I know that I have let things go a bit on the site and my blog for a little while. I spent today updating everything as well as adding a new page. This page will have podcast of some of the interviews and commentary that I have and will do for the two shows I do on the University of Southern Mississippi’s radio station, WUSM. Just click on the logo in the sling-door header at the top of this page to go to hear the podcast.
During the semester I am the host of the noon show ”Southern Miss Today” on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. We do interviews, talk about campus happenings and what is going on in the area. We also have a segment called “Meet the Students” where we talk to random students to find out who we are sharing the campus with.
I am the DJ for “Gear Jammin Radio” every Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. (a show of my own creation). The show features trucking music. Believe it or not, it’s not just bluegrass and country, there is also some rock & roll. We talk to real drivers and I comment on what is going on in the trucking industry today.
You can listen to WUSM in the local area of Hattiesburg, MS. on your radio at 88.5 or online at www.southernmissradio.com.
You can also send me a request for a trucking song at wusm@usw.edu. Please put Gear Jammin Radio in the subject line.
Servicemembers stationed from Antarctica to Afghanistan lent their talents and time to craft, “Twas a Night in December,” based on the popular holiday story, but rewritten with a military twist. More than 40 commands around the world, representing every branch of the military service, participated. Along with the military people who contributed to this creative effort, country music star, Toby Keith introduced the video, reinforcing his long-term support for military and their families stationed around the world.
As most of ya know, I took a terrible fall 2 years ago and shattered both of my wrists. Because the injury was so bad, the doctors say my trucking career is over. (I can’t pull the pins to drop trailers or slide tandems.) So, I am going to college full time (carrying 16 a semester). I just finished my 2nd semester and have a 3.4GPA. I think I am doing good for a middle-aged woman. My focus is in radio and photojournalism. During the semester I host two shows on the USM (University of Southern Mississippi) campus radio station WUSM, Southern Miss Today and Gear Jammin Radio. Southern Miss Today airs at noon weekdays while school is in. It is a news/interview/what’s happening show. (I always have a segment about the troops.) Gear Jammin Radio airs Saturdays from 2 to 4 pm and features trucking/road music. (Once a month I have a salute the troops segment.)
My workman’s comp case is over and I am trying to survive. The Mississippi Vocational Rehab Department is paying for tuition and books, but I sill have to survive. I am putting in for many scholarships to help pay the bills. Through one of the many scholarship sites, I found a photo contest. I have entered one of the pictures that I took when the MS PGR did the send off for the local National Guard unit back in March. The prize is an $1800 scholarship, but I need help to win. The number of votes will not make me win this contest, but it will help. I have to stay ranked in the top 200 to have a chance of winning. Right now I have been bouncing from 72 to 81. You can vote once every 12 hours. So please click the vote button below and help me win this scholarship. We have till February 9, 2011 11:30 pm to get me to number one. Please take the time to vote and vote often. Thank you!
SGT Eric Newman was killed in Afghanistan October 14th of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to 1st Squadron, 38th Cavalry Regiment, 525th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C.
I have been on more KIA missions with the MS PGR than I care to count. Every time there is an out pouring of love, loss and support for the family and I know that I shouldn’t be surprised by the support a community shows for one of our fallen heros, but this time I was completely amazed. The city of Waynesboro, MS came to honor SGT Newman in a way that I have never seen before. It started at the airport in Meridian, MS on Thursday when Newman’s body arrived, and continued all along the 50 mile route to Waynesboro and the funeral home. There were officers and fire fighters from Wayne County, Waynesboro, and Meridian,as well as 47 PGR and bikers.
I don’t think there was any kind of auto moving in the city other than the procession from the time we entered till we arrived at the funeral home. I have made the comment several times that it is hard to ride my Harley with tears filling my eyes and goggles, but this time was different. There were more tears.
The city of Waynesboro had heard that “uninvited guest” were targeting this service and those same uninvited guest even had it up on their web site. I am not sure if it was one woman or several, but there were flyers being handed out as Newman’s body was being escorted through town. One concerned citizen made it a point to give the flyer to the PGR State Captain, Ed Baker and he went to work to confirm their attendance.
The “uninvited guest” have to obtain a permit to legally protest. After a bit of investigation and some phone calls, Ed sent us all and email telling us that a reporter had a direct quote from the city clerk that they had NOT gotten that permit. That allowed the PGR to focus on what we were there to do, honor a true American Hero.
Visitation was Friday evening and about 20 of us were there to stand the flag line. The city of Waynesboro sent out a message that they wanted to do something for the PGR for being there to honor it’s fallen son and the Honor Guard from Ft Bragg. Many of the churches and community members came together to set up a feast fit for a king. We ate in shifts so as to make sure there were enough PGR members there to stand the flag line and have extras to rotate out with. I was lucky enough and honored to be in the group that arrived at the firehouse while the Honor Guard from Ft Bragg was still there. What a great group of soldiers! It was an honor to meet them.
