To get you in the holiday mood, Santa sent an elf from the North Pole with all sorts of gift ideas that can be picked up at Pike Run Services in Nichols, Iowa. Our elf, Casey Berglund, is a Quad City girl and is bringing some beauty to the repair shop. Pike Run Services not only offers maintenance for anything with a motor, but is the area’s premier Dixon dealership. Stop by and see Sarge for all your motorcycle needs!
Rolling into December and the PMS is starting already. This time of year the weather makes it harder or impossible to ride, and the side effect of that is Parked Motorcycle Syndrome. The symptoms of such include irritability, being bummed out in general, and even some decreased productivity at work due to looking at pictures from the past riding season. The irritability is the biggest problem. I know for sure that I get bitchy when I cannot ride, or not ride much at all. A five mile jaunt in December can be a lifesaver but the positive effects wear off rapidly and I get back to growly Gus in a hurry. I just wanted to apologize to those close to me in advance. But then again, if you are close to me, you know I am grumpy as hell in the winter. At least we have some swap meets and bike shows coming up in the next few months to mingle with the biker world and get a little bit of a biker fix. Try to enjoy the little things in life and take the time to fix and customize your scooter. It comes every year, and winter will go every year… As we are rolling into December, the entire Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa crew would like to wish a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone. I hope that everyone reading this appreciates that sentiment, and takes a bit to recognize the true meaning behind the holiday of Christmas. Sometimes the simple things in life get lost in the shuffle, and we need to remember where it is that we came from. Merry Christmas, God Bless You, and have a happy end of 2013! We are working on getting CONFIRMED Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa Event Listings. If you know the dates of events for 2014, please email the event date, name
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and town that it originates in to Vernon@ thunderroadsiowa. com. If people do not know what is going on, they won’t know how to plan for the next riding season. The list is toward the back of the magazine every month, and the calendar can also be found on the website at thunderroadsiowa. com Thanks in advance for the submissions! As you go out for your Christmas shopping, Christmas parties, and end of the year fun, don’t forget to frequent the sponsors of Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa. These sponsors and supporters help keep the doors open, so tell them that Thunder Roads sent ya. As the end of the year approaches, I myself am curious how things are going to shake out politically in our great nation. Things right now are pretty heated with the “supposed” affordable care act. I don’t think that there will be any one of us that will not be negatively affected by this new law. I think that it shows how out of touch the government has become, and WE THE PEOPLE need to continue to stand up and be heard. Protect our rights, protect our way of life, and don’t just eat what we are fed any longer. It will not be long before we start to see the campaign paraphernalia for the 2014 election. Please be informed, know the issues, make responsible choices, and support the candidates that you feel are the best for the job. Vernon Quote of the month: “I have as much authority as the Pope, I just don’t have as many followers”” Author unknown
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After retiring from his job as a riverboat captain in 2005, Ron Seibel from Blue Grass, IA knew he’d get bored quickly just sitting idle. Since his wife, Jane, still had 8 years before she was able to retire, Ron started searching for something to keep him occupied. He decided to tour the country on two wheels. He started out on a 2005 Electra Glide and has since traded off that ride for a 2010 Road Glide. Since his retirement, Ron has been to every state west of the Mississippi, 13 states east of the Mississippi and 5 Canadian Provinces, the Yukon, Northwest Territory & Alaska racking up more than 120,000 miles on two wheels. Ron doesn’t trailer his bike, nor does he pull a trailer with it. When Ron takes off for a trip it is with a tent, a pillow, a blanket, some clean clothes, a non-electrical weather suit & a toiletry bag. Ron hasn’t spent a lot of money equipping his bike for long trips either. He has a tall boy seat, a backrest, highway pegs, a radio & cruise control; and that’s all he needs to stay comfortable as the miles pass by.
the Canadian Rockies. There he began to encounter some wildlife and ice fields. As he traveled farther north, there were some roads that were bad, sometimes slowing him for 20 feet, sometimes for 20 miles “you just can’t drive fast all the time, that’s all there is to it” he tells me. Some days he would ride for hours before seeing another vehicle. At one point he was held up for a half an hour because the herd of massive buffalo wouldn’t yield to oncoming traffic (Ron) and move off the road. He found himself swerving through a band of mountain goats, as they too were un-phased by the roaring motorcycle and wouldn’t get off the road. Throughout the trip, Ron encountered over 20 black bear, 9 grizzly bear, 2 wolves, too many moose to keep track & some wild horses. He only tent camped for a total of 6 days the entire 37 day trip- apparently up north they don’t suggest tent camping, that is unless your tent is bear-proof. The trip itself was not at all a horror story, as one may think; however, there were a few motels/hotels that were. One day it began pouring down rain and with temperatures in the 30’s, Ron was forced to stop at the next spot along the road. As it turns
out this wasn’t the Holiday Inn. You didn’t dare use the facilities, nor drink the water and as Ron lay there- on top of the comforter, On June 21, not 2012 Ron chancing packed up pulling the blankets back, he thanked the powers his Road that be; at least he was out of the wind and freezing Glide, rain. Along the journey, his bike proved its durability started and he never had a problem. There were just enough some Motley places to stop for fuel along the route, so he never CrÜe on the found himself stranded. He passed group after group radio and of fellow motorcyclists and the locals were nothing but began his welcoming at each stop along the way, many of times journey. He offering to buy the traveler a drink. On the 10th day of road over to his journey, the last day of his trek north, Ron rode 12 Montana and hours from the Yukon to the Kenai Peninsula, 10 hours of that in the rain and the temperature was a chilly 38°. then went Meeting up with his wife, they spent the next 17 days north into
Early in 2012, with the snow deep and the seemingly never ending winter upon him; Ron decided to begin planning the trip of his lifetime. He carefully plotted out his route from Blue Grass to Alaska, to visit his friend (formerly from Durant, IA). Realizing the dangers of riding solo on curvy, unknown roads & knowing that cell phone signal would be spotty at best, he mapped out his destination points so his wife would be able to stay in contact with him. Ron refers to this trip as his favorite of all times, Jane refers to it as the scariest days of her life. Approximating his arrival in Alaska, Jane made plans to fly up and meet him in Sterling, AK.
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cruising around Alaska on the bike. Seeing the smoking volcanoes, enormous moose that tower over full sized trucks, colorful foliage, glaciers while riding along the side of a mountain on two wheels was Ron’s idea of a dream come true. The trip home was just as phenomenal as the trip up, only this time he was not stopped by the immovable animals, but for several hours was held up by a mudslide and had to wait until it was cleared to continue his trek home. To make up for lost time, Ron rode 863 miles in a little less than 13 hours on the last day. The trip took him 9,400 miles in a total of 37 days and he’d do it again in a heartbeat. Over the last two years, Ron has ridden every month of the year. As a husband of 42 years and a father of two girls, he enjoys sharing his passion for riding with the entire family. One daughter, Jill, is a motorcycle rider and all 4 of the grandkids (ranging from 15 to 6 years old) also have bikes. Ron claims he goes where his heart leads him, his desire to see the nation on two wheels runs deep and he will keep going as long as he’s financially able and God is willing. photos submitted by Ron Seibel Pinky
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CMA Notes
I just returned home from our national Changing of the Colors Rally at our headquarters on Iron Mt. in Hatfield Arkansas, the rally that my wife has renamed “Changing of the Weather Rally”. You can see where this is headed. Having watched the forecast and knowing the fact that all the locals say “It’s good to see CMA back as they always bring the rain,” I decided to locate my camp up on the terrace this year instead of our favorite place next to “Fast Rising Creek”. Yes, having been there many times my wife has also named the creek as well as the rally. She also renames me at various times but we won’t go into that now - let’s just say she has a quite inventive mind.
wondrous but hard to understand and remember when you see the wrecks on the road and the wrecks in personal lives. Broken lives are nothing new. Over 2500 years ago King David said, “The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and the Lord is near to all who call on him.” I kept coming back to the fact that nature itself declares the existence of God the Creator, and that the architect of this universe, galaxy, sun, earth, moon, human beings and every other living thing also made a way for us in the midst of our brokenness to know Him. He cared enough to send His son Jesus to be that bridge between Him and us. Jesus said, “Follow me”. He didn’t say follow religion. To follow, you have to know who He is and what He has done. It’s vital to know Him, not just know about Him.
