I first attended this rally in 2009, Quite the journey! about 2100 miles from my house.
After that initial trip had to plan a return trip. The 100th anniversary the perfect time.
This rally started in 1917, In the early years, a hillclimb event.
Started planning this trip many months back. Rally the troops? Who is in? “Jetson “ from Denver, I’m in. “Speechless” from Victoria, count me in. “Speechless”, Gave him the name right after I met him. Meet him you will understand. Doesn’t come up for air very often!
The date was set, June the 9th, was the departure date. “Speechless” would meet me in Fredericksburg on the 9th 7:30 am. “Jetson” would meet us on the road somewhere in West Virginia.
The date finally arrives, “Rock & Roll,” Always great to hit the road. New sites and sounds.
Roll east thru Johnson City and turn north. Run to Lampasas, catch Hwy 190 run thru Ft Hood. The name of the camp has been changed since I went thru there. Anyway , to Belton we go. Connect I-35 at Temple. Just north of Waco cut off on Hwy 31. Good road all the way to Tyler. Just north of Tyler catch Hwy 271. This road takes us to I-30 at Mount Pleasant. We roll east, destination, Memphis for the night, only 700 miles for the day. No hill for a stepper! The heat is brutal, every gas stop, water and Gatorade. We forged ahead, the sun is at our backs, that makes the travel a little easier.
We are making good time, hope to arrive before dark. We are slowed down in the Little Rock area because of so many trucks. All well part of the trip Roll into down Memphis around 7:30. Locate our hotel down at the end of Beale street. Walking distance to the main drag. Check in, where can we park the bikes? The parking garage, of course. Just a $25 charge! Per bike! I don’t think so! They finally said, “Yall can park right out front” That’s better!
We unload our gear and head up to Beale street. They have security at the entrance to the street. There is a $5 charge to get on the street. I think that is illegal? But what do I know! Empty your pockets! “You can’t have a knife in here” Back to the hotel to dump our knives!
We return to enjoy a little of the night life. Get a little dinner first and a few cold brews, been a long hot day. We caught a little music down the block, all good. Head back to the hotel for a little shuteye. “Speechless” tried the shower! no hot water! Are you kidding? $200 a night room and no hot water! At least by morning the problem had been solved.
We were promised breakfast in the morning, 6:30. At 7:30 still no coffee or breakfast! What’s the deal, You got to go to the breakfast bar! Finally got some food, at a charge no doubt. $43 bucks later!!
Time to get out of “Dodge” Probably last time at that hotel!
Got in touch with “Jetson” he was somewhere in Missouri. “Get a room in Charleston West Virginia” Another 600 mile plus day ahead. We head out on I-40 to Nashville, turn north at Nashville towards Bowling Green, Kentucky. At least the weather is cooler and the scenery is great.
We travel to Lexington, Kentucky. I seem to get lost every time I go thru Lexington. Not to be disappointed. Get off track as usual. Get separated from “speechless” in town. Finally connect back up 40 miles down the road. Thank God for cell phones!
Touch base with “Jetson” He is in Charleston, Has a room secured on the north side of Charleston. Perfect! We arrive around 7:30, wore down from a long day again. Nice restaurant next door how handy! Locally owned, good down home chow! After some good food and cold beverage time for some rest. Get ready for the next days adventure!
Up early and head northward. We catch I-79 just out of town and continue to Morgantown. At Morgantown we get separated, “Jetson” and myself continue on northward, “Speechless” turns east on I-68. After about 30 minutes we reconnect. We continue on I-68 to Hwy 219. Tyhis road will lead us all the way to Niagara Falls. We arrive in Niagara Falls around 6 pm. My first trip to the falls, pretty awesome! Parking was an issue, took quite some time to locate a spot. Lot of the area under construction, direction to the falls was kinda unclear. Follow the sound of the rushing water!
Beautiful view, they say the Canadian side is better. That’s ok I will stay in the U.S.
Enjoyed the view for a bit. “Time to roll” Too many people for me! Roll east, Laconia, here we come! Ride maybe an hour east and secure a room. Nice bar and grill right down the street. Strawberry margaritas are the specials tonight. Wow that and a good steak hit the spot. That will put you down for the count after a long day on the road. I’m done, bed time. We got another hard day tomorrow before we reach Laconia.
Next morning, on the road by 8 am., Traveling east on I-90 towards Lake George. Great scenery!
