Just the Kid and I

[hppants]

All told, it was about 225 miles through the back country. The wind was fierce yesterday, blowing me around quite a bit at times. It was hot and sticky too, reaching 87 on the bike display by mid afternoon. I didn’t discover any new roads or curves. And the scenery was very familiar to me. But we found plenty of adventure along the way anyhow.

On Friday, I texted Mike, Randy, and Andre to see if they were interested in a day trip. Mike and Randy passed, but Andre’, Randy’s 17-year old son, was game for a ride. I’ve ridden with him before, accompanied by his dad. Andre cleared things with his parents and we had a good time.

Just the kid and I.

I hope you enjoy the pics.

After coffee and the newspaper, I pulled the steel horse out of her stable early in the morning.

While packing and fidgeting with my gear, I hear this guy singing some beautiful morning notes. I imitated his chirp and we had good fun singing to each other. Spring time for an amateur birder is a hoot around here.

I met Andre’ at the gas station at 7:30 am and we were off immediately. I decided to myself early that morning that I was going to pull back several notches today. I need to set a good example here, and although there are no promises in this game, I was going to do everything possible to bring this kid home safe.

We turn on the Bayou Tortue road and stop at this bridge, which is reputed to be haunted. I told Andre the story about the high school girl that was murdered here, and whose ghost is often seen.

We run through St. Martinville and head toward the Atchafalaya River levee road

With virtually zero traffic and very few side distractions, this is a good place to open up the throttle a little. Again, just a LITTLE.

Andre rides a Honda CB500X and this is one fine motorcycle. He’s got it tricked out with all kinds of goodies including aftermarket suspension (GSXR600 shock, aftermarket fork springs and valve emulators), crash cages, exhaust can, etc.

He’s not afraid to lean it either.

We crossed the pontoon bridge at Butte LaRose and ran through the swamp a little.

Then we hopped on the I-10 slab to run east a few miles over the swamp.

We rode on the curvy Hwy 77 through the flood plain and slightly protected by the massive oak trees on each side of the road. In Plaquemine, something caught my attention down by the old locks. At the red light, I looked over at Andre and he seemed interested, so we doubled back.

They were having some kind of car show and for the low price of FREE, we were treated to some pretty cool cage candy.

$50,000 and you can buy this one right here, right now. 351W, 4-speed, price was a good bit stiff, though.

This one brought back some great memories.

One fine shoebox here, my friends.

This is the Miss Patricia Hot Rod.

The custom interior comes with a matching hand bag. Nice touch.

Not sure if this was a legit California Special, but it sure looked like it (I know a thing or two about classic Mustangs).

Beep Beep!

This is what they call a survivor car - unrestored and absolutely beautiful.

Mechanical fuel injection and it works flawlessly.

I have no doubt….

There were a couple hundred cars in the show – we glanced at all of them and decided to move on.

Back on the bikes, I choose Hwy 69 heading toward Pierre Part and running generally through the swamp land. We have this pavement all to ourselves.

Andre rides very well, far above his age in maturity. He makes good decisions and gives himself an out when he rides. He scans far ahead down the road and to the vanishing point in the curves. He’s taken two MSF courses and is willingly ATGATT. His dad has taught him very well and I really enjoy riding with him.

We run adjacent to Lake Palourde in route to Morgan City. Pretty windy on the lake today.

My first lunch choice didn’t work out, so we stopped for a quick sandwich instead.

I suppose not all food **** is perfect. It was decent, and Andre wolfed his down like an aspirin tablet.

From lunch, we rode just a few minutes to Patterson, where I thought Andre might enjoy seeing this.

This is a cool museum that is based on two friends (Wedell and Williams) that shared a love for the logging industry and racing airplanes during the golden age of aviation. And you get all of that for the low price of… you guessed it… FREE!!

Half of the museum is dedicated to the logging industry of the 1930s, when the cypress swamp was deforested.

This band saw seems to be missing the safety guard.

The other side of the museum showcases the racing airplanes used by these pioneers. They held many speed records.

I taught Andre how a radial engine works, and how that differs from the motor in his motorcycle.

The video about racing was interactive.

We had a nice time at the museum.

This F-4 saw action in Korea.