Blessings, Mark Anyway, I was able to get two gorgeous riding days in around the rain. The other four were spent huddled in the tent Mark & Karla Cornick are Area Reps with the Christian and under canopies when not in the conference buildings. But Motorcyclists Association. Find out more about CMA and to be fair, for the days that are nice, the Ouachita Mountains God’s plan for you at www.cmausa.org. have some of the most beautiful rides around. One afternoon I figured I might have time to get in the first part of the Queen Wilhelmina loop where the twisties are great and the overlooks are fantastic. This is a tough section because you want to go fast through the curves but the views on the corners are too good not to look. I usually try to ride it at least twice, one to go fast and one to stop at the overlooks to gawk and take pictures. It reminds me a lot of some of the views from the Black Hills looking back after passing Bear Butte on the way to Belle Fourche. Anyway, just as I was entering the twisties headed up the mountain, I started getting the “Slow down NOW” signs from the trickling of bikes coming down. Sure enough up ahead was the ambulance with law enforcement directing traffic around the accident scene... At least one down bike and so many others around that you could only speculate as to what happened. The curves being tight and with only one lane open you had to go through as the police directed. It sobers a person’s thoughts as to the quickness and fragility of life. Most of us who have ridden very long have come upon similar sights where you realize that someone’s life and probably someone’s family’s life has changed dramatically in an instant. A lot of the time we don’t find out what happened and we can’t stop, so with a quick prayer for whoever was involved you go on the best you can and try not to dwell on the bad. A sad fact is that life is short and things change, so enjoy the blessings and the people God has given you while you have them. The next day I was out again, enjoying looking at all the fall colors and spectacular views and thanking God for allowing me to be there in such a beautiful place. I got thinking of the Scriptures that talk of God’s majesty and how all of creation declares God’s glory. It is easy to see it when the views are 8 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
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Biker Friendly Directory
It’s important for you to know who your friends are out on the road! The Biker Friendly Directory is a list of establishments throughout Iowa that want you to know that they’re here for YOU. Let them know that you saw them here in Thunder Roads. If you know a business that would like to advertise in Thunder Roads Iowa Biker Friendly Places, please email vernon@thunderroadsiowa.com
Biker Accessories Backroads Biker Leather Shoppe 305 N Main Street Everly, Iowa 51338 712-834-2999 www.backroadsbikerleathershoppe.com
Crispy’s Biker Apparel Cedar Rapids, Iowa Find Us On Facebook 319-241-0916
Dealers
Werner Cycle Works 14410 Frontier Road Exit 440 I-80 Omaha, NE 68138 402-894-3050 www.wernercycleworks.com¬ Whipp Sales and Service, Inc 701 S 8th Street Clarinda, Iowa 51632 1.800.477.0195 www.whippsales.com
Book Em Dano’s 33 S Main Street Denison, Iowa 51442 712-263-9818Mon-Sat 4-2 Dancers Nightly 5-1:30 National Motorcycle Museum 102 Chamber Drive Anamosa, Iowa 52205 319-462-3925 Nationalmcmuseum.org Ossy’s Show Club 1215 Plaza Drive Carroll, Iowa 51401 712-792-9102
C&C Custom Cycle 130 E Lincoln Chariton, Iowa 50049 641-774-7494 www.cc-cycle.com
Food and Drink
Fenders Cycle and Motorsport 1109 E Army Post Road Des Moines, Iowa 50315 515-256-9062 www.fenderscycle.com Loess Hills Harley-Davidson 57408 190th Street Pacific Junction IA 51561 712-622-4000 loesshillshd.com Nishna Valley Cycle HONDA – YAMAHA – KTM Atlantic, Iowa 50022 1-888-577-6406 www.nishnavalleycycle.com R/J Performance HWY 63 North Ottumwa, Iowa 52501 641.684.8400 www.rjperformance.com
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Captains Quarters 807 Main Adel, Iowa 50003 M-F 2-12, Sat 10-2, Sun 12-12 515-993-4417 Catfish Charlie’s On the Mississippi River 1630 E. 16th Street Dubuque, IA 52001 (563)582-8600 www.CatfishCharliesDubuque.com
Entertainment
Baxter Cycle 311 4th Street Marne, Iowa 51552 712-781-2351 www.baxtercycle.com
Carroll Cycle Center 1327 Plaza Dr Carroll, Iowa 712-792-1610 www.carrollcycle.com
103 North Noyes Street Mondamin, IA 51557 712-646-2300 or 712-216-0975 Hours Daily 11-close
Uptown Motors Sales, Inc 310 Cleveland St Muscatine, IA 52761 563-263-2944 www.uptownmotorsales.com
Chocolatierie Stam-Dubuque 269 Main Street Dubuque, Iowa 52004 www.stamchocolate.com 563-690-4320 Dew Drop Inn Bar & Restaurant 109 Main Street McClelland, Iowa 51503 712-566-9360 Mon-Sat 11:30-Close Dirty Ernies 201 1st Street NE Farley, Iowa 563-744-4653 Ride your Harley to Farley!
