Sports: [DucatiST] Re: A story (long) - How do you thank someone you have never met?

Great story! Thanks for posting.....

--- In st2_owners@yahoogroups.com, David Gooch <doghaus@...> wrote:
>
> Gary's poignant note about his mother (may she rest in peace), got me
> thinking about an note that I wrote for our club newsletter. I would like to
> share it with you.
>
> Dave G
>
> PS I live in Sarnia, Ontario Canada. The references to London and Paris
> refer to the cities in Ontario, not Europe. The Cagiva is a 1985 Alazzurra
> that has been in the family for 25+ years. Judy is my wife (who still loves
> me after 31 years of marriage and motorcycles) - I'm a lucky guy!
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
> ---
>
> How do you thank someone you have never met, and never will?
>
> In January of 1998, I saw an ST2 for the first time. It was silver. Here was
> a Ducati with saddlebags that looked like it would be comfortable enough to
> go the distance. I remember sitting on it and thinking that this was going
> to be my next bike. I don't remember what the price was, but it was
> obviously something that I couldn't justify to the "powers that be", so I
> had to be content with drooling for a while. I went back to riding the
> Cagiva.
>
> Fast forward a few years and I am still searching for a single motorcycle
> that will do everything. I have owned several other bikes since 1998, but I
> still haven't found what I was looking for. I went back to riding the
> Cagiva.
>
> Fast forward again, this time to 2010 and I am test riding a Multistrada
> 1200S with my wife Judy. Billed as four motorcycles in one and my hope for
> that one motorcycle, but I come away disappointed. Nice machine, but at $20K
> plus, it wasn't doing it for me. By this time, I am looking for excuses not
> to ride the bikes anymore. I go back to riding the Cagiva and feel guilty
> because it is not getting out very often; and then I take the car.
>
> After a motorcycle trip in Spain, Judy has started hinting about wanting to
> ride with me more often, but the Cagiva really isn't doing it for her; too
> small, too cramped, seat too hard and suspension too harsh, so we don't get
> out together very often.
>
> Spring 2011 and I am at home mid day during the week to feed the puppies
> some lunch. This is not usual for me. I have convinced myself that I need a
> sport tourer of some kind for the two of us and maybe something like an
> older VFR might be what I need. It is not European and I am having trouble
> getting excited about the idea, but it does make sense in a warped kind of
> way. I decide to check out Kijiji London and see what is available while I
> am waiting for lunch to be consumed.
> Much to my surprise, one of the first things that pop up is a 2002 ST2 in
> blue. It has high mileage, but the price is reasonable. I moved on to the
> next ad.
>
> But the ad kept calling out to me. Over the next few days, I kept looking
> for it, to see if it were still there, hoping that maybe it would be gone
> and I wouldn't have to explain to Judy that I wanted to buy it; hoping that
> it would still be there and that it wasn't too late to go and look at it. I
> finally worked up the courage to ask her about it, and she agreed.
>
> We drove to London and looked at the bike. In asking why the bike was for
> sale, it was explained that the gentleman was a friend of the owner, who had
> recently died, and he was selling it for the family. We negotiated for a bit
> and settled on a price. While we were talking, his cell phone rang twice,
> other people wanting to come and look at the bike. Despite the delay, I was
> the first serious looker.
>
> There is something eerie about buying from a person who has died. It was not
> a voluntary parting; it is like you are accepting custodianship, not taking
> ownership. His name was George.
>
> I spoke to the local dealer. Yes, they knew of the bike. George had a
> reputation for taking care of things. I felt better about the purchase.
>
> Several others saw the bike and commented, "Was that George's bike?"
>
> George's bike and I were slow to bond. It was an ok ride, but not exciting.
> Still, it did mostly what I asked of it on my day to day rides.
>
> Then came the day I decided to meet up with some club members and ride to
> the Paris Vintage Rally. It was comfortable enough for the hour and a half
> ride to the meeting point, but once we got off, on to the 2 lane roads, it
> became apparent that it did not like to corner and would run wide, most
> un-Ducati like. At the show site, it would not restart, and had to be bump
> started. Despite all that, after having spent as much time as I wanted at
> the Rally, instead of heading home, I decided to go further east to see my
> Dad. By the time I got home later that evening, I realised that I had ridden
> for 600 kms that day and actually felt good about it. I hadn't spent that
> much time on a bike in years.
>
> The starting issues turned out to be a loose plug on the back of the starter
> solenoid; a known issue. A zip tie fixed that. Raising the rear ride height
> made the bike corner more like a Ducati. The morning question of should I
> take the car or the bike, were more often coming out in favour of the bike;
> even when it was threatening to rain. This bike was growing on me.
>
> Come the summer, I did something that I haven't done since I was much
> younger. I rode the bike to a weekend rally in Tennessee instead of
> trailering it down; 2900 km in 4 days. Coming home, I could almost have
> qualified for a 1000 miles in 24 hours Iron Butt award, and that was mostly
> on twisty 2 lane roads (at least until I hit Ohio). I had expected to be
> crippled from spending that much time on the bike, but I wasn't. I rode it
> to work the next day.
>
> In the less than 12 months, George's bike has changed my life with
> motorcycles. Now I look forward to riding; I actually can't wait for the
> temperature to stay above freezing over night, just so I can ride to work in
> the mornings. I am in the planning stages of 2 or 3 long rides for the
> summer. The bike is getting new suspension, an upgraded headlight and heated
> grips. It got a new top case for carrying extra stuff on the road (and my
> lunch bag on the way to work). These are all things that I think George
> would have approved of. I am trying to look after his bike. It even won an
> award at the London Bike Show last month.
>
> So George, I just wanted to say thank you for passing your bike on to me. It
> is in good hands and is going to be in the family for years to come. It is
> right at home, sharing the garage with the Cagiva. I hope that you approve.
> George, please keeping looking out for us; it is good to have friends in
> high places. I wish that we had known each other before this.
>
> RIP George Gilbert 1962 - 2011
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
> PPS People say that motorcycles are dangerous. George drowned while
> vacationing in Mexico. Carpe Diem! You just never know.
>
> Dave G.
> aka The Goochman
>