Contingencies Online - July/August 2011

Country roads
roads and beautiful scenery. He had laid it out in green high-
lighter on a Rand McNally map, and Michael transferred it to
the GPS. The route initially wound along the Lost River on Route
55 in eastern West Virginia before turning south in Moorefield
on Fork Road toward Fort Seybert, Oak Flat, and other towns
that have largely disappeared. We then headed west on Route 33,
which twisted and turned all over creation—and a stunning cre-
ation, I must say. At Judy Gap, we picked up Route 28, continuing
southwest on one of West Virginia’s most scenic roads. At Green
Bank, Neil slowed down enough to permit a brief look toward
the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. (In contrast, I had
motorcycled there a few weeks earlier with my college room-
mate, Buzz, and we spent two hours going through the museum
displays and enjoyed a bus tour of the grounds.)
At one point I was able to suggest to Neil that we slow down
long enough for me to get some pictures of him and Michael
riding together. But we soon were back underway, progressing
along Back Mountain Road—a curvy, fun, and aptly named path
if ever there was one. Reluctantly leaving Back Mountain Road
and its quiet beauty behind, we turned north on Route 219. It
proved to be a nearly continuous series of medium-to-high-
speed bends and lots of elevation changes. Great fun!
After lunch near the Snowshoe ski resort, we headed off to
discover what a West Virginia dirt road was like. At Mill Creek,
we turned west onto County Route 46 and then north onto
County Route 46/2. Very soon, we were scrambling up steep,
rocky, gravelly climbs and tiptoeing down the inevitable de-
clines. At least, I was tiptoeing—Neil and Michael managed to
disappear in a cloud of dust ahead of me while I puttered along
at 30 mph on the straight, level sections. On the more difficult
ones (and let me tell you, there were lots), I learned that the
GPS speedometer could read in tenths of mph when you were
going less than 10 mph (e.g., 5. 5). After every tricky section,
fortunately, I would find Michael waiting to ensure that I was
OK and still on course, just as Neil waited for him. I felt totally
out of control only three times, all while descending steep gra-
dients with lots of ruts, rocks, and gravel. But I managed to stay
upright throughout.