Motorcycle visitors from Germany

Fish Springs had some very interesting visitors last week. You might have seen them riding along our back country roads with a group of three motorcycles and four sidecars. Four adults and two kids (ages 4 and 6) came all the way from their homes in Wappertal, Germany to tour the western states of America - by motorcycle. They were pleased to discover that there's a 100-year-old "Minden" right here in Nevada. It was named after the 1,206-year-old Minden that's located about an hour from where they live in Germany.

Before arriving in Fish Springs, they toured around Joshua Tree, Parker Dam, Las Vegas, Zion and Bryce National Parks and the Great Basin where they toured the Lehman Caves and an ancient bristlecone pine forest. They camped out a couple nights at each place and hiked around to see its beauty close up. They also rode "Sea-Doos" in the cold, swift current of the Colorado River and they said they enjoyed every place they stayed. There were a couple days of inclement weather when they "boiled in Lake Mead" and "froze in Austin," but overall the weather was good.

They had many exciting adventures, even though half of the group didn't speak English. One day while they were riding their bikes through Zion National Park, they pulled off the road to photograph one of the spectacular rock formations. A tour bus full of Italian tourists stopped there also and as the passengers got off the bus, they all ran over to see the unusual two-seater sidecar motorcycle that has a chair that is "just right" for 6-year-old Juri and 4-year-old Timo. The tourists had more fun just taking pictures of the two young boys in the sidecar. And when they found out these kids came all the way from Germany, they took even more photos.

The German travelers liked to get off the main roads to catch the real flavor of the areas they toured. While riding a side road in eastern Nevada, they came upon some real live working cowboys. They stopped their motorcycles so they could see just what was happening. One of the cowhands spoke German so he explained what was going on. The "going on" included rounding up the cattle, then vaccinating, marking their ear, branding them and castrating them. It was all so very interesting, just like the cowboys on TV.

That evening when Christiane was putting her two sons to bed, 6-year-old Juri said, "Mama, cowboys don't wear colored glasses."

Pretty observant for a little kid. Cowboys wear big hats, and not those fancy "Maui Jim" sun glasses. Everyone was so friendly. In Austin's "International Café," a local character taught the boys how to play pool. In Fish Springs, the boys got to sit in a big red fire engine.

Christiane said she saw a wolf during her ride across Nevada, but I think we talked her into seeing a coyote instead. Her husband, Martin Lietz, is a hot-shoe motorcycle racer.

"I'm a motorcycle maniac and I love to customize bikes," he said.

He had a good time riding a dirt bike up in the Pinenut Mountains until a crooked nail flattened his rear tire. Our thanks to all those creative Johnson Lane folks who helped get it back down the mountain.

Lietz organizes an annual motorcycle enduro-competition in Wuppertal each September. It's no easy task as there's not much public land available like we have access to here in Nevada. Germany is only about half the size of Nevada. Martin has to get permission from landowners to use their property and the ride is limited to 120 bikes, all dual-sport and street legal. Proceeds go to the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Martin and his family, along with their friends Manfred and Angelika, are camping in Yosemite or Sequoia by now. It's nearly time to head back home to Germany after their six exciting weeks on the road. They all said they really loved their vacation here, and they'll be back.

Carson Valley motorcycle Poker Run: Circle June 11 starting at 9 a.m. at Jethro's parking lot for the Nevada Wandering Wheels 170-mile-long Poker Run. Proceeds go to Northern Nevada Make-A-Wish Foundation. For more information, call 265-4517.

n Linda Monohan can be reached at 782-5802.