A Most Excellent Motorbike Vacation - STAR 2011 - Day 3

MR. Snake - US Hwy 421's mascot

Day 3: Monday, June 27 - 140 miles

The Snake Revisited - A Motely MSTA Crew invades Mountain City - A 60's Dining Experience

I was up early, being anxious to get on the road again after being rained out yesterday. Man, I was really hungry too for some reason. Got to fuel up for a lot of mountain riding today.

I shook Roo awake, and although not a morning person, she slowly rolled out of bed with a smile on her beautiful, round Irish face. What's not to smile about? The sun was shining and it promised to be a great day on the motorbike. Geared up, we went down to the hotel restaurant where I promptly devoured a fantastic skillet breakfast that hit the spot right on. Sitting at a table next to us was another couple who immediately introduced themselves as Marcela and Don from Atlanta, and asked us where we were heading this morning. I told them our route plans and they asked if they could ride along with us. Absolutely! This is how the MSTA works. Total strangers with a similar passion for motorbikes who just come up and ask you into their lives in that particular moment. Fantastic.

We agreed to meet in front of the hotel at 9:30, ready to ride. Ruth and I finished our breakfast (Marcela and Don had already eaten), then met our new friends out front at the appointed time. Our bud Jon, was staying behind today to ride the wheels off all the demo bikes that were provided for MSTA members by Kingsport Cycles.

Who says Martians are green?
"Take us to your twisty mountain roads, Earthdude."



Our buddy Jon giving Roo the Rhode Island send off

Don rides a Suzuki SV650 and Marcela was on a Suzuki Burgman Maxi-scooter. Roo and I mounted the beaST, and the three motorbikes rolled out of the parking lot for another stab at "The Snake" and on into the state of Virginia.

Approximately 15 miles into our journey, I spot another ST up ahead, same year and color as ours. As we come up on and pass him, I give a loud honk of my airhorn and a thumbs up to him. He waves, and promptly pulls in line behind Marcela and joins our group. I figured him to be a MSTA member, but had no way of knowing in that moment. Interestingly, a Mini-Cooper pulled in line right behind him and stayed with us until our first stop of the day. Hmmmm...........

Once again, we cross over the Holston River Bridge and turn onto US Hwy 421, entering the fanged mouth of the "Snake". Twisting, turning, weaving, leaning right and left - I felt "on" today and was pushing the envelope just a bit. Not a straight piece of road climbing or descending until we are shot like rockets out of the snakes mouth in Shady Valley and into the parking lot of The Shady Valley Country Store once again.

Holston River Bridge - Gateway to "The Snake" - US Hwy 421





Shady Valley Country Store



Curves like this can spell trouble for the un-wary motorcyclist

 Coming to a stop and dismounting, Roo and I remove our gear and approach the other ST and Mini Cooper that had joined us on the road. As it turned out, Gordon, the ST rider was indeed a MSTA member. He had got turned around trying to decipher a route sheet and just decided to do a pot luck ride when we came upon him. So he just latched on to see where we were going. The Mini Cooper driver - Tom - Gordon's friend and MSTA member, had an interesting story. He was a motorcycle enthusiast and active member of the club until he suffered a stroke a few years ago which left his right side partially paralyzed. After therapy, he purchased the Mini Cooper and tricked it out to accomodate his paralysis and enable him to drive the twisty mountain roads with the club. And he has become quite proficient at this I might add! A really nice guy. Wish I had known him before the stroke.

Shady Valley Country Store is a motorcycling "Mecca" - drawing enthusiasts from all over who want to challenge the "snake" and are in need of respite, food and drink - as well as the obligatory decal and T-shirt (yes, we did)




Motorcycling Mecca - Shady Valley Country Store
No, I don't know who Big Blue is.



The beaST paying homage to Mecca. That's Gordon's ST right behind ours.



Aaawwww! Where's dat wascally wabbit?

Chief Slithering Snake making eyes at Roo



After a brief rest, talking, hydrating and bike shopping, our now group of five mounted our motorbikes (and one car). Glancing back up the mountain the way we had come, I was glad to see nothing but blue sky and sunshine. No monster storm today! The sun was shining, temp was great - let's ride! Rolling out of the parking lot we head north on Hwy 133, a beautiful ribbon of asphalt that will take us to the Virginia state line in short order. But first, a stop at Backbone Rock Park.
Backbone Rock is a long, narrow block of stone that engineers blasted a tunnel through in the late 1800's to accomodate the railroad to Damascus, VA. Today, Hwy 133 goes through the tunnel following the old rail alignment. The park has numerous hiking trails and is surrounded by beautiful new growth forest. We climbed up to the top of Backbone Rock, which is barely 6 feet wide, standing over the tunnel looking down at the highway. No fencing, no railings, no guardrails. Whew! Gives me the willies!

