RFTW 2019

I'm getting a Harley!

Well, it's been in the making for quite a while now (over a year, I think) but it's now official:  I am getting a 2005 Harley Davidson 883 Sportster!  My parents got a message from one of Dad's friends a while ago showing the motorcycle and the question asking if anyone in the family wanted to buy it.  I saw it and recognized the motorcycle I have always wanted, so I asked Dad if he thought it would be a good idea for me to get it and he said it would be perfect for me!

However, the bike is in Wyoming.  The hard part has been trying to figure out a way to bring it home in Colorado.  For over a year we have made a few plans, tried to schedule things, but they never seemed to work out.  But now I am old enough just to ride it down on my own!

I took an ABATE course in basic motorcycle riding a week or two ago and, having passed it, I feel pretty confident that with Dad's help we'll be able to bring it down without any mishaps.  I'll ride with him on the way up, then we'll ride each on our own motorcycle on the way back.  I think it's going to be some great fun!

Last week I worked on getting it insured (ouch), and this week I am getting packed and ready for the trip.  I hope to be blogging about it as I did on Run For The Wall--you can follow if you want at:

infinityfocusphotos.blogspot.com

Run For The Wall In Five Minutes

I have now made a short five minute version of the documentary I am making.  I plan on making a longer version.  Thank you all who let me interview them.  enjoy!

Run for the Wall in five Minutes from Zachary Hubbell on Vimeo.

This is a five minute summary of Run For The Wall, a run I have ridden on for three years. I plan on making a longer version sometime soon...

Run For The Wall: a Documentary

Many who were on the Run may have been asked by me if they could "answer a few questions for a documentary I'm making."  If you were wondering when that will be coming out, here is an update.
The filming process was easy enough, but post production has always been difficult for me.  I recently bought a new laptop that was supposed to be great for video editing but it is having technical troubles so severe I can no longer even open my editing program for very long, so it has to be shipped to the manufacturer to be fixed, which will take a couple of weeks.

Also, since I was not able to finish the Run, I have asked a fellow Chaplain to provide me with footage from the Wall and other parts of the Run--that way I can have footage from the whole trip.

Editing may take a while, but I have some great interviews and shots and would hate to let them go to waste.  It may take longer than I'd like, but I plan on getting it done as soon as possible.

Thanks to all who let me interview them--no one ever rejected me when I asked!

A New Challenge

In my first year going on Run For The Wall, I was going on it because it was a tough challenge and learning experience that Dad wanted me to do in order to prove that I was becoming a young man.  In the years that followed, I did not think I would come up against many new challenges.  But this year I think I have come to a harder challenge than any in the years before.

It was a cold morning, but definitely better than the one in Williams, AZ.  I kept comparing Angel Fire to Williams and it might just be me but I think it was warmer in Angel Fire the whole way through.

We had breakfast in the same building that we had eaten dinner in the night before.  The rider's meeting was just outside the door in a parking lot.

The meeting itself was pretty routine, but at the end there was an announcement that it was Mr. Kevin's Birthday.  We had fun humiliating him as we sang happy birthday to him.  I also noticed throughout the day everybody referred to him as the birthday boy.  I think we had a better time than he did.

I thought the ride would be miserably cold, but it wasn't bad for very long.  As we got lower down the mountain it warmed up.  It was probably the best day of riding I had the whole Run.

We arrived at Raton with no problems.  I remembered that on my last run this was the only leg we had had with rain on the Run.  And I had thought that was bad.

We fuelled there and afterward the Independent Riders of Raton held a small ceremony for us.  They were the ones who provided the free fuel at this stop.  The Mayor of Raton came up and said a few words.  Of course, plaques were given, and shortly after that we took off again.

We paraded through Trinidad, where we used to get fuel years ago.  However, the people there did not think that was a reason not to let us parade on through.  There were lots and lots of people with lots and lots of flags.


