Maggie Valley - Fontana Dam

It was a little cooler this morning with overcast skies, but there was no rain forecast. They are calling for 60% chance of thunderstorms tomorrow so we felt the need to get some riding in today. I posted the preview blog photos for Sherm and everyone.

Tbone show me how to clean a bike

We had decided to ride at 8:30 and, typically, we got underway just before 9:00 AM. Blondy and her Escape led Sandy & I, Mikey, Wrong Turn & KT and Tbone over US 19 through Maggie Valley and on to Bryson City, where we found Cheap B's 2000 sitting out front. I had sent a message yesterday saying where we would be and he got it. While we were eating, Southern Draw showed up riding his wife's pink and white Ridley. Low to the ground with a Continuously Variable Transmission like a snowmobile, this was an unusual machine. Butch and Teresa rolled in soon after on their Nomad.

Everett Street Diner - Bryson City North Carolina

The Ridley

For those who don't know what it is

  

Teresa, Butch and Mikey

Blondy, Cheap B and (beardless) Southern Draw

After breakfast, Blondy decided to head back to Maggie Valley while the rest of us followed Cheap B to Kickstand Lodge. Mo wasn't there, so we left a note on the counter in a prominent place.

VROC at Kickstand Lodge

Wrong Turn, Cheap B, KT and Sandy

From KSL, we continued up Highway 28, aka the Hellbender, to the Fontana Dam. This week, Becky and Benny Miller were the volunteers manning the Visitors Center. Benny had finished the last eight years of his career working on this dam for the Tennessee Valley Authority. the water level behind the dam this year was as high as I have ever seen.

At the Fontana Dam

Butch and Teresa decided to head on up 28 to Deal's Gap while Tbone left for Wheeler's in Robbinsville to get a new front tire. The rest of us followed Wrong Turn back down 28, stopping again at KSL where Mo was still not to be found. Starting back up at KSL, my Zumo GPS wasn't working right. The music wasn't playing although it was skipping through the song list and it couldn't figure out where we were relative to the road, even though it knew our speed and direction. Then it stopped mapping altogether. I thought about it and figured that the maps and the music were both stored on the SD card, so that was probably the problem. This wasn't something to tinker with at 75 MPH.

We stopped for gas in Bryson City where I pulled the SD card out and reseated it. Viola, as CYborg would say. All was well again. Mikey led us back along US 19 through Cherokee and up over to Soco Gap to the Applecover, where more people had been rolling in. I managed to get two more blog entries finished as I considered the balance between recording an event and participating in it.

The eagles are gathering

Carolyn observing Southern Draw's computer technique

Stephanie and Kevin's stomach

Evil, KT, Wrong Turn, Cheap B, Badger and Blondy

Evil's licence plate

The Meet and Greet was scheduled for 5:00 PM at Hurley's. It wasn't far so we walked over and found a table outside by the creek. Our whole table was made up of people who were on the Chincoteague run at WWR last year. Us, Cheap B, Tbone, Southern Draw and Carolyn. The food was good and the mood was jovial. We will not talk about Phillip's coming out event except to say that Southern Draw played both ends against the middle and we got a good laugh out of watching it unfold. Phillip called Jaime right after to warn her just in case I provided more details than this in the blog.

Hurley's By The Creek

Jax recording the event

Our table

Willie Wonka and The Lovely Carlene

Jim Thomas

St. Montene wondering where Wompus is

Susan looking for something with Badger and Blondy

Gail and Phillip

Stephanie, Lon, Gail and Kevin

Mikey, KT, Wrong Turn and Linda

A double Southern Comfort

Cheap B and Les the Waiter

Rainman and Daley

Strider joined us

After the festivities, we wandered back to the Applecover for more festivities. Several people made generous donations to my MS Walk next week. We sat around talking and catching up while I managed to take a few photos.

Sandy and Flip

Cheap B and Southern Draw

Tbone and Phillip

Kudzu and KT

Bassman and Laura

Charlie and Christie

Jax, Neppy and his wife

Wrong Turn, Susan and Blondy with Badger cleaning his bike

Wompus, Mikey, Linda and Montene

Red Rover and his wife Debbi (her first VROC rally)

Around 10:30, some of us moved over in front of our room to thrash out the problems of the world. This continued until about 11:30 when I followed Sandy off to bed. I heard  few diehards hung out at the fire for a couple of more hours.

Today's Route (117 motorcycle miles):


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