XJ Photo-Op Riding Challenge: Military Relics

There are a lot of military relics in this part of the U.S., but I tend to ride right on by them. Today I stopped by one of my favorites.
This is the gate-guard at the Dodge City airport.
Former USAF (currently painted in the wrong colors)
Model A-26C-40-DT
Ser. # 44-35627



More information here.

 

Nice Moe,,,, You just mite have giving me the fever go riding tomorrow.

 

I'm a big fan of this thread. I might load my xj into a van and park it in front of some of the local relics. Should I open the van doors so the bike is visible? Do all the parts bins have to be in the van too? The other option is to fix the bike...

 

. . . life-sized cardboard image of bike . . .

 

This morning my kid said, "I noticed that the bike has 2 seats, Daddy. Why don't we drive that to school?" I had to explain that Daddy is lazy and broke. Maybe I could tape that cardboard cutout to the side of my bicycle.

 

This thread is fantastic and I will return with appropriate photos as there is something special nearby. Meanwhile, discussion of the Firefly tank allows me to offer up some pics of what it looks like in 1/35 scale.

 

There's an M60 tank at a VFW in Neenah. Finally got around to getting a few pics with the Seca.

 

Tomahawk Memorial, just south of the Wisconsin River on 4th st. in scenic Tomahawk.
M43A Sherman Tank and the trusty 81 XJ650 . . . which had to have a mouse nest removed from under the seat and wires repaired prior to this mornings ride into town. (WTF? it isn't even close to winter - I need to ride more often, but tasks at the farm are never ending.)

 

That is a really nice Sherman next to a really nice XJ650.

 

love the queen seat, always wanted a bike with one

 

Thanks! Unfortunately the mice seem to like it also . . .

 

Not sure what type of tank this is, kinda looks like a Sherman . . . ?
This was in Merrill at the Wisconsin Army National Guard building which houses the E Troop 105th Cavalry.






I don't really care for the angle of the muzzle . . . .

 

Yep. That's a Ronson Tank. One of the M4A3 variants.

 

As many times that I have been to Tomahawk. I've never been south of the river. Did not even know that was there!
~Ghost

 

Our farm is 15 minutes south of Tomahawk, next time you are in the area give a shout. I'm a sucker for the taco salad and any of the home-made soups at the Tomahawk Family Restaurant.

 

Sharp bike! I really like it!

 

It's nice to see a sealed muzzle and it pointed skyward.

 

My muzzle always points skyward!

 

But is it sealed?

 

My lips are!

 

H-21 Workhorse/Shawnee in Hokkaido, Japan. It was used in JGSDF.
In 1959, the Emperor got on this to inspect the Isewan typhoon damage.

I cannot see so many military relics in Japan.

 

That is an awesome pic.......

 

Took mine out for a quick ride through a movie studio in 1969. Time travel is possible.

 

your riding gear looks a little bulky

 

thats what she said

 

But are those military relics?

 

Well, sort of…

 

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government. Imagine where they'd be if they had half the US military budget.

 

No thanks. I would be wondering where I would have been when deployed if they had half the military budget.

 

Here: http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/18700000/moonbase-alpha-space-1999-18736318-580-424.jpg

 

self-edited . . . veering off course

 

to the dark side of the moon of course where all the military bases are

 

I thought that is where the UFO bases are...

 

Like he said.....

 

F117a was a ufo until 1988.

 

Bet that motorcycle tends to run lean over those hills....

 

Nah man, i am running a new cutting edge pod system. Tesla only allowed a handful to test them. They don't require air. Just sunlight and methane from farts. Eat a can of beans before a ride and you can go from NYC to Alaska in under 5 hours.

 

Guys... some threads should stay on topic I think.

 

nice... the ONLY A-12 trainer built...

the only remaining SR-71 trainer is in the Kalamazoo Air Zoo museum...

 

i think you sold me your old fairing off the 750. about 10 years ago maybe. the paint scheme/detail looks familiar...

never did anything with it on my 750. its just sitting in the shed...

 

I would love to get some military picks, if my bike was running and it wasn't raining cats and dogs here.

 

subscribed

 

Back in the day like 1940-1950 here is Southern Oregon there was a Military training base called Camp White, what today is known as White City, Oregon.
My point being since I can't ride out to get some pics of the training pill boxes complete with bullet impacts. It would be like a twelve mile ride to get there.
My understanding is when the camp white closed the federal government sold off a majority of the land to the civilian population. So people bought land complete with vintage WWII training pill boxes and they are usually a good distance from the road. Hopefully soon I will be able to provide pics for others to enjoy.

I could not help myself cause this is a really great idea to get participation from us subscribers.

 

^^I've been through there when I was a kid. Very cool. That's been 30 years ago, so I'm not sure how easy it will be to see things anymore.


Ugh....I just did math....it's been over 30 years ago.....stupid time with it's always marching on.

 

My town has an interesting one: we have the site of a mustard gas factory. Everything has been dismantled, and the land has been deemed unusable for heaven only knows how long, but i could still get pictures. It's the forest right next to the soccer field and baseball diamond where the kids play! Not the only"interesting" spot, we also have a landfill and recreation area. I shit you not, it's a ski hill on a waste dump. Toxic as hell, asbestos and industrial waste. And play. Only in Cornwall.

 

This is a pillbox between Ampthill and Bedford in Bedfordshire. It's six sided. there are embrasures on five sides, (you can see them here) and an entrance on the sixth side.


From the inside.


You can just see the entrance on the right; it's low.

 

this is further South and nearer to Ampthill, but on the same old Bedford road.


Ampthill is at the bottom of the hill. In the town, I've read, are iron eyelets screwed into walls on opposite sides of the road. The idea was to stretch a wire between them, to kill German motorcyclists.


The two pillboxes are of very similar design.

 

Europe has plenty of Military sites to be photo graphed should have to only go just down the road to get some good pics as you have.

 

Fortunately the pillboxes above didn't have to be used, and neither did these two here.


Royal Observer Corps post, for use in case of nuclear attack. Near Newport Pagnell, Bucks.


A view through the hedge, from further down the road. It's in black and white for clarity. To the left is the ventilator, and on the right is the access point. There's a hatch and a fixed ladder that takes you about 17' underground.


This is another post about 20 miles away; I haven't been in the Newport Pagnell one. This link gives you a better idea of the posts. http://lbmhs.co.uk/roc_history