Jeremiah Watt

This day is apptly named, becasue it is one in which you were always going up or down and almost always under a canopy of trees with turning leaves. I have fell in love with Tennesee, it is so absolutly beautiful at every turn thus far.

I rose up this morning in RBS, to find 37 degrees and heavy fog had rolled in. My goal was to shoot the Museum and then gte on the road to get in a few more miles. Off to the quick stop for some coffee or two. And then take a roll by the Hotels to shoot them before Cyclemo's opens at 8am. ONce I enter the Museum, I try to find out a little more information on what is coming and what are the important items already at the Museum.

Well the "GRAND PIECE" for John the owner who is also a landscape Architect, is his one owner 1936 completely untouched down to the original paint etc Harley. ANd to top it off, the one previous owner was an Uncle too John who willed the bike to him at the age of 14. John has been a cycle nut since he was old enough to walk, and it really shows, becasue every thing that possible pertains to vintage Motor-Ccyles is contained within the Museam. From that we move to a comparative of Harley and Indian war commissioned cycles during WW2.

Then there is the WW2 (mini Harley) cycle that John has, which records show as having been dropped out of a C47 during Operation Market Garden and the battle over Indhoven in Belgium. Its fascinating, even for a neo-phite like me, the bikes are staring to look rather sculptural even to me..........rather than just hard and mechanical. The stories are fascinating, and the search for the collection is every bit as fascinating as the pieces themselves. But the time had come to get on the bike.

It is now almost 11 am, and I hit the road. I find the road all the more busy than yesterday, and find out at the first station stop why that is................Son, its the Roller Coaster Rummage Sale weekend..................did'nt cha know? And it sure enough is, I mean every house has a single table or much more out front for sale and cars are parked any and every place you can imagine. The bargain hunters are every place that you look.

Vehicles pass with boxes tied in trunks, and boxes tied to rooves, and stuff hanging out of pick up truck boxes.it is every where. The road feels crowded today, and in the darkest shady places I feel very vulverable today. and so I ride a little less at ease than the day before. The country side is still very pretty, but I don't have the time to look as I did before.

I stopped in the tiny place of Oak Grove and decide to have lunch, simple a burger and fries. It was while I was here that I had a chance to visit with a Retired Air Force Captain, James Elwood. We visited about his stations and his deplyments, since he had spent time in both Cold Lake Alberta doing test sting on various items, but also his time in Labrador Canada and how cold it is there.

The time in Labrador was also to test items to see how cold worthy the gadgets would be during usage. We moved onto the Korean conflict, and the wasted efforts there, and in his opinion the first time that America sought a compromise to an end, instead of a victory.........which in his view has become a precident when we are engaged in a conflict of any kind. America lost her spine for war back in the early 50's said James..................and I am not sure we will ever get it back. Don't get me wrong, I think that the men and women serving are as good if not better than back then..................the problem is with our Press and the Politicians quite clearly in my opinion.

Our wars are being fought on the battle fields, but lost in the press by a press that is at times very anti American in its views and coverage. You take for example the very controversial topic of loss due to death, I think that one lose is indeed tragic, but when it comes to a military conflict I think that the way that the press portrays the death loss is also a tragedy. Because when you look at length of engagements and troop numbers deployed ..............our losses of man soldiers in Iraq are extremely small statistically speaking.

BUt I fear that the biggest mistake that has been made in Iraq, is in the handling of the war mechanism itself, we cannot win this sort of conflict when the orchestration of it is being handled by an Iraq tribunal................just my opinion, but I don't think we can win it now. And to me, a compromise here is completely the undoing of America. SO I ask, what about the young folks who are signing up, what are your thoughts on that issue, I myself have never served but have heard several thopughts on what type of individual is signing.

Well, says James, I think that the soldier in the Armed forces of USA, is at it's all time best right now. They are all volunteers, and they are being selected by SAT scores and aptitude rather than just needing bodies as in WW2. These young folks are just the best you can get, and I mush prefer the signees to the draft any day just becasue of the willingness of each person recruited.

Don't mis-understand me says James, we can win the comflict in Iraq, it won't happen over a short time simply becasue of how different this conflict is when compared to all of the others we have been engaged in.........but we can win. And to answer the final question, yes says James, the folks who make up Irawq, deserve there chance at a new and free Iraq. It remains to be seen if they can hold onto a free Iraq with all of the other coutries around it willing to sabbotage Iraq's efforts............only time will tell.

Oak Grove is only 5 miles away from where I am supposed to be turning north into Kentucky and once again my stinkin Cingular has left me stranded. I borrow a phone from the waitress and call my wife to get Len Yules home address, he''s the fella that I am going to visit in Kentucky. Well how surprised was I to get my wife on the phone, and then to find out that Len had moved changed plans completely. I was in some ways relieved, since I could avoid the notorious Kentucky Coal Haulers. I can now carry on due east on #52 .

I have used up my last CF card for my camera, and am in search of teh replacement for it in every tiny town that I come to. Finally in Celine, I find a Walgreens and get a 512 card, that will hold me for a while now. I rode on but stopped early enough to let my tent and bag dry out before I went to bed.

Good Night and God Bless