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| February 2002 | Louisiana HSTA Newsletter | Bob Chappuis, Editor |
We wish to give new member Sean Smith a hearty welcome to the club! Sean lives in Bossier City and rides an ST1100 Honda. Also, at this time I would like to welcome some new Members of Households, who in recent months I neglected to welcome. Welcome Sherri Ourso of Baton Rouge and and Tammy St. Pierre of Montz and please accept my apologies!.
By the time you read this members Bill Ellis and Sherri Ourso have tied the knot of matrimony. Bill joined our Feb. 17 Baton Rouge Sunday ride group for coffee and revealed the happy news. The newlyweds should be just returning from cruising the Caribean Sea in Honeymoon bliss as you read this.
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By Bob Chappuis
Sunday, February 17 was just about a perfect day for a ride. It started pretty cool as I left St. Francisville at 8:00 am to meet the group at Starbuck's in Baton Rouge but by our 10:00 am departure the sun had warmed things up and the cord for my electric vest was tucked away in a pocket. Just three bikes this morning as Bill Ellis who dropped by to chat and drink coffee was too busy planning his wedding and honemoon as mentioned above to ride with us. But Mark Galyean and his rider Lynn were present on the Yeller VFR and Bobby Graham was ready to ride on his EX500 Kawasaki.
We had a brisk jaunt down River Road to Plaquemine Point where we ferried across the Mighty Mississippi. From Plaquemine we turned left on Hwy 77 and followed Bayou Gros Tete to Livonia, stopping for barge traffic on Grand River. Lynn, who knows the back roads as well as anyone recommended Camilles Cajun Restuarant for lunch so we headed east a few miles on Hwy 190 to Erwinville. Everybody had one of their great crawfish poboys, yum! From there it was back to 77 and Fordoche and Morganza. One of the objectives for the day was to check the approach road to the Melville Ferry, one of the very few Southern crossings of the Red River other than boring I-10 and Highway 190. This crossing, if feasible, would open up some interesting cross-state routes. Unfortunately the ferry only runs part time and the approach road is still gravel.
Mark showed us a back road from Morganza to the St. Francisville Ferry and we crossed the river a second time. From St. Francisville we headed North a few miles on 61 to Angola Road, which we followed for a few miles to Irondale Road. Irondale is not much wider than a paved golf cart path and very twisty and hilly. We meandered through some beautiful woods up to Lake Rosemound near the State line, then across 61 onto some more cart paths through the back woods. We ended up on 967 (Jackson-Woodville Rd) which took us to 421, Jones-Vaugn Creek Rd, Sage Hill Rd. and home to my place on Bains Rd. What a great ride and a great day! Great weather, great bikes, great roads, great food and great friends.
Mystery Tour '01
By Tony Crowell
Since 1979 Uncle Fred and I have sport-toured over quite a bit of the lower 48. A variety of states on a variety of motorcycles. Normally, as soon as the trip is over we start talking about where we're going to ride the next year. This is generally followed by a year's worth of meticulous planning. Then, a few months before the trip, those plans are changed and the never ending planning continues right up until the start of the trip.I usually gather the maps, plan the stops, and arrange the lodging, while Fred sits back and enjoys the ride. But for me, the planning is part of the fun. I practice packing over and over again and usually re-pack in mid-tour.
This year I decided to try something different. Fred had mentioned he wanted to go to Deal's Gap. Great idea. But…what route to take? Through the years we have ridden every imaginable route to the Smokies/Deal's Gap area. This time I planned a route to the Gap by way of Cincinnatti,Ohio. Furthermore I declined to tell Fred where we were going and wouldn't even let him see a map. Hence… the mystery tour.
For this trip, Fred would be riding a '95 CBR1000F and I would be aboard my '99 CBR1100XX. The first part of my trip is always to Fred's house on Lake Claiborne near Homer, LA. I live in Baton Rouge, so it's just a leisurely 255 mile jaunt up to his place.We departed his place about 7am on May 12th and pointed the bikes north into Arkansas. A beautiful, sunny day with perfect temperatures. Anyone who has ridden in Arkansas knows that they have some of the best roads in the nation but, the first half of our day was spent on the boring US167 from the state line all the way to Judsonia. There, we hopped onto AR 157, a very nice little road that sweeps through little villages like Providence and Oil Trough. Not exactly the Pig Trail, but nice sweepers, good pavement and scenery.
Onto AR 25, past Lake Charles State Park and a stop at one of our favorite BBQ shacks at the intersection of US62 and 63/412 at Imboden. After a full belly, it was west on US62 to Hardy to find a motel. We found in a nice little place just east of town. The only problem…no Weather Channel. In recent years, I have found that I have grown so dependent on their color weather radar that I'm afraid I've developed an addiction. Anyway, there's always local TV weather right?
The next morning, more blue sky, but cool temps. Well, cool for me anyway. Temps in the low 50's. This brings the heavy gloves out of Givi saddlebags for me. Fred stays with ventilated summer gloves. He must have a built-in body heater. The only time I've ever seen him put on the electric vest was in a July snowstorm in Rocky Mountain National Park.
