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Figured I'll share a little about the trip Gladys and I went on, this past weekend - both of us travelling on my '98 Road Glide.
Rode up to Assumption - between High Level and Rainbow Lake - to visit Gladys' family. It was a pretty cold ride up there, so we did it in 2 stages; from after work on Friday up to Peace River and then, the next day, the rest of the way.
Talking to a trucker in High Level, I already got the warning that the 10 kms of gravel road to the Assumption reserve was in not-too-good shape, as it had been raining very hard the entire day before.
But Gladys was bound and determined to make it to her folks that day, so we figured we'd chance it anyway.
Turned out not to be a good idea... The road was full of muddy ruts and a lot of hills. Going up one hill, I picked a track that looked the dryest and got up enough speed so that I wouldn't spin out.
Problem is, that track gradually transitioned into a wet rut and, by the time I realized it, it was too late to try to hop the front wheel out of it (track muddy, wheel would slip). So I tried to take it to the top of the hill (even though, by that time, I was pretty sure my goose was soon to be cooked).
Half way up the hill, the rut I was trapped in took a little twist (it takes very little) - sending the front wheel slipping to the right and throwing the bike off balance to the left. The bike eventually tipping over onto its left side, the left crash bar dug hard into the soft dirt and gravel; instantly (and abruptly) causing the rear to kick around 90 degrees to the right and bringing us to an immediate, sudden stop - the bike digging itself into about a foot of soft dirt on the shoulder of the road.
Gladys must have got her leg pinned under the bike or something, because she broke an bone around her ankle. She had badly bruised ribs as well. Not too good shape, but nothing life-threatening either.
After I was finished swearing about the stupidity of taking a chance on that road, I made sure she was okay and checked out the bike. Basically, just a badly bent crash bar (causing the bar-mounted fairing to also torque around a bit). Sliding on the gravel had scratched the paint on the left side of the gas tank as well (not down to the metal though, it appears). Other than that, the bike looked like it would be ridable.
I got a nice, Mission-Impossible-Tom-Cruise-style cut on the cheek and a bit of a black eye from hitting the windshield when the bike swung around, but nothing major. Did have to fit the windshield back on, because of that.
Flagged someone down on the road and got a cell phone call through to Gladys' mom. Shortly thereafter, an RCMP cruiser showed up to pick up Gladys; taking her to the nearby nursing station - from where she was brought to the High Level Hospital. At High Level, they x-rayed her and put a cast on her ankle.
Some of Gladys' brothers were soon by with a truck and, with their help, I pushed the bike onto the road again.
Them telling me it didn't get any worse up ahead, I decided I'd try to ride the bike the remainder of the way (instead of loading the bike into the truck), so off I went.
Made it through the rest of the road without incident but, once I turned into the settlement, I was greeted by a flat, almost gravel-less road, flooded with standing water. Just like riding on grease!
After half a mile of that I decided this was no good. I'd soon be wiping out again on this stuff and, this time, maybe damaging the bike worse. So we decided to get some loading ramps and we put the bike on the truck - freighting it to Gladys' mom's house, the last half mile.
The short loading ramp and the absence of a nearby bank to back the truck up to meant nearly dropping the bike as we tried to unload it, because of it high-centering on the frame while backing up. In fact, the bike did drop the height of the tail-gate - just as the front wheel cleared. Lucky the ramp didn't slip off the tail gate a second sooner.
But we made it there!
Spent the rest of the weekend eating duck eggs and drinking beer and getting re-acquainted. Had a great time. That made it seem worth the effort of getting there. Fortunately, Sunday was dry and hot, with a breeze - drying the roads out.
Left on Monday morning at around 11:00 AM and had a bitterly cold and wet, long ride back home - hitting the city by about midnight. Gladys arrived safe and sound (but sore) in the truck at the same time.
That was a memorable weekend. Going somewhere with a bike always seems a bit like an adventure.
|  A view downhill, showing where we came from
|  A view uphill, showing the hill we were climbing
|  Gladys managing to put on a smile
|  Another view of bike dug in
|  Gladys nursing her broken ankle
|  Another view of bike dug in and Gladys elevating ankle
|  Yet another view of dug-in bike
|  The final, muddiest stretch into the settlement - after loading bike onto truck
|  Another view of muddy road, prior to loading bike on truck
|  Gladys' brother Joe (now deceased, but rode Harleys as well)
|  Some of Gladys' family and a friend of mine who married a cousin of Gladys'
|  Gladys' Dad and one of her sisters
|  Where my face met the windshield
|  No hard feelings (I hope!)
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