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A shiny white motorcycle cruising Arlington has revived memories of a family riding tradition that began in 1949—and of one painful mishap that ended with a pitcher of ice water.
A newly minted motorcyclist enjoys touring Arlington at what he assures his wife is a safe, sensible speed. When he is not riding, he tinkers with the bike in the garage, sometimes with help from his father-in-law.
He says the motorcycle eases stress and lets him notice parts of town he might miss while rushing between appointments in his Jeep. The hobby has also shaped his television viewing, from motorcycle maintenance programs to travelogues following riders abroad, including a woman traveling alone through North Africa.
His wife supports the pastime but has firmly declined to ride with him. Her mother was far less cautious: She first climbed aboard a motorcycle at age four.
Her older sister, Marge, was then a high school daredevil dating Joe, the man she would later marry. Joe frequently arrived at the family home on his motorcycle to pick up Marge, and the couple would ride away through a cloud of dust.
Marge learned to operate the powerful machine, too. At times, she or Joe would take the four-year-old through the neighborhood. The young passenger waved casually to her envious friends as though motorcycle rides were an everyday occurrence.
A surviving photograph shows the sisters windblown and happy after one outing—with neither wearing a helmet. Looking back, the younger sister jokingly described that as natural selection at work in 1949.
Joe was a careful rider, but he had trouble starting the motorcycle. Marge could get it running with a particular twist of her hips and a forceful kick on the pedal.
One evening, Joe brought Marge home in time for supper. After she went inside, he repeatedly tried and failed to start the bike. He eventually returned to the door and sheepishly asked for help.
Marge stepped outside and started the engine on her first attempt. She then came back into the house, sat at the dinner table and fainted. The forceful kick had thrown out her back.
Her mother reacted by grabbing the family’s pitcher of ice water and dumping all of it over the unconscious Marge, who awoke gasping and sputtering.
It was a dramatic finish to an otherwise ordinary evening—and proof that small-town family life could offer plenty of excitement.