B & M Bar and Grill 110 W. Main Street Panora, IA. 50216 641-755-2806 Open Daily @ 11:00 am Beaver Hut Pub Happiness is a Wet Beaver 307 East 7th Logan, Iowa 51546 712-644-6100 Beer Barn and Grill 226 State Street Kirkman, Iowa 51447 712-766-3395 Open Mon 4, Tue-Sun at 11
Homers Bar & Grill 207 Main Street Vail, Iowa 51465 712-677-9979 Huffy’s Mule Barn 802 Main Street Anita, Iowa 50020 712-762-9995 www.huffysmulebarn.com Iron Saddle Saloon 39 S Main Street Dayton, Iowa 50530 515-547-3311 KC’s Tavern 120 North Main Bridgewater, Iowa 50837 641-369-2017 KC’s Tavern on Facebook Keasey’s Hideaway Lounge 911 Court Street Adel, Iowa 50003 515-993-3001 Lampe’s Pub 608 Iowa Avenue Dunlap, Iowa 51529 712-643-5781 Open 7 days a week at 11 AM Lamp-Liter 143 South Grove Street Walcott, Iowa 52773 563-284-4061
Doc’s Roadhouse 309 East 7th Street Logan, Iowa 51543 712-644-3636 Open 365-8 am to Close
Lugger’s 201 N Main Street Kimballton, Iowa 51543 712.773.8620
Do Drop Inn 403 3rd Avenue Under the Water Tower Jamaica, Iowa 50128 515-314-0783
Master Griller/The Field House 142 S Chestnut Earlham, Iowa 50072 Mastergriller.com 515-782-5850
Excuses Bar 4Good Sons 2815 Beaver Ave Ste 102 Des Moines, Iowa 515-681-5375
Midway Tavern 206 1st Street Soldier, Iowa 712-884-2230 www.midwaytavernsoldier.com
Goozman’s Westside Bar & Grill Harlan, Iowa 712-755-2259 Goozman’s Westside on Facebook
Millerton Café 10 Miles S of Chariton Hiway 14, 1 Mile East J22
Millerton, Iowa Tues-Sat 630am-8pm Sunday 630am-3pm 641-897-3536
BJ’s Bar & Billiards 110 Ida Waterloo Iowa Home of Full Throttle Thursdays 319-234-9810
Haverhill Social Club 202 1st Street Haverhill, Iowa 50120 641-475-3321 Mon-Sat 10-2, Sun 12-12
Montgomery Street Pub 207 East Montgomery Street Creston, Iowa 50801 641-782-2165
Booneville Bar&Grill Waveland West Café 35653 Ute Ave Booneville, Iowa 50038 575-987-2237
Hawkeye Bar & Grill 110 North 4th Street Mapleton, IA 51034 712-882-1226
Off Sides Pizza 1119 Thomas Street Redfield, Iowa 50233 515-833-2900
Buck Snort 113 4th Street Neola, Iowa 51559 712-485-9090 The Buck Snort on Facebook C&L Sandbar
Mon-Sat 10:30 a.m. ~ Sun 12:00 p.m. Hazard County LoungeIowa’s Premier Night Club
(above the BBQ Shack) 203 Main St. Lohrville. Iowa 51439 Open M-S 4pm-close. Sunday 12pm-close (712)-465-3278
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Papa Joe’s 117 South 6th Street Missouri Valley, Iowa 51555 712-642-9015
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Pearl Street Social Club 110 Pearl Street SW Shellsburg, Iowa 52332 319-436-7100 Find Us On Facebook!
Softail Saloon 811 Hwy 9 Superior, Iowa 51363 712-858-4500 Softail Saloon on Facebook
Pines Steakhouse Oinkers Lounge & Grill 1500 E 7th Street Atlantic, Iowa 50022 712-243-3606 M-F 11AM-, S-S 4PM-
Sparetime Bar & Grill 136 West Main Street Ute, Iowa 61060 712-885-2226
Piranha Club 1215 Plaza Drive Carroll, Iowa 51401 712-792-9184 Piranha Club on Facebook Pizza Ranch DENISON 510 HWY 39 North Denison, Iowa 712-393-3333 Check Us Out on Facebook Open 7 Days a Week
Dales’ Guns Buy-Sell-Trade-Gunsmithing 109 Main Street Ute, Iowa 712-885-2671 rustyshot2000@yahoo.com
The Home Plate Diner 304 E. 30th Street Des Moines, Iowa 50317 515-262-7000
Locked and Loaded Outfitters 422 Market Street Harlan, Iowa 51537 712-235-4867
The Lounge 1005 Chatburn Ave Harlan, Iowa 51537 712-755-5050 The Lounge Harlan Iowa on Facebook
The Middle of Nowhere 112 Main Street Cumberland, Iowa 50843 712-774-5425
Red Oak Tap 419 E. Reed Red Oak, Iowa 51566 712-623-4788
The Sawmill Bar & Grill Now with a Full Menu 401 Main St New Market, IA 51646-3079 712-585-3601
Rendezvous Lounge 909 Main Street Adel, Iowa 50003 Just West of the Courthouse 515-993-4422
The Wagon Wheel 521 E 7th Washington, Iowa 52353 319-653-3637 Wagon Wheel Tap on Facebook
Riverside Tavern 450 E Main St Lehigh, Iowa 50557 515-359-9998 Email:riversidetap@gmail.com
Third and Main 301 Main Street Manning, IA 51455 712-655-2304/712-210-2304 www.thirdandmainmanning.com facebook.com/thirdandmain T.J.’s Pourhouse 100 E. Washington Street Exira, Iowa 50076 712-268-2353 Open M-SAT.@11, SUN.@ NOON
Screaming Eagle American Bar & Grill
228 East 4th Street Waterloo, Iowa 50703 319-235-8865 www.partyattheeagle.com
Tobey Jacks Mineola Steak House Mineola, Iowa 712-526-2078 Open 7 Days a Week Check Us Out on Facebook
Shenanigans Nightclub/Event Center
1805 Maime Eisenhower Ave Boone, Iowa 50036 515-298-0435 www.partyatshenanigans1.com Sidetracked 206 West Union Street Creston, Iowa 50801 641-782-8534 Slaby’s Bar & Grill 6020 New Liberty Road Plainview, Iowa 52773 563-843-3443
2A Firearms Training Training to Protect Your 2nd Ammendment Rights 641-439-6660 Craig.2aft@gmail.com
The Chrome Spur 105 2nd Street Schleswig, Iowa 51461 Chrome Spur on Facebook
Pizza Ranch HARLAN 613 Court Street Harlan, Iowa 51537 712-755-2262 Check Us Out on Facebook Open 7 Days a Week
Sambetti’s Bar and Grill 1430 2nd Avenue Des Moines, Iowa 50314 515-245-9780 Mon-Sat 11a-2a, Sun 11a-7p
Guns and Ammo
Vic’s Main Tap 304 Broadway Audubon, Iowa 50025 712-563-2122 Opens M-F 3, Sat 10, Sun 3 Wilson’s Tap and Recreation 1008 Story Street Boone, Iowa 50036/ 515-433-1395 Woody’s Roadside Tavern 100 West Jefferson Albion, Iowa 50005 (641) 488-2220 Woody’s Roadside Tavern on Facebook
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lockedandloadedoutfitters@gmail.com
Shooter’s Outlet 114 Main Street Arcadia, Iowa 51430 712-689-2772 Tues,Wed,Fri 9-5, Thurs 9-7, Sat 8-12
www.shootersoutlet.net
Healthcare/Wellness Road Weary Muscles?? Stephanie Warren, LMT Suzanne & Co Salon, Davenport, 563-355-4200 eve & wknd appts available
Legal Hupy and Abraham sc, pc Lawyers for Bikers 800.800.5678 Hupy.com IowaBikerLawyer.com Pete Leehey Law Firm, P.C. Riding and Defending Your Rights for Over 29 Years 977-209-9452
Photo and Art JW Custom Artwork 610 Grove Street Adel, Iowa 50003 515-577-5264 Jwagoner13@gmail.com Ullrich Photography PO Box 1842 Clinton, Iowa 52733 563-243-8715 www.natanic.com
Services
Ben Franklin/Radio Shack 106 N Wilson Jefferson, Iowa 50129 515-386-4122 Hometownvarietyinc.com Larsen Equipment Aaron Larsen PO Box 126 Kimballton, IA 51543 712-310-1762 Sound and Service Bike/Car/Home Audio and TV 712 Quint Avenue Carroll, Iowa 51401 712-792-5403 Southwest Iowa Sandblasting Mike Magers 65162 Oxford Rd Atlantic, Iowa 50022 712-249-3995
Shops and Fabricators Butterfield’s M.C. Parts 8025 Blondo Street Omaha, NE 68134 402-391-3768 Creative Concepts Collision 422 Market Street Harlan, Iowa 51537 712.755.2231 Dead Heads Eng, Fab, Repairs & Sales 426 Railway Street Gillett Grove, Iowa 51341 deadheadsmceng@gmail.com 712-835-3353 Elite Auto Upholstery & Embroidery
Specializing in Motorcycle Seats 1313 Walnut Street Des Moines, Iowa 50309 515-276-4392 F & J Racing 701 N 3rd Ave Marshalltown, Iowa 50158 641-752-8651 www.fandjracing.com Metal Ink 911 7th Street Ste 102 Harlan, Iowa 51537 712-235-2453 www.metalink.org Main Street Bikes and Trikes 522 Main Street Granville, Iowa 51022 712.727.3515 www.shopmsbt.com Moser’s 4-Way Service Center Motorcycles.ATVs.Jet Skis Harley-Davidson Certified Luxemburg, Iowa 563-853-3390 Moser4way@iowatelecom.net
BCS Computers 100 Industrial Road Guthrie Center, Iowa 50115 641-747-3344 www.brubakercomputer.com
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Shops and Fab Cont.
