Good People

You would think that during a rally there is a great deal to do and that participants are always busy. Not so, at least for me. While each morning begins quite early, usually no later than 6:45, by the time I wander to the washroom, get a cup of coffee from the Northwest Norton Owners’ Club, hang around and visit for a while, and then stroll back to the campsite, it is time to sit back, drink coffee, have a breakfast snack, talk about stuff, then begin to plan for the day, sit around some more enjoying the relaxing cool part of the day, it is well past eleven o’clock.

Jim relaxing with his morning coffee

Sign seen at the rally. Note who is holding the gun. Most appropriate.

Today was the day of the 'Minute of Thunder' and a large ride of Nortons out to Portola, CA, and other sites near Quincy. Jerry Kaplan, who is a well-known Norton afficionado had his Norton Commando Fastback ready for the ride. The bike is in beautiful condition, having been restored for the Bill Hardy collection. Hardy had at least ten Nortons restored and kept them until just before his death when he sold most of the bikes. Jerry got this one, which he considers to be the best of the lot. It is a beautiful motorcycle and he takes good care of it while riding it regularly.

Jerry Kaplan and his restored Norton Commando Fastback

The plate on Jerry's Norton showing some of its provenance.

On Thursday during the past two Norton rallies two events take place that are traditional and they are connected. While there are group rides set up during the week, on Thursday, the big group ride takes place. This time the ride was a loop to Portola, CA, then to a small mining town in the hills. Before the major ride there is a 'Minute of Thunder' where everyone who has brought their motorcycles to the departure point starts their engines and revs then for about a minute. This is done to honour the memories of those who are no longer with us and those who could not be here. Immediately after the Minute of Thunder the group left on the ride to Portola, and the Western Pacific Railway Museum, the same ride that Jim & I did on Tuesday. I don't know how many riders took part but it took nearly two minutes for all of them to clear the fairgrounds gate and get on the road. This video should give the reader a sense of what this was like. I chose to record the event rather than take part, but it was impressive to see so much old British iron still running and sounding great. 

Bad thumbnail for a Norton ride! Most of the motorcycles are Nortons, though.

By this time we are usually feeling guilty enough to get moving and actually get our gear on, start our motorcycles, and head out on the road. Today the destination was Bucks Lake up in the mountains to the south of Quincy. The road to Bucks Lake starts out easily enough being relatively level with gentle curves and a low speed limit, but in a few miles the speed limit increases to fifty-five miles per hour (ninety kph) and the curves become a little more sharp and frequent as the road passes through beautiful meadows and small canyons cut by the gentle stream that meanders through them.

Part way to Bucks Lake the road begins a steeper fifteen percent grade for three miles. The curves are even sharper and it wise to limit your speed because it would be quite easy to enter a decreasing radius curve too hot and find one’s self in serious trouble. Just more than an hour before we arrived at this stretch of road a woman bike rider did just that, missed a corner and was critically injured. The hospital is quite close to the accident scene so by the time we arrived, there was no evidence of the crash. We later discovered that she was in critical condition. Such can be the dangers of riding if one is not constantly aware of the situation. At the summit we stopped at the Bucks Lake Resort for lunch.

There we found Clint and Mark who were just finishing up, but they invited us to join them anyway. The service was slow, but we didn’t mind because in the beautiful surroundings we were all following Mark’s lead and ragging on Clint for having a smoking Norton. Mark even said that Clint’s Norton reminded him of those machines that are used to lay down smoke to kill mosquitoes. It wasn’t just Clint on the receiving end though. Everyone has their turn. Equal opportunity insults, I suppose, but it was all in good fun and I suspect that we all had a good time. I know that I enjoyed it. As Clint is fond of saying, "You can't bleed when you're swimming with sharks."

Mark & Clint at Bucks Lake, CA

Clint and Mark left before Jim and I did, but we took the same route. Part way down the mountain Jim passed Clint who pulled out in front of me. I slowed down, pulled in behind him, and Mark followed me. The road is a series of curves and Clint led us through them at a good pace; fast enough o be interesting, but not dangerous, although some curves had gravel on them.

