Great Chilly Ride Today

I finally got to ride Big Red today. It was only an hour long ride, but it was worth it. Checkout my photo.

New Big Red Photo

Just created this photo of Big Red. The bridge is located in Asheboro NC and is one of only 2 covered bridges still remaining in NC.

Pappy's Place

Just added a new edition to Pappy's Place. It looks good in the "man cave".

Lake James and Mt Airy Ride

The last 2 days of riding have been great. After weeks of not getting to ride, I finally got to ride Big Red for about 500+ miles. Monday I met up with my brother-in-law at his home to ride around Lake James in NC. Slick and I had visited the lake on one trip but that was in the car (boring ride). Kevin lives closer to the lake so he lead the way and we rode around the outer edge of the lake. It was a nice day and the ride was great. However, there aren't too many good places to park to get a good photo or two. That didn't stop us. Below is a nice photo of the lake and Table Rock. The other photo is Kevin as my lookout for our get away. We are born outlaws!

Table Rock at Lake James

Yes, We Stopped! Call a Cop!

After riding around the lake, Kevin lead the way to route 268 toward Wilkesboro NC. That was a nice ride through the county. We actually rode for miles before seeing any vehicles. We rode through some old towns such as Roaring River, Knottville, Elkin and of course, Ronda. I know what you are saying, "I have never heard of those towns". Well, neither have I. The towns were very small and you could tell that many of the old mills and factories have come and gone. Nevertheless, the ride through those old towns was very nice and relaxing.

After a good nights rest after me riding for about 8 hours on Monday, Kevin and I headed out to Mount Airy NC. Mt Airy was place where Andy Griffith lived as a boy and is a popular tourist area for those that grew up watching the Andy Griffith Show and like to see the changing of the leaves in the mountain in the fall. The place really packs in the tourist for the Mayberry Days events that just happen to be going on at the end of this week. Many of the old actors from the show are no longer with us, but those that are still kicking usually show up. Andy Griffith actually showed up last year.

Kevin and I visited the major attractions like the Andy Griffith Museum. If you get a chance to visit there and liked the show, you need to go there. The cost is only $3.00. Of course no visit to Mount Airy is complete without visiting Snappy's Lunch for a heart stopping pork chop sandwich and a hair cut at Floyd's Barber Shop. I know, I don't have hair, but I can still get a few pictures of those with hair getting haircuts; including my good old biker buddy, Kevin. There are hundreds of photos on the wall of those that got there hair cut at Floyd's. We asked one barber there how many photos they had and she said there are probably over 35,000 photos.

Kevin's Snappy Pork Chopped Sandwich

Kevin's Haircut at Floyd's Barber Shop!

I also got a few other pictures that I thought were pretty cool.

Andy Griffith's Old Home

Popular Statue of Andy and Opie

Town Tours in Old Car From the Show

Downtown Mount Airy (AKA, Mayberry)

Floyd's Barber Shop...$8.00 Haircuts

Memories of Mayberry are Everywhere

Veteran's Memorial

So if you get a chance to visit Mount Airy or ride route 268, go for it. It was a great ride. The next trip will be Slick and I riding the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway this weekend. We plan to visit Asheville and Cherokee NC. More to come on that trip, so stay tuned.

4th of July Ride

Slick and I just got back from our motorcycle ride to the Blue Ridge Parkway and Stone Mountain Park in NC. We started about 9 am and hoped to beat the heat. Our ride took us from home and west on highway 421. We followed highway 421 to 21 North. 21 North took us up toward Stone Mountain Park in NC. We enjoyed that park of that ride. 21 North allows you to start enjoying the nice country roads and has very little traffic. We didn’t stop at Stone Mountain Park because we had driven our car up there before. After passing the park entrance continued to head north on 21 until to we got to the Blue Ridge Parkway entrance. It was a great day to ride. There were motorcycle and old guys driving their classic cars everywhere. We saw all types of bikers. Here is the route we took.

We always enjoy riding the parkway. Slick came up with a good ideas to pack a picnic lunch for us. That was nice. We ate some awesome P&J sandwiches and chips. She also made us a nice chocolate chip cake too. We had our little snack, enjoyed the scenery and laid on a blanket on one of the overlooks and enjoyed the day. It has been a long time since Slick and I just relaxed in the park. As a matter of fact, the Blue Ride Parkway was the first place we went on a date over 28 years ago. Here are a few photos from our ride:

We always enjoy riding the parkway. Slick came up with a good ideas to pack a picnic lunch for us. That was nice. We ate some awesome P&J sandwiches and chips. She also made us a nice chocolate chip cake too. We had our little snack, enjoyed the scenery and laid on a blanket on one of the overlooks and enjoyed the day. It has been a long time since Slick and I just relaxed in the park. As a matter of fact, the Blue Ride Parkway was the first place we went on a date over 28 years ago.

