to call a friend who was working at the airport and ask him to find us a place to sleep. In those days, there were no flights in or out of Jackson at night. The doctor’s friend let us into the empty basement of the terminal. I laid out our sleeping bags and Carol tried to rest. While I was outside getting the rest of the stuff off the bike, Carol awoke to being surrounded by curious mice. They too were getting in out of the cold. After she sort of calmed down, we went back to the guy working there and he put us in an office with a couch. Carol never did rest that night. The next day we gave up on the original plan of heading for Crater Lake in Oregon and headed towards warmer weather. However, Carol was falling asleep on the back of the bike. Budget be damned, I turned into a motel in Alpine, WY to get her some rest. Another guardian angel was at the desk. She took pity on us and let us use a room in which only one of the beds had
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021 been used the previous night. Carol slept for a few hours and then we headed towards Salt Lake City. We went from the high 20s to over 100 degrees that day. The next morning, we left the campground near SLC and headed for Las Vegas. The plan was to visit a casino, just for the experience, and then camp outside of town. I got $5 worth of chips to play 50 cent black jack and Carol got $2 worth of nickels for the one-armed bandits. We wound up spending the whole evening in the casino and getting a real room that night on Carol’s winnings. At one point her helmet was so heavy with nickels that she could not lift it. She was wheeling it around on a stool. I eventually lost my $5 but had free snacks (i.e. dinner) and beverages all evening before it was gone. The next day we rode down to LA to an Air Force buddy’s home. Crossing the desert in the daytime is almost as dumb as crossing it at night. Heat vs. critters, choose your danger. I did my only repair to the bike while at his house, but it was due to my error, not any fault of the bike. I had overtightened the oil drain plug when I changed the oil and had cracked the pan. We stayed with friends in the LA area for a few days and then followed the Pacific Coast Highway up to the Bay Area. As we passed through what is now Silicon Valley, we were in strawberry fields. We stopped at a farm stand and bought a peck. As we rode on, Carol was feeding them to me. We stayed at a friend’s place in Walnut Creek and went into San Francisco for a day. The temperature dropped from over 100 to 75 when we went through the tunnel between the cities. In SF we rode to the sites, even going up “down only” streets just for the fun of it, but, of course, down Lombard Street. After having the experience of crossing the desert in the daytime, we left Walnut Creek in the afternoon to travel to Utah overnight. The remaining balance of the $500 was getting very low and we had 3,000 miles to go to get home. It would be Interstate 80 all the way. We stopped in Reno for dinner at a casino, where they would feed you for next to nothing to get you in the building. After walking through the casino to the back where the restaurant was located, we ordered the prime rib special for about $5. We needed to protein up for what was to be a long night, covering over 700 miles from SF to SLC. The meal was great; too great, as it turned out. They had brought us the regular prime rib dinner, which was way out of our budget. When I protested, they told me to take it up with the manager, who was stationed in the cashier’s cage near the front door. We could not afford to lose that fight, so I hustled Carol right out the door and onto the bike. All night long we were nervous wrecks expecting to see flashing lights behind us as we crossed Nevada. As dawn broke, we crossed into Utah and breathed a sigh of relief. We stopped for a break, and while I ad-
justed the chain, I suggested that Carol take a nap. She said that would be impossible as the desert had snakes. Five minutes later, she was stretched out in the gravel sound asleep with her head on her saddlebags. The rest of the trip, 2,300 miles in 4 days, was a blur. The last night on the road we stayed at a campground in Ohio. We arrived after the office was closed and left before it opened. If I had paid to camp that night, I would not have had a penny left when we got home. I had just $3 in my pocket when we crossed the George Washington Bridge.
Page 29 We travelled about 8,000 miles over 4 weeks on that $500 for food, gas (23 cents/gallon) and accommodations. The only repair was the oil pan. We used up 2 rear tires, the saddle, the shocks and the chain, but only the tires needed to be replaced before we got home. The chain made it. It was a once in a lifetime adventure. I once did the math and that trip was the equivalent of years of dating. We were in physical contact in the tent or on the bike, for the better part of 24 hours a day for 4 weeks. That she still loved me after that proved to me that this girl was a keeper. That is clearly true, as we are still together 48 years later. I have by now ridden in 46 states, about 30 countries and several hundred thousand miles, mostly with Carol on the back, but that will always have been our biggest adventure on 2 wheels. I had to sell my bike the last year of law school as my GI Bill money had run out, and even working 3 jobs while I went to school (bartender, waiter and custodian of our apartment house) we needed the money. After a hiatus of about 18 years following law school, to build a practice and to raise our family, Carol and I resumed taking a vacation almost every year by motorcycle. She was, is and always will be my riding partner, through thick and thin.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHTS AND REVIEWS • WHAT’S IN YOUR TANKBAG? CANNONBALL KNIFE FROM KERSHAW We have been carrying Kershaw knives for years and they can be indispensable while traveling or for simple day-to-day use. We consider these to be tools in the trade of life and each one we have had or handled exhibits excellent craftsmanship and durability. Now in 2021, Kershaw has added a new blade that looks to be perfect for today’s rider - the Cannonball. (Hey, you gotta call them something, right?) Tough, beefy, and solid the Cannonball is a standout work knife fit for many tasks. The folder’s frame lock and steel handle provide ideal durability and security. The 3.5-inch drop point blade opens with SpeedSafe assisted opening and features a BlackWash finish that hides hard-use scratches. Its D2 blade steel offers exceptional edge retention for repeated work. With a handle length of 4.5 inches, the Cannonball is just an inch longer than our beloved Scallion (little saber of light it is), but that extra inch makes the Cannonball comfortable to hold, even for larger hands. Yet its reversible deep-carry pocketclip allows it to disappear in the pocket or slide into the side of a tankbag. A custom pivot cap and backspacer add the finishing aesthetic touches to this hard-working Kershaw. You can find the Kershaw Cannonball at finer knife shops or kershaw.kaiusa.com for $79.99. ~ BR
CRUZTOOLS OUTBACK’R M-14 FOLDING TOOL SET What is worse than breaking down on the side of the road? Breaking down on the side of the road with absolutely nothing in the way of tools to possibly get you back and running. Not everybody has the stowage capacity that some machines and riders take for granted. I carry a lot of tools and have, I hope, all bases covered. But, I have another weapon I have been carrying with me on rides. This tool comes from the people at CruzTools – a company well known for its excellent quality and innovative thinking. The Outback’R multi-tool is a must-have for any metric motorcycle, UTV, ATV, PWC, or Snowmobile. The Outback’R M-14 provides 14 tools in a 3.5” long multitool that weighs only 9 ounces. It includes: 3, 4, 5, and 6mm hex keys, slotted and Phillips screwdrivers, a driver with 8, 10, and 12mm sockets, 13 and 14mm open-end wrenches, and 3 spoke wrenches. The Outback’R M-14, retail price just $18.95, comes with a lifetime guarantee, no questions asked, from touratech-usa.com/cruztools.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT We hope to see you soon!
