~*For My Buddy Sig!*~

Many years have now since passed,
but all the memories have stayed...,
of a young true friend that I had known,
even though this "Tribute" to him is late.

He was a motorcycle rider just like me...
I was his best friend, as I was told he had...!
To write about him after 35 years,
still hurts very much and makes me sad!

When we were riding along many dusty roads,
or on a highway wide open and fast...,
from Vancouver BC heading for Squamish,
the ride was tough... but we got there at last.

Up the narrow highway over the mountain
the curves were really long but tight...
off to the side was the end of the road,
looking down was just really out of sight!

We had no fear, for what was still ahead
or what we could not see...,
with our hearts and minds and so very young,
like the wind we were wild and free!

Then came that day we had talked about,
to ride up north to Barkerville.
With my friends, I talked about it at night
but with Sig being absent, it seemed very still!

On the morning after, we had all learned
Sig crashed with his bike, and was hurt very bad...!
He lived just a few days after his spill,
the rest after that was all very sad!

13 Riders came and rode in honor along side
at the last ride of our friend we buried that day...,
we had no permission from the RCMP,
but we all rode along side of the hearse anyway!

We laid Sig to rest as the families looked on,
and not a dry eye was to be seen...,
he was buried with the Austrian flag
this young man, who had just turned nineteen.

After that a few of us promised ourselves
as we had planned it before with our friend...,
with Garry, myself, Fred, Marlow and Barry,
we would see this trip right to the end.

As our "Tribute run" we would all ride away
heading north to the old ghost town...,
at 100 mile house it started to snow
as we went on ..., Garry's Harley broke down!

All of us pulled up at a motel at Quesnel
after parking, we stood frozen by the door.
The next day we finally rode into town...
welcome to Barkerville, said the sign just before!

Our buddy Garry rode in first..., as we all let him go...,
our thoughts were with our dear lost friend...!
as he was there with us all in spirit...,
our promise to him, was fulfilled at the end.


10. Nov. 2002
by Hartmut Reinsch ©
Toronto, Canada

Written 35 years later, in memory of my young friend Siegbert Damian, who died after a motorcycle accident in 1967 in Vancouver BC Canada.

My buddy Sig on the left, buddy Garry in the middle and me on the right side.
From a better day along the road of life...!