In California everything around me had
either a parched golden luster or a deep green color. Where there was irrigation, there was green, but the heat and extended drought made everything seem wilted. By noon it was already 101 degrees, and my clear windshield showed that it was too hot even for the bugs. The cooling vest I consid- ered at the rally would have come in handy. Before I reached San Francisco, I needed
gas and that’s where I checked my maps. I knew I needed to come in from the north to cross the Golden Gate Bridge, but what I wanted to figure out was where I might get a nice picture. From out of nowhere I heard a swoosh
and flying up next to me were two BMW riders I’d passed a little while ago. When I couldn’t understand what they asked me, one of them pointed to the side of the road. I knew that either something was wrong or I was about to make two new friends. My new friends are Christopher Weld
and Alberto Sevilla, and my earlier suspi- cion that they’d been at the rally was cor- rect. On their home turf and thinking this rider might like an excuse to stop, they
Since 1920 every high school graduating class has left their mark on the nearside cliffs. I was assured that no one had ever been killed but there were no doubt a few parents worried about what their high school senior was up to.
Just beyond the trees at the Oroville exit
was Nancy’s Airport Diner, the sort of place we all search for on our rides. The guys told me that their desserts were the best any- where. We chatted for a few minutes, but for me the time wasn’t right. On another day this would have fit my travel day perfectly, but I still had miles to ride that day. They understood. On learning of
I look for the beautiful, the odd, the well done and the creative in my travels. In front of the Lee Farms at Mile Marker 252 near Vale, Oregon, stands the three figures and the vintage John Deere tractor.
decided to rescue the fellow from out of state. Chris retired from the San Francisco Police Department after 30 years and two days of service – he was very specific – and Alberto was a trained civil engineer who attended Ohio State University, which is only a few miles north of where I live.
my desire to cross the bridge, Alberto discussed it in a tone that told me going over the bridge was going to be a chore of sorts, and that getting there and then out of San Francisco was going to take effort. Maybe a lot of it. They wished me well and off I went. After all the
casual miles, the civilized world raced up to greet
me. The RT and I had no choice, and we picked up the pace. Chris and Alberto rec- ommended a course; Interstate 5 became the 505, which became I-80, which took me to California State Route 37, a slow two lane highway with traffic lights that wound its way around the North Bay. The final ten
miles or so were on US 101. In all of west central California there was
only one cloud – directly over San Fran- cisco Bay – and it was huge. From 20 miles away it hung like a barrier, hiding the rea- son I’d ridden this way. The last time I’d been here, 40 years ago, it had been a sunny day and that ride a glorious one. I pulled off where I heard I’d have a nice
view for my pictures. As I parked my bike, I thought it seemed almost spiritual with the clouds whipping overhead and beneath me. I took a deep breath. Slivers of San Fran- cisco peeked between the clouds. My sight- seeing finished, I slipped back on my bike, and rode towards the bridge and picked the center lane. Like so many special times, it was over all too quickly. At the end of the bridge I turned left, headed for home. I decided that all the wonders of the city
I’d heard or read about – the JMW Turner exhibit at a fine art gallery, another exhibit on the friendship of Walt Disney and Sal- vador Dali, and even the prospect of a Giants game at AT&T Park – held little appeal without Cindy to see them with me. In a straight line, she was 2,000 miles away. I missed her, so I took the straightest, most direct route home. Riding through San Francisco, I couldn’t
help but think about my two new friends and the rally in Hamburg next year. It will be a lot of fun to link up with them again. How much trouble can I get in with a retired police lieutenant and a civil engi- neer? It will be fun to find out.
October 2015 BMW OWNERS NEWS
129
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