OPEN FOR DINE-IN or TAKEOUT. Visit webpage for menu See daily specials on Facebook. Curbside Delivery Available. Tues: 4-9 • Wed: 12-9 • Thurs-Sat: Noon-10 Sun: Breakfast 9-1/ Lunch-dinner Noon-8
RivertonHotelandRestaurant
the riverton Hotel and restaurant At Belvidere-Riverton Free Bridge, Riverton, PA
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BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
PRODUCT REVIEW
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POCKET TRIPOD PRO FROM GEOMETRICAL • STEADY IN YOUR WALLET
Smart Phones have changed the way we look at photography. The latest generation of these devices would put Star Trek’s gear to shame and take incredibly great images. Approximately 3.5 trillion photos have been taken since Daguerre captured Boulevard du Temple 183 years ago. The global photo count is rising swiftly due to the accessibility of digital cameras and camera phones. Today, more pictures are taken every two minutes than were taken throughout the 1800s. That is staggering. But many of them might be a wasted effort. To get a great image with even the best phone – you need to be able to think, compose and be ready like a photographer. Occasionally even the steadiest photographer might need a little help and carrying a tripod around can be a bother – especially if you are shooting with a Smart Phone. I usually have a small hand-sized tripod for my tiny Nikon W300 or Shira’s Sony Cybershot RX100 but with no way to mount a phone it was useless. We have come across a very cool gadget that not only will hold any phone securely and adjust angles fluidly – this tripod folds neatly to a credit card size and can easily be carried in your wallet. It’s called the Pocket Tripod Pro.
Built from a combination of Carbon Fiber and Injection Molding the Pocket Tripod Pro offers you a way to securely hold your phone for longer exposure, time lapse imagery or simply to allow you to be hand-free for video calls, Zoom meetings or Face Time with family. The Tripod Pro comes with 7 different sized adapters that are easily interchangeable and should fit any Smart Phone or Case and a coupon to get other odder sizes for free. The phone sits on soft contact points that grip the device and it has an Angle Indicator for reference if you are looking for a precise angle for shooting. Although it might seem like a neat little device to simply hold your phone we think of it as a great opportunity for broadening your photographic and imagery mind-set. New angles, new ideas on shooting images is a good thing and will make you and your pictures that much better. We recommend the Universal Kit that cost $35 and is available in five different and sharp colors. Log onto pocket-tripod.com to get yours. ~ Brian Rathjen
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHTS AND REVIEWS MOTOPOCKET 11”X9” MOTORCYCLE TOP CASE BAG A few seasons ago Bob Allen, creator of MotoPockets, showed me a small Top Case Bag he had designed specifically to fit in the lids of most aluminum and plastic top cases, including but not limited to Jesse Luggage, Touratech, Happy Trails, Trax and Givi. The tough bag is 11” x 9” x 2″ and created from 600 Denier Nylon with a silicon lining and extremely water resistant. Netting front offers extra storage and organization. It comes with two 3”x10” 3M High Temperature Velcro strips, installation instructions and alcohol rubs. Two glove-friendly zipper pulls make for easy access. It is a quick and easy install and removable, machine washable, and made in the USA. It is excellent to hold your travel documents, registration, passport or maps. I carry stickers, Zip-Fizz… whatever. Super little bag. To make a good thing even better Bob has now added a high-viz orange bag into the mix. This color makes finding things that much easier. This extremely versatile bag costs just $39.99 and can be found at adventurepockets.com, along with the rest of their very well-made and useful ‘pockets.’
NATIONAL CYCLE VSTREAM SHIELD FOR THE TÉNÉRÉ 700 The new Ténéré 700 is more than just a little brother to the XT1200 Super Ténéré. It’s a lighter, more maneuverable adventure bike suitable to any task. And those tasks are made easier with a VStream Windscreen. Three different sizes and two tints ensure a perfect windscreen for almost every rider size or riding preference. All will offer improved wind protection and riding comfort compared to OEM or other aftermarket windscreens. VStream gets its name from its unique patented shape. The advanced “V” profile and dimensional contours push the wind vortex out and away from the rider’s helmet, resulting in a peaceful, quieter riding environment. These windscreens are made from tough 3.0mm Quantum® hardcoated polycarbonate. This high-quality material, along with state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques, provides outstanding clarity, impact strength and scratch resistance unmatched by any windscreen maker worldwide. Quantum hardcoated polycarbonate is the material of choice for serious motorcycle riders. It is 10X more abrasion resistant than FMR hardcoated polycarbonate, and 30X more than windscreens made from commonly used acrylic or “aircraft plastic”. VStream Windscreens list from $130 to $160, are easy to install and are protected by a 3-Year Warranty against breakage. National Cycle products are made in the U.S.A. See more at www.nationalcycle.com.