As we mount up Fred says "which way"? I replied, "You'll see". We crossed into Missouri and followed the up and down of MO142 over to Doniphan. From there it was fairly boring across US60 and the cotton/soybean fields of the Missouri Bootheel. We crossed into Kentucky over the old bridges of US60/62/51. I try to avoid the Interstate if possible and I ALWAYS take the old US highway bridges. (I'm still angry that they closed the old Vicksburg US80 bridge). Over to Paducah and ontoUS68 across the land between the lakes region. US68 is pleasant through here but not as curvy as the section from Glasgow to Lexington.
My destination for tonight is Cave City, KY. Why? Because the Wigwam Village is located there. The Wigwams in Wigwam Village are actually a series of concrete Teepees arranged in a semi circle. They were built in 1937 and are definitely a part of Americana. I read a story about them when I was a kid and have always wanted to stay there. They used to be scattered all over the country prior to the Interstate system, now there are only three left. Cave City, Holbrook, AZ and Rialto, CA. The one in Cave City was the second one ever built. As expected, the accommodations were modest, but what the heck, it was AMERICANA!
Perfect weather greeted us the next morning for our next leg of the trip, still not letting on to our intended destination we rode north on US31E toward Louisville. Nice rolling hills through quaint little towns. Bardstown was particularly pretty. From Louisville we rode US42 northeast to our to our next stop, Covington, KY. We found a great place to stay at the Raddison downtown and only a short bus ride from our night-time entertainment across the river at riverfront stadium. We had good seats to see the Reds lose to the Arizona Diamonbacks.
Before departing Covington the next morning, a check of the local weather showed a scattering of rain all around the area. We decided to head south on I-75 to get out of the immediate area as quick as possible to avoid unwanted wetness. A good decision, because, by the time we reached Lexington, blue sky was everywhere. US68 and 127 traverse beautiful bluegrass country. Lots of nice curvy roads just south of Lexington on US68.
Into Tennessee on US127 and some great curves for about the first 15 miles, then a fairly boring ride into our stop for the night in Crossville. From Crossville a quick hop on I-40 took us to US321 and then onto the fabulous US129. Heading from west to east towards the gap, we were traveling at a fairly sedate pace…until. Just as we reached the first section of curvy road, two locals on ZX9R's passed us. I say locals because neither had even a tank bag and both had Tennessee plates. Anyway, the gauntlet had been thrown down.
Even though I was loaded down with saddlebags, tank and tail bags I still thought it my duty to defend the honor of the Blackbird and chase the Kawasaki's down.
I caught up with the boys after the first several curves and hung on to their tails for a while. About halfway to the Gap, the ZX9 that I was directly behind overcooked a right hand corner and skidded to a stop just before colliding with the wall of the mountain. As he was cleaning out his leathers, I continued after the first place? ZX9. I was making good progress and had motored to within about two bike-lengths when he made the same mistake as his partner. The only difference is that he wasn't able to stop and DID collide with the wall. Even though Uncle Fred would not engage in such foolishness, when I slowed to help the crashed rider he was miraculously behind me. Who says old guys can't ride fast. We helped the guy get his bike up and saw that he was fine (medically speaking).
At that point I realized how tired I was. Wrestling a fully loaded Blackbird through the gap is tiring work. My forearms and hands were worn out. Luckily, the Sport Touring Accessories store was just around the corner from all this mayhem. We rested up there while drooling over all the cool machinery in the parking lot and accessories in the store.
I even bought a taller windscreen there and they mailed my old Givi screen back to Baton Rouge for me. After all that excitement we rode at a more leisurely pace down US129 and 19 then onto 64 for the nights stay in Cleveland, Tennessee.
Still good weather for our penultimate travel day. From Cleveland to Chattanooga, through the corner of Georgia on the interstate and into Alabama on the back roads. AL 71 to 40 to 79 and then AL 69 all the way to Tuscaloosa. Its only about 550 miles from Cleveland to BR, but the heat was starting to build, with a corresponding loss of endurance and enthusiasm. We decided to call it an early day in Meridian, MS.
The next morning I was sort of depressed for two reasons. One, the trip was coming to an end; and two, the weather channel radar showed nasty patches of green over much of our intended route home. We had been lucky with the rain so far but this did not look good. We left Meridian heading west on I-20. Our plan was to ride together until just past Jackson. Just west of there we would split up and I would take the Natchez Trace Parkway home while Uncle Fred would continue on I-20. We both arrived at our destinations within about an hour of each other and then made the obligatory phone calls to each other to see if we both made it home.
Even though the clouds threatened rain, this was the first tour that we didn't get a single raindrop. We were very lucky. It caused me to reflect on our first tour in 1979 in which we rode all the way from Atlanta, GA to Arcadia, LA in what seemed like the world largest non-moving thunderstorm.
