Easy riding couple takes in sights
When Ray and Judy Heichel bought their first motorcycle in 1995, the salesman didn't peg them as a couple who would ride it.
"I didn't think they were the type of people that would ride a bike," said Andy Zanotti, owner of Zanotti Motor in Butler Township.
They looked "more timid than the normal biker" for that time, he added.
Four motorcycles and 13 years later, the Heichels felt like bikers, at least, when they returned from a monthlong ride to Alaska.
Ringside seats
"There's nothing like seeing it on the bike," explained Judy, who said people question the couple, not realizing at first they would ride their Honda Gold Wing so far.
"They say, 'Oh my gosh. You mean you trailered it?'" she said.
"No. We pulled out of our driveway and rode the whole way north."
The Heichels traveled from mid-June to mid-July, touring with Glenn and Cindy Young, longtime friends from Rochester. Both couples belong to a local chapter of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association.
With a camera around her neck and a laptop safely stowed in the trailer, Judy documented the trip with more than 3,000 photographs.
During a recent visit to their home in Center Township, Ray commented on the thick smell of leather that prevails when Judy breaks out her albums.
Spread among the 14 books, the photos document miles of scenic roads, broken up by the occasional sighting of wildlife.
By the time they reached The Last Frontier, the Heichels already had seen multiple black bears, Dall sheep and bison, as well as a moose, caribou and a grizzly bear, while riding along the desolate highway to Alaska.
With Ray driving 400 to 600 miles per day, it took them about a week to reach the border of Alaska and the Yukon Territory.
To arrive there, they rode through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota before crossing into Canada, traversing the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.
"It took us eight days to end up in Fairbanks," Judy said.
"We ended up there on the longest day of the year."
To mark the summer solstice, Fairbanks locals host a 10:30 p.m. baseball game featuring the city's semi-pro baseball team, the Alaska Goldpanners. Although the game was long sold out, the two couples were able to explore the town on foot under the midnight sun.
Noteworthy activities while in Fairbanks also included flying in a bush plane to Barrow. Known as the Top of the World, the town of several thousand is located on the Arctic Ocean and is the nation's northernmost settlement.
Although a larger, commercial aircraft does fly to Barrow, the Heichels took a chance on the small aircraft, knowing their flight would be canceled if weather conditions soured.
"He didn't fly over those mountains, he flew through them," said Judy about their pilot, describing how the plane's wings seemed close enough to touch land while flying between some mountain peaks.
From Alaska's interior, the Heichels also visited Denali National Park, taking a daylong bus tour through the park, where the weather cleared enough to reveal a view of Mount McKinley, the continent's highest mountain peak.Riding south toward the Kenai Peninsula, the travelers visited many towns, including Anchorage, which boasts a population of 279,671.Side trips included hiking to the base of a glacier from Seward, where they also went sightseeing by boat to see various kinds of sea life, including a whale.From the town of Homer, the travelers abandoned their motorcycles to board a float plane bound for Katmai National Park and Preserve, where visitors that day observed brown bears mating and foraging from as close as 30 yards.While visiting the historic gold rush town of Skagway, the group participated in a Fourth of July celebration in which residents hosted an egg toss that would break the world record.According to the town's Web site, 1,162 persons participated in the toss, held along with duck races, arm wrestling and other events."On the Fourth of July, we're always, always away," Judy said. "And I have to say, that was my best Fourth of July."From Skagway, the bikers also got a break from riding during a two-day ferry excursion through the Inside Passage to Juneau and Prince Rupert, British Columbia, where they began to ride toward home.Comfort zoneAlthough the Heichels said motorcycle travel puts travelers into closer contact with their environment, that connection has its downsides.When riding in storms, for instance, the riders often lack the option of stopping until the weather clears. Ray Heichel said this is partly because of the lack of accommodations along desolate roads like the Alaska Highway. But prearranged room reservations also dictate they stay on schedule.To compensate for bad weather, the Heichels' bike is equipped with heated seats and hand grips, and their outerwear also warms up when plugged in.Zanotti said many bikes have evolved to feature such creature comforts, leading to a rise in touring popularity."The bikes before didn't have the good ride quality. They didn't have the suspension," he said.The riders made use of citizens band radios and a sound system that works as part of their helmets.
The Gold Wing is equipped with a navigation system, and padded seats make for a comfortable ride."It's like sitting in one of those," said Judy, pointing to her husband's cushy, leather home recliner."I have fallen asleep many times."The navigation system, however, proved to be a detriment to Judy's photography. Just as a grizzly bear along the roadside stood up as if posing, the system's voice announced it was "recalculating" the route, startling the bear into running away before she could snap the picture.Belonging to the Gold Wing Road Riders Association also offers some comfort. The international group, which boasts more than 80,000 members and 800 chapters, publishes an index of members and their contact information. Riders can carry the index while traveling, then call fellow riders for help if necessary.The index came in handy during one trip, when the Heichels had trouble with a tire."It took him an hour and a half to get to us," Judy recalled of the fellow rider who came to their aid despite some distance.Gold Wing chapters often host day and overnight trips, with a larger Wing Ding gathering each summer. Hosted in a different location each year, the Heichels often attend the Wing Dings as part of their summer biking vacations.Although they traveled more than 10,000 miles during the Alaska trip, the most distance covered in a season was 17,000-plus miles, which included travel to Florida, Nova Scotia and Colorado.Alaska marked 49 states they've toured on bikes, however they haven't ruled out visiting the 50th.That trip, however, would entail flying to Hawaii and renting a motorcycle there."Maybe someday," Judy said.
