SLIDESHOW: The journey began last fall
Early Saturday, E. Bruce Heilman plans to order a bowl of oatmeal at the Cracker Barrel in Waynesboro and then hop on his motorcycle and ride home to Richmond.
It will mark the end of a 9,000-mile cross-country trip that began last October.
Not bad for a guy who turned 83 last week.
"Just came in from Branson [Missouri], a one-day's ride of 500 miles in beautiful weather," Heilman said yesterday in a phone interview from Louisville, Ky. "The wind in my face takes all my cares away. The breeze blows all the negative thoughts out of my mind."
The retired University of Richmond president came up with the idea for his journey as a way to retrace his steps after his service in the Marine Corps in World War II, when he hitchhiked home from California to Kentucky and then on to Quantico. He viewed the adventure as a tribute to his fellow WWII veterans -- and as a way to prove he wasn't too old to do it.
Always a motorcycle aficionado, Heilman rode one as a younger man. But he gave up having a bike for almost 50 years until his wife, Betty, told him, "You're old enough to have a motorcycle."
"Sweetest thing my wife ever said to me," Heilman said with a laugh.
Which makes the 50th wedding anniversary present she gave him in 1998, when he was 72, even sweeter: a Harley. He bought a new one -- a sleek and thundering Harley Ultra-Classic Electra Glide Patriot Edition -- before embarking on his cross-country expedition.
I wrote about Heilman in September as he was preparing to trade his pinstripe suit for a leather jacket, and he has kept me posted during his trip.
The father of six and grandfather of 11 hasn't been on his bike the entire 10 months. He rode straight through last October from Richmond to San Diego and then left his bike in storage for a few months so he could return home to attend to his numerous duties -- he's still UR's chancellor and is a member of numerous boards -- and to wait for spring.
He flew back to San Diego and rode his bike along the Mexican border to southern Texas, where he left the bike again.
He recently returned from leading a tour group to South Africa, Zambia and Botswana and picked up his bike again at the College of the Ozarks in Missouri, where a buddy had parked it in his garage.
He has had only one close call: "Passing through one city where a great big semi-truck would have run over me if I hadn't moved out of his way."
Otherwise, the trip has been one long meet-and-greet for the ultimate meeter and greeter. Heilman has met with Marines, UR alumni and just plain folks parked in the next space or sitting at the adjacent table drinking coffee.
And, of course, he has gotten to know lots of other motorcyclists. He attended a national rally of Harley riders last month in Oklahoma City. As he tends to do, Heilman started chatting with the fellow sitting with him at a picnic table. The small talk led to a discussion of hometowns.
"I'm from Oklahoma City, but I've been gone for a while," the man said. "I've been in prison."
Always trying to connect with whomever he's talking to, Heilman replied, "Well, I haven't had to go there yet."
Said Heilman yesterday, "A lot of people out there are hungry for conversation, and that's great. That's neighborliness."
Heilman said he'll hang around Kentucky for a couple of days, visit with childhood friends and plan a high school reunion for the fall. As for his next adventure, he's not sure, though his upcoming schedule is brimming with speaking engagements, board meetings and travel plans.
"My calendar stays full," he said. "I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't wake up at 6 a.m. with a full day ahead of me.
"Life is much more worth living if you fill your days."
Contact Bill Lohmann at (804) 649-6639 or wlohmann@timesdispatch.com.
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