In My Brain... Day 4 and a trip back to remind me why....

August 31, 2012

One of my favorite places in the world is the Harley-Davidson Museum.  Got to spend the day there today and though I've visited a dozen times, it really never gets old.  A quote from the HD Museum website... "For true believers, the Harley-Davidson Museum® is not just a museum. It’s sacred ground. Gather the tribe. Make the pilgrimage." It would be hard for me to conjure truer words than these.  It is the affirmation of all those things that make the Harley Enthusiast who we are.

It speaks truths to us and weaves us into the fabric of the historical tapestry that is the Harley-Davidson experience.  The exhibits allow you to immerse yourself into them and go on an emotional journey back through time.  I draw parallels between my personal experiences on a Harley with those pioneers who came before me.  I communed today with "Hap" Scherer, the legendary Harley-Davidson "Endurance" rider who, along with his 1919 model Harley Sport Twin set an Endurance record riding from New York to Los Angeles in a blistering 77 hours and 53 minutes.  Hap wrote many an article for "The Enthusiast", Harley-Davidson's long running marketing and lifestyle magazine.  From a 1920 article...

                             "While touring from coast to coast last year, I many times covered
                              300 miles in a day, not because I had a limited amount of time in
                              which to reach my destination, but simply out of pure joy from roll-
                              ing over the broad open country..." Hap Scherer

Right on, my brother and poet.  Right on. 

I spent a little time with Ms Vivian Bales, the trailblazing brunette beauty from Albany Georgia, whom, though barely in her 20's and in a world that hardly welcomed her and told her she couldn't do it, rode her Harley from her home town of Albany straight up to the Harley-Davidson Headquarters in Milwaukee.

                             "It makes me so mad to hear folks saying that a motorcycle is dangerous
                              and especially that no girl should ride one.  I always wanted to so some-
                              thing that most girls wouldn't do, and my motorcycle gave me the chance
                              to satisfy my adventurous spirit"--Vivian Bales, 1929

My kind of girl. 

Satisfy your adventurous spirit.  Are you satisfying yours?  Joe Petrali, Effie Hotchkiss, Fred Pavlich.... These and so many more names now live not only in the walls of this monumental place but also pulse through the veins of us that continue that search for excitement and adventure.

Harley-Davidson began celebrating its 110th year during our Milwaukee stay.  We are fortunate to have places like the HD Museum to help us on that journey back in time to reclaim our roots and recharge our love affairs for these machines.  We are fortunate that the founders of the Motor Company, Mr Harley and the three Davidson brothers, knew they had something special and had the vision to preserve their heritage and the machines that they were building for us to use as a bridge over the span of time.  How fortunate are we to have people at the museum like Tom Platz , a former HD Executive, and now a tour guide and restoration expert for the Museum.  Tom is a walking exhibit himself, not just reciting what you could read on your own but also telling you the story behind the story.  Just as every enthusiast is an individual with their own stories to tell, so to is every motorcycle an individual, be it one that sits upon a rack up in the archives, in the hall of motorcycles in the museum, or in your garage.  Be like Tom and learn those stories and tell them again and again.  Not only has Tom learned the stories, it is fascinating to hear him tell of his role in those stories.  Thank you Tom, you're a legend.

Hearing the epic story of the perilous years of Harley-Davidson as they fought to stay alive through the early 1980's and their triumphs over the bankers that had every intention of killing them and their love of the brand is always a thrill for me.  What a debt of gratitude we all owe to that buyback team for without them, this brand we love and these motorcycles we are passionate about would be no more.  Hearing Willie G Davidson's voice as he recalls those days when Harley was literally hours from bankruptcy before getting that last minute news that they would have the financial ability to continue their struggle and listening to my old friend and Harley-Davidson CEO Rich Teerlink tell of the group jumping and throwing papers in the air as they were given another chance, one that merely months later would result in HD trading publicly on Wall Street.  What a story of success and perseverance.

And what else of Willie G Davidson.  Our living legend.  Our Iconic brand in flesh and blood.  The mouth piece of all we feel and love about our sport, our lifestyle.  The holder of the bar and shield.  The connection to our roots and the Merlin of our magic.  The man who was able to take a few minutes of his day and stop by our table as we dined, for no other purpose other than to welcome our group to Milwaukee and to thank us for our loyalty to the motorcycle that his grandfather founded and who's tank is emblazoned with his name. 

