Car show season

You can’t beat a small town car show in the summer. This past weekend I headed up to Rosalia Washington to help of old friend Jay, with the judging of his annual show. Last year Covid, made the event a no go, but this year things were back to normal. With almost 120 cars lining up both side of main street the judging was tough, but i picked a 1937 Studebaker, Z3 Rat Rod and 19631/2 Ford Galaxie 500 with the rare 427 engine option.

A classic small town main street, with the a vintage standing clock.

One of of my picks was this custom 1937 Studebaker pickup. It was one of only a 1000 produced in ‘37. Super rare, with a striking art deco paint job.

One of the most original ideas I’ve seen of a rat rod. This one started life as a BMW Z3, with modified front end and Chrysler body grafted on to the rear. Weird, cool and original.

Getting out

The dry weather has arrived in Portland just days after the summer solstice, hopefully our rainy June will be replaced with sunny days in July.

I did manage to squeeze one bike ride at the beginning of the month, I headed out of Portland in search of nicer weather in central Oregon. I was optimistic, so I headed east and managed to out run the rain. My luck held out the whole day until I was ready to cross back into Oregon at the Bridge of Gods. I got caught in one of the biggest, wettest rainstorm I’ve ever been in.

I got soaked! It was raining so hard the cars were pulling off the highway. I pressed on for the next thirty miles and was almost dried out when about ten blocks from my house, the Oregon weather gods emptied their clouds on me again.

I’m hoping to get out of town for another trip after the fourth of July, wish me luck!

Dry Falls

I finally got a chance to hop on my motorcycle for a quick trip. I have missed riding my Kawasaki. But this weekend we were reunited again. I did a quick service and grabbed my backpack for a run up to Dry Falls, Washington which is about five hour northeast of Portland. Dry Falls is located in the Channeled Scablands of eastern Washington. The falls were created by the massive floods that engulfed eastern Washington during the last ice age. It an impressive site, and the amount of water that rolled over the area is estimated to be all the rivers in the world combined and multiplied by 10!

Dry Falls

Up through the canyon, 12,500 years ago I would be at bottom of the river, with 300 feet of water above the top of the canyon.

Selfie!

Three quick turns.

The first weekend of June, I jump back on the old Gpz for my first trip of the year. For the past three years I’ve been going back to eastern, Washington to help an old friend with his annual car show.

I always leave Portland just after dawn and head east thru the spectacular Columbia Gorge. With the Columbia river on one side of the highway, and mountains on the other its hard to keep your eyes on the road. While it nearly 400 miles you only need to make three turn on get there.

A couple hours of riding east on I84, and its a turn north on hwy 395 and thru the Tri Cities, and then a right turn and east on Hwy 26. This is probably the prettiest part of the trip as it takes you through the Palouse area of Washington State, where the majority of white wheat and brewing barley is raised on the rolling hills. Finally and another left on to highway 97 and you are there. No navigation needed.