Bikes coming through the tunnel

Roo on top of Backbone Tunnel - very, very narrow!



Looking down at Hwy 133. Jeez! I was holding my breath
while leaning over a bit to get this shot!



Top of the tunnel - barely 6 ft wide! Yes, I walked across
to get this shot and then to get out of there! Notice no rails of any kind!
You slip - you're done!



 The Rooster. Just stay on the double yellow babe.
Everyone will go around you.



On the way to Virginia

 Gladly hiking back down to street level, I collect my wits before getting the beaST on the road again. I'm not a big fan of heights where the dropoff is mere inches from your feet. Ok. Cool, calm and collected, I bring the big V4 to life, Roo jumps on, everyone is ready and away we go through the tunnel to Damascus, VA, home to the Virginia Creeper Bicycle Trail. We've not done the Creeper yet, but hear it is a real blast. Just another reason to return to this beautiful area.
We ride through Virginia for a short while, then dip back down into Tenessee for lunch in Mountain City. Mountain City is a quaint little Tenessee town, but it's claim to fame for us is the Coffee House Cafe.


A beautiful old house turned cafe, each of the rooms is decorated in a different theme for a very unique and intimate coffee/dining experience. The coffee and food here is superb.



The Coffee House Cafe - Mountain City, TN

Stopping here for lunch, Ruth gets a text message from Rhode Island Jonny. He wants to know where we are so he can meet up with us. Turns out he's only 11 miles away and he'll be with us shortly. But these are twisty, mountain roads, so shortly is a relative term. But true to form, a little while later, here comes Jon pulling into the parking lot on his Honda VFR. He must have been screaming down the mountain to get here so quick (no surprise!). Introductions, drink, food, conversation - everyone having a great time - and now there were six.This is what happens in the MSTA. It's all about the bikes, the roads, the people and making new friends.

The MSTA crew:
Back row, L-R: Don, Marcela, Gordon (partially hidden by Roo's big head
Front Row, L-R: Tom, Bob, Roo



Oh! There's Gordon!
Photo's taken by Earthdude.

Finally, after a great meal and much frivolity, we decided we better start back to Johnson City. Onto the bikes (and one car), we head south on Hwy 67 to Hwy 321, two beautiful roads with soothing sweepers that make riding a motorbike smooth as silk. A short stint on I-26 takes us back to our hotel. Everyone says goodbye for now - Jon, Roo and myself put the bikes up for the evening, get cleaned up, open an adult beverage, and guess what? It's time for dinner at a super cool place, Cootie Brown's Restaurant. Walking into Cootie Brown's is to walk back in time to the 1960's (how does that saying go - if you remember the 60's, you really weren't there!). Peace signs, tie dye art, 60's graphic art, staff all wearing tie dye - very cool. Except none of the staff were over 25 years old. Guess they had to break open the history books. Oh, and the food was great - they serve everything - even organics and gluten free, and the beer list has to be seen to be believed. The food was so good, we ate there three times! Dinner done, the two amigos and uno amiga walked back to the hotel to party it up with our fellow club members. In bed by eleven, tomorrow is a big mileage day if all goes well..........

Next up: It pays to listen to your inner voice!

A Most Excellent Motorbike Vacation - STAR 2011 - Day 2

Day 2 - Sunday, June 26 - 91 miles

Abort! Abort! Abort!

After generous amounts of beer and wine last night (with dinner, of course), and staying up past my bedtime catching up with our buddy Jon aka "earthdude", I was surprised to awaken this morning as early as I did. But I knew the weather forecast was calling for a 30% chance of thunderstorms, so I wanted to get an early start to beat out at least most of the afternoon rains. A 150 to 200 mile day on twisty mountain roads was on tap, so we would be out there all day.

Shady Valley, TN is our venue today, a beautiful valley nestled in the mountains of East Tennessee near the Virginia state line. The roads to get into and out of the valley; Hwy's 421, 58 and 67 are curvaceous, off camber, challenging roads respectfully known to motorcyclists and sport car enthusiasts alike as "The Snake."

I woke up Roo, we geared up and went downstairs for breakfast. Body's fueled, maps in place - we're ready to go. The sun is shining as we mount up and roll out of the Holiday Inn parking lot. About 20 miles of open highway lies ahead of us before we come to the fanged, open mouth of the infamous "Snake", US Hwy 421.



Every motorcyclists dream sign
Welcome to The Snake - US Hwy 421

 This road is "Mr. Toads Wild ride" all over again. Climbing the mountainside we are presented with breathtaking scenery that could result in serious consequences should one partake of it for more than a split second. Twisting, turning, carving our way up and over the mountain, then descending, leaning the ST right and left into tight off camber curves marked with 15-20 MPH speed limits for mere mortals to adhere to. But the beaST handles them with aplomb until the "snake" spits us out into the valley and our first stop for the day at the Shady Valley Country Store.

