BlackHillsRally06

Finally the day has arrived and it's time to pack up and head to Sturgis. This trip has been in the works since Aug. of 05 and i can't believe its finally here. I picked up some motorcycle luggage and here is a pic of SS loaded up. I had to see if i could get everything on board for my ride over to Rockledge 90 miles away to the motorhome.




It just so happens that this is my BD also. Here is the perfect card that my lovely made all by herself for me.

day 26

Well, old SS finally made it out of the shop in time for RideYourBikeToWork Day and oohh what a treat it was to be back in the saddle again. The new handle bars are mini Angel Wings and so felt like the old days on old Black Betty. Swell.
Last Friday was a dodadoo at JZ Riders so my lovely and i jumped on SS and went for a visit. They had aband and free wings.and of course lots of cool bikes to see. We hung out for a bit and chatted with the bike friendly crowd. Being close to home, we then saddled up and beat it back to the homestead for an early evening and a movie. "The Worlds Fastest Indian" is definetely one to enjoy.//http://www.worldsfastestindian.com/ I have it on DVD and will be taking it out west to enjoy around the campsite one night.

day 25

greeetings keyboard.
the month of Hammuz, Hebrew for July, has always been eventfull says history and July 06 is shaping up to be one of the most. Where is Rodney King when we need him? "Why can't we all just get along?" Frustration at the madness in the middle east is tempered by the LoveIn in Berlin. Who'd a thunk that? http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/07/15/060715172659.jl1j62tn.html
Well, hooray for Deutschland. Reminds me of the good old days. In fact speaking of the good old days. Howz 'bout this link in honor of the late great Bill Graham? I've been listening to the "radio vault" here for a week now and what a time machine it is.http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/ My very first concerts were in Fillmore West and Winterland back in the late 60's when Bill was giving music a real platform. Wolfgang was Bill's real name.
Now on to motorcyling. Old Snoop-Skoot went into Ace's Wed. the 5th after hitting the 10k mark for it's once over and some more comfortable handlebars. Scott called me yesterday afternoon to say that "those bars you picked out don't work. Why don't you come down to the shop and try out some other ones?" rrrrrrrrrrr. well ok. i understand "best laid plans" etc. All last nite i fretted over what was originally a 50 dollar upgrade will now move into the multiple HD's (Harley Davidson for Hundred Dollars) because i'll probably need new braided cables because the new bars are longer and wider. rrrrrrr.
I drove the old blue cage over to Rockledge yesterday morning to meet with Larry and Toni and go over the last minute details for our BlackHills 06 Trip, which is now only 13 days away. We went over the timeline, route, things to bring and things we want to do out west and then borrowed Ronnies bike to go and see how three bikes fit in the new 6x16 foot trailer Toni just bought to transport our sleds out west.Wheww weee it was hot, but nothing compared to the 111 degrees registered in Rapid City. L and T are supposed to drive up to Ga. this afternoon to pick up the motorhome donated to us for the trip, so all the parts are falling into place. Larry's pipes new and exotic are due in this coming Wed. , so he is ultra jazzed.

day 24

here is one more experiment
ahh memories of a putt long past. riding with the pack adds an extra rush to the feelings of freedom. this video doesn't really capture it yet, but the experiments will continue. it is too bloody hot outside right now and because the old Snoop-Skoot is in Ace's getting it's 10k once over and new handlebars, and the fact that i spent a good two hours pulling weeds and dead grass. what a sad statement that your author, a child of the 60's and san francisco, now hates grass so much. lol.

day 23

So now. test number 5. Is this one going to work?


