Friday night 6-26-09

Rode to Willow Pond with DC and Mary, Darryl and Deloris, John, Jerry, John and Rhonda and her daughter and Grandson rode along in their car.
We took Hwy 70 to Hwy 109 and down 62 to Princeton.
From Princeton, we took hwy 293 to Hwy 93 straight into Eddyville.
we left there and rode Hwy 62 back to Princeton and took the WK back to Dawson.
Got off on Hwy 109 at Dawson and back down 70 to Madisonville.
Along about Richland, it started sprinkling and the road was really wet where a rather good soaking had occurred shortly before.
my feet and pants legs got pretty wet. Funny how it takes a lot longer to dry off that it does to get wet even when riding at 55 MPH!

The group got split up once or twice on the trip.
It's really amazing how inconsiderate people in cages are when they see a GROUP of motorcyclists and are willing to pull out BETWEEN them knowing they are together.
We managed to regroup fairly quickly since the cages turned off on a side road.

We stopped at the Dairy queen in Madisonville for an ice cream and had a good visit.
that's always a nice part of the ride when we can stop pretty close to the end of the ride and rest and talk for a while.
great friends and great rides are the best!
Like I told a girl I met last weekend, a motorcycle is a 2-wheeled anti-depressant!

6-13-09 Ride to The Overlook in Leavenworth Indiana

Well, it started out a very beautiful ride.
John and Rhonda Gibson, Bob Trover, Jimmy Lutz, Darwin and Mary Watts, Jerry Hughes and myself rode today. Rhonda rode in the Dodge Durango for a backup vehicle too.
Tommy Carr rode part of the way but had to be back by 5 to go to a class reunion with Alice.

The weather was great, nice and cool and just couldn't ask for better weather.
It didn't rain on us at all but there was a chance of it.
We rode to Evansville, got in some REALLY heavy traffic on the East side as we headed towards Newburg.
We stopped off in Reo for Gas, headed on down Hwy 66.
We went through Grandview... Boy that is the best name for that place.
Other towns were Troy, Tell City, Cannelton,
Rode through the Hoosier National Forest. It was just a little before there that the scenery started showing off!
It was absolutely one of the best rides I have ever been on.
I really wished I had a camera mounted to the bike to film all the places we saw today.
We stopped off in Derby at an Overlook and took a short break.






We left there still headed on Hwy 66.
Just before Dexter, in farm country, we had several 90 degree curves.
I looked in my mirrors and didn't see Jerry, Jimmy Lutz or Rhonda...
I honked at John but by then, he had already noticed something was wrong too.
We pulled off at an intersection at Dexter and John was trying to call Rhonda on the cell phone. Signal was terrible.
We weren't sure what happened but we knew we needed to go back. Darwin went ahead to try to catch up with Bob to get him to wait.
About that time, a woman in an SUV pulled up and said there had been a wreck. One of our bikes had went off in a ditch.

We high tailed it back to the scene.
There was Jerry down in the ditch walking around. He wasn't hurt. just shook up and muddy from head to toe.
The bike was Ok except for being covered in mud, a broken saddle bag and the tail light assembly bent.
Apparently, Jerry hit some mud that was on the road from a tractor from the wet fields. There was mud on several places along that road.
He said he hit that slick spot and just went down in the ditch. Had the ditch been dry, he might have been able to ride into the corn field and not drop it. (his thoughts).
I've done the same thing!


This is the rut in the ditch that Jerry left behind.

This is the complete path he took. Right behind where James Lutz is standing is where the bike ended up facing the opposite direction.









Just about that time, a guy (Also named Jerry)(Flamion was his last name) stopped in a pickup truck and checked on us.
We asked him if he had a rope and he did. So we tied the rope to his bumper and three of us got the bike pulled out of the ditch.
Here is Jerry standing by his bike.



This is the map of where Jerry Wrecked. See the "A" at the top....


The good Samaritan, Jerry, told us to follow him home (about 5 miles down the side road) and we could wash off all the mud.
It was a miracle he wasn't hurt and the bike (after a couple of tries) cranked up.
We all rode to the guys house and his whole family was wondering what in the world was going on with all these bikes pulling in their drive.
It took almost what seemed an hour to get the bike cleaned up.
Above is the bike after the clean up with a hose.



THEN, the family went in and brought Jerry out a pair of pants and a t-shirt to wear!
After Jerry got changed, we headed on to The Overlook.




All I can say is WOW. What a day!
The Overlook was good. I'd recommend getting there before 2 PM .
You could tell the Meatloaf I had was several hours old and starting to get tough.
It was still good. Can't say Its the best I ever had though. Cracker Barrel was better in my opinion.
However, the Blackberry cobbler was excellent!
But, The overlook is mostly about Atmosphere. It is a very nice place.
Great views of the Ohio River.
We rode on over to Corydon via Hwy 62. Took Hwy 135 South to the Ohio River Bridge to Brandenburg.
Took Hwy 79 to Irvington. We went south to Rough River Dam area. Stopping off at Cave Spring for a short break at a campground.
Got run off by a volunteer security guard on a moped..........nuff said...
Took 79 South to Caneyville, West on Hwy 62 through Horse Branch, Rosine, Beaver Dam area.
Rode through McHenry, Rockpory and Central City.
Stopped in Greenville to get a drink at Sonic.
Left there and rode 62 to Nortonville and then 41 back to Madisonville.
WOW.
Based on Google maps, It is over 318 miles.....