At the intersection of the two roads Jim had pulled in for a cigarette and to wait for us slower riders. Clint pulled in and immediately checked the side of his motorcycle. His tachometer cover had fallen off and he was worried that he would lose the drive gears so he had to do a makeshift repair. Since none of us had tools or equipment we had to improvise with debris that we found along the side of the road. We scrounged up a Coors light can and some used electrical tape among other things, and Clint was able to fashion a plug out of beer can aluminum and electrical tape. He figures now that his Norton has a beer can repair, it is now part Harley-Davidson.

Clint repairing his ailing Norton Commando Fastback

We resumed the ride back to Quincy but lost Jim, not because he was riding slower than us, but because a large beetle had landed on his throttle cable and he decided to give it a ride into town. Clint later told Jim that the insect was a mountain pine beetle, the kind that is killing pine trees all over western North America. Jim might have been better to snuff it out rather than give a free ride into town.

When we arrived back at the fairgrounds, Jim had the opportunity to pick the brains of a guy who owned and had brought his Norton Electra 400 to the rally. Jim is restoring one of these motorcycles, but is short of information since Norton didn't make many of them and there is little or no information on the internet. The guy gave Jim a lot of information and made to offer to have Jim contact him if he had any further questions that he could answer. It was a productive day in that regard.

Jim getting information on the Norton 400 Electra (in the background)

Later in the afternoon I attended the International Norton Owners’ Association meeting. When I introduced myself I said that I needed to talk to Colin Kelly, the Canadian INOA representative about forming a Vancouver Island Norton Owners’ Club, or VINO for short. That way we could connect with the Whidbey Island Norton Owners, or WINO, the Genu-Wine club. Ours could be the 'Fine Vintage’ club. I’m going to copy their logo and see if I can find someone to create a new logo. At present Jim, Ken from Black Creek, and I would be the only members. I’m afraid that Colin Kelly, the Canadian INOA representative took me seriously and told me that trying to run a club on Vancouver Island was like trying to herd cats. I explained to him that I put that out as a joke, but that being said, I have met a fine bunch of people from the Northwest Norton Owners’ Club and perhaps in the future we can get together for a ride on Whidbey Island.

Template for the possible 'Fine VintageVancouver Island Norton Owners "VINO"' logo

One of our campsite neighbours is a guy from San Francisco, Mike Shiro, who has been a pretty friendly guy. Tonight after we were sitting around he walked over and explained that he was having clutch trouble with his older Norton. Jim and Ken immediately got involved, and after much throwing of ideas back and forth, and some wrenching, they seemed to have solved a lot of his problem. We spent until almost eleven o’clock just talking about a wide variety of topics.

Matt & Mike at the campsite

It turned out that at one point Mike owned twenty-five motorcycles although he has since sold a dozen of them and now has thirteen, mostly British and American twins. Mike works in TV and movie production and is connected with several shows that are shown on PBS. I can’t remember what they are, however.

Two other guys showed up, Randy and Evan. Randy trailered two black and gold 1972 Norton Commando 750 Combat motorcycles from Colorado and Evan drove from Portland so that they could ride together during this rally. I am really impressed that Evan understands the value of the legacy that his father is giving him and that they are able to have the time to ride these classic motorcycles together.

Despite the fact that we didn’t really accomplish much today it turned out to be quite a full one. Days like this let me really appreciate how fortunate I am to have the friends I do, to meet the people that I am meeting and to able to indulge in my love of riding classic British motorcycles. That, along with my great family, make me a very lucky guy. 

Riding, Fun, and Games

It seems a bit strange that while we are in northern California and the days are quite hot, after the sun sinks beneath the horizon, the temperature begins to drop. I haven’t been able to find out for certain, but from how it feels in the middle of the night in my tent, I would guess that the temperature is around 45 degrees F (7 or 8C). Because I have a decent sleeping bag, that temperature is tolerable, but when I crawl out of the bag at around 6:30 a.m., it is sweatshirt weather until the sun shines on me directly and warms me up. I feel not unlike a lizard on a rock at these times.

Again, today was a very relaxed day. After getting out of my tent, I grabbed my coffee mug and wandered down to the Northwest Norton Owners’ Club area where ‘Cup o' Joe’ always has a big urn of very tasty coffee. I don’t know how he does it, but he is able to make coffee from an urn taste really good. It is a point of pride among the members of that club that Joe does such a great job, and that the quality of his coffee is very good. Especially when you are camping.

