TrikeTalk Rally-2 at the Dragon Tail

[Mr.Wizard]

Nana

Sorry but I must be here. Unfortunately I can't get out of my previous obligations but.....

It's only 2 hours or so to the Phillips for me soooooooo.... I'm going to cage up there Saturday and have dinner with you guys then head back.

The way I figure it if I run out of here like my hair is on fire about 4ish I can meet you guys at the Phillips just after 6. There is a nice restaurant right next to the Phillips if you guys care to eat there.

I'm not sure what time we will be able to meet or when dinner will be but I can wing it until you guys come back from riding. If there is a change in plans you have my cell# and I yours.

 

[Nana]

Dave & Reenie.... we'll miss you, but your weekend plans are important too!

and Dave/reksul.... we'll count on seeing you Saturday. Can't wait!

 

[BlueTrinity]

Instead of riding this weekend, Patty and I will be in New Mexico for the grandson's graduation from UNM.

This a beautiful time of year to be there (even if it rains), so ride safe and enjoy the scenery.

Hope all you folks have a wonderful time and we'll be looking forward to pictures.

 

[Gorilla]

BE SAFE GUYS,

When the fog is out the deer are also and the squirrels.

Ted and MJ

 

[Nana]

We are having such a fun time! WISH YOU WERE ALL HERE WITH US!!!!! :wave4:

Mike and I rode down to Knoxville on Thursday, then the last 100 miles to Asheville this morning, and checked into the Red Roof Inn about 10:30 a.m. Mattel & Bella were already in town, and Mattel/Eddie joined us for a great ride while we waited for the others to arrive. Eddie knew of a wonderful, twisty run down 74 to Lake Lure, and with his Stallion in the lead, me on my trike, and Mike on his HD Street Glide we took off for a couple of hours. Eddie and I traded rides for a few miles....my first Stallion ride (Fun!) and his first Harley ride (Fun!)

He and his Stallion took a tight corner so fast (or should I say he underestimated the tightness of the corner ) that one of those big rear tires lifted off the ground!!!!!! He swore it was at least a foot in the air, but I was behind him and I know the truth! Trust me...LOL! He had a blast with it, but it was enough to get my adrenaline running, I assure you! I'm happy to say that my wheels stayed firmly gripping the pavement as I tailed him through those wonderful, twisty switchbacks!

We returned to town, picked up Bella (Belinda), and met ThirdWheel (George) and his wife Dolores, her brother Wayne, and Juju (Judy) and Earl in downtown Asheville. We had a great tour on the historical trolley ride around town where we learned some interesting history and some questionable facts such as that the French Broad River is the 3rd oldest river in the world.... We all ate too much fantastic Mediterranean food in "the Jerusalem Cafe", including entertainment by a belly dancer and music, then wandered over to watch the fun as dozens of locals played drums in the park and others danced to their rhythms and smoke danced in the air.......

All day long the weather map has threatened severe storms and downpours, and all day long we have been dry. What a blessing!!!!! Walking into the motel tonight is the first rain all day, and we were hardly dampened.

So much to enjoy! Our only disappointment is that there are so few of us who could make it here. Bryan and Patches and your family & friends ---- Our sympathies are with you and your good reasons to have had to miss the trip, but we sure do feel we've missed out to not have your company too!

 

[Mr.Wizard]

Hey... I absolutely know you guys are having a great time.

I'll be bringing my old buddy "dark cloud" with me which will mean rain when I pull up to the Phillips about 6ish. The good news is.... when I leave I'll be sure to take it with me so you guys can have a nice Sunday of riding.

Oh... C will be with me. See you guys soon.

 

[Nana]

Day broke in Asheville to discover Mikey and Wifey (Mike and Natalie of the beautiful yellow Stallion!) were parked at the motel too. None of us had realized they were coming, so when they arrived yesterday afternoon, we were all gone to downtown, the trolley, and dinner, so we missed out on their company . So sad! But they joined us at Cracker Barrell for breakfast, then we posed with the trikes for group pictures. (take note of the wonderful TrikeTalk.com t-shirts on several of us this morning!).