WASHINGTON CYCLE WORKS We cater to road racers and support all Track Day organizations One-piece Road Race suits in stock
Offering Service + Setup for Ohlins Shocks with our Shock Dyno www.washingtoncycleworks.com Washington Cycle Works PRIDE. PASSION. PODIUMS.
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BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHTS AND REVIEWS NOLAN HELMET N90-3 MODULAR HELMET We have been sporting Nolan’s modular N100-5 for many years. We have because they are comfortable, well-made and adaptable to our communication system. Their newest addition to the Entry Level in Price Only, the N90-3 builds on the popularity of the N90 Flip Up series with updated quality, comfort and N-Com compatibility at a very competitive price. Features include an ultrawide, pinlock ready, visually correct face shield for larger field of vision, with an included clear anti-fog pinlock lens, VPS inner sunscreen with adjustable positions and fog-resistant treated Lexan, dual action chin guard opening system, easily handled with one hand, Airbooster airflow system with rear air exhaust and chin guard air intake ventilation and newly designed inner comfort padding which is removable and washable. Available in sizes XS – XXL and both DOT and ECE 225 approved, this high-quality, lightweight helmet comes in at under $300 and has a number of solid and graphic configurations. Find yours at your local Nolan dealer or online at nolan-usa.com
SENA OFFERS HIGH HD SPEAKERS Sena’s new Premium HD speaker kits offer a simple and cost-efficient upgrade to the Sena user’s audio experience. The premium HD Speakers offer a significant increase in bass boost, and clarity for a noticeably enhanced audio experience while riding. The HD speakers are also redesigned for physical comfort with a beveled taper to reduce contact with the ear. In addition to the revised hardware of the HD Speakers, Sena will also be launching firmware updates for the 10C EVO & 10C Pro in order to ensure HD Speaker audio quality is maximized. After purchasing HD Speakers users will need to install the latest firmware for their Sena device then update their mobile device’s Sena application and activate the HD Speaker option in the app’s settings. The new Sena HD Headset Speakers sell for around $40 at local shops and the web.
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PRODUCT REVIEW
APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
RKA Luggage Shiloh Road Tank Bag
Great things start in small ways. For over 35 years Rich and Kathy Battles have been creating some of the best and well-thought-out motorcycle luggage in the industry. Unlike larger gear companies that mass produce their products, Rich and Kathy, better known as RKA Luggage, have been making high-quality motorcycle luggage and gear up in beautiful northern California. Over the many years, we have collected several different tank bags, seat bags, and saddlebags from many different sources, but for my machine, I have returned to my RKA Bags – and for a reason. The quality and ease of use. On their website, you will see an assortment of styles and mounting options. For me, I chose the Shiloh 24.5 liter with a three-point mounting system. To be truthful, I simply wanted a new bag for a new motorcycle for, as tough as they are, my old Shiloh bag (that has seen 9 seasons and over 100K + miles) had gotten a bit faded. But throughout those miles of sun, rain, sleet, and general all-around abuse it had never torn, jammed, or failed in any way. I expect the same from the new Shiloh. I chose this particular bag as its angular shape lends itself to a better fit on most adventure-style machines and it sits very well on the BMW 1250GS. This bag is attached with two straps and buckles up front and one in the rear, that comes up from under the seat. Depending on your machine RKA offers two styles or the three-point system which they call “Y” and “F” styles. With the GS’ wide tank the Y worked for me. The bag is made from 600-denier polyester and the bottom a PVC coated polyester Slip-Not material that allows for a great grip without any marring of the paint. Along the side is retroreflective piping for a bit more conspicuity. Atop the bag is a large Lexan map holder, which I use to hold a variety of other things. Stickers, a “Get out of Jail Free Card” and various PBA Cards (thank you, gentlemen). Along the left side is a portal that is very convenient to run power into or through the bag. I use mine to run power to my iPhone. Inside the bag is a Velcro patch for their optional Control Box. I prefer this bag to the other Shilohs as this larger bag has three pockets which, over the miles, have become a part of my “riding system.” They are like my Batman’s Utility Belt. I know exactly what is in them and all these little things are within easy reach. The right pocket: a tube of After Bite, Aleve, Allen keys for my Sena and Jesse Bags, and a few packets of Allegra. The center pocket carries a high-powered LED flashlight, a Kershaw knife, and other smaller items. The left pocket is always empty and is used to keep a small Nikon Coolpix W300 camera for those “on-the-fly” images. The Shiloh has top and bottom sections. The large bottom part, supported by ABS plastic inserts, is very big and carries all sorts of items and is lined with a 3/8 inch foam combined onto a 200 denier giving a good bit of padding as well. The smaller top part has a sleeve and organizer that holds pens, maps, registration and other paperwork, and has an easy-to-use key holder. Off the bike, the bag has a rubberized handle and a shoulder strap to carry it around. SPRING IS HERE! All the zippers are ultra-tough YKK. Make your appointment for SERVICE The bag usually laughs off light rain, but in a downand REPAIR. Please call/email for an appointment. pour, you might consider buying the optional rain cover for $20, which I recommend as NOTHING is totally waterproof. As you can see, the Shiloh is more than a tank bag to me – it is a much-needed tool for work. All in all, the Shiloh Bag from RKA is brilliantly thought out and For 40 years Circle Cycle executed. You can purchase the Shiloh Tank Bag for has helped riders get out $225 from rKa-luggae.com. and stay on the road ~ Brian Rathjen In northern New Jersey there isn’t a friendlier or more knowledgeable staff than ours. We’re happy to help you find the parts you’ve been looking for.
