Breakfast came with the motel and it was fine. The clerk at the desk yesterday when I checked in had a lot of attitude - she didn’t really want to be there and she wanted everyone to know it. Maybe she had to work a double shift. The clerk in the morning was just the opposite - very friendly and pleasant. The motel itself was OK, but tired, which is what seems to be the norm for Comfort Inn in my experience.
It was a muggy 65 degrees when I left the motel at 8:15, and I followed the GPS for the quickest route to Anamosa, which took me on I-380 through the north side of Cedar Rapids and then through Marion and some road construction (which otherwise seems like a nice town) onto US 151 northeast 12 miles to Anamosa where I arrived at 9:45. There were a couple of cars and motorcycles in the lot and I locked up my helmet and jacket and went in.
Since I’ve been to the museum at least three other times and have many pictures of motorcycles, I will post only a few and concentrate on some of the posters, and the overall displays in the museum. There is a tribute section to Easy Riders in the "Celebrities Section" that includes movie posters and replicas of the bikes that were used in the movie with Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper.
There’s also a tribute section to Steve McQueen, who was an avid motorcyclist and even raced in the 60s and 70s under the pseudonym of Harvey Mushman so the studios wouldn’t find out. The Indian in the picture was one of the personal bikes that he used. He was also a collector of other interesting bikes, all of which were sold several years ago for big bucks.
BSA had a series of provocative ads that appeared in the bike magazines back in the 60s. They should have spent some of the money making their machines more reliable.
There is also a section for scooters.
What a motorcycle shop may have looked like back in the day.
This separate room features rare and vintage bikes, and I especially like the blue Yale.
And a red Vincent Rapide and of course a Flying Merkel.
John Parham’s library - I should have my bike magazines so well organized.
There is a replica of a board track section. Back in the early 1900s racers would go 100 mph on these tracks with no brakes. It was extremely dangerous and many were killed, and the tracks themselves were eventually banned.
There is a replica of a board track section. Back in the early 1900s racers would go 100 mph on these tracks with no brakes. It was extremely dangerous and many were killed, and the tracks themselves were eventually banned.
The Vincent Black Prince was ahead of its time and the company stopped making motorcycles in 1955.
Dr. Gregory Fraser has ridden around the world four times on Kawasaki KLR 650s, all modified. This is one of his bikes. I had a nice chat with him at a BMW rally in St. Paul, Minnesota several years ago.
It isn’t all motorcycles. There is a toy section and also cabinets and shelves packed with vintage toys all over the museum.
There is a Merkel (the orange one) and other bikes and a biplane, and the Triton (Norton featherbed frame housing a Triumph engine) is a good example of its type.
The Brough-Superior was called "The Rolls-Royce of motorcycles," and Rolls went along with it.
I’m not sure what this is.
There were also a couple of cars amid all the memorabilia.
It wasn’t all American and British bikes (and German). There was a good selection of Japanese bikes from the 60s and 70s, but they were crammed in together.
Check out the fenders on this 1941 Indian Four.
There were some rare early BMWs, but they were placed close together so it was difficult to see the details on the bikes
And, finally, a Harley from the 1930s looking like it was “rode hard and put away wet.” Along with mannequins in period attire.
I left the museum at about 11:30 after purchasing a bunch of postcards in the shop and ordering a T-shirt. I followed the GPS for the quickest route to the shop in Iowa City and arrived there before 12:30. While Jerad was testing the bike and working on it I was looking at helmets. My Schuberth C4 Pro is a high end helmet, and my old Schuberth C3 Pro worked well for me, but the new one never became comfortable, the main problem being that when I’m wearing ear plugs (which I always do) after an hour my left ear begins to hurt and gets worse through the day to the point that I’d been taking out my left ear plug in the afternoon. The right one hurts also but not as much and the helmet also presses against my forehead. None of this showed up in the shop when I tried on the helmet and wore it for 20 minutes or so before I purchased it. Schuberth wanted to create the quietest helmet of all and they succeeded, but at the expense of comfort - at least for my head. Other heads, too, apparently, as Schuberth quickly came out with a C5 Pro, which is supposed to be better, but after my bad experience I’m done with Schuberth. I’d worn Shoei helmets for years and liked them, and the Neotec II has had good reviews, so I purchased one and had the old helmet shipped back home. I’ll wear it around town or for short rides on a weekend, maybe without ear plugs, because it really is quiet, just not quite quiet enough to wear all day.
I left the shop at about 2:30 and headed for the Bluebird Diner, which seems to be in a neighborhood of student housing for the nearby University of Iowa. You can see my new helmet on the ground next to the bike - a bit flashy for an old guy. I would have preferred the HiViz yellow like my Schuberth, but Shoei doesn’t make the helmet in that color. This color scheme seemed to be the most visible.