Tattoo
Nelson Machine & Forge General Machining, Ornamental Iron, Weld/Fab 70 Washington Street Marne, Iowa 51552 712-781-2220
All Pro Custom Tattoo 1007 E Kimberly Davenport, Iowa 563-323-5765
Pike Run Services 320 Main Nichols, Iowa 52766 Shop 319-723-4244 Cell 319-330-4541 Revolution Cycles 120 South Main Street Baxter, Iowa 50028 641-507-9250 www.rev-ia.com
Crave Tattoo 201 S 12th Street Fort Dodge, Iowa 51501 515-576-8289 FB Crave Tattoo, Inc. To buy ad space in our directory, call 712-249-5630 or email vernon@thunderroadsiowa.com
Steffens Cycle Shop LLC 1311 E 7th Street Atlantic, Iowa 50022 712-249-5876 M-F 9-5 Most Sat 9-12 Or Call Throttle Shop LLC 1988 Arion Avenue Arion, Iowa 51520 712-674-3325 throttleshopllc@gmail.com Waderich’s Towing 420 S Main Street Denison, Iowa 51442 Phone 712-263-3687 Cell 712-263-9685
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99 Counties to tour on the bike, 99 counties to tour, take one down, drive on around, 56 counties to tour on the bike. A few years back, a summer riding goal was to ride through each one of the counties of Iowa, and what was found was a wealth of interest and beauty. Each month I will revisit each county as a featured article. I will tell you about new things to see, places to ride, and give you a little spark of touring curiosity for our state of Iowa. Harrison County Iowa
interest in trains, it is worth a stop. The city park it is located in has a war memorial and a great area to picnic in. The depot can keep you busy for quite some time and if you’re lucky you can even ride a train! If you are feeling a little thirsty before you head out of town swing into Papa Joe’s on 6th Street. The place is immaculately clean, the drinks are reasonable priced and you can play bar Olympics! I then headed north out of Missouri Valley on L20, also known as the Loess Hills Trail, you will see some great scenery as well as stumble upon the Loess Hills Lavender
Wow, what can I say besides WOW! Harrison County Iowa is a magnificent combination of beauty and hospitality. The views, the people, the interesting stops along the way. Take the time to waunder around, don’t follow a route, just go where the views take you. Harrison County is a little larger then most Iowa Counties, was formed in 1851 and named after President William H. Harrison. There are ten little towns with Logan being the County seat. Thanks to the Ice Ages Harrison County has a large stretch of the Loess Hills, these are spots where loess soil has been deposited due to glaciers melting and wind erosion.
farm. Mr. Hamer and his wife Mary have grown this farm to what it is today but Mr. Hamer says Mary “found every way to kill lavender before she finaly figured out how to grow the stuff!” After smelling the fragrent lavender I kept on north to Hwy 127 east to L23 and then south. The views were incredible and it also led me to the Sawmill Hollow Family Farm. They were the first aronia berry farm in North America. Aronia berries are a supper fruit, it will heal what ailes ya! Scootching on north on 183 you will come into Pisgah. They have a business in town that just plain fascinated me. It is called The Sportsman. It is a gas station/grocery store/deli/bar. It is a bit of a My joyride started in Missouri hunters paradise complete with visits from Ted Nugent. The Valley and took me to the gals that work there were super Cornstalk Café for a soda, it is friendly and made my stop out by I29 at the truck stop. The enjoyable! kind of place with a common table for all the coffee guys. I grabbed F20L east out of town Not too far east into town I and took it to Woodbine. I was found the Watson Station & lucky enough to discover the Steam Train Museum. If you Brick Street Brewery. They are or anyone you know has any a new microbrewery started by a 14 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
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that you choose to ride is going to have hills, curves and views that take your breath away. Make sure you mark this page and revisit it during riding season, you don’t want to miss out on this county. January brings Henry County and dreams of melting snow! Sources Available Upon Request D Ring dring@thunderroadsiowa. com great young llocall couple, l Nicole i l and Justin Eilers. They are so accommodating to whatever you need. If they aren’t scheduled to be open, call them, they will open for you, if you are hungry then bring a pizza and if you are not the biggest micro brew fan they also sell domestics! Talk about full service. No tour through a county would be complete without some good food. I was fortunate enough to eat twice! In the northeast corner of the county you will find Lampe’s Pub offering good down home pub food. If you have a little more time on your hands you should check out 4th Ave Grill in the County seat of Logan. You could spend all afternoon there! They have a fantastic game room, several bbig screen televisions and the food is delicious. Their lunch specials are whipped up by an amazing lady with over half a century experience feeding the masses! The most important things you need to know about touring Harrison County Iowa is that almost every single road Thunder Roads Magazine of IIowa on Facebook F b k
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Road Ramblings random thoughts of a scooter tramp Well it is that time of year again. The colors of fall this year were absolutely stunning, but its beauty faded and fell to the ground way too quickly. Fall roared in like a pack of hungry bikers, stayed for a short time then disappeared again into the wind. The least favorite biker season is now rolling into Iowa and it’s rolling in at full throttle. “Shut em Down” season or what non-riders call “Winter” is coming. There is no way to stop it so; I have developed my own personal biker survival plan.
Step three: throughout the riding season I have been working on some holiday lyrics biker style. Just to remind the non-riders that bikers are still bikers even during “Shut em Down” season. I called up a rock star buddy of mine and asked him to put some music to my lyrics. If all goes as planned these catchy tunes will be blasted over the PA system at every shopping location, on every radio station and blasted into everyone’s ears while on hold during all phone calls.
The first day of “Shut em Down” season is officially December 21st. In preparation for this grand event, I have spent countless hours meticulously preparing the bike for storage. All the fluids have been replaced, the bug juice has been cleaned out of all the nooks and crannies, the leather has been conditioned, fuel additives installed and the chrome has been polished to a brilliant shine. Of course none of this gets done before the sacred “last and final ride of the season”. Since we live in Iowa, I have enjoyed the sacred “last and final ride” six times so far. After preparing the bike for “Shut em Down” season for the seventh time, I decided to move forward with my plans for biker survival. Step one: simply remove the month of December from the calendar and intricately cut it into 4 by 4 sheets then neatly pile them up on the tank. That felt good so I bought a 2014 calendar, removed January, February and March and added them to the pile on the tank. Then I realized that for the next 4 months I will have no idea what day it really is, I decided that it really doesn’t matter because a day without riding is just another day anyway.
