Bikes and Fine Art- Who Says They Don't Mix

[DHarvey]

Finally got Big Red back from the dealer after a month of them trying to fix the rattling noise in the rear wheel..so Pamela and I decided to take an overnighter and ride 4 hours up to Ogdensburg, NY along the Canadian border to visit the Frederick Remington Museum..yes boys and girls, a real genuine art museum..one of America's greatest artists..a super ride through the 'Deep Woods' of the Adirondacks mixed in with some of the best sculptures and paintings in our opinion ever rendered by anyone.. wanna come along on the trek for a few minutes?

Route 28 (2 lane state highway) up to Indian Lake..along the way we're climbing a steady two minute rise and I'm thinking about the fact that I go 280 lbs, with Pamela that's 400 plus clothes..say 410..easily another 50 pounds of panniers, luggage racks, travel bags and other clothes and "vitals" (e.g. bottle of vodka and Bloody Mary mix to boot) so say 460 to 470 plus the beast himself is all of 800 pounds..we're doing 75 mph up hill and I glance at the tach and it reads...2800 rpm..woof!!!..barely ticking over.. what an engine!

From there its up thru Tupper Lake, Colton and slwoly the harsh woods of the Adirondacks begin to peal away and here and there farm fields emerge..the land flattens out..more farms..corn fields..we pass Cornell University's 'Learning Farm'..very 'upper crust' dontcha know..( did I imagine the cows were wearing spectacles and have hygenic diapers on 'em?..nahhhh..must be dreaming)..ahh pay attention David.there's deer in these parts..ok,ok,ok..so now we're pulling into the Stonefence Motel along the St'Lawrence Seaway which divides Canada from the USA..very nice motel...12 acres on the property including lawns that lead down to..get this.. a gazebo perched over a wharf over the river.. very cool..nice dinner..nice booze..nice wife..ahem...

This morning we leave our gear at the motel and ride in shorts and sneakers over to the museum..folks, some day you gotta check this out.. Frederick Remibgton painted and sculpted between 1880 and 1910..his subjects were, for the most part, the wild west.. the mountain men and then the cavalry and indian froms the Indian Wars period...one sculpture in particular really stands out in my mind.. it's called 'The Rattlesnake".now picture a cowpoke ariding along minding his own business when all of a sudden a rattler rears up and hisses which a course leads him and his horse to instinctively shy away from the rattler..its a bronze statue about 18 inches high and the motion of the horse and cowboy is just incredible..the way Remington caught that visceral ass puckering moment when horse and rider explode away from the rattler..made me think of one or two curves I've taken a little too hot on the Rocket :-D :-D

Got back about an hour ago...great overnight trip..just thought I'd share it with you.. Remington himself was quite an entrepreneur..tried sheep ranching for awhile till he decided he didn't like ranching nor sheep,, then a failed hardware store and eventually followed the one thing he always had loved which was drawing and after many struggles became an illustrator and eventually famous sculptor...always one for being where the action is.. he went to Cuba during the brief Spanish American War and painted the famous painting of Teddy Roosevelt in his 'Charge up San Juan Hill" with the Rough Riders.. if you like horses, real cowboys (not the Hollywodd version) and a taste of the American West, you'll love his works..

he woulda bought a Rocket for sure if he lived today.. and being a man of good taste when it comes to color. no doubt it woulda been Red for sure!
David

[Aussiebikerdave]

Hey David, you were going well until I got to the last line, that spoiled the lot. :-D :-D

Davo

[DHarvey]

Truth hurts doesn't it Davo? :-D

Pegasus: As for emulating Andrew..it can't be done..he's got a sense of writin that's rare indeed..but thanks for the comment.

You've got way too much time on your hands, Mr. Harvey, go play with Pamela.........geesh :brk:

Hi David - loved the post - funnily enough I was looking at a Remington painting in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts just a few weeks ago - of a 'Native American' as I think they are now called gving a signal from horseback. Fantastically evocative: THE painter of everyone's imagination of what the West was like....

.... am impatient to see my own Rocket 'Nothing' again soon - but it sounds as though you had to wait just as long ... assume she's running sweetly now?

Regards to Pamela ... tell her I've tried to recreate the chicken dish - it was OK but lacked a something or other ..

It's Frederic - no K, oddly. Only remember that because my son is a Freddie.

I love this one:



Just to keep the Stepford husbands (God it's infuriating that they are such suburban Phliistines) at bay, I am reliably informed that the gentleman pictured had several horses called "Rocket", and this one was his 3rd.

[Aussiebikerdave]

I suppose that this is the very reason in the beginning that the right to bear arms was enshrined in the constitution. Tell me, who gave the native Americans their guns and why?

Davo

Sorry, dont mean to hyjack your thread David, but do you remember that we discussed this issue in part at your place.

[DHarvey]

To Lol: You're absolutely correct..Fred's name ends in a 'c' not a 'k'..but in your zeal for thorough scholarship you tried to slip one past all of us.. that painting with the Indian brave seated on his horse ..you know very well he was asked which color Rocket is the FASTEST and he raised the Red blanket..now fess up bro..50 lashes with a wet noodle for you tonight!

To Dragoneye:: And you're worried abourt ME having too much spare time on my hands?..check out Freddie Rem's painting and sculptures..trust me, you'll like 'em..

To Davo: The reason our Constitution has a Right to Bare Arms is to specifically protect womenfolk and Nancy Boys who prefer hairless appendages.. that's our American History lesson for the Day...

To Andean: The recipe for outstanding Fried Chicken is real simple..1 cut up chicken..several cups of flour into a paper grocery bag plus pepper and salt..shake bag..rinse chicken and place in bag.. shake all around..hip action helps..now here's the trick and probably where things came up wrong..the trick is to keep the cooking oil (Crisco works best) VERY HIGH temperature because it sears the outside.and keeps the meat from getting greasy tasting.so put in the breasts first and no other parts..let the oil come back up to high temp.. besides, the breasts take the longest (sound familiar boys?)..Pamela cooks the breasts entirely and sets aside and then cooks the rest of the parts..if that don't work..well you'll just have to come back to Mericade next year to get the lessons in person.
:-D