Search for the Real Mater

 

 If you don't have a younger child or grandchild there is a good chance that you have never heard of Tow Mater or the cartoon movie Cars.  Well I am here to tell you that even if you haven't heard of it it is a big deal with the younger set.  My 2 1/2 year old grandson for example has the movie memorized and has most of the characters in the form of little matchbox size cars.  Anyway it's an entertaining movie, rent it you'll see.

  We got to the point of talking about cartoon movies because my friend, Richard found out about the motorcycle event called The Neosho Dogwood Run.  A friend of his alerted him to it and he issued a general invitation to all the ROMEOs.  As it turned out I was the only to answer the call so we made plans to attend.  At coffee one morning we were discussing things non-motorcycle and I mentioned my grandson's obsession this Cars.  It seems Richard's grandkids are similarly smitten and he asked if I knew that the inspiration for Mater came from an old truck in Galena, KS.  Not one to take a story like that for fact I turned to the WWW for answers and came up with several web sites that confirmed the story.  Example: http://tinyurl.com/4cmvgb and http://tinyurl.com/4o4eoq Guess what?  Galena, KS is right on the way to Neosho, MO (remember the Dogwood Run?) Let's stop and see Mater.

  So that is the story of how two senior citizen's on motorcycles stopped at an old restored gas station right on old RT 66 in Galena, KS after riding nearly 300 miles in cold, damp and windy conditions.  Our story would end here had Mater been parked in his usual spot but much to our disappointment he had been hauled to a nearby school to show the kids and would be back until that evening. 

  The stop wasn't a waste though because also stopped at the old gas station/souvenir shop was a tour group of Chezkslovakia tourist on rented H-Ds, complete with a sag wagon.  They were certainly the oddest looking of Harley riders I've see lately. 

Instead of the usual leather and do-rag crowd these folks were sporting full face helmets and high tech riding gear and as near as I could tell every one of the 10 or so bikes was sporting stock pipes.  They seemed to be having a good time and several of them spoke english so we were able to visit a little bit.  One of the guys said "yeah, my kid watches that movie all the time".

  Saturday morning we quickly found out that GPS and available maps haven't keep up with new road construction but a stop at a convenience store with a grandma behind the counter quickly put us on the path to Neosho Powersports, our destination and starting point for the annual Dogwood Run.  A Dogwood is a tree if you didn't know and they are in full bloom in this area.

  As it turned out the run itself didn't amount to much.  It was a slow crawl around the outskirts of Neosho and through part of town.  The town part was prettiest and at least we didn't have traffic backed for a mile while poking along at 20mph on 55mph roads.  The event was sponsored by a local Gold Wing club so there were lots of Wings and trikes and a good representation of most brands.  Very few sport bikes even though the dealer obviously sold many of them.  There was the requisite drawing, which came up empty for the Kansas ROMEOs, and a band that played their hearts out while being roundly ignored.   A charbroiled hamburger with a bag of chips and drink also came with our registration fee.  So all in all it was a good event, Richard got to visit with his old friend and we meet up with a couple of others that had been to ROMEO lunches.

  After things started winding down Richard led Dave (a ROMEO friend from OK) and I on a search of highway K, which he claimed was a great ride.  We never did find it but if it was better that what we rode on I doubt I could have stood the excitement.  About 4pm Dave needed to head home so we continued our search for Mater.

  A short hop back to Galena rewarded us with our first look at Tow Mater.  Those eye balls in the windshield sure makes this old truck look like the cartoon version.  We snapped a few photos, had a bowl of ice cream and struck out for out next tourist attraction, Big Brutus, the world's 2nd largest scoop shovel.  We showed up a little too late to get the close up tour but you couldn't miss the thing so I took a couple of shots and we started thinking about a place to stay for the night.

  Parsons, KS is one of those SE Kansas towns that fell on hard economic times a few years ago but is making a comeback.  Their downtown area would be a good example of any city looking for a model to revitalize their city center.  We ate in a cool bar and grill that was attached to a dinner theater, lots of people of all ages, fun way to end a great day.

  Sunday dawned looking like another killer day for motorcycle riding.  It wasn't until we traveled a few more miles west that we picked up the strong south wind that would beat us to a pulp all the way home.  Every mile going west was a challenge but the north miles were delightful.  The stretch up hwy 177 through the Flint Hills was very entertaining and we waved at many bikes.  A little cafe in Cottonwood Falls provided a good lunch to send us on the final leg of our little weekend jaunt.  I logged a little more than 800 miles over the three days so it wasn't Iron Butt caliber but I was glad to see Salina roll into view and was looking forward to an evening in my La-Z-Boy.