The city had invited them to attend the football game that night. As they arrived at the ball field, they announced that the soldiers were on their way in. As they entered the field, there was a standing ovation. I was told that it brought them to tear to see such a greeting.
A the end of the evening some rode home and some of us grabbed hotel rooms.
Services were held on Saturday, October 23rd. A Never Forget flag had been embroidered in honor of SGT Newman and was flown for the escort from the funeral home to the cemetery. It was presented to Newman’s mother with the hope that the Waynesboro Police Dept. will fly it in honor of SGT Newman.
There were over 100 bikers on over 90 motorcycles that came to stand the flag line, and to honor and escort SGT Newman to his final resting place.
Once again, the “uninvited guests” made a very small presents. I did not talk to her and the only time I saw her was after she had been asked to leave and had only moved her SUV to the other side of the funeral home. Once we knew she had not left, we alerted the officers there and they took care of it. When it was time for the escort to the cemitary, the officers made sure that she didn’t leave when we did.
We formed a flag line at the cemetery and presented the mother and wife with plaques in honor of SGT Newman.
I want to say thank you to the city of Waynesboro for showing such great support to SGT Newman’s family and friends and to the PGR. When a community comes together such as they did, it restores my faith in humanity.
The state has recommended that the Eagle Point School District prohibit employees from using motorcycles as transportation to work-related activities after Principal Tiffany O’Donnell was seriously injured Sept. 13 in a motorcycle accident en route between the two rural schools.
Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division officials said the school district has not violated any regulations, and no citations have been issued to the district. But OSHA cautioned that allowing employees to drive motorcycles for work activities presents a hazard to employees, as well as a liability to the school district.
The agency also recommended that administrators be added to the district’s DMV automatic reporting system where the district can check on employees’ driving records and licenses to operate a motor vehicle. Neither recommendation is mandatory, according to OSHA.
Administrators are the only district employees excluded from the automatic reporting system, but Eagle Point schools Superintendent Cynda Rickert said the district’s human resources department already has taken steps to change that.
“We don’t know if the Board will move forward on a policy not allowing you to drive a motorcycle if you are doing school business,” she said.
O’Donnell, principal of both Elk Trail Elementary School and Shady Cove School, was driving her Suzuki motorcycle from the Trail campus to the Shady Cove campus when she was struck by a Nissan pickup truck. The driver was making an illegal U-turn on Highway 62, police said. O’Donnell’s right leg and pelvis were broken in the crash, and she underwent multiple surgeries at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland to reconstruct her leg. She is now at home in Medford recovering from her injuries.
Tiffanie Lambert, a White Mountain Middle School teacher, is substituting for O’Donnell during her absence.
Eagle Point school administrators are expected to drive their personal vehicle for work purposes, but it hadn’t occurred to district officials to dictate what kind of vehicle they drive, Rickert said.
She said the School Board would like to consult with the Oregon School Boards Association, which guides districts in crafting or amending policies, before making a decision on whether to ban motorcycles for school business.
“We can surely see some merit in the recommendation,” she said. “There is always another side to this. Would that then mean we would have to purchase more vehicles for our employees to use? We’re hoping OSBA can tell us that.”
Reach reporter Paris Achen at 541-776-4459 or e-mail pachen@mailtribune.com.
I know that there are MANY of us that love Carl P & the “P” Team and miss hearing him on the radio. Well, there is now a Facebook page dedicated to getting him back on the airways. Here is the description of the group they ave on the page. “This group is for all the Carl P. Mayfield fans out there who would like to show how much you would love for him to be back on the Nashville Airwaves!” So, if you are on Facebook and love Carl P check it out at Bring Carl P Back. To bad we can’t get him back on Sirius, but at least we could listen to him when in the Nashville area.
After a relaxing night in Mammoth Lakes where Bert could sit in a jacuzzi for a while, we started north again. We decided that we were going to skip going to Lake Tahoe and ride through Yosemite. On the way up we stopped for gas and Bert sat down on this wooden wall. As soon as his tail end hit the wood, dirt started falling out. I busted out laughing! It looked like Bert was shitting dirt. I grabbed the camera and took several shots and kidded him about still shitting dirt from the bike wreck the day before.
There are parts of this country that I have had to drive by because big trucks are not allowed on the road. I have seen some very beautiful sites in 18 years of driving, but I have also missed a lot of them.
