I've written about the DRP and LRRP programs before with my opinions. I personally think both are good programs overall and provide an incentive for many to put some miles on their bikes? The LRRP's Tri-State part has pushed me outside my comfort zone to get to out of state events more than ever. The Inner State option of it has pushed me to visit other Texas chapters when I might not have. The Finish the Mission pushes us to challenge ourselves and maybe .. to attend a National event when one might not? But the DRP program ....
DRP is an interesting one. My take on it is it pushes members of a chapter to ride more together, put some miles on, 'in a pack.'. Problem becomes on how you count these miles .. IMHO. By the book, you put together a group ride of 2+ (more the better!), don that back patch, put some miles on and get some time in with your Brothers and Sisters. That to me is the value/benefit of the patch and the 'mileages' it represents. However, I can't help but think ..actually 'know' .. it's being abused. And this is just what I'm aware of. What I mean by this is .... what I believe it's meant to be ... is a tool of sort to push folks to do some serious group riding. I've found it to be a nice incentive to get 2-6 folks together during the week .. as a minimum ...and put some miles on the bikes that might not have happened otherwise. But, if I decide to head out to grab a taco down the road, and all I have to do is announce it on Social Media or another format 60 minutes prior ... and no one rides with me to or from ... why the f' would I get credit for that 10 or 30 miles? How the hell does that promote the DRP program? To me it allows some to game the system; simple as that. I'm not the only one with this opinion ... I know of several others with the same opinion. But hey .... the guilty announce their gaming openly to all .. so when they 'earn' their mileage ... they are the ones looking a notch .. foolish?
Just me... thinking out loud. It's 0349 hrs on a Saturday morning as I type this. I'd rather be in bed snoring .. but here I sit... solving the problems of the world. Okay ... whining about BS. There... at least I feel better :)
Knocked out a ride on Tuesday ... which set the stage for Thursday/yesterday. We wanted more! Weather was looking even better! So, put the ride on Group.io and we got five of us on it.
Chief and I rolled over to the QT in Greenville, topping off tanks and meeting up with Dutch. Then, up 69 over to 902 and into Howe, Tx meeting up with Rocky and Pullout. We've got two Road captains in the mix, but they retain me out in the front since I put together the ride. So, after some BSing and catching up, we're rolling out on 902 westwardly until we hit Preston Road and roll North up through Pottsboro to our lunch destination at Tanglewood Resort. I haven't been here in about a decade, but hasn't changed much except for that fact they are redoing the pool area outside of the restaurant. In fact wondering why I haven't been back for a weekend with Lucy; maybe rent a boat, etc. Hmmm.... now there's a thought for another trip? Anyways, we skip the adult beverages and grab some grub which turns out to be GOOD! Burgers, Club Sandwiches and Fish n' Chips are the choices and no complaints by any. Our waitress was a sweetheart which makes it all ... excellent. But... the sun and road awaits us so we're off to head out. Dutch has spotted an American Legion a few miles away so we head further north to the waters edge of Texoma to find it hidden away in a cove. Score! Get the bikes parked by the flags, few pics and upstairs to enjoy the view. One tidbit I have to admit. Set that phone / camera up on Dutch's Tripod and attempted to sprint back to my back farthest away to make it into the pic; lets just say ... I might have pulled something .. couch! lol
American Legion , Pottsboro TX
This place is huge and would be an awesome spot for a future Chapter meeting, ride destination or Friday night honky tonking. I'm a fan from the get go. The outside balcony is large and has an awesome view. There's a VFW in this area as well, but we chose not to head over but .... onward with our ride. Rocky pics up the check (Thank you!) and we're rolling back the way we came, but quickly divert east towards Hwy 75. When we reach that point. Rocky and Pullout roll South, both having other priorities they must attend to and we roll North over the border to Oklahoma, quickly diverting east on Hwy 91 to work our way back into Texas on 2 lanes. Working our way to Bonham, quick pit stop and now the Chief is in the lead taking a path skirting the Bonham State Park which gives us some twisties to break things up .. then ... as we enter Greenville, I grab the lead and we do one last stop; American Legion part 2! Now, it's time for some cold ones with the riding pretty much behind us. All have less than 20 to go ... Couple down the hatch .. and ... few minutes later... Home Sweet Home. Started off around 59 degrees, ended at 79 degrees without a cloud in the Sky ... Perfect Ride day for 23-11~
Yesterday Rocky reached out to me .. "Tuesday Ride?" ... quick weather check and I'm thinking .. Hell yeah! We establish a time window... mentioned it to Chief.. posted it on Group.IO ... mentioned it later to Dutch during a conversation .. and we're up to 4 bikes... good enough for me!