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BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
PRODUCT REVIEW
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GIVI Engine Guards With the cost of the engine covers for a BMW in the extreme, protecting these vulnerable parts is key. Nobody thinks they are going down, or when they ride out of the driveway they are thinking “Today is the Day!” Yipee! When we picked up a new BMW R1250GS, engine protection was the first thing on our mind. Boxer engines are torque little beasts, but - kinda… stick out? We slipped on a new set of high-impact covers from MachineArtMoto, but felt the need for more and so a call went out to our friends at GIVI for a set of their beautiful engine guards. Although rightly known for some of the best luggage in the motorcycle industry, GIVI offers so much more. The GIVI Engine Guards are designed for the on and off-road enthusiast and they grant a rugged and aggressive look as well as offering better overall protection for those unforeseen mishaps. Let’s be real…shit happens! Made from robust one-inch tubing, GIVI Engine Bars are a great addition for the serious motorcycle enthusiast. You can get them in a black powder coating, but we went for the stainless-steel look. Once on they look fantastic. They also make excellent mounting points for additional lighting. We were a little shy about throwing this bike down the road to see how they work – and we hope you understand that. We’ll do everything for you guys – but not that. I will say one thing on the questionable-side. GIVI… better installation instructions would be a good thing for semi-shade tree warriors like me. Everybody wants to be Peter Egan, and drink a bottle of white wine while working on the bike, but your directions had me a bit confused. The wine did not help. Eventually, thank you Chris from WFO, we got it all together. Umm. Chris got it all together. GIVI makes Engine Guards for a wide variety of machines, our cost $410 for the lower bars and $315 for the upper bars; You can log onto their site at giviusa.com to see how they can save you money, aggravation, and stress.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
words + images: Dan Bisbee
emmed in by the Berkshire hills on the west and the highlands of central Massachusetts on the east, the Connecticut River forms the Pioneer Valley. Two centuries ago, folks with leisure time climbed the nearby hills to enjoy the views. Hotels were established on several of the hilltops and observation towers were erected on others to take in the sights. The hotels are gone now and the towers are relics of another time. But the views are still great and can be easily reached on two wheels.
H
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021 As I rode into the Pioneer Valley on the Mohawk Trail, I passed a derelict observation tower. The faded sign boasted of a “Three-State View” but the ticket booth and gift shop were covered over with No Trespassing signs. Sadly, the tower top view is now reserved for technicians working on the cell phone antennas embellishing the sides. Disappointed, I headed through downtown Greenfield and up to the Poet’s Seat Tower. The massive stone fortification seems lifted from a medieval castle and commands a great view over Greenfield. This stone rampart, built in 1912, replaced the original wooden tower. That one was constructed in 1873 to honor Frederick Goddard Tuckerman, a much-admired local poet and writer. He was inspired by the view here and coined the term Poet’s Seat for the rocky outcrop. The view over Greenfield is spectacular and I can understand Tuckerman’s inspiration.
Page 37 I rode back down the hill through Greenfield and headed south on Route 5 and 116 to Mount Sugarloaf. The mountain isn’t very tall but its sheer abruptness sets it apart. The sandstone bluff rises 500 feet nearly straight up above the Connecticut River. The road to the top
is only a half mile or so long, making for a quick ride. A sign cautioned me to watch for children, hikers, bikers and Sasquatch. The view from the summit is even better than the Poet’s Seat. The southern view sweeps over flat farmland, bisected by the river. The valley is known for agriculture and, a half century ago, tobacco ruled the landscape. The distinctive tobacco sheds still dot the countryside and I count at least a dozen.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS The Sugarloaf Mountain House hotel stood here on the summit for over 100 years. Wooden construction and a narrow mountain road meant that once it caught fire, the hotel was doomed. It burned in 1966 and, in its place, a three-deck observation tower was built. The design of the tower is clearly inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater. I descended back down the short steep road, safely avoiding the children, hikers, bikers and Sasquatch. After crossing the Connecticut River to Sunderland, I passed several tobacco sheds before arriving at Skinner State Park on Mount Holyoke. While Mount Sugarloaf was sandstone, this one is volcanic basalt and the ridge runs east to west. The road to the peak was smooth and twisted tightly before ending at a small parking lot for the Summit House. The Summit House hotel was built in 1851 and was accessed by a funicular, a cable trolley, which transported guests up the side of the hill. It was a popular destination in the early part of the 20th century and my grandparents spent their wedding night here. A hurricane in 1936 caused extensive damage and the hotel closed. The undamaged portion of the hotel was renovated into a visitor center and the wrap around deck offers a nearly
360-degree view. To the northeast, New Hampshire’s Mount Monadnock peeks over the hills. To the north, Mount Snow in Vermont is visible. To the west, Mount Greylock looms on the horizon while the Hartford Connecticut skyline can be seen to the south. Immediately to the west the Connecticut river meanders nearby, seemingly at my feet. Across the river, crops grow on the flood plain next to the fairgrounds. Just beyond, the church steeples and brick buildings of Northampton spread across the valley floor. From there, the landscape rises up into the Berkshire hills beyond. The elevation of this mountain may only be 942 feet but it has a million-dollar view. I back tracked to Hadley where I crossed the Connecticut river and headed south to Mount Tom. This mountain was more commercialized than the others with a grand hotel, an amusement park and a ski area. The hotel burned in 1901 and its replacement was consumed by fire in 1927. The amusement park at the
