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Wobbly boys home safe at about 5PM.

We want to thank Windy and all the other organizers, Ray & Melissa for putting up with us, and all the participants that make this meeting so special.

We were doing good on the way home. Ran into a little rain on the BRP, but mostly the big holdup was Sunday afternoon drivers and sightseers. Gumby broke down at Hwy 25 in Asheville, but we soon had him back on the road. We rode the rest of the way (at least to Toccoa, GA) without mishap... despite a little more rain near Cashiers, NC.

:bigt

Had a nice trip back to Northern Neck in VA. First day of five I have not been rained on. Emptied the truck and spread everything out to dry. Thanks to Windy for organization and to Melissa for the fine quarters and to all participants for making another great year.

Just short Illinois and checking in to see if I had fun?

My total mileage for the 4 days was ~730 home, Friday ride, TSMR, and back. Last year's total was ~870, according to my intrepid, record-keeping brother. So that's the effect of the rained our Friday ride and "abbreviated 2018 TSMR".

But we got fabulous fuel mileage !

Rolled out of Blowing Rock at 5:30 AM...pulled into my drive at 11:00 PM. Blue skies and sunshine through Virginia an PA, where was all that on Friday and Saturday?? Still, a bad day riding in the rain beats a good day at work any day!
Bill-knocked on your door once just before we pulled out like you asked but it seemed pretty quite so the next time we meet I'll say goodbyes for Blowing Rock before hellos for where ever we happen to be!

A GOOD TIME was had by all. The duct tape, wire, and wood wedges held....film at 11:00

A picture of a highly technical fix.

Hey...at 6 I was dreaming I was going to tell y'all goodbyes. Wonder if Bob got my text while I was dodging a traffic jam on the WV turnpike.

home with my shorts inside out.

film as it develops

Not sure if he did or not Bill..I was asleep in the back seat for a while.....anyway...my best pictures from TSMR 2018

free uploader

The subject of much discussion upload jpg
on the veranda at night

sorry Richard..I know you wanted a picture of somebody in them but I don't think the moderators would like it

Good job! That's one hell of a ride. I only had 300 or so miles to go, and I was knackered when I got home. HOT but no complaints, it was SUCH a change from Waterworld.

Two back to back 600 mile days would have .... well, it would have been 3 or 4 days!!

Lannis

More Bike Empathy? Motorcycle Whispering? Did you hear the bike saying "Help Me! It's my Headlight Bulb shorting the charging system! Help me!" ????

Glad it was a good ride home!

Lannis

That should be taught at engineering schools!

Got home around 4:30 pm Sunday. Unpacked all my wet gear and set it out to dry.

Nice weather all the way home. A touch hot as I got closer to Atlanta.

I had a great time, rain and all.

It was great to see everyone again. I am looking forward to next year already!

OK guys here is my side of the ride. as they say in military parlance the plan changes after the first shot is fired and that is what happened.yes the parkway was closed for repairs and the state thought paving the detour would be a great idea,so much for communication. but with the weather we also lost the detour.so after a scouting trip by semper and the time delays the route to make the lunch stop took some major redoing but with local knowledge we got it done and on time for the lunch stop. than if things could not get worse the weather was not done with us yet. i gave the riders a choice of doing the last half and a huge risk or to make it a 2 state ride with roads most have not Sean it became a 2 state. part way into the new roads it rained at a biblical level but to there credit they did finish with no need for the trailer.

I want to give a big thank you to no name for his great job leading and the use of his trailer, also for lannis for offering to lead the slow group. to the blowing rock inn again for putting up with us and taking care of the food saturday also for everyone who shows up to do this as this what the ride is all about.

again thank to all who took the time to make it here.

Wendy -

I think you did the best possible job trying to herd this bunch of cats on a hillside in what was effectively a disaster area, complete with police blockades, firemen redirecting everyone, roads falling off the sides of mountains, mud and gravel and branches all over the roads, people headed off in every which direction to try to find a rideable road, rivers running across the highway, one ride leader that bailed after he heard The Song of the Sausage Creature on US221 (I'm intimately acquainted with the lad), and everything else.

As you hinted, there were no bikes coming home on the trailer, no one got hurt, no one got lost and had to be rescued by the Coast Guard, and everyone enjoyed EITHER "enduring" the ride OR porch-setting and story-telling.

So as far as I know, everyone's calling that a success and looking forward to next year. Thanks for what you do to make this happen!

