Saturday, June 27, 2009

Edmund and his azure blue 48 FL


This is a great pic that my friend Monte Rougemont took of my dad and I with Edmund Nielson and his 48 panhead. He owned this bike since 1952ish. He lived in Roslyn South Dakota. Edmund had a ton of neat mechanical stuff-neat cars, trucks, this bike and even an airplane. He was a cool old bachelor and lived in a house with no hot water or electricity. All of his possessions kind of doubled as his social life, because a lot of people would come and try and buy them from him. I never tried to buy his bike, I just liked hanging out with him and talking about mechanical stuff, and his life through the years. I really was amazed at the level that somebody could function at with out electricity and running water, I can't even imagine my life without my blackberry, and Edmund didn't even have running water. Edmund passed away a couple years ago, and all of his stuff was sold at an estate sale.


I think that I am probably 19 or 20 in this pic. It just seems like yesterday. I helped Edmund fix some oil leaks on his bike and get it running for the Vinegar festival that Roslyn has every year. He let me ride the 48 in the parade. He always had a huge smile even though he had three teeth. I miss him. My buddy John bought his bike at the estate sale, so at least I still get to see the motorcycle a couple of times a year.
Here is a pic of Edmund and I with our 48s.


2 comments:

  1. These photos should be copied and given to the John along with your comments - these are the sorts of memories that die if not recorded.

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  2. hi chief,
    nice blog!
    im from manila i coudnt help but notice the front tire of the black harley, where can i score such covers? what are they called

    ReplyDelete