Healy-Guttman Blog

It sounded plausible enough - Bo wanted the Suzuki DL-650 at the University of North Dakota where he is finishing his first year in aviation. It made sense for him to have his own set of wheels due to his almost daily trips to the local airport. After looking at my schedule, the best opportunity to deliver it in person was in early April before the racing season. I could travel on US Hwy 2 over Marias Pass, see country I had never seen before and get a day or two with Brian at his home away from home. I booked a one-way ticket back on April 11th and decided to make an easy 4-day trip out of the 1600 miles I would need to cover.

At the summit of Marias Pass on Hwy 2:

Day 1 - Departure from Whidbey Island to Bonners Ferry, Idaho

This was the only time I was rained on the entire trip. …not that this would have been preferred to the harsh cold of Day 3… A slight misting on the ferry as I boarded for the trip over to “America” from Whidbey Island was the extent of it. The weather was cloudy but turned to mostly sunny on the Eastern side of the Cascades on I-90 as it typically does. Temps were in the 50’s - not bad. I stopped in the middle of nowhere about 30 miles West of Spokane for fuel and lunch. The only place to eat was the “Burger Shack” - a rustic place who’s proprietor laughed when I asked if they had a “veggie burger”. ….I settled for the fish sandwich…

After passing through Spokane and into Idaho I turned North to Sandpoint on 95 going past the Silverdale Theme Park. This brought back memories of flights into the park over the years with Bo (they have an airstrip in the middle of the park and do airshows during the day). It is a huge amusement park very much like Six Flags. They didn’t get many visitors that flew into the place so half the time they would wave us through without collecting the entry fee… Bo used to love the roller coaster. ….I did not…

When I reached Bonners Ferry up the Idaho panhandle and near the junction for Hwy 2 that would take me all the way East to N. Dakota, I saw a Best Western. After entering the lot I found that it was attached to a casino. The casino was popular with the Canadians that came down in buses for some kind of gambling junket. With just penny and nickel slots, it was difficult to lose much. I stayed there because they had wireless internet and it seemed like a decent place. The internet was down and the cafe was a bit of a disappointment. They laughed at me when I asked for a veggie burger so I settled for a cheese sandwich… However the room was comfortable and the earplugs kept the train whistles that screamed every half hour throughout the night down to background noise.

Day 2 - Bonners Ferry to Havre, Montana on Easter Sunday

This was a great day! The morning was crisp and there was some melting frost on the motorcycle that morning but it was sunny with not a cloud in the sky. The restaurant served a decent breakfast and it dawned on me that it was Easter Sunday. The significance of this would not sink in until later…

I wanted to check on the road conditions for Hwy 2 since there had been snow on the ground at Marias Pass just a few days earlier, but the internet was down. I decided to chance it and the gamble turned out nicely. I followed the Kootenai River and the scenery was amazing. Due to the time of year, there were very few cars on the road (the fact that it was Easter Sunday might have also had something to do with that). At 8:30 AM as I was following the river, I spotted an Eagle at the top of a tree with it’s wings spread wide open catching the morning sun. I had never seen this and it was awe inspiring. As I crossed into Montana, I started seeing these white crosses indicating a traffic death. ….they were frequent and somewhat surreal as I rode through Montana.

I stopped for fuel in Libby, Montana. As I left the small town the car ahead of me slowed and I started to go around him until I saw the deer. I’m sure this is a frequent site for the locals and they know what to do - stop and wait. Sure enough the deer bolted in the road when we got close, skidded to a stop in front of the car, hit it slightly, scrambled to it’s feet and in a burst of speed took off to the other side of the road. I watched the fur settle and started out a little more slowly…

About 30 miles West of Kalispell, I rode past McGregor Lake - which was in the Kootenai National Forest. The elevation is near 4000′ and the scenery was again spectacular. A peek at the lake:

Kalispell was the biggest city I was in all day. I decided this might be my last opportunity for a latte and I was hoping for some internet so I stopped into “City Brew”. The latte was great but the internet was down. …I didn’t dare ask for a veggie burger…

Outside of Kalispell I was pulled over by a friendly officer who thought I might have been passing in a no passing zone. I set him straight that no, in fact my pass was quite legal, and he let me go on my way. I love this town!

Then there was Marias Pass on the Continental Divide. This was definately a highlight. I had worried about the snow, but as it turned out, there was no snow on the ground. I pulled into the parking lot at the summit and there wasn’t one car in sight. I had the place to myself. This was one of the few places I remembered to pull out my camera and snap a few shots:

The landscape changed dramatically as I descended from the pass to the Eastern side of the divide. The trees disappeared and the terrain reminded me of Eastern Washington in places. I started getting hungry and as I passed through small town after small town every restaurant and cafe was closed up for the holiday. I started thinking about what I would want to eat that could be found in a gas station “quicky mart”. Finally I found a place in Shelby, Montana at about 3 in the afternoon. I can’t remember the name but it was like the clock had been rolled back 30 - 40 years. They were serving Easter dinner and of course I tried asking for a veggie burger but was met with the familiar snicker and eye rolling that said “you’re not from around here are you?”. ….I settled for a fish sandwich…

As I continued on, the pattern settled into a familiar beat - every half hour or so I would enter a small town, there would be a gas station usually attached to a small casino, there would be a motel or two, maybe a cafe (closed of course), one more gas station and you had another 30 minutes of flat, treeless terrain to traverse until the next small town. At Havre, Montana, the rhythm changed slightly as it was a bigger town than most. I found a comfortable Best Western (with attached casino, of course) and settled in. Here they had internet! I felt I had hit the jackpot. After a small salad I found in the only open grocery store in town (the only other place open was an “Irish pub” where I was certain they would not have any veggie burgers). I spent the evening catching up on email.

Day 3 - Havre, Montana to Grand Forks, N. Dakota - 700 miles and cold!

At around 4 in the morning I was awoken by a train and had an uneasy feeling. I checked weather on the internet for the rest of my route and there was a “winter storm warning” for Tuesday. The message was clear: get to Grand Forks today or don’t get there at all. I had covered about 900 miles of the 1600 miles and decided that I could make 700 miles to avoid getting stuck somewhere between Havre and Bo’s dorm at UND.

I got my things together and was out the door at 5:30 AM. It was still dark and it was bitter cold - about 15 degrees. This time the frost was not melting on the bike seat. I put on extra clothing, cranked up my heated vest and started out. Did I mention it was cold? An hour later I couldn’t feel my fingers and was looking for a stop. I found another cafe out of the ’50’s in yet another small town and had my fingers wrapped around a hot cup of coffee while giving the locals something to talk about.

As the day wore on, I dug out a pair of ski gloves and had a routine down of stopping every hour or so to thaw out the frozen parts. My electric vest was on full blast. The sun came out but the wind picked up. By 10 AM I was leaning 45 degrees into a 35 - 50 MPH sidewind. To make a long story short, I made it to Grand Forks by 5:30 PM and was never so happy to be done with a ride. The good news is that the DL650 saddle was comfortable and I had made it! The other good news was that I had an extra day to spend with Bo.

The next day Bo and I spent some time checking out his dorm and frat. The Hilton I was staying at had both internet and veggie burgers! Life was back to “normal”. Here is Bo and his roomate Ben - he’s the one on the right (can you tell?):

And his frat where he will be next year:

It was an adventure that I will never forget…

A few weekends later when I was at Laguna Seca for a vintage race, my Dad (Brian’s Grandfather) took the more civilized path to Grand Forks for parents weekend and spent some time there touring the facility with his partner Cheryl. A few pictures of that weekend:

I’m proud of you Bo!