626 miles for a hamburger.. Moonshine Lunch Run

[the Ferret]

14 years ago, a member of the ST forum started a thing called the Moonshine Lunch Run. Over near Casey, Illinois, there is a little place called the Moonshine Store. This fellow on the ST board, Terry Hammond, was from the area and decided to get some ST riders together for a burger there. The first year there was reportedly 10 who showed up. The event grew every year. I think last year over 3000 showed up from every corner of the US and Canada.Not sure how many showed up this year but it had to be a record number. An older couple own the place and as I understand it the husband died, the wife no longer wants to run the business, and neither does their son. So this year would be the 14th and final Moonshine Lunch Run.

Ohiodeere and sirepair, two of my ST riding buddies asked me to go. At first I said NO Way. I'm ok with small crowds but don't do large crowds well. They convinced me I needed to go. Finally I said ok. Partly because I bow easily under pressure and partly because CB forum buddies Empty Sea and Offroad 4x4 and I, decided to meet up at the store later this year and I figured I'd at least find out where it was (not sure I can find it again though Sea lol)

Anyhow I met up with sirepair early on Friday morning and followed him and his daughter over. (his wife also followed us in her car.) It was very windy and a lot of the way we rode on an angle



we arrived at the hotel 331 miles later, where we met up with other ST riders (and Harley riders, and Beemer riders and Yamaha riders). That night we went to a place called Richards Farm for a buffet dinner with 300 or so of someone's closest motorcycle friends. Crowded, noisy, I was a little frazzled and left shortly after dinner. I thought it was crazy, little did I know lol

It rained hard all night and was still raining when we woke up, but weather radar showed it would quit a little after 9. At 9:30 we headed to the store (BTW heard bikes starting up about 5:30 am as others were leaving in the rain for the store)

Here we are getting ready to leave after the rain had stopped



I followed Ohiodeere over a crazy patchwork quilt of country roads, all arrow straight and all numbered.. 300, 400, 500, 700, 870, 1000. About 1/2 mile away from the store we started coming upon bikes parked on the side of the road.

looking north



Looking west



Good night, what had I gotten myself into? lol

People were literally everywhere! We actually found some good parking places (good if you call parking on a hill in wet grass good) right across from the store itself.



The burgers were good (although I had to have mine bunless to avoid the gluten) but here is a double Moonburger with cheese and bacon



Shortly after eating I left for home. Had to find my own way to I-70 in that crazy patchwork of numbered roads (some of the roads are gravel btw), but ended up following a guy on a Triumph sport tourer with Ohio plates, hoping he was headed for 70 as well, and he was.... thank goodness.

Rest of the ride was just slabbing it ... east on I-70 to I-465 south around Indianapolis, then east on I-74 to I-75 south around Cincinnati to I-471 north through Kentucky to I-275 north back into Ohio again and then Rt 52 east to home. Hit light rain for the last 100 miles.

626 miles total.

It was crazy, hectic, amazing, chaotic but I'm glad I went since there will be no more of that event

Sea not sure I can find the place again lol, and not sure I can do this in one day. It would be a long one for sure, but doable I suppose. Ride 4 1/2 hours, eat 1 hour, ride 4 1/2 hours lol.

[Rocky_imp]

Wow, that was an ordeal....er....I mean stunning....maybe fun? Good read though
Crowds like that would put me off too, but I suppose you experienced a piece of history.

[peterbaron]

14 years ago, a member of the ST forum started a thing called the Moonshine Lunch Run. Over near Casey, Illinois, there is a little place called the Moonshine Store. This fellow on the ST board, Terry Hammond, was from the area and decided to get some ST riders together for a burger there. The first year there was reportedly 10 who showed up. The event grew every year. I think last year over 3000 showed up from every corner of the US and Canada.Not sure how many showed up this year but it had to be a record number. An older couple own the place and as I understand it the husband died, the wife no longer wants to run the business, and neither does their son. So this year would be the 14th and final Moonshine Lunch Run.