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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base closed in 1987 and the Mount Tom ski area lasted until 1998. Today the mountain is covered with hiking trails. An observation tower on the west side provides a fine view of the town of Easthampton and I climbed up above the trees to take in the view. Not quite as good as Mount Holyoke or Sugarloaf, but still worth the visit. Descending Mount Tom, I continued south to the city of Holyoke where I stopped at Community Field. It’s a typical city park with athletic fields, a playground and a fountain for cooling off and many folks were enjoying all three during my visit. Community Field though, is just one corner of the once grand Anniversary Hill Park. In 1942 the top of the hill was crowned with the 52-foot Scott Tower offering outstanding views. Construction of Interstate 91 during the 1960s cut off access to the picnic areas and the tower. An underpass eventually restored access but interest in the park waned. Now, the picnic areas are overgrown and the tower has fallen into disrepair. I parked and hiked up the access road, past an overgrown stone staircase and abandoned picnic tables until I reached the summit. There, the one proud
Scott Tower rises from an overgrown patch of brush: its lower level covered with ivy and graffiti. The iron gate was unlocked and creaked open when I pushed on it. The interior staircase was illuminated by just a few slot windows. A couple of the concrete steps were missing, making the climb a bit of an adventure. Emerging at the top, the view was mostly of trees, which have grown considerably since the tower was built. The flanks of Mount Tom were easy to see to the north and, to the south, the skylines of Hartford and Springfield were visible through breaks in the trees. To the east was a view of city of Holyoke, filtered by the foliage. The interior of the observation deck was graffiti-covered and the ground around the base was littered with shattered glass bottles. There have been plans to repair the tower but there always seems to be something more pressing for town dollars. In its current condition, nature or vandals will probably cause its demise. As I headed back home, I realized that today’s ride took me through a few generations of history. In the 19th century, hiking to the hilltops was a popular pastime. In the early 20th century, the mountaintop hotels were in vogue. As automobile travel increased, the roads and towers became prevalent. Now? It seems hiking is back in style. The way we get to the summits may have changed but the views endure. ,
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
2021 Triumph Tiger 850 Sport Introducing the perfect combination of dedicated 850 Tiger triple engine set-up, and tailor-made high specification equipment and technology, for intuitive and all-day easy-riding capability. Developed from the latest generation Tiger platform, with all of the dynamic poise and agile handling that the Tiger is known for, combined with a new ‘tailor-made’ performance and specification set-up, designed to deliver even more manageable, accessible, and intuitive road-focused adventure riding capability. The new Tiger 850 Sport shares the same innovative T-plane crank as the latest generation Tiger 900 range, with its own unique 850 tune. Designed for a more accessible and manageable delivery of usable power and torque, the new 850 delivers enhanced all-around easy-riding versatility for commuting, touring, or just having spirited twowheeled fun at the weekends. The T-plane triple crank and its 1-3-2 firing order give the 850 triple outstanding tractability at low rpm, which translates into an enhanced connection between the
rider and the rear wheel, and responsive and intuitive road-riding performance. This new and unique engine configuration has an incredibly distinctive sound, with the throttle characteristics and feel of a twin lower down, married to the rich and responsive torque delivery of a triple in the mid-range and top end. Peak power comes at 84 HP @ 8,500 rpm and peak torque is 60.5 lb-ft @ 6,500 rpm, with a
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
smooth and linear power and torque delivery available from low engine speeds and across the rev range. The responsiveness of the engine is complemented by the slip and assist clutch, which reduces lever effort and provides additional comfort on both long journeys and in urban environments. The new Tiger 850 Sport comes equipped with a tailor-made set-up of high specification technology as standard, all selected for enhanced user-friendliness, confidence-inspiring riding, and safety. The Tiger 850 Sport features a high contrast 5” full TFT display, for excellent visibility in all light conditions. Key information is presented to the rider in a clear and intuitive way. The two riding modes, Road and Rain, adjust the ride-by-wire throttle response and traction control settings for enhanced control in all riding condi-
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tions. The traction control is switchable and may be deactivated independently via the instrument menus if required. The headlight, tail-light, and indicators on the Tiger 850 Sport are LED powered for maintenance-free active safety. We have always thought the Triumph Tigers were excellent machines. They handle superbly, are light and easy to ride, have plenty of useable horsepower and their styling is spot on. We have never met a Triumph Tiger owner that was not in love with their machines. It seems some more love stories are about to be written. The new Triumph Tiger 850 Sport start at $11,995 and come with a 2-year unlimited mileage warranty and class-leading 10,000 miles service interval.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
Eli Walgrave It’s 9 PM, we’re just leaving Akita city, and we have a solid two more hours to ride through the mountains before we get anywhere near our hotel. “Mio, why in the world did you book a hotel that far out?” I ask my traveling buddy. “Why didn’t you make a reservation at one in Akita? You knew we were going to be here for the concert.” “Fair enough.” Well, I guess that settles it. The time is 8 AM, mid-May, in the prefecture of Miyagi, Japan. I’m waiting at a convenience store for my friend to arrive. I’m in the middle of my breakfast when I hear the telltale rumble of her ancient Kawasaki Eliminator 250. After parking, Mio grabs a small breakfast and we break out the Touring Map to figure out our exact route. We are debating whether to head to the ocean and then go north or to turn north in Yokote and cut through the mountains. Route 14 to Akita is boring, but it’s a bit more efficient. We’ll worry about it after lunch. Our current plan is a two-day, ocean-to-ocean trip across the two largest prefectures in Japan. But to even get that far, we have a four-hour ride north to make. Why are we putting ourselves through this? Well, I had happened to listen to a band on Youtube. The band was relatively local. They were playing a concert in their home city. I didn’t want to go alone, so I asked my buddy Mio to join me. A one-day trip would be brutal without using the expressway, so we would make it a much longer trip. That would allow us to ride from the Sea of Japan to the Pacific Ocean. From there, we would ride back down south and head home. Simple trip, we thought.
