Diary & Travel Reports by Simon Milward

Mon,13 Sep 2001 09:24:56 +0100
From: simon @ millennium-ride.com
To: sponsors @ millennium-ride.com

 

Summary A stunned Simon Milward emails from the California coast where he is riding a KLR650 back to San Francisco from LA. His flight was cancelled due to the recent horrors on America's East coast. He recounts his experiences taking the total raised for charity in North America now to $9000, with many events in San Francisco area. His motorcycle goes well after the Seattle rebuild and SFO sculpturing.

Hi

Everyone is in shock here in Los Angeles after the attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon this week. I pray for the families of lost relatives, grieve with the American people and condemn terrorism that resulted in this horror.

Someone told told me of their 100 church friends who were on the floor as where the second plane hit the WTC building. Others I met had people working in the vicinity.

Having ridden through the Middle East last year, I'd be happy relate my experiences some of which are related to this tradegy. Like most Europeans, Americans generally do not seem to understand the Israel situation. I started with the Bible and Koran while waiting around in Tunisia.

Nevertheless my little jaunt does seem to be a bit frivolous. Consider it a diversion. Things have been going very well, just sort of coming together naturally. We've raised nearly $9000 now in North America. This has been largely in San Francisco where Dubbelju.com motorcycle rentals made an excellent job of planning publicity and contacting sponsors. Wolfgang's place was the first and remains the best bike rental service in town offering BMWs, Harleys and Triumphs and they have the best routes too.

My engine is going great after its rebuild in Seattle, though I need to take off the clutch cover again since the clutch is mysteriously dragging awfully. Mt St. Helens volcano in south Washington was amazing for its moon landscape and the growing dome in the middle. Half the volcano collapsedand heat and ash burned everything for miles around which is now desert-like.

I stopped at the Mountain Jam nearby organised by the local ABATE (American Bikers Aimed Toward Education or American Bikers Against Totalitarian Enactments) learning to play 'quarters'. When you bounce one of these coins into a glass you make the others drink and I won! But I dropped my bike (it was fully gassed) in the slow race. How nice to be at a laid back American bikers party.

Nevertheless I knew how far I was going since I'd been using the GPS navigation unit bought for me by Tanana Valley ABATE in Alaska (thanks Chuck sorry to miss you from the last email report). I wish I'd had one in Russia but it's good to know how fast you are going/how far you have gone. They can be a bit of a distraction too.

Leatherman in Portland Oregon donated a new tool. I'll send my original, a present from David French of MAG Ireland, home as a souvenir, its still very serviceable though. I saw their factory which produces 8000 units daily.

I rode the Avenue of the Giants through the magnificent red woodforest in NW California then took the twisty Highway 1 down the coast to San Francisco. It was at the Golden Gate Bridge that I linked up with the route that my brother Mark and I had travelled when we hitch-biked and biked around the US in 1984.

On arrival Wolfgang noticed my swinging spindle poking out a few inches. I changed the fork oil and seals at last, and Matt, a metail sculpturist, shorted my boxes and made a new ally pannier spacer bar, very hansom too so my bike becomes ever more international and lighter to boot. Now scraping the boxes even in the lowrider position is difficult. The suspension is now quite soft, even without loading. I don't want to go through the shock absorber thing again, no no, unless a new set arrives with cash for charity. Or if my bottom gets hot from contact with the rear tyre :-)

The San Francisco week was very busy with events on Tuesday-Saturday inclusive. The Desmo Club, Get Lost Travel Bookstore, The Legionnaires Mc Club in Dublin, San Francisco Mc Club (the second oldest in the US founded in 1904) when we raised $1200 and an Open Day at Dudley Perkins Harley Davidson. Many Bay Area dealers had donated prizes to the SFO mc Club auction. Golden Gate HD, City Bike magazine and Scuderia became Corporate Sponsors whilst Dubbelju supplied a keg of beer and bar and food profits were donated. Many thanks to all the people that helped in SFO in other ways and days.

I flew down to LA for a few days to plan my return to California in the Winter, through the airport which was the destination of two of the hijacked planes. I don't know what the attack will mean for my fundraising trip. The Motorcycle Industry Council and Motorcycle Safety Foundation have been really kind and Kawasaki kindly lent me a KLR 650.

Oliver Shokouh at Harley Davidson of Glendale introduced me to a number of local clubs. Ugly MC (the celebrity one) became a Corporate Sponsor. Indeed $200 minimum entitles clubs/businesses to a sticker on my bike and link on MillenniumRide.com Glendale HD is the home of the Love Ride, the world' biggest annual motorcycle charity fundraising event where 20,000 are expected in November.

The KLR is great fun and I'd forgotten just how comfortable my own bike is. I may have to ride it back to SFO tomorrow if the flight is cancelled. (Yes, I am just stopped at the beach after 100 miles - nearly quarter distance - to finish this off and feel the warm sun and soothing thunder of the breaking waves. Plus a spot of body-surfing!)

California, if it was a country, would have the seventh biggest economy in the world. You can see it. There are so many businesses and people that you have to marvel at how it all hangs together generating jobs and wealth.

I've not had a chance to do much in the way of tourism in SFO. We have a do at the Commonwealth Club tomorrow and the Zeitgiest (famous biker bar) on Wednesday, before I head East to Reno Nevada towards Kansas. It is with sadness that my great friend Christof will not be able to fly in for our reunion.

So many things are happening right now I've hardly had time for doing this.

Renee at monarchdesignsite.com is working on a logo for Health for All, the Flores project.

Once we have collected enough in the US to buy the cheap Yamahas for the Flores Project, we will go ahead. If you want your name on one as sponsor, and can come up with $1000, there are 8 out of 12 left.

We're going to see a small change in MillenniumRide communication. We're starting a discussion forum. Please join in. I'll tell you where it is and copy you my first input to this list. The style will be completely different. Email updates on this list here may reduce slightly but should be monthly at least.

Bye for now.

Simon Milward