A Marriage in the Making
I always loved the allure of those old neon motel signs and how they beckon you off the highway. For me, motels rekindle fond memories of family vacations, childhood experiences and road trips. Pulling into a motel represented a sense of relief, fun and excitement with swimming pools, soda machines and getting to watch HBO from my bed.
Last summer, as I approached my 50th birthday, I fielded questions from family and friends on how I wanted to celebrate this milestone in my life. The truth was I didn’t want to admit I was turning 50, but I also couldn’t allow the occasion to pass without doing something significant. Instead of a party, I decided on taking a bucket list motorcycle journey and writing about the experience. The question was, to where? And, what could I write that hadn’t already been written before? There already exists volumes of accounts of peoples’ travels around the world, cross-continent adventures, solo trips and rides to exotic places. I wouldn’t be able to add any value to those bodies of work. Then inspiration hit. I would create a travel directory of roadside motels for motorcyclists.
Motels have long secured their place in American pop-culture lore in part because of the mid-century design that made them famous. Knowing this and seizing on the mile marker of my age, the story became clear; I would travel around the country to document the stories of 50 different roadside motels. I fell in love with the storyline and allusion to the mid-century mark.
Now, please forgive the irony that this is about motorcycles and motels which are the by-products of car travel. But they have always shared a cheesy romanticism between the two. The mere mention of both conjures up images of iconic 1960s motels and James Dean. By bringing the two together, we realize a long-time courtship. So, to honor this marriage, I humbly submit the word “motelorcycle” as a new term in the lexicon of motorcycle travel.
With that, I started The Motelorcycle Chronicles. But, before I began, I needed to test the idea to see if it would work. Living in a northern climate and with winter approaching, my riding days were becoming numbered. I booked two one-night stays; I timed the first one to wake up at The June Motel in Picton, Ontario, on September 24, my birthday. The second stay was scheduled for two weeks later at the Cadillac Motel in Niagara Falls. Both moteliers were very accommodating with their time and filled me with great stories.
April Brown and her business partner purchased The June Motel two years ago. Leaving cushy communications jobs in Toronto, they wanted to buy an old motel, renovate it and open something retro-chic styled in a Floridian theme. What they bought was a run-down, 16-room 1960s property on the outskirts of town called the Sportsmen Motel. The place catered to the weekend sport fisherman and hunting market with musty rooms smelling of fish, the only artwork a laminate sign on the wall reading “Do Not Gut Fish in Rooms.” Neither had any idea what they were getting into.
That was then and through trial and tribulation (and a bunch of funny stories in between) they realized their dream. Today, The June Motel is a fine example of what passion, dedication and beautiful design can bring.
Ray and Lisa are moteliers operating The Cadillac Motel in Niagara Falls. Neither ever planned on being in the hospitality industry, but they too fell into it. The couple has been managing the renovated, 23-room 1950s property for close to two years now. However, it is their connection to motorcycles that is interesting. Lisa’s father was a member of the Ontario Provincial Police Golden Helmet precision motorcycle team. Now, Lisa and Ray are looking to take up riding again and plan on getting their licenses this year. They love everything about bikes and, as moteliers, they love hosting motorcycle groups. They make sure their rider guests are comfortable and offer things like a private BBQ area when groups arrive, rags to wipe down your bike and they do their best to make sure you get a room where you can park in front of your door. Not to mention the rooms at The Cadillac Motel are funky and fun, too.
Upon returning home, I planned to spend the next ten months laying out the trip, researching motels and mapping out the journey. When taking on a project of this scope, you can question your own sanity. So, one cool November morning, I went for a ride. With no particular destination in mind, I set the GPS to give me a round trip three-hour route on some new country roads and took off.
After an hour on the road, I approached a crossroads and something caught my eye. I had never been there before, nor did I really know where I was. But, at one of the four corners, in a small fenced field beside one house, were five grazing head of cattle, the fuselage of an aircraft staged to look like a crash, and painstakingly mounted on the side of a shed were the skeletal remains of a vintage neon sign with the letters M O T E L perfectly spaced. The symbolism struck so hard I almost lost control of my bike.
I pulled over to the soft shoulder and dismounted. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was five weeks to the day I turned 50 and one month to the day that my Dad passed away. Dad introduced me to motorcycles and even loaned me the money to buy my first bike. On family vacations growing up, he always preferred to stay at independent properties to meet the locals, as he relished engaging in conversations with them. He also loved cows. No one ever understood why, he just did. And one of his prized possessions was a painting of cows in a pasture.
If the symbolism of the cattle and motel sign weren’t enough, there was the airplane fuselage that amplified the scene. In August, Dad’s only brother also passed away. I didn’t know him well, but I remember my uncle as a war hero. He was a Lancaster bomber pilot during the Second World War and was shot down.
Here I am, mesmerized, trying to absorb what I’m seeing. My bike, the cattle and the aircraft with the M O T E L sign. The scene is surreal, unscripted and staged like a movie set. Though I didn’t hear Twilight Zone music, before me in full view and built to scale was the metaphor of this journey, telling me to do this.
In the months that followed I’ve been planning my trip. I’ve researched these iconic roadside motels and added many of them to my website (www. motelorcycle.com). The result is a listing of more than 70 really cool places to sleep.
For example, if you want your motel to have a music connection, you can sleep at the Harmony Motel in the Mojave Desert, made famous when it was used for the cover shot on U2’s The Joshua Tree. If you’re interested in the doo-wop architecture made famous in the 1950s and ’60s, there is the Caribbean Motel in Wildwood, New Jersey, and Waikiki Lodge in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Both are listed on the National Historic Registry.
If you are an American pop culture and Route 66 enthusiast, there is the Big Texan Motel in Amarillo, Texas; the Blue Swallow Motel, Roadrunner Lodge and Motel Safari in Tucumcari, New Mexico; and two of the remaining locations where you can sleep in a teepee at a Wigwam Motel. Finally, if you are looking for the surreal and perhaps an out of body experience, the list includes The Clown Motel in Tonopah, Nevada, decorated with more than 600 clowns, and the Little A ‘Le’ Inn in Rachel, Nevada, a true Area 51 treasure!
On June 28 and for the following 50 days, I’ll begin my 10,000-mile journey to document 50 of America’s remaining roadside motels. During the trip, I promise to post regular updates that you can follow on Facebook and on the website. I will also be sharing the story of my trip along with more images in upcoming issues of BMW Owners News.
If you are anywhere near Amarillo, Texas, on Saturday, July 13, I would like to invite you to join me for a meetup at the Starlight Ranch. Bobby Lee, the owner of the Big Texan Motel and the Starlight Ranch, has generously offered to host us, with free admission to The Starlight Ranch and their live bands on Friday and Saturday nights during the summer.
I look forward to meeting you, sharing travel stories and watching some live music under the stars.
Check in with the Motelorcycle website before you plan your next overnight ride. When you reserve your room, remember to tell them you are a motelorcyclist with the wedding party and you will be there to celebrate the marriage of motels and motorcycles!
Wishing you restful sleep and safe riding.
NOTE: Andrew wrote a book based on his 50-day trip; Sleeping Around in America: Revisiting the Roadside Motel is an adventure story, photo-book and travel guide all in one.