The ride was starting to get hot now.  We had a hard time at the lunch stop in La Junta keeping cool.  However, I wasn't thinking much about the heat because my Mom had come over along with extra supplies.  We unpacked the bike, added what was new, repacked the bike and tried to fit lunch in.  We barely got on the bike in time to leave with the pack.

The last leg was nice.  The mountains came in and out of sight and the hills rolled along endlessly.  It was a nice ride, a little too hot at first but as evening set in it got cooler.  We stopped in Limon at a truck stop for fuel.  As we got off the bike for a break, Pastor Arnie Swift came up to me and asked if I heard a clicking noise on the motorcycle.  I wasn't really listening to the bike but hadn't noticed a difference, so I just said no.

Well, it turns out he was right.  Dad heard the noise too and started looking the bike over.  When I had finished my break and was walking out to the bike Arnie and Pastor Dan came to me and started saying they were sorry and would miss me.  I wasn't sure what they meant until Dad and them explained that the bike was having engine troubles.  We couldn't fix it in time to join back with the Run and had nothing else that would work this year.  I couldn't continue the Run.

There have been a lot of hard times on the Run For The Wall--riding through rain (and snow), camping for days, staying up late and then waking up early to name a few of them.  But this was the hardest part this year:  watching the entire pack slowly ride away, platoon by platoon, without me.

We rolled the bike back out of the parking lot and put it next to the building. Dad bought a lunch of corn dogs, chips and soda and had me get the computer off the bike.  We were both having a hard time coping with this huge change of plans.  Dad was really sad.  I was disappointed.  We tried to get the Run off our minds with movies from the Internet while we waited for some people from Dad's church to come from Pueblo with a trailer and pick us up.  Those were some hard hours of waiting.

Eventually, the trailer came and we loaded the bike.  The drive back was quite different, even though we were on the same roads.  Not only was the scenery different when viewed inside a car, but looking on it from the other side of the Run just isn't the same.

It was late when we stopped.  We dropped the bike off at Dad's mechanic's house.  When we got home, it was very late.  I hadn't thought I'd be sleeping in my own bed that night.

The Run was fun, even though hard.  I didn't make it all the way, but I know that if I could have, I would have.  It would have been easier for me to have finished, but then again, being a man sometimes means just getting through it even when it's hard.

I already asked Dad and he has confirmed that Emily, my little sister, is coming on the Run next year, so the next time I am on the Run I will be on my own bike.  I'm not sure what year I'll be able to join again, but I just know I want to complete my trip to the Wall someday.

Day 8: Angel Fire (New Mexico)

The pattern is setting in.  Wake up, pack up cords and clothes, get breakfast, go to the meeting and ride, ride, ride.  Of course, this morning was a little different than the others.  For the first time, there was neither rain or snow on the ground.  Also, the meeting was at a movie theatre that was heated, so when we wanted to we could go inside and get warm.

The meeting went about as usual.  When we took off, it was not as cold as previous mornings.  New Mexico was doing its best to be warm but the clouds that had covered the sky yesterday followed us today as well.

We stopped at the Route 66 Casino Hotel.  It has always been a great stop for a couple of reasons.  First of all, the fuel for everyone on the Run is free.  Second, they don't hold back on the snacks.  They had beef jerky, peanuts, different candies, soda and more.

We continued into Albuquerque and turned North.  We now took a different route than the one we had used to get to the Run and eventually ended up at the Camel Rock Casino, where we had lunch.

I needed to get in front of the bikes when we rolled into Angelfire, so I asked the Advance team if I could tag along with them for one leg in their car.  I was a little disappointed I would have to be off the bike for a leg, but there was no other way to get ahead of the Run.

I think the ride on the bike might have been easier.  We finished lunch in a hurry and got into the car just after the five minute departure alarm had been called.  We got out of the parking lot just before it was too late and started on our way to Angelfire.  It looked like we wouldn't be able to get ahead for a while because the police escort almost had us pull over so that the Run could go ahead.  But they saw the Advance Team sticker on the windshield and let us pass.  Soon we were well ahead.