With grins stuck to our faces, we pull off our helmets and recognize a BMW motorcycle parked next to us. It belongs to fellow MSTA member John (not to be confused with our Rhode Island Jon), whom we had met the previous night. We went inside, saw him there, and struck up a conversation. We all went outside to sit on the porch, and as we walked through the door the sight that confronted us was unnerving. Right above the mountain we had just rode down was the biggest, blackest storm front, engulfing the mountain and heading right for us. This thing looked like the blob with teeth, and it was moving fast. Where did this thing come from? The wind kicked up ferociously as the sunlight was eclipsed by this monster. Within minutes the rain was pelting our bikes at 45 degree angles as we gathered up our gear and ran inside. Lightning bolts were thrashing in a 360 degree panorama, as if Zeus himself were tossing each one from the heavens.

So we watched and waited it out. Forty - five minutes later the rain abated enough to where it was safe to continue. We donned our rain gear, and the three of us decided to scrub the original ride plans and head back to Johnson City. John, being a local, knew the way back via a shortcut and led us in. A short riding day today - 91 miles is barely a warmup for us - but it's best not to tempt Ma Nature when traveling on two wheels. Better to ride another day. Tomorrow promises better weather, and more surprises are in store........

Next up: The "Snake" revisited

A Most Excellent Motorbike Vacation - STAR 2011 - Day 1

Day 1 - Saturday, June 25 - 176 miles

Good Stuff in Marshall - Car Show! - Hotel, Motel, Holiday Inn

The beaST is heavily laden: 7.7 gallons of fuel, full tank bag, tail bag and side cases. Roo and I are geared up and ready to ride. Roo, of course, as befits her, is wearing her helmet bunny ears.With a big heave ho and a bit of well placed leverage, I lift the beaST off her sidestand. Roo climbs on board, the big V4 roars to life and we're rolling. Johnson City here we come!



For the unitiated, this is our  big Honda ST1300 aka the beaST......



.... and this is the beauty. Looks more like a pissed off bunny.

The ride to Asheville, NC is fantastic - a beautiful sunny day to begin a tour. We took some nice twisty roads up to Asheville so as to get ready for riding two up on the curvaceous mountain roads around Johnson City. As we approached the cluster f_ _ _ _  that is I-40, I-240 and local roads all converging at the same spot in Asheville, I began to pucker up. Just last week a friend and I were riding through this same interstate maze on a Sunday and it took all my riding skills to get through the throngs of panic stricken church goers who were late for service or late for their post church lunch. Whew! That was about a SPF (sphincter pucker factor) 50.
But today, it was smooth sailing, with no pucker factor at all (it was also Saturday!). Leaving Asheville behind and feeling a bit peckish - it was time for a lunch stop in the little hamlet of Marshall, NC. Marshall is a tiny little town, kind of forgotten between Asheville to the south and Hot Springs just to the north. It is a cycling (bicycles) hotbed, popular with Asheville cyclists for the roads in the area that run along the French Broad River. A great little cafe has sprung up in the last year or two - Good Stuff Coffee & Tea Cafe. All I can say is, try this place. The food here is absolutely fantastic. You can eat indoors or alfresco. I've eaten here two weekends in a row and have not been disappointed.



Marshall, NC - lost in time



Good Stuff Cafe - it is really good stuff!



Alfresco dining at Good Stuff

 Belly's full, it's time to move on. Greeneville, TN is the next big town on our route, and getting there is a blast. NC Hwy 208 is our asphalt of choice, and it has more curves than Angelina Jolie. Long sweepers, tight switchbacks, little farm towns, chasing dogs and cow patties in the road make for a very entertaining ride. What a hoot! Hwy 208 changes to TN Hwy 70 as we cross the state line and link up with Hwy 321 into Greeneville. What a little gem of a surprise! We take 321 Business into downtown and come upon a classic car show on Main St!  "Roo, can we stop pleeeaaasse?" "Yes, YES!" I park the ST and we walk up a block to the car show. It's huge! Classic cars everywhere! Roo and I are classic car buffs and really appreciate the workmanship and aesthetics of these old automobiles. Downtown Greeneville is quite a surprise too. A very nice downtown with cafes and coffee houses. Might make for a good RTE (ride to eat) someday. Here are some pics of downtown Greeneville, TN and beautiful classic automobiles:





Downtown Greeneville, TN



I think we've got the better ride for this trip





How would you like to see this coming at you in your rear view?
Steel is real!



Damn! That's sexy...........



Tee hee........ You just have to smile.




Remember Cristine?