Fuel Meetup
At 1000hrs myself, Rocky and the Chief connect up near my place and we're headed to Lone Oak to meetup with Dutch. Top off the tanks, do a lil' BSing and we pick out a lunch spot. Then, it's two lane heaven into Sulphur Springs where we pull up into the square at 1100hrs as the doors are opening for lunch spots. We pick the Corner Grub House which has outside seating and grab a nice spot in the sunlight. The service rocks and she's recommending the Ribeye Sandwich so the 3 of us eating (Dutch make the mistake of slamming a big ass burrito for breakfast) are all in for it. As it turns out, one of THE BEST I've ever had. Perfect size, juicy melt in your mouth goodness. Washed it down with iced teas for an over the top lunch. I WILL be back for seconds. Well, time to close out the check and .... a couple picked it up for us and left us with the good news. This never fails to rock me to the core when this happens with a "thank you for your service" . No .. thank you ... whomever you all were. Means a lot to us! So, pack it up , take a few pics in the square and we off to do some more miles.
We head out on Hwy 11 through Commerce, Wolf City, Leonard then Rocky splits off headed home. As we get closer to Greenville, make the decision to hit the VFW for a couple of cold ones to finish off the day's ride. Pulling up, this place is packed! Half a dozen ladies apparently meet here every Tuesday and with it being Fat Tuesday can't help but think others dropped in to celebrate. Gives us about an hour to catch up (in between ol' Ms Melody getting her drinks dropping in our our conversations .. lol). Then finally, push off and head back home. Chief and I are already planning Thursday's ride; probably head towards Oklahoma this time. Thursday's weather looks even better ........
Had this on my calendar, but didn't realize where exactly it was going to be.... when I reached out to 44-1 yesterday to apologize for not making the meeting got some good news. They are hosting the regional this year! I'm thinking.. SCORE! Immediately invited Rocky/Snoopy and Boudreaux/Nance to head this way for it... I feel an awesome weekend coming on!
Update 21Feb : Looks like Dittels and Kennedys are in!
Well.... time to plan the Ride! Looks like it's around 12 hours or so. Add an hour for BS stops, etc. So .. 13 hours.... I'm thinking, leave at sunrise to make the best time. That looks to be around 0700 hrs.. but ... I don't like it. So, 0600 it is! Sun will be up as we roll through McKinney west on Hwy 380.
Sunrise
From there, it's get the hell out of Dodge and onto 2 laners, which Hwy 180 is for us, then onward to Hwy 62
Headed West ... perfecto'
Temps should be perfect this time of year. Last time I did this run, it was to El Paso in June for Nationals and it got HOT! We'll head out on Thursday. Hoping to have Boudreaux and Chief (still trying to convince!) with me, then connect up with Rocky in the McKinney area. Then, 600 + miles of good times. Boudreaux and I ran this direction back around '16 or so on the way to Durango, CO; loved it then will love it now. We should roll in around 13 hours later, 1800 hrs local time. Perfect. Only thing that will suck is about an hour or so of the sun in our eyes as we approach our destination. Some of these legs are over 100 miles with no gas stations but we'll have bikes with 200+ mile ranges so no issues anticipated. Still, I'll pack a 1 gallon saddle bag gas can ... just in case?
