East Coast Mini Rally at Mid Ohio 9-11 July

[Rat]

Hey, that's the view from the beer fridge ... I'd know it anywhere.

Gord (my favourite spot) Jones

[DJ]

My vacation time just got approved so I'm in on this one.

I'll be leaving the St. Louis area on the 6th or 7th and winding my way that direction. It'll be tough but I want to take 3 or 4 days to get there.

I'm thinking that I might go East a bit extra and meet up with whoever's coming from the Southeast. I do enjoy Dean's routes and those roads look especially tasty. Not to mention the Amish food. Yum.

Hacksaw will be joining me, maybe I'll go over to his place and spend the night. We might even talk Robert Russell into meeting up with us there. And what about Claude, the Kentucky Pond Man?

Roady,

I take it that you are wanting to link up with other riders on your trip. ?
My kids want me to take them on their first cross country trip. (three people taking two bikes)
The Ohio Antique Bike show,meet,rally,whatever seems to be just right for it.
My daughter is concerned that she might not be up to riding it all at one time, so a slower trip as you described may be more to her liking.

Is I-70 going to be your preferred route?

If all works out correctly, we can go north and get on I-70 at Effingham IL. possibly meeting up with a convoy that may be passing by?

We will likely decide to take mostly state routes instead of Interstate just for the fun of it, so we will probably not ride with an Interstate caravan for long.

Do you know yet when you expect your caravan to be passing through there?

I still haven't discussed with my kids what days we should schedule to be off work.

Would you mind if strangers on two bikes tagged along on part of the drive?
Another friend is supposed to have his BSA bobber/chopper running by then so there may be three bikes going.

Old Fogey has reminded me of my claim that I will go on a trip soon. I haven't taken a bike trip in many years.
I don't want it to look like it's all talk.
Someone mentioned that he will be coming?

We can have our own small caravan or maybe we can ride along with yours for a time. if the timing works out...?

[Roady]

I live 45 miles East of Effingham, just off I-70. There's a nice little campground just a mile from me or there are some inexpensive motels in Vandalia and Greenville. There's also plenty of room at my place to setup camp. I don't know exactly where you are DJ, but maybe a backroads ramble up to my place and then we can set out from there.

My vacation days start on the 6th but I hadn't planned to leave until the 7th. My weekends are Tue/Wed so that's why the odd scheduling.

Claude "KYpondman" said that he wants to go so maybe y'all could hook up and ride this direction. He's in Paducah. Anyone else that wants to join us is more than welcome. Ain't no strangers once we meet.

There are a couple others from the St. Louis area that also want to go.

I haven't done any route planning yet, other than I want to go far enough East to ride that Hwy 555. Perhaps we'll hook up with some other folks there.

My basic plan is to avoid riding into the sun too much.

[DJ]

Paducah (50 minutes south) has to run right by here on the way to Effingham (2hrs north of here). (Memphis is 5 hrs South)

My son with his Yamaha V-star, is new to motorcycling, so we will likely take Rt 37 North instead of the Interstate, so we may or may not be fun to ride with, depending on whether others want a slower more scenic "Route66" type of trip or a faster Interstate trip.

I am sure we would like the fun of riding with a group for a time, but we will likely fall back later for a more leisurely sight seeing trip.
I'll keep my eyes open for the "schedule" as things come together...

Thanks.

[KYpondman]

I'm all for slow and easy (sort of), at least not interstates. I'm in no rush as when the trip is done I have to go back to retirement. Going up to roady's on the 6th and camping sounds like a good idea. I'm just looking forward to meeting people and having a great ride. I'll probably take all back roads there as I have been up and down 1-24 and I-57 too many times. Roady had a great trip planned last year for Randakk's Rally, and hooking up with Sagebrush made it the best trip I've had. Well Sturgis from Hawaii in '96 was great too.
Claude

[DJ]

Now it's sounding like fun.
Southern Illinois has some great rural two lanes that make an interesting ride.

I already have some ideas.
If you leave Paducah on Rt45 instead of I-24, then go north on 145, I can point out some really fun roads.
Roads that wind back and forth in beautiful country, through tiny historic towns with lots of history that goes back to before the beginning of the U.S.
There are several places in our own back yard that I want to show my kids.
There is a stair climb up a tall rusty tower in a town you never heard of that lets you see over the top of the whole countryside for miles and miles.
Roads that wander in and out around several small lakes and through miles of forest area.
Roads that take you through some small towns that remind you of a Route 66 tour.
I met a nationally famous stunt driver in the middle of nowhere because I saw an old rusty box trailer with faded signs on it and stopped to look.
I used to visit the location of Charlie Birger's famous gangster hideout. They changed the roads- I wonder if I can find it again.
Every time I have to go through the area, I find more roads and more history that I really must explore.

For the first time in a very long long time, I have two bikes up and ready to go just about anywhere they feel like going.
I keep pushing my friend with a BSA to get ready.
I know some great places to explore.

[steve]

ill scedule with my boss, if i can finacially do this you guys have a lackey for the run. will reply soon

[Old Fogey]

Hey DJ, sound like you've finally got it sorted out man! Fantastic! And have no worries about these 'strangers' or being one yourself! I only met some of them for a couple of days; by the end of that I'd known them for years!
Great guys and gals the lot of them!

I will be at the rally; the hows and whys of getting there (and of my whole trip actually) are at the moment completely up in the air since Cyborg lost his job in VA and is in the middle of relocating down in Knoxville. But, come hell or high water, I will make it somehow.

[Hoosier Daddy]

Posting to keep up on all the threads on this meet-n-greet. My goal is to get to this... keep me in mind.

[Oldewing]

If you are coming, and If you are hotel'ing you might want to book now or aleast soon. The Vintage days takes up most of the stuff around the track as I have heard at least, and I see that it is the same weekend as the Goodguys car show. That show brings something like 600 Street Rods to Columbus . But they stay in hotels also

Lots of camping at the track,for the event, and at my place for Weds,Thurs nights


Will start a list of whos coming, but it's early yet

[Neil]

Already booked into the Super 8 and the rates are great.

[rcmatt007]

Already booked into the Super 8 and the rates are great.

which one are you staying at, Beth and I are trying to sort out either OH or AZ for this years trip

[starket]

which one are you staying at, Beth and I are trying to sort out either OH or AZ for this years trip

And what is wrong with Oregon. Beth could load up on her favorite cookies at Trader Joes.

[rcmatt007]

won't have enough time off get only 15 days/year which has to account for sick leave, CME and vacation

[Oldewing]

Got Trader Joes here in Central Ohio