It’s Time for Another Special Customer Spotlight!

Meet Dr. David Wood, a longtime friend who recently shared an incredible journey with us. In 1950, at just twenty years old, Dr. David Wood and his friend Duane Davis took a Mission trip to Berlin, Germany, on behalf of the LDS Church. After completing their mission, the two young friends wanted to explore the country. With little money for a rental car, it just so happened that a fellow missionary had recently purchased a brand-new 1952 BMW R68 and offered to loan it to the pair for their adventure!

The two carefully packed, as it was December and quite cold. They were dressed in four shirts, three pairs of pants, two jackets, and rubber boots and coats! For additional warmth, the pair wore heavy cloth covers worn by sailors of US Aircraft Carries that Dr. Wood’s sailor brother had sent them. With a tiny suitcase strapped to the back of the bike, the pair left Hanover and set off for Italy.

Their first stop was Frankfurt, where they stocked up on rations at the US Army Base Surplus Store. That night, they stayed in a hostel that was an old medieval castle! The next day, they made it to the Gotthard Tunnel, a newly constructed electric train tunnel many kilometers through the Alps. The bike was loaded onto a flat car, and the pair took a cab through. Just before the tunnel opening, a man waving a gray cloth on a stick tried to give some kind of warning. They didn’t stop, but a hundred yards out of the tunnel, an incredible explosion occurred up the hill, raining down rock and dirt onto the highway behind them. As Dr. Wood quotes,  “We escaped that one!”.

As they made it to Genoa in the rain, a Fiat skidded into their bike, hitting the protruding right cylinder head. The impact bent the Fiat’s bumper back and bounced the pair around but didn’t so much as chip a cooling fin on the cylinder head! Two pedestrians waved them on and continued to the next destination: Milan! Duane and David wanted to see Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous Last Supper, which did not disappoint with its beauty.

Florence was next, where they saw Michelangelo’s famous Statue of David. Onward, they traveled to Rome. However, as night approached, the fog moved in, making it difficult to see the road. Luckily, they were able to follow the red glow of a passing car’s taillight all the way to Rome. They tipped a parking lot guard at a train station for the night, locked up the bike, and slept on the station floor. They spent several days in Rome, including a tour of the Coliseum.  An interesting fact they learned was that the Coliseum didn’t naturally fall to ruin, but after the fall of Rome in 400 A.D., local villagers took many stones to build their houses over the next hundred years. Fascinating!

Next, they headed south to Naples, where the pair discovered the streets were packed with tiny cars, which they were able to ride through without incident! Eventually, the two made it to Pompeii, where almost three blocks of the buried city had been uncovered at that time.

There was still enough time to explore the city of Venice, however, on their way, they encountered a lot of snow, which only got deeper and deeper. That’s when they decided to turn around and head back towards the coast. On one of the downhill roads, the bike slid on a large patch of ice, sending the pair down and the bike flying about twelve yards! The windshield was severely cracked, but they repaired it with adhesive tape.

They made it to Lake Geneva, where Dr. Wood took his final photo. Upon returning to Hannover, Germany, they cleaned and repaired the bike for their friend, officially ending the adventure! Dr. Wood tells us that this trip was a very memorable time in his life, and while it was exciting and educational, he would recommend not to try it in the winter! It also gave him a great love and respect for BMW Motorrad, which he still has today. We are so grateful he has shared his story with us!

Dave and Charles are looking forward to their own European adventure this summer on our Edelweiss Tour. We’ll take LBBMWMOTO customers on a motorcycle tour and see many of the same incredible sites, just like Duane and David did!

A huge THANK YOU to Dr. Wood for sharing his incredible memories and photos with us! It’s safe to say that this trip has had a lasting impact on Dr. Wood’s life, and that the BMW Motorrad brand played an integral part!