The Pilgrimage!

    I made a few short local rides and the fuel leak seemed to be resolved.  Saturday looked like the only good weather day I had for the coming weekend.  So that looked like the day for my pilgrimage to the hallowed ground that inspired this bike, Athens, Georgia and the University of Georgia.  I spent a few years there back in the early 80's and quite a few fall Saturday afternoons since.  It is about 120 miles round trip but I really wanted to get a few pictures in some of the spots that resonate with the feelings this bike inspires.  I changed the batteries in my camera and forgot to set the date it was actually 03/15/2014. 

  The first stop was the fabled Arches!  After my graduation I would make it a point to walk through them every Saturday before any home game.  It is tradition that you should be a graduate to walk through The Arches, Class of '83.  I just considered it to be good luck. 

 

 

On the bridge at Sanford Stadium.

 

The G Mosaic by the Letterman's Club.  Across the street is the bank and the railroad tracks where students used to gather to watch games.  This tradition came to an end when the east end of the stadium was enclosed in the early 80's.  My first year there I used to walk to campus through the Oconne Cemetary just across the tracks.

 

The entrance to the Butts - Mehre Building.

 

The Vince Dooley National Championship Memorial, a cast bronze masterpiece. 

Well I think so.

 

The Coliseum.

 

Two more photos at Sanford Stadium.

 

       After the photo tour I went to my favorite BBQ place in Athens, Pulaski Heights Bar-B-Que.  Its off Prince Avenue on Pulaski Street.  It's a little Bohemian area of town that appeals to me.   You can either eat inside or outside by the tracks.  If you look out the front window you can see a block over where the old Athens Depot used to be.  That location was also where T. K. Hardy's used to be.  It was a popular bar in the 70's and became infamous when one of the owners killed the other in the late 70's. 

 

Pulled Pork sandwich, Brunswick Stew, macaroni and cheese, and baked beans. I highly recommend PHBBQ!

 

      I have a cousin who is somewhat of a wine aficionado and she tells me there is a nice wine shop in the same complex that has wine tastings on Saturday, Shiraz is the name.  Another friend also told me that the artist who cast the bronze Dooley statue above has his studio in that area as well.  Its an interesting part of town that is off the beaten track.  

      While I was eating a 20 something young woman came in with a young man of about the same age. Noticing my helmet on the table, she smiled and commented her approval of the bike setting out side. We talked a few moments and she showed me a photo of a bike on her phone, a really cool 250 Cafe bike that she had built.  I voiced my approval as well.  It still thrills me the range of people that you can connect with, just by having a motorcycle. A 20 something woman with her life in front of her and a 50 plus guy with a lot of his behind him, shared a common experience and understood each other for just a moment. Motorcycles give me hope and faith in my fellow human beings. Two people with nothing else in common knew something about each other that made them kindred spirits.    Regardless of what you ride, cruiser, sport bike, touring bike, dirt bike, café whatever it is; you get past the outward personas that we all try to project and find we all just love the freedom you find on a motorcycle.  That is a good thing. 

     When I started writing this the term “Pilgrimage” was a little tongue and cheek.  Through the writing I have discovered how apt that term was.  I traveled a long distance to a place that held great meaning and personal significance to me.  In the process I made a discovery about myself and my fellow man that hopefully will make me a better person to those around me.   That is a very good thing.