Cup o' Joe at his 'workplace'

A food truck has arrived at the fairgrounds but the menu is limited to burritos. Before 11:00 a.m. breakfast burritos are available for five dollars, and after 11:00 regular ones are seven dollars. I had a chicken burrito and by the time I was done with it, I was topped up. Those things are tasty and huge.

Part of my day is spent wandering around, talking to people and taking photos of them and their bikes. Quite often these stops turn into fifteen or twenty minute conversations and it is one of the beauties of these rallies that people have to time to chat without feeling that they have to rush off and do something else. There are lots of Norton and other bikes here, but I think that individually most people are putting big mileage on their bikes. Most of the time is spent relaxing, socializing, and connecting with people. And, for no particular reason, here are some gratuitous Norton photos.

Norton Commando Hi-Rider, Norton's attempt at a chopper. Among the rarest Nortons

1949 HRD Vincent with the Mobil red Pegasus

All day long we are surrounded by the wonderful sound of Nortons coming and going. Most of them are Commandos but some of them are older singles. Whatever they are, there’s nothing like the sound of old English iron roaring down the road. Strangely enough, there are other English marques present, including Triumph, BSA, Vincent, HRD, some newer Nortons and Triumphs, as well as Ducatis, BMWs, Suzukis, Hondas, Yamahas, and others. Most of the time though this meeting is about Nortons and it is a real treat to walk down the road and see dozens of Nortons lined up side by side, each with its own oil spot on the ground.

Jim had a sore hip and he decided to rest it for the day. I decided to do a twenty-five mile ride to Greenville so I rode through Quincy and headed west on Highway 70. As I climbed into the mountains I began to parallel the railroad tracks which are now owned by Union Pacific. Because the terrain is so rugged, the original Western Pacific Railroad had to use trestles to cross many of the canyons that cut the route. I stopped to take photos then continued on to the intersection of Highways 70 and 89. I turned north on Highway 89 and soon came upon the site of the collision that delayed us for almost two hours as we were almost at Quincy.

The highway runs along Spanish Creek which is a beautiful little stream. It was hard to keep my eyes on the road as I twisted and turned my way toward Greenville. At Greenville I stopped for a few minutes and walked around downtown, but there weren’t many places open so I headed south again.

I was keeping an eye out for the trestles that form the Keddie wye so I could stop and take some photos. As I approached the wye, I saw that there was a train running on the track below the highway. I parked and rushed across the highway in order to find a vantage point that wasn’t blocked by trees. I was able to snap a few photos of the train crossing the the trestle, which was a real bonus for me.

Pacific Western Railway trestles now owned by Union Pacific

The Keddie Wye

Union Pacific train on the Keddie Wye

 I rode back to the fairgrounds in time to catch the field games. There were four main events which included a balloon toss, placing eggs on pylons, a slow ride and motorcycle jousting. The contestants had a lot of fun as did the spectators.

Motorcycle balloon toss

Egg on the cone competition Don & Debbie finished third.

Sandra and Mark, a couple from Kelowna, introduced Jim and me to a Norton owner from Black Creek. Ken Davies who owns a Norton Atlas rode to the rally, and I didn’t even find out about him until I was at this rally in California. It is amazing that I had to be sixteen hundred kilometers from home to meet a guy who lives twenty minutes away from me on Vancouver Island. We had a good chat and we exchanged information. I hope that when I am settled in after the summer we will be able to take the old bikes out for a few rides.

Afterwards there was a buffet which included a large number of prize draws. Jim’s number was drawn fairly early and he won a pair of grips for one of his motorcycles. Ken was with us and his number was drawn as well. My number wasn’t drawn as were those of many other people. I found out later that when your number is drawn your ticket is out of the draw for the grand prize, an electric start from Colorado Norton Works. Many people whose numbers were drawn didn’t claim a prize because they wanted their tickets to be returned to the draw for the big prize. I hope none of those people win the prize.