Yosemite is a very beautiful place and was a great ride. Even with snow still on the ground, it was not to cold. If you ever have the chance to ride thought this national park, DO IT! You will not regret it. For the most part the roads were good, but it is summer time so there is construction going on which can cause gravel to be in the road. But as much as you might like to shoot all thee tight curves, this is a place that you will want to just sit back and cruise through. As much as I could describe it in words, pictures are much better. So I will shut up for a few and let you just look at the Gods woderful creation. (Thanks to Bert & Jon for the pictures. The road is to dangerous to be snapping pictures while riding and I was to busy trying to see it all as I rode.)
Oh, please forgive Dad on the face he is making. As you have seen, if you have been folowing the blog, we will take a serious picture and a funny one. Dad thought this was the funny one. Well, I guess it really is the funny one and the joke is on him! LOL!
Once we were through Yosemite, we headed to Frisco and the Golden Gate Bridge. (Above picture is NOT of GGB) The marine layer was settling back in and it was beginning to get a bit foggy as we crossed the bridge into San Francisco. Following the GPS, argh, we got off the main road and wound our way over to the Golden Gate.
By the time we reach this parking area where we could see the bridge, my wrists were hurting like hell and I needed a short break. We stopped, put on some more clothes, (we were getting wet from the marine layer), took a couple of pictures and then headed for the bridge. By the time we got on it and across it, it was dark.
If you look real hard, you can see the bridge in the dark. Once across the Golden Gate we found a hotel, got a room and some dinner. The next day were planned to ride the Pacific Coast Highway, (PCH).
Once again, this is a rode that you fight with yourself about how to ride it…do ya want to shot the curves, or sit back, cruise along and enjoy the view. My brother, Bert, and I have different riding styles. I like to cruise along and enjoy the view, and he likes to shot the curves. Course, when pulling a trailer, you don’t really need to be shooting the curves to hard anyway, so I cruised along and enjoied the ride. Besides, I was still getting over my bike wreck from May and the cruves made me a bit nervous with the trailer jerking me around. Here are a couple of pictures of how the road is.
Now, here are a few pictures of the view! It was a georgous place to ride. One day, I would like to start at one end and ride it all the way to the other end, from Canada to Mexico.
Since I was a kid I, like many of you have seen many pictures of people driving through a giant redwood tree. We all knew that this was something we were going to have to find and do…no matter what! Bert had several of them plotted in his GPS, but on one of our stops a lady told us about one that was not to far away. So off we went!
Not only did was all ride through the tree, but we looked around and talked with several other riders that were there. We helped them get pictures of themselves going through the tree and talked about where we were all riding. It was a cool experience…fulfilling one of those small childhood dreams!
After getting my bike fixed at the Kingman, AZ Harley shop we rode up to Hoover Dam. We stopped at the gift shop to grab a couple of post cards for Bert and Jon to mail to Taylor and Josh and for me to mail to Danny. The lady in the shop remarked about how hot it was and that we were lucky we had not been there earlier. She said is was 5 degrees hotter just a couple of hours before we got there. It was 120 while we were there.
I have been across Hover Dam twice in a big truck before 9/11 happened. After that, commercial vehicles were not allowed to cross it. They have been working on building a bridge so that big trucks don’t have to go into California and then up to Los Vegas. I can’t wait for them to complete the bridge, it is going to have a great view on the dam when it is done.
There is something about having an A & W Rootbeer Float when the temperatures are soaring above 100 degrees. Bert was in the lead and just had to stop when he saw the place. Of course, brothers and sisters, no matter how old they are will torment each other when given the chance.
As we rode into Los Vegas the traffic started getting heavy. We jumped off the interstate and hit the surface streets. It wasn’t much better there. At a stop light, with my left wrist hurting bad enough I was almost in tears, Bert and I did a switch-a roo again. He took over my bike, Jon took his and I climbed on the back of Dad’s. Hot, hungry and me hurting, we made our way to the Harley Cafe down on the strip!
After grabbing dinner, we asked the parking guy where was a good place to stay. He pointed us to the Gold Strike in North Vegas (Old Vegas) and to the biker bar “Hogs & Heifers.” Jon having turned 18 just a couple of weeks earlier ment that he could not enter the bar. So he and Bert struck out on their own.
Of course I had to check out the biker bar. The guy that told us about it said it was this bar, well the one in NYC, that Coyote Ugly got the idea of dancing on the bar from. Being the great Aunt that I am, I could not let Jon miss out on the experience, so I took pictures of the girls dancing on the bar. Not wanting the girls to think I was some kind of weirdo, I told my waitress about my brother and nephew wandering around Vegas. When I did, she just had to send Jon a message.
(I HAVE A PICTURE OF THE MESSAGE, BUT WILL HAVE TO ADD IT LATER)
We got up the next morning and headed up US95. Then grabbed hwy 266 to hwy 168.