After our picnic, we headed west through the park. Our exit out of the park was 18 south toward Wilkesboro NC and back to 421. It was a about 20 south from 18 to Wilkesboro. The ride was nice. We went through several some towns and enjoyed the scenery of the wide open farm lands.

One we got back on 421, we headed south back toward home. By that time it was getting a little toasty, but Slick hung in there. The ride took about 4.5 hours. It was a great way to enjoy park of our 4th of July weekend.

If you get a chance check out the route. We plan to do it again. Of course we want to stay longer.

Until next time and remember to not be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Nice 5 Hour Ride in the Country

Yesterday was a very nice ride day for me. After being on the road for several weeks it was really nice to get a chance to take a longer than usual ride. See, most of the time I ride an hour or two and that's it. That is due to having to ride at least an hour to get to the good locations. Yesterday was a different story.

The weather was awesome! At the start of the ride, the temp was around 60. I ventured out around 0930 and headed southwest to Uwharrie National Forest. I have been through there before and I have always enjoyed it. Most of the trip is long and peaceful country roads. Throughout the trip, I road through some very small towns that I had never even heard of. It was actually pretty fun to post my stops using my Loopt application and tell let those that were following me know where I was at. The funny thing is, they had never heard of the towns either.

Once I got into Uwharrie National Forest I took a several roads off the beaten path. Mainly because I got lost. I really didn't mind getting lost. I got the chance to see some very nice roads and scenery that I would have never gotten to see. Besides, on a bike, if you have plenty of gas, you are never lost. I call the off road events "exploring".

After traveling through small towns like McGlead, Pee Dee, Denton and Wadeboro, I headed toward home. On the way home temps reached near 87 and getting a little toasty, but who cares; with the sights and sounds of small hometowns, country roads, fellow bikers and beautiful landscapes, how could I complain.

Below is a map of my route. If you get a chance, take a trip on the same route. I am looking forward to repeating the same route in the fall when the leaves change. Now that will be worth the 5 hr trip again.

Until next time and remember, don't be so busy making a leaving you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Twelve Important Things My Motorcycle Has Taught Me

Twelve Important Things My Motorcycle Has Taught Me

1. The only good view of a thunderstorm is in your rear view mirror.

2. Four wheels move the body; two wheels move the soul.

3. I'd rather be riding my motorcycle and thinking about God, than sitting in church thinking about my motorcycle.

4. Life may begin at 30, but it doesn't get real interesting until about 75 mph.

5. Midnight bugs taste just as bad as Noon time bugs.

6. Sometimes it takes a whole tank full of gas before you can think straight.

7. A bike on the road is worth two in the shed.

8. Young riders pick a destination and go; old riders pick a direction and go.

9. When you're riding lead, don't spit.

10. Catching a yellow jacket in your shirt at 75 mph can double your vocabulary.

11. If you can't get it going with bungee cords and duct tape, it's serious.

12. Only a biker knows why a dog sticks his head out of a car window.

13. (Bonus) I've never seen a Motorcycle parked in front of a psychiatrist's office.

Enjoy the ride!

Pappy

Nice Ride Today

Had a great 2 hour ride today. No where special. The weather was great and I decided to take a ride in the country and through some of our small towns in the area. There were bikes all over the place. Along the way, I stopped by the Harley Museum in Asheboro NC. The place was closed but I stopped to take a break and shoot this photo for my friends who love their Harley's.

Looking forward to the next ride and planning some routes for this year.

Pappy

Finally Get to Ride Today

After about 4 weeks of not getting to ride, I get to ride today. The high temps will be around the mid 60's. I have no idea where I am going to ride, but hey, that doesn't matter. I am riding somewhere for about 3 or 4 hours.

More to come...

Pappy

I Want to Ride!

From time to time I like to look back on some of our adventures and think about how much fun we had. Of course, I love taking photos of our trips too. These photos make me want to ride. Come on spring time! I got to ride!

Biker Photos

Enjoy!

Pappy

New Motorcycle Slide Show

Since I haven't been able to put on any good miles on Big Red lately, I thought I would put together a new slide show of some of the good times we have had over the last year. Take a look at the slide show. It is a fairly large file so I suggest you download it. Or you can checkout our PappyandSlick YouTube Page . You will find the same slide show there.

files.me.com/rogeryounce/1kb30y.mov

I have started a new business called PS Media Creations . My son Jordan has a business too called 83 Productions . Both of us plan to take a lot of video and photos of our 2010 trips and put them into a nice slide show, video and photo book format. That will be a great project to show case our adventures next year. Of course, when we get any other projects completed I will let everyone know.