When we returned to our campsite Ken joined us and we chatted until eleven o’clock. In addition to the ride, meeting people and looking at bikes, I was able to take photos of many of the bikes that are here. When I get home I plan on putting many of those photos on my FaceBook page.

So far this rally has been terrific. There are only two more days then it will be done and we’ll be heading for home hoping that the 2018 rally will be closer.

Coffee, Trains & Friends

It takes a while to change gears and to get used to a slower pace of living, but at a Norton rally that seems to happen naturally. Instead of making plans that involve precise and limited timing, one ends up deciding to try to do a ride, go for breakfast, make it to the grocery store, visit other riders, and take some photos. For me, writing a blog entry is a part of every day, so I have to plan on doing that in order to keep from falling behind and being overwhelmed by the need to get everything done.

Today, Jim made a run in to Quincy for breakfast and coffee. I stayed at the fairgrounds and made my way to the Northwest Norton Owners’ for a morning coffee. Paul, Jamal, & Doug testified that the coffee that their chapter made every morning was quite excellent. But what do people from Seattle know about good coffee? As it happened they were absolutely correct.

I mentioned their recommendation to the guy who makes the coffee every morning. That when I met ‘Hatch’. He is a Vietnam veteran who said that when he was a young man, he paid his way through college by working as a waiter and a captain in the restaurants in the French Quarter of New Orleans. His first name is Joe, but he was told that he had to use another name because most of the other waiters were called Joe. His middle name is Hatcher so he went by ‘Hatch’. Now, when everyone isn’t called Joe, he has reverted to his original name. Because he is renowned for the coffee he makes at these rallies, he goes by the name ‘Cup o' Joe’. And, instead of using a Seattle coffee, he uses Community Coffee, a brand that he was familiar with in New Orleans. Community Coffee has been providing coffee since 1912, and the man who runs the company now is the fourth generation of his family to do so.

Cup o' Joe with his morning elixir

Instead of just getting my coffee and returning to our campsite, I spent more than an hour visiting with people when I stopped to admire their bikes. It is quite amazing that when I stop to admire a bike the owner and I often get into a lengthy conversation about where they are from, the history of their motorcycle, what they have done to make it run the way they want, and any other topics that come up. I love this part of a rally. People are open, friendly, and relaxed and we are all united by our love of Nortons. I think that’s why people keep coming back to these rallies. Oftentimes, Norton rallies allow people who are old friends from various parts of North America to get together, re-establish their connections, and just generally have a great time together.

Gratuitous Norton photos

The big activity for today was to do a ride to Portola, CA, to the Pacific Western Railway Museum. The thirty miles from Quincy to Portola is on a very good highway and the ride there was through some beautiful country. We had some difficulty finding the museum, but the lady at the Portola Visitor Centre was very helpful, and the map she gave us got us close. We found that half the streets in town were blocked off so we had difficulty finding our way to the museum. Fortunately, we met two other Norton riders who knew the way so we arrived without much trouble.

The museum had a large collection of motive power and rolling stock, the oldest of which was built in 1916. The shop had a partially disassembled 0-6-0 steam locomotive, number 165 that had been used by the railway until about 1955. The museum volunteers are rebuilding it and are hoping to fire it up in 2018. It would be great to see it then.

Pacific Western 165 under restoration

This is the only railway museum where you can pay to ride in the cab of a diesel locomotive, and for an additional amount, you can actually receive instructions on how to drive the locomotive. It is a great fundraiser for the museum and a lot of people walk away feeling very happy that they have actually run a diesel locomotive. There is such a high for this that people have to make an appointment to drive it, so I chose to pass. I’ll probably regret this in the future, but we all make choices.

Some of the locomotives here are quite striking. One of the engines is painted pink. I have no idea why, but I’m sure that there aren’t many pink locomotives in this country. The other locomotive that was most striking was the Union Pacific ‘Centennial’ the largest and most powerful locomotive ever built. It was named ‘Centennial’ because it came into service in 1969, the centennial of the driving of the Golden Spike in Promontory, UT, in 1869. Union Pacific was one of the railroads whose track met there. This monster, which was built by General Motors’ EMD is ninety-eight feet long, and is powered by two sixteen cylinder diesel engines which develop in excess of 6600 horsepower. Newer locomotives have come close, developing more than 6000 horsepower with a single diesel engine, but none have surpassed this engine in terms of sheer brute power.