 

The road was full of twists and turns.   Going up and down mountainsides required these kinds of roads and was a hazard to the bikes.  Luckily everyone came through safely as far as I have heard.

As soon as we reached the memorial I got out of the car with my equipment and set up the cameras for filming and taking pictures.  It was incredible, watching every bike come up out of the valley and onto the mountain-like hill the memorial is built on.

When everyone was there, I picked up my cameras and went in the memorial.  There were people all over, both veterans and citizens, looking at the pictures, items, models, books and rooms.  Many people were very emotional as they took it all in.

As for me it was a humbling experience to see the dedication and sacrifice our troops displayed in their service.  The pictures stuck out to me.  Pictures of soldiers in Vietnam doing many things, from playing with children to taking cover from enemy fire.  I remembered the pictures from previous years, but that did not take away from their effect this year.

The Chapel was a quiet place where people lit candles at the far corner and could sit and think.  I tried to stay as quiet as I could with my noisy camera.

After looking around some more, Dad and I left for dinner, which was served a few miles away for free.  The building was a little cramped, but we were all glad to eat.  Someone volunteered to give free back massages and many people took advantage of it.

When dinner had finished, Mr. Kevin joined us again and we all went to the hotel.  It is pretty fancy; I always feel kind of bad when we're at such a nice place to leave it so early in the morning the next day.  Tomorrow we have to get up as early as 4:45 in the morning, so I'll try to get some hard sleep before the next big day.  We will pass Colorado in one day and end up in Kansas according to the plan.

Day 7: Arizona-New Mexico

I was not looking forward to going outside again.  There was a lot of snow on the ground and it was still pretty cold.  But we needed to get out there at some point, so after breakfast at the hotel we got loaded and left.

It wasn't as cold as I was afraid it would be, but it was still chilly.  We rode a few minutes and then got to where we had the morning rider's meeting.  We all stayed there for an hour or two, talking and waiting for it to start.  It wasn't very cold now.  The meeting was fine, but I knew it would be a lot colder during the ride.

I had been worried the road might be icy and the weather would be terrible, but it was pretty good compared to the day before.  The roads were clear and we had just a little fog.  We got out of  mountains and it cleared up immediately.  In fact, I almost got warm for a few minutes.

By the time we stopped for gas it was cloudy again.  It was a short day, so we had lunch after a thirty mile leg.  Dozens of people lined the streets, welcoming the Veterans home.  We stopped at a Veterans of Foreign Wars post.  Lots of people had flags.  What stuck out to me was that all the people, from the ones saluting us to the ones serving the food, were happy while they worked.  I was shown once again the appreciation people have for their vets.

The last leg of the day was longer than the others, at just over 100 miles.  Someone pulled over on the way and Dad hadn't seen a thumbs up sign (which means they're okay), so we stopped as well.  We were about walk over and see what the problem was but just then we saw the bike pull away and continue as usual.

The rest of the ride was spent catching up to the pack.  A few miles after we got in place, we arrived in Gallup.  I had thought people were enthusiastic at the lunch stop, but here in Gallup there were far more people waving hundreds of flags.  The city went on and on, with people waving and welcoming veterans home.

Then we rounded a corner and I saw a giant flag hung by fire trucks.  Most of the people were grouped here, forming a walled path to the parking lot.  We got off the bikes and gathered in a large circle.  In the middle there were some drummers and people doing native Indian dances.  A man played bagpipes and many came and spoke about the Run and the city's heritage, not to mention the plaques that were given away.  During all this the weather changed from cloudy to hailing to raining and then back to just cloudy.  It was hard to stand out there in the hail but we stayed.

Afterwards we had some of the free steak dinner and went to our hotel.  It was starting to hail again, and we were all sick of the wet weather.