Until next time and remember to not be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Sky Cove Dropped My Bike Tour

This weekend we decided to take a trip with Big Red to the mountains of NC. Slick and I planned this trip with the intent of just taking Big Red and the trailer. Then we started thinking that if we were going to the mountains for the week we need to have an alternate mode of transportation besides the bike. So, Slick drove her car so we could haul more stuff for the weeks stay. We are glad we did, because we did not check out the ride to the top of the mountain and how bad that was going to be for me on Big Red. More on that later.

As we left home on Saturday morning the weather was great. The whole 5 hr trip to the mountains was great. There was little traffic on I-40 and I-74. We found our way to Bryson City. We checked in to the rental office for the cabin. We got our map and directions and off we went to the cabin where the real fun started. (Fun is not the correct word)

I followed Slick because she had the directions to the cabin. As we got to the base of the mountain, we then entered Sky Cove (that should tell you how high the cabin was). I followed Slick for about 2 minutes up the mountain. The road was a one lane road. The road was paved and did have a little gravel and some pot holes. The fun part started when I approached my first hair pen turn to the right (a steep up hill turn). I didn't swing out far enough or give the bike enough gas, so it fell over (drop #1). After picking up Big Red, I ventured on. It was a steep but no problems until I got to my drive way. The drive way was a long a gravel road. I had to make a hard right up hill on gravel. Not a good combination for me. I hate right turns up a steep hill, especially on gravel. So I dropped the bike again (drop #2).

After that drop and having to pick up the bike on a 45% hill. I decide to take the bike up further up the mountain so I could turn it around and enter the driveway in a straight direction. As I continued up the hill to turn it around, you guessed it, I dropped it again (drop #3). After picking up the bike for the 3rd time I was getting a little tuckered out. I finally got the bike to the driveway and parked it at the end of the driveway. Prior to getting the bike settled on the gravel driveway, I put the kickstand down. It sank in the driveway, so of course it fell over again (drop #4).

All-in-all, I dropped the bike 4 times on the trip (so far). I still have to go down the hill on Saturday. It is kind of funny. I have dropped the bike more times on this trip that I have dropped it the whole time I have had it. Oh well, I will drop it again, I'm sure. Many bikers drop their bikes but are too macho to attempt it.

Even though I did drop the bike we have had fun on the trip so far. We have taken a nice train ride through the Smokey Mountains on the Smokey Mountain Railroad, visited Fontana Dam and Fontana Village, and rode on highway 28 toward TN (very nice bike road). We plan to ride back to Fontana Village next year. From the village you have some really nice roads to ride and you are less than an hour from the "Tail of the Dragon". Highway 28 in very curvy and in great condition.

We have 3 more days before I attempt the trip down the mountain on Big Red. It should be a little easier for me to go down the mountain rather than going up the 45% grade hill. I did learn a valuable lesson from this trip. Always personally checkout the location of your lodging if you plan to take your bike on a trip high into the mountains. Also, take a look around at the bikes that are already on the mountain. There was NONE! That should have been my first hint, I was screwing up. Below is a link to some photos of you road at Sky Cove.

Sky Cove Road

I am really glad we did not stick to our original plan of only riding the bike and pulling the trailer. That would have been a real disaster.

Until next time and remember, don't be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Nice Sunday Morning Ride

This morning I took off at 8 am for a nice Sunday morning ride. There is just something about heading off for an early morning ride and Sunday morning is my favorite time. The weather was in the mid 60's and there was no traffic. That is just what I enjoy. The only thing missing was Slick. She was out of town and I decided to go solo.

I took off at 8 am headed toward Lexington NC from Jamestown. Even though business 85 is a four lane highway there is normally very little traffic. So was the case this morning. I decided to head toward Lexington and I am glad I did. The town was dead. It gave me an opportunity to take the ride through town slow and really enjoy it. I have been through the town on a couple of occasions. I enjoy Lexington. It has the old southern town feel. If you decide to ride through Lexington take the time to stop and snap some photos of all the ceramic pigs on the streets. The town is famous of it's BBQ.

After leaving Lexington I headed south on NC 8. That took me toward High Rock Lake. There wasn't much to see of the lake from the main road. I did pass over bridge at the lake. It looked like a great place. I did notice that there were some camping grounds there. Jordan, Kevin and I have been talking about camping one weekend before it got too cold. That camp grounds is an option.

