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Friday, July 31, 2015
Almost There!
It finally happened today.
My Dad, Steve, and I have all come together for the remainder of the
trip to Sturgis.
It was really awesome seeing Steve come rumbling in as we
were waiting on a rainy Amarillo, Texas morning. Dad and I had just come through about 20
miles of a complete downpour and were trying to get out of out rain gear.
As Steve pulled up he was drenched. He had just spent about 100 miles in the same
downpour. What a mess!
We decided to eat an early lunch and wait the rain out. It was a perfect idea. We ate and as we left Amarillo, skies began
to clear. By the time we entered into
southern Colorado it had become a beautiful high desert day.
The further north we rode the more motorcycles we have
seen. As we sit here in our hotel in
Lamar, Colorado, there is a constant stream of motorcycles heading north toward
Sturgis.
Tomorrow will be our turn to make our triumphant entry into
the little town of Sturgis. There is expected
to be 1,000,000 people there this week, nearly double the normal population of
a Sturgis rally. It’s going to be a zoo,
but we are all really excited about seeing it all unfold.
So, I thought I’d try something a little different today…
while riding I have a few songs jammed in my head. Before I share them with you, and the reasons
why I think I have this playlist going in my over active brain, I want to know
what you think.
What songs or music do you listen to on a road trip? Why?
If you’d be so bold, leave a comment and let me know your thought on
this.
Coming tomorrow… report and first photos from Sturgis from
three Sturgis virgins!
Ride safe out there!
Fully Mission Capable
All things finally moved at once. My Dad and I headed into Dallas to Maverick
Harley Davidson where his motorcycle was getting some work done, and after a
few hours of hanging around he had his motorcycle and (after an oil change)
mine was ready to go as well.
All packed and ready:
So, for the first time, we were rolling toward our stop of
the evening, and Steve was rolling toward his.
It was the first time that we were all moving at the same time, and it
was nice to have all of us on the road at the same time.
We will meet up today in Amarillo, TX and continue the trip
north, arriving in Sturgis tomorrow (Saturday).
It was an interesting experience at Maverick Harley Davidson
yesterday. My Dad has spoken again and
again about how great the experience was at this particular dealer, and it was
no disappointment. From the moment we
walked in until we left, the sales staff, service staff, and everyone we came
into contact with were amazing.
Not once did anyone try to “sell” anything, rather they were
all very friendly, helpful, and cheerful. This made me want to buy something even more (don't worry Michelle, no purchases!). My Dad has said this is the experience he has every time he is there.
So why spend time on this blog about this experience?
It seems more and more rare that businesses truly practice
customer service at a high level. It was
truly refreshing, and it speaks to an organizational culture at this particular
dealership that treats their employees as more than just a revenue generator,
and employees that are actually enjoying where they work, and who they work
for.
I have been in a bunch of Harley dealerships over the years
and some are good, some are not so good.
Harley has done an amazing job at making their dealerships a
destination. How many times have you
heard of people just heading to a Honda dealer?
In my life… I have never heard that.
However, people flock to Harley dealers just to hang out.
It’s an amazing marketing phenomenon.
The problem is that in many Harley dealerships the attitude
seems to be that the customer came in here because we are Harley, so we’ll sit
and let you come to us. What I experienced
yesterday was the exact opposite.
Employees that seemed grateful that the customer was there, and would do
nearly anything to make your visit to their store a positive one. If I ever buy another Harley, I’ll likely buy
from Maverick, no matter where I am in the country.
Gotta be brief this morning… I’ll write a bit more once we
all make link-up today… looks like rain may be upon us!
Thursday, July 30, 2015
LAUNCH DAY
“It’s launch day” was the proclamation my Dad made this morning
as we were getting coffee.
Excitement has definitely built, and we are all moving toward convergence.
Yesterday Steve had his first day on his motorcycle in nearly
three months, and for his first real day on his motorcycle he rode through one
of the hottest parts of the country: Interstate 40 from Southern California
into Arizona. He had a great ride and
after three months in the shop, his motorcycle ran like a dream.
This morning, my Dad and I will head to Dallas. We gotta pick his motorcycle up from the
dealer it is getting some maintenance done at.
I’m going to get my oil changed, and then we’ll be all set for link up
on Friday with Steve in Amarillo, TX.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since we set
ourselves on this journey. I know my
life has been on a bit of a roller coaster at times, at one time I had orders
to move to San Antonio, then changed paths to staying at West Point for my last
year in the Army. I got Michelle and the
kids moved to Alabama as we all prepare for my transition out of the Army.
One of the things that we talk about a lot as we develop
leaders at West Point is reflection, and how, in the Army, we are horrible at
reflection, even though that reflection is crucial to our growth as
leaders. One of the great things about a
trip like this is the ability to reflect.
Like I’ve said before, there is something about riding down
the road with no distractions, being alone in your thoughts, even if you are
riding in a group.
Dad and I were talking to Steve after he stopped yesterday
and Steve mentioned that he had driven the highway many times, but riding it on
a motorcycle was different. Dad made the
comment that on a motorcycle you are in the road rather than on the road. I think that fits what I am talking about.
In a spiritual sense, it’s a lot like being one with nature
if you’re into that sort of thing. Once
you are “in” the road, you can kind of sync your thoughts with the environment around
you and, for me, that really helps to begin the reflective process.
As I was riding the other day, I felt the pull of history as
I was moving across huge things like the Mississippi River. The timelessness of something like that helps
to put my own place in history in a unique perspective. It’s these grounding thoughts that help feed
the reflective process and, at the end of this journey, will rejuvenate and
refresh my life in a very unique way.