ahh.Hahh. this seems to work, so i'll tap out some notes relative to this beginners video.
When i get back from Rockledge, i call BigDaveCassens to ask if he knows anyone with a trailer that will fit three bikes. "I saw a "forsale" sign on a trailer down in southwest orange county. A 7x16 enclosed for 2k. It's about 30 minutes from my house." he tells me. "Ok. Lets go have a look." i answer, then go ask my boss if i can go. She of course says "ok", knowing how important a chore i have. I putt into BDC's yard, after a few phone calls while only 1/4 mile from his house. U-Turns are legall, right? I hate getting lost, so close to the destination. We load up, fire up and practice our "go slow" manuevers down the dirt roadway leaving their house, all the while just digging the roaring rumble of 3 harleydavidsons singing their happy tunes of vrroooom vrooooomm. The "go slow" race is one i've always wanted to participate in, but haven't yet. There is one girl here that wins everytime and i mean everytime. All the guys are looking around while practicing to see if she's going to show up this time and when she does and a hurrahhh goes up from her lady fans, a slow quiet rrrrrrr is sighed from the men. http://www.baroutback.com/
This is the link to Johnny Rottens Bar Out Back where most local games go on. As you can see the place is quiet a hoot.
So, we make our way to sw orange. BDC knows these roads better than anyone and soon we pull into the storage company where the "forsale" trailer is . RRRR. the "for sale" sign is gone. "I think it's been sold" growls BDC. I take some pics of it to show Larry.
It is a 98 and with some tlc could be a deal for 2k. but alas too late it appears. there is a phone number for the storage facility, but theres still no answer, even these few days later.
So, BDC and his wifey Bad AssBiker Barb decide to putt thru gorgeous Lake County over to see his motorcycle riding brother, while the skies are fair and before our regular afternoon thunderboomers set in. I'm jonesin' to ride and so go with them. We are sitting in the first position in a left hand turn lane at a major intersection with two lanes to our right. Cars sit in the far lane waiting to turn right, when all of a sudden we hear a cars tires begin their loud screeching sliding sounds. I spot the red older chevy's wheels smokin as he is only 30 yards behind us and holler "here we go!" I then turn my head to watch this lunitic to see if he's going to stop or slide into us or what. BABB has her ipod on and doesnt' yet live in her rear view mirrors like me and so didn't spot the slider till he was 15 yards behind. Somehow, thanks to our three guardian angels at the stoplight with us, this yahoo stayed in his lane sliding, screeching and smokin all the way into the intersection and somehow turned his wreck right, still sliding, avoiding the crossing traffic and missed everyone. The cross traffic was turning left in front of us, so if this nut had drifted our way there was no place for us to go. This happened a week ago and i still cant stop thinking about it. if i've learned anything, its to live in the rear view mirror, be more aware ALWAYS and DO NOT piss off your guardian angel.
we finally get out into the countryside and this is when i tried out the new camera mount's video abilities. BABB is descending our own Florida mountain, Sugarloaf, and flirting with death on her terms as she plays "look mom. no hands". lol
well, the rains are coming and now would be a good time for some outside chores. i will be back.

discovery day 21

"t-minus 17 minutes and counting". is the last transmision so far.
It's now 2:47 and one h0ur ish in real time till the launch of Shuttle Discovery. I'm just out of the shower and cooled down from doing my 150 miler this morning. Out east on 46 for 30 miles thru the jungles and over Puzzle River and into Brevard County. Home of launch pad 39b. "T-minus 14 minutes and counting" I am watching via 'puter on NasaTV. "The white room is clear and their are not technical issues being addressed at this time". "T-minus 9 minutes and holding" Mission Control from Houston, tells us. Our local channel 9 on the tv is showing the real time behind the scene for the launch also. This is such a complicated vehicle and so so many engineers involved to light this candle. A good half of my putt east this morning (kickstand up at 7ish am), I could not see a vehicle in front of me nor behind me. Perfect putt conditions, 75 degrees, high clouds with no noticable winds. Hiway 46 is a county road, but in excellent two lane condition and zooms thru deep bush filled lands opening up to fields that are home to cattle and palm trees. Thru mims then stop at the gas station, next to the I95 onramp, where i first showed Larry old Black Betty for a quick smoke before hitting the slab. Where as 46 is a treat, 95 is a chore. 70mph is the limit and if you go 70 you will be in the way. "So far we are in a no go due to weather" "T-Minus 9 minutes and holding". Now i actually like the slab sometimes. The rush of just getting on down the road without too much concern for cross traffic, like on the surface roads. So many accidents i hear about are from cross traffic, people turning left in front of the bike, or entering the roadway from a side street. "It's goin to be close, but we'll give it a shot" Nasa tells us over the air. There is a small cell 30 miles west of the pad that is a concern. ..But since my last encounter with getting airborne at 45ish mph over that wood pallet in in the middle of my lane on my way to work last week has me still a bit skiddish, expecially when following semi's with full loads at 70mph on the slab. "Observed and forcast no go, for thunder storm anvils, I don't hold a lot of hope at this point." "We copy" and so it goes.About 20 minutes real time till launch, but it doesnt look good. .. So i make it to Rockledge and find Larrys crib on the golf course. Pat, his wife is across the street playing in a 4some tennis match as we roll out north heading to Ronnies house. They call Tonnie and he lives only 5 minutes from the yard and will meet us there so we can see if the bikes will fit in the trailer that is supposed to carry our sleds to the BlackHills. It's an enclosed 6x12 and too small for 3 bikes. So there. We are 30 days to go and no trailer. Hmmm? Off to a good start. Tonnie thinks he can find one at the AutoAuction, even tho he hasn't seen one lately. We need it to be 7x16 at least.
"We've got anvils within 20 miles. Sorry to break it to you, but it's not a good day to launch. We'll try again tomorrow." "We are going ahead to scrub for today." We hear from Shuttle Launch Control. Well, it's off to a party now. ill be back...