I let Bert take over my bike for a while and the ride was going well and we were all enjoying it, despite the heat. We saw some gravel in several of the curves and Dad and I commented that we hoped Jon and Bert were taking it easy up in front of us. They had been hitting the curves pretty hard even though I didn’t like it with the trailer hooked to the back on my bike.
Then as I watched Bert go around a curve, he disappeared and dust flew! I have to say my heart skipped beat or just stopped for a few seconds as I started yelling to Dad, “Bert is down! Bert is down!” I think I was off the back of Dad’s bike before he got it stopped when we reached him. The fact that Bert was already standing up did not make me feel better. Many times I have seen people seriously injured and not know it. Bert said he was alright and it took a few minuets for that to sink in. An off-duty NV Highway Patrol officer was headed the other way and saw Bert go down and stopped. He helped us pick my bike up.
Not only can you see that the crash bar bent the floorboard straight up as it was bent back, there is a hole in the lid of my saddle bag.
As you can see the rock was not a small one. I had to open the saddle bag to get it out. Yes, I still have it. I think I am going to mount it some way and give it to Bert for Christmas. LOL!
I do have to give Bert credit. After we sat the bike up, bent the crash bar back out and adjusted what we needed to for it to be ridden, he rode it the 6 miles off the mountain to the nearest town, Big Tree, before letting me take it back over. At the time, he looked like he only had a little road rash on his side and right wrist. But a few days later he had this BIG bruise.
We did what we could to make the bike as comfortable as we could for riding. I called my insurance company, told them we were going on with the trip and they could have someone look at the bike when I got to Arkansas to my boyfriends house.
We rode over to US395 and headed north. The Sierra Nevada Mountains are really pretty. The plan for the day had been to reach Lake Tahoe. With Bert’s wreck and being a bit sore, we decided to stop in Mammoth Lakes for the night.
I know that over the last couple of weeks I have not kept ya’ll up to date on our bike travels around the country. There was a lot happen and I was left without a laptop for several days. Even though the trip is basically over; Dad, Bert and Jon are home in MS and I am at Danny’s place till some time next week; I am going to continue to put up post about the trip in segments. There is just to much to do it all in one post. Then, once I get home, I will write an over view of the whole trip with some of my favorite pictures and places that we rode.
WOW, I am really behind on blogging about our trip. I have been really tired when we stopped for the night. Things have happened on this trip that would make a person pull their hair out. Because of this big lapse of time since I have posted anything, I am going to give ya an all in one post with pictures from Lexington to Los Vegas. I will do Los Vegas in a different post and you will see why when you read it.
We stopped just out side of Helena to see my boys for a few minuets and then went on to DeWitt, where we spent the night. We then rode across the skinny roads down into Louisiana, then into Texas.
As you can see from the picture above, even thought Hurricane Alex was coming in, we had things under control…or so we thought. We were there for almost a week and it rained EVERY day. I changed my oil and rebuilt the starter solenoid between rain storms.
The wind was so bad at time that the bungees we had holding the tarp over the tent would break and we would have to wrestle it back into place. All in all, despite all the rain and wind, it was a good stay in Del Rio. Course, it is always good to see my niece, Taylor.
We even rode out to the US/Mexico border. We couldn’t really cross over and do any riding because Taylor doesn’t have a pass-post. But as you can see, we had fun any way!
While we were packing up, Bert was trying to cut some fishing line out of a reel and got his finger instead. Dad put him on the back of his bike and took him to the hospital. He got 4 stitches on the inside of the cut and nine of the outside.
On our way out of Del Rio we passed the little town where Judge Roy Bean made his name. We stopped to take pictures and write out post cards and then rode on to El Paso where we spent the night.
The next day we rode into New Mexico. The first part was boring; I have been across I10 many times in this part of the world. Then we grabbed NM hwy152. It was an exciting ride with switch back curves and beautiful scenery.
We stopped in the little town of San Larenzo for lunch. The people there were really nice. when we told them what we were doing, they had us sign a ceiling tile.
We rode out and caught US180 then grabbed NM hwy 260, rode to Show Low and spent the night. The next day we rode on to Sedona. We had a great time with Dad’s friend Annie and her grand-daughters. During that day and the day before, my bike had started to run funny.
I called around to several Harley shops in our path and got set up to get it worked on in Kingman, AZ the next day. They said to be there early! So we were up at 0400 and riding by 0500. I have to tell ya…it is COLD in the Sedona area at that time of the morning. But…the ride out to I17 was really beautiful and fun.
Sorry that there are no pictures of the ride out hwy89A from Sedona to I17. The road was so curvy and it was so cold, we just rode! Once we got to Kingman, I put my bike in the shop. There was a broken injector wire and that was what was making my bike sputter. We got it fixed and headed to Hover Dam.