Motive power at the Pacific Western Railway Museum

One hundred year-old boxcar/caboose

Union Pacific 'Centennial' locomotive'

Nortons at the Pacific Western Railway Museum

We rode back to Quincy to refuel and then make a quick stop at Safeway. There I met John, the rider, whose 1975 Norton was knocked over yesterday morning by the woman in the minivan. He has been able to remedy two of the parts that were damaged so he is happy about that. However, he was on a beer run for his Northwest Norton Owners buddies so he needed to bring back a significant amount of suds. He came out with two eighteen packs of Corona which I figured would be very difficult tie onto his bike, so I offered to take a box back for him. John tied the case of beer onto the back of my Norton. My excuse was that if it fell off, it would be his fault.

There was no problem though, so I was able to safely deliver my precious cargo to their campsite where they offered me a beer for my troubles.

The evening was quite relaxed and there was another ice cream social. Jim and I took advantage then signed up for the trivia contest. We were joined by another guy and finished third in two of the three rounds. Our team received two tickets for the prize raffle. We won a rally poster and a voltmeter, and since Jim had made the greatest contribution he received the prizes.

Yesterday I met a gentleman who is taking photographs of people and events at the rally. He is eighty-three, travels in his van which is equipped for living, and for sixteen years was the head camera man for Entertainment tonight. He took a photo of me when I first arrived and when I saw him last night, he said that when he saw the photo he thought that my face was made for Hollywood. He may have been being sarcastic when he said that, but if he was, I’m preferring to pretend that I have missed it and I have chosen to take him at face value.

Another great day at the rally. The weather is great. The people are great. The riding is great, and we are generally having a terrific time. Even relaxing is wonderful. And there are still three more days of this. I don’t know how I’m going to get through this. I suppose that it’s dirty work, but somebody has to do it.

On A Slower Paced Life

Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. Last night was one of those times and as well as having the good luck to get a room in a motel that had a ‘No Vacancy’ sign on it, we were lucky as well to meet three Norton riders from Seattle, WA, Jamal, Paul, and Doug. This morning as we were packing up to go to the rally, they were getting geared up. As an aside, I mention that their bikes are beautiful. Everything is shiny and clean, and they look like a million dollars.

Our next door neighbours at the Lariat Inn

Beyond Concours

Jamal's Norton

Sometimes appearances can be deceiving. When the guys were ready to leave and it was time to kick start those Nortons to life, none of them would start. Eventually, after many kicks, two of them started, while Doug had to change his spark plugs because he had flooded his engine. They did get on their way, but considering how great the bikes looked, the starting wasn’t the best. On the other hand, both Jim's and my Nortons aren't the best looking ones at this rally, but they are among the ones that start the best. Mine started on the first kick while Jim's fired up on the second. Take that, all you guys with pretty bikes!

A good start.

Because we figured that the line for the rally registration would be a long one at the beginning, we made the choice to drive in to Quincy and get breakfast. When we entered the restaurant, we met a couple who were riding a 1975 Mark III Commando, and sitting next to us was Doug MacAdam, the Norton legend, who started Colorado Norton Works, and who now builds bikes in Mexico. His company, Doug’s Baja Nortons, builds beautifully restored bikes. Doug now has a hearse which he uses for travel and to transport motorcycles. The slab usually used for coffins has been modified so that Nortons can be placed on it nd rolled into the hearse. Great idea!

Doug MacAdam's hearse

After breakfast we wandered back to the Plumas-Sierra County Fairgrounds where we registered and then tried to find a campsite. It was 11:00 a.m. and all of the camping areas nearest the main building were already occupied, mainly by various Norton Owners clubs including the Northwest Norton Owners’ Club. It has become a tradition at these rallies that the Seattle group, which Jamal, Dough, and Paul belong to, makes coffee for anyone who wants it. Since these rallies are usually held at campgrounds, having a ready source of decent coffee is a real godsend.  And Hatch, the Grand Coffeemaker takes pride in the quality of his brew.