day 20

greeeetings keyboard. it's7:37 and i'm just back from SkyKing Fireworks in Daytona Beach. Was going to take The Snoop but our normal summer afternoon thunder boomers were gathering for their evening barrages and so took Old Blue, the 89Corolla. Good thing too because on the way home it was the Perfect Storm . At least i did score 48 Excalliber Cannister Shells with assorted effects from Jumbo Red Dahlia's to Silver Waves and Red Whrilwinds. sounds good. we'll see come this weekend. Got some smoke bombs because my Joey had so much fun with them last year. Anyhoo, i booked it out of SK and with the gas gauge flirting seriously with "e" and some thick clouds marching rapidly my way i made it to the back side of the Daytona Racetrack, that is prepping big time for a major race this weekend, before the PF began its show. I coasted along at15 mph and fourways workin strong as the ws wipers were doing the two step in double time. At the intersection with Williamson one could not see 30 feet ahead. Here comes a Medic Alert fan with lights and horns making a statement. I slowly creep across the intersection wondering if i get smacked by someone who can't see either, will the trunkload of fireworks ignite? Yikes. Whew. Well it got stronger and stronger, wires down, tree limbs blowing across the road, then the hailstorm begings. Good size balls of ice bouncing off ofold blue, but press on thankfully behind some other brave souls and now the little gas reminder light is glowing brighter than ever. "Will the power be on?" i wonder, anticipatting the Citgo just two miles ahead. Ahha. Just ahead of the front and their power is on. They don't know whats coming their way. I hop out quickly, gas up and zip back south on 415 outraceing what i just drove thru. Ahh. clearing skies, but a glance in the rear view reveals black clouds and zero visibility. Whew...

day 19

greeetings keyboard. long time no talk. too many this and thats and dat ain't rite. WritetoLive is as important to me as RidetoLive. So please excuse my dribble if it isn't exclusively about motorcyling. your author is at this very moment in his backyard under the arbor and cloudy skies deep in the jungle, scribbling on his new lap top wirelessly connected to cyberspace. I now want to take a pic a see how that works...

Wowwie zowwie. that works. Now this may be simple and old hat technology to most of you, but well you know that Pink Floyd line "ten years have passed you by. You missed the starting gun. No one told you when to run." Well, that line was written to me. I'm a little late to the laptop/wireless game but just in time for me. Because i hope to file a play by play while in Sturgis South Dakota for the Black Hills Motorcycle Rally.http://www.sturgismotorcyclerally.com/ and yes we are virgins to this show, so hope to b e able to provide another perspective. http://rally.sturgis.sd.us/You know how you can anticipate something too much and when you finally are experiencing that thing, then theres whatz her face singing "So, thats all there is? If thats all there is then i'll just keep on dancing...". My brother Larry and i have been anticipating this so much, reading all the web forums and web cams, reading the Rapid City Journal, which provides a great web blog during the celebration of the motorcycle. http://www.sturgisrallydaily.com/, getting in our miles and bikes prepped, and just plain talking about all the details everytime we talk., i hope we arent a victim of the "Now What" disease. Thats a whole 'nuther story to it self and zoon to follow.
But for now, todays experiment is to see if i could post and zip current pics just like that and lo and behold i think i've crossed that frontier. Can now just relax and enjoy the fun part of banging away on these keys to see what happens next. OOops. just one more thing. Now i've got to find out how topost videos. I just bought a "camera clamp" that is a basic modified c clamp that attaches to the handlebars with a "foot" for the digital cameras. I'm just not too comfortable yet with the setup, fearing that one jolt or bump in the road could dis lodge the clamp and lead to the loss of said camera. It's worked well at slower speeds so may use it during a main street putt. But i am buying the "Hel-Cam" like the one KT has, altho we haven't see evidence of that yet, lol. also. I dont want to travel these 6k miles and not have evidence to help jog my memories so i write about them.
Got to ride 100 ish miles yesterday because it was supposed to rain hard all day today. Went thru one downpour and after sliding sideways on slippery roads to avoid a low mileage but costly smack up, i decided to call it good. Lots of clouds today, but no rain so far. I've got to run and do chores now and so will dribble here later...

