Little 6’8″ Steve on his motorcycle with Studebaker Hawk behind

Honda Dream CB 150 Hawk

…

The motorcycle was too small for me,

but was what I could buy with part-time work.

Not loud and rough like the big bikes Harley-

Davidson made, the slim Honda Dream Hawk

would start not with a kick, but with the push

of a button…  Quiet, purring, and clean–

liked even by my mother–I would ride

130 miles to college, then

come  home the next weekend to see my bride-

to-be.  

         The bike was under-powered, meant

for in-town rides, so on the roads I’d draft

behind a semi-truck to reach a speed

of 65.  The truckers hated that

I stuck so close behind out of their sight,

but I, oblivious, dreamed on my steed…

– Steve Shoemaker, Urbana, IL, host of “Keepin’ the Faith” on Illinois Public Radio WILL at the University of Illinois.

Now he spends his time on the prairie looking for a draft of wind to fly his kite.

Steve waiting for a truck?