7 Days of Seat Time :)

[Motogeezer1949_imp]

So the story starts in October of 2000. 2 friends and I rode our bikes from central Florida up through Georgia, into North Carolina and back again, starting on a Saturday and returning the next Saturday. Our only caveats were: no interstate travel, no eating at fast foods or at restaurant chains. We brought tents and bags and alternately camped and hotelled. Myself on a Moto Guzzi Jackal, my friends Don on a Moto Guzzi California EV and Colin aboard a Triumph Daytona.
We had an amazing week. We visited with friends, we rode the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Dragon, the Cherohala Skyway and many great old 2 lanes. We traversed old single lane wooden bridges, visited historic sites, cruised through old towns with streets lined with amazing Victorian homes, Craftsman Bungalows, Italianate and plenty of rustic local styles including homes made of ledge and river stone. Old highway 441 through Georgia passes through historic towns like Athens and Rome, towns with old central squares with beautiful stone court houses and formally designed parks with stone statues of Confederate historical figures.
We toured Simpson Industries, several NASCAR race shops and ate great BBQ near Lake Norman.
We paid a visit to one of the last hot air balloon makers in Statesville NC. It was run by a friend who is a land speed record holder who rode a Moto Guzzi to a class record at Bonneville.
It was one of the best week long vacations I had taken in a long time. Once we returned home, local bikers started hearing about the venture at Bike Nights and other events. We started promoting the idea of doing a yearly trip. At the time a club I had ridden with for a bit, mostly Buell riders had started to wane. It was a little clique like and imo, rather insecure. However I made a few lifelong friends in that group and learned a lot. I think I was accepted because at minimum, I was riding a v-twin, even if it was aligned in the wrong direction AND my first invite to ride came with the caveat "if you think you can hang". Well, much to the surprise of a few, my Guzzi hung quite well.
We did a ride, every Sunday, out and about. I learned the best roads around riding with that group. And yes, even though you've probably heard the mis-informed BS that Florida is flat and the roads are all straight, there are great roads to experience here. But, I digress. As the club waned, I kind of took over and promoted it to the kids on sportbikes at a big bike night that was the most happening event every Thursday night. We opened it up to everyone and a lot of newbies to the sport liked that they could count on a ride every Sunday with a group of skilled ex-racers who showed them how much fun they could have by honing and improving their riding skills rather than slowly totalling their bikes by trying to be next stunter champ. So anyway, the next year we had a larger group. The year after, even larger. That went on for many years, the number rose and fell. A few years ago, we started promoting the idea of a spring ride in addition to fall. Now it's a standard.
And, that leads up to this year's fall ride. The one I rode on the relatively new CB1100DLX. Borrowed from my son. And for now, I'll leave you hanging, until the next installment Hope you enjoy!