| Author | Message | ||
     Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, WEDNESDAY 9/8/04: i mentioned my Dad in yesterday's account, as me 'n JB2 climbed ever higher up the Grand Mesa, how i could feel my father's "presence". our arrival in Gunnison meant a great deal to me, in a deeply personal way. in the later years of my Dad's life - he passed away suddenly, unexpectedly, in 1987 - he spent his summers in Gunnison, Colorado. ------------------------------------------ in this trip's earliest incarnations, when i still was planning to meet JB2 and HIS Dad, i had wanted to do Gunnison, to see the place that was so near to my Dad's heart, the place that he always spoke of with such fondness, almost, it seemed, with a touch of reverence. as mine and JB2's ride plans changed over the past two years, i always knew i would come here - a place i had never visited but heard so much about - to see if i could say hello to my Dad again, to feel with his hands, to see with his eyes, to breathe with his spirit. as September, 2004 finally came to pass, JB2 was with me all along, in compassion and in enthusiasm, with respect to visiting Gunnison, with regard to why. as a person who has recently lost his own father, suddenly, unexpectedly, i think JB2 was honored to be involved in MY healing process, as much as i was honored to invite him to help me heal. on this trip i carried several photos of my Dad, including photos he had taken at the Mesa Campground in Gunnison. he was, he told me several times over the years, the camp "handyman" - the man to call if you needed something fixed. in return for his work, he received space rent for free for his truck and travel trailer, and his little corner of the campground was always neat and trim and tidy, always lansdcaped with small rockeries and colorful flowers, as he was, well, handy that way, and derived much personal satisfaction from the act of "puttering" in the yard. it seems to me, upon reflection, that i carry similar traits when it comes to puttering on things. we had found a cool little Mom 'n Pop in Gunnison to call home for the next couple of days, and asked the proprietor about the Mesa Campground. he knew of only the Mesa RV Resort, which we had ridden by on the way in. a lot of time had passed since my Dad called this place his own, and we all agreed it was possible that the Mesa RV Resort could have easily changed its name in the interim. first thing this morning we cruised west along the highway, back to the edge of town, back to the Mesa RV Resort. we pulled up to the little store, and shut off the bikes. is this it? is this the place my Dad felt so at peace? why am i so nervous? i walked in and was greeted by the manager. briefly, i explained why i was there, and asked if the place used to be called the Mesa Campground. he smiled, turned the check-in pad around to face me, and emblazoned across the top of the form were the words "Mesa Campground." i'm here, Dad.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  these photos are nothing special, but mean everything. the manager of the resort was young and new, barely born when my Dad used to hang here. there WERE, he said, two old codgers who had summered here for years, and who would certainly have known my Dad, but both of these old-timers were gone that morning, possibly fishing. i gave the manager my cell number, and the number of our motel in town, and asked if he would call if these fellows showed up today, and he promised he would. sadly, we never got a call. JB2 asked me, as the manager whisked us around the grounds in his golf cart to see if we could recognize anything from my Dad's photos (we could not), how i felt to be here. i smiled. "Can't talk right now, buddy," i said quietly, "I don't want to cry in front of you guys." i'm here, Dad. i love you, Dad. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 02, 2004) | ||
| Unibear12r |
Coolness Great pics. Great story. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
thanks Glenn. | ||
| Reindog |
Lame. Horrible pics. Horrible story. .... on OPPOSITE DAY!  (Actually, I am hoping that you can spin a yarn at least half as good as this one after you leadeth us into the Land of Sequoia next weekend) Keep up the good work! (ON OPPOSITE OPPOSITE DAY) | ||
| Peter |
You're a good bloke Ferris. | ||
| Reindog |
You're a good bloke Ferris. Peter, I think you made a typo. Didn't you mean to say, "You're a good Blake, Ferris."?  | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
Reindog, i'm SO confused! (what else is new, Ferris?) Peter, you only say that because you haven't met me yet - the reality is not nearly as impressive as the virtual reality. | ||
| Peter |
Nope. Blake's also a good bloke. His only downside is that's he's a Texan... Best I stay over this side of the pond then Ferris, living in my eternal ignorance and bliss | ||
| Oldguy |
Jerry- Great read and fantastic photos. It's a good thing you're out of words. Blake would be looking for a couple more servers and a whole bunch of storage. The bandwidth required would probably take down the internet. Keep typing and we'll keep reading. Glenn | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
thanks for the kind words, Glenn, much appreciated. this was an amazing journey, both in miles logged, sights seen, and friendships forged. this coming week will be a little tough to try and keep up with the posting, as we've got a houseful of people coming in for Oktoberfast next weekend, and plenty to do to get ready. y'all please hang in there, and this ride will continue to unfold before your eyes. i appreciate having a forum such as this to display my photos and words. i'm pretty much sans Buell these days, yet still consider BADWEB my home. thanks again Oldguy, and Peter, and everyone else. ride to lean, Ferris | ||
