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By Michael Dapper
VRA Page Webmaster
Wow, it’s been a while. The wish here is that we’d been unable to blog because we had been rolling up thousands of miles criss-crossing the country on a Victory Vision, or sprinting down the coast on a Hammer, or carving Deal's Gap on a Kingpin.
No such luck. But jealous kudos to all of you who are riding daily while we snowbelt riders see the season nearing an end.
Let's see what’s in the Victory Blog in-box.
Viva Washington!
In an earlier Blog, it was suggested that Washington State was the most scenic state in the union. A protest rang out from the high peaks of Colorado, as our Victory-riding friend "The Mountain Man" put charred stick to tree bark and sent a letter extolling the scenic beauty of Colorado. We have to admit, he presented a strong argument, and Colorado is, indeed, a stunningly beautiful state.
But here comes another vote for the Evergreen State (that’s Washington), from Victory Rider Tom Horner of Orlando, Florida:
"I am 53 years old and have been riding motorcycles a long time. Having been in the service for 12 years (from 1972 to 1984) and having lived in Washington State twice, I fully agree with your assessment. California, Oregon, Colorado, Vermont and others are good but I honestly believe Washington is still #1 for scenery."
Well-stated, Tom. Anybody else out there got a vote for a most-scenic state? How can those of you lucky enough to ride California’s Pacific Coast Highway and Oregon’s coastal roads not weight in? Let’s hear from you.
By the way, Colorado has great scenery, but a rather lame state nickname: The Centennial State. Sure, it earned statehood in 1876 as the nation turned 100, but come on. You can do better than that, Colorado.
Kudos to Ed Jones
Speaking of Colorado, riders in that gorgeous state enjoyed another tremendous year of organized Victory Rides. But when we saluted some volunteer Ride Coordinators in an earlier Blog, we omitted one of the best: Ed Jones of Colorado. A tip of the helmet to John Rollins for pointing this out. John noted:
"Want to give a big shout out to Ed Jones, who is a large part of the C-VRA (Colorado Victory Riders Association) and thank him for all his work throughout the year. Ed specializes in organizing rides for riders in northern Colorado."
Thanks, Ed.
Marty P.: Iron Butt
Marty Piatkowski, the grand poobah of the Touring Cruiser world, wrote to say he has achieved Iron Butt status, and will likely do so over and over without all the paperwork the Iron Butt Association requires. Marty’s note:
"I didn't know you were tracking Iron Butt Rides on the VRA site, so add me to your list. I did a Saddlesore 1000 last year: Marty Piatkowski, Palm Bay, FL, Aug. 4, 2006, '06 Touring Cruiser, 1,065 miles.
"I did the ride when my bike was two weeks old. Actually I've done the same ride – my daughter lives up in Pennsylvania – two more times since then but didn't go through with getting it certified. The last ride took 17 hours. I'm sure I'll do it again – many, many more times."
Marty P.: Media Star
That’s right, same Marty, different honor. This time he is a media star, appearing in a relatively new national bike magazine.
"I got my October issue of Hot Bike Baggers magazine and there I was on page 110,” Marty wrote. "The photos were taken back in March at Orlando Speed World during Daytona's Bike Week. A bunch of 'the guys' from Florida and Georgia were bragging how fast their bikes were, so they decided to go to the drag strip to settle it once and for all. I went as a spectator."
You can bet Marty has rolled up several thousand more miles than he had recorded as of October, when he sent us his note. At that time he reported: "I now have almost 19,000 miles on [the bike], which is a lot in one year on a motorcycle – especially if you consider that I work out of my home office and can't add up commuting miles."
Speaking of the drag strip, those of us who made the trip from Daytona to the Orlando strip last spring for the first Victory Southern Shoot-Out absolutely had a ball, and we can’t wait to go back in 2008. If the Victory Southern Shoot-Out is scheduled for Bike Week '08, we’ll help publicize the date so as many riders can make the trip as possible. It was a gas to see Victory Riders take their daily drivers and pound them down the strip. It was a great addition to Bike Week.
Mari Anne V.: Media Star
While Marty made it into a magazine, Victory Vegas Rider Mari Anne Vanella of California made it into a book.
The book is called "MOTORCYCLES," and it is a Cube Book, part of a series of books that are small in trim size but thick with pages, creating a cube of sorts. The motorcycle book is only about 6” square, but it’s 2” thick and weighs over 3 pounds! That’s stout!
Mari Anne reported recently:
"Hey, my bike was used for the opening image for the custom bike section for this book! There are sections for sport bikes, classic bikes, etc., and there is one for Customs – and mine is the one on the opening page so it is the one that sets the tone for the section!
"There were tons of beautiful customs: Arlen Ness bikes and others – everything in there FOLLOWING mine :).”
The photo of her beautiful Vegas appears in the photo gallery with this Blog. Mari Anne is understandably proud. This book is definitely worth checking out.
You can learn more about the book from sites such as Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.
Be On the Lookout for Clean Bikes
If you notice that every Victory in your area is suddenly immaculate and shining, you can bet the Pure Victory Polishes transporter has been in your town.
Check out the News story about the travels of Larry Meservey, Sr., and Larry, Jr., and watch for them in your town. If you see the Pure Victory Polishes rig and send us a photo – preferably with you and one of the Larries in the shot – we’ll find some sort of prize to send you.
Send your photos to the Victory Mailbag.
We double-dare you to get a shot of Larry, Sr., that’s better than some of the photos taken at Sturgis, where he took part in a mini-bike race (see photo above).
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