Steve & Georgia Carter

Our Notebook

Page 9 of 20

Crash

April 3, 2015 /

It is said that there are only two types of motorcyclists: those who have crashed, and those who will.  I joined the former group on St. Patrick’s day, March 17, when I skidded off the Reeder Mesa road south of Grand Junction on a pleasant evening ride with Larry Johnson, someone I hoped to go riding with in the future.

We crested a hill with an unexpected turn to the right and gravel on the road.  I lost control, the bike skidded over on its right side and came to a halt part way down a ditch.  Fortunately, Larry was able to come back and make sure that I was OK, but I wasn’t, and my bike sure wasn’t.

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This is my helmet afterwards.  I heard from two doctors and the State Patrol officer who investigated the accident that but for the helmet and the heavy jacket and gloves, I wouldn’t be here today.  We called 911 and the AAA; paramedics showed up promptly, and I rode to the emergency room in the back of an ambulance.  My bike got towed to a junkyard.  After much poking and prodding, the ER doctors said I was one very, very lucky person and had no permanent damage except for a cracked rib and abrasions on the elbow and ankle.  The worst damage was to my ego: this shouldn’t have happened!  Oh, and my motorcycle was totalled by GEICO.  They said that when the right-hand crash bar bent, it also bent the frame.

Motorcycling has been a big part of my life for several years, but this crash made me realize just how quickly a pleasantly exhilarating experience can become a near disaster.  It’s almost 3 weeks since it happened, and I’m still sore.  The insurance money is likely to go to buying a car, not another motorcycle.  It was a good run and I really enjoyed meeting a lot of good friends along the way.  I’ll miss it.  And you.

 

Historic Rifle

January 22, 2015 /

Andy Gordon taught me how to fly in 1973, and one snowy day that winter I took a number of aerial photos of Rifle.  They’re fascinating to look at over 40 years later.  Among other things, there is

  • no I-70, so of course no bypass
  • City Market was located where Remington Square is now
  • City Hall and the Library are vacant lots; the Winchester Hotel had been torn down earlier that year during one of the boom/bust cycles
  • The apartments at 5th and Whiteriver are not there
  • Aspen Avenue had very few houses and wasn’t paved all the way to 7th Street
  • Highlands East is farmland
  • Rifle High School was held in what is now part of the Middle School

I also took some nostalgic photos of the Rifle A&W and of Ray Cole, its owner.  By this time, the alignment of I-70 had been determined, and the Department of Highways had acquired and closed his restaurant.  The Chamber of Commerce had purchased a railroad car from the Rio Grande for $1 and parked it near his restaurant; it was later moved to the SW corner of the intersection of First & Railroad, and subsequently junked.

Please leave comments if you notice anything else.

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Gift Exchange

January 15, 2015 /

We postponed our Christmas gift exchange with the kids until Saturday, so that Jackie and Maria could be here.

This year, the kids all were told that they needed to pick out or make something for Georgia and me.  So for one of the first times, they had the fun of watching us unwrap their presents as they gave us long explanations of what they meant by each gift.  And they all had that anxious look of anticipation as they watched us open our presents, hoping we’d like them.

Katie gave us handmade tea bag rests she’d made at a local pottery paint-it-yourself store with some of her middle school friends.  Emily made two really clever pictures, and found frames for them.   Josh told Georgia that he knew she liked to cook and liked green things, so he used his allowance and bought her a tiny little green cooking pot; he said that he knew I liked tools, so he bought me a C clamp.

They need not have worried.  We loved them.

It snowed a little bit, so Jackie could make a small snowman, and Jackie and Maria discovered why Jackie’s new car has a defroster.

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Gas wars

January 4, 2015 /

Scanned DocumentThe collapse of oil and gas prices has been unexpected.  Just before New Years, I filled up our car at the local Kroger’s; with fuel points (enhanced thanks to a 4x promotion for gift cards) at 89.9¢ per gallon.  For my South African relatives, that’s 2.75R per liter.

 

We won’t see that again in our lifetime!