Now .. we need a head count ...... If one of the Road Captains join this mix, they are welcome to take over this ride. As I'd mentioned before, nice leisurely ride out West on Thursday. Me personally, I'll be rolling back Interstate on Sunday ONLY because my ass needs to be back sooner than later due to family coming in that day and travel plans following that.
I'm not a big fan of riding to Garland or Allen to the HD dealers for crap .. but somethings... call my name. Can't make this Saturday that our chapter is supporting. Demo Days, hell I wouldn't mind trying out of the new models. Crawifsh? Damned it! Third Annual devil dogs... hey .. I'd roll in to show the patch .... but ... 4 in a row I can't make...
Got to admit, I wasn't a fan when I first heard of this. We were at the Texas State Meeting last fall when it first came up ... I was like "WTF?" ... I for sure thought Lucy wouldn't want to do it. I think it came up between us that night and we moved on .... but then our 23-11 Aux began scheming and the next thing you know ... Lucy is like 'hell yes.'. Then Nancy grabbed several rooms for the Kennedys / Dittels / Lossners and ... we're now going. Huh :) Well, as the date gets closer I have to admit, I'm getting a lil more pumped about it all. With a week to go, I'm ready! I've been all about the 'road trip' thought process, but looking at the weather report I'm starting to scheme about riding to Waco instead. Lucy is cool about it, but of course nothing is ever simple. We are car pooling so I have to take that into account. I haven't asked Boudreaux if he wants to yet, and I know Rocky can't due to work schedule. Rouge chimes in a few days prior about folks riding but I've flipped the switch into Road Trip mode and I'm out. When the smoke clears only Boots will ride his bike from our area representing 23-11. The rest of us are in Cage mode. And ... I'm about to break one of my long standing rules. Brought the vest with me for the event..... that I'm not riding to. I ain't wearing any Lace ... so .. gotz to bring my Leather!
Friday morning is finally here and I've loaded up the Biggun with a crap load of booze and clothes are we're headed over to the Kennedys'. Load up their booze and luggage and we're headed South. I rarely do this but I've got the mindset. Pop open a few along the way and we're smiling and rolling. Less than three hours later we're pulling up at the Hyatt in Waco, checking in, unloading and ... the weekend is officially here. I've left my laptop at home, done one more email check and I've mentally checked out. Lets get this party on! After an hour or so, we cage it a mile over to our meet and greet and we've soon got about a hundred folks on the back patio sipping and eating and catching up others. I had no idea how many from our chapter are rolling in but we soon have one table full then two .. and more folks rolling in. When the smoke clears, our chapter will be the biggest in attendance this weekend; bam! I believe there were at least 26 of us, so that's over 10% of all attendees. Few hours of cold beers and some munchies and we're sneaking out to head back to the hotel. We've got coolers full of cold adult refreshments and I'm 'full' of beer and ready to flip over to some Bourbon. Eventually the whole downstairs is full of CVMA; pays to be at the host hotel? Sometime after midnight .... headed upstairs to get to sleep.
Nancy and I .... Surfing the Halls as we usually do traveling!
Friday Night Meet n Greet
Friday Night
Friday Night
Saturday .. moving a lil' slow, slept in until after 9am and pouring mimosas. We're soon scheming on a lunch meetup with the three couples and eventually headed out for some Mexican brunch/lunch. We roll up to a place the Dittels have been to before and it won't disappoint. Service is over the top. Bloody Mary's and Marg's are awesome. Food is great. Score! Few hours of BSing .. and .. headed back to get ready. Eventually we decide to jump in the Dittel Cage and we're off to the Texas Ranger Museum where our event is being held. I had no idea how awesome this place is; I'd like to go back once more to enjoy it and take it all in with the exhibits once more. Off to the back side is our room setup for about 200 of us in attendance.
Saturday Brunch!
