A 'Trace' Of Interest...

[DDT (12)]

OK, let me begin by coming clean on something. I’ve been discreetly conducting an experiment of sorts, and now I’m going to reveal some particulars… I performed this study, because I had come to suspect Mother Nature was playing games using the weather to get at me. Now, before you dismiss this as just some foolish paranoid dribble, let me share a real, true-life experience I was a part of…

Many years ago, Triker Fred bought a VTX and gave his Valk (Green & Silver Interstate) trike to his wife, Debbie. She in turn became known as Triker Deb, he VTX Fred. She even became the head honcho of the Florida Valkers for several years, and she did a very good job with that chore… for the most part… There was this one brief stretch of time, however…

Deb had called three ride-to-eat things in central Florida on successive weekends… and, it had rained on each one! (Yeah, some of us would go to those rain or shine.) In fact, on that third outing, only about ten folks showed up, including this stalwart soul, and only yours truly rode his bike there, not even Deb & Fred! It rained pretty hard, too, so no criticism or scorn is due for anyone… except maybe the dimwit who actually did ride in that weather! (Sensing a recurring theme here?) Well, it was at that third event that I changed Deb’s handle to ‘Deluge Debbie’, and she has since been known as DD…

A short time ago, rain prevented me from joining some of my friends in Lorman, MS, for a chicken dining extravaganza, so I called for an ‘instant replay’ the following Saturday… No dice, rain again. In the last couple of weeks, I again would take a peak to see if I might be able to slip over there, but each time, no dice…

I stopped announcing my plans, heck, I even stopped making plans to go there! Well, I spotted an opportunity on the spur of the moment to graze at Arthur’s grease bar, and I took it. No rain, but wet pavement and a wee bit of mist now and then… I wonder if I had actually posted something in advance, if things would have gone even that well…?

I can’t bring myself to believe Mother Nature would waste her time fooling around with this insignificant trekker, so… I’m declaring there is no actual connection. There does, however, seem to be a strong coincidental relationship between events I post and moisture falling! I’ve gone into stealth mode lately, though, so any rides I contemplate will be described only after the fact… just in case…

So, I finished my spontaneous dining ride, and we made haste eastward in hope of avoiding the rain predicted to engulf that area in another day or two (even though previews of coming attractions were already being noticed!). We rode over to Brookhaven, MS, that afternoon and got a room for the evening… Good so far… and if TWC can be believed, we should be good-to-go to continue our eastward trek and stay ahead of the rain…

The next morning, fog was delaying our departure. No rain yet, and if we needed to stay one more night… ummmm, that appeared too iffy to seriously consider, so I just waited a while for the fog to lift some… It finally did, but not completely until later in the morning…

Fog near Brookhaven, MS... (There is a two-story house in the background)



Same view, the house had become more visible by the time we headed out...



I was thinking we’d spend the next night in Jackson, MS, at a motel I wanted to check out for possible use on future chicken runs… Less than sixty miles, if we were to ride directly there, but I had another idea in mind… that would nearly quadruple that distance! We’d just jaunt down to Natchez and ride the Natchez Trace back to near Jackson. Yeah, that would be a nice ride, yet still leave us with a relatively short day, plus allow for a nap and some much-needed relaxation! That is, if I didn’t goof-up too badly navigationally speaking, of course!

Beginning of The Natchez Trace


Dean's Stand... An important stop for… my needs… along the Trace... (I needed to ‘water’ the bushes, and this site was off the main thoroughfare and out of view!)


We cruised into Jackson, got a room, and then did some work… Went to Sam’s world-famous retail place and bought some oil and a filter, plus a basting pan. Yep, time again for another change, and this would be as good an opportunity as any, I reckoned… Naturally, a brief rain shower delayed the execution of that endeavor, but we did get it done… at 10:30pm! Don’t feel sorry for me, though, I did manage a good nap to pass the time…

DDT

[Thunderbolt]

Good morning Bruce.  I had clean forgotten why Debbie got the DD name, thanks for the recollection.  Your trek on the trace reminded me of the kid at the rest stop where Pam took a nap on the park bench and where he had a pet raccoon on a leash on our way to Natchez from Tupelo was it? 

[hubcapsc]

I was shocked in the 80s when they sent me from my comfort zone
into the north east to ride around on commuter trains to get to
NFSnet meetings... looking out the window, EVERYTHING was
covered in gang graffiti... but at least they didn't put nazi
symbols on stuff...

-Mike "maybe just some kids who don't know better...? "

[The emperor has no clothes]

Excellent experiment and story to go with it.  I've a few questions. What is a "Kaintuck", a postrider, and why does somebody think Margaret was a Nazi ?

[Bigwolf]

Good story Bruce!

I don’t know that the weather ever actually singles anybody out and intentionally makes things difficult for them but I do know that it sure can seem that way sometimes.  I am remembering a summer when the grass in my yard was 5ft tall before I managed to get it cut.  I was working out of town 7 days a week and everytime I took a weekend off to cut the grass the rain would set in again.