anothernewday?

i'ts one of htose mornings when one is so glad to be alive. No near misses or anything like that, but news that friends are suffering trials and tribulations with their teenage boy. Very sad that young people just don't get it. Not just for them but for the whole family and circle of friends. Life is so precious and they just dont understand that just one thoughtless moment and reaction and your whole world can melt away before your very eyes. No one here knows these people so i guess it's ok to divulge the known facts, but i'd rather speak of a new and exciting find for me and the family.

While in Sabastopol CA. visiting with Uncle Bruce and Aunt Annaliesa he let us read my Granny's Journal. Now it is well known in the family that she kept one but this is my first actuall seeing, reading and copying it. Turns out it is Volume IV: 1936-1941. She was born in 1907 and will be 99 next month. This volume starts when she is 29 years old. It is AMAZING. It's like the great american novel. Chokablok full of life, personal and public. I may try an experiment and try to take a picture of a page and see if it will post. While snooping around in another new found program i'm also trying this experiment. lets see if this works...
brb

well, well, well. that seems to work. but now while i have time, back to the real work and not that playing around. lol
Grannys journal is most inspirational and as i read it i realize it is a Blog. She just wrote down daily all the ends and outs of this and that. Guess i have blogging in my genes. i wonder if other bloggers have family history of keeping journals? these have a differnt attitude because others may or may not read them, while the key for real journal keeping is to write as if no one is going to read it, that way you can let it flow and let the letters and stories fall where they may. Kick that little critic off your shoulder and let the great god of muese Hermes in for a chat.
it's all really just blah, blah blah, but i'ts my blah...
Like i said a lot has happened since my last time spewing here and i'm not sure where to start because i still have some motorcycle tales to share and that is the key to my spewing here. Maybe i should make another page for Granny's Journal?

day 18

i'm going to rattle on about Dola's Last Tour 'de Sore Butt to Lake Ockeechobee in a minute but first, i've found some pics and road tales that i've skipped and have been meaning to add...
another sat. morning and another SCHOG ride. This one is led by Lisa Dye and the Ladies of Harley and they invited us lowly men to play with them too. So, show up for play time we did.
April weather is perfect for puttin around the jungle , so after some group riding reminders and a lay out of the route, we saddled up and rode. Out east from the new shop on Hwy. 46 thru Sorrento and winding thru Zellwood, home of the famous Corn Festival http://www.zellwoodcornfestival.com/ and then around the lake in Clermont to the Rusty Fox.
Lunch was perfect and a time to chat with clubbers about all things motorcycle.

Lunch time over and time to saddle up again and head for LakeRidge Winery and do some serious wine tasting. The woman with the red and white hat is 67 years old and rides her Harley with pride. In the "on the road" photo thats ChainSaw in the red shirt and his wife on her sportser to his right. He calls her WeedWhacker. Some day i hope to hear the stories of where those names came from. When i asked him initially he just kinda sighed, laughed and said "that was a long time ago and quite a night." anyhoo he is the one who sets his cruise control and takes rolling pics. here's one he tok of me. i think it's the only pic of me hoggin it that i have.
Thats his wifey in the background with a shit eating grin on her mug. You know. the kind we all get when puttin in the country side with friends.