Are you kidding me, Willie G?  Thank me? No.  No sir.  Thank you.  Thank you for never straying from what makes us special.  For never taking for granted that which binds us all together, emotionally and spiritually.  Thank you for always taking time to let your fans and, I dare say 'followers', know that "YOU ride with us".  I love you, Willie G, and I love this brand.

Tonight, I'll repack my bag and tomorrow, I'll load it all back on my machine.  I'll bid farewell to Milwuakee until I return for the 110th Anniversary celebration and then I'll point it south and ride into whatever the remnants of Hurricane Isaac can throw at me, but I have to qualms about it, because I'll be riding with Hap Scherer, Vivian Bales, Joe Petrali, Effie Hotchkiss, Fred Pavlich, Click Baldwin, Gregg Waynick, William Harley, Arthur, Walter, and William Davidson, Dot Robinson, Eric Jones, and Wille G....

And a million of others that I never was able to meet but that I know as my brothers and sisters.

Thank you again Willie.  My love affair is again renewed.

Ride Safe and with Purpose,

Scott Michael Bumpus

In My Brain... Day 3

August 30, 2012

"Lord I'm goin' up town, to the Harlem River to Drown.  Dirty water gonna cover me over, and I'm not gonna make a sound..."-- Justin Townes Earle

I've been in the Harley-Davidson business for 26 years as part of the family, and 18 years as my full time job and way that I make my living.  I've been part of the Harley-Davidson 'thing' for much longer than that.  I often talk of the "love affair" that we have with these machines and the place that they have in our life.  A relationship with Harley-Davidson goes deep below the skin and into the soul and is about so much more than just the motorcycle.  The mere mention of the name "Harley" invokes a visceral reaction amongst the believers.  We look at roads and sunsets differently.  Our thoughts are monopolized by destinations and 'bucket list' items.  We truly are brethren.  Believers, fanatical followers...

As I grew up and learned more about this 'thing' that had already possessed the souls of my brothers, I formed my own relationship to what I call 'the brand'.  When I say brand, I don't mean trademarks in the same sense that I'd describe Coke as my favorite brand of soft drink, but more so I use the term 'brand' more like I'd use the word 'phyllum' or 'species'.  Brand, like marks burned into ones skin, ones psyche.  That tangible glue that not only emblazons the fuel tanks of these spectacular machines, but also that framework in which our lifestyle and love affair lives. 

The brand which I refer to belongs to the brethren.  Harley-Davidson holds the trademarks, but the 'brand' is all of ours.  The mystique, the religion.  I feel no small responsibility as a dealer, along with the motor company as 'caretakers' of that brand.  Oh how quickly we could screw it up if we are not careful.  We have a responsibility to always remember where we came from and what got us here.  The brand is precious, and fragile, and a necessity in our lives.

We made our way up to Saukville Wisconsin to tour the facilities of Calibre, Inc, a company that does paint for replacement service parts for Harley-Davidson.  I always love to tour this place, and I have to offer a huge 'thank you' to my friend Terry Bretl for being a gracious host to my family and group.  Watching the artists and craftsmen at Calibre is such a treat.  The things we take for granted, the commitment and attention to detail that goes into the work that those people do is humbling.  I have never looked at the pin striping on a Harley-Davidson paint job the same since I had the pleasure of watching those good folks apply them by hand. 

"In the back of my mind, eatin up all my time....Hangin weightless in the sky, like an angel with no place to fly..."-- Willie Nelson

We later made our way over to Menominee Falls to tour the Pilgrim Road Harley-Davidson Powertrain Plant, the birthplace of the Harley-Davidson Engine.  The senses become overwhelmed when you step out onto the plant floor.  The drone of the machinery.  The smell of the oil.  I've taken this tour before, so I didn't spend much time listening to our able engineer telling the group what the plant does, but instead I hung back and 'observed'.  I love the upper midwest, and it's people.  I love that this factory is still in Milwaukee Wisconsin.  It couldn't be anywhere else.  The looks on the faces of the operators on the floor.  Dedicated. Blue collar, real.  Steel, lubricants, wires, drills and presses, zip zip, whiz.  Real. Tangible. Authentic. Love.  Lunch pails and Green Bay Packer calendars.  Young.  Old.  Tattoos, and ponytails.  White beards, and bald heads.  Men and women all dedicated to the product that they are producing.  Make no mistake that they know the role they play in this 'brand'.  I've blogged before about the love that these that build the machine have for them.

http://abumpontheroad.blogspot.com/2011/12/love.html

They loved her first.

