Passes & Canyons Blog

Looking over some old iron at Sunday's vintage bike show at Heritage Square

Bob Kelly hosted his annual Vintage Motorcycle Show at Heritage Square on Sunday, the last to be held in that venue. (Heritage Square will be torn down soon.) Never fear; a new venue is in the works for next year.

On hand, as anyone close to the scene would have expected, were a lot of old British bikes (via members of the British Motorcycle Association of Colorado), old Japanese bikes (via members of the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club), and others.

Not a lot of words needed here; I’ll just give you some photos.

Some earlier versions of my own 1980 CB750.

One really nice Indian.

Do you suppose Sears intended this "Allstate" motorcycle to look like that Indian above?

Cameras were even more common than motorcycles. Each of these bikes had its image saved many times.

Biker Quote for Today

The only thing better than a motorcycle is two motorcycles.

These guys are some hard riders.

We were headed east on I-70 from Salina, Utah, and pulled off onto a scenic viewpoint. It actually was very scenic but what caught my eye at the same time were three motorcycles parked in a group. Of course I struck up a conversation with the riders.

Turns out these guys were from Green Bay. They had left Green Bay for Chicago where they picked up old US Route 66, which they took all the way to Santa Monica. They then turned north and rode up the Pacific Coast Highway to San Francisco, then turned east for Las Vegas. Now they were on their way back to Green Bay.

And what were they on?

“Let’s see, you’ve got two Sportsters and the other . . .”

“It’s a Sportster, too. They’re all Sportsters.”

“Wow, that a lot of miles on a Sportster.”

“Yeah, we get that a lot.”

“So when did you guys leave Green Bay?”

“A week ago.”

Holy crap! A week? Microsoft Streets & Trips tells me that’s about 4,000 miles. That’s about 570 miles per day. On Sportsters!

“Oh, we’ve got the peanut tanks so we have to stop for gas and stretch our legs every hundred miles or so.”

They said their longest day was about 600 miles, from San Francisco to Las Vegas. And they did skip some portions of Route 66 because it was taking a lot more time than they expected. But they said they were only doing 300 to 400 miles per day most days. Yeah, somebody’s math is a bit unclear. Maybe they started eight or nine days ago, not seven.

Nevertheless, that’s one heck of a ride, just burning up the miles day after day. And for pete’s sake, on Sportsters?!

Well, if that’s your thing, go for it, guys. I know three guys who will be talking about a certain bike trip for a long, long, long time.

Biker Quote for Today

The trick is not minding it hurts.

Some people just like riding alone.

We met Sharon in Crater Lake National Park last week, sharing a four-plex cabin. Of course I took note instantly that one of our neighbors was on a Harley, and the fact that it had a Maryland plate make it that much more interesting. First I saw this middle-aged woman fiddling with the bags and assumed she was riding behind someone else. Then it became clear she was by herself. You bet I had to talk to her.

Sharon took early retirement and bought a motorcycle. Then she decided to take a long trip. “When will you be home?” her family asked. “When I get tired of riding,” she replied. She agreed with me that that might be never.

Yes, she had come from Maryland, the long way around. It was not her intent setting out but she was essentially doing a four-corners ride, having started by coming down the East Coast, then across the southern U.S., and was now going up the West Coast. After all this time alone she was going to meet up with a friend in Portland and another soon after that. Then she would be heading to Colorado.

“Are you going to the Steel Horse Sisterhood conference?” I asked.

Her jaw dropped. Up to this point I had not mentioned anything about the fact that I also ride a motorcycle.

“How do you know about that?” she asked. And yes, she is going to the event.

So I filled her in. Told her I’d be seeing her again in a few weeks.

Then we talked motorcycles. Of course. She asked if Judy rides and I told her only behind me–she’s afraid she’d crash and kill herself if she was operating the bike.

“Fear stops so many,” Sharon acknowledged.

But obviously it doesn’t stop Sharon. She was 5,000 miles and counting and wasn’t even thinking about heading home yet. I had to ask her if she knows Alisa Clickenger, one of the most gutsy women riders I know, and she said not in person but by email. She’s looking forward to meeting Alisa in person at the conference. I think they’ll have a lot to talk about.

As we pulled out Sharon was walking by and I called out to her, “See you in Loveland!”

“See you in Loveland!” she replied. And we will, very soon.

Biker Quote for Today

That road is fabulous, I wish to test it.