day 17

just a note about these three new links i've just added. I know that July is way down the road, but it looks like it is time again for Ride To Work day. I see parking lots full of motorcycles during rallys etc. but very few on the roads for the morning commute. This day could be just the opposite. Hmmm?
http://www.ridetowork.org/
also, this looks like neat idea and a great sticker

http://www.bikerfriend.org/
ridesafe
brl

day 17

another sat. another ride. praise the lord. can i get an amen? thank you.
it's time for the "REAL RIDE", a local radio station http://wtks.com sopnsered ride in conjunction with Big Bad One and Only, BRUCE ROSSMEYER and Destation Daytona. I registered online , 53 bones for me and my Joey, (youngest, 15, son, who loves to ride with me and is anxious for his own sled.) It was 130 bones to ride "VIP"", which was too much for me. We pack up cameras and cigars and hit the slab at 10am and rolled into the radio station parking lot to sign in.
now, i've been on a few rides, but this one was extremely organized. From the entering of the parking lot to the, waiver, sign in and t-shirt line, all went smooth as a purring shift into the right gear at the right time.
We had 90 minutes till jiffys up, so we wandered around and found some Schog's.
thats rick, karen, sandy, bonnie, oj, cant' remember and Ron. just a few of the Schogs that wanted to enjoy and good ride and help a good cause. all the proceeds went to Bruce's favorite institution, the Boggy Creek Gang. http://www.boggycreek.org/2006/home.asp a truly good cause . Last year my Joey and i rode on another of their sponsered rides. 2thousand bikes at a 100 dollar buy in for a police escorted 60 miler to the camp. The most i've ever paid to ride my bike and the largest pack. today was supposed to be a 1000 bikes, but i dont even think there were 700. and as far as the police escort today. well, what the f, if i cant say what i think here, where can i say it. of course i've had a shot of brown wine and some budwiser to wash it down, but the fuzz today did a half ass job. but more on that later.
here is a pic of Shannon on the Real Bike at the front of the vip pack
here is a pic of the king himself Bruce Almighty on his custom Hog. we all laughed and commented "of course. if you were him wouldn't you? Look. he owns the largest harley shop in the world".
my only beef with him, besides crankcases full of jealousy, is his motto.
"It's the Destination."
in an effort to advertise "his" places of interest and spending. and we all know, and thats the reason we ride, is that "It's the Ride NOT the Destination" that is our golden rule. and here's this hog on a hog turning our love of the road into his dollars. now brucealmighty is a giver and donates mega dollars to his causes, but as you can see, he ain't lackin for grub on his table... tobecontinued. need some sleep because tomorrow is Dolas' 400 mile Ockeechobee run...

day 16

"just a nice easy ride while it's cool this morning?" i tell Linda "OK? Dave and Barb are going?" and so todays adventure began. they rode over here and we all left to meet up with Ron and Marine Dave at the new Harley shop. It is after all right across the street from JZ's and the start of this trip. So around 11:20 ish we pull into JZ's lot and find some guys and the "RealRadio" bike already there. It's all about the advertising and if JZ's makes a deal with local radio and garners word of mouth for it, then good for them.
They seem like good people. We talked with Mrs J. after a tour of their spic and span, busy but clean and organized shop, and she said "Thanks. But it's a lot of work and money. Thank goodness we have the lawn maintenance business to make the real money while JZ's gets going. They are good hard working people and i think their dream will survive. Shannon said "alright. lets ride" finally around 11:55. we were already in our saddles and chompin at the bit to ride.
"I-4. I guess." when asked "which way big guy?" as so we were off. seemed like a lot more than 60 bikes. I was glad to be surrounded by Schog's. Riding with unknown riders in a freeway pack can be nerve wracking. Turns out, lots of riders in this pack know how to get out and stop cross traffic, no matter what color the cross traffic lights are. It's a tricky manuver, yes, but truly it is the bes way to get a pack thru town. The Schog's used to do that, but Mother Hog frowns heavily on that. A few cages wandered in and out of our peleton but all in all in was quite a rush to be in charge of the center lane in th center of a 60 bike 70mph rolling party down the florida super slab.
heere is some evidence of our safe, sound, thirsty and hungry arival at "Johnnies Fillin Station". Linda grabs a table as we re one of the first in the door after showing our comp. ticket from JZ's. They also gave us a comp for one adult beverage. Zalloooo.
Here is the ever bubbly one Shannon.
http://shannon.wtks.com/
he is a pip and a good guy. does his best to promote motorcycling and knows the best places for food, drink and motorcylce parking in town. This is our second ride with him and his crew, the first being Ms. Monster where we stopped in at the Parliment Houst to party, but that is a story for another time.

