DECEMBER 2023 - HAPPY HOLIDAYS
Six months ago, I was introduced to a woman whose had recently lost her husband. They rode together back in the day on a 1972 ‘toaster tank’ R60/5. The bike had not been run in decades and was gathering dust and clogging up her garage. She wanted me to help move it on. I suggested it could be sold as is at fair market value and offered to make that happen. I also gave the option of resurrecting it and then selling. She chose the third option which was for me to buy it well below market value and have it out of her garage within a day or two.
I invested a bit too much money and lots of time to get it
running, clean it up, and to undo decades of neglect and half-hearted repairs. In the end, the bike is lovely to look at and fun to ride. It is somewhat under powered, but oh so smooth. It ticks over at 750 RPM, nearly silently. It only has a 4-speed gearbox and drum brakes, but it all works together seamlessly to provide a true classic ride that would make any rider feel especially good. I will proudly offer this bike on tours in 2024.
The other day was uncharacteristically warm for mid-December. I took a relaxing ride on the bike past Cheryl’s house, thinking I would knock on her door and show her the old bike, shined up and running well. She wasn’t home though, so I texted her and said I would check back soon. Cheryl texted me back to say thanks for the thought but that she would prefer not to re-visit the old BMW because it would be too painful, as this was to be her first Christmas without her husband. She ended her message by wishing me a Happy Holiday and sending hopes that I could spend time with my family because ”you never know how long you have with them”.
Lynn and I live on the edge of a Beech Tree Forest. The 100+ year old giants surround our house and are close enough to provide welcome shade in the hot months. Of course, when high winds kick up, they do pose a threat. Sometimes I look at the trees and realize that every one of them will fall one day. Still, they persist and stretch their limbs skyward to catch the sun’s warm rays. Seasonally, they throw out thousands of seeds, a few of which will hopefully propagate the species. Teenagers have carved their initials in several of the trees, some signatures dating back 50+ years, the names and dates distorted, almost but not quite beyond recognition, by the growth of the tree’s trunk over time, which has stretched the bark.
The following song lyrics from John Flynn sum it all up:
MY NEIGHBOR HAROLD’S 93 HE’S SUCH A HAPPY GUY
SAYS EVERY DAY ABOVE THE GROUND’S A CHANCE
TO READ A BOOK OR CRACK A JOKE OR LOOK UP AT THE SKY
THERE AIN’T NO WAY HE’S SITTING OUT THE DANCE
HE’D RATHER DIE WHILE HE'S ALIVE
HE WANTS TO LIVE NOT JUST SURVIVE
SAYS WE ALL GET A CHOICE AND I’D
RATHER DIE WHILE I’M ALIVE
ONCE A GIANT OAK TREE FELL DEMOLISHING HIS HOUSE
THE ROOF WENT CRASHING DOWN UPON HIS HEAD
I RAN INSIDE THE RUBBLE FOUND HIM LAUGHING ON HIS COUCH
IF THAT’S THE PRICE FOR LOVING TREES HE SAID
I’D RATHER DIE WHILE I’M ALIVE
I WANT TO LIVE NOT JUST SURVIVE
WE GET TO MAKE A CHOICE AND I’D
RATHER DIE WHILE I’M ALIVE
Wishing you all peace, love, and a joyous holiday season. Very soon now the days will begin to grow longer. Spring will arrive, the Beech trees will green up, and RetroTours will ride again. Sure, every tree must fall, and this applies no less to each one of us, but as for me, I’d rather
ride while I’m alive.
HOW ABOUT YOU?......The 2024 RetroTours Schedule is up on the website…….
PLAN NOW TO RIDE!
MEET NEW FRIENDS. ENJOY REAL ADVENTURE.
RIDE A PIECE OF THE PAST
ON THE PATH LESS TAKEN
!
Sometimes we find ourselves in the middle of nowhere.
Sometimes, in the middle of nowhere, we find ourselves.
