Friends Gone

When I was living in Brookfield I began to ride with a motorcycle riding club that called themselves The Jerseypine Cruisers.  I really don't know the particulars of how this came to pass because they rode out of Des Plaines which was not on my normal travel routine.  Regardless, they let me join up with them and I made a lot of friends riding and cavorting with some very good motorcycle riders who happened to be very nice people.  When I left the area for Connecticut I continued -- and still do -- to keep up with them by reading the monthly newsletter and communicating to this day with a couple of them.  In June I was startled to read that 2 of the members that I knew had died... Al Large and Bill Theodorf.  Neither of them were kids, Al was 75 and Bill was 79, but it still startled me when I read of their passing.  A few days ago I chatted with another one of the members, one of my favorite riding friends Steve, and found out that both of them had died while on their motorcycles, within 10 days of each other.  This news really got to me.  Al was riding home on the highway/tollway from a Cruiser event with a fellow rider when the car in front of them hit some thrown truck tire tread, sending it into the air and into Al, killing him and causing his  bike to crash into his fellow rider who went down but, thankfully, was not critically injured.  Bill was killed when an 18 year old driver made an oncoming left turn into him. 

I never got to know Al real well but he was always a gentleman who was always friendly and helpful towards me and everyone else I saw him interact with.  He was a very long time Cruiser and had developed many deep friendships with the group.  Bill I got to know pretty well and, as it turned out, Bill and I often roomed together on overnight trips and together he and I made several long-distance trips, the most memorable for me being a trip just he and I took to West Virginia and another one down to Arkansas.  Bill was also one of a small group that took a trip over to Connecticut to spend a few days with me when I lived there.  There are people that you just like to ride with and along with my friend Steve, Bill was high on the list along with a few others.  From the time I left the Chicago area I have missed riding with these good people and now I miss them even more.

This photo is from September of 2004 and likely taken while we were out on one of the wonderful 'Sunday Rides' after a Cruiser breakfast ride.  I think this is the earliest photo I have of us together.

A photo of my friends doing what all Cruisers just love to do when out on a ride... eat icecream!  Bill on the left, my friends Steve in the middle and another Bill, 'The Cook', on the right.

Steve must have taken this one as I'm in this one and Steve isn't.  Same trip I'm pretty sure... the annual Cruiser event up in Door County.

Someone must have said something funny.  A shot of Steve and Bill as we wait for the ferry on our way down to Arkansas.

After a few days the others in the group had to head back to the Chicago area but Bill and I stayed down in Arkansas for about 5 more days, driving around and checking out the sights, and the music of the locals.  It was a very, very nice time.  Bill was the person who really got me to appreciate that it's the journey that counts, not the destination.  I can't even imagine the number of times we just stopped along the road to smell the flowers... literally.  The photo above is just one of those many times.

Bill once mentioned that he enjoyed 'following' me on trips because I was always able to find the places that needed to be found and enjoyed.  This time, a waterfall on our WV trip.  By now you must have noticed that this guy always looked the same!  Same smile... same positive bearing.

Again in WV.  Over Bill's shoulder is the largest radio telescope in the world, at least it was in 2005, located right there in WV.  Bill mentioned to me that he really enjoyed these 'things' that I took us to.  So did I :)

Like I said, the guy always looked the same!  This is at a rest stop on the way back from WV.  I look like I'm ready to pass out and Bill, the old fart, looks like he just stepped out of the shower.  Go figure.

And this one I save for last :)  That's a real butterfly that just decided to land smack on Bill's nose.  The butterfly knew he was picking a good spot to hang out for a while as it took me a bit to grab the camera and all.  I liked hanging out with Bill as well.