Gremlin bells, gremlin bells, dangle all the way. Oh what fun it would be, to ride my bike today. Hey Cruising down the road, on a vintage solo seat, over the hills we go, brotherhood all the way. Pipes on scooters sing, making riders smile, what fun it is to ride and bond as we rack up the miles. Gremlin bells, gremlin bells, dangle all the way. Oh what fun it would be, to ride my bike today. Hey And just in case that one doesn’t instill the holiday spirit. I’m working on……….. Grandma got ran over by a biker Stumbling home from downtown Christmas Eve You can say there’s no such thing as Santa We saw him at a toy run, so we believe.
Plans are to have this one finished by the night before Christmas. Step two: develop a routine to help the biker in me get through “Shut em Down” season. The plan is to take a quick peek outside each morning in search of that dirty four I heard him exclaim as he rode out of sight. May your pipes be loud and your winter be light. letter word that will sooner or later manage to find its way to Iowa. Snow! Happy Holidays, Shifty LaRue We know it is coming, because there is a fat bearded man in red headed this way. He thinks Iowa needs the white powder so that he can stay up all night going in and out and up and down performing quickies around the world from his sled. He doesn’t understand that rain and deer are enemies to real sled riders. I think winters in Iowa would be a lot greener if that fat jolly soul would trade in his sleigh for some 2 wheeled horsepower. After a quick check of the yard color, I will stumble into the bathroom, sit down to fondle and drool over the pages of the newest bike parts catalogs while contemplating the annual bike makeover plans. Before my business in the bathroom comes to an end, my sick mind will get a little satisfaction by using those 4 by 4 sheets piled up on the tank. I believe I will find it rather satisfying to know that I’m wiping my ass with the winter months. I expect the slickness of the calendar will be far more satisfying than the corn cob pipe that the fat man uses. 16 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
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Model: Casey Berglund, Quad Cities Pike Run Services in Nichols, Iowa is your our one stop shop, providing service and part sales for an providin anything thin with a motor.
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One could say that Cyle Geertz entered this world on two wheels and it’d be pretty darn close to correct. Present day he’s better known as the Mayor of Nichols, but in the past he s held the titles BMX Grand National Champion and Sergeant Major with the United States Army. Cyle started out riding dirt bikes as a boy, moved onto a cheaper sport known as BMX and his talent took him all the way to Nashville where he won Grand Nationals. Upon turning 18, knowing the educational benefits that come along with serving our country, Cyle enlisted in the Iowa National Guard. Cyle’s father, Charles, served our country and instilled in his sons the importance of giving back to the country by serving in the armed forces. Cyle’s older brother, Chuck, enlisted right out of high school so it was normal for Cyle to follow his family’s lead and enlist. Cyle gave 25 years total to the Iowa National Guard and US Army. On active duty 22 years of that time, Cyle served in Germany during Desert Storm (‘90-‘91) and in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom (2008-10). Humbly, he tried to down play his role in these conflicts saying “I was a theater personnel manager, kinda like human resources”. To me position/role doesn’t matter; the fact of the matter still stands, he served an important role in those conflicts. After completing basic training, he married his sweetheart, Lee. Working as a recruiter, Cyle’s military career landed him, his wife and two sons (Cody and Ben) all over the state of Iowa. When he got called up for active duty he and Lee had just found out they were pregnant. Cyle landed in Germany Feb 6, 1990 and 2 days later Lee gave birth to their only daughter (Jordan); Cyle not able to touch his baby girl until his return stateside in 1991.
Cyle recently installed a new amplifier on his ride and for the 1st time in a long time his stereo is louder than his pipes. He is now patiently awaiting the arrival of new 4 valve heads, which will increase the HP from 107 to 118. Once he gets everything tweaked to perfection, he is hoping to have one of the only 150 mph baggers in the area. Upon his retirement from the Armed Forces in 2010, Cyle opened up Pike Run Services, a full service auto and motorcycle mechanic shop, in Nichols. Shortly after being elected Mayor, he became a founding member of the Nichols Betterment Committee, a not for profit entity that focuses on enhancing the small town located between Muscatine and Iowa City. Cyle is a proud member of the VFW, American Legion, Sergeant Major’s Association and Sons of Silence Motorcycle Club. Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa thanks you for your service and sacrifices, Sarge!!
Since 1993, Cyle has not been without a motorcycle. Early in his life Cyle rode a 1982 Yamaha RZ350 and moved onto a 750 Suzuki Intruder. His first Harley Davidson was a 1972 Sportster Ironhead named “Iris”. He currently rides a 2010 Street Glide he picked up in Junction City, Kansas. This bike is set up to ride in all conditions and over the past summer he put it to the test by shipping it across the ~Pinky Atlantic and riding through Eastern Europe with friends. Living under the premise it’s never fast or loud enough, www.thunderroadsiowa.com 22 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
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The Radish Dining & Catering
will ride to eat
721 East First Street, Grimes, IA 50111 515-986-1900 Hours Mon-Thurs 11AM-9PM, Fri-Sat 11AM-10PM, Sun 9AM-9PM
You drive by a place a thousand times. May have even been in the establishment before it was a place to eat, but never considered stopping to check it out. Until now. The Radish Dining & Catering is located on the north side of Highway 44 on the east side of Grimes. The building that houses it has a long history which includes having been my doctor’s office many years ago. I must say that I like the new inhabitant’s choice of profession much better!!!! One of the most impressive things to me about this establishment is the owner greets you as you enter. Personal service like that is quickly becoming a thing of the past! The wait staff is friendly and very helpful. Orders are taken promptly and food is delivered to your table quickly. I didn’t take the time to look at my watch but I’m pretty sure that is the fastest we have been served outside of a “fastfood” joint in my memory. Now in all fairness, The Radish has specials every day and Lynnette and I both chose the special of the night which was the 12 oz. sirloin steak dinner. This was probably a contributing factor in the speed of order to eating but it was still noteworthy. Not only did we order the special but we had to try an order of their home-made onion rings! Do NOT miss out on these!!!! You very well may need some extra sauce to go with them! These rings are sweet, thin-cut, breaded with their own secret recipe and deliciously crispy. We both had the salad to go with our dinner. One unique thing they do is each plate of food de24 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
livered to your table has an un-cut radish on it... you know... ‘cause of the name! (It doesn’t hurt that I do LOVE radishes!!!!) Our 12 oz sirloin steaks were lean and juicy... definitely done to perfection. Lynnette had a baked potato and I had mashed potatoes and gravy. Now it has been my experience that ordering mashed taters can be a crap shoot. The potatoes may be artificial, may have just been whipped up out of a box or other such horrors. No horrors here... these potatoes are very real, very homemade and very tasty. The dinners also came with a house vegetable which this night was green beans with onion and pepper slices mixed and a little parmesan cheese to top it off. I’m not a big veggie fan but these were awesome! Never fear dear readers... I have definitely saved the best for last!!!! This meal would not be complete without some sort of decadent desert. There were several selections, all of which are made daily in house. I finally settled on the Black Forest Cake. This slice of heaven is chocolate cake with thick white frosting and cherries in the center. It was delivered lying on its side on a plate and sprinkled with powdered sugar. If you are looking for something exceedingly rich to finish off your meal stop then this is certainly the ticket!!!!
