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Born to be Wild Kurt Poppenhouse Dust clouds the air disrupting the mood of the beautiful Southwest territory home of such legends as Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and many other historical figures. A biker (not a tricyclist) pulls up to a convenience store. A man walks up to him and looks at the biker’s license plate. "What’s it like to travel that far by yourself?" the man asks. But, to a free spirit like Dann Hamilton, that part of riding cross-country does not really bother him. Although Dann’s wife doesn't care for motorcycles that much, she is very understanding of his long excursions. "It’s hard to find someone that enjoys riding and has the same schedule as you do," says Dann, "And someone who you can stand to be with for that long." Dann started riding when he was still in high school. He likes the cruiser style bike and has owned a Honda Magna V-45 for the last three years. "Someday when I am a big boy, I’ll get a newer bike." Dann has traveled through Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Texas. Someday he wants to go up through Illinois, Michigan, and then around Lake Michigan and down through Wisconsin. He would also like to see the Black Hills. Dann enjoys riding through the Southwest and Midwest, because he has always had an interest in the Old West cowboys. He enjoys seeing how some of the places he has visited from the Old West history books have changed and how some of the remote areas are probably the same as they were in Jesse James era. Two years ago, during the middle of October, Dann and a friend rode down to Wichita Fallas, TX then to Luckenbach and on to a town called Van Horn near El Paso. There they stumbled on the best little Mexican restaurant. It was late in the afternoon and they needed gas. It looked like it was going to rain, so they asked the clerk where a good place to eat was. He pointed their stomachs towards Chuys. Dann found out he was not the first famous person to visit there. John Madden had accidentally stopped there years before. They then worked their way to Albuquerque on the Interstate (which Dann hates). He also traveled through Tombstone, Arizona, armed with his tent and sleeping bag, around the end of May through the beginning of June. His last trip was to New Mexico and Durango during the first of October. Originally hired by Phillips in 1970, Dann transferred to AAI in 1980. He works as a Senior Computer Operator in the Bartlesville office Computer Center. Dann likes simple things in life, scenic roadtrips, his Spanish omelets and hash browns, and just being relaxed. "I guess I have had a more relaxed attitude about things and have taken the time to stop and smell the roses." |
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