“Speechless’ is leading the way, we know who to blame when we get lost? That damn GPS, that will lead you on a wild goose chase! We catch Hwy 4 in the edge of Vermont. We weave and wind across the state, not sure where we are at! follow the leader what more can you do?
Make it into New Hampshire, We are getting closer to the destination. The town of Lincoln is north of Laconia about 50 miles. Our motel is located in Lincoln, Just out of Woodstock!
We arrive at around 7 pm. Unpack our gear and head for the local pub. Just down the street. Park our bikes out back, brew and food sounds good after a long day on the road. Kinda pricey, 11 bucks for a brew, 25 for burger and fries! Bidenomics at work!! “Turn out the lights” time for a good nights rest!
Next morning, up early 6 am, breakfast at motel. Off to Laconia at 8 am, about a one hour ride to the venue. Arrive at Weir’s Beach around 9 am. plenty of parking at this hour. Walk the streets checking out all the merchandise. The streets are lined with vendors. Lot’s to see, also across the street, music venues as well. Start the day with a few Bloody Marys, always good.
There’s also a hill climb in process at the edge of the main drag. All vintage bikes competing. All vintage riders as well!
As the day moves along we meet people from all over. You know “Speechless”, never met a stranger! Met a couple from Boston, Fred and Wendy, Hung with the couple most of the day. Moved across the street to the music venues. Met Jack Schit! He’s kinda a promoter of one of the music venues. We make a few more stops, time to head back to Lincoln.
Next morning Mount Washington is on the menu. About a 2 hr. ride north. It’s about a 8 mile trip to the top. No cash! $30 card charge per bike! We head up the mountain, clear at the base, half way up clouds and fog! Reach the summit, parking lot large stones, not good for bikes. Fog so thick can’t see 50 ft. Bad for photos! Hit the gift shops for trinkets. The highest wind ever recorded in the U.S. was here in 1932 at 237 mph. I’m glad it wasn’t that strong today! Make our way back down the mountain, much easier going down.
On the way back “Speechless” has a problem with his voltage regulator. We locate a bike shop, they just sold the last one a few minutes before we arrive, don’t figure! Locate another shop by Woodstock, the guy says maybe? We locate the shop, boxes and boxes of parts. Finally locate one still in the original box. Cut a deal and head back to install. It works but now need a new battery! At least we are not out in the middle of nowhere!. Got everything installed, we are ready for tomorrow.
Next day we head to a biker bar called Bentleys, its located down on the coast of Maine. We take the scenic route thru Hwy 112 and the Kancamaqgus Highway. Work our way down to the Kennebunkport area.
Bentleys is large open air venue, with food, drink, and music. Great place.
“Speechless,” right off the bat, meets the owner also introduces us to Rusty Wallace of Nascar fame. I guess talking a lot has its advantages! After visiting with these guys, they take us back to Bentleys Museum. Cars, Trucks and Bikes, two large buildings full of vintage items. We got the VIP treatment! Amazing!
After hours of music, food, and drink, it’s time to roll back to Lincoln. We arrive after dark, I prefer not to ride after dark, sometimes can’t be avoided.
One more trip to Laconia before we leave New Hampshire. Arrive around 10:30. Parking is a problem, finally we all find a spot. Do our final shopping, more socializing, attend several music venues, run into Fred and Wendy again, good people, hope they make it to Texas one day. Catch another music venue on the way out of town. Roll back to the motel and visit with some of the riders staying there. I think we get the long distance award.
Next morning time to depart. “Jetson” heads south, “Speechless “ and myself head northeast. We work our way back to the Lake George area and then south to Albany. Secure a room west of that area. “Speehless” says there is a rally going on just west of us! Let’s check it out tomorrow! It’s called the Harley Rendezvous Classic. Turns out it’s only about 50 miles up the road. We are game! We locate the place, reminds me of the area where Woodstock was held in 1969. Roll thru the gates nobody here! Turns out we are 4 days early! The owner of the place says come on in we will put yall on staff! Well we can’t stay that long. Can you sell us a T shirt and a hat? Mind you this was Sunday morning. Come on down to the barn, no problem. Turns out this rally has been going on for 45 years. It’s a shame we couldn’t stay for it. But we had country to see! The Adirondacks was on the list. We connect with Hwy 28 and travel north. What gorgeous country, this is a bucket list must!
We connect with Hwy 30 at Blue mountain Lake and continue north. Run Hwy 30 to Malone, 10 miles from the Canada border. At Malone we head west and back south towards Watertown. Encounter a lot of Amish people on the road with their horse and buggy’s. They all wave, kinda nice to that response.