One of their main focuses is catering and one of the things that makes them special is the gourmet food you get in the restaurant is the same food they will bring to your location. Check out their full menu and catering information online at theradishdining.com and “like” them on Facebook. Exceptional service and awesome food... a combination that is getting more and more difficult to find all the time. The Radish Dinning & Catering pulls it off with panache. Until next month, ride safe and eat hearty! Craig Little craig@thunderroadsiowa.com PS If you have someplace you think we should check out in your neck of the woods, shoot me an email.
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f o s l r i G
Shelly S Sh ll Camp C East Peru 1800 VTX Honda Trike
Jill Seibel Soenke Blue Grass 2005 Electra Glide
Lynette Stein Ft. Madison 1991 Super Glide
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We want you on our pages! If you are an Iowa Girl of Thunder, send us your name, year and model of bike, and where you are from to vernon@thunderroadsiowa.com
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Rolling into December for most of us is an end to the riding season. Cold weather, freezing rain, sleet, and snow can make things downright unsafe for anyone on four wheels, let alone two or three. For the diehard riders though, some things can make the cold weather riding season a bit safer and more comfortable. We cannot change the road conditions, but we can gear up for warmth and comfort. There are various options for warding off frost bite and hypothermia, so we thought we would share a little bit about our own personal experience on these items. One of the biggest problems in the past for cold weather riding was the bulk required to keep you quasi warm. When you put on a pair of coveralls over the top of leather chaps and leather coat, one starts to feel rapidly like the fat white tire dude. Then you ou put on a pair of thick insulated gloves and on top of not being able to move, your hands have trouble manipulating the controls. This all adds
Heat Demon Grips, Controller, and Battery Pack up to safety ety concerns as well as comfort ort issues. If you cannot nnot even turn n around to look for or cars when changing anging lanes or turning, and you cannot
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of the things that we can change is the bulk of the gear to help keep us warm. This makes us more nimble, more comfortable, and more able to concentrate on the road and the inherent hazards of riding. One of the first things to stay warm is keeping the core of the body warm. If our torso is kept toasty, it keeps the arms and legs warmer for a longer period of time. If the core of the body cools down too much, hypothermia sets in and things can go bad in a hurry. Blocking as much of the wind as possible when cold and/or wet is paramount to keeping warm. One of the best things to keep the body warm is starting out with a windshield or a fairing. I know they are not cool at all, pun intended, but they do block some of the cold air that takes away body heat. Even a quick detachable windshield to run in cool temperat temperatures is not a bad idea. Another item to block the wind if you have a front crash bar is the nylon or leather “elephant ears�. These nifty devices are relatively cheap, and cover up the crash bar area on either side and help keep your legs warmer and drier. Gerbing Controller In addition to blocking the wind to keep you warm, heated gear has been gaining in popularity. Heated grips, heated seats, jacket liners, gloves, pants, vests, and even heated boot inserts are all on the market. Many different companies make them, but make sure to do your research before you buy. Some brands are interchangeable with other brands, but some have proprietary connectors that make it impossible to mix brands. I myself have run Heat Demon, HarleyDavidson, and Gerbing for brands of different types of heated gear. Each has their particular pros and cons, and with a variety gear, shop for riety of types of gear what is in your price range, what is comfortable, and what will work for what you need.
Heat Demon gear offers grips, vests, insoles, and seat inserts. Their product is very well made, and works wonderfully. The vest and grips both have a five position heat setting with an LED display so that you can adjust it effectively quickly and easily and know what setting you have selected. effective utilize yyour The vest downside is that your arms do get a little chilly, hand controls, but it does have the option of a rechargeable battery pack, con then you become which means you can use the vest in other cold applications other than motorcycling. Football games and hunting are an even ggreater hazard to yyourself. much more comfortable with a heated vest! This all comes come on top of cars not uused to Gerbing heated gear is one of the better known brands. In seeing moto motorcycles fact, Gerbing powers the HD branded heated gear. One on o the road iin colder thing to consider though is the HD branded gear only temperatures. One includes a three year warranty, where Gerbing gear has www.thunderroadsiowa.com
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H-D Heated Grips, Seat Warmer Switch (Gell Pad and Recovered) by Elite Auto Upholstery in Des Moines a lifetime wiring warranty. Sometimes Gerbing gear can be hard to find locally, but there are many online retail places to buy the gear. I picked up a set of heated glove liners at BMW Motorcycles of Omaha, as they are a Gerbing dealer. When riding in temperatures less than 60 degrees for any period of time, the heated accessories come in handy for a comfortable ride. I will ride down into the 30s without any issue. Keeping my core and hands warm is a must. To keep my lower body warm in less than 50 degree weather, I choose snowmobile style boots and bibs over my leather chaps as an extra level of wind protection. Not ideal but I have not found a pair of heated pants that I like as of yet. I personally use a heated jacket liner with a dual temperature controller. The pigtail wires directly to the battery, and heat is controlled with the accessory controller. After purchasing the heated glove liners, the dual temperature controller comes in handy as a single controller would have to set the hand and jacket heat levels the same. It is nice to be able to adjust them independently. I also have the HD heated grips, but when using the jacket liner, I prefer the heated glove liners as it keeps the front and back side of my hands warm. The final piece of heated gear that we run is a heated seat pad installed by Elite Auto Upholstery in Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa on Facebook
Des Moines. A lightly toasted rear end can make your ride even more comfortable! Preparation and some proper gear can make the difference between parking the bike and continuing to ride in some lower temperatures. Heated gear can enhance your riding experience immensely. One rider that recently tried out heated gear for the first time said “it is the most spectacular invention since electronic ignition” and when asked how he felt after a ride in temperatures in the 20s he stated, “my lower body said grab some hot soup while my upper body said let’s get ice cream!” Turn up the heat, and keep racking up the miles! Vernon
H-D Heated Grips
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I rode the bike into Metal Ink in Harlan to have Mike and Tony install the clamps on the bike. Tony suggests letting it cool a bit first before starting the installation. I would agree with that! The only parts you should need will be the PTM Clamps and new rubber band intake seals. First of all, make sure the fuel valve is shut off and As the Harley-Davidson Shovelheads were built from remove the fuel line from the carburetor. Take off the air 1966-1983, they are all at least 30 years old, and depending cleaner cover, air filter, carb support, and air cleaner backing upon definition, qualify as antiques. No matter if you like plate. Remove the carb, and then take off the old bands. that term, or classic, or just old, they are getting to the Inspect the parts that have been removed and remedy any age that they are getting cooler. On top of being retro and problems you may have. Clean up the parts and get ready cool, they are also affordable in relation to other antique for installation. motorcycles, so becoming more popular for both custom and restorations. One of the issues with these bikes for Place the bands on the flanges on each head, and then ride-ability has always been issues with intake leaks. The carefully fit the intake into the bands to mate the intake with earlier models utilized an O-ring to seal the intake to the the heads, and the bands covering all the way around. Feel heads, and the later used a rubber band style seal, which and