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Crossing the Mississippi-Ohio River confluence bridge.

The Olive Branch church gang met at Johnny Stevens house and rode to Lamberts for a late lunch.
we had a great time. That is a great bunch of people to ride with.
Johnny and his Wife, B'etta, (SP), Paul McConnell, Tammy Wilderman Eddy and Suzi McCrady, David Jessup and his wife, and a new couple (can't remember their first names!!) last name was Vance (I THINK!!!) Boy, if I don't repeat it a million times when I hear it, i'll forget it!!
Anyway, we didn't leave till around 10 since Johnny had to work the night before and only got a few hours sleep.
We rode the parkway and interstates most all the way (except for between Paducah and Missouri)
coming back, we took Hwy 60 out of Paducah to Marion and then Marion to Providence back home.
While we were in Lamberts, the kid throwing rolls saw me hold my camera up to take his picture from across the room and he threw one AT me..
It landed between me and Tammy and hit the bench!!!
Here is the picture!

Owensboro, May 31st

Sunday, several of us rode to Owensboro to eat at Cheddar's for lunch after church.
We met at Bob Trover's in Brentwood and rode out Brown Road and cut over to Rumsey.
Rode through Calhoun to Mosleyville and took the shortcut over to Hwy 431.
After eating at Cheddar's, we came out to the parking lot and I had a very shiny object sticking in my rear tire....
So, Knowing better, I did NOT pull it out.
I rode home, clinching the seat.
We came home via Hwy 431 to Livermore. Connected on a side road to Island, over to Buttonsberry and then to Sacramento. Took Hwy 85 to Madisonville.

I took the bike to the Bike shop (Bluegrass cycles) and had Frank look at it.
He called me to tell me it was only a pencil lead size broken screw in the meat of the tread... VERY VERY HAPPY for that.
Frank is a great guy and as good a Mechanic as you can find.
I've know him since the late 70's.
Anyway, Just goes to show how honest he is.. I was prepared to buy a new tire if it couldn't be plugged and still be safe...

Saturday 5-30-09

Rode to Pennyrile on Saturday and it still looks like a disaster area. They have cleaned up the campground enough for campers to get in.
Left Pennyrile and rode to Hwy 398, down to Hwy 91, Rode to Hopkinsville and connected back to Hwy 109.
From 109, rode to Hwy 800 and into crofton, back home on Hwy 41.
Nice curves and good road all the way!
Only got sprinkled on once!!!

Friday, May 29th Paglia's

The group from Abundant Grace Fellowship church rode to Princeton to Paglia's for dinner and MAN was it a big group this time. About 13 bikes rode down but there were also some others that met us there.
Of course, typical after dinner split up and get home on your own at break-neck speeds.

Sunday, May 16

Darwin, Mary and I rode to Henderson to start out the morning at Golden Corral.
It was pretty good but I REALLY should not have eaten so much and then go riding!
We left Henderson and rode Hwy 60 to Owensboro.
At Owensboro, we took the 60 bypass to Hwy 54 and rode to Short Creek just West of Leitchfield. We rode up Hwy 79 To Rough River Dam State Park for a rest. Got to watch a bunch of people flying radio controlled air planes at the Airport there. That was pretty cool! VERY large planes. (Pics to follow)
We left the Airport and headed down Hwy 79 to Caneyville and connected with Hwy 62.
We rode 62 to Central City and stopped off and got a burger. Had to settle for Burger King.
Seems no mom and pop places are open on Sunday's at all. Only chain places.... I guess the economy is really good if they don't have to be open every chance they get!!!
We finished the ride by hitting Hwy 601 and up to 175 to Hwy 70 and back in to Madisonville.
A little over 220 miles.
Great ride and pretty tiresome!

5-09-09-- Madisonville to Shawneetown to Owensboro!

Rode with John and Rhonda Gibson, Jerry Hughes and Bob Trover today. We started out in Madisonville with a few sprinkles and rode to Sturgis for a stop at Custom Biker Wear. Then we rode over to Shawneetown for a little while.
Left Shawneetown and rode over towards Ridgway Illinois and then over towards the Wabash River toll bridge.
Then to Evansville over to Reo and then up to Owensboro to stop off at the BBQ fest.


After choosing from one of the MANY vendors, I settled on a GREAT Pork chop sandwich.
(OK... I did have a VERY Small BBQ pork sandwich.. VERY SMALL---before that....)
Anyway, we left Owensboro, headed to Calhoun and then to Hanson to decide our next trip!
We are off to Ryans with the church group next friday night!

