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| October 2002 | Louisiana HSTA Newsletter | Bob Chappuis, Editor |
Recently I have had several members contact me asking if I knew of anyone going to a particular rally or if anyone was riding this weekend. Thus it occurred to me that a member's message board would be a good idea. So I have put a test message board in the members only area on the Louisiana HSTA website. Check it out in the members only area. The password is: united
The turnout was disappointing for Cajun Christmas. especially considering the great weather. Stacie and I headed out Friday morning, me on the VFR and Stacie following in the Blazer. The SV650 was not fully sorted out as I was still in the process of lowering the ride height. This allowed us to fill the back of the blazer with firewood. Drew Newcomer rode down from West Monroe on his VFR just ahead of us. David and Sherita Miller, who have attended every Cajun Christmas arrived a little later with their two beautiful and delightfully well behaved girls, Samantha & Rachel. That was it for the Louisiana members. Rick and Karen Moore, had reserved a cabin but were forced to cancel their trip at the last moment due to pressing holiday/family activity.
The 6 Texans outnumbered us (counting adults) and included first timer Bob Burditt on a Triumph Daytona riding with frequent past attendee Danny Gordon on his new Honda ST1300. Randy Martin and Jim Poulos arrived with them but had to depart early Saturday morning due to a medical emergency back home. Brad and Cinda Mobley arrived in the their van Saturday afternoon in time to enjoy the cookout and the gift exchange.
Despite the promise of chilly weather, those with bikes made plans to head out at 8:00 am. Our departure was delayed a while however while we figured out where Jim and Randy had disappeared to. They had left early in the morning without waking anyone up. It was only later that we learned of the emergency situation. (A follow up email after our return home subsequently verified that all is now back to normal).
Meanwhile back at the camp we plotted a route in search of twisties. I had put together a route that would include highway 126, an out of the way road that I believe may be one of the best motorcycling roads in Louisiana. This route would take us a bit far afield considering our 10 am departure so we compromised on just doing part of it and off the three of us rode to the North. Drew Newcomer opted to go solo and explore Evangeline St. Park and headed out in a Southward direction.
I led Randy and Bob on 3042, 106 and 115 to Marksville where we stopped for lunch. From there we took hwy 1 to 28 and 84 East a short distance to 126. A section of 126 from Manifest to near Aimwell proved to be everything I expected: twisty and smooth and with nice elevation changes. But, by now we were a good distance from camp 
and we needed to find a way home. After a few wrong turns we managed to work our way back in the general direction of Ville Platte, hitting Highway 71 at Lecompte. We headed South on 71 and at the Turkey Creek turnoff Gordon kept going straight. I was ready to get back to camp and was low on gas so I turned West and headed for Bayou Chico. Burditt followed Gordon off and we did not see that pair until near dark thirty. I had about 300 miles on my trip odometer when I got back to the cabin, a really enjoyable ride and we found some great roads.
Saturday night the small group had a roaring fire going at dusk. Bob Burditt manned the grill and masterfully charbroiled a mess of monster burgers and sausage links while Cinda Mobley heated up a crock pot full of her awesome chili. After a delicious and over abundant meal we gathered round the camp fire for the gift exchange. With the group being smaller than usual everyone was being too nice: no one seemed to want to steal any gifts. I did my best to get the group riled up but one larcenous camper can do only so much. However there were a bunch of nice gifts and I ended up with a dial type tire gauge
Well, everyone who came to Cajun Christmas 2002 had a great time despite the small turnout. Next year we will look real hard at ways to attract a larger crowd. One possibility is moving the site to North Louisiana in the hope of attracting some Arkansas members as well as more North Louisianians. As always, we are open to suggestions.
Many Thanks to member Wayne Andrus for contibuting the following story.
by Frank & Gaylynn Edler and Wayne & Margaret Andrus
The ingredients for a perfect vacation were the perfect weather, beautiful scenery, good friends, and our motorcycles, of course.
A two-day trip brought us to the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A must for a balloon enthusiast with 600 regular balloons and 200 animated balloons. We enjoyed Sunday evening watching the balloons being filled for the Night Glow. Then after all the balloons were filled and the sun went down the announcer gave a count from 10 to 1 and said all glow. At this moment the balloonist fired up their flames and the balloons all light up to reveal their colors and shapes.
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This was a beautiful sight. Then he announced to do a flicker and the balloons would light up in different sequences to reveal another pretty sight. The next morning we got to the field early to watch them fly. Again we were able to watch the balloons being filled and take to the air. As they took off a row at a time the sky became filled with balloons as far as the eye could see. After two days of enjoying the balloons, we headed west again to Arizona to see the Four Corners.
The Four Corners is the only point in the United States where four states connect (New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado). After a brief stay there and some picture taking, we headed to Kayenta, Arizona. There we took highway 163 for a fantastic ride through Monument Valley. This ride brought us to Ute Mountain Indian Reservation and into Cortez, Colorado where we spent our first night camping.
After a good night's rest, we saddled up and headed to Durango, Colorado. There we headed north on highway 550, also known as the Million Dollar Highway to begin riding the San Juan Skyway. This ride takes you through three mountain passes from Durango to Ridgway. They were Coalbank Hill Pass, Molas Divide, and Red Mountain Pass where we played in the snow. 