After leaving High Rock Lake I headed further south until I got to NC 49. There I took a left and then headed toward highway 109. The southern part of NC 8 and north on 1o9 is my type of road. There a many long stretches of road and not much traffic. You will see a lot of bikers on 109. I have actually traveled a lot of 109. One day I took the road all the way to South Carolina. Of course, I didn't plan to go that far, but I ended up there because I wanted to see where it went. Slick wasn't too thrilled about me going that far. Luckily my phone worked so I could call her and let her know I was okay.

After traveling north on 109, I headed into Thomasville NC. Again, it was a great time to go through the town; no traffic. Once I was through Thomasville, I hit business 85 and headed home.

There route was a little over 100 miles and only took about 2.5 hrs. It was a great morning to ride and seeing the small towns and country roads made my day. The only thing missing was Slick. She wasn't physically with me, but she was still there.

Until next time and remember to not be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Weekend Ride to Lake Lure

This weekend as a great 2 days of riding. Slick had made arrangements for us to meet her brother and and his wife (Kevin and Carolyn) to go for a little bike ride. The weather was great and we needed to get out of town and do something relaxing. So, we do what we like to do the most to relax; ride.

Slick and I took off from Jamestown around 11 am and heading west on I-40. We meet Kevin and Carolyn off of exit 113 near Hickory NC. We fueled up and started talking about where we wanted to ride. Kevin suggested Lake Lure. Slick and I that was a great idea. We both really enjoy that lake and have been there a couple of times.

After fueling up, we headed west on I-40 and to the Black Mountain exit. Kevin was in the lead and he took us on some really nice back roads. The roads were filled with a lot of nice tight curves. The traffic was really lite since we were traveling on a Friday. Basically we had the roads to ourselves; nice!

Once we arrive at Lake Lure we started looking for a nice place to eat. I suggested a little place right across from the Lake Lure Hotel and beach area. The food was really good. I had eaten there before but only on the side where all the bikers and beer drinkers ate. This time we ate in the main area and the food was really good. All of us enjoyed our meals. If you decide to visit there, you will enjoy it.

After lunch we decided we all wanted to take the boat tour ride on Lake Lure. Slick and I tried taking the tour last year but the weather didn't cooperate. This time the weather was awesome. So we all boarded the boat and got to hear a lot of great history about the lake. The tour guide as entertaining and told everyone of how the lake was formed and about the some of the residents there. We got to see homes on the lake that were worth over 1.5 million dollars. He even showed us the place were "Dirty Dancing" was filmed and how Patrick Swayze was kicked out of the hotel for partying too much during the filming of the movie. He also told us that the movie was filmed in November and the cast froze their butts off filming the scenes in the water. I was able to get a very photos during the boat tour. The photos were taken with my cell phone. Since the Lake Lure trip as a last minute thing, I didn't bring my good camera.

After leaving Lake Lure we headed back the same route. I wanted to enjoy the curvy roads again. I think even Slick liked them. She only squealed twice. Once back on I-40 we headed to Kevin and Carolyn's home. They invited us to spend the night with them, so we took them up on it.

On Saturday, Slick and I prepared to head home. Carolyn had suggested that we take a ride to a winery about an hours ride from their home. So we took off on the ride following Kevin and Carolyn. I am glad they were in the lead because they took on some very nice back roads to the winery. It was some of the best and most relaxing back roads Slick and I had every been on. Even though, we failed to check the time the winery opened (they were closed), we really enjoyed that ride. The roads consisted of a lot of open farm lands, curves and everything a biker would enjoy on that hour long trip. The roads were so nice, it would have been a great place to get lost and try to find our way out.

Once we left the winery were headed back toward I-40. We all said good-bye and headed back home. The 2 day trip put on about 250 miles on Big Red and it was great. We are looking forward to our next ride.

Until next time remember, don't be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

Mt Airy and Blue Ridge Parkway Ride

Yesterday was a great day for a ride. Slick and I got up in the morning and we were not too sure if the weather was going to hold out. It was cloudy in the morning but after checking the weather forecast it seemed we were going to be okay.

We got on the road around 11:30. By that time it was getting a little toasty and the temperature was suppose to get near 90. It wasn't too bad if we were moving on the bike and it turned out to be nice. We headed toward Winston Salem to highway 52 north and the VA state line. By the time we got there the weather as improving. Not long after we entered VA we headed west on highway 58 west toward Fairy Stone State Park. The bad thing was the park was not on highway 58 west. It turned out it was on some off road and of course we rode right by it. We just said, "Oh well, we have gas, keep riding".

As we headed west we did see a nice lookout called "Lovers Leap". So he had to stop and get a photo or two. I had been there before. I had rode highway 58 west as my first solo ride about 3 years ago. The overlook view was nice and a popular stopping point for those heading toward the Blue Ridge Parkway.