Welcome to the Feather River Rally 2016

After we were set up, I wandered around to check things out. Amazingly, I met several people that I remembered and who remembered me. What started out as a perhaps twenty minute stroll ended up taking two hours. Not only did I visit with some people that I had met two years ago, whenever I stopped to admire a particular Norton, the conversation often lasted ten or fifteen minutes.

Camping next to us is Rex, an 83 year old guy who travels in a van with a bed, a work station for his computer, a heater, a Keurig coffee maker, and other conveniences. He takes photos of events and I’m not sure, but I guess that he sells them to people who want them. He has a little table on the grass beside his van and he told me that I was free to use his coffee and machine. All I had to do was put water in the coffee maker and turn it on. That’s the kind of people you meet at a Norton rally. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it.

Later, when Jim and I were relaxing at our campsite, a woman came by and asked, “Do you know any Canadians?” I replied, “Yes. We are.” She said that she was looking for Clint Campbell, and she was his mother. It turns out that Cathy and her husband Mark are from Corpus Christi, TX, and they have ‘adopted’ Clint. She calls herself his mom, and they get together at these Norton rallies. She told us to visit and that we could find their RV because there were two American flags out front. She put two US flags there because she said that she couldn’t find a ‘Trump Train’ flag.

In my wanderings I met Gerry Kaplan, a guy I had met two years ago. He was riding around on a either a P11 Ranger or a Matchless G15, both of which are quite rare. But more of Gerry later.

Gerry Kaplan's Bill Hardy Norton Commando Fastback

Later in the afternoon I heard that there was an Egli Vincent parked near us so I decided to check it out. If you’re interested, you can check out Egli Vincent on Wikipedia for a far better explanation than I can provide. These bikes are among the most desired British motorcycles, and the guy who owned it was riding it as a daily rider, it seemed. I have to admire that, because instead of buying it and hiding it in a garage and treating it as an investment, he is actually using the bike the way the builders had intended.

Egli Vincent

Norton Commando 961 & Egli Vincent

Egli Vincent

Egli Vincent instrument cluster

Set up next to the Vincent, I met Lauren who had a yellow and black 1974 Commando Interstate. In our conversation it came up that in addition to his Norton, he also owns a 2013 Honda CB1100A, the earlier version of my new motorcycle. I jokingly asked him, “You wouldn’t happen to be driving a Toyota Tundra, would you?” He pointed over my shoulder at a Toyota Tundra. I wonder what the odds are of meeting a guy who has vehicles identical to the ones that I have. I’m certain that they would quite long.

Lauren with his Norton Commando Interstate and Toyota Tundra

Lauren knows Gerry Kaplan so he took me to Gerry’s campsite to see his Bob Hardy Norton Commando fastback. The bike is in immaculate condition and of course, so is Gerry.

On the way back to my campsite I stopped to visit Cathy & Mark. Sitting there with a beer in his hand was Clint. Cathy had found him and they were having a reunion. They asked me to join them and Mark offered me a beer which I gratefully accepted. The conversation turned to terrible airline flights. Clint had a great one about being stuck for two hours on the tarmac at an airport in the Dominican Republic, but Cathy topped everyone with her story of a flight to New Orleans.

She said that very professional looking woman carrying a briefcase and wearing a very expensive suit sat down beside her and when they were in the air she requested a blanket. Next thing Cathy notices is that the woman was rocking back and forth in her seat under the blanket. She was ‘rubbing one out’ beside Cathy and Cathy was trying to avoid acknowledging what was happening. When she was done, she neatly folded the blanket and gave it back to the flight attendant. Best in-flight story ever.

During the conversation it suddenly occurred to me that Cathy and Mark had sat with us at the awards banquet in Ashland two years ago, and that Mark had made a comment that in Texas, everyone was ‘fat, uneducated, and stupid’, a comment that has stuck with me for two years. When I see who they elect to public office in that state, Ted Cruz, Rick Perry, Louis Gohmert, and others, I suspect that Mark has made a very insightful observation.

The day was pretty well wrapped up with an ice cream social. I met Randy and another guy (so many people for a name challenged guy like me to remember) and we were talking about how people love their Nortons. My analogy was that Nortons are like steam locomotives. The technology is old and outdated and maintenance intensive, but it works, and for the most part is relatively easy to keep running. And, like old steam locomotives, Nortons have personalities of their own and can seem like living things at times.

