Posted on 12/07/2004 12:29:39 PM PST by martin_fierro
Steve Rossier rides his motorcycle across continent
By Karl Chalabala
Steve Rossier rode through Alaska with a shotgun strapped to the front of his motorcycle, on the lookout for bears.
“I felt much more comfortable because of it [the shotgun] when I was in the bush,” he said. “People were telling me to watch out for bears. I was just pulling off dirt roads and camping. But there was only one night I heard anything. It could have been a bear or a moose. I always slept in my clothes so I wouldn’t have to roll out of bed in my skivvies.”
Rossier, in celebration of his 50th birthday, rode his 2003 Triumph Bonneville America motorcycle, which his girlfriend Pam found on eBay, to the Arctic Circle and back in a trip he titled “My 17,000 Mile Pub Crawl” in his journal. His trip took him through 29 states and three Canadian provinces in 10 weeks during the end of summer that ended with his “record day” when he left New Orleans and pulled in his driveway in Rehoboth Beach 26 hours later.
He moved to Sussex County two years ago to set up the Home Depot. He liked the area and decided to stay and work as an independent contractor.
Rossier is a tall man with a long frame and a handlebar mustache who spoke very plainly about his journey. He did not have a mid-life crisis and try to escape his troubles. His girlfriend even met him in Las Vegas, where they celebrated their anniversary with wine and a prime cut of beef at the Luxor Steak House.
No, Rossier just wanted to see his country, which happened to take him through Canada when he went to Alaska. Rossier, who lives in Camelot, said everywhere he went, the people were friendly and the beers kept coming.
“I couldn’t even tell you how many drinks people bought for me,” he said. “The natives, in particular, were very friendly, the Native Americans, the native Canadians, the native Alaskans.”
Rossier said he didn’t have any bike trouble. He did go through two sets of tires, one-and-a-half sets of brakes and four oil changes. The bike’s tail light went out in the only “break down” of the trip.
“My Triumph dealer was really happy to hear that,” he said.
While his bike ran well, the journey did present some difficulties. Rossier said he saw smoke 500 miles away from Fairbanks, Alaska – where devastating wildfires burned a record 5 million acres in a fire that lasted all summer. His book of pictures from the trip, a medley of stunning landscapes and people he met on the way, shows what he saw when he finally reached the fires. It looks like a black-and-white photo from another planet.
“There were trees burning on the side of the road as I drove by,” he said. “It was spooky.”
The westernmost portion of trip ended at the edge of the Arctic Circle. Rossier said up to that point the trip was fairly comfortable, but even in the summer the Arctic Circle can get cold.
“I camped out under the stars in the Arctic Circle,” he said.
“I didn’t have a thermometer but it had to be in the single digits. I had my riding mittens on my feet. That morning I had to start a fire to thaw out. Between that and the smoke Alaska wasn’t an easy ride.”
He did thaw out on the ride home though. He did not come straight back. Instead Rossier took a circuitous route through the American southwest, after spending his anniversary in Vegas. He went from one of the coldest places in the world to one of the hottest.
“I camped out in Death Valley,” he said. “I’m not a spiritual guy at all but that night I had my Zen night. It was such an awesome experience. That night really stands out. I got out of my tent that night and hit my head on the stars.”
Rossier described all the landscapes he saw as gorgeous. And he saw a few famous ones - Banff-Jaspers National Park in Canada, the Grand Canyon, Yosemite National Park, Mount Rushmore, Devil’s Tower in Wyoming and Homer, Alaska.
He drank a few beers with new friends in bars where patrons checked their firearms with the bartender. He slept on a few couches. He rode through a hailstorm and a few rainstorms.
But he fulfilled his dream and got to do everything he wanted.
“I couldn’t have done this without my girlfriend Pamela Ivins, my best friend Holly Lane and my daughter Danyelle Rossier,” he said. “Without those three girls, this trip wouldn’t have been possible.”
Rossier said the trip did not completely satisfy his wanderlust, but his next one probably won’t be so extensive.
Did you have a choice? ;-)
Seemed a logical choice. Everyone knows how to fix them, plenty of spare parts in the FSU.
Yes.. in Khazakstan, man who drive motorcycle has very big, how you say... khrom.
"Guys, I need help wearing the old lady down . . ."
Well Braveman . . do what I did. I turned 50 this year and I had not ridden in 30 years but I decided as someone stated above life is not a rehearsal and this was something I was going to do. My wife hit the ceiling, but I kept nagging and nagging til she finally said "if you want a motorcycle just get the d__n thing". Within 5 minutes I was out the door and 2 hours later I had my bike.
She still wasn't pleased but I upped my life insurance and she got the best vehicle(my truck) as compensation. This happened last month and I've not regretted a minute.
That was the exact color of the one I saw. Thanks for the pic. :-)
That's it!
<|;-)~~
I'll hold her, you hit her! :-)
Are you sure it wasn't a "Ural"? Russian copy of a BMW?
Uh, yeah!! Ural! :-)
Yes, in Vien Chang (Vientiane). Pretty cool bike. I have some more pictures of it around here somewhere. Unfortunately it didn't have the sidecar with it. The picture was taken in April of this year.
C'mon man, you ride! You know that Guzzis are too wierd to be copied! ;-)
That's the "tourist" model.
I really wanted the Patrol with a driven sidecar wheel.
Or the Gear Up.
Sadly at the time all of those were being shipped to Saddam to fight the US.
YESSSS !!!
Now just point it south, until the land stops. Put it on a boat, head east until the land starts again. Point North until the land stops, then east.
I showed my lovely wife this thread. She cautioned me to "never refer to her as an 'old lady' again". Damn, strike two . . .
You're sure you can hang on to her, right?
Love those copies. :)
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