| Tripper |
Well don't be like Alex and leave us forever in limbo, waiting for the story to move beyond Colorado! That boy must have passed the interview, he sure is quiet. | ||
| Dino |
Isn't this kinda like JR getting shot on the season's final episode and having to wait for the next season to see if he lives. You making us wait for some big news? You know, kind of a watershed event? Not even any trailers to keep us on the edge of our seats?  | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
me 'n D spent the day doin' Oktoberfast recon, and i have a few pix to post from today's ride over on the appropriate Quick Board thread. i might get a chance to hang a few more pix on THIS thread yet today, at least to close out day six. stay tuned. and Tripper, i gotta agree: Alex is mighty quiet. i think it's fair to assume that he has finally, officially, joined the ranks of the gainfully employed. poor kid, he'll never be the same. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Newfie_buell |
And I got copies of his pics on my computer!!!! Come on Alex continue with the story!!! | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
ps to Dino: heh, heh, heh... | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  we got to Sun Sports at 10:15 a.m. - the chain and sprocket set were already there. amazing. by a little after noon, we were on our way. amazing. this is a shot of the bike with the new hardware. note the snowmobile jacked up in the air in the background. its repairs screeched to a halt when the VFR rolled in the door. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  while not as pretty as the polished sprocket (and chain) that came off, it'll do. and then some. can't say enough about our treatment during this on-the-road crisis, which turned out to be not a crisis at all. props to Shawn, the young man who did the repair. confident, self-assured, almost cocky, yet who pulled it all off because he knew what he was doing, and because he was COOL! Sun Sports, 219 West Highway 50, Gunnison, CO 81230, 800/883-0889 - there are plenty of shops out there that could learn a thing or two from these guys and gal. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  ok, so half our day is burnt up already. no worries. JB2 and i factored in some "cush" time here and there during the trip - our plan was purposely on the loose side, and it was simply good to be rolling again. with a new drive system in place on my VFR, we pored over the maps and pondered our options, with the knowledge we were spending another night in Gunnison. Crested Butte looked reasonably tasty - and reachable with the time we had - located to the north of Gunnison via Highway 135. hey dude, last one there buys! long story short, the best thing about Crested Butte was when we had had enough (which didn't take long) and decided to get the $#@! out of town. too many people, too many condos, too many traffic lights. too much tension. too much pretension. Vail and Aspen, look out - Crested Butte has you in its sights. the shot above, i assume, is the actual "crested butte." i chose NOT to shoot much else. had we stayed much longer, i would have shot myself. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  by far the coolest thing about Crested Butte was this sculpture at the edge of town. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  JB2 will correct me if i'm wrong, but if i remember right the entire sculpture is made from pieces of car bumpers. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  it's cool when an artist gets due credit. nice work, Mr. Guerrero. the final straw with Crested Butte was when the police pulled up and took exception with the fact we were parked on the grass while we took these shots. we don't like you, we don't like your kind. heavy sigh. "Say, you boys gonna be here long?" trust us, officer dudes, we're gone. and we won't be back. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 05, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  so we headed south, back in the direction of Gunnison, just following our noses, sticking our wheels up any interesting side road we saw. one of the roads ROCKED...for about a mile. as suddenly as it began, it ended, as the pavement turned to dirt and we opted to slide to a stop. (did someone mention "dual-purpose" awhile back?) well, one of the best hours of this particular day was spent just hanging around in the hay field adjacent to where we stopped, talking about life, love, and rides. and, occasionally, we spoke of nothing at all. peaceful, serene, and nourishing, a simple walk thru a farmer's field was worth photos, quiet words, and inner reflection. this, i suspect, is when you KNOW your karma is pointed in the right direction. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  hay dunes, i called these things. this one was easily 20 feet tall. note the bikes in the background. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  pretty cool, i think, when just killin' time is plenty good enough. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  spotted up another side road. i LOVE stuff like this. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY SIX, cont.  nice. VERY nice. wish i could tell you the artist's name. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on October 03, 2004) |