Six Amigos
We soon kick off the event in CVMA style with the posting of the colors, pledge of allegiance, patching in several new members (two from our chapter) and some words from our State Rep and Regional Rep. Cupcake (Dudeman's better half) has put this together for us leading the charge and knocked it out of the park. We're blessed with some words from her then ....... it's time to eat! We've also an 'open bar' where we brought our own, and the bartenders are serving them for us; perfect. During all this some raffles and giveaways take place eventually leading to the lights dimming and the DJ kicking it in gear for us. Lucy and I soon find ourselves on that dance floor for over half the music being played and kicking it up. I'm digging this and before you know it, party's over. What? I'm not ready! Sigh .... damned that was fun. Good news is Snoopy is our DD and we're all soon loaded up and 'home safe.'. Party as always continues on downstairs and we put a hurt on the bourbons' we brought..... then .... done
CVMA 23-11
Saturday Night
Hi Ho Silver!
Rocky | Skrape | RickkciR
Sunday ... we're supposed to do Brunch with the chapter but .... by the time 10am is upon us, we're ready to head home. So, on a beautiful sunny morning with the temps in the 50s we load up the cage and head back to Greenville. I'm wishing I was on my motorcycle but... that cold beer I'm sipping sure tastes good while sitting in a heated seat ... maybe next year I'll ride to it.....
Ready! Initially, farthest thing from my mind! Breaks my personal rules for wear of the vest when not riding. But , F' it! Got my boots, pants, shirts, and hat picked out .... overlaid with my vest. I'll leave my shooter at home this time though; didn't work out so well back in '19 .. js. Lucy and I are rolling down with Boudreaux and Nance'. Rocky and Snoopy are a few hours behind us. Simultaneously Orion and Fireshot are leading a Caravan down closer to DFW no doubt, before we all land on I35 and head south to Waco.
Gotz to prep a cooler for the trip, grab sufficient adult beverages and it's time. Farley's will hold down the homestead to pick off any low lifes jumping the fence ... lol.. had to throw that in there.
Overall, another great weekend of riding; 200 for me, lil more lil less for others. It was looking to be a cold and chilly day initially ... but .... as the date got closer, the forecast got better. I thought I'd have to don my chaps but by 0930hrs, it was 49 degrees and headed North! By the time we're KSU, it's low 50s. On the way home, it'd pop all the way to 67!
In Lone Oak, six bikes and one trike would roll out. Chief is our Road captain and leads the pack with myself, Honey Badger, Orion, Rocket, Fireshot and Shooter bringing up the rear on 3. Initially, we wanted to take the 'scenic' route... but... it's still a notch cold so we roll straight down 69 to 80 to Longview. We're some of the first to roll in with 23-20 and 23-14 there. We expected a contingent roll in from 23-26 but never heard from them, minus Abe but he's local.
It was fairly calm compared to last time with us all in the VFW pool hall area. Once everyone was there the mood kicked into gear and the good times were had. Good percentage were playing pool; hell I finally joined in and for once didn't suck. A pool tourney was underway and they had a kitchen pushing out Burgers and other treats. I have to admit .. my burger sucked. Was advertised as a half pounder and I'd be surprised if that mystery meat was a 1/4 pounder. Sigh. However others had some type of Philly / Cheese on fries or tots, and it looked awesome! Shoulda Coulda Woulda!
Well, few hours go buy and we're mounting up to leave. On the way down Fireshot experienced an electrical problem , most likely loose cables from the install of a new battery. Now... I'll be nice here, but for some reason they didn't take care of it on site, so ... on the way back .. it haunted her a few times .. but ... 1/2 way home, the problem calmed down and she made it home fine. However, 3 -4 times we had to pull over and wait for her. In that mix was a pee break that threw us a curve... since they pulled off without telling the lead bike. BUT... all in all .. a good time. Lessons learned? Bring a tool kit and if you've got to take a piss, run up to the lead bike and motion at your crotch? :)
Dudeman reported the other day .... we are up to 28 chapters.... 28! Took Texas a long time to get on the map (23rd state to join the Association) but we have a butt load of members today! Last I remember we constituted more than 10% of the entire membership? 28 Chapters PLUS 3 Detachments..... 31!