After hugs all around, Mikey and Wifey headed off to visit friends in Georgia, ThirdWheel and Dolores took off for home, and her brother jumped on his Harley to head back to Detroit. The rest of us left for the Dragon.

It started foggy this morning, but once again we stayed dry! What more could we ask . At Deal's Gap we bought the obligatory Dragon souveniers in the shop, and wandered the parking area crowded with motorcycles of all sorts. We even saw the "concept" Hannigan 4-wheeler there, and talked with the owner who happens to be a Stallion dealer in Indiana. He had several questions for Mattel about location of speakers, etc. that he had added on after buying his Stallion. I stuck cards on the dash of several trikes in the lot, inviting them to sign in and join the fun on TrikeTalk. Then we pulled out to run the Dragon! What fun......

Juju, who has had her trike just a short time, and has only had Florida's "curves" to contend with, gamely held her own on the winding twists for the 11 miles, and came out the other end with a big grin ready to go again. And we did...in the opposite direction! Mike had video running from his handlebars at the rear of the pack, and we hope that turns out so I can post it.

We just checked into the charming Phillips Motel in Robbinsville after eating way too much home cookin' at the restaurant next door. Mmmmmm Good! Reksul and Blueyz (Dave and Carol) are on their way here to join us. I'm saving myself for the homemade apple pie after they arrive. In fact, that may be my whole dinner !

I'll be adding some pics to the album soon....

 

[John Luciano]

Nice pictures... Hope the video comes out... Nice to see all the great smiles. If I had someone to ride down with it might have been different. Did U all trailer your bikes or ride down?

 

[Nana]

All of us rode. It's not dead of winter, riding is MUCH more fun than trailering !
Mike and I from Ohio, Wayne from Detroit, Judy & Earl from Pensacola, others from more local sites.

And tonight Reksul and Blueyz (Dave and Carol) treated us to a wonderful, fun time as they drove two hours just to meet with us and visit over another delicious meal for a couple of hours, then left to drive two hours home again. What a terrific couple!

In fact everyone we've met this weekend has been terrific. I'm proud to call y'all friends!

 

[Mr.Wizard]

... and we are back home safe and sound... two and a half hours driving in solid rain.. but...

... We would do it again and again.

Enjoyed meeting everyone, Nana and Mike, JuJu and Earl. Can't wait til we see the picture of us all.

 

[Angelbymyside]

I am so glad everyone had a wonderful and safe ride. Maybe next year I will make it to TrikeTalk Rally # 3. Post lots of pictures please.

 

[Nana]

Glad you guys made it home safely in the rain and the dark, Dave!
I've put some pictures in an album on my profile page.

 

[spiritdream]

Wonderful pics ~ LOVE all those big smiles!!! So glad everyone had a good, SAFE, trip!

 

[bdn56]

Just saw the TT-2 pictures. What a group. Wish we were there. We are sorry to back out at the last minute. Hope you all had a good time. We will do all we can to make the next rally.

I am trying to sit still long enough so the 60 staples in my leg stay together.

 

[bdn56]

Afternoon Dave, hope your Legion ride went well. I belong to the American Legion Riders Post 70. Troy, Al.

Talk to you later. Bryan

 

[Nana]

We said goodbye to Juju and Earl and left Robbinsville this morning, to ride the Dragon one more time on our way north again. By Deals Gap (about 15 miles), we were zipping and velcroing our rain gear firmly in place, and rode the twisties in a steady downpour. Yuck! The upside was that there was virtually no one else out there---that's a first in our experience! :

By Knoxville, I was looking for the first Walmart (or similar facsimile) I could find -- my riding boots are lace-up, and despite good quality, water proofed leather, the lace area is definitely NOT waterproof. I squished my way into Walmart, emptied out about a half inch of water from the boots before wringing out my socks. I joyfully spent $20 on some dry socks and a pair of rubber boots, and it felt like heaven to pull them on my frozen feet...LOL! Dry feet was all I needed, and we hopped back onto our bike and trike and headed out.

