Hooked On Motors in Iowa

Dene’s new Model B purchased this spring, features a 27-hp fuel-injection engine, 48-inch side-discharge deck, comfort seat, and AT tires.

When Dene Rath retired at age 55, he wasn’t concerned about having something to do. To the contrary, the free time gave him the opportunity to enjoy his lifelong passion, motoring around. May it be a “souped-up” car, off-road bike, snowmobile, or an ATV, you name it, he was game. When he and his wife, Marsha, aren’t motoring around on the ground, they take to the air and sea to visit faraway places like Machu Picchu, Peru, and the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador, take a riverboat excursion down the Danube, or fashion a tour of Iceland. Their most recent trip took them to Egypt to see the pyramids. 

Even “Star Trek’s” Captain Kirk, actor William Shatner, whose “future birthplace” is in Rath’s hometown of Riverside, would likely take notice of the couple’s adventuresome spirit. When not on the move though, they spend plenty of time on their two-acre property and in the house they built there in 1977. 

Rath said he first became interested in cars in 1956 when, at the age of 12, he purchased an issue of Hot Rod magazine from the local drugstore. He later came to terms with his “motorhead” tendencies while attending nearby University of Iowa. 

“I was more interested in cars than getting a degree,” he recalled. “So, I left school early and held several jobs while pursuing my passion.” 

His last job was working for Proctor & Gamble in quality control and later in IT and data processing. Rath worked there 33 years before retiring in 1999. 

Here, a younger Dene Rath tests his skills on an off-road bike. “Being able to finish is important, whether you are racing or mowing.”

“Throughout much of that time, I was hanging around my brother-in-law who was also into cars and racing,” he said. “I also developed an interest in off-road motorcycle racing, and still recall the fun our group had holding what we called ‘hare scrambles,’ where we scoped out a closed course through the woods and along the river.” 

Rath purchased his first motorcycle in 1969 and sold his last one in 2013. His list of cars is long, as well, and includes a 1968 Dodge Dart on steroids and a 1939 Chevy he rebuilt and stores in his garage right next to a new Model B Walker Mower. 

OBSTACLE COURSE 

Some would say that maintaining Dene and Marsha Rath’s property could be an adventure itself. In addition to being very hilly, the landscape features more than 85 trees, nearly half of which are black walnut trees. Last year, the couple removed 997 pounds of walnuts from their lawn using a long-handled nut-gathering tool. 

Then there are the hills. 

“This is a lawn you don’t want to walk to mow,” Rath emphasized. “I’ve had several different riding mowers over the years, including a 30-inch rear-engine rider that I flipped over backwards. Fortunately, I was able to push myself out of the way before it landed.” A dent on his garage siding tells of another time when a mower lost traction on a steep embankment. 

In addition to being very hilly, this challenging landscape includes more than 85 trees, nearly half of which are black walnut trees.

Even for an off-road enthusiast, enough is enough. “In 2009, I invited a dealer to demonstrate a zero-turn mower on that same hill and it couldn’t keep its traction,” Rath related. “Then my current dealer brought out the Walker Model B and it worked great on the bank.” 

Since then, the Raths have had three B’s — including a new one they purchased this spring with a 27-hp fuel-injection engine, 48-inch side discharge deck, comfort seat, and AT tires. 

The tires, along with being seated over the top of them, deliver great traction. “It’s amazing,” said Rath, noting that it still takes nearly four hours to mow the yard, whether he or Marsha is doing it alone or they are tag-teaming the operation, which they sometimes do. 

When not seeing the world, Marsha and Dene enjoy spending time around home and tagteaming the mowing operation.

Harkening back to his motorcycle “hare scramble” MX days, Rath emphasized that off-road competitors had to have bikes that were not only speedy, but reliable. As he put it, you could have the fastest bike at the start of the race, but if it didn’t finish, it couldn’t win. 

“Being able to finish is important, whether you are racing or mowing a lawn,” Rath added. “I know a little about the latter, too, since I started mowing lawns when I was 10 or 11 and, at one time, mowed seven yards in one day. 

“Reliability is one of the things I like most about my B,” he continued. “I love the engineering and technology. It’s well built, and there are grease fittings everywhere.” 

He said he has never considered a mower with a GHS deck because he leaves the clippings on the ground, and having that extra stability the Model B provides on hills is a requisite. 

Rath mentioned that this is probably the last Walker Mower he will ever own, unless the company comes out with a newer model with features he cannot resist. He is already eying a new attachment or two for next year, though, but he is keeping them close to his vest. Maybe he is holding out hope for an attachment that picks up black walnuts. 

The Raths have two children, a son who has a career in the aircraft industry and a daughter who is a college career counselor. The couple makes the most of their retirement, enjoying their family, and putting to rest any thought that the golden years are a special time to sit back and put their feet up.