5/16/2006

With our saddle bags stuffed to the hilt and an additional bag strapped to our seats, Lisa and I headed out for the spring bike rally in Myrtle Beach.  This was Lisa’s first major trip on her Autoglide.  She was so nervous that she was about to molt out of her skin.  She stuck with it and started putting miles behind us.  

At first, we were just toddling along at about a 45 mph clip, that is the speed that Lisa likes.  After about 20 miles we stopped to top off the tanks with gas.  I encouraged Lisa to start going the speed limit.  Luckily, she made an effort to comply with my request and we started making a little better time.  

When we got to Wilmington, NC we stopped for a bite to eat at Wild Wings.  We ordered a sampler platter of wings.  I should have known not to start off a bike trip by eating REALLY HOT wings.  I paid for the mistake for a long time.  

After finishing eating we got back on the road.  Just south of Wilmington there is a long bridge that the center section is made out of metal grating.  When one drives across the grating it causes a funny feeling for the driver.  I was worried that Lisa might panic or something.  The wider tires on the Autoglides reduce this funny feeling.  None the less, