PRINCEVILLE — A good bucket list is all about achieving goals, facing fears, trying something new. Some people go skydiving. Others swim with dolphins or write a book. Dennis and Christine Toth of Princeville opted for the open road —
PRINCEVILLE — A good bucket list is all about achieving goals, facing fears, trying something new. Some people go skydiving. Others swim with dolphins or write a book.
Dennis and Christine Toth of Princeville opted for the open road — a 15,000-mile, 10-week motorcycle ride that took them across the Mainland U.S. twice, as well as through all of central Europe.
“It’s fun to ride here,” Dennis said of Kaua‘i, “but there is only one road around the island.”
The couple’s adventure started in July when they shipped “Trigger” — their 2011 Harley-Davidson Road Glide, named after Roy Rogers’ Palomino horse — from Kaua‘i to San Diego, Calif. From there, with his “honey” seated in her “love seat” perch behind him, Dennis steered his beloved touring cycle 5,000 miles up through the Northwest U.S. and east to Toronto, where the bike was air freighted to Paris, France.
Starting in Paris, the Toths tacked on another 5,000 miles touring central Europe, traveling for a total of four weeks through France, Germany, Austria and Italy. The bike was then shipped back across the North Atlantic by plane to Toronto, where they began another cross-country trip to San Diego, eventually flying home to Kaua‘i.
If you include the round-trip flights from Kaua‘i to San Diego and Toronto to Paris, the adventure covered a total of 26,000 miles — longer than the circumference of the Earth.
“Exhilarating” and “unbelievable” is how the Toths describe their trip.
Four years ago, Christine, now 66, had little interest in motorcycles.
“I’ve ridden motorcycles for years, but my honey hasn’t,” Dennis, now 71, said. “She doesn’t like these little postage stamp seats on the back.”
“Some of them are really small,” Christine said.
But that all changed in 2009 when Dennis, a real estate agent, took a business trip to Las Vegas.
“My honey came with me and while we were there I said, ‘You know, the Grand Canyon is not very far away,’” Dennis said.
The Toths rented a big touring Harley — similar to the one they have now, with a large, comfortable seat on the back for Christine — and headed for the Grand Canyon on two wheels.
“She fell in love,” Dennis said. “When we hit historic Route 66, it was all over. She loved touring.”
“That was it,” Christine admits.
In 2010, the couple started vacationing to the Mainland, each time shipping their motorcycle to the West Coast and spending five weeks on the road.
“It was just so much fun that we’ve done it every year (since),” Dennis said. “And this past year was the culmination.”
During their 10-week trip, the Toths took thousands of photos, which they turned into a Blu-ray Disc slide show documenting each ride. Now they can relive the experience at the push of a button.
“My honey did most of the photography from the back of the bike,” Dennis said. “And when we went to museums and stuff I did my share.”
Some of the trip’s highlights included Glacier National Park in Montana, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, a ferry trip across Lake Michigan, the Swiss Alps, the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris and the Normandy American Cemetery.
“I probably liked the Sturgis area the best, because of the rides we had there,” Christine said.
The Toths can’t imagine doing the trip in a car.
“If you’re looking for a comparison, touring in a car is like watching it on TV,” Dennis said. “On a motorcycle, you’re in it. It’s surrounding you.”
“You have the air in your face,” Christine added.
The Toths said their bucket list trip was so “exhilarating” that they decided to share it in an attempt to inspire others.
“We actually did it!” Dennis said. “And that’s what we say to everyone out there that’s dreaming about this kind of thing. If not now, when?”
Although the couple has crossed the trip off their bucket list, they said they aren’t finished. In fact, they have already planned their next big ride in June, when they will tour the Canadian Rockies and the western United States.
At 71, Dennis said he can still handle the large, 1,000-pound motorcycle. And Christine has fallen head over heals for their comfy, two-wheel toy.
“While I can still hold this puppy up, we’re going to take these rides,” Dennis said. “The best part is I get to share all this with my wife … This is the first bike she’s really just said, ‘I’ll ride, I’m crazy about going.’”
Dennis and Christine Toth moved to Princeville 10 years ago from Healdsburg, Calif. They were married on March 17, 1974, and are preparing to celebrate their 39th wedding anniversary on St. Patrick’s Day.
• Chris D’Angelo, lifestyle writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 241) or lifestyle@thegardenisland.com.
