Sunday, June 24, 2007
Gallup-ing Through New Mexico
We left Gallup, New Mexico, about 6:00 am this morning. It was a little chilly, but felt good after all the heat.
Indian Legend?
Last night, while we were getting fuel, a guy ran up to us to look at Harley. He asked if I knew anything about old Indian motorcycles. I said, “A little… Why?” He said that his grandmother, who lives on an Indian reservation, has one, and she wants someone to come and get it. The story is that the motorcycle belonged to this guy’s late grandfather, and he and his brothers used to play on it when they were kids. It’s still in the shed on the reservation, probably has been for the past 30 to 40 years. The description of it sounded like a vintage WWI military cycle with some kind of kerosene or carbide headlight and “leather stuff “ mounted on it. I tried not to sound too interested in it, but couldn’t help myself and said, “Let’s go to the reservation and look at it.” Then Cathy spoke up and said, “RONALD, we’re on a trip, remember?” She was right, so this guy and I exchanged phone numbers. He said that he would try to get a picture of it send it to me and go from there. This sounds like an extremely rare motorcycle. Maybe this guy was just messing with me with an urban legend?? We’ll see.
Reliving the Past…
While we drove along Route 66 towards Albuquerque this morning, watching the road go by, I remembered that the last time I was on this road I was 5 years old. In 1949, my parents, my sister, and I drove east the first time from California to the Midwest and back along Route 66 in a 1948 Packard. In 1951, we took the train to Chicago, and then to Detroit to pick up a new 1951 Packard, driving it back home along Route 66. My dad only had a two-week vacation, so he and mom would drive straight through -- trading off every 100 miles and stopping only for gas, with my sister and I sleeping in the back. Reminiscing about all this I thought, “Hmmm… this all sounds too familiar. It’s 58 years later, and I’m coming full circle!!! Only, this time, no kids and on a Harley!”
More Like a Vacation Today
Although we didn’t get any pictures yesterday, we did see a few sights. Consider, for example, the wild burros grazing along the road and the mining town of Oatman, which looks like a movie set. The town still survives as a tourist attraction on a remote section of Route 66, but the nearby Goldroad Mine is no longer in operation. (We didn’t get a photo of the burro, because he was startled when we stopped the bike. In Oatman, we decided the two gentlemen on a bench outside the rustic buildings would question our motives if we stopped to gawk at 6:30 in the morning.)
Today, we took a few breaks and a few photos, and we still did a full day’s ride. We arrived in Santa Rosa, New Mexico, this afternoon, with time to do laundry and relax. We’re still one day behind our original schedule. Even considering some predicted thunderstorms along the way, I think we will still be in Chicago by Thursday or Friday.