We hit the road at about 8:30 AM, heading across Kurihara city via Route 398. Easily the best road in the area, 398 itself is a great day trip. As we pass through the town of Hanayama, I have to marvel at the natural beauty of northern Japan. It reminds me of the bluffs of the Mississippi River Valley, my home in Minnesota. As we leave the town, the road goes into what I like to call the “forest section.” 398 snakes through a forest, leading up to a climb around Mt. Kurikoma, the tallest
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021 mountain in Miyagi. It’s one of the most popular roads in Miyagi for riders. Makes me glad I live close by. We rise out of the forest, coming to a bridge closing the gaps between several mountains. Mio honks her horn, the stop signal, and I pull over on the shoulder of the bridge. “Hey, it’s picture time,” she says. No argument from me. I mean, I didn’t bring my camera along for nothing! Around the time we enter Akita prefecture, we start feeling a bit peckish. We pull over at a small rest area and plan our attack. “There’s a really famous noodle shop in Yuzawa. If you want, we can go there,” she says. Her tone implies that she would very much prefer to eat that over anything else. “Sounds fine to me! I’ve never had it,” I reply. We follow 398 into Yuzawa city until we come across the restaurant, Sato Yosuke Shoten. According to Mio, it’s the flagship store of a chain that sells Yuzawa’s unique food. In Japanese cuisine, noodles are extremely common. However, I have never had noodles quite like these. The noodles are udon, a usually thick, chewy noodle made from wheat flour. However, unlike normal udon, these are thin and served cold. You choose what kind of sauce you want, and you dip the noodles in before you eat them. I choose Thai curry, because I have no respect for tradition in noodles, obviously. Mio has some kind of soy sauce-based thing that also involves an almost raw egg. I politely decline to try it. We break out the map book and decide that we should head north through Yokote via Route 14. After our delicious lunch, we continue onwards, only getting lost once. Route 14 is a long, straight, road. To say riding it is uneventful would be a criminal understatement. While it may be boring, it’s pretty effective for getting us to Akita quickly. We arrive at our destination at about 4 PM, with plenty of time to spare before the concert.
Page 43 As it turns out, the concert has about 8 bands playing. Luckily, our band is the second. I check out the merch booth, and a small girl is tending to it. I recognize her as the lead singer of the band. “Which band are you here to see?” she asks me. “I’m here to see Hold Out Hope. My friend and I came all the way from Miyagi to hear them play,” I replied. She got a really happy look on her face and told me to wait a moment. She ran out and came back a few seconds later with the keyboard player. We chat a bit, and now we are friends. The concert with a local band. This is a local band that never makes CDs, only playing their music live. They walk out, setup, and launch into their songs. They stop for nothing as they tear at the audience with some truly brutal thrash metal. They finish their last song, and leave saying only “See you later.” The second band is Hold Out Hope, the entire purpose of our trip. They are a pop-punk/easy-core band from the city we are in. I had thought their music was great when I listened to it on Youtube, but hearing them live was a next-level experience. They play with such a huge amount of energy. The singer, Haruka, has a huge amount of energy, and she seemed unphased after their 30-minute set. I was impressed at how good they performed live. I was mostly just excited to see a band I really liked in person. Especially since they had been so friendly and wanted to talk to me. The journey to Akita made everything happening much better. Two more bands come on, and they are pretty good. One is called Sadistic Cherry Boys. Also, a local band, seem to be bringing in all the people. It’s a fairly standard modern Japanese rock band. After that was a duo band from Fukuoka. They are good, but not particularly memorable to me. After their set, Mio said they were her favorite, aside from Hold Out Hope.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
Around 7:15, Mio and I bid farewell to the band. There are still 4 more bands to go, but we have to eat and get to our hotel by midnight, and we have a ways to go. I’m curious what the other bands are like, but I have already accomplished my goal. We get dinner at a ramen shop the band recommended to us, Kaze Ramentei. It’s fairly standard ramen, but it’s done exceptionally well, and the price is great. As we are about to arrive at the highway, Mio honks her horn and we pull over. “What’s up? I ask. “So, I’m running on reserves. I don’t think I can make it to the hotel without gassing up,” she says. This presents a problem, as it is about 8:30 PM, and most gas stations are closed. We panic for a second and search Google Maps frantically for a gas station that is open. Through sheer luck, there happens to be one on our route out of the city. After that mild scare, we throw on our night layers, preparing for the cold. However, no amount of preparation could get us ready for the ride ahead. It was rough, to say the least. We burn down the road through the mountains as fast as we safely can. It’s 9 PM, we have a 2-hour ride, and we are getting a bit run down. Being late on a Saturday, there’s no traffic on the highway to Morioka city, the area our hotel is in. That was the lucky part. The unlucky part was that the temperature in the mountains varies wildly at night, at times almost freezing us in our warm weather gear, even with our extra layers. While normally, having lights change to green as you arrive is a good thing, because of our exhaustion, we both just wanted to stop for a few seconds. Yet, we could not justify pulling over until we arrived. After two grueling hours, we finally arrive. We stop at a convenience store and buy snacks and alcohol, as there are no places to drink that are open late near the hotel.
