Every October for the last 13 years or so, members of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America ( AMCA ) have met in Death Valley, California. October is a great time of year for Death Valley, not too hot and almost always dry. This years run, held October 4,5,6, 1999 was no exception.

At one point on the tour I counted 27 bikes. There were 16 Indians, 7 Harley Davidsons, 3 Triumph twins, and a 1951 Panther side hack. The Indians were represented by a pair of 101 Scouts, a 1939 Four (ridden by Max Bubeck who hosted the event), and a plethora of Chiefs ranging from 1938 to 1953. The Harleys were there in force with a 1926 JD, a 1935 DL, a 1936 VLH, two 1939 WLDD and a 1965 Electra-Glide.

On Monday , October 4th, riders began arriving at the Furnace Creek Ranch. Folks checked into their rooms, had dinner and used the swimming pool, which was a very comfortable 85 degrees. There was a rider's meeting held at Max's room around 8:30 pm.

Tuesday morning about 9 am, we assembled at the Twenty Mule Team Wagon in front of the hotel to begin a day of touring. Our first stop was at the old Harmony Borax Works. From there we rode out to Scotty's Castle. This is a huge mansion, built as a vacation home in the late 1920's by the wealthy Chicago insurance magnate, Albert Johnson and his wife Bessie. There is a wonderful story as to why the house is called Scotty's Castle. Park Rangers in period clothing present tours of the Castle each day. There is supposed to be gasoline available at the Castle, but for some reason there was no fuel that day. The round trip was going to be 115 miles. It was apparent that some of the bikes were going to be in trouble on the way back to the hotel. Fortunately the run is accompanied by a poop-out truck. Also, Max returned to the hotel and got a pick-up truck, about 20 gallons of gas and set about refueling riders on the side of the road. Our last stop of the day was at the Ubehebe Crater. This is a huge crater formed by volcanic heat coming in contact with underground water. Steam was formed, and the resulting explosion blew a hole in the ground you have to see to believe. After that it was back to the hotel for dinner, bench racing, lie swapping, and swimming.

Wednesday morning we assembled and left for the Golden Canyon. This is a photo of tour leader Max Bubeck and your author Gary Smalz at the entrance to the canyon. A few more miles down the road and we were at the Devil's Golf Course. ( that's me again, on my 1951 Chief ). The Golf Course is an unusual formation of salt and mud. Next stop was Badwater, the lowest point in the continental United States. 282 feet below sea level to be exact. It was time for roadside repairs. This 1953 Chief had been acting up all day, so Harley dealer , Dale Walksler stepped in and repaired the carburetor. Dale also operates the Wheels Through Time Museum in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. Death Valley is a tourist destination for many Europeans. While at Badwater, this French tourist whipped out a buckskin fringe jacket and hopped on one of the bikes for an impromptu photo session. We left Badwater and circled through Artist's Drive on our return to the hotel for our lunch break. Along the way we stopped at Artist's Palette. The vivid shades of mineral pigments which colored these volcanic deposits, was not adequately captured in this photograph.

During the lunch break Micheal Breeding, a well known Indian parts reproducer, showed off his new Sterling Siren. Michael makes great parts and his catalogue is available on-line. He also brought a very rare souvenir Hatchet from the 1948 Indian Dealer's Convention held in Washington DC, which was autographed by Ralph Rogers and other Indian notables.

At 1:30 pm we left for Zabriski point. Here is Jerry Turner and friends taking in the view. We then rode through 20 Mule Team Canyon en route to Dante's View. The Canyon trip is on a single lane dirt road, and the scenery is fantastic. When back on the pavement we made the steep climb to Dante's View. From the vantage point at top you can see the a huge portion of Death Valley. This photo of Johnny Eagles and his 101 Scout was taken there. In this photo (left to right) is Panther sidehack rider Jeff Folin, Max Bubeck and Indian motor builder Doug Burnett behind his 1944 civilian Chief with Vard forks.

The trip back to the hotel was via a "coasting contest" down the Dante's View grade. It was allot of fun. When we arrived at the hotel everyone got cleaned up to prepare for the Awards Banquet B-B-Q, which was held at the 19th Hole of the golf course. A recap for Wednesday had us riding a total of 95 miles round trip. We went from 282 feet below sea level at Badwater to 5475 feet above sea level at Dante's View. All in all, it was quite a day.

Before the B-B-Q I snapped a few photos of some participants. These three fellows must have thought we were in Hawaii. They are (left to right) Dale Walksler, Rocky Halter an AMCA Director and antique parts dealer, and Pete Peterson. This photo (left to right) is of Michael Breeding, and Kiwi Indian owner Mike Tomas. This last photo is of Don Miller. Don resides in the East, but keeps a bike out here in California to attend events. He has an interesting story to tell about when he was an Indian Dealer in the late 1940s.

After everyone finished eating a great B-B-Q, it was time for the awards. Every participant won a plaque for something. Max made the presentations and the run was officially over. Some folks left that night, others headed to the swimming pool, while others just headed for bed.

When all was said and done, it was a great run which I would recommend.

The trip was not over for me though. Click here for "Part 2...the Road to Del Mar".

Click here to see photos from Death Valley 2000.

To get a registration application for next years ralley, send a self addressed stamped envelope to Max Bubeck, 2274 Cardillo Ave., Palm Springs, CA 92262