Ohiodeere and sirepair, two of my ST riding buddies asked me to go. At first I said NO Way. I'm ok with small crowds but don't do large crowds well. They convinced me I needed to go. Finally I said ok. Partly because I bow easily under pressure and partly because CB forum buddies Empty Sea and Offroad 4x4 and I, decided to meet up at the store later this year and I figured I'd at least find out where it was (not sure I can find it again though Sea lol)

Anyhow I met up with sirepair early on Friday morning and followed him and his daughter over. (his wife also followed us in her car.) It was very windy and a lot of the way we rode on an angle



we arrived at the hotel 331 miles later, where we met up with other ST riders (and Harley riders, and Beemer riders and Yamaha riders). That night we went to a place called Richards Farm for a buffet dinner with 300 or so of someone's closest motorcycle friends. Crowded, noisy, I was a little frazzled and left shortly after dinner. I thought it was crazy, little did I know lol

It rained hard all night and was still raining when we woke up, but weather radar showed it would quit a little after 9. At 9:30 we headed to the store (BTW heard bikes starting up about 5:30 am as others were leaving in the rain for the store)

Here we are getting ready to leave after the rain had stopped



I followed Ohiodeere over a crazy patchwork quilt of country roads, all arrow straight and all numbered.. 300, 400, 500, 700, 870, 1000. About 1/2 mile away from the store we started coming upon bikes parked on the side of the road.

looking north



Looking west



Good night, what had I gotten myself into? lol

People were literally everywhere! We actually found some good parking places (good if you call parking on a hill in wet grass good) right across from the store itself.



The burgers were good (although I had to have mine bunless to avoid the gluten) but here is a double Moonburger with cheese and bacon



Shortly after eating I left for home. Had to find my own way to I-70 in that crazy patchwork of numbered roads (some of the roads are gravel btw), but ended up following a guy on a Triumph sport tourer with Ohio plates, hoping he was headed for 70 as well, and he was.... thank goodness.

Rest of the ride was just slabbing it ... east on I-70 to I-465 south around Indianapolis, then east on I-74 to I-75 south around Cincinnati to I-471 north through Kentucky to I-275 north back into Ohio again and then Rt 52 east to home. Hit light rain for the last 100 miles.

626 miles total.

It was crazy, hectic, amazing, chaotic but I'm glad I went since there will be no more of that event

Sea not sure I can find the place again lol, and not sure I can do this in one day. It would be a long one for sure, but doable I suppose. Ride 4 1/2 hours, eat 1 hour, ride 4 1/2 hours lol.

Mickey,
...it looks like my favorite Double Whopper with Cheese, only Pickle & Tomato, can I have a bite, please

pb

[silverbub_imp]

Glad to learn you made it back to home base!... Great write-up both here & on ST-Owners...I have to ask & I think I know the answer already:... in sirepair's picture at Richard's Farm Restaurant... is that fellow at the far right table in pic that appears to have a FERRET PELT draped around his shoulders and a jovial smile(the fellow... not the ferret)... would that be you... huh???... hilariously a conversation starter... you sure know how to work a crowd...I just had to ask... you know, curious minds & all that!...

[emptysea]

So THAT'S why you were in Illinois!!

So glad you made it to the Moonshine Lunch Run, Ferret. There was no way I was going to be able to get down there this year. I do have a t-shirt on order though. Even if I didn't have a wedding to attend that afternoon, the weather here was awful at 5:45am (KSU time) and didn't get better, actually got worse, throughout the day. I was scanning your pictures to see if any of my riding buddies were making cameos. LOL If you saw a GS with "Clowns to the left" and "Jokers to the right" stenciled on the back of its side cases, that was my friend Fran (scruffy old guy in a blue-gray Stitch). He's the only one that i know for sure made the trip down.

626 is a long day. My round trip is 500 miles and that's plenty long. We'll figure that out.

Nice report.

[Stichill_imp]

Great ride story, ferret! Definitely better to err on the side of deciding to ride vs. not ride!

[the Ferret]

Glad to learn you made it back to home base!... Great write-up both here & on ST-Owners...I have to ask & I think I know the answer already:... in sirepair's picture at Richard's Farm Restaurant... is that fellow at the far right table in pic that appears to have a FERRET PELT draped around his shoulders and a jovial smile(the fellow... not the ferret)... would that be you... huh???... hilariously a conversation starter... you sure know how to work a crowd...I just had to ask... you know, curious minds & all that!...

nope not me. IMPOSTER! The guy even has my beard it appears.

[Offroad]

Great write up!

Make me wonder how the restaurant handled such a surge of people without super long wait times?

I not a crowd guy either, every time we go to a place that's busy I wish we hadn't, but it usually turns out ok.

I was riding in that wind Friday too! Made me think of how you described riding across Kansas on your trip out west.

[emptysea]

offroad, it is a fairly amazing thing how quickly they serve so many people in such a short period of time.

[the Ferret]

Offroad, they had 5 big grills going, 2 inside and 3 outside, and you could go to either place and get your burger. It helps that the only thing they were serving was burgers with or without cheese. I walked inside and the wait to place my order and get my burger was less than 60 seconds.The absolutely crazy thing to me was they give you your food and you go outside and over to another tent to pay. Complete honor system. The line over there was about 30 people long lol. They had 3 cash registers going.