“A mis queridos amigos que me acompañaron por los caminos de Espana. No los olvidaré.”
INTRODUCTION: Welcome to the 1st of a few promised Spanish (Spain) dispatches. Once again for the uninitiated, Webster describes the word “dispatch”, as in a way to send off or away with speed, a messenger, an email; or any official report, usually sent in haste.
The dispatch you are now reading was hand pecked typed the old fashioned way; on a plain old iPhone smartphone. And when there’s suitable wifi around it’s quickly sent off giving no thoughts to grammatical mistakes and truths that know no limits.
If that sort of stuff interests you then continue to read on or better yet, subscribe from the Trawlercat.com blog so you won’t have to check back to see when the next one is dispatched.
Yesterday, I accepted a special delivery package from gpskevin for our upcoming Spain Motorcycle Ride. Inside the package I find the magic SD micro chip for my Zumo Garmin GPS along with other carefully thought out instructions. There I said! The hardest part of motorcycle riding in Spain is now done for me, like what route to use, places to stay and even who to ride with. This is almost like going on a cruise, minus the midnight buffets.
THOUGHTS ON SPAIN: Spain is not a country. Spain is a world. At one time it was also the worlds first superpower. While Portugal and Spain were still conquering their known world, they agreed on dividing the world in half. Sometime during some of those discoveries my Spanish ancestors arrived in Havana.
Let me now add that I have once walked from the borders of France to the western border of Spain (Finisterre) until reaching the Atlantic Ocean. In Roman times Finisterre was believed to be the end of the known world. It is also the westernmost point on the Spanish Iberian peninsula.
The Spain I now know is entirely different from region to region. Everywhere I went I spoke Spanish. The locals would praise me and say things like that’s excellent Galician or Castillian you’re speaking. And to add some more confusion to the mix in Spain, the Z usually sounds like “th”. Same goes for the C when it comes before an E or an I.
Spain is different throughout the country, as in their independence, their culture, the people’s temperament and best of all their cuisine.
My (RIP) food critic hero Anthony Bourdain once said that Spain is the sort of place that never really made sense, but in the very best possible way.
From Bourdains field notes: This is a country that gave us the Spanish Inquisition—also anarchy. This is where devout Catholicism mixes with surrealism, modernist cuisine and traditional tapas.
THOUGHTS ON THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO: I read somewhere that the average American walks about two miles a month. What happens when you don’t walk enough is that your feet begin to shrink. The muscles and everything else that holds the bones of your foot together atrophy.
And let me also add that anyone capable of walking should consider a Camino walk in Spain (or a motorcycle ride?) too, because it truly is a life changing experience. On the Camino de Santiago French Way route, in case you’re interested, I wore a size twelve shoe for the entire 790 kilometers. And on this motorcycle trip I’m now wearing a size 11.5 sized boots.
About 1,000 years or so ago people were walking for drastically different reasons, like looking for a cure for a terminal illness; trying to reduce the punishment for their sins or even to witness the apostle St James.”
Someone once said to me that no matter what kind of person you are—secular, spiritual, or religious—walking along the Camino’s dirt paths, through the medieval villages and the beautiful wild landscapes is where the adventure becomes the destination, and you too shall profit from that insight.
For a person to move into another phase of their lives they just need a little transformation to take place. Our motorcycle riding adventures offer up that opportunity. My walking the Camino de Santiago at the time that I did so, was simply the best way that I knew to honor my recently departed mother. And on this motorcycle ride I also intend on honoring a lost friend.
BACK TO THE MOTORCYCLE RIDE IN SPAIN: And unlike when traveling to Mexico (our favorite motorcycle riding destination) there’s not ten people around or the news media or even the state department to give you ten reasons why you shouldn’t now travel to Spain.
After a while you too will notice that a similar pattern starts to emerge. Our motorcycle riding adventure is basically about the roads, the places that the roads take us, the places that we visit, the people that I am with, and interesting things like that.
ROADS: There are four main types of roads in Spain. The first one is known as an autopista. Think freeways or highways with toll lanes. Identified by AP and a number and the posted speed limit is 120 kmh. And not an extra 10 or 20 mph added by everyone like back home in California.
In most of the European Union countries lane splitting is legal, and in a number of countries, such as France, Italy, Spain or the Netherlands, it’s even expected. Sad to say that most of the USA states are far behind in allowing lane splitting for motorcycles.
THE second type of Spain roads are the autovias. This is the free roads where at times the speed drops down to 80 kph.
The third type is the Carreteras Nacionales. Identified as N and a number. They are the roads that cut through a village or town.
The 4th is Carreteras autonomicas. Identified by a C and a number. The most rural types of roads.
THE REST OF THE STORY: One of the best aspects of the movie Mission: Impossible is any lack of continuity; similar to this dispatch. And possibly how motorcycle travel and a full retirement life should be lived and experienced.
And like in a movie where the characters often disappear and reappear without explanation; that’s now how my superhero motorcycle friends seem to roll. I totally mean that as a compliment. I quickly stop to visit the gpskevin secure website to see who’s now going on this ride.
The most obvious one of all is the Master Yoda. He has once again assembled a team with strong emotional connections to one another. Ducati Chris and I recently rode Portugal and now here we are.
Master Yoda, Todd, Roberto, few others and I recently rode motorcycles for a month in Alaska. And now for our extremely heart wrenching outcome to report. Respectfully, I offer the following words as a step towards healing and a way of continuing to keep Tom in our continued thoughts and memories.
They say that time heals all. Well, apparently not enough time has yet gone by for my Alaskan riding friends and I. Emotions still quickly turn to tears whenever we recall the tragic loss of our beloved friend Tom Lake. Death comes at you at two speeds, either fast or slow. For Tom it was fast. He is now in Heaven’s gate with other fallen motorcycle brothers and sisters. The news reported that he was struck and killed by a motorcycle collision with a moose.
The perfect human being is uninteresting—and would probably not live a very interesting life. Tom possessed just those perfect imperfections of life. Tom was one of the most lovable and interesting person anyone could call a friend. Most of all, he was a man of outstanding moral character, professional competence, integrity, and just one hell of a great guy.
Tom truly did live life to the fullest. Tom lived his life like one would a journey, to savour, to cherish and to treasure life itself. Our friend Tom is now in his final destination.
This ride’s dedicated to you my friend.
RIP Tom Lake.
End
Trawlercat Chronicles 