this is a great shot of Shannon having fun with his lovely and prego roommate. they seem to really enjoy each and life because of each other and that is all that counts.

the girls were lining up for their fun paint job and i'm sure they are going to have a fine party tonight, but it was time for us old folks to make room the wild ones. lol...
50 miles on the odo, but the 91 degrees knocked us out.
ridesafe...

day 15

worked late thurs. nite due to both my staff having time off, how dare they? lol anyhoo i make it by 7pm to the monthly SCHOG meeting and here is some evidence.
I enjoy taking the windscreen off for short rides, 10 miles to the VFW. A lot of Ultra's in this club as you can see.







Da guys like to hang out by the front door before the official meeting whistle is blown. I've been coming to these meetings now for almost a year and a half and have gotten to know some of the characters. and so i must again say that all transcribed here stays here. it may be a pack of lies, it may be the gods honest truth, but it's a proven fact that there is no better way to piss off your friends than to start writing the truth about them. That's just a writer's cross to bear. I'd have to change my name and move far far freakin away. Also. I came to this space in computerville as a place to practice my wordsmithing with no editors. so that i can let the muses take over and let the fingers fly, ever so anxious to see what comes out. We need some good motorcycle novels. in fact what is your favorite motorcycle novel? Not many out there. Hmmm? well. i saw ChainSaw and told him "man, i've never seen anyone handle his bike so smoothly and to be taking pictures at the same time. I can't shoot with my left hand. How do you do that?" i had already figured out my questions since our last ride to the Winery and now seeing him at the meeting, i was ready. Turns out that it is a wild and full of tricks cruise control that allows him to shoot with his right hand. He went on with each and every detail of each and every button for each and every situation, first the left side, then the right side so fast that all i could do was shake my head and say "wow", every moment or so. i have only one pic of me riding and he took it. I told him "ya. man that is a great picture, thanks for taking it. Of course your good looking wife in the background with that wide motorcycle smile on her mug, didn't hurt the pic either." and we both laughed. he then flashed one of those far away looks as if his mouth was getting ready to say something he maybe shouldn't, but was going to anyhoo. "Ya, when she's happy she's smiling. And that is good, BUT when she isn't!" then, all the men standing around bobbled their heads with grunts of understanding completely.

karen, the dirty blonde just right of center,won the 200 dollar pot in the 50/50 tonight. a hurahh from the gang with the usual "Karen buys the beer tonight!" rumbled from the crowd. She is also a ChromeAngel and rides a Deluxe too.

another gooood meeting with all giving the best hurrahhh to Ron/Karen for their BikerBash...ooops my time window just closed...

day 14

in an effort to get more regular, here are some more notes on my adventures in motorcycleworld.
It's friday afternoon and i just gotta ride, so it's a good excuse to putt down to Ace's on the river. Here is PeeWee who runs this place like a top. He is also part owner of Ground Zero the race team.
here is their link
http://www.groundzroracing.com/
PeeWee and OJ make a great team as you can see.
I am still waiting for one more braided throttle cable to come in. It has been back ordered again.





Then Sat. morning Linda and I ride back down to Aces', this time to give Roy, the leather man, another sketch of Larry's desired custom patch. and wowwie zowwie, roy shows us his new toy. It's computerized and "doesn't show up late or take breaks", roy proudly exclaims. He says he's not getting much else done, "I've got a seat over there for days i haven't touched, because i just want to watch this machine sew." I have Linda give roy the fianl colors and we double check the size requirements before leaving. he is such a good guy, i hope this new tool really helps him. There is no limit to what he can create now as a patch. In fact i've got to get to work on a "Z" idea. Hmmm? Hey what about a patch with the kinross gold symbol? why not?
On our way out i see this kid sanding down some bike fairing parts in the parking lot. I ask him if that was his car in the lot with the hot paint job. "Yes sir." he politely replys. Turns out he is Nick's boy. how proud Nick must be to have his son working with him. http://www.viciouscycles.org/