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We enter Shizukuishi, and I immediately realize why the hotel was so cheap. The distinct smell of sulfur marks this place as a natural hot spring. The hotel was cheap because it’s a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn. We check-in, go to our room and discover that not only is there no temperature control, but there are very few modern conveniences at all outside of the lights. With no choice, we pound our booze and snooze. The next morning, we hit the hot spring, check our gear, and prepare to cross to the ocean. It’s sweltering as we cross the valley to Miyako. I could hardly believe it was so cold the previous night. We stop for lunch at a road station and eat darumen, a thick marrow-based noodle soup. We continue on through the valley along Route 106. I can barely describe the impact this road had on me. The entire road runs along the Hei River. Through luck, we group up with another crew of riders who are heading towards the coast. It’s hard for me to focus on going to Miyako since every single turn leads to an appealing road. It’s hot and muggy, but we are traveling at a decent pace for keeping cool. We pull into a convenience store for a quick break and some ice cream. It was at that moment that we had a genius idea. “Hey Eli,” Miyo says. “Hey what,” I say.
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
Page 45 the bay a little bit. But we decide to head out before the sun goes down, making sure we get back before it gets dark. Mio takes the lead, and we take the Sanriku Expressway south. She, however, mishears me when I say we need to go on Route 243. She hears “343” and exits accordingly. It’s not a major setback. We simply take the mountain road instead. It ended up being a good idea, as we got to up going on a spiral bridge, the only one in the area. To get back to our next goal, Ichinoseki city, we decided to take a less popular backroad. This was a great idea. I mean, until the sun went down. Suddenly, this wonderful road lined with trees and farms became a rather creepy scene. It didn’t help that someone was burning their field refuse. Despite the eerie light from the field and the smell of smoke wafting through the trees, we make it through the spooky, spooky forest.
“What if we swapped bikes until Miyako. You ride Elimi (what she called her bike), and I’ll ride the VTR,” she proposes. “Sure, why not.” After swapping bikes for a bit, and another hour of riding, we make it to Miyako. Riding a 250cc cruiser is an interesting experience. It had an inlinefour engine, so the torque was a bit less than the v-twin in my bike. I was in for a shock, however, when it turned out to be way faster than I was expecting. That thing can go. We go straight for Jodogahama, a famous beach in the area. We play around at the beach for a bit, even riding a pedal boat into
We keep heading toward Ichinoseki city, and when we arrive we stop for supper and celebrate with steaks. We decided to eat at Hilltop, a steak shop in Senmaya, where we grilled our steaks over charcoal. The beef from Iwate is some of the best in all of Japan, and since it was local here, we got it super cheap.
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS At long last, we make it back to Wakayanagi. I bid farewell to Mio, as she still has to return to Sendai city, another 30 miles. I head back home and promptly pass out on my bed. From the moment that I watched their video, I knew that I wanted to see that band. I don’t know what it was exactly. Their music resonated with me in such a way that I felt almost compelled to go see them. And so, we crossed coast to coast, covered 500 or 600 hundred miles in 2 days, and froze our butts off in the middle of the mountains. All for a concert. ,
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Continued from Page 4
Many a night was spent near the fire with a cup of hot chocolate or Basil Hayden and reading books – jumping between reads like The Upper Half of the Motorcycles, Jack Reacher novels, and any ‘real’ motorcycle magazines that still dares to print and ended up in my mailbox. We all know this winter was a tough one, made that much more tedious by the pandemic. I write this right around Valentine’s Day and I hope by the time you read this that the snow will be a fading memory and spring buds will be starting to pop. As we roll into the spring, I hope to see you rolling on the roads. For me, I can’t ride away fast enough from this winter of our discontent. , wHatcHatHinKin’
Continued from Page 5
eating and heading on our way to Rice and Beans, our stop for the night. I had had a little incident so I sipped a frozen margarita and iced my foot while waiting some more for the arrival of the Baja 1000 group. Dusk set in and we finally saw some headlights coming down the drive. Rich, a very experience dirt rider, reacted to Brian’s questioning look with a shrug and roll of the eyes. Not too far behind Rich was the back-up van carrying a bashed-up Bob. He had taken a pretty bad tumble and his trip was over. It was a few days before he could get on a plane back home. What has this to do with Mr. George’s opening statement? When making a decision to do something that is beyond your envelope, look at where you are, think about what the consequences may be and how your actions may affect those around you. Bob apparently did not have the skills to attempt this particular ride and, being in a remote area with limited medical access, put himself and the rest of the group in a pickle. If you prepare, train and become as proficient a rider as you can, your mind can remain on your riding rather than having the worst dangle its tentacles before you. If an obstacle comes in to play, you will be able to deal with it because of your experience. There will always be accidents in this world, but trying to stay ahead of the game is the goal. Now, what were those 7 motorcycles I have to ride. ,
BACKROADS • APRIL 2021
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The Law Office of Paul G. Gargiulo Presents
