Fuchs has dream come true

This article submitted by Linda Stelling on 06/24/97.

Taking a motorcycle all the way to Texas and seeing the Gulf of Mexico had always been a dream of Bill Fuchs, Paynesville. In May, that dream became a reality for him.

Last fall, Fuchs purchased a 1965 Honda Dream 305 from Mike Kascht, Paynesville. “The bike hadn’t been moved for 15 to 20 years and needed a lot of work,” Fuchs said. Fuchs, with the help of Kascht, restored the bike, rebuilt the motor and lined the fuel tank.

“When my friends found out what my plans were for the motorcycle, they said I’d never make it,” Fuchs said. His plans were to drive the motorcycle to Texas.

With his vacation plans set, Fuchs worked on the motorcycle, hoping it would be ready for the trip. A week before he was scheduled to leave, he completed the motorcycle. He took it out on a test drive and found it still leaked oil. He changed the oil and installed some new seals and everything worked perfectly.

“A trip to Texas on a motorcycle may not strike some people as huge adventure, but for me it was amazing. I was out on my own fulfilling a dream,” he said.

Fuchs averaged 400 miles per day. He had planned on tenting but opted for motel rooms instead. “After driving 400 miles on an old motorcycle, I found I needed a soft bed and a hot tub at the end of each day. The bike had springs but no shocks,” Fuchs added.

Fuchs drove all the way on Highway 71 from Willmar to Beaumont, Texas. He found the roads in Arkansas very hilly and full of curves. In Iowa, the wind blew him off the road. “I came over a hill at 50 miles per hour and the 30 mile per hour wind pushed me and the bike onto the gravel shoulder. I kept control of the bike and just drove out of the ditch and back onto the highway,” he said.

“I drove 2,900 miles in 10 days and didn’t meet one person I didn’t enjoy talking with. At gas stations, people would come up and ask about the motorcycle,” Fuchs said.

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