anyhoo,
here is one of Ace's Ace Mechanix, Mike. He is from boston and has the accent to prove it. Now i''ve not had such good luck with bostonions, but Mike is his own man and a good one. he loves what he does and does it well.now it is time to head south to the jaialai fronton to lay down some money on the Kentucky Derby. the race is in two and 1/2 hrs. I sure would like to come back here with some yahoooo stories. Of course i put 12 bucks on the long shot and linda picked the 8:5 boxed exacta. come on 16 i say, "would it spoil some all important plan?" we have a chuckle then head north to Beto's. Probably the best soul food joint i've ever been to. I think it may be the original Mexican music on constantly playing or the 5 pound burritoes for breakfast.
and so for now thats another installment of fun in lopezville for a hot saturday. tomorrow we plan to ride with Shannon from JZ's down to Johnnies Fillin' Station's big party. stay tuned...

day 13b

so finally we all are together and saddle up to leave. and now for that lesson learned about leaving a good parking space. get to your bike, get on your bike and leave, all just as quickly as possible. While we were just getting in the saddle some cruiser bikes pulled up in front of us waiting to take over then a pack of choppers behind us. we let them hash it out and we headed east on a side street becasue Main was too packed. We finally meet up with the Schog's who were patiently waiting for us, and so now a pack of about 20 bikes all head east for Ron/Karens "BradyBikerBash. We had to turn off of 441 and wait for two lights for a police escorted funeral procession. a quick left then a quicker right and some of us got caught up in the procession. Hey, if it isn't a biker that understands and respects death then no one does. we ride with death daily. So, we roll past the Gator Harley, that has bikes parking two blocks away, and up the hill to the bash. I did not take a single pic, but here is a web site where some pics are.
http://www.seminolehog.com/2006_leesburg_brady_bash.htm

It was the best of times. karen/ron know how to throw a party. I'm just glad they are Schog's. Living in Leesburg, they could just as easily belong to lake county chapter, in fact the shop is just down the road from their home on the lake. Linda got a tour of the inside and just oooh'd and ahhhh'd all the way home. They had tents set up outside for the food and the tables for our hog butts. they also have a deck on their dock. It doesn't get any better than that. Mike, the last pres. and Dolla were the first one's i see as i round the corner to the back yard. I introduce Larry to some club members, like Leslie and tell him "once we all rode up to Gainsville and then Leslie here says " Well, guess i'm going to ride up to Georgia today."" She laughs upon remembering that day and said "Oh ya. that was a great ride. We spent the night and rode home the next day." Then a guy next to her says "Well, i remember riding all the way back from Sturgis, with her once. Yep, 2 thousand miles and 5 days." "Wow", my brother and I reply. I knew she liked to ride, but didn't know she liked it "that" much. It turns out that Mike and Eric are riding out west just before Sturgis this year also and supposedly they have a campground paid for and won't be using it. They are going early and will ride the Tetons and Yellowstone before the Rally, just like us. Then all the Sturgis tales started swirling. I'm quite amazed at how many Schog's are going this year. So, we ate, drank and talked motorcycles till 5 then said our thank you's and farewell's and ride safe's then saddled up for home. Strong head winds that day. with 129 on the finish odometer.















The End.

day 13a

it was now time to visit the rest of main street. i ran into some shogs and found out that everyone was meeting up at the parking lot at 1:30 to ride up to Ron/Karen's. the schogs were parked in the "last parking lot on main street. next to a pink building." big dave tells me. larry's gang and i continue walking up main street going with the flow of what seemed like millions of people in leather, most with beards of one shape or another. it was around 80 degrees by now, but not bad. i lost the guys when i had to find a portopotty. What do those people do who man the cans when not manning the cans? thats one gig i just don't get. anyway i get cell phone calls that everyone is circling up back at our bikes. I learned a valuable lesson about leaving a good motorcycle parking spot. We were at the bikes getting organized, with hot leathers off and cool shirts on and goodies packed, etc. when bikes started lining up to zoom into our spots as we zoomed out. But wait, "we aren't leaving yet!" i holler out to the bikes holding up traffic waiting for us. i hate being rushed anyway, but we had one more couple walking back to wait for.
larry and i stood on the sidewalk watching the bikes and he and i decided that next year we would just be "standing on the corner, watching all the bikes go by" and save all that walking about seeing the same patches and pins that swamp every rally, because for me really its the bikes and the people watching that hypnotizes me at rallys. Each character and iron horse is one of a kind, all with one singular important trait and love. Riding, riding and then riding some more. altho the rats hole show was more than worth the walk.
Now, this is a bird of a different color. We do "fly" on our horses so yes, i see the bird analogy. Check out the winged tank and point on the birds bill. sorry i didn't get the foot pegs and jiffy stand in the shot, because they were birds legs and claws. I think that if you find a web site of leesburg bikefest pics, you'll surely find lots of shots of this bike.

