R A M !

Reynold's Alberta Museum,



is located in the heart of the Province. Barely an hour from Edmonton, and about a two hour ride/drive from Calgary, on the Western outskirts of the fine little city of Wetaskiwin, RAM is a fabulous place to visit... if you're a gear/motor head.

Set aside a whole day or better yet, sleep over in town and take in both the Automotive/farm equipment museum one day and the Air museum the next.

Okay, so the farm equipment doesn't interest me a whole lot. but ya gotta admire a steam driven, steel wheeled tractor that's nearly two stories high!

RAM is packed with rare vehicles, restored vehicles and several vehicles in original condition. Back in 2005, they had a fabulous display of motorcycles and many remain as permanent exhibits.

We had a very HOT day when we pulled into the near empty lot. The "Motorcycle only" parking was devoid of all but the Triumph, and we would have welcomed some shade. The heat bouncing off the concrete was akin to being fried like an egg in the Mojave. It was 34C and relentlessly bright.

The staff is plentiful, helpful and available. They know many of the details of not only the specifications of the displays, but in some case, the history of the particular model on the floor, right down to who owned it over the years!

Interesting to compare my 2002 Triumph with the 1912 "Free engine" model that was revolutionary in it's day.

I have to admit though... I have an almost irresistible urge to jump on the bikes/slide into the seat of some of the cars/hop into the cockpit of the aircraft, and pretend I'm riding down a gravel Alberta road in 1912, or sliding an old hot rod jalopy into turn one at the local horse track, or diving my Hurricane with a Junkers in the gun sight!

Don't!

Leave that stuff to the imagination and keyboard. The aforementioned plentiful staff and multitude of security cameras will have you out the door before you could say, Edmonton's "New noise bylaw infuriates Motorcyclists."

A mob of Air Force Cadets had loudly infiltrated the facility during our visit. Young men and women from Western Canada hovered around the displays making it a wee bit hard to get at at times. Brenda and I retreated strategically to the cafeteria for lunch while the hub bub died down somewhat.

After a simple lunch and the obligatory Cokes (buy stock!) ! we continued our journey. I was astonished by Brenda's curiosity reading the well written and informative plaques that were located throughout the building. Usually, whenever I do these things with a female companion, it's me they are waiting for at the abundant, well positioned seating areas. Several times I had to remind her that we had a whole bunch to see and a long way to ride yet that day.

Several hours quickly passed and as we were leaving, I had a chat with the media gal about potentially doing a follow up story to the one earlier. (Canadian Biker fall '05).

I moved the Bird under a nearby shade tree in the parking lot as we dressed for the return ride. Liners out, we were at least reasonably comfortable on the ride south thru Ponoka, Lacombe and Olds. Following highway 2A brought back many memories for me. Growing up in Edmonton and visiting family friends in Calgary as a youngster, I had many recollections of that road.

There was the time that Dad fell asleep at around 60 mph and clipped a highway post before grabbing the wheel and getting us back onto the pavement. Then there was a trip down in BinL's* John's car during the dead of a typical prairie winter at a hundred below zero when the heater wasn't working and I felt like a Popsicle!

My first published short story was about a feeling I had riding the highway and dealing with (can you believe it?) "four thousand pound hunks of Detroit iron" that had little regard for us motorcyclists. Cycle and Cycle Guide printed that account back around the late 70's I think.

YUP... this ride had lots of memories for me...

And this trip, added some more :)

*BinL

Not Osama Bin Laden... but Brother in Law