We spent a good 11/2 to 2 hours drooling over these cars. Now it was time to gear up and ride the last leg into Johnson City. Our accomodations for the rally was the Best Western Hotel. The host hotel was the Holiday Inn, but it filled up so fast we were put in the spillover hotel. The Best Western left a bit to be desired. They were renovating, so there was much construction going on. On top of that, the room above us sprung a water leak that was flowing down into our room. Our good friend and fellow club member from Rhode Island, Jon, arrived after an 804 mile day and roomed with us this night. In the morning, he went to the host hotel and inquired about any cancellations they might have. As luck would have it, they had two rooms available for us! Way to go Jon! You've probably heard the song lyrics "hotel, motel, Holiday Inn. If your girl starts acting up, ask to take her friend...." And that's just what we did! Packed up, scooted across the street to STAR central and settled comfortably in a beautiful hotel with our fellow club members. Let the festivities begin!





Bikes............



Bikes..............



and more bikes at the Holiday Inn just rarin' to go.

Next up: Day 2. The shortest ride in quite some time. 





A Most Excellent Motorbike Vacation - STAR 2011 - Introduction

MOTORCYCLE SPORT TOURING ASSOCIATION

S.T.A.R.  2011

(Sport Touring Association Rendezvous)

Johnson City, TN  June 25-30

The Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA) is an all brands sport touring moto club to which Ruth & I have been members since 2007. S.T.A.R. is our annual gathering where locations alternate east and west of the Mississippi each year. Last year was in Taos, NM. This year Johnson City, TN. Previous east coast STARS that we have attended have been in Staunton, VA (2009), and Asheville, NC (2007). Next year is in Avon , CO.

MSTA has regional and state weekend events as well throughout the riding season. The people that make up this club are fantatstic. Socializing at the gatherings is almost mandatory. Nobody gets left out, and if you are a newbie to the club, you will be sucked in and made to feel welcome, like it or not.

For more info on the club, events and membership go to http://www.ridemsta.com/

Next up: We're on our way! The MSTA descends on Johnson City!

Atlanta Ride for Kids

June 4-5, 2011

The Ride for Kids is a program put on by the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation based in Asheville, NC to raise money for research to fight childhood brain tumors. There are rides in 48 cities throughout the country to date. RFK is strictly a motorcycle program, with motorcyclists raising money for this worthy cause. Ruth and I participate in the Atlanta RFK in June, and the Asheville RFK held in August. The rides are always held on a Sunday, and travel along scenic country roads to a destination town where the very emotional Celebration of Life festivities are held.

For the Atlanta ride, which we have been doing for seven years, we make a nice weekend out of it. We left Saturday morning for Dahlonega, Ga., which also happens to be the destination point for this RFK. We ate lunch at Rider's Hill, a great destination in itself: cafe, lounge, apparel and gear, and best of all Italian motorcycles! They are a very successful Aprilia and Moto Guzzi dealer. Also on the property is a repair and tire shop. All this in the beautiful North Georgia mountains. After lunch, we head south on the arrow straight GA 400, a straight shot to Alpharetta and our hotel for the night. Our favorite restaurant in Alpharetta is Bahama Breeze, a Caribbean eatery serving up fantastic food and an outdoor Tiki bar! Be sure to wear your Magnum P.I. shirt.

The next morning, 480 motorcycles met up in the NorthPoint Mall parking lot for the police escorted ride to Dahlonega (all RFK rides are police escorted). After a very spirited run up GA 400, compliments of the GA Highway patrol, we turn off onto the scenic twisty roads of North Georgia. Arriving in Dahlonega, we are escorted to the high school where a huge tent is set up for the Celebration of Life. Survivors and parents talk about their experiences dealing with this disease and doctors get up and talk about the progress being made to treat and eventually eliminate this disease.

After the ceremony, everyone goes their own way home. Ruth and i go to downtown Dahlonega and have lunch in our favorite cafe there, the Crimson Moon

. Fantastic food and coffees. Then it's back on the motorbike and rolling back to South Carolina. A fun, yet emotional weekend, every time.

For more info:
Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation: http://www.pbtfus.org/
Ride for Kids: http://www.ride4kids.org/

Please join us August 28 for the Asheville RFK and help these kids. You won't be disappointed.


Here are some pics from the trip:



Front of Riders Hill Cafe, store and dealership





Roo relaxing after lunch



Roo on her Moto Guzzi Breva - she's a Guzzisti

 These pics are from Alpharetta on Sunday morning - the beginning of the ride:



North Point Mall parking lot - Alpharetta, GA




Our Po Po escort

These pics are from the ride destination in Dahlonega and the Celebration of Life:


The Big Top in Dahlonega for the Celebration of Life



Brain tumor survivors during Celebration of Life



Two survivors telling their stories



The check: $118,800 raised! And this is just 1 of 48 rides!

These photos taken in downtown Dahlonega:



The Crimson Moon Cafe-our favorite Dahlonega eatery



Downtown Dahlonega



Roo struck it rich! Dahlonega was the first "gold rush" boom town.