Since deciding to redo my web pages and get my own domain name several months ago, I decided I needed to find something appropriate for the main theme of these pages, i.e. motorcycle related. I played around with several ideas, most of which were beyond my skills with flash, or required a flash animation program that was way beyond what I was willing to pay for one. Then as I was searching through the rubbage pile of my brain I remembered a print by MC Escher called simply "Puddle". It is drawing of a tire track in mud with a reflection of some trees in a small pool of water in the depression left by the tire. That got me to thinking as I sat in my garage one afternoon staring at my motorcycles. I noticed that the pattern of the tire tread could be used to form the basis for a lettering style. Out of that came the idea of runes, and that in turn lead me to the idea of RoadRunes. Each mile I ride I leave behind a tiny bit of rubber, a pattern that is both constant yet ever changing as the tire wears and it's imprint changes. Tying this concept in with the theme of writing about my thoughts and impressions of my years of riding, the idea of RoadRunes seems almost self-evident. Both are my legacy, if you will, impressions made on paper and asphalt, impressions that will fade over time, yet always mark my passage down each road as I travel the byways of my life. Thus was RoadRunes born.
As for the images, the first is from a ride I took in 2003 along the crest of the Blue Ridge mountains on a very foggy day. That in itself was an adventure, a poem about which I am currently working on. The second picture is of myself and my 1973 BMW R60/5, called Das Tier (The Beast), and which I sometimes refer to as my Rocket Cycle and sports a tag with the letters RCTMAN. This picture was also taken on Skyline Drive in the Blue Ridge. The last one is from a ride in the spring of 2003 that I took to find the head waters of one of the branches of the Potomac River that runs though Washington D.C. The picture was taken while I was heading up to the top of a large plateau in the western part of WV, and is typical of the kinds of roads I most enjoy riding. The poem is pretty self evident given the above explanation for the concept behind RoadRunes. The music is something I choose simply because I like it, not because it relates to motorcycling. It is called "The Alabama Song", some on you may recognize it if you listen closely. The Doors popularized it, but it is originally from an Opera called "The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahogany" by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht written in the 30's in Germany. They also wrote "The Three Penny Opera" which has always been one of my favorite productions. Interestingly enough "The Alabama Song" is the only song performed in English as the entire opera was written and produced in Germany.
So there you have the ideas and concepts that lead to RoadRunes.com.
RocketMan