As for “event planning”, there are some geographical areas and certain seasons of the year that have higher probabilities for “pleasant” weather.  However, choosing just those areas and just those seasons would rob you of far more opportunities to experience awe and wonderment.  To get the full joy of this world, sometimes you just have to roll the dice and put forth your best effort, ..... knowing you might fail,...... and being willing to accept that failure.  As Roosevelt said, “ who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

I have driven over a very small part of the Trace in the car but have not Been there with my bike......yet!  Great road for a cruise on the valk!

[DDT (12)]

Good morning Bruce.  I had clean forgotten why Debbie got the DD name, thanks for the recollection.  Your trek on the trace reminded me of the kid at the rest stop where Pam took a nap on the park bench and where he had a pet raccoon on a leash on our way to Natchez from Tupelo was it? 

Terry,

You're triggering some forgotten memories, too! I vaguely recall the pet racoon on a leash, but I suppose I was jealously focusing more at the time on Pam squeezing-in a nap! Yeah, we did have some good times, didn't we? That was a special time and very special cast of characters that came together and made a bond that continues on today. Imagine the odds of something like that just springing up... Mark & Pat had a knack, though, and they did a superb job starting all of that in motion...

DDT


I was shocked in the 80s when they sent me from my comfort zone
into the north east to ride around on commuter trains to get to
NFSnet meetings... looking out the window, EVERYTHING was
covered in gang graffiti... but at least they didn't put nazi
symbols on stuff...

-Mike "maybe just some kids who don't know better...? "




Mike,

I think you are probably correct in the "maybe just some kids who don't know better...?" Kids often do... things that cause the rest of us to scratch our heads... like we did to our elders back in the day! At a time when they (we) think (thought) we had all the answers and were incredibly brilliant, we later learned we were incredibly ignorant... Oh well... they're young, they'll learn... in time.

DDT

Excellent experiment and story to go with it.  I've a few questions. What is a "Kaintuck", a postrider, and why does somebody think Margaret was a Nazi ?

Rob,

Thanks! A 'Kaintuck' is a person, likely from Kentucky, but could be from the broader southern Appalachian area. Those folks were trappers, traders, adventurers, and often crew on flat-bottomed boats floated down the rivers to Natchez, then they returned home by way of the Trace. Kaintuck is a broad term describing a broad group of mountain folk... Sort to like the term 'Scotch-Irish'... folks originally from the 'borders region' of the UK, who may actually be neither 'Scotch' nor 'Irish'.

A 'post rider' was, quite simply, a mailman (letter carrier in contemporary PC jargon). More like what would decades later be 'pony express riders', carrying bulk mail and dispatches to distant locations (the very remote but important nerve centers of new territory, Natchez, MS, in this case).

As for somebody's opinion of Margaret, I think Mike figured that out quite accurately...

DDT

Good story Bruce!

I don’t know that the weather ever actually singles anybody out and intentionally makes things difficult for them but I do know that it sure can seem that way sometimes.  I am remembering a summer when the grass in my yard was 5ft tall before I managed to get it cut.  I was working out of town 7 days a week and everytime I took a weekend off to cut the grass the rain would set in again.

As for “event planning”, there are some geographical areas and certain seasons of the year that have higher probabilities for “pleasant” weather.  However, choosing just those areas and just those seasons would rob you of far more opportunities to experience awe and wonderment.  To get the full joy of this world, sometimes you just have to roll the dice and put forth your best effort, ..... knowing you might fail,...... and being willing to accept that failure.  As Roosevelt said, “ who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

I have driven over a very small part of the Trace in the car but have not Been there with my bike......yet!  Great road for a cruise on the valk!

Jerry,

Thanks! I think you and ol' Teddy have captured my thoughts on the matter nicely!!! A 'DDT-ism'... The gold only goes to the bold... Riding is a lot like that. As you so eloquently stated, (I'm paraphrasing here) sometimes we have to buck-up and venture forth in less than ideal circumstances, or we forfeit the best rewards in life!

DDT

[Thunderbolt]

Couple things Bruce, I see that you are still keeping your liquid riding refreshment close at hand over the handle bars.  "Good on you" is an expression that I learned from you actually.  Next was on that same ride to Natchez as we stopped at a light or stop sign, seems that there was some sort of parade that day.  Where I am going with this is that Howard had a beer/soda can over his oil filter and a kid on the sidewalk said something to the effect of "Hey Mr. you got a cain on your thang".  Howard looked at him with a big question mark in his expression and the kid said it again.  I think it was that same night that a helicopter landed right next to that burned out motel and Wally and I went out to observe.
See if any more recollections get stirred.

