Well, I have said over and over that I’m not a camper and try as I may, I failed tent 101. I had a hell of a time just getting out of it the first morning! Then there is that whole thing about trying to dress etc and we all know you can easily see though a tent which makes the entire prospect even more exciting. 😉 Then there is the evening bathroom vigil, where I wait until I nearly have to run to the bathroom, and it’s dark and the closest bathroom is a porta potty which I’m afraid to allow my silk pajama bottom to drift across that icky floor. Sigh…well, I’m not one to rough it obviously, but I must admit i’d rather pee in the woods than use a porta potty!! So, yesterday the first order of business was finding my tent. Today the first order is to find an actual bathroom, where the porcelain god can be properly worshipped and where there might actually be a shower. I was able to secure both and smile a little knowing if I could get out of my tent in the middle of the night, a nice clean bathroom was near! Oh joy!

I gotta say the nice thing about being up before more sane people is that I am able to get in and out of the shower with no wait. I felt ready to go find coffee and knew that SherpaTed had a pot ready. I sauntered over to get a cuppa and savored it, chuckling at my fellow camper’s opinion of the devil’s brew. It’s weak, it’s watery, it’s boring, it’s NOT Starbucks…well there is that, but you didn’t pay $4bucks either, did you? I wander off, digesting both coffee and opinions silently, while looking over my rally book for seminars.

Some of the seminars were truly nothing more than glorified infomercials, while others were just awe-inspiring. I went to an amazing one presented by MotoDiscovery “Riding in Cuba, the People to People experience”. By the time they were done, I was wishing i had won the lottery and could just sign up both me and Gary. Cuba is one of those places that’s like falling into a time warp or stepping back in time. Most all the cars and motorcycles are from pre-Fidel which means they are from the 50s and earlier. The motorcycles there are gorgeous, especially the old Harleys. Most are in barely used condition since the island isn’t that large, so the mileage is low. I was amazed at some of the tour photographs! I guess regardless of the politics, the people remain loving and interested in all travelers. According to the tour company, you can only visit as a “people to people” exchange, which means they are able to introduce those touring to many of the locally manufactured items and the artists who create them. The people make beautiful music, create wonderful cuisine, have excellent cigars and love to laugh. I hope that someday, I’ll be able to visit there.

Now it was time to go and look at the Vintage BMW show.

There were so many amazing bikes, I was just in “envy”.

These two looked from about the same era, but looked quite different too. I don’t know enough about them and can see they both have boxer engines. I obviously need to read up on the history of the boxer as well as the history of BMW in general. Now, sadly there was NO seminar on the history of BMW!! Neither one of these looked particularly comfortable for the type or riding that I do.

Side car racing!

Wow, all shiny except for the engine!

I love these crazy fairings!

Now this one looks touring worthy and i love that sweet fairing!

This one looked a bit rough and there was no info regarding it. I found it rather delightful, but the box below with the oil looked as though it was related to Harley. 😉 The one behind it was also a beauty.

This is a sweetie…made me think of my friend, Donson!

Amazing just how may Beemers were here!

Shade was a commodity.

Speaking of…my pal John did me a great service, moving Hugo into some shade in the heat of the day, only I got back from my seminar and the bike was gone…I kept my calm, knowing with all the awesome machines all over the place, no one in their right mind would single out my R12 to steal. So, I scurried down to Kelly’s tent and asked is she had seen my bike and she quickly responded, “it’s right over there in the shade, why did you LOSE it”. Hahahahaha of course about two hours later, i found the note that John had left me tucked into my sherpa provided camp chair. Yep, big as life was a note that said, “I moved your bike into the shade. John”. Duh….

The next seminar I took was the most amazing of the entire rally, by an amazing woman, Benka Pulko. http://www.benkapulko.com/intro She took off from a small Slovenian town at the age of 30 setting out to see the world. She currently holds the record for the longest solo motorcycle ride ever undertaken by a woman-in both distance (111,856 miles/180,016 kilometers) and duration (2,000 days). She is a published author and a noteworthy photographer and I am in total awe of her talent, skill and beauty. The presentation included video, stills of her amazing photography, and many many pix and stories of the people she encountered on her travels around the world. I am inspired by her lively tales and her dedication and her “believe in yourself” campaign. She was the most amazing presenter at the rally and from the crowd, I wasn’t alone in my thinking.

The only picture I got of Benka was in full movement, but she looked like a Hindu goddess of dance.

When I left Benka’s presentation, I realized that I had missed my friend Holly Berkley’s, “The Secret of Super Riding”. Well, hell, you can’t do it all!! I’ll have to catch Holly on her next local seminar.

The night came quickly and I grabbed a boxed wine and made my way to the evenings musical offering, Jonny Lang, blues guitarist from the age of 12. I somehow knew he had probably mastered his genre. He was very good, but Canned Heat had already stolen my heart.

Some things you simply don’t question…

I stayed up late, drank a variety of wine and the result was paid by a poor night of sleep. I tossed and turned on my airbed and felt chilled. i put on socks and a down jacket, and finally warmed up and got a couple of hours of uninterrupted sleep. I awoke early, and did the “Coffee with Dave Hough” that began at 7am then went and showered. It was then that I realized, I was ready to go back to Portland and sleep in a bed! I wandered around a bit, looked at vendor booths and saw absolutely nothing I couldn’t live without. I did attend one more seminar, “Women Who Ride”. It was a panel discussion, that tottered on the edge of mundane except for the tribute to Ardys Kellerman. I sat there and thought to myself, men would never be talking off their boots to pass around to show the boot lift. Maybe I’m a bit jaded, but it just seemed like most of these women wanted some special love as it may be, or maybe affirmation that what they were doing, though not in the mainstream of most women’s daily activities, was ok. I could be way off here, I’m not sure, maybe i need more female companionship, but it just seemed like it could have been an awesome discussion from versed female riders on what it means to be a woman rider! I should have stood and said, for me, riding is a passion. It’s something that I own, i practice and I LOVE. It’s not like I could simply walk away from the sport saying, “awwww, i’m done with this, now I’ll try ________ (fill in whatever…) I burn with the desire to be seat-side touring the country, seeing new things, seeking new goals and experiencing new skills. And most of the time, I desire doing this solo. Yep, that’s what I should have said, but instead remained quiet listening to tales of ill fitting gear and too tall motorcycles.

There was one breath of fresh air. A young woman of 16 who had gotten her motorcycle license after the MSF last November who already had over 8000 miles. She mainly rode a small dirt bike and for IBA she took a Burgman scooter. Now that’s cool!!! Welcome young jedi!!!

I got my bike packed up and bailed on that evening’s affairs and instead took the long scenic route back to Portland, enjoying every moment riding on the back of my new pal.

Tomorrow the final chapter of this journey…riding home!!