Is this the new reality?

Forrest Gump said, "Mama told me, "life is like a box of chocolates... you just never know what your gonna get."

Well that may have some truth to it.

(that's funny... because there is no Forrest Gump, it's all just fiction)

On the other hand, I believe you can create your own reality to a great extent. 

If you try that is.

When I was a young man, okay... boy, I dreamed of riding motorcyles.  Course in those days, there were few riders and fewer shops.  At twenty, riding a new BMW R60/5, all the way to the east coast and back, I was lucky to see one or two other touring riders in the course of a day.  When I did, we exchanged waves or peace signs!

Growing up in Edmonton, a fairly large city by those standards, I pretty much knew them all.

There was United Cycle on White avenue.  Alberta Cycle operated by the Greene family on 118th. (Norm, not Lorne!)

There was Klatt's Harley on 95 Street, if memory serves, and there was Kane's Yamaha somewhere on the north side near a railway overpass on 97th street.






In St Albert, there was a place called Riverside Yamaha.

Let's not forget Scona Cycle again on the south side run by Hungarians Rudi and Zoli.

There was even a Ducati dealer farther out on 118th Ave that sold mostly kitchen and laundry appliances next to Diana's.  Can't remember the name of the place but it was run by a guy named 'Reg.'

I'm sure there were several others but at this point, memory eludes me.

Well before I was of riding age, in those days at fourteen you were legal to ride any bike up to 100cc in displacement, I began by riding the city bus before graduating to a 3 speed Sturmey Archer pedal bike, to make a ... ahem, nuisance of myself at the various shops.

Sound familiar?

I would climb, literally on top of whatever bikes I could get away with at the time.  I still remember sitting on an Aerrmachi Sprint (aka Harley) in the entrance to Klatt's, only to have Mrs Klatt's booming voice like from heaven yell at me to 'get the hell off that bike!'

Who knew God was a woman then?


Fortunately Al came along and with a smiling face, telling me to not mind the old bat and stay put.

Those early days led me to dream about motorcycles (and airplanes).  In my sleep, riding the transit to my music lessons, all I could think about was riding and racing motorcycles.  My first bike, a Honda S90 I'd ride flat out to Lake Wabanum or Elk Island park, I'd pretend my A 100 Suzuki street scrambler was a moto-x bike. my
X-6 Hustler, a road racer bike and my Rebel a tourer. 

Sometimes I pinch myself, cuz my life seems like a never ended series of dreams.  I've been a Chief Instructor, a racer, owner of several shops.  I've been married, had kids that grew up to be remarkable and stable young women, dated a whole series of incredible women... travelled and rode in Baja Mejico, Europe, been to Japan, flew on a DC3, published many a story and photo's and through all of it, lived to tell the tale, as I am doing now.

It's been a memorable journey, and here I go once again, beginning yet another.

What you see here is a 20' long CargoMate. 

In a few short months, I will be packing a handful of my bikes, some clothes, a few household pieces of furniture, some mementos and whatever else of any value to me fits in the cavernous hold.

In a few months I will be heading off once again on another long time dream, in fact continuing one I'd begun many years ago.

I'll keep you  in tune, just follow me...