Make it to Tully for the evening just south of Syracuse. Another long day in the saddle.
Next morning, our destination is Ford City, Pa. We hope to arrive around 6 pm. Never know following the old GPS! We stay pretty much on course. We arrive around 7pm only stopping for gas.
My buddy from many years has been alerted that we are coming. Give him ample time to leave town! Captain Gary Starr and Janis are waiting. We greet and fellowship for a bit. Food time! Captain takes us to a local joint, Stanleys, Just a little hole in the wall place. The hot sausage dog is incredible! Worth the trip for it alone! Finish the evening swapping stories and good times that we have shared thru the years. Good friends can’t be replaced!
Next morning got to make tracks! Say our good byes and head south. Hwy 66 to Hwy 119 on to Uniontown. Everything was running smoothly until at one of the gas stops I notice my ignition was loose. We find the closest Harley Dealer. Hear goes “Speechless” with his GPS, We take 40 miles of backroads and pigtrails to get 10 miles of interstate! I’m ready to throw that GPS as far as I can!
Reach the Harley Dealer, Take the switch apart and align everything, seems to be good. No charge, we are on our way. Travel to Beckley for the evening. Park under the motel canopy. Switch my ignition to lock position for the evening. Next morning, guess what? It won’t unlock. 2 hours “Speechless” worked on it. Getting ready to call the local Harley shop, he finally gets it unlocked.
We are on a mission, Maggie Valley, North Carolina here we come. The home of “the Wheels Through Time Museum” We run I-77 down through Virginia and catch I-26 right out of Kingsport, Tennessee. I-26 all the way to Ashville, North Carolina. Locate a room right down from Chilis. “That’s what I’m talking about” walking distance. Have a few brews, meet a few people at the bar, “You know “Speechless,” no strangers! Make our way back to the room for a little rest, been a trying day to say the least!
Next morning, Waffle House right across the street, how handy! Get our fill and head towards Maggie Valley. Light rain begins to fall, makes the roads real slippery. We ease that way, The gate is closed! They don’t open till 10, all good.
The gates open we roll in, enter the lobby and pay. First encounter was with Andy who works there.
“Speechless” is ready, He and Andy hit it off! Hey here’s a hat for you! Wow, that’s a nice welcome. We walk in like old friends, Andy explains a lot about the bikes as we travel through the museum. We spent at least 4 hours before we left for a lunch break. When we returned, Andy says come in Matt is going to crank the Crocker! Wow this is a 20’s model bike. After draining oil out, he gets it going. Pretty amazing! Matt and Andy were very informative about everything! I want to personally thank them for their hospitality! Had to drag “Speechless” out of there around 5 pm. Can enjoy only so much in one day.
Time to head out and make our way back towards Texas. We travel back through Knoxville to avoid the rain back toward the “Dragons Tail”. Connect I-40 over by Knoxville and run west to Cleveland. Get a room in Cleveland, and rest up for tomorrow’s journey.
Next morning, Chattanooga and I-75 west. Catch I-59 on the west side of Chattanooga. Continue on I-59 down through Birmingham and Tuscaloosa into Mississippi. At Meridian, Mississippi, “Speechless” is heading south and I’m heading west. At last gas stop, “See you back in Texas” been a great journey!
Make it to Vicksburg, the temp has changed! upper 90’s maybe even 100. Lot’s of water and Gatorade required! Continue on I-20 into Shreveport. At Longview, call my long time friend “Snowman.” He lives outside Tyler. He says come on by, spend the night. Sounds like a plan. Get to the edge of Tyler, rain! lucky it just went through. Still some lightning! Make the loop west of town, avoid most of the rain.
Arrive and visit for awhile, been friends over 40 years. Talk about trips we use to take and events we attended. Turn in for a good nights rest!
Next morning, it’s the home stretch, back down Hwy 31. Make a quick stop at “Jims” in Axtell, I had never stopped there. Friendly folk! Back on the road for the final stretch. Back to Fredericksburg and Pecan Grove, time for a cold Shiner!
Arrive home a little later, good to see the wife , and dogs and cats!
A 15 day journey, 5900 miles, met some great people and saw some amazing sights!
Like I always say live life to the hilt you never know when it’s your last trip!
RIDE FREE AND RIDE OFTEN “DAD”
Dad@HDDadsTravels.com
HDDadsTravels.com