Clarksville trip to Appleton's HD for their Open House 4-25-09

We started out at Arby's with a group of about 6 bikes.
Made it to Pilot Truck stop in Mortons Gap to pick up about 7 more bikes.
(for those of you that didn't want to take your shoes off... that's 13 bikes...)
About halfway to Hopkinsville, the front part of the group hit the highway at break-neck speeds and left a bunch of us riding speed limit.
We arrived in Clarksville with about 5 bikes still left in the group I rode with.

We actually re-grouped at the Tennessee Welcome station rest area.
Got split up again on the way to exit 11. By exit 11, we still had about 5 bikes together.



At Appleton's, they had Back Yard Burgers catering the event with free burgers, hot dogs, chips and soft drinks.
If you weren't hungry when you got in line, you were when you got to the burgers!
It was GREAT weather. Little hot and got sunburned a little.

We finally left around 4 or so and got back to Madisonville around 5:30.
I rode with Rhonda and John Gibson to the city park to see if the poker run scheduled that day was still going on. It wasn't.
So, I went home.

Our gang!



Just a few of the bikes there.




Boss Hoss Trike


This is the long line to the burgers! (see tent in background!)

Paducah Four Rivers Harley ride

We met at Abundant Grace Fellowship today for one of their scheduled rides.
Funny thing is... None of the church organizers showed up. Seems Phil and Woody and their wives went to Gatlinburg!!
SO, we gathered together to decide who was going to lead us on this ride and it seems John Gibson was elected.
He did a great job and directed us through as few traffic signals as possible.
Tommy and Alice Carr, Eugene and Linda Giffin, John Gibson, Bob Trover and a couple I failed to get their name went.
The guy that rode is also a member of the HopNmad motorcycle club here in town and I met him one morning last week at the donut shop and invited him on this ride. He knows John and Rhonda too.
(I'll do better with new peoples names on my next self improvement exercise!!!)

So, we arrived at Four Rivers to a pretty good crowd. There were LOTS of members of the Sons of Silence Motorcycle clubs from Kentucky, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and seems like some other state too.
These are the "one percenters"...
What that means is .....99 percent of motorcyclists are Law abiding citizens..... They are not.
The wear a 1% patch on their vests and are very proud of their memberships.
Everyone that I encountered were polite and got along with everyone else.
I did notice one guy that had a very large knife in his back pocket, a clip on knife in his left front pants pocket and another clip on knife on the lower right front side pocket. That was all I SAW....




See the red bandana? It has a padlock tied to the part in his pocket. Used like a blackjack or billy stick, will knock you out faster than you can blink!



There was free burgers and hotdogs and water there too. not bad for free.
We stayed there about an hour or so and left.
Got caught in a sprinkle for about 10 minutes or so on the way back and then seemed to out run the rain.

April 4---long ride

Several of us met at Abundant Grace Fellowship Church on Princeton road to take a ride.
We rode to Hopkinsville over to Fairview to the Jefferson Davis Memorial.
Left Fairview and went back to Hopkinsville via 68/80 and 68/80 bypass. Circled around to The WoodShed BBQ place for lunch.
Left there and split up with the group.
Darwin needed to get back to his house to pick up Mary after she got off from work.
We left Nebo, went to Providence for fuel.
Drove over to Morganfield for another lunch! (had deep fried pickles for a snack!)
Then we rode to Sturgis to Custom Biker Wear to look around.
then back home!

3-22-09

Several of us rode (Me, Darwin and Mary Watts, Monte Vanover and Mary and James Lutz) to Pennyrile for lunch after church today. Good food (Chicken, Fish, Roast Beef, veggies, etc.... and Banana pudding, cherry cobler, etc)
We left Pennyrile and rode to Crofton via Hwy 1348 (Poole Mill Road) to Hwy 800.
Took Hwy 800 to Hwy 1914 and then to Hwy 189.
Took 189 North to Greenville. Stopped for a break and then rode to Hwy 601 to Hwy 175.
Connected to Hwy 70 and rode west to Hwy 85 back into Madisonville.
about 90 miles (except for Monte who rode from Evansville to ride with us today!)

2009 Bike Blog: 2009 Bike Rides

2009 Bike Blog: 2009 Bike Rides



Today, March 21, 2009, we had the first group ride of the season. Expecting warm weather was only a dream...but the ride went on as scheduled. Rick and I met with Darwin and Mary Watts, Darron and Trish Jordan, and James Lutz at Arby's in Madisonville to start the 90 mile ride. With the weather being so cool I'm sure it was more than 90 miles. All was going well until someone mentioned that it looked like it was going to rain...seems like those are words that should not be said when on a bike ride...not only did it rain, but it also had sleet mixed in...yes, it was a chilling ride...even in leathers it was cold.

We ended the ride in Nortonville at the Kat's Den for a huge hamburger and lots of coffee. The friendship is always good no matter what else goes on during the ride.

Tomorrow, we are in hope that the weather will permit us to ride to Pennyrile State Park and have lunch at the lodge...sure hope it is warmer...

2009 Bike Rides

MAYBE, I can keep a better track of the rides this year than I did last year.