Lannis

I was in the lead going south on the BRP. Gumby was between the 2 BMWs since he was not showing a headlamp (due to existing electrical issues). We got separated in Asheville so I pulled over. I didn't want to go back in case they had gotten off the Parkway for fuel. So I waited in place and sent a "where are you" text to both riders. The text I got back gave me the poopy britches. It simply read "broken back at Hwy 25". I had visions of either Gumby or my brother laying in the middle of the BRP waiting on a Life Flight to the local spinal care center, so I headed back to check it out.

I arrived to find only a 1962 BSA with a low battery condition, which led to the well-documented stuttering EI ignition. Greatly relieved, we unplugged the headlamp bulb, turned the headlamp switch ON (which applied more alternator output to the battery), and rode on.

Actually, the bike WAS yelling "Help me !" becasue by the time I got back they already had enough tools spread out to do a complete engine job there on the side of the road. The real reason the bike didn't miss a beat the remainder of the afternoon was its overwhelming fear of being disassembled on the roadside by 2 maniacs !! The BSA version of "scared straight".

But it all turned out well.

Glad all you knuckleheads made it back to your respective barns. It was great to see everyone and share some laughs and drinks.
But I see I need to be a bit more cautious with whom I share certain tales!

Another successful year......neither rain, nor rain, nor rain, nor.....well, you get the idea.

I might hold the record for shortest distance travelled before a breakdown (except for the ones that never get to leave the parking lot). About 200 yards past the traffic light in Blowing Rock, heading towards Rt 221, bike dies. I'm at the tail end of the group, Lannis' son Alec and Windy in the chase van are the only ones behind me. Check the fuse and it's blown. No spare on me (the ONE thing I forgot) but Windy has a 25A. In it goes, turn on headlight and pfffttt. Blown again. It's all downhill back to BRI, so Alec and Windy (and wildbill. He's in the chase van too, but I'll let HIM tell that story!) chase after the group and I coast the bike back to the Inn.

Richrd and Jerry and another Norton guy (can't remember his name) are at the Inn and we start diagnosing the problem. Turns out the clip holding the headlight fell off the screw and wedged itself between the headlight bucket and the feed contact on my high-beam indicator. Most clips would fall into the bottom of the headlight bucket but mine decided to fall UP. The hint was when I went to unscrew the headlight rim and the screw pulled straight out! Electrical tape around the edge of the bucket to keep out water held the rim and reflector in the bucket. A new 20A fuse courtesy of Richrd and I was on my way....I love a simple electrical fix!

I high-tailed it to the first gas stop off Rt 321 to meet the group after they came off the Goat Path. Sat there, had a beverage and along comes Richrd in a pickup truck with one of the Norton guys (Jerry?). Seems Rt 221 was washed out by a sinkhole and the group turned around and went back to the BRI to decide what to do next. After much deliberation, the group (most of them) decided to press on and took a direct route to Mountain City. Mike Baker showed up by himself at the first gas stop, so he and I decided to press on and we had a fantastic ride along 321 and Rt 67....dry roads and sunshine the whole way! The plan was to meet the rest of the group at the lunch stop on the backside of the Snake in Shady Valley, but they ended up finding us at the second gas stop in Mountain City. After a nice lunch and watching a storm cell or two pass, we came up with an alternate route to get back to BRI without riding into VA and Rt 58 (fortunately, I had ridden that portion the previous two days....one of my favorite parts of the whole ride). There were just too many red areas/cells on the weather radar in that area.

The heavens opened up on us on the way back as we forded creeks running perpendicular across the roadway at various spots. Officially, the hardest rain *I* have ever ridden in. Thankfully I made a wet-weather gear purchase late last year that paid off in spades....stayed bone dry! Had a slight pucker moment when I hit a *small* patch of gravel around a sharp turn. Slow speed and putting my right foot down helped me keep the bike on two wheels, but I think I gave a Alec (remember Alec from my fuse debacle?) a scare as he was behind me and had to brake quickly.....

All in all, another great ride! Thanks to Windy for all his work, hospitality, and effort into making it another memorable ride. Thanks to Bill (No Name Man) for leading the group, Ray and Melissa for their hospitality and BBQ, and the entire crew that was there this year to make it one to remember. No one got hurt, no one got trailered, no one went down (on the official ride anyways ).......success!

NO ass-less chaps were seen!

'til next time!

