Bob and I liked to ride hard and fast.18, or 19 years old, nothing can happen to you. Whenever we stopped to shoot the bull that is what we said. Another saying was, did you see so and so was on the front page, (local youth fails to negotiate curve). Again. We rode around the loop route, a favorite stopping place was at the edge of the Merit Gas Station at the alley that was the loop route's bottom connector.
The loop was one block wide. We would run fast and hit the back brake and slide up to the curve. Unfortunately when I locked up my back wheel, it was on the smashed coke can that some car flattened. My bike spun wildly, I don't know why I did not dump, my heart was pumping about 300 beats per minute. When I hit the curb with my wheel sideways, my heart stopped for 2 seconds. I managed to hold the bike upright for some reason.
The guys all yelled, and slapped me on the back yelling, Hoss, some guys drive car as good as you, but no one on a bike comes close. Thank you GOD! The side road had an alley splitting the block in half. A stop sign was there, the cops watched for us not stopping, so we all waited 10 seconds when we stopped. Make the MAN mad!
One night Kathy was with me on the bike. I had a 4 foot sissy bar, a bar behind the seat so the passenger does not fall off backward. I tell everyone lean back on the bar so they are leaning with the bike. New people will lean opposite the bike leaning. That can dump you.
I met Kathy one Sunday afternoon walking the loop with her sister Jane. I told them both to jump on my bike, we rode to the outside of town, I told them I be back with my car. I knew where Lancaster meets Manheim Township the cops hang out. Three on a bike is illegal! The three of us rode rest of the day in my car.
Sometime later that night Jane went home. I went home and got the bike again. Later that summer Kathy was on my bike again. She always leaned on the sissy bar. I stopped at the stop sign at the alley, waited my 10 seconds, and popped a 3' wheelie taking off. I heard a snap, the tubing of the sissy bar broke, but hung on like a hinge. Kathy slid down the sissy bar like a ramp. Luckily the guy behind us saw her fall and did not run over her. That was 50 years ago. TIME FLIES!
The loop was one block wide. We would run fast and hit the back brake and slide up to the curve. Unfortunately when I locked up my back wheel, it was on the smashed coke can that some car flattened. My bike spun wildly, I don't know why I did not dump, my heart was pumping about 300 beats per minute. When I hit the curb with my wheel sideways, my heart stopped for 2 seconds. I managed to hold the bike upright for some reason.
The guys all yelled, and slapped me on the back yelling, Hoss, some guys drive car as good as you, but no one on a bike comes close. Thank you GOD! The side road had an alley splitting the block in half. A stop sign was there, the cops watched for us not stopping, so we all waited 10 seconds when we stopped. Make the MAN mad!
One night Kathy was with me on the bike. I had a 4 foot sissy bar, a bar behind the seat so the passenger does not fall off backward. I tell everyone lean back on the bar so they are leaning with the bike. New people will lean opposite the bike leaning. That can dump you.
I met Kathy one Sunday afternoon walking the loop with her sister Jane. I told them both to jump on my bike, we rode to the outside of town, I told them I be back with my car. I knew where Lancaster meets Manheim Township the cops hang out. Three on a bike is illegal! The three of us rode rest of the day in my car.
Sometime later that night Jane went home. I went home and got the bike again. Later that summer Kathy was on my bike again. She always leaned on the sissy bar. I stopped at the stop sign at the alley, waited my 10 seconds, and popped a 3' wheelie taking off. I heard a snap, the tubing of the sissy bar broke, but hung on like a hinge. Kathy slid down the sissy bar like a ramp. Luckily the guy behind us saw her fall and did not run over her. That was 50 years ago. TIME FLIES!
Bob and I ran the loop one more time and decided to run up route 501 for a ride. Bob followed me on his bike. We go through Lititz, and the road is straight for about 4 miles. There is a long sweeping curve to the right. There was a tractor trailer in front of us. I swung wide to pass, yes over the yellow line, a car was approaching in the oncoming lane. I thought we could make it. Wrong, there was enough room as the trucker saw us in his mirror and pulled over to give us room.
The driver looked familiar. It was my Mom and Dad. What are the chances of that? When we got home my Dad was at the kitchen table drinking a coffee. When he saw me and Bob coming in he got up and went in the room. Mom said, some young punks on motorcycles ran us off the road, you and Bob don't drive like that do you. We both said, NO MOM!!
Dad knew it was us, he did not want Mom to see him laugh at us! Mom always said I get my daredevil ways from "Dadz". That was her name for Lloyd Caldwell!
The driver looked familiar. It was my Mom and Dad. What are the chances of that? When we got home my Dad was at the kitchen table drinking a coffee. When he saw me and Bob coming in he got up and went in the room. Mom said, some young punks on motorcycles ran us off the road, you and Bob don't drive like that do you. We both said, NO MOM!!
Dad knew it was us, he did not want Mom to see him laugh at us! Mom always said I get my daredevil ways from "Dadz". That was her name for Lloyd Caldwell!
No comments:
Post a Comment