I can see out my window and across the industrial canal that the field in front of the Harley-Davidson Museum is starting to fill up with bikes.  Thursday is bike night at the museum and I'll dare say, Milwaukee and the HDM host the finest bike night I've ever been to.  That element of authenticity is in the air here.  The good people that attend are here for spiritual revival.  Their soul will be lifted as they commune and fellowship with their brothers and sisters in the sacred birthplace of their passion.  Tonight also kicks off the year long celebration of the 110th Anniversary of the Harley-Davidson Motor Company, adding another level of emotion to the whole event.  I'm leaving you now to go see what it has in store.

Ride Safe, and with Purpose.

SMB

In My Brain... Day 2

Part II, Day II

10:45 AM  Starved Rock State Park, Northern Illinois

"Darkness at the break of noon
Shadows even the silver spoon
The handmade blade, the child’s balloon
Eclipses both the sun and moon
To understand you know too soon
There is no sense in trying

Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn
Suicide remarks are torn
From the fool’s gold mouthpiece the hollow horn
Plays wasted words, proves to warn
That he not busy being born is busy dying

Temptation’s page flies out the door
You follow, find yourself at war
Watch waterfalls of pity roar
You feel to moan but unlike before
You discover that you’d just be one more
Person crying

So don’t fear if you hear
A foreign sound to your ear
It’s alright, Ma, I’m only sighing"--- Bob Dylan

So glad this one showed its beautiful face on the playlist today as we clipped north. I love this one.  I was first introduced to it through the soundtrack to the movie "Easy Rider".  Try to find me a biker that has no kinship to that movie... yeah, good luck.  Today's ride so far has taken us along the banks of the Illinois River, again totally reminiscent in this romanticised imagination of mine of that seminal movie. 

"As some warn victory, some downfall
Private reasons great or small
Can be seen in the eyes of those that call
To make all that should be killed to crawl
While others say don’t hate nothing at all
Except hatred"

There's a great scene in the movie that occurs right after the riders are "encouraged" to leave the small Louisiana cafe where they had stopped to dine.  They end up setting up their camp along side the road (another lost art) and are pontificating with a bottle of cheap bourbon and a joint by an open campfire.  George, Jack Nicholson's character is in  discussion with Billy, played by the great Dennis Hopper...Check it out....

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/YyaUtnWr8Gw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Times have changed since those days, but how much really?  Let's talk about freedom.  All of us do.  They spout about it to us on the TV, especially during election time, about what it means.  Who really knows what it means.  How many of us are truly free?  Free to make our own decisions.  Free to chart our own course, to do with our lives what we wish.  I worry about the definitions of freedom that my children might espouse.  Do they know what it means to truly be free?  Do I for that matter.....

Evening.....

Made it to Milwaukee.  What a city.  What a feeling for those of us that love these motorcycles.  More on that love in days to come.  But what a ride to get here....

"For them that must obey authority
That they do not respect in any degree
Who despise their jobs, their destinies
Speak jealously of them that are free
Cultivate their flowers to be
Nothing more than something they invest in

While some on principles baptized
To strict party platform ties
Social clubs in drag disguise
Outsiders they can freely criticize
Tell nothing except who to idolize
And then say God bless him

While one who sings with his tongue on fire
Gargles in the rat race choir
Bent out of shape from society’s pliers
Cares not to come up any higher
But rather get you down in the hole
That he’s in"-- Bob Dylan

Thinking back, as we rode, on the trek of Captain America, Billy and football helmeted George as they made their way to Mardi Gras... As I said, times are different.  Our society does at least a bit seem more tolerant of the fringe of culture (which all of us who ride motorcycles either live, or deep inside, aspire to live) but there is still that distrust of the "mainstream"... The cager, the non-rider. We see him in his car as we pass him, or as he tails us just a little too close for comfort.  We see the look in his eyes.  Often I wonder what lives in that look... Is it jealousy? Jealousy that he is wrapped in his world of structure that wouldn't let him dream of a life with a little danger, a little adventure.  Perhaps it's fear.  Perhaps it's apathy.  Envy. 