Cheers,

Steve

Well, we made it home bout 10:30 last night (monday) . Crossed GA line at 11ish n Linda commenced to shopping... 3 hrs later head south n hit Atlanta round 5 PM! Hour n a half later get clear of ‘lanta n there’s an accident on our side of highway! Nother 45 min n we’re finally on our way! Only other issue was Windy’s rain of “biblical proportion” last 2 hours of drive. Had great time seeing all ya’ll again. Looks like I picked a “good” year to get the hip redone! Next year will be one for the books! See ya then, Willie n Linda

Windy, being a 24 year retired CW4 I actually know the defination of a plan... it’s a list of things that NEVER happen. Linda said she’ll leave a note for Noah at church sunday to see about getting a trailer hitch installed on the ark next year “just in case...” seriously, thanks for continuing to carry the torch n allow this ride to live on! The hard work you put in everybyear is GREATLY appreciated. Let’s start recruiting some “new blood” and keep this tradition alive! See ya’ll next year! Cheers, W n L

So son Alec and I packed up and geared up and headed out for Blowing Rock. It was raining when we started, but we had faith that the sun would come out soon ….





A foolish hope! Two hundred and seventy miles, and raining all the time. Three diversions by firemen and police to route us around washed out roads. Once, I thought I’d broken down, but two things had happened at once; the little screw-on cap on the top of one plug onto which the actual boot connection clips had come loose, and my choke lever had vibrated to “Choke”. So after taking out and cleaning the plugs, and tightening up the friction lever for the choke, we soldiered on.

And made it safely to the Blowing Rock Inn …



Where we found people and bikes of all types and from all over. This is MikeG’s nice A10, with Bill Edwards’ Firebird and Trophy 900 in the background.



Here’s Mike Baker’s streettracker Triumph, Bill Edward’s B50, and Messeurs Whatley, Baker, Gordon, and Duke on the porch …



The porches were popular, since rain wasn’t pouring into them, as David, Bob, Windy, Steve, and RF find ….



Breakfast at 0700 before the ride is always popular, and is as good as ever from the days when it was “Knights on Main”:



Always have to have a picture of No Name Man tackling his grub; he’d feel terrible if we left it out, I’m sure. However, we did NOT stack a bunch of plates in front of him, and I’ll testify that it was no more than anyone else had!



More .....

Time to get on the road, no matter how wet. Mr. Gumby fires up his gnarly 1962 BSA Star, which he already rode 300 miles in the rain up from Atlanta ….



Some of the other bikes going out. Note an RZ350, a Ducati (two actually), an old Airhead, and quite a few other types.



An “unsung Service Star” to the guys (notably including Willy Whyte and No Name Man) who brought extra bikes (Willy a 750 Duc Monster “HoDuc” and NNM a B50 and a modern Trident) for people to ride if their original ride broke down, or they didn’t have a bike. I’ve taken advantage of that thoughtfulness before!

Two new folks on the ride - “Cat” (a lovely Irish lass on a CB1100 that she handled like a pro, and “Tom” from Quincy MA). Lots of GoPros and other borg-like accessories there I see, perhaps we’ll get a video or movie of some monsoon riding? It was great to have them come all the way from MA to ride with us.



David from Atlanta, Semper G, and Bill NNM Edwards ready to go …



The Whatley brothers looking determined and ready …. also after a 300 mile rain-ride the day before … There's 106 miles back to Blowing Rock,, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark out, and we're wearing sunglasses.



I won’t go into too much detail about what happened next, but it included washed-out roads, impenetrable fog, pouring rain, police roadblocks, rivers in the road, mudslides, gravel, tree branches and a re-group back at the motel after 25 miles. About 12 of the group decided to head back out toward the lunch stop via a different road and take a chance. Some of us … did not. Willy and I were kicked back on the porch, when Richrd came in from sending a breakdown rescue (he with the Tilley hat and cigar)



and suggested we three head over the mountain and have lunch. So we did – a good sandwich at the Ham Shoppe, and a stop at the Mast General Store back porch to get out of the rain and listen to some bluegrass music -






… but then it was back into the rain to Blowing Rock.

More ....

Cat was probably describing the size of the boulders in the road ….



