We had a great trip this year! Joe (Honda ST1300), Kathy (Can-Am Spyder RTS) , Sam (Honda VTX1300) & Buck (Dark Red GoldWing) met up with Ed & Jean (from Michigan on Black GoldWing) on Day 1 in Morgantown, WV. The Microtel Inn was a nice room to stay in. Jean's shown finishing her college finals while Ed watches, in bed! It was a long ride for everyone, but the weather was good.
On Day 2 we headed for Manassas, VA and met up with "GoldWing Charlie" who rode up from Kentucky. We made many new friends at the Super 8 that were there to attend Rolling Thunder.
Day 3 we headed out to Washington DC, and you will see as we arrive the attendance of motorcycles were in the hundred of thousands. We started out on Constitution Avenue, to the Viet Nam Wall where there were many mementoes left for those fallen heroes. Jean had a list of her brothers fallen comrades, and was able to get all the names from the wall with the help of the volunteers. The three soldiers memorial is under re-constructionr, so the photo is through glass. At the memorial to the nurses, we met up with two Gold Star mothers, whose sons had died in Viet Nam. Next the World War II Memorial which is awesome to see. We took a photo of Buck by the 101st Airborne wreath (notice his 101st patch on his uniform). At the Korean Memorial Sam met a couple of Korean War Veterans, and got their photo. We visited Thunder Alley for mementoes of the occasion.
Day 4 (Sunday) we headed back to DC for the Rolling Thunder demonstration, which lasted from noon - 3:30. The estimate was 900,000 bikes over the week-end, with a guess that about 200,000 participated in the demonstration. We hung around instead of getting into all the traffic leaving, and spent one more night in Manassas.
Day 5 we took off to stay the night in Fancy Gap, where we found some cabins at the Volunteer Inn & Cabins. Had we not run into rain, and then really heavy fog on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we surely would have enjoyed the atmosphere. As it happened, we were lucky to find the place! You'll see some pictures at a Shell station where tons of bikes stopped to get out of the thunder storms for awhile.
Day 6 we continued on the Blue Ridge Parkway, getting some great shots in the mountains. We headed toward Ashville, NC where we found a really clean Motel 6. It was a sunny and rainy day, but was a great ride.
Day 7 we headed into Cherokee, NC and over to the Mountaineer Restaurant - good people, good food, and good prices. The view of the Smokey Mountains from their deck is beautiful. This is where Jean begins her "bear collection" and then takes a photo op with Ed taunting a mama bear with her cub! We headed out for Deals Gap to ride the Tail of the Dragon. It was Kathy's 1st time through on the Spyder RTS model, and Sam & Ed's first trip on the dragon. We had a few Victory's behind us for a bit, but they disappeared! We found out later that they had an accident behind us, and were up & gone by the time we came back through. To see photo's of us on the dragon, you can go to these website, and search under June 3rd: www.killboy.com,
http://www.moonshinephoto.com/, and http://www.us129photos.com/
We croseed back over the mountain to Pigeon Forge, TN and found the Pink Motel. We had a terrific day, and this was a nice place at a great price. Lots of ducks there to entertain you, and out the back of the room is a stream running past.
Day 8 we went into Sieverville to the Knifeworks, where we stop every year to get blades sharpened. We said our good-byes there to Michigan Ed & Jean and later we got caught in a terrible thunder storm on the expressway. The rain came and went throughout the journey, but we continued back to Ohio. We only regret that some of our riding companions were unable to make it this year. You were missed.
Thank you to our patrons, for your support and understanding how important this annual ride is to us all. Come join us!
Joe & Kathy
On Day 2 we headed for Manassas, VA and met up with "GoldWing Charlie" who rode up from Kentucky. We made many new friends at the Super 8 that were there to attend Rolling Thunder.
Day 3 we headed out to Washington DC, and you will see as we arrive the attendance of motorcycles were in the hundred of thousands. We started out on Constitution Avenue, to the Viet Nam Wall where there were many mementoes left for those fallen heroes. Jean had a list of her brothers fallen comrades, and was able to get all the names from the wall with the help of the volunteers. The three soldiers memorial is under re-constructionr, so the photo is through glass. At the memorial to the nurses, we met up with two Gold Star mothers, whose sons had died in Viet Nam. Next the World War II Memorial which is awesome to see. We took a photo of Buck by the 101st Airborne wreath (notice his 101st patch on his uniform). At the Korean Memorial Sam met a couple of Korean War Veterans, and got their photo. We visited Thunder Alley for mementoes of the occasion.
Day 4 (Sunday) we headed back to DC for the Rolling Thunder demonstration, which lasted from noon - 3:30. The estimate was 900,000 bikes over the week-end, with a guess that about 200,000 participated in the demonstration. We hung around instead of getting into all the traffic leaving, and spent one more night in Manassas.
Day 5 we took off to stay the night in Fancy Gap, where we found some cabins at the Volunteer Inn & Cabins. Had we not run into rain, and then really heavy fog on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we surely would have enjoyed the atmosphere. As it happened, we were lucky to find the place! You'll see some pictures at a Shell station where tons of bikes stopped to get out of the thunder storms for awhile.
Day 6 we continued on the Blue Ridge Parkway, getting some great shots in the mountains. We headed toward Ashville, NC where we found a really clean Motel 6. It was a sunny and rainy day, but was a great ride.
Day 7 we headed into Cherokee, NC and over to the Mountaineer Restaurant - good people, good food, and good prices. The view of the Smokey Mountains from their deck is beautiful. This is where Jean begins her "bear collection" and then takes a photo op with Ed taunting a mama bear with her cub! We headed out for Deals Gap to ride the Tail of the Dragon. It was Kathy's 1st time through on the Spyder RTS model, and Sam & Ed's first trip on the dragon. We had a few Victory's behind us for a bit, but they disappeared! We found out later that they had an accident behind us, and were up & gone by the time we came back through. To see photo's of us on the dragon, you can go to these website, and search under June 3rd: www.killboy.com,
http://www.moonshinephoto.com/, and http://www.us129photos.com/
We croseed back over the mountain to Pigeon Forge, TN and found the Pink Motel. We had a terrific day, and this was a nice place at a great price. Lots of ducks there to entertain you, and out the back of the room is a stream running past.
Day 8 we went into Sieverville to the Knifeworks, where we stop every year to get blades sharpened. We said our good-byes there to Michigan Ed & Jean and later we got caught in a terrible thunder storm on the expressway. The rain came and went throughout the journey, but we continued back to Ohio. We only regret that some of our riding companions were unable to make it this year. You were missed.
Thank you to our patrons, for your support and understanding how important this annual ride is to us all. Come join us!
Joe & Kathy