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I took a ride on Remembrance day

Started by xswheels, November 11, 2009, 05:47:30 PM

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xswheels

For me November 11th is a statutory holiday.  Usually I put my bikes away in November, but this year I don't want to stop riding. The weather was cool, so I wore all my cold weather gear, even my old neck warmer from my ice racing days. I rode out of my neighbourhood and headed for the county roads. I had some thoughts about my old man who served in the Canadian Army in World War 2. He was a gunner, anti aircraft and anti tank. He also operated a jeep with the swivel gun at the back. I never got many stories from my dad. He never wanted to talk about the war. I know it bothered him that he killed other men during the war. I often asked him about the medals he received and his comment was always the same "I got them just for showing up". A battle my father fought in was made into a WW2 movie called A Bridge too Far. Allied forces took heavy losses attempting to capture a strategic bridge for not much gain.
I rode mostly dirt roads today, partly because of the cold but mostly because I like exploring seldom used roads. The one I was on intersected with a paved road and on the other side were three signs posted. No winter maintenance, caution and  use at your own risk. Wow a triple warning, this ought to be a good one. It quickly turned into two track so i got up on the pegs and rode slowly. There were deep ruts in the clay road obviously made by a tractor, so i stayed between them until I came to a large clump of clay which must have fallen from a tractor or wagon. I thought there was enough room to get around it but my front wheel fell into the rut and my crankcase hung up on the lump of clay.  I dismounted and just starred at this ridiculous predicament. There was Black Betty standing on her own, cased on a mound of clay.  It was deathly  quiet and the view from the hilltop overlooking the farm land was quite serene. I thought, where am I and what am I doing here.
I thought of my old man and a rare story he told me of how often he would get lost on missions driving his Jeep in Europe. His maps were sketchy at best and in war time directional signs were gone or inaccurate. Being lost or hung up must have been more eerie for him.
I decided to ride into the rut with both wheels as just ahead there was a cross rut that led to the side of the road that was grassy, and I could turn back and get out of here. When I crested the hill I stopped and looked back. Wouldn't you know it, in the distance was a bridge.

warhead550

 A road less travelled sometimes takes you where you need to be,not where you thought you would be.
82 vision panzer grey      75 kawasaki F9 bighorn                          82 vision parts bike
81 GS 400e                  
77 CJ 360T
66 Triumph Bonnieville

funkamongus

Nicely done, thanks for taking us with.
I own:
1982 Maico 250 alpha 1... free
1982 Virago XV920J........ free
1982 Vision XZ550RJ....... 100.00
1972 BMW 75/5 W/toaster tank,  I babysit.
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look me up on facebook. ride safe!!!

Rick G

My step father, Borden William Davis , (a good Canadian name)   enlisted in 1941 . He spent some time  wooing the pub owners daughter, where he was billeted, in England.
Went ashore at Juno beach and fought across France , Belgum, Holland and Germany. Like XS dad , it was hard to get anything out of him, but we got a few bits.
He and his Sargent Major wanted to see Cologne and the damage done by the 1000 bomber raids. So, as the Sargent Major was licenced on motorcycles, he checked out a BSA with a sidecar and headed across the dikes in Holland to Germany. As the was still fighting going on, he was required to carry a Bren gun (about the size of a M60) it was slung on his back and he reported it almost ate a hole in his back, by the time he got back.
When asked if he had ever come close to death, he related that , during a visit to Antwerp, he and his comrades decided to go to the theater, but as it was sold out , they went to the cathedral , to get a bit of culture , while the waited. Just as the crowd was exiting the theater, a V1 buzz bomb dropped in to the entrance , killing everyone . It wasn't his day to die.

As for me to day, I rode with the Patriot Guard to Locomotive park in Kingman for the Veterans day ceremonies. I kept thinking about my two uncles, Freddie and Sidney Walton , who died at Galipolie in the Dardanells, (named Churchills folly) in I believe 1916. I never met them , but they resemble my Mom , who I take after , so when I look in the mirror, I see a bit of them
Rick G
Go soothingly on the grease mud, as there in lurks the skid demon
'82.5 Yamaha XZ550 RJ  Vision,
'90 Suzuki VX800, 1990 Suzuki DR350.
'74  XL350   Honda , 77 XL350 Honda, 78 XL350 Honda, '82 XT 200 Yamaha, '67 Yamaha YG1TK, 80cc trail bike