[DDT (12)]

Couple things Bruce, I see that you are still keeping your liquid riding refreshment close at hand over the handle bars.  "Good on you" is an expression that I learned from you actually.  Next was on that same ride to Natchez as we stopped at a light or stop sign, seems that there was some sort of parade that day.  Where I am going with this is that Howard had a beer/soda can over his oil filter and a kid on the sidewalk said something to the effect of "Hey Mr. you got a cain on your thang".  Howard looked at him with a big question mark in his expression and the kid said it again.  I think it was that same night that a helicopter landed right next to that burned out motel and Wally and I went out to observe.
See if any more recollections get stirred.

Terry,

WOW! Your recollector muscle is certainly robust! And, it's far more agile than mine... alas... Yeah, lots of peculiar, unexpected things kept cropping up on that ride, for sure... That's the nature of things out yonder, though, and the unexpected, quirky things like those you described are part of the allure of doing treks like that in the first place!

That gal in the office of that not-so-great motel had a great sense of humor, and I really enjoyed the banter we all had checking in... I also seem to want to recall something about 'under the hill' in Natchez, too, but I can't quite bring it up from the archives... Do you recall?

'Under the hill' was that area right down on the waterfront in Natchez where in earlier times, the boatmen and other wayward souls passing through would go in search of fallen women and libation... you know, what the proper folks considered less than wholesome entertainment! Anyway, it seems something came up down there... Or, maybe that was on another trip...

Have you heard from Howard or Wally? I haven't in several years. I really liked those guys and their gals, but... time moves on and so do we. I did call Howard once in a while while I was on the road, but I later had that cell phone 'lock up', and I lost all my pictures and address/phone book... and, of course, my contact info for him...

Thanks for the walk down memory lane! It's good to hear from you and to recall fond memories and special times... Are you and Iris still making memories? I'm doing my best to...

DDT

[Thunderbolt]

Wally and Angela last I talked to him were in Steamboat Springs Co.   This was about 2 or 3 years ago.  Iris and I both have tried to call and email Howard and Pam but have not received any replies.
All I can remember about going down to the park in Natchez is that there was a large family of folks that handed me their camera to take their group photo.

[DDT (12)]

Terry,

We all move in response to the ever changing world we live in... and as we ourselves change. Wally and Angela had just bought a really nice house with a few acres just outside Tallahassee and had a house warming there, the last time I recall being with them. He was a CFO of a hospital company, so it doesn't surprise me he would be moved onward and upward... and that they're probably retired now and living in some exotic place.

Howard and Pam had had some difficulties with his contracting business during the housing slump eight or nine years ago, but he being such a stand-up guy, I assumed they'd weathered the 'storm'. The times they do change!

The take-away from that for me is that we can never 'freeze time' or hit a sweet spot and have it last forever. We take what's there, while it's there, and make the most of it. We had an unusual but wonderful thing back then, but time and individuals have moved on. For most, things have worked out... different but OK. I'm quite happy with my lot and the changes that have come my way... Shoot, I just proud to be here!!!

DDT

[DDT (12)]

FYI, rain is still dogging us! I'm giving up and heading home... only thing is, rain appears to maybe be possibly blocking our path today! I don't want to hunker down again, but I will before riding any distance in the hazardous, moist stuff... at least starting off knowing it's just down the road!

Nope, I'm not blaming mother nature this time... Just the way things go sometimes, I reckon, so... If I don't ride today, I may try to catch up on story-telling... I've taken lazy lately, but hey, I am retired, you know, and I ain't got no deadlines!!!

DDT

P.S. I called for an update last night but got no response... I did hear from another source, however, that Harley Joe was up yesterday and moving about! He is a tough old bird, especially mentally, so I do have high expectations for a recovery... I'm just not sure how much of that might 'be out of his hands'... Keeping my fingers crossed anyway... just in case...

[Bigwolf]

FYI, rain is still dogging us! I'm giving up and heading home... only rain appears to be possibly blocking our path today! I don't want to hunker down again, but I will before riding any distance in the hazardous, moist stuff... at least starting off knowing it's just down the road!

Nope, I'm not blaming mother nature this time... Just the way things go sometimes, I reckon, so... If I don't ride today, I may try to catch up on story-telling... I've taken lazy lately, but hey, I am retired, you know, and I ain't got no deadlines!!!

DDT

P.S. I called for an update last night but got no response... I did hear from another source, however, that Harley Joe was up yesterday and moving about! He is a tough old bird, especially mentally, so I do have high expectations for a recovery... I'm just not sure how much of that might 'be out of his hands'... Keeping my fingers crossed anyway... just in case...

Sometimes there is real wisdom in knowing when to take a short break from the pursuit of pleasure.  And, You know that I am looking forward to the next installment of “The DDT Chronicles”. 

It is good that Harley Joe is up and moving about.  That helps with healing.  That is some pretty massive surgery though, so recovery will take some time.  Hopefully, he will weather the boredom of the slow recovery better than me.  I got stupid after 3 weeks in the recliner.