I'm IN!! Put another name on the hotel list for this shindig...
As of now, I'm planning on arriving Wednesday so I can do some hiking in Oak Mountain State Park Thursday, and if time permits, the Barber Motorsports Museum.
Did I miss the posting of rides, routes for the area? Any who, I'm in!!!!
Great to hear ET! I like your early arrival plans as well. If you haven't been to Barber I highly recommend that you set aside at least 3 to 4 hours to do a run through at a minimum.
As for rides and routes... you haven't missed anything, see below.
I had indicated that I would attend (camping), but my daughter just informed me that I have a conflicting engagement. Hope all goes well!
Maybe next time rpm! Enjoy your time with your daughter, there's always next year to see us heathens.
The Redfishes pointed their middle fingers at the Best Western in Clanton as they rode by Friday around lunchtime. Well, the youngest one did anyway.
Not able to commit either way. Lots of turmoil in The World of Redfish right now. A promotion, flood recovery, offsite training, just returned from an 8 day ride with Pop, the usual BS.
Also, Pop and I are not good Social Animals. We usually stay quietly outside the noise and the fury. And we do not care for large group rides.
I don't know what exactly went on at EOM but I hear 4 totaled bikes. Can anyone confirm this? What happened? We sure as hell don't want any part of that.
I get it RFH - just do what you gotta do. But hopefully you and Pop can make it. As far as social animals go, this will be a laid back BBQ eatin' campin' event. I'm sure that you and Pop would feel right at home!
As far as group rides go - I'm not a fan of BIG group rides either. I prefer to ride in a group of 5 to 6 max. Along those lines, let me say to the "group" that I had intended to post up at least a three or four routes that I would suggest but have just been overly busy at work lately and I don't see any let up anytime soon. My plate away from the office has been quite full as well. But I'll eventually get around to it, hopefully in the next week or so.
At this point I would like to refer back to the first page of this thread, to post #11, where I provided a long list of attractions in and around central and north Alabama. Please take a moment to peruse the list and make suggestions to me of things you might like to see or places to visit. I'll do my best to incorporate those into routes. I highly encourage those of you that are good at routing and are somewhat familiar with the area to come up with your own routes and volunteer to lead a ride or two. That would help with splitting up our groups into 4-6 riders per group.
ALL RIDES WILL BEGIN AND END AT THE INN OF CLANTON AT I-65 EXIT 208
We will plan to have breakfast at the Shoney's next door to the hotel Friday and Saturday morning around 8 am then depart on our rides from there, hopefully before 9 am.
As a reminder, this is the link for directions to my property from I-65 exit 219.
The Location
My property is located in Jemison, AL, which is only about 30 miles south of the Birmingham suburbs. It's only one mile off of Interstate 65 at Exit 219. The site is located on 21 wooded acres of serenity and is ideal for camping, grilling and chilling.
Directions from Exit 219 to the property
I have plenty of space for as many tent campers as could even possibly show up. There is at least an acre of wooded area that is cleared out, grubbed and generally level. If you are camping you shouldn't have any trouble finding an ideal spot!
One other important thing I would like to note - the drive into my property from the paved road is about 750 feet of crushed stone, with a couple of fairly steep inclines to traverse. It has been extremely dry in Alabama for about two months now and I will have the road groomed to where it will not cause the average rider any trouble at all. But just be aware that if you are staying on premises there will be some gravel to negotiate. It's really no big deal, I just wanted to call everyone's attention to it so they wouldn't be surprised. For those staying at the hotel, you likely will not be even riding to my place, as our "tipsey taxi" service is really coming together and I plan to get each of you from the hotel to my place and back both Friday and Saturday night.
SO - we are now a mere 18 days out. There are no activities planned for Thursday night, but we'll just wing it that evening as far as dinner is concerned. Probably just grill burgers and hot dogs onsite, depending on how many people are there. Those that will be staying at the hotel and arriving Thursday are welcome to come join us Thursday evening. Just let me know if you would like for us to come pick you up, or just ride your bike on in.
As always, any questions feel free to post up here or PM me directly. See y'all soon!