The Hunt For Dracula June 2006 - Homeskillet's Photos

Eight bikes. Four countries. Eighteen days. Six Americans on BMW GS's, one Turk on a Harley, and one Italian, the leader and guide, on an Italian Aprillia, leaving no rock unturned in search of Dracula.

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Homeskillet > Myths & Legends of Carpathians and Transylvania, a MotorEast Expedition in cooperation with the Ironbutt Association, is the politically correct title of the ride I was fortunate enough to be part of this June, 2006. This was not a tour, but an expedition, as the roads had not been scouted, no support vehicle would be in tow, and there was no extra motorcycle. We had a guide, maps, bikes, and hotel reservations. The plan was to leave Istanbul, Turkey on Friday, June 16 and ride through Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and back to Istanbul sixteen days later. One hell of a ride, with one hell of a bunch of riders. The American contingent consisted of some of her best - Mike Kneebone, President of the Ironbutt Association, Bob Higdon, renowned writer and rider, Tom Loftus and Greg McQueen, IBA Rally veterans, John Cheney, who rides motorcycles all over the world, and myself, the self proclaimed FNG (Fucking New Guy, a term derived from 'the conflict in southeast Asia'). Zeki Ozdogan, the Turkish Harley rider, belongs to the One More Mile Club, a Turkish Ironbutt, if you may. And then there's Paolo Volpara, our Italian guide, tour company owner, poet,historian, you name it. Bob Higdon wrote once that Paolo seems not so much to relate to the thoughts of Julius Caesar as to channel him. It's an experience just to take coffee with the man, much less ride with him for two weeks and change.

Homeskillet > Day 1 - Istanbul, Turkey
That's Robert Higdon in the red jacket. I had met him for the first time, earlier in the afternoon. He came walking through the hotel restaurant, where I was sitting alone, waiting on my t-bone steak. I hollered Bob at him, stood up from my table, and proceeded to introduce myself. He looked puzzled and asked how I knew who he was. "Bob, you're my favorite writer in the goddamn world. I read everything by you that I can get my hands on," I informed him. And it's true. I'd give a twenty for one of his old grocery lists. He can make you laugh, cry, cringe, and sigh, and that's all in just one sentence. And he writes about motorcycles, motorcycle riders, and motorcycle rides. What more could you ask for?

Homeskillet > Day 2 -Istanbul to Veliko Tarnovo (273 miles)
Friday morning, June 16th, getting ready to head out. The group met up here at the hotel, The Blue House, the day before. A minibus picked us up at three in the afternoon and took us across town to the MotorEast office for the pre-ride meeting and to pick up the bikes. We started for the hotel at five-thirty, right in the middle of rush hour traffic, in a city with 15 million inhabitants. It was like the Istanbul Grand Prix in first and second gear. But we all made it to the Blue House, had an excellent dinner, and finished packing before turning in.

Homeskillet > Istanbul....the only city in the world that lies on two continents. One side is in Asia and the other side Europe, split by the waterway known as The Bosporus Strait, the result of an ancient earthquake. This is where East meets West.

Homeskillet > We crossed the border from Turkey into Bulgaria around noon. Over two hundred eighteen-wheelers were lined up, waiting to get across the border. We rode right past them and right into Bulgaria, headed for a picturesque, medieval town called Veliko Tarnovo. The only problem was finding the damn place. The Cyrillic highway signs with the backwards C's and E's didn't help at all. Then there's the Bulgarian Police,standing on the side of the road, waving little red pingpong paddles, signalling our group of speeders to pull over. Twice this happens and twice Paolo gets us out of the jam. I don't know how he does it. From what I could see, he uses a little Italian, a pinch of muscle, and a lot of charm. It works so good that the officers forget about the speeding ticket and commence to give Paolo directions. We finally stop for an afternoon coffee break (photo above, that's Paolo), get our bearings, and blast off again. We ride faster than I have ever ridden in my life. Little did I know that this was the norm for this bunch of riders in this rural land.

Homeskillet > We finally ride into Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria, around 6:30 in the afternoon. Paolo stops in the center of town and asks a cabbie where the Hotel Alegro is located. He holds up his arm and points to the left, across the street. Sometimes you just get lucky.

Homeskillet > Dinner at the hotel restaurant, where, unlike in America, the hotel restaurant is usually the best place in town. The local beer works out to be about 80 cents. An entire meal with drinks and dessert for one person cashes out at less than eight bucks.
The crew, from center clockwise: Zeki Ozdogan, the Turkish Harley rider, Paolo Volparo, our Italian tour guide and owner of MotorEast, Robert Higdon, the writer, Greg McQueen, John Cheney, myself, Tom Loftus, and Mike Kneebone, IronButt Association President.

Homeskillet > Veliko Tarnovo is built on the side of the gorge formed by the Yantra River. In 1185 it became the center of the Bulgarian Uprising against Byzantine domination and was restored as the capitol of the Bulgarian state.

Homeskillet > Really nice Bulgarian girl who worked the front desk at the hotel.

Myths & Legends of Carpathians and Transylvania, a MotorEast Expedition in cooperation with the Ironbutt Association, is the politically correct title of the ride I was fortunate enough to be part of this June, 2006. This was not a tour, but an expedition, as the roads had not been scouted, no support vehicle would be in tow, and there was no extra motorcycle. We had a guide, maps, bikes, and hotel reservations. The plan was to leave Istanbul, Turkey on Friday, June 16 and ride through Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and back to Istanbul sixteen days later. One hell of a ride, with one hell of a bunch of riders. The American contingent consisted of some of her best - Mike Kneebone, President of the Ironbutt Association, Bob Higdon, renowned writer and rider, Tom Loftus and Greg McQueen, IBA Rally veterans, John Cheney, who rides motorcycles all over the world, and myself, the self proclaimed FNG (Fucking New Guy, a term derived from 'the conflict in southeast Asia'). Zeki Ozdogan, the Turkish Harley rider, belongs to the One More Mile Club, a Turkish Ironbutt, if you may. And then there's Paolo Volpara, our Italian guide, tour company owner, poet,historian, you name it. Bob Higdon wrote once that Paolo seems not so much to relate to the thoughts of Julius Caesar as to channel him. It's an experience just to take coffee with the man, much less ride with him for two weeks and change.