Location: Cartwright Tunnel, Cartwright, ND
Such a wonderful “Liar’s Banquet” this
time. It felt like a tribute to Eddie, although folks spoke of Eddie only now and then. I’m sure many of us were thinking of Eddie. I know I was. Lots of talking, renewing old friendships, telling truths and lies. Life is so short, and the time here with friends needs to be cherished.
Hanging out with rider 177, we even had some rookies at our table to lie to. What fun! What do you say to someone about to ride their first LD Rally? We were gentle, and gave some good and useable advice.
I knew for me this rally was going to be a tribute to Eddie. The toast to Eddie, with Dr. Pepper, was so appropriate. Eventually rally packets were handed out and riders departed to plan their adventure. I was staying at #177’s house, so we departed to his house.
After entering and coding bonuses, the first question was whether to ride clockwise or counterclockwise. Big points west of Hill City. There was a really cool bonus at Niobrara, and another at the Cartwright Tunnel in western North Dakota. The northern route looked a little longer, and the southern a little shorter. Counterclockwise it finally became.
Since we both agreed on the route, “Should we ride together?” Sure! With that, we became a riding team for the rally.
Opening the “special rally pack”, there was this little plastic vial with something inside it. What is it? Thinking, I wondered, “Is this Eddie’s remains?” Can’t be… but I remember Eddie was being cremated. It looks like ashes. I asked my riding partner if he thought the vial contained Eddie’s remains. “Sure does,” we agreed. Looking in the envelope, I found a “bonus sheet” for the vial. Yes, this is Eddie’s remains. Our instructions are to spread Eddie’s remains somewhere along the rally. I sat back and took in the implications. What an honor. We, members of the Minnesota 2010 rally are being asked by Lisa and Eddie’s family to spread his ashes. The final disposition of the end of his physical life on this earth. I paused for quite some time, taking in the mission given to us. Again, an honor to be asked.
This time, Eddie gets to ride with me!
But where to spread Eddie’s ashes? The question was answered instantly, Cartwright Tunnel. The bonus should be cool. It’s the only tunnel in North Dakota, a state known for being flat. It was dug by hand, an old railroad tunnel. Walking through the tunnel requires a flashlight, it probably is very dark inside. It’s a timed bonus, closing at sunset. It’s also in a different time zone, another variable to calculate on the riding schedule. On our chosen route, it is located 765 miles from the start, with 8 bonus stops and at least 2 gas stops before arriving there. It has high points, so getting there is important to our final score. It’s the kind of bonus Eddie puts on a rally. Perfect! But, we must get there – before dusk!
And so, after a day filled with timing issues, lots of wind, a good number of gravel roads, and lots of beautiful open prairie motorcycling, we arrived at Cartwright Tunnel before sunset. Some of Eddie’s ashes are spread at the entry side of the tunnel, and the remaining ashes are on the far side of the tunnel.
No comments:
Post a Comment