Vacation 09/20/08

This was to be the best trip yet, although we tried to do to much in one week. We were heading to Gettsburg, then DC,,then off to ride Skyline drive,,The Blue Ridge parkway,,and the Cherohale.

We left Saturday morning, heading out of Chillicothe on route 50 east. We did underestimate the length of time it would take to get to Gettysburg. About 380 miles, but no 4 lane roads. By the time we arrived at the KOA campground it was dark, we had to set up our tents using our headlights to see.

9/13/08 Motorcycle Museum

Pickerington Ohio is home to the AMA hall of fame motorcycle museum. Saturday September 13th of 08 I made a trip there with someone who was very special to me. I wanted to take a moment to post some pictures from our trip. We left that morning, went to the museum, They had an Arlen Ness exibit I wanted to see. Then to Columbus Ohio. We Had a nice dinner at The old spaghetti warehouse. It was a great meal, and we were able to set in the trolley car.

August 08 KY. trip

It was early August, it was hot,,and we had a ball. This was a two day,,600 mile trip through Eastern KY. I took with ny buddy Shawn,,aka,,The wook,,,We met at a rest area on route 23 that morning. and rode south into Kentucky. Once in KY. we took Route 8 then turned southwest and on backroads we made it to route 11. South.

We were almost to Mt, Sterling KY. when wook lost the toe peg on his shifter,,oops!! ( gotta love those Harleys) We find a bike shop where we fix it with a bolt,"a metric bolt" Back on the road we follow route 11 to Clay city KY.

We found two places there you should visit if you find yourself in the area. The Red river museum,,,and Carmichaels leather and bike accessories. We spent about 30 minutes or so talking with the owners of Carmichaels,,great folks!!!

From Clay city we follow rt. 11 to Stanton KY. where pick up Rt. 77,,Nada tunnel road. and through parts of Daniel Boone National forest. From there we worked our way southwest to Corbin KY. where we would call it a night. When we arrived in Corbin we were hot, tired and sunburned..The only thing we could think about was how good an ice cold beer would be...(sorry Wook) When I made the plans for the trip I did not know we would be in a dry county....I still don;t think Shawn has forgiven me for that one...OOPS!!!!

The next morning we load up, grab a quick breakfast,,and head west on Route 25,,That is a great ride, we follow it to Cumberland falls state park. We spend an hour or so exploring the area and taking pictures. Then on to Route 27 To Lexington where we catch rt 68 . We run 68 to Maysville, cross the Ohio river. Then its up rt 41 to Seaman,,from there rt 32 east. We come to the intersection of rts 32 and 23,,this is where we part company,,I go North on 23 and Wook continues East,,,Home at last...

july 08 WV. trip

This was a three day trip through WV. Steve and I took in July of 08. It was the first trip we took tents on and went camping. here are a few pics from New River Gorge , and one of a covered bridge ,,but I do not remember its location.

July 4th weekend 08

Let me first say I am sorry I could not locate any pictures from this trip. This was the guys weekend. My friends Doug and Gary, and myself took off for Maryville Tn. 340 miles,,we rode 320 of it in the rain. ( the deciding factor for buying a windshield) We rode down the first day of the trip. Day two,,we rode The Tail of the Dragon,,Hellbender 28,,then the Cherohala Skyway. On day three we rode back to Ohio. It was a great trip, we plan on doing it again in 09,,I will have pics to post from that trip.

April of 08 New Bike

I have been wanting a new bike for a couple of years, My 99 Suzuki Maurader was getting a bit tired. I have long wanted a Honda VTX 1800. In April of 08,,I found my bike...A new 06 VTX 1800. It sat in the showroom for two years,,so they had a great discount on her,,one look and I was in love!!! So here she is,,as I write this it is May of 09,,I know I am behind,,and have made a few upgrades to her to make her a little more travel friendly...in the summer of 08 I added a Switchblade windshield and the spring of 09 I added a backrest and luggage rack,,,great investments

9/25/07-9/27-07,Disaster strikes day 5

Day 5, we wake early and ride to a small diner in Maggie Valley, I don't recall the name of the place but the prices were great and the food even was better. Back to the hotel, we pack up and ride to Wheels through time. This is another must see for all riders. The place is incredible as you can see in a few pictures I posted. After leaving the museum we jump on The Blue Ridge Parkway, only a few miles into the ride we pull into a scenic overlook.

This is where things go wrong, Steve is looking out at the mountains but has not come to a full stop. I look into my mirror just in time to see him go down. He ran into a curb and dumped his bike. I park my Suzuki and run over to help him ,,I upright his bike and then him...He is hurt but able to ride. We continue on the parkway to Asheville NC where we go to a local hospital. Several hours in the ER for x rays and they say nothing is broken ( we later discover they were wrong, three broken ribs) After leaving the Hospital we find a hotel and call it a day.

Wed. 9/26/07 We head for home, Steve is in to much pain to continue the trip, we made it to Beckley WV. Then made it the rest of the way home (in the rain) on Thursday.

Back in Chillicothe Steve went to his Doctor,,sure enough 3 broken ribs,,but he made the ride home on his own,,thats one tough cat.