We then headed north again through Ouray to Ridgway. There we turned west on to Highway 62 taking us around the Dallas Divide and continuing the San Juan Skyway back to Cortez. In Cortez that night we sat around the fire and revisited the days ride with its spectacular colors of the Aspen trees against the snow capped mountains.
Since we had enjoyed yesterdays ride so much, we retraced our route going north to Montrose and on to see the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. 
After paying a small fee, we toured the park and stopped at all the overlooks. They all had spectacular views of the canyon and the Gunnison River below. This is a must see if you are in this area.
The next morning we left the canyon area on Highway 92 heading toward Crawford. This was an awesome motorcycle ride with beautiful overlooks, curvy roads, and fantastic fall colors. In Crawford we stopped at Joe Cocker's Mad Dog Café for a wonderful breakfast. With our bellies full, we headed on to Carbondale and passed through Aspen on our way to Independence Pass. At Independence Pass, we were in store for another real treat with snow everywhere. 
After taking more snapshots, we continued on to Buena Vista where we set up camp. Our campsite overlooked Johnson Village with snow covered Mount Princeton as the back drop. Mount Princeton stands at 14,197 foot. When you looked out the window of the campers you could definitely say we had a room with a view. While talking to the campground host, he informed us of another beautiful pass out of Buena Vista called Cottonwood Pass. In his words this was prettier than Independence Pass and to our delight he was correct. The ride took us up to a 12,126-Ft. summit. Again we were surrounded by snow covered mountain. To add to the view at the top, the ride up to and back down were textbook motorcycle roads with chrome scrapping 10 to 15 mph switchbacks. After the exhilarating ride, we took a relaxing ride to Leadville where we stopped at a café for coffee and to take a break. While there we visited with three bikers from California. After swapping riding stories, we headed back to camp to enjoy another afternoon of revisiting the days ride and relaxing by the campfire.
The next morning we headed south towards Monte Vista on Highway 24 & 285. At Monte Vista, we headed east on 160 to SR12. SR12 is called the Highway of Legends. It is another beautiful ride that takes your over Cucharas Pass and through some of the old mining towns and gorgeous countryside. This was our last fling in Colorado. At Trinidad we spent the night at Trinidad State Park which was one of the nicest state parks that we stayed in.
At this point, we decided to head home with our memories, our film, and our thoughts of returning to the views we saw in our rear view mirrors.
This being winter the following LA HSTA rides will of course be subject to the weather. I have noticed that many of our group have learned to adapt to the cold or the wet, however cold AND wet just ain't no fun so if the night before forcast for these two dates is for a high below 60 AND 50% or greater chance of rain consider the ride canceled. For other circumstances, if in doubt call me. I plan to post route maps and any other pertinent info in the members only area prior to the rides. Again, if you are reading this on a hard copy call me to be added to my phone contact list for ride updates.
Baton Rouge Area RidesCOFFEE RIDE: Meet at 9:00 at Starbucks Coffee House Corporate Blvd and Energy Plaza. We will have a cup then ride River Road (or whatever) to the Coffee and Donut place on HWY 22 near Sorrento then to Taste of Bavaria at the other end of 22. Ride STARTS AT 9:30!
Coordinator – Phil Ridgdill, (904 287 9654) e-mail rfoxrdr@earthlink.net
The Daytona Dinner is scheduled for Saturday 5:30pm, March 8th 2003.We will have a speaker this year. Mr. Jon Seidel from American Honda has agreed to speak to us about Honda and the good things they do for all of us. The Dinner will be at the same location as last year, INDIGO LAKES GOLF CLUB, 312 Indigo Drive, Daytona Beach, FL. The Manager is Marc Lillis. Great Location, 5 minutes from the Daytona Speedway and 5 minutes from the Daytona Memorial Stadium(DIRT TRACK). We will have a private Banquet Room and will have a buffet dinner, menu as follows,
Same as last year only better, as promised by the manager of Indigo Lakes Golf Club.Tossed Garden Salad with dressing, Pasta Salad, Fruit Salad, Cranberry gelatin Salad, Chicken Marsala, Broiled Fish du jour(grouper) Roast Beef Sliced, Savory Rice, Mixed Vegetable Medley, Fresh Baked Rolls & Butter, Hot bread pudding with Brandy hard Sauce & a Choice of Beverage, Coffee, Tea, & Ice Tea. There will be an Open Cash Bar in the Banquet Room. Price, Meal $ 18.95 per person, with tax & service charge total will be $23.70 per person. The Indigo Lakes Golf Club is located, Indigo Drive is the first intersection East of I 95 on International Speedway Drive( US 92 ), turn left on Indigo Drive, pass in front of the Holiday Inn, continue on Indigo Drive through a residential area until you come to the INDIGO LAKES GOLF CLUB(approx 1 mile) If your coming from the Speedway, it's the last traffic light before I 95, turn right on to Indigo drive.
Dinner will be by Prepaid Reservation. All CHEQUES made out to the INDIGO LAKES GOLF CLUB, Mail Cheques to Phillip Ridgdill, 720 Opossum Lane, Switzerland FL 32259, last day to receive reservation will be Feb 26 2003, all checks will be deposited with the golf club. The Golf Club Staff will have the Reservation List at the Banquet Room. (for those of you not from "Switzerland", that's CHECKS, ed.)
THAT's IT for now. Hope to see y'all soon. KEEP IN TOUCH!
chappuis@demco.net and my telephone number is
(225)635-3171 Home, (225)281-0799 Cell
and Ride Safe,
Bob Chappuis