End of the road

[Mtneers]

There are those that have wrecked and those that will. I’m one that has when I was 22. I’ve been riding since I was 8. Even though I wasn’t seriously hurt, I went to the emergency room as a precaution for x-rays. I came around a curve too fast and lost it in a culvert. My head slammed into the bank, split the face shield and bent the front wheel and forks under the frame. A 1979 Yamaha 750 Special that was two weeks old. The worst part of the whole ordeal was that my parents were coming to dinner the next day. Not only did I have to explain the marks on my face, but that I had purchased another motorcycle. The bike was repaired. My dad sent me a check to pay off the loan and told me to sell the bike, which I did. The note also had a strong message “to never buy another motorcycle”. I still have his handwritten note. I stayed away from cycling for about 10 years while our sons were growing up and playing sports. When they got in their late teens, I eased back into by buying a used Honda CT90, then a Kaw KLR250 and so on until I bought a Goldwing a few years ago. My youngest son had a Yamaha dirt bike and we went trail riding several times. Even though I love riding, I feel fortunate to have traveled coast to coast without incident. I think about what could happen and how it would affect my life, my son’s lives or my wife’s. It also haunts me still today that I went against my dad’s wishes for me to quit riding. I’ve told several people it would be a great sport if wasn’t for distracted drivers. Cellphones seem to have compounded the problem.

I guess I’ll keep riding as long as I’m able or find it as a means of enjoyment. But, that one accident almost 40 years ago keeps me honest and from attempting to ride beyond my skill level.

Ride safe.....


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