As usual we both had a great time and the bikes worked perfectly. Now, after the bikes are washed and waxed and we rest up a few days begins the planning process for next summer's tour. See you on the road.
Editors note: Bud mentioned that he would be unable to lead a ride during February as he would be busy riding his Goldwing in 5 Mardi Gras parades. I thought it would be interesting to hear what this was like so I asked Bud for a brief write-up and the following is the result.
At our first ever meeting of the GWRRA Chapter K, the subject of riding in the Mardi Gras parades came up. I raised my hand and asked "Could that really be any fun? Go two miles per hour for a few feet, stop and wait, then go two miles per hour for a few feet, stop and wait, then repeat?" Well, let me tell you, if you can't have fun riding in a parade, especially the night before Fat Tuesday, check your pulse! What is so fun about it, you ask? Many things, but mainly the expression on someone's face that says "No one even knows I'm here and I'll never catch a bead." I single out that person and throw a bead right at him - and miss, then another - and miss, then another - closer, then another - BINGO, I got him! Then another, a hit, and another, a third hit. He and the crowd around him are into it now and they are loving it! The parade moves again and I have to go. I have interacted with a complete stranger and changed his mood and that of others, with beads!
Now I spot a kid perched on a ladder seat. His folks put him up there, but if the bead chucker doesn't score a direct hit, his beads go to the ground around him. Everyone around him is frantic. He sees that the guy on the big, red motorcycle is still throwing at him. He's waving his arms and really trying to catch one now. He feels his mom climbing the ladder behind him. She catches one and hands it to him. It's not as good as catching it himself, but what the heck! He screams, "The motorcycle guy is still throwing to ME! Here comes another one. WOW! I caught it!!" WAY COOL!!
The parade begins to move again. Shift into gear and accelerate fast. There are a thousand faces to the left and right whizzing by, all of them screaming in stereo. This is absolutely incredible!! Another opportunity to develop temporary friends at each stop. We have only gone a few blocks since the parade began and this is so much fun, like another world that you know will end in a few hours, but right now, we're in the middle of it and what a rush!
All the wondering about whether or not my bike would overheat? Would I damage the engine? Would my clutch hand hold up? Can I leave if I hate it? Would Dale (my co-pilot wife) like it? Would it rain? Would the beads be too expensive? All of that melted away, and it was a special kind of fun we have never before had on our Wing. The way I look at it, what could be better? Others join a krewe, pay dues, work on a float or truck during the year, go to meetings, make costumes, buy beads and, if it rains - well, let's not go there. We don't have to do all of that, simply buy beads. If it rains - don't go. We get to ride our beautiful Gold Wing, the best looking one in the club (Hey, it's my article!), show it off to all those people, many of which say "Man, that's a beautiful bike you have there!" You know it makes some of them want to get one and join our merry K band.
We figured out that $80 worth of decent beads for the two of us allows us to throw to our heart's content for the duration of the parade. We can buy cheaper beads, but they don't throw well and no one really wants them. We have found that the 8mm 24" and 33" beads are the best for throwing. Any longer and they tangle, too much time is spent separating them. The real long pearls are great to hang around the neck. All we have to do is reach for them and the crowd goes wild. Again, you can have fun working the crowd. We found it fun to play games like point to one person and then throw to the person next to them, and then do the opposite. They really get into it, especially the kids.
I was warned beforehand that I should pull the fuse to the headlight because a few hours of low rpm operation would not keep the battery voltage up and the engine could kill and not restart. For the first two parades, I did pull the fuse. I did not, however, for the Bards parade and the engine quit three blocks from the end of the parade. It was a pretty humbling experience to push my bike a block with hundreds of people watching and yelling "Get a Harley!" and other such things. Thanks to a jump from a prepared fellow rider, I was on my way quickly without further problems.
As you can tell, we will be riding all possible parades in the coming years, fully loaded with beads and enthusiasm.
Bud and Dale Logan
P.S. This article was written in '99. Thus far I calculate that we have ridden aproximately sixteen parades and we are looking forward to MG '03.
I am getting ready to ride down to Daytona Beach for Bike Week. I will try to get a March ride planned for the Baton Rouge area when I get back. Anyone who is not accessible via email and would like to participate give me a call and I will add you to my cell phone list (Free Long Distance!) I will also start planning the May Membership Lunch Meeting in Alexandria.
Bud will lead a COUPLES RIDE to the north shore and will meet at Shoney's just South of I-10 at the Clearview exit on at 9AM Sunday, March 10, 2002. A passenger is not mandatory but the idea for these couples rides to stick to a pace that is designed to not terrify a passenger, although if you have ridden with Bud you know you will not be bored.
There will also be a RED BLUFF RUN, with a more "spirited" pace on Sunday, March 24. Same meeting place and time.
gotta run...KEEP IN TOUCH!
chappuis@demco.net (225)635-3171 Home (225)281-0799 Cell
and Ride Safe,
Bob Chappuis