Roadside Americana

At the tail end of our Saturday ride with Kathy in West Virginia, she took us along one of her local favorites - Grassy Lick Rd. I was excited about that because it was on my route from the day before but I missed the turn and missed the road ...

It was just about dinner time and we'd been out riding all day. Kenny and I were just finishing up our last pitstop, taking a picture of a Mail Pouch barn at the edge of the town of Romney, West Virginia. As I pulled out onto the roadway after Kenny ...

While we were in West Virginia, you can bet your boots that I had jotted down a few Mail Pouch barns that were in the general vicinity. West Virginia is the home of Mail Pouch Tobacco after all. As a matter of fact there were several barns right on Route 50, ...

Before we left for West Virginia, I took a quick peek around Google Maps to see what was around the Romney area. While I don't usually leave with a set plan of things that I must do I like to have some general idea of sights in the area. I ...

Here on Long Island we've been on a weather roller coaster for the past few weeks. Temperatures have ranged from a downright balmy 60 degrees in the days before Christmas to... 5 like it was this morning. We were also treated to a blizzard. Good times. As Christmas approached I ...

Well, this is embarrassing. The Cowtown Rodeo cowboy and I showed up to the party wearing the same shoes. For its petite size, New Jersey is really full to the brim with silly roadside stuff. They've got a high concentration of mufflermen including one of the highly coveted Uniroyal Gals. There ...

What is it about a giant, fiberglass peg-legged pirate that will make me ride 170 miles out of my way? Is that the dumbest sentence you've ever read? Sometimes my 'reasons' for riding must seem completely ridiculous. And on more than one occasion I've wondered: it is really the thing ...

When I turned off of I-95 at the exit for Havre de Grace, Maryland I had only one goal in mind. I would visit the Desert Storm muffler man. As I approached the station where he stood outside, my GPS chirped "Approaching. Desert Storm muff-a-ler man. On right," in that ...

Giant Chicken Army. It's a thing. It's either that or one rogue bird that keeps following me. And he's taking the long way 'round because he lies in wait at the places I'm going before I get there. And that makes him a little bit like Chuck Norris AND a ...

The temperature crept up to nearly 70 degrees today. That's kind of unusual for a November day. You bet your boots I was only too happy to load my monkey Chloe into the Ural and go for a ride. We were heading to Chloe's favorite comic book shop but she ...

For all of the cliche popular images of the scary, hardened bikers - I feel like I must exist on the opposite end of the spectrum. When I'm out and about on my bike strangers approach and talk to me all the time. So much for a tough image. I ...

I may have to start rethinking my penchant for visiting roadside statues. Exhibit A: Just check out the cold, dead eyes on these two. And that poor kid... I'm not sure what's more tragic; the headless doll, her haircut or the fact that she looks like she's listening to the ocean ...

Fifty years from now, what will my generation have left behind that tugs at the heartstrings of people who like to play the "Remember when..." game? What will our contribution to fading Americana be? Painted Barns If you've read this blog for any amount of time then you probably know ...

To my own surprise I've been able to tick a few things off of my 2013 Motorcycle Roadside Stop Wishlist. Just this past weekend? Another mark in the "Done" column. ::pats self on back:: No doubt most people visit Pottstown, Pennsylvania for a free beer at the Yuengling Brewery. Me? I ...

Set back from the road in Hinsdale, New Hampshire is a fabulous house that is covered in license plates. When I say covered... I mean covered. Isn't it wonderful? The house is no longer lived in, but another one was built right next to it. That is where the family ...

When the Equinox to Equinox Rally kicked off on the first day of spring, it seemed like we had all the time in the world to ride around and collect points. After all, the autumnal equinox and the close of the rally was months away! As it turns out, people ...

For some, writing things down on a travel To Do List is a blow to the spontaneity of what riding a motorcycle should be about. And I get that. Being able to flitter hither and thither to wherever the winds takes you is all a part of the romance of ...

While I was in the neighborhood during my super-donut-extravaganza, I decided to swing by the town of Groveland to visit with the local muffler man. Incidentally - his name?  Yvon. (Formerly) With decades of standing outside and leering under their belts, weather-beaten muffler men have been altered, they peel and need ...

I'll give you a minute to soak it all in. A giant Suzuki TL1000R, the Ural and.... a dragon. *Runs away squealing* 😀 ...

On Saturday I meant to just duck out for a few hours before the rest of the family got up. I figured I could buzz out to New Jersey, see the giant tooth and be back home by lunch time. But, plans changed back at home and so I stayed ...

Though I'm not much of a telephone caller, I must admit that I really appreciate the ability to make and receive phone calls from my helmet with my Sena headset. Sometimes I'll be standing on the side of the road doing very important things and I'll receive a call from home ...

For the E2E Rally, I've been thinking about how I can string together historical markers, monuments and engaging sights to 'theme' my bonus stops. We've got 6 months to dash around and pick up points. Keeping things fresh will mean that my interest will stay piqued and I'll be more ...

You can breathe easily. I'm excited to report that the Riverhead Mufflerman Indian "Chief Running Fair," who had his butt kicked by hurricane Sandy is back in action! Not only is he back together, but he's been spiffed up a bit with some fresh paint AND... a Christmas wreath. ::sniffle:: ...

I keep tabs on the whereabouts of the Wienermobiles by following them on Twitter. It's important stuff. Very important. On Sunday morning while sipping my coffee I read that one of the Wienermobiles would be on Long Island. As soon as I heard Kenny stirring himself awake I bounded into ...

When the new year rolled in there were two things that I resolved to do for myself. One: When I'm out in the world and I see something interesting, I need to stop saying 'I'll stop to look at it on the way back.' Sometimes there is no going back ...