look inside the intake to ensure the gap between head was an improvement, but still lacking in sealing ability. On and intake is uniform both front and rear, and all the way top of the seal itself, the clamps utilized have been lacking. around. If grossly mismatched for alignment of the intake Two piece clamps, one piece wrap around clamps, aircraft and heads, it may require removing a head(s), replacing a style clamps have all been tried, and it seems one way or gasket(s), and resetting the head with proper alignment of another they all tend to leak. That is until now. the components. Place the clamps on each side and loosely secure with the provided screws. The screws will go in from I ride a 1977 Shovelhead, which was the last year for the the left side, and the bands are machined with a step that O-ring style goes toward the head side. With the bike standing upright, clamps, and align the intake with a level so that the carb mounting flange it seemed is level and tighten the PTM Clamp bolts. Install the carb, that they fuel lines, backing plate, support bracket, air cleaner, and air would need cleaner cover. Voila! Done deal! In about 40 minutes, you to be changed can kiss your intake leak problems good bye! occasionally. Running an Trent at Precision Touch Machining rides a Shovelhead S&S Super himself, and he was the instigator of the manufacture of E, even with these clamps. One set proper carb he has running is on support, the a bike that ran over heat and vibration would take its 15,000 miles without toll. Not that a little wrenching on a single problem. a Shovel is an oddity, but lessening They are strong the time with a wrench in hand enough to run on the means more time in the wind. I ran drag strip without across a company called Precision issue so that you Touch Machining and they make know that the quality PTM Clamps and I had to try them is there to withstand out. They claimed that they would the rigors of racing. effectively seal the intake, add Leak down tests of superior support to the carb, and the PTM Clamps and look far sleeker than about any aircraft style clamps other clamp on the market. The showed superior machined billet look adds function performance of the PTM Clamps. There were zero leaks down on the PTM Clamps, with %12 leak down and style to your with brand new seals and aircraft style clamps. Good looks, ride. These clamps great performance, and one less thing to worry about when and flat band seals running a Shovel, I call that a win! On top of all of that, they will work on any are hand made in the USA, built on manual machines with Shovelhead motor, a precision touch on each set of clamps. They start with a and are currently block of 6061 and end up with a beautiful set of clamps that being tested on improve function and style. You can check out Precision 1955 and later Touch Machining at www.precisiontouchmachining.com or Panheads with email Trent at tcptm3@aol.com the O-Ring style clamps. Vernon
PTM Intake Clamps
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Santa became very concerned when he noticed one of his little helpers moping around the North Pole...... turns out the little fella was suffering from “Low ELF-esteem” Two old ladies, Sunny and Tina, were outside their nursing home having a smoke, when it started to rain. Tina pulled out a condom, cut off the end, put it over her cigarette, and continued smoking. Sunny: “What’s that?” Tina: “A condom.” Sunny: “Where’d you get it?” Tina: “You can get them at any chemist” The next day, Sunny hobbled into the local chemist and announced to the pharmacist that she wanted to buy a pack of condoms. The guy looked at her strangely (she was, after all, in her eighties), but politely asked what brand she preferred. “Doesn’t matter,” she replied, “as long as it fits on a Camel.” The pharmacist fainted. A young teenaged girl was a prostitute and, for obvious reasons, kept it a secret from her Grandma. One day, the police raided a brothel and arrested a group of prostitutes, including the young girl. The prostitutes were instructed to line up in a straight line on the sidewalk. Well, who should be walking in the neighborhood, but little old Grandma. The young girl became frantic. Sure enough, Grandma noticed her young granddaughter and asked curiously, “What are you lining up for dear?” Not willing to let grandma in on her secret, the young girl said that some people were giving out free oranges and that she was lining up for some. “Mmmm, sounds lovely,” said Grandma, “I think I’ll have some myself,” she continued as she made her way to the back of the line. A police officer made his way down the line, questioning all of the prostitutes. When he got to Grandma at the end of the line, he was bewildered. “But, you’re so old, how do you do it?” Grandma replied,” Oh, it’s quite easy sonny, I just remove my dentures and suck ‘em dry.” One day Mrs. Jones went to have a talk with the minister at the local church. “Reverend,” she said, “I have a problem, my husband keeps falling asleep during your sermons. It’s very embarrassing. What should I do?” “I have an idea,” said the minister. “Take this hatpin with you. I will be able to tell when Mr. Jones is sleeping, and I will motion to you at specific times. When I motion, you give him a good poke in the leg.” In church the following Sunday, Mr. Jones dozed off. Noticing this, the preacher put his plan to work. “And who made the ultimate sacrifice for you?” he said, nodding to Mrs. Jones. “Jesus!”, Jones cried as his wife jabbed him the leg with the hatpin. “Yes, you are right, Mr. Jones,” said the minister. Soon, Mr. Jones nodded off again. Again, the minister noticed. “Who is your redeemer?” he asked the congregation, motioning towards Mrs. Jones. 36 - TRMI DECEMBER 2013
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“God!” Mr. Jones cried out as he was stuck again with the hatpin. “Right again,” said the minister, smiling. Before long, Mr. Jones again winked off. However, this time the minister did not notice. As he picked up the tempo of his sermon, he made a few motions that Mrs. Jones mistook as signals to bayonet her husband with the hatpin again. The minister asked, “And what did Eve say to Adam after she bore him his 99th son?” Mrs. Jones poked her husband, who yelled, “You stick that goddamned thing in me one more time and I’ll break it in half and shove it up your ass!” “Amen,” replied the congregation. One day there was this man that went to a beach completely naked even though the beach was a non-nude beach. But the man thought and thought looking around. Nobody is here so he doesn’t care. He takes off his towel and lays down with a newspaper to cover his privates just in case. Soon comes along a blonde that asks “Sir, what’s under the newspaper?” The man replies with “it’s a birdy and never ever touch it.” He soon falls asleep. Later on when he wakes up, he’s in the hospital feeling immense pain around his private area. The doctors ask what happened and all he could remember was the blonde at the beach. Later on the cops arrive at her house asking what she had done. She said “well I was playing with the birdy but then it spit this white stuff at me. I got really mad. So I broke it’s neck, stepped on it’s eggs, and burned it’s nest.” Dude walks into a pharmacy laughing hysterically, orders 2 condoms, still laughing, pays the pharmacist and walks out laughing. The pharmacist is perplexed but doesn’t give it a second thought. The next day the same guy walks in laughing hysterically, orders 2 condoms, still laughing, pays the pharmacist and walks out laughing. The pharmacist remembers the day before and starts to wonder what’s up but not for too long because he has work to do.The next day the same guy walks in laughing hysterically, orders 2 condoms, still laughing, pays the pharmacist and walks out laughing. Now the pharmacist is intrigued as to what is going on with this guy so he arranges with his assistant to follow the guy and find out where he is going, should the man return. Wouldn’t you know it, The same guy comes back the next day, laughing hysterically, orders 2 condoms, still laughing, pays the pharmacist and walks out laughing. The assistant followed him as per his orders and came back 20 minutes later. The eager pharmacist asked his assistant where the man went? The assistant said: “Your house.” Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa on Facebook
Ethanol? Prior to the week of Sept. 16th the “superunleaded” you bought at Casey’s, or wherever was E10 (10% ethanol and 90% unleaded gasoline) and was rated at 89 octane. Since then it’s been up to 15% ethanol and is rated at 87 octane. Why should you care? Thought I’d look into it and tell you what I found. According to the owner’s manual for my 2011 Harley Davidson, “Gasoline/ethanol blends can be used in your motorcycle ONLY if the ethanol content does NOT exceed 10%.”