Mike and Windy consider tonight’s plans …



Cat and MikeG sort out the issues while Steve holds forth (don’t mention the war!) in front of my wet Norton ..



and Bill has an idea …


So this is the “after the fact” picture of the remains of slaw, beans, pulled pork, and chicken that we devoured at 1800 – too busy eating prior to that to take pics …



Late at night, the crew gathered on the villa veranda (sounds like an Italian race bike) to discuss the world of bikes, mice, and men. The blurriness is NOT my fault, it was wet, dark, and NNM was passing a bottle of whiskey around, so there were some blurry people …



Bill NNM, Bill Semper Gumby and I sat up until 2:00 in the morning deciding how the universe began and whether there really is a 2000 year conspiracy that’s coming to a climax and all like that. We agreed to disagree in a most engaging manner, and I left with a homework assignment.

Now it’s Sunday morning (0600 came early as you can imagine). Bill is trying to figure out what that bright thing in the sky is, and drying out his ‘62 A65 dresser for the ride home.



Richrd is considering the fact that he has a 1200 MILE ride home starting in a few minutes on his Interceptor, and might possibly be thinking about power windows, CD players, air-conditioners, and lumbar-support seats at some point ….



Alec and I had a 7-hour ride home in the hot bright sunshine – sweaty but no complaints. First hundred miles was on the Blue Ridge Parkway ….





Then two-lane roads the rest of the way … little churches ….



Occasional rest stops – we’re in no hurry ….



and anticipation of some good riding ahead. Just a note for you locals – VA40 from Woolwine to Ferrum is a really nice motorcycling road …



Nearing home – here’s the Staunton River, normally a placid quiet stream about ¼ this size, trying to carry away all the water and mud we rode through …



and home. Looking forward to next year already!

Lannis

the trip out started as "seemingly" normal. The weather across Iowa was to be wet and chilly so I decided to drop south a hundred miles and run state highway across Missery. 4 blocks later the Norton (bitch) lost forward motion. The hub separated enough to let the hub chew up the cush rubbers. could have been an easy fix but it would have bothered me not knowing why. Next choice was the tried and true Bstrom. But I let someone talk me into the new and untried vfr. great bike, fantastic handling and enough power to get me in trouble. 50 miles down the road I'm cussing the seat and a hundred miles I'm cussing the Zero Gravity wind screen. Monday morning I'm telling sob stories to MRA and Sargent seats.

Arrived at Wendys on tuesday and spent the rest off the week riding and exploring, mostly in rain.

Blowing rock found a new seat and screen in the motel, got tired of rain, found a different kind of cat, I might have to try to find one. Glenlivet makes a good scotch. Two smokes are special. the new seat was good for 200 miles. something in the crawford ill. motel room chewed the hell out of me, waking me up at 3;30. Found out my underwear had some rough seams so turned them inside out. (might invest in some seamless bicycle shorts, and the Wrangler jeans were traded for levis, a big improvement.

So this was the worst year I had at the tsmr, wouldn't have missed it for anything and had fun as always. But really, let's not do it this way again.

As always, I can find great roads to ride a lot closer but it wouldn't be the same without all of you.

Is it time to do it again?

Nice report Lannis...and a good time was had by, maybe not all but me anyway.

Thanks for the pix's Lannis. Glad you folks had a good time and all got through the ride and to and from home ok

All's well that ends well, as they say ..... !

Lannis

A group shot of the intrepid wet riders of TSMR 2018. Unfortunately No Name Bill was not in the shot....my apologies

ME TOO!!. And thanks for the full photo shoot Lannis. I always bring a camera but never seem to get decent shots and put them into proper narrative context.

Hey, I only missed it again because I had to finish eating...

Time to put away Commando. We've found a new Cat !

Kat, not Cat, and Alec, not Alex!

Cheers,

Steve

She was about to give me a big hug for showing them the Goat Path.

Just so new readers won't be confused, the Goat Path is not some weird Buddhist/Baphomet fusion ... it's the Three State Mountain ride name for the stretch of NC194 between Matney and Valle Crucis .... !

Lannis

Thanks for the pics and report, Lannis! I missed the ride this year for one good reason. Did (part of) the Mid Atlantic BDR on an R1200GS I recently acquired. 1400 miles over 6 days!
I’m glad everybody faired well at the TSMR and looking forward to next year’s ride with my son on his (new to him) Multistrada.
Stay well and Godspeed!

first to arrive at switchback creek


my favorite sign






I'll let you write the caption



the kid was heard muttering something about "somebody shoot me if I ever get that old"


fog glasses?




new rider retention system

Thanks for the pics Rich!

Likewise

The second pic is my favourite