We geared up and I’m heading toward home. We took Hwy 83 through the coastal marsh and once again, the playground is all ours.

I rode through the Port of Iberia and showed Andre some of the oil field technology there. He wants to study Mechanical Engineering in college and with an ACT score of 30, I believe he will have no problem succeeding.

From the port, it was just a short run back to my house, where Andre broke off to his own house, each of us arriving safely about 3 pm. He texted me almost immediately to say thanks for the ride and the day. I couldn’t wait to text his dad and tell him what a fine young man he is.

It worked out so well. I could have easily gone by myself and had plenty of fun. I could have called the whole thing off and stayed home. After all, the wind was horrible and I took roads I’ve ridden so many times I practically have the curves memorized. But I got a chance to show a kid something and it was fantastic.

I wiped off my bike and put my gear away. Then I sat down with a cold beer in the front porch and thought about my adventure.

And it was good.

 

[Fjr doc]

Awesome pics, thanks for sharing. That 500 sure looks well sorted. Any kid who is down to ride with a top box on is well matured rider than his age. Good for him.

 

[JamesW]

nice trip and pleasant adventure.

 

[Craigar]

Great pics and ride report. I'm sure he enjoyed it just as much as you. If not more! Tip of the cap to both mom and dad for raising such a grounded young man.

 

[NTXFJR]

Very nice! Andre seems to have a thing or two going for him.

 

[hppants]

Thanks for reading my report. I stand corrected on the F-4 comment. As some of you have pointed out to me privately, that plane actually served in Vietnam, not Korea. I fully admit that there was a commemorative plaque next to the plane and it mentioned something about combat service but I (obviously) didn't read it very closely.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Always good 'pants, thanks for the pics and story!

--G

 

[Morecowbell]

Great story and pics. The Bandit's Trans Am is so retro cool...it would be fun to have one in the garage. I noticed that the owner has a black felt cowboy hat on the floorboard. You gotta have that Burt Reynolds look when you're driving it, I guess.

The racers at the museum are just spectacular. Huge engines powering such small airframes. That took courage to climb into one of those beasts. And the mighty F-4 Phantom, one of my favorites. When you're out of Phantoms, you're out of phighters!

 

[Mihalis fjr]

Great ride report and photos hppants!Thanks for sharing!

 

[Fred W]

That roadrunner was nice. I had a '68 sleeper with the B block police engine back in ~'74. It went fast but turned slow. I managed to pile it up into a tree, which (long story made short) eventually landed me in the military and created the rest of my life.

Nice RR. Its funny how different things trigger different people. And good on you for dialing it back for the younger guy. Let him get the experience he needs to go faster on his own. Going faster isn't always doing better.

 

[hppants]

The car show was very cool. Lots of muscle cars, but there were also some modern pocket rockets, a few boom boom low riders, and even a couple of trucks with the monster tires. Plenty for everyone to see.

The more I looked at Andre's CB500x, the more I like it. I sat on the bike, but didn't ride it because I didn't want Andre to ride mine. Not being selfish about it - if his dad was with us and he ok'd it, I would have gladly swapped bikes with him for a while. I just felt like without the parents' permission, we should stick to the basics. However, sitting on the bike, I can tell that it's very light and should be very flickable. One day, I'd like to ride one.

 

[Fred W]

A lot of people are outfitting those CB500Xs into ADV type touring bikes. Like many of the bigger ADV tourers they are really good for rough back roads and dirt roads, not enough clearance for most Jeep trails or anything too rugged.

The bikes aren't particularly zippy, its the places you go that are inspiring.

 

[hppants]

I agree, Fred. I thought this bike was an excellent choice for a first street bike - especially for a young man.

1. It's not too "zippy" as you describe, but it does have a decent amount of power, certainly more than say, a Nighthawk 250. He can ride it for a long time and not feel the need of "out growing" it. That bike would make an excellent commuter bike for college to.

2. The frame of the bike is pretty big - you won't be too cramped if you ride it for 300 miles.

3. It has some wind protection, but there isn't a ton of expensive plastic to deal with in the event of a tip over (which is common for newbies .... and oldies DAMHIK)

4. Obviously, there is a strong aftermarket following, as evident by the long list of farkles on Andre's bike.