I'm not talking of every driver.  Often I can spot a motorcyclist as he drives his car.  He has that look of longing, wishing he or she were with us.  There is an aura of respect and love that radiates... an extra couple feet of room off the bumper.... a wave, perhaps.

I'm talking about the guy who seems not just like he's not paying attention to the fact that we have a right to the road as well, but the one that seems to be out to get us.  Maybe this is why motorcyclists wave at each other as we pass... we get each other.

"And if my thought-dreams could be seen
They’d probably put my head in a guillotine
But it’s alright, Ma, it’s life, and life only"--Bob Dylan

Safe and sound at the Iron Horse Hotel, my favorite hotel anywhere.  It was good seeing my friend, Steve Piehl.  Steve has worked for Harley longer than about anyone else I know.  That's comforting to know that there are folks with Steve's history still at the helm of the ship.  I am a lover of the machine and the brand.  I don't take it for granted and neither do people like Steve.  Thanks brother, and let me express the thanks of others that strive for an authentic experience. 

Time to call it a day.  Great ride.  More adventure tomorrow.

By the way, I 'd have a hard time thinking of a better song to blare while riding than "Honey Bee" by Lucinda Williams.  Try it and I dare ya not to speed up and weave just a little.  Just a side note.

Ride Safe and with Purpose...

SMB

In My Brain (As I Ride)

Preface

There is a magic about road trips, one that is difficult to describe to those who have never travelled by motorcycle.  There is a strange separation from consciousness that occurs when your senses are overridden by the sound of the motor and wind across your ears.  The next few posts are snippets, same day when possible, of what happens in my world when covering miles the way God intended.  By motorcycle.

August 28, 2012

10:30 AM

“You will miss sunrise, if you close your eyes.  And that would break my heart in two….”—Townes Van Zandt

On the road at an abandoned gas station just north of Fulton KY and listening for that drone of engines that tells me that the group is approaching.  This place brings back so many memories for me.  As I said, it’s a filling station from yesteryear that has obviously been bought by someone with the same desire for authenticity as I.  He has renovated it into a sort of adult toy box.  I’ve stopped in this gravel parking lot what seems like hundreds of times.  I’m literally just across the border from Tennessee and this is the spot where we used to stop to remove our helmets before the trek north into Kentucky and Illinois, back in the days when I would ride lidless.  Memories of my old friend Blake, and his friendship that he forged with a stray basset hound that once hung around the place.  Tips of a nasty plastic bottle of Kentucky Tavern before our foray with old pals. 

This trip finds me riding back to Milwaukee with the Memphis MVP group.  For a Harley rider, the trek to Milwaukee really never gets old and the MVP Old Milwaukee trip caries a feeling all of its own.  I’m looking forward to experiencing it all again with this new group of folks that, at this point, really don’t know what lies ahead of them.  I had breakfast in Medina this morning with Angie and Haiden before she headed back to school.  I was fortunate to have the rare opportunity to close my mouth and open my ears and a good lesson was learned.  Parents, stop trying to constantly ‘fix’ your children and learn to listen to them .  Good advice Princess, thank you.

The drone approaches…

12:30 PM

Great feature of the bike I’m riding, the iPod interface.  I can plug my iPod into a harness in the saddlebag and control it through the regular controls on the handlebars.  I find that  the correct playlist is an irreplaceable ally on a trip by bike.  My own personal soundtrack and it has not let me down today.  It sings to me, it is my companion and drives my thoughts as the miles pass. 

“I’m gonna live forever.  I’m gonna cross that river.  I’m gonna catch tomorrow now.”—Billy Joe Shaver

Stopped for ‘dinner’ (Hold on to Southern colloquialisms for they are dying) at The Blue Boar between Jonesboro and Cobden Illinois.  It is an out of the way place that I found with the recommendation of my friend and great American character, Shad Zimbro.  Shad is one of my mentors in the Harley-Davidson business.

