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.