Picking up our New Aluma Trailer
When I returned from my ride to Alaska I found out that the fiberglass on one side of my Cycle Mate trailer was cracked. My friend, Gary, said it could be repaired but Chris and I opted to purchase a new trailer and we decided on an Aluma. http://www.alumaklm.com/motorcycle-trailers/item/50-mct-towable-motorcycle-trailer.html
Rather than dumpsterizing the Cycle Mate we decided to give it to Gary who has the skills to repair it and the desire to use it. He would take good care of it. More on this later.
Aluma motorcycle trailers can not be purchased factory direct so I made phone calls to many area dealers. I found our best deal at Nishna Valley Cycle in Atlantic, Iowa. http://www.nishnavalleycycle.com/
Chris and I left home on Thursday, September 12th, 2013 at 7:30 am. It was 73 degrees, it was sprinkling, and the roads were wet. We rode I-435, I-29, and Hwy 71 north. Just north of the Missouri River the sprinkles stopped and the highway started drying. We stopped for gas in Platte City, Missouri but our first break was north of Maryville, Missouri. Our new HJC CL-MAXII modular helmets were working great. We enjoyed the rural views
We found out that musician and band leader Glenn Miller’s birthplace was in Clarinda, Iowa. We stopped long enough to take photos of his home and museum but made no attempt to visit either. http://www.glennmiller.org/
We arrived at Nishna Valley Cycle in Atlantic, Iowa at 11:00. It was a beautiful day! After purchasing the trailer and having the bike wired to connect to the trailer we went to Oinkers for lunch. Chris and I shared a LARRAPIN good pork tenderloin sandwich, salad, and green beans.
Then it was off to Freedom Rock. We first read about it in American Profile magazine. It is located on Hwy 25 north of Greenfield, Iowa just south of Interstate 80. We did not want to ride on I-80 so we rode east, south, and back north to Freedom Rock. My route included a “shortcut” that ended up not being that short and included a few miles on gravel. What a pisser.
Before it became the Freedom Rock the twelve foot tall boulder was a place for local teens to paint girlfriend’s names and other graffiti. Now, every May, Greenfield, IA artist Ray “Bubba” Sorensen” paints the entire rock with white paint and then paints his murals over that. His paintings honor America’s military men and women. It is very well done.
We rode back into Greenfield and stopped for a beverage at Casey’s at the intersection of Hwy’s 25 and 92. I was surprised to see Sorensen’s Studio across the street from Casey’s. Bubba’s wife is a photographer.
We rode back to Maryville, MO through Orient, Creston, Clearfield, and Bedford, Iowa. We stopped for the day at a Comfort Inn. We were just in time for the motel’s happy hour so we enjoyed some chips, salsa, and beer. Life is good! We also enjoyed the indoor/outdoor pool before retiring for the night.
It really was a beautiful day of riding. With the exception of the start, we had clear skies and the high temperature was 81. We rode 358 miles.
Day 2; Friday, September 13th
Back in the 1971-72 school year I attended Tarkio College in Tarkio, MO. It was my freshman year and I went elsewhere the next year but I have fond memories of my year at Tarkio. It is located just north and west of Maryville. I knew that the college was out of business but we decided to check it out. So after cruising the campus of Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville we rode to Tarkio.
We parked at the bottom (east end) of Main street and walked through downtown up the hill. My uncle had been the 6th president at Tarkio College and his family lived in a huge white mansion located at the top of Main Street. As a youngster I was impressed by that house. It is still impressive today.
The former college buildings are still there but most are in disrepair. It was sad but interesting to walk through the grounds.
On the walk back to the motorcycle I stopped for a haircut at the local barber shop. The barber, Frank, had been cutting hair in Tarkio since 1967. He knew of my Uncle Bill and he said the college shut down in 1991 due to financial mismanagement. It was used as a boys reformatory for awhile but now it is not used at all.
We rode on west to Rock Port and had lunch at the Rock Port Cafe. Like Oinkers, it had LARRAPIN good food. From Rock Port we rode south on Hwy 111. Just south of Interstate 29 I noticed that something kept hitting my shoes. Closer observation made it clear that the highway had thousands of grasshoppers all over it. The motorcycle, trailer, my shoes and Chris’ pant legs got grasshopper guts all over them.
Just south of Big Lake we rode west to Rulo, Nebraska and then south on a highway that becomes K-7 in Kansas. We had a DQ break in Atchison before riding on home.
Another beautiful day riding 190 miles with a high temperature of 79.
After arriving home I learned more about my old Cycle Mate trailer from Gary. When he took it apart he found that the steel frame was cracked in several places and the fiberglass box bottom was cracked behind the wheels. Poor Gary has a lot of work to do before he can use it.
For more pictures from this trip click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/5923277841442030561?authkey=CIubvv7VpMSfXQ
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