unleaded”. You can do whatever you want to, I just thought that you might like to know. Does it seem strange to anyone else that the news media doesn’t report on such things since they can have such an effect on our daily lives? Like I’ve been trying to tell you, you’ve got to go through your life with both eyes open at all times. The one who’s gonna have to look out for you is you. If we don’t start paying attention, who knows what’s next? Just so you know my thoughts are my own, I represent myself. Questions or comments: peter@riderpromotions. com
In addition my manual wants a 91 octane rating which the ethanol blend also does not meet. Guess no booze gas P.S. Oh, by the way… we’ll be fighting two helmet bills this legislative session. Are you going to help? I sure in the bike. hope so. The next manual I had laying around was for my Toro Lawn-mower. It says, “Never use… gasoline containing more than 10% ethanol because the fuel system could be damaged.” It goes on to say, “Fill the tank with fresh unleaded regular gasoline from a major namebrand service station.” So I thought I’d better check the manual on my 1998 Chevy Pickup. It again says not to use higher than E10. I won’t be buying anymore “super
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Finally, this past August, my hubby, Rick aka “Barnzie” and I got to head out on our first real motorcycle trip together. The Loess Hills are close by and we enjoy those short trips but were ready to travel somewhere further away. Rick rides a ‘07 HD Street Glide and has ridden for many years. I, having only ridden about 4 years, have graduated from a hand-me-down ’99, 1100 Honda Shadow to a ‘07 HD Deluxe that I purchased this summer. We headed out early on what was predicted to be another, record-breaking, scorcher of a day. Our destination was Knoxville, IA. Why? No real reason just picked a spot on the Iowa map. Any day is a great day to ride. We stopped at various places along the way and even got to a covered bridge in Madison County. We arrived in Knoxville shortly after Noon, planned to check in at the hotel, grab some lunch and something cold to drink. We deserved it. We’d been riding about three hours; not hurrying, but enjoying the different scenery. I was in the lead and really had no clue where our hotel was at. We were riding around in residential Knoxville and we moved to the curb in the shade of some trees. I pulled up MapQuest on my phone and determined we needed to turn around and go a few blocks in the other direction. Not being comfortable with short turns, I wanted to go up and around the block. Rick, ever challenging me said, “Hell no, we’ll turn around in the road.” Reluctantly, I followed, but was ready to get out of this extreme heat. Heading down a residential hill, Rick started to slow up. He pulled to the side of the road. His bike died. Nothing….wouldn’t turn over, no power…dead. Great! Just flippin’ great! Our first day, our first trip and now, this? We can’t believe it. Did I mention it was really hot? We couldn’t buy any breeze. All we wanted to do was get to our hotel. As we were putting our kicks stands down, and doing more than curse under our breath, out of the house came a man. Now that I look back, he was somewhat angelic looking! ‘Gabriel’ asked if we were having problems. We were on a ‘no parking’ road so the ‘angel’ said we could push it into his garage. After introductions, Doc moved his own bike, allowing Rick to park his in the shade of the garage. Did I say it was hot? Doc inspected Rick’s bike. Tested the fuses, checked the battery. All looked good but the bike was dead. Doc called people he knew but they were not able to look at Rick’s bike. By this time we are drenched and on the verge of heat stroke. Okay, I’m exaggerating, but it was miserable. We called Indianola’s HD store and their service trucks were all out on other calls, (of course!) but….if we could get it there, they would work on it. Without any hesitation, Doc announced he’d take Rick and his bike to Indianola! They loaded it up on Doc’s trailer and Doc, his significant other Shelene, and Rick headed out. I not ashamed to admit it, I took off on my bike and headed to the air conditioned hotel about half a mile away! Someone had to get the beer and soda on ice! The trip to Indianola was about 25 miles. The dealership got Rick’s bike in right away. Doc and Shelene stayed with Rick. A broken faring bracket was the culprit; it cut through the starter wire. Forty-five minutes later the bike was fixed and Barnzie was back on the road! Doc followed Rick back to Knoxville and to our hotel. In true biker fashion, Doc would not accept any money from Rick. Instead, he said to ‘pay it forward’. There was a reason why we turned around in the road instead of going around the block. There was a reason why we stopped directly in front of Doc’s house. We were stranded and didn’t know a soul. We met two incredible human beings. They didn’t have to help us. They could have stayed in their home and pretended they didn’t know we were there, melting…. Instead, they chose to come to our rescue and welcomed us into their lives, for a brief time. They did everything they could to help us. We were and continue to be very moved by these acts of kindness and will forever ‘pay it forward’. Thank you Doc. Thank you Shelene. Thank you for your unselfish acts of kindness and reminding us of how powerful one single act can be and what truly matters. Denise Barnes Defiance, Iowa
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2013 Nov 29 Guys Night Out Carroll Cycle Center Nov 29 Turkey Run Clinton Nov 29 Dec 1 Christmas in November Sale Leather & Hawgs Hornick Dec 5 Zylstra HD Open House Ames Dec 5 Rooster’s HD Ladies Night Sioux City Dec 7 7th Annual “Santa’s Lil’ Diva’s” Event Cedar Rapids Dec 14 Dubuque HD Customer Appreciation Day Dubuque Dec 14 Silver Eagle HD Open House Waterloo Dec 19 Rooster’s HD Mens Night Sioux City
This list is what we have found and what has been submitted. Before heading to any event, please check weather and make sure the event is not cancelled for some reason. Not responsible for misprints and typos. If you have any other events to list, please email them with Date/Name of Event/ Location to vernon@thunderroadsiowa.com
2014 Jan 11 Retro Rewind Dubuque Jan 24-26 Rod and Custom Motorcycle and Car Show Rock Island IL Jan 25 ABATE D14 Swap Meet Ottumwa Feb 1-2 Swap Meet Denver, CO Feb 2 Parts Girl Promotions Swap Meet Rock Island IL Feb 8-9 Capital City Show and Swap Des Moines Feb 14-16 28th Annual ABATE Bike Show Lincoln, NE Feb 14-16 World of Wheels Kansas City Feb 21-22 Omaha Chapter AMCA National Swap Meet Omaha, NE Feb 22-23 45th Annual O’Reilly Rod & Custom Bike/Car Show Monticello Feb 28-Mar 2 World of Wheels Chicago Mar 2 Parts Girl Promotions Swap Meet Cedar Rapids Mar 7-16 Daytona Bike Week Daytona Beach Florida Mar 21-23 Swap Meet Sioux Falls, SD Mar 28-30 World of Wheels Omaha, NE Apr 5-6 28th Annual North Iowa Motorcycle Expo Mason City Apr 26 Sleeping Angels Fun Run Boone May 2-4 Vintage TorqueFest Dubuque May 3 Camp Albrecht Acres Chopper Raffle Party Catfish Charlie’s Dubuque May 30-Jun 1 Circle of Pride Redneck Revival Conesville June 11-14 20th Annual Rally on the River Davenport Jun 16 National Ride your Motorcycle to Work Day Jun 19-21 Romper Room Fun Run Earlville Jun 20-22 Rumble in the Stalks Conesville Jul 3-5 ABATE Freedom Rally Algona Jul 11-12 English River Outfitters Bike Extravaganza Washington Jul 12 6th American Soldier Past & Present Poker Run Brighton Jul 31-Aug 2 7th Annual Across the Border Raid Bedford Aug 8-10 Circle of Pride Redneck Revival Conesville Aug 9 Mighty Mississippi HOG MDA Hope Ride Dubuque Aug 28-30 43rd Int’l Vintage Motorcycle Show & Swap Davenport Sep 5-7 Davis Motorcycle rally New Hampton Sep 6 Sidney’s Wish Poker Run Des Moines Sept 19-21 Rumble in the Stalks Conesville
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