day13

finally the day arrived and here is a pic of your humble author and his lovey on Main St. in quiet, hahahaha not today, Leesburg, Florida. The traffic was so thick that while being stopped Linda gave the camera to Darlene next to us "take a picture of us, please " linda asks and then "ooooops. let me take my helmet off first." She looks fantastic with or without helmet to me, just as long as she is with me.

We had a grand ride out there after meeting up with Dan/Cheri and then Larry, Ronnie/Darlene, Doug, Bruce and one more couple at the 7/11 at 46a and airport blvd. in Sanford. I would like to add a map, but havent figured that one out yet. I passed out the maps i made up to the groupo and gave some pointers on the roads ahead as well as a review of signals and pack riding basics, just to make sure we are all on the same page. When riding with different groups its a must to be on the same page, especially when bound for a major rally. And now it is a major no doubt. We saw more motorcycles than ever before anywhere and it was only 10:30 am when we rolled onto Main Street.

Here we are giving you the Dixie Salute, before saddling up for our 67 mile jaunt thru the jungles of florida to Leesburg. Thats SS and Larrys custom nose to nose in front of the humans. It's 9:15am and we are 15 minutes late.

Here is doug on the left and Dan/Cheri on the right crusin' into old sleepy town Leesburg on this one saturday afternoon a year that motorcyles rule the day. doug owns a fleet of trucks and dan is a building contractor and most talented. He finally passed the driving test to get his motorcycle endorsement, so now Cheri is much more comfortable riding legally with him. He went ahead and spent the money he saved by not having to take the State School program, (280 bucks) and bought new tires, which his Honda was sorely in need of. my linda is taking the photos. Old SS gets a lot more attention and i get some good pics when my lovey putts with me.

Crusin east and still 4 blocks from the center of town. we are starting to look for a parking space, watching for someone saddling up to leave, but not too seriously yet. The rumble and roar of heavy metal is awesome and rising rapidly. The business parking lots on both sides of Main St. are slowly filling up with bike lovers. Unlike Daytona i don't see "5$ parking" signs all over the place. The signs did appear closer to town tho. In DB you'll not find an empty space, lawn, alley or lot without a "5$ bikes; 10$ car" signage.
Closer to the center of this belly of the beast and the roar of thousands of iron horses is music to my ears and making this adventure worth all the work.




ron/darlene and dan/cheri follow us into a perfect parking spot in the center of Main st. just one short block from the absolute center of this Rally. We unpack and the girls go quickly to shop and eat, while i head over to the RatHole Show with the guys. following are some of the eye candy we enjoyed that afternoon...

this next shot doesn't do this bike justice. It is named "DoinTime" and is by a local personality that we've ridden with for the Chrome Angels'Breast Awareness Ride. and you know how bikers appreciate breastesses. The builer is now a preacher and he performs the "blessings of the bikes" before the groupo departures. It has among the many custom features a sissy bar cross made out of prison bar, a night stick for the suicide shift lever and hand cuffs supporting the frame to the rear fender. and of course "Death Trap" was showing off today to the delight of OLD skool bikers.
Most skulls on a bike award goes to...








Now this paint design stopped us in our tracks. Not so detailed, but works. a real iron horse.
and of course the RealRadio bike was there for the raffle ticket option to own. Nick, down at Aces Shop has a biz called viscious cycles... //www.viciouscycles.org/
did the paint job. JayZRider is the shop that designed and built the bike. They are in a small warehouse that just happened to have the brand new Seminole Harley Dealership built a monster size outlet right across the street. I asked the JZ rep. how'd they like the new business and he gave me the victorious thumbs up sign along with the dollar signs twinkle in his eyes... to be continued