Hall of Fame Cade
Ride
by Edward Ritchison
While serving in the Army back in the 80's, I was stationed in Germany at a NATO
weapons site, where I, along with approximately 200 other M.P.s patrolled
and stood watch over the aforementioned site, 24/7, 365 days, around the clock.
We were known as "Tower Rats", a term I didn't give much thought to
until I got older and started reflecting on my younger days and
adventures. Now there is a brotherhood of these "Tower Rats" and
ever so often, we try and get together for a week end of tall tales, and
consumption of adult beverages ... what's an old
soldier to do? Here the Cade's story begins...
One of my "rat" buddies called about 3 months ago and says "Let's
get together; some place new for all of us, that we can drive to and meet for a
reunion." Since all these guys are huge football fans, it was decided
upon that we should meet in Canton, Ohio, home of the National Football League
Hall of Fame. We could take in the HOF, enjoy some good eating in the
Amish country, make a dent in the Canton beer supply, and still be centrally
located for all concerned.
Well, for me, the wheels started to turn. I got my trusted Atlas out, began
marking the routes to take, hotel reservations to make, packing preparations,
everything I need for the trip. Then the big decision ..... do I take the
Cade, a 19 year old bike, with 80,000 plus miles. I've pretty much rebuilt
it, from front to rear, since I
purchased it 2 summers ago. I knew that somewhere along the way, something
could go wrong, leaving me stranded, angry, and worried, not to mention ruining
my whole trip .... this....or just riding my dad's 2003 Yamaha Road Star, in
great shape, low mileage, ready for the road.
Well, after some thought, I decided, "I bought that Cade
for the sheer pleasure of the highway, to ride and enjoy, come what may,
besides, I have come to know the bike, it's feel, it's handling, when things
aren't right, and when it runs like something right off the showroom floor
... no, for me and this trip, the 2-tone blue was going to carry me
to Ohio and home.
Weeks passed and the anticipation of the reunion, the time off from my
stress- filled job and the ride itself had me excited to a point that I almost
dreaded it. I knew that things were going so smoothly and coming to pass,
that the other shoe just had to fall. No such luck. When the morning
finally arrived, I was up early, everything packed, double checked, triple
checked, plenty of clothes, clean drawers, enough money ... (yeah,
right), everything for my person, now the Cade. All "dem levels"
checked, tire pressure checked, all signals, lights, flashers, A-O.K. Time
for the road. Kiss the wife, pet the dog ..... or was that the other way
around??? Anyway, doesn't matter, meeting
the guys, road trip, freedom from everything ....... everything but that
darkening sky that lay ahead.
As I pulled out of middle Tennessee, the sky was bright,
beautiful sunlight and warm temps to travel by, but as I got
closer to the Kentucky state line on I-65 North, the skies grew darker, the
winds picked up and I knew that I'd better be finding me a piece of shoulder to
pull off on and get suited up. I no sooner got these thoughts through my
head, then here comes the rain, no small drops mind you. These drops hit
the windshield and my helmet like they were being fired from a Gatlin gun at
close range. Everything got real chaotic really fast, semi's flying by,
the visibility going from good to crap in a few seconds.
Thankfully, the Lord either rides a Cade or just pities those of
us who do, cause in a flash, there was a vacant bridge overpass, complete with a
guardrail for setting my nervous old tail down to clear the cobwebs, get my rain
gear out and on, and just say a little word of thanks to the man upstairs, that
everything worked out with all
of this.
Okay, rain suit on, face shield snapped into place, climb back
on the Cade, fire it up and ..... uh oh, it's not shifting and the
clutch lever is all the way back against the handle bar, no tension, no
engagement, what the heck is going on here? I pumped the clutch handle
gently and felt the tension coming back and the gears shift normally. I
notice as I travel down the highway, rain steadily coming down, that I have to
continually pump the clutch handle every few
miles to keep the pressure up .... (there is that other shoe
falling). I pulled over at the next exit, gas up, and give my local
mechanic a call. He told me one of two things has happened. One
...either the slave cylinder has gone out on the clutch or, two ...
I have an air bubble in the clutch line ... I'm hoping and praying for the
latter. So, I followed his instructions to turn the handle bars to the
right and slowly burp the clutch line to hopefully move the air bubble into the
reservoir ... and to my amazement and delight, that took care of the
problem .... the clutch stayed tight with no other hint of slippage.
Now, it's getting late in the day, rain still falling and I
still have to maneuver through the traffic of both Louisville, Kentucky and then
Cincinnati, Ohio, which I might add should qualify me for the Wet-Butt patch
award, not to mention the "I must be out of my freakin mind" patch, if
there is such a thing. Made it through these two cities with
minimal difficulty and land navigation and headed Northeast to Columbus, really
excited because I was nearing my destination with each mile that was turning
over.
As I neared Columbus, rain began to fall like I have never
witnessed it in my 43 years on this earth. I honestly thought the Ark
would float by, lightening, thunder, blinding sheets of precipitation until I
had had enough, no gathering is worth getting killed for and as I watched the
white line of the highway with my head down and eyes darting back and forth, I
discovered that Motel 6 really does leave the light on for you, as I moved the
Cade into the parking lot. As I got off the bike, I noticed that it was
raining so hard, I was actually wet inside my rain suit, the inside of the
trunks were damp, and I realized, I hadn't eaten all day ... and at
this point, none of this mattered. I was able to get a room on the first
floor with the bike right outside, so I moved all my gear inside, took off all
my clothes and put them on the heater, with everything else on the other bed
nearest the heater to dry and settled down to a generous meal of a Diet Coke and
Peanut Butter Crackers, not what I had in mind, but at this stage, I just wanted
to dry off and rest. The local news cast showed the severe thunderstorms
and even a funnel cloud or two
in the area, but I settled in for a great nights sleep.
The next morning, the clouds are still hanging low but the rain is moving off as
I gather all my now dry clothes together, load up the blue 2-tone and wipe her
down before continuing on. I finally reach my destination at the hotel in
Canton, Ohio about 12 noon, a little later than what I had expected, but was met
with the smiles and greetings of old friends and comrades and of coarse a cold
Bud Light. We enjoyed our visit that weekend, seeing the Hall of Fame,
remembering old times, catching up on family and careers, and as always, it all
ended way too
soon. As we packed up Sunday morning for our trip home, goodbyes said and
handshakes and hugs given, I was again looking forward to the return ride home
through the Ohio country side and the hills of Kentucky back to Tennessee.
On the return ride, I ran into a few small rain showers but nothing of the
magnitude that I had ridden up
in. As I pulled the Cade into the drive way that same evening, I noted the
mileage as being 1201 miles, round trip and could not have been more proud of
the Cade and the way it handled the entire trip and except for the slight
problem with the clutch, I would have put it up against anything out there on
two wheels. I've had several people look the Cade over, asking me about it
and telling me how much they liked, and even a few telling me to hang on to it
and not get rid of it, that it'll be a bike collector's prize before long
.... no, not much chance of getting rid of it, not if it can continue to
deliver the smoothness and comfort and the enjoyment I get mile after mile......
Ed Ritchison, Dickson,Tn.
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