This inside was nice and the staff were friendly. I ordered the Black Cat - a blackened catfish sandwich with coleslaw. It was spicy and delicious, but I ate quickly because the events earlier in the day had taken a lot of time and I needed to ride another 280 miles to the motel. The weather was pleasantly warm (75-80 degrees) but humid, and I followed the GPS for the quickest route to Creston, Iowa, which took me on I-80 for most of the way. I-80 was not unlike I-80 in the Bay Area - trucks, distracted drivers wandering all over the road as they checked their texts, a little road construction on the shoulders, traffic moving at 75 mph, so I couldn’t relax. In Des Moines I went south on I-35, where there were a few slowdowns, it being 5:30 on a weekday. The day had become gradually overcast and there were even a few sprinkles, but the upside was that it wasn’t unpleasantly hot - 80-85 degrees. I did not stop and exit on IA 92 to see the covered bridges of Madison County - another time perhaps. I did exit at US 34 and followed that west for 30 miles where I’m spending the night at a Quality Inn, arriving at 6:30. Kellie, the desk clerk, was very friendly (almost everyone in the Midwest seems to be friendly) and the motel even has motorcycle parking right in front of the entrance. The place is new and comfortable - I’ve stayed in Quality Inns that were anything but, but this one is nice. Creston is a largish town - big enough to have a Walmart. Dinner was a short walk away at the Creston Family Diner, where I had a California salad (fruit, raisin bread, and cottage cheese - quite different from the meal last night).
I’m happy to report that I wore the helmet for three hours straight (not even taking it off when I got gas) and, although I could feel the liner on my ears, my left ear never became painful. I hope that is still the case after 8-10 hours tomorrow. (335 miles)
Thursday, July 20: The motel breakfast selection was limited but what they had was good (I had scrambled eggs and biscuits and gravy) except for the coffee, which was weak and tasteless. I’ve had good coffee in the larger cities and in college towns in Iowa, but from my experience the coffee in the typical, small restaurant (and apparently the motels) is disappointing - same for Nebraska. Too bad, because aside from that I really like Iowa and Nebraska. The people are pleasant and the roads are generally in good condition and there is little traffic on the small roads. Well, except for IA 3 yesterday. I left the motel around 8:45 into a hazy sky and a humid 70 degrees. I stayed on US 34 west to US 71 where I went south into Missouri and then went west on US 136, one of my favorite roads in the country. There were gently rolling hills, small rivers, farms and woods and I enjoyed the pleasant morning. I crossed I-29 and stopped at a truck stop for gas and to make a phone call to a dealer in Long Island who had a small rear case to replace the one on the bike, which is becoming very difficult to zip. The bag came with the bike, so it is 15 years old and the vinyl is getting stiff, so it is time to replace it. This took awhile, so I lost about 45 minutes, which gave me ample time to check my maps and the weather forecast along the day’s route, which was good. I crossed the Missouri River and into Nebraska and stopped at a small park on the river in Brownsville where I stopped to take a picture of the Captain Meriwether Lewis. I’d been there in the past and its a pleasant place.
I continue on US 136 which AAA designates as a scenic route on their maps, and I don’t disagree. There is enough variety to keep you interested, and the gentle hills are relaxing. Not spectacular, but I always enjoy riding on that road, and I also enjoyed my smooth running engine. In Fairbury I stopped to find something to eat which proved to be surprisingly difficult. My GPS tried to direct me to Crystal’s Cafe, but I gave up when it sent me on a gravel road to…somewhere. Fairbury is a mile off 136 and in town the only two restaurants were closed. There are brick streets and a public square with a large courthouse, but the town appears to be dying, which was confirmed by the young lady who made my sandwich at a Subway on 136. Back on the road I stopped in Red Cloud, famous among fans of Willa Cather’s novels. I needed gas, but none of the three stations had premium, so I got two gallons of no alcohol 87 octane at a Casey’s. I remember the downtown as being rather vibrant, but today it looked sad and rundown.
Back on 136 I stopped 70 miles later in Alma at a 66 and filled up with 91 octane premium. I went south on US 183 and across the border in Kansas discovered that KS 383, which goes southwest, was closed. This route is the hypotenuse of a triangle and would have saved me almost 20 miles, so I had to continue due south to Phillipsburg and then due west on US 36, another road I traveled on many times. I arrived at the Cobblestone Inn and Suites in Oberlin, KS at 6:30 - on this trip I always seem to be stopping at 6:30 no matter how many miles I ride during the day. There were several areas of road construction on 136, which made the day longer than it should have been. The typical road construction site was one lane traffic control either by pilot car (usually a mile or two) or traffic signal (usually one or two hundred yards. Either way they take time and there is sometimes gravel and dust. As my friend and frequent riding companion, John P. is fond of saying: “It’s all part of the adventure.”
In spite of the pretentious name, the motel is very similar to the Quality Inn where I stayed last night - OK, but somewhat spartan with few amenities. We’ll see what breakfast is like - I don’t have high hopes. I walked a half mile or so to downtown Oberlin, which was very quiet on a Thursday evening. There was a bowling alley that served pizza, and a bar that served food. I ordered a small chicken salad and a side of fried okra. The salad itself was OK, but the chicken was so dry and tasteless that I thought at first that the chicken pieces were stale croutons.
Downtown Oberlin has brick streets, but looks a bit shabby.
It started to rain just before I left the restaurant, so I hustled back to the motel. The bike is parked right outside my window, so I can see it getting wet. Four states today; Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and Kansas. Tomorrow I visit the last motorcycle museum of the trip, and I’ll see Vanya! I will also start a new post. (425 miles).
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