I thought you were my brother

August 26, 8:51 AMDC Motorcycle Travel ExaminerMark Poesch

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Returning a BMW K1300S demo bike to Morton’s BMW Motorcycles early yesterday morning, I was separated from my escort; she had missed a merge, and ended up making a wrong turn.  Far south on a two-lane section of Rt. 28 approaching Fredericksburg, it was a mile or two before I encountered a safe place to pull off; a large gravel parking lot in front of a large green shed.  I pulled off into one of two driveways, several feet off of the shoulder, but still aligned with the road, and looked in my left rear-view mirror for my escort.

Within 60 seconds, a man in a red pickup pulled into the other driveway, and circled the lot slowly.  I thought, “what are the odds that the owner of this place would be arriving at exactly the time I pulled in.”  In fact, the man was looking me over, or more exactly, he was looking over my bike, to make sure it was in good working order.  Seeing me continuing to focus on my left rear-view mirror, he realized that I was waiting for someone, and made his exit.  From his classic bearded-Harley-rider look I suspected that he was a fellow rider who had stopped to help me out.  A guess which was confirmed when, as he passed, he casually returned my peace sign salute.

After a few minutes more waiting, I decided it was time to pull off further and text my escort.  And, while texting her, another driver pulled into the gravel parking lot.  He was clearly stopping to help and pulled around as I walked over, removing my helmet and gloves.

He asked if I was alright, and then said, “I thought you were my brother. “  He went on to explain that they each ride their own BMW K1300s.  I assured him that the bike and I were fine, and that I was just waiting for my escort to catch up, then thanked him for stopping.

Ironically, as we talked, my escort finally caught up, and then passed – not recognizing me until after she had passed!  She wasn’t expecting a rider chatting with a driver in a gravel parking lot and was well past us before it dawned on her that it was me!  After zipping by, she thought, "Who on earth would he know out here!?"

As I got back on the road to catch up with my escort, I thought about the second man's words, “I thought you were my brother” and recognized my missed opportunity for real gratitude.  The response I should have offered was:

“I am your brother!  Thank you for stopping!”

For more information:
- Ride for a reason; how you can make a difference while riding