Anyway… Many places are referred to as ‘biker friendly’ and you can assign any definition to that which you wish, but in my book, it is the pinnacle of ‘biker friendly’.  Not that it’s a “biker bar” or anything like that.  It doesn’t have the finest amenities for motorcycle parking, unless you are the type that digs gravel parking lots, but where it shines is in its character and personality.  I’ve talked so many times about ‘character’ and ‘characters’ and their importance in life.  NEVER EVER BLEND IN and the Blue Boar doesn’t.  It is a diamond in the rough.  In a world of cookie cutter eateries with the same old worn out menu, the Blue Boar is built upon incredible hospitality, inviting atmosphere, beautiful scenery, and great food.  If ever in Southern Illinois, don’t miss it.

We continue to make our way north through Illinois.  These are familiar roads to me.  Highway 127 north from Jonesboro toward Murphysboro.  How many times have I ridden this road through my youth.  As many of you know, I attended college at the nearby Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and this was one of my getaway routes on the old FXR that I spent many ‘formative miles’ on.  One of the great things about this road is that it literally hasn’t changed in 20 years.  Nothing about it has.  The scenery is exactly the same.  Who is intrigued by time travel?  Who isn’t?  Well, I tell you what… Today was a trip back in time.  Today as I careened my machine through the twisty curves I was 20 years old again, taking a quick break from the guts of the WSIU-TV edit suite that I spent countless hours of my life. 

“Look out here she comes, she’s comin… Look out there she goes, she’s gone….”—Guy Clark

That lyric, that was us.  My best friend, Eric Jones and I as we carved out our place in the world, just as we carved the corners of that magical road. 

Death took Eric from me right before we graduated, but today he was there with me again…. Smiling face, flat top haircut, ’79 model worn out, piece of shit, smoke billowing, oil spraying, Harley-Davidson Sportster riding gem of my youth.

“The Ghost has got me runnin…”-Whiskeytown

More on him some other day, some other blog.

Springfield Illinois tonight and tomorrow on to Milwaukee.  Good Night.

Ride safe, and with purpose.

A Birthday Present for Me.

Through my ramblings or by coming into the store or even some other connection of family or friendship you have with me, I'd suspect you've come to know a bit about the person I refer to as "My Princess."

http://abumpontheroad.blogspot.com/2012/05/letter-to-princess.html

Today she turns 18 years old.  A childhood finished and a life as an adult emerges.  I remember turning 18.  It didn't seem like much of a big deal to me then, in fact, the only thing I distinctly remember doing was registering for the draft.  So much for that.  I told her earlier today that really the only thing that would really be different today as compared to yesterday is that she could go to jail.... What a motivational speech that was, but anyway.

Our days of having Haiden at home are fast whittling down.  In less than two weeks she'll be gone, off to school and whatever else lies ahead, leaving me here with two boys that don't yet know how much they are going to miss her and her mother, whom I'm fairly sure I'll have to put on medication.  She'll be moving up to Murfreesboro to attend college (on a full academic scholarship, I might add) and will be working for my brother up at BHD in the Boro.  I'm so excited for her but I dread the silence from that first room up the stairs on the left and that empty hole in my heart that she still fills every day with her sweet kisses upon my cheek.

But..... This week, I have a treat coming to me. 

When I graduated from High School, the greatest gift I received from my Dad was the opportunity to accompany him on a motorcycle road trip.  We covered about 4000 miles together over the course of a week or so traversing the Rocky Mountains and the Great American Plains.  To call it a trip I'll never forget is an understatement.  It was one of the formative periods of my life, one that I don't go more than a day or two thinking about. 

My treat this week is that the Princess and I will be setting out on a motorcycle adventure of our own.  I'm so excited about it I can hardly contain it.  I try to read her thoughts on it to see a glimpse of that excitement, but I remember being in her place. This is new to her and as I remember myself, I didn't have any idea the magnitude of what lay before me.  I just hope that I can make next week as memorable for her as it undoubtedly will be for me.  Just like my Dad did.

Your prayers and well wishes will be greatly appreciated as we strike out Monday Morning.  Those who plan to to the passport ride to Lynchburg and Murfreesboro will be accompanying us on that first leg.

Happy Birthday Princess, and thank you in advance for this wonderful gift to me.

I'll keep y'all posted as the opportunity presents itself.

Ride Safe, and with Purpose.

SMB