It is terrific, being here surrounded by hundreds of Nortons and the people who love them. Everyone is friendly and a quick look at a guy’s (or woman’s) bike can turn into a twenty minute conversation.

Now, back to my revelation. I have often thought and observed that life in small towns seems to move at a slower pace than it does in bigger cities. Today I realized why. In big cities, life is mostly impersonal, where one deals with people on the basis of tasks or transactions. You work with people or buy stuff from them, but you don’t know them and your interactions are almost always limited to the task at hand. In smaller places, people have quite often known each other for a longer time and have connections based on history and interests. Interactions aren’t just perfunctory and businesslike, but are more personal. That’s why meeting someone can turn into a twenty minute conversation. Your life can’t be too fast paced when you take the time to actually connect with people. I’m going to have to remember that.

After one day, I am really impressed with the friendliness and the sense of camaraderie that exist between such a diverse group of people from all over North America, who have their love of Nortons in common. This feeling is worth every bit of the investment of time and money that it took to get here.

Volcanoes & A Head On

Rain again this morning.It rained overnight and when we headed south on I-5 we ran into some serious rain, but it was more in the nature of localized showers and not the heavy sustained rain that we have experienced at times during the past several days. It wasn't encouraging when we began to climb the passes south of Medford, OR, that the temperature dropped to 48F (9C). This is the middle of July, for gods' sake! Not February!

For the past several days I have been regaling Jim with the virtues of the Contigo insulated coffee mug that I bought for twelve dollars when Target was going out of business. In addition to keeping my coffee hot for five or six, and sometimes even seven hours, it fits perfectly in the carrier I have attached to the crash bar on my Harley. With this mug, I can have hot coffee for most of the day. 

This morning we stopped at WalMart in Medford, OR, to stock up on PowerAde and on a whim decided to check out coffee mugs. Lo and behold, there was a wide selection of colours of the exact mug for $12.84. Jim picked up a green one and I bought a blue one so now the Harley has its own dedicated mug. And now Jim is singing the praises of Contigo as well. Across the street is the Rogue Credit Union. That name might do with a rethink.

I might hesitate to put my money here

Every day as we drive we see some whimsical if not strange names. Today we saw two worth remembering; Jumpoff Joe Creek, and Louse Creek. I can't even begin to imagine where those names originated.

As we drove south the climate appeared to be drier and the evergreens that were farther north were replaced with wide expanses of arbutus and oak trees. The oaks aren't the tall, massive and stately ones of eastern Canada and the northeastern US, but they seen to be stunted, not reaching heights of much more than ten metres. 

Oak & arbutus trees

As we drove Jim remarked that other than the poor Norton rider who was broken down on the side of the interstate yesterday, we hadn't seen any Nortons. Not more than ten minutes later we passed a truck that was pulling a trailer and there was a black & gold Commando in the truck box. I decided to remark that it looked like it was going to rain soon. That seemed to work because we had no more rain either. We met the couple in the truck at the next rest stop. They are from near Tillamook, OR, and they had a Harley in the trailer. The serial number on the guy's bike was only 41 earlier than mine. At one of the rest stops we saw this truck. If Jim was associated with the company, he would probably be travelling with a higher class companion!

In another universe

Shortly after we crossed into California, we passed the town of Weed. All sorts of ideas came to mind. If California legalizes the 'Killer Weed' I would like to patent the phrase 'The Weed Store', because it could apply to any store in the town. As we approached the town we stopped at the Weed Rest Area, saw a sign that said, 'Weed Like To Welcome You' as well as exit signs giving direction to various streets. 

Advertising or directions?

At the Weed Rest Area, there is a great view of Mount Shasta, a large shield volcano similar to Mount Baker or Mount Rainier. Today the to top was shrouded by clouds for most of the time we could see it. Next to Mount Shasta is Black Butte, a plug volcano. I'm not sure what that means but you have Wikipedia available and can check it out if you're interested.