After leaving Lovers Leap, we headed west to the Blue Ridge Parkway. We noticed a small park off the road and decided to check it out. It turned out to have a nice view of the mountains and some picnic spots. We stopped to take a view photos there. While there, we notice a grave site. It was kind of strange to have a grave site at the park. We noticed that a USAF veteran was buried there. He must have loved the mountains to have asked to have been buried there. You could tell from the site that he was not forget by the flag at his grave site that someone placed there.

After a few photos and quick break we headed to the Blue Ridge Parkway. As usual, the parkway was a nice relaxing ride. Slick and I had been on that part of the parkway before, but it never gets old riding that parkway. We look the rolling hills, farm lands and very lite traffic on the parkway.

After exiting the parkway, we headed to highway 52 south and headed toward Mt Airy. We decided to look for some lunch. We decided to eat a place that wasn't a chain and so we decided to pick the Wagon Wheel Restaurant. It was old restaurant that had been there for many years. Actually the waiters had been working there 27 years. It was an old place but the popcorn shrimp, hush puppies and tea was awesome! After lunch Slick wanted to take a tour of downtown Mt Airy. That took about 3 minutes. It would have been shorted but we had to stop at a couple of stop lights.

Once our bellies were full we headed south toward home. By this time was had been gone about 5 hours. We finally made it home in about 6 hours. Overall, the ride was great. Slick stated it was one of the most relaxing and fun rides she had had in a long time. I had to agree.

If you would like to see photos of our trip just click on the link below and remember, don't be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Mt Airy and Blue Ridge Parkway Ride

Pappy

Now on Facebook

Well, I finally switched from MySpace to Facebook. It looks like no one else is using MySpace anymore. I am liking the Facebook stuff. It seems easier to use and seems cleaner.

Pappy

Some Nice Vacation Photos

Here are some of our photos from out west. I took about 300+ photos. We did not take the bike, but enjoy them just the same.

West Photos

Pappy

USAF Tribute

Here is a nice tribute for those that have served or are serving in the USAF. It bought back a lot of good memories. I hope you enjoy the video.

I know it is not motorcycle related, but hey, it's my blog, right?

USAF Tribute Video

Pappy

Harley for Sale (Police Bike)

If anyone is looking for Harley Davidson King Police bike, I know of someone selling one. It is in excellent shape and has tons of extras. Her husband's father bought the bike before he retired from a police department. It was never used as a police bike and was converted to a regular bike. Below is the details on the bike on Craigslist:

Bike Details

Until next time and remember to not be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy

VA State BBQ Championship in Galax Ride

Saturday was a great day to ride. The weather was awesome and the roads were filled with all types of bikes. Our band of awesome riders consisted of Kevin (Harley) and Carolyn (Nanna), Jordan (AKA Dudley) and of course Slick and I. We had 1 Harley, VTX and Big Red taking out for the ride. We decided to head to Galax VA to the VA BBQ State Championship. Slick actually suggested the ride. It was the first time she has suggested a ride and she picked a good one.

We headed out on highway 52 north toward Mt Airy. We were not too thrilled about riding on highway 52. The ride did get a little better once we got off 52 and on to 74. Highway 74 was nice. There was very little traffic and there were a lot of bikes heading in the same direction as we were.

The ride did get even better once we got on 89 west. 89 took us right into Galax VA. It was Harley and Nanna's first time riding their bikes in VA. So of course we had to stop and get a photo of the two at the state line.

Once we rode into Galax, we could noticed the town was pretty packed with people. The smell of BBQ was in the air, banjos were playing, two guys who thought they were ZZ Top were in the house and people were really enjoying themselves. I had to take in some BBQ. The BBQ was great. Below are a few photos of our trip in Galax:

The girls did what they like to do best; shopping. They stopped at several booths and stores to checkout the stuff for sell. Of course, they had to buy something (it must be a woman thing). I am glad I didn't take my trailer. The girls would have filled it up with all types of stuff. As for the guys, we were concerned with what we do best; eating. Of course, we did that well.

After touring the sites and sounds of Galax, we headed south and back toward home. The trip took us about 5 hours and we put about 200 miles on the bikes. We did notice on the way up on 89, we saw an exit for the Blue Ridge Parkway. Slick and I have ridden a lot of the parkway, but we haven't ridden that part of it. So of course, we will have to take another trip back up that way in the near future to take care of that little issue.

All-in-all, the ride was great. We had great weather and we all enjoyed being together. We are all looking forward to riding again soon.

Until next time and remember, don't be so busy making a living you forget to make a life.

Pappy