See y’all on the road!
Cast of Characters
I was reading through some of my entries, and started to
feel like I left something out. While
this trip is about my Dad and brother, Steve, there is one other that I want to
introduce, even though he is just a spectator on this particular trip.
Quick family tree snapshot.
I am the only child from my Mom and Dad’s union, Steve is a product of
my Dad’s second marriage. My Mom’s
second marriage had one other child, my other brother, Dov.
Y’all have heard a lot about Steve, and I’m going to take a
second to talk about Dov. Like I just
said, Dov is my Mom’s only other child.
He and I grew up together until I left the house. We kinda drifted over the years, and I
watched as Dov struggled to make his own name after our Mom’s death.
It would have been easy, and probably expected, for Dov and
I to just “exist” after our Mom’s death.
For a time that is what happened.
If you look today, you would find two extremely successful
men. I couldn’t be more proud of
Dov. He has a beautiful family and has
proven himself time and time again. I am
amazed at his ease of life and often feel guilty for not being a bigger part in
his life. We are close now, and I wish
we were closer.
I walk among giants.
Steve is an amazing man, served his country as an Infantryman
in the Ranger Regiment after 9/11 because he felt it was his duty to
serve. He has since earned an MBA, and is
extremely well respected in what he does.
Dov, like me, still serves. He
has found great success in the US Army Special Forces (the Green Berets) where
he has deployed in harm’s way more times than I can count.
I felt like it was important to spend a few moments to this
so that it didn’t seem like the only people in my life were the ones on this
trip.
More motorcycle / Sturgis adventures next!
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
And Then There Were Two...
For those that have read this from the beginning, you read
how there was a series of events that led to some weird and
random motorcycle purchases in the year since my Dad, brother, and I have
been planning this.
This time last summer, my Dad had just purchased a Harley
Davidson Road King. After being
primarily a rider of Honda Goldwings, his response when he test drove a Harley
was amazing. He said something to the
effect of, “for all my life I have been riding and this [riding a Harley] is
what a motorcycle experience should feel like.”
He was hooked and loved his Road King.
A month or so later, my brother, Steve, finished up his basic rider’s
course and my Dad flew out to California to give him a hand in purchasing a
brand new 2014 Harley Fat Bob.
Then a series things started to come unhinged. In October, my Dad crashed on his Road King, totaling
the motorcycle. Fortunately both he and
his wife were relatively okay. But he
was without motorcycle.
In May, Steve went down on his motorcycle. Again, no real injuries, but needed repairs
on his relatively new motorcycle.
As the summer approached, my Dad started talking like he may
not ride to Sturgis, rather thinking that he might drive his truck as a kind of
support vehicle for our trip. While Steve and I supported whatever he wanted to do, we were disappointed in the
idea of him not riding.
Well, a few weeks ago, he began looking at motorcycles, and
in three short weeks bought three different motorcycles, ending up with a
beautiful Harley Electra Glide.
Meanwhile, my brother’s motorcycle has toiled in the shop
for just over 10 weeks. Which was a ridiculous
amount of time for the work that was being done.
Well, today Steve picked up his bike, and it is beautiful!
I say we are 2 of 3 right now because Steve has his bike, I
have mine, but my Dad’s is in the shop getting some routine maintenance done
before we take off.
Tomorrow, Steve will leave Southern California and start his
trek east for our link up on Friday.
I am so excited that we are nearing execution of this
trip. You know, it’s not about the
motorcycles, or the craziness that is potentially a part of a place like
Sturgis, this is about an experience of us bonding together in a way that we
haven’t done in our lives.
My Dad and Mom got divorced when I was young (I was the only child of their marriage), and when I was
seven I went to live with my Mom and Step-Dad, so I never really spent any time
with Steve at all. In fact I completely fell out
with my Dad for many years.
Once I was out and on my own, as a young Soldier
stationed in Germany, I eventually reached out to my Dad and we rekindled our relationship and became stronger than ever, in fact, he was the best man at my wedding. During this time, Steve and Dad were real
close. After a few years I left the Army
and while Michelle and I lived in Southern California we all hung out when we
could.
But, as life would have it, 9/11 happened, and I went back
in the Army. Steve would follow behind
me and spend some time in one of the most elite combat units in the US
Army. After his time was up, Steve found
himself married and had moved to Idaho.
Dad went through a real tough time, and an effect of this time was him
and Steve became distant and eventually just stopped really talking at all.
This separation was hard to witness, so after a few years,
Steve had reached out to me as he was coming to New York (where I was/am
stationed) and I met him one morning after his flight came in and before he had
to meet with some friends.
I went on a full court press for him to figure out whatever
had been going on with him and Dad and that I would help kinda mediate to fix
it. Steve had grown and matured to the
point where he was ready for this conversation, and needless to say, it went
well, rocky at first, but in the end our little family unit is strong as ever.
It has been so great piecing this part of my family back
together. Divorce and death had fractured
us so bad that any outsider looking in would have conceded defeat for us and
just had us move on. To our great
fortune, that was not in the cards.
So here we are at the beginning of this epic trip (well, I’m
about 1,900 miles into it). As a
father/son/brother team we have not ever really done anything like this, and I
am really looking forward to our time on and off the road together.
Steve, if you read this before you leave, safe travels
tomorrow. You’re riding in an absolute
furnace tomorrow as you cross the desert, stay safe, and we’ll see you in a few
short days!
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