First view of Mount Shasta shrouded in clouds

Mount Shasta

Black Butte

Black Butte, near Weed, CA

Mount Shasta

Farther south we crossed Lake Shasta. Two years ago when we were here the lake was down close to fifteen metres below its usual height. Today, it was almost back to normal so the people in northern California have at least had bit of a respite for the multi-year drought they have been experiencing.

Lake Shasta

When we arrived at Redding, we decided to check out Red Lobster because that has been a wish of Jim's for quite a long time. We were there at about 3:30, not the busiest time of the day, but we had to wait for at least ten minutes to get a seat because of a staff shortage, so we gave it a pass. It was a bit of a disappointment for both of us, but we bravely soldiered on and headed south to Red Bluff, CA, where we took Highway 36 east. Almost immediately we saw the back side of Mount Shasta as well as Mount Lassen, another shield volcano that erupted several times between 1913 and 1917. This is part of a chain of volcanoes that stretch up the west coast into Canada.

Mount Shasta

The land is open and as we drove east we gained altitude. At the beginning we saw open country with scrub oak and pines and as we climbed, the trees became larger and the highway was closed in by tall Ponderosa pines, I would guess.

Through the pines

More than a mile high

We topped out at about 5700 feet before we gradually began to follow the Feather River. This is very rugged country and it surprised me to see a railway running along the other side of the river. It seemed like a most unusual place to run a railroad, but there is was. I found out later that it was the Western pacific Railroad, one I'd never heard of before. It was established in 1903. I can only imagine the back breaking work the navvies had to endure to push this road through these rugged mountains using mostly manual labour. The road runs to the west with a branch heading north. this was done with two trestles and a tunnel being involved very close to Quincy, CA.

We tried to find a motel in Chester, CA, but the town was shut down so we took Highway 89 south along the large and beautiful Almanor Lake. As we approached the junction of Highways 89 and 70 we were stopped by two forest firefighters who were waving people down. We learned that a head on collision had just occurred and as we pulled over, officers from the Plumas County Sheriff's office, firefighters in four or five trucks, an ambulance, and two tow trucks arrived. 

The scene of the collision

We found out that a small truck had drifted across the centre line on a 30 mph curve and collided with a larger truck that was pulling a trailer with Ford Mustang on it. We were held up for more than an hour and a half as we waited for the scene to be cleared and the California Highway Patrol to do its investigation. Jim spoke to a young nurse who had pulled up behind us. I'm not sure if she had helped before the ambulance arrived, but she suspected that alcohol was involved. Three people in the larger truck were injured and taken to Quincy by ambulance, but the man in the smaller truck had to be removed from the wreckage with the Jaws of Life. He was apparently medevacked to Quincy Hospital where he would be stabilized and then flown to a larger hospital. It seemed like such an unnecessary thing to happen as the curve was clearly marked.

Three people were injured in this truck

The remains of the truck that crossed the centre line

When we arrived in Quincy it was after 8:00 p.m. and we were concerned that we wouldn't be able to get a motel room. The first place we stopped at was full so we drove to the next. Jim didn't see the NO  above the Vacancy sign so he pulled in and miraculously, there was room available. And better yet there were at least five Nortons parked in front of the rooms. 

While Jim was checking in, I walked over to three guys who had three really well cared for Commandos. They were from Seattle. Paul, Doug and Jamal trailered their bikes down just as we did. They are old enough and smart enough to know that it is better to truck all that old British iron here and enjoy the ride than to wear yourself out riding them here. 

As we were getting settled in, another character who is well known to Norton owners not only in California, but among riders of old British iron all over North America, showed up. Ken Armann has an encyclopedic knowledge of how to restore Nortons and how to keep them running. He is an accupuncturist and has even applied that knowledge to keeping Nortons healthy. He explained to us how to use an accupuncture needle to clean Amal carbeurators. Who knew that ancient Chinese medicine would come in helpful with old English motorcycles? We found this out and the rally hasn't even begun.

Ken Armann

Jim, Ken, Paul, and Jamal. What could possible go wrong???

We covered about four hundred miles (about 625 km) today so in the past two days we have made about 850 miles (about 1450 km). Now the fun begins, because tomorrow we get to ride Nortons, and from what we have seen so far, the roads are going to be terrific. And we are going to see some pretty fantastic motorcycles in the bargain.