The rain tapered off, the sun peeked through, but we stayed pretty bundled up as the temp never got over 60. We didn't need to go straight home so took our time and meandered across Kentucky and just over the border into Indiana for the night, then will head home tomorrow. What a great weekend with a bunch of really great people! Thanks to all of you who were able to participate and join us.

And to the rest of you.....trust me, you'd have fun too, so plan on coming along next year. We'll have to start thinking and planning for it....TrikeTalk Rally-3 at......who knows :yes:

 

[Gorilla]

Nana,

Nice pictures. Looks like you guys had a swell time. MJ and I are planning on joining next year. We will wait to do our annual spring ride plans until we read about the TT3.

Sorry about the ride towards home I feel for ya. Keep the feet and hands dry and warm everything else is tolerable.

Be safe
Ted and MJ

 

[Angelbymyside]

The pictures are awesome!!:yay: Everyone looks like they are having a blast. I wished I could have been with you.

 

[Nana]

OK everyone...here is a link to a YouTube video from the rally :wtg:

Mike had a video camera on the handlebar of his Harley, and he followed behind with the camera running several times while we were out and about. Obviously the main trikes seen in it are the 2 - 3 immediately in front of him, especially on any twisty road like the Dragon. The video is about 9-1/2 minutes. Enjoy !

YouTube - TRIKE TALK 2009

 

[spiritdream]

The pics were great and the video was awesome!!! Glad everyone enjoyed themselves!

 

[John Luciano]

Was that JuJu 's back side we watched wiggle down the dragon.

 

[Nana]

Uh Huh .
She was (quite rightfully) very proud of herself...Afterall, Florida has NO curves like that to practice on, and she has only had that trike a couple of months. She hung right there with the rest of us

 

[Bella]

Juju rocks! She was sticking to that road like a pro! The trip was lots of fun and I can't wait to meet up with everybody again! I have my pictures posted now as well. Enjoy!
Nana and Mike - great video, thanks for posting it!

 

[Juju]

Just checking in quickly via a friend's computer. We arrived safely in Chattanooga (our overnight stop) late yesterday afternoon, after a route suggested by Mike that took us over the gorgeous Cherohala Skyway, then eventually to route 74 and on to Chattanooga. We, too, experienced intermittent rain, along with fog, and cold--though the cold was mostly due to being wet. Still, it was a great ride along the skyway, and we stopped for several photos at varying altitudes--I'll post them when we get home. Also, rte. 74 along the Ocoee River is scenic, and twisty, and fun, even in a light drizzle.

We head home to Pensacola tomorrow morning, and I'll post in more detail, along with pix, once we're settled in. Looking forward to a nice dry ride home tomorrow!

Nana, Mattel, us129photos dot com already has some of our photos posted, though I didn't see any at Killboy yet.

Holy mackerel, did we EVER have a great time--can't wait to do it again!

 

[WildBillH]

Great video... just too much fun. :blush: i looking for the Dramamine.

 

[Nana]

A series of pics of our group on the Dragon can be found at these links. Start w/ Mattel & Bella on the Stallion and click through one by one:

PhotoReflect - Xtreme Sports Photography

Earl & Mike can be found starting on the bottom row at this link, then jump ahead to pg. 87 & 88 for more:

PhotoReflect - Xtreme Sports Photography

 

[John Luciano]

I can see the camera. HD ruled the dragon and the only trikes I saw in the 200 pictures i looked at were the 3 of u

 

[John Luciano]

I could not decide who had the biggest grin . My vote ( after a flip of a coin ) goes to JUJU ( it is a newbee grin ):yes:

 

[Gorilla]

There are some happy trikes there. Ted