Welcome to the Jungle - The Art of Learning to Ride Skillfully A column dedicated to your riding survival tHe eyes Have it What’s the common advice to participants in dozens of sports that involve hitting a ball with something - club, bat, racket, mallet, or paddle…? “Keep your eye on the ball!” One of the products of your body’s eye-brain-muscle system is that if you want to hit something, you need to look at it intently. On a motorcycle, it is also true that if you look at something intently you will likely hit it. When riding, we call this tendency “target fixation.” If you have ever taken an MSF Course you had to have heard the coaches yelling to “Turn your head” and “Look where you want to go.” They say it over and over – because they need to get that ingrained into your memory. It has to become a part of you so you do it without even consciously thinking about it. For, if you don’t, eventually something bad will happen. Motorcycles go where you look. If something or someone grabs your attention away from the task at hand, this being 100% concentrating on your ride, you will be tempted to stare at it. If it is something bad and something that you inherently fear. Then you will stare at it until you actually hit it, whether it’s a car pulling out, a dog running out after your bike, or a guard rail in the middle of a turn that was far tighter than you expected. It is the way we as humans react to quick and sudden danger, and you have to consciously train yourself not to do this. As you see it approaching and your panic increases, you will stare more intently, and hone in even more accurately. This is not just a backroads or highway riding issue. Parking lots and small driveways can catch us up as well. When you pull into a driveway where are your eyes looking? When you suddenly run out of pavement and onto gravel do your eyes immediately drop to what is directly in front of you? Entering tight confines are you looking towards where you want to go or all the things that are suddenly cramping you in, and that can take you down? The parked cars, the kid on a bicycle, the dog running around? You should always use your peripheral vision to access the various “potentials” that are possible. Be aware of them but don’t dwell on them. We call this Situational Awareness. But this Awareness is just that. You
can be mindful of these but work on keeping your head in the game. Out on the road, things can be very different. You must work on using your eyes. Consider them a key part of your motorcycle/riding equipment. Use them as part of your riding skills themselves. If you see something in the road, take note – and then look past it and pilot your way around. If you stare too long you will probably hit it or come way too close. This is an acquired skill, so go practice in a safe environment. Empty parking lots work. Practice making quick avoidances, and while there, practice some braking as well; but we’ll touch on that in another Jungle. We are in the habit of practicing slow riding while fueling up with others. If there is a good-size group and I gas first I will spend the time waiting for others by riding around in tighter and tighter turns and figure-8s. Like a musical instrument, this acquired skill gets better with practice. Muscle memory takes control and eventually, it becomes second nature. When on twisty pavement use your eyes to the best advantage. Look as far through the turn as possible, not just right ahead of you but way down the road! No! Even further. I have always thought the turn is done when I am no longer thinking about it and am onto the next riding task. If you find yourself in a situation and an obstacle is suddenly in your way, look around it. Seek the safe line. Take note of it, but use your eyes to see and lock onto where you must go – and, you will.Any way you look at it – the eyes have it. ,
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APRIL 2021 • BACKROADS
UP C OM I N G E VE NT S CAL END AR Please check on your scheduled event for postponement or cancellation. We look forward to a full season and seeing everyone on the road again.
MAY 2021 16-22 • BACKROADS ‘Time of your Life’ Spring Rally. A week’s worth of great riding, historic lodging and exploration. See full details on page ??. Make your reservations today as rooms are limited. Questions: 973-948-4176 or editor@backroadsusa.com 20-23 • BMW RA ‘Game of Roads’ National Rally, Waynesville, NC • They come to this quiet valley nestled in smoky mountains to learn from sages and magicians, to outfit their steeds with glistening new farkles, to renew bonds with old compatriots, and to make new ones. But most of all, they come to ride, to feel the curvature of the earth, to lean into the unknown, to slay dragons and snakes, and to play the Game of Roads. • Visit BMWRA.org for info and to register. 28-30 • 31st Charter Oak Rally • The Connecticutt River Valley BMW Riders welcome you to the scenic shores of beautiful Crystal Pond Park in Eastford, the 'quiet corner' of Connecticut. Camping, showers, pretty country roads, door prizes and four meals served in our spacious dining hall, including our famous Friday night chili This year we'll have a ride to Revolutionary War sites in eastern CT. For more information please email: rally@crvbmw.org
JUNE 2021 12-20 • Laconia Motorcycle Week, Laconia, NH • Often referred to as the Oldest National Motorcycle Rally, these roots reach back to the summer of 1916, when a Gypsy Tour gathered for several days at Weirs Beach on the southern shores of Lake Winnipesaukee • www.LaconiaMCWeek.com 16 • Rutt's Hut 'Ripper' Old Bike Night Ride-In Show sponsored by Bergen HarleyDavidson. All calssics 1996 and older welcome. Entries arrive between 5-6:30pm. Rain 24-27 • BMW MOA International Rally, Great Falls, Montana • www.BMWMOA.org
JULY 2021 23-25 • 5th Annual Soggy Bottom MotoFest, Port Matilda, PA. 3-Day Adventure and Dual Sport Rally. Registration includes 4 ADV/Dual Sport rides with GPS files, 5 meals (beer included), live music, event t-shirt, vendors. On-site camping available with hot water showers. Registration available online now: www.kissellmotorsports.com 30-8/1 • BMW MOA Getaway at Skytop, PA • BMWMOA.org • 864-438-0962
AUGUST 2021 16-18 • BACKROADS SUMMER SQUEEZE. We're heading back to West Dover, VT for a few days of kickin' back and riding new and old familiar roads. Watch for details on our rally site: www.backroadsusa.com/rallies.html and Facebook page
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What’s Happening SEPTEMBER 2021 6-16 • SheADV/Women’s Motorcyclist Foundation Inc. DIRTy for GOOD Adventure Rider Training/Fundraising Tour with Northeast Backcountry Discovery Route. For further details visit womensmotorcyclistfoundation.org • email Sue.Slate@womensmotorcyclistfoundation.org or text Sue @ 585-415-8230 for a return call. 17-19 • BMW MOA Getaway at Sugarbush, Warren, VT • BMWMOA.org 20-21 • CLASS returns to Virginia International Raceway, VA and BACKROADS will be heading back once again. Plan to improve your skill with some of the best instructors in the business at one of the nicest facilities around. Follow us on Facebook or check our Rally webpage for more details on travel to and from the track. To book your space visit CLASSRides.com • Reservations at VIR virnow.com/lodging. 21-25 • NEW AMERICADE DATES. America's Largest Touring Rally brings the 38th Annual Americade to the Fall, with the great Adirondack foliage and cooler temps. Make your plans to join the gathering of the annual ride to Lake George • Questions? 518798-7888 • www.americade.com 30-10/3 • Horizons Unlimited Virginia Travellers Meeting, Holiday Lake 4-H Camp, Appomattox, VA. For seasoned travellers or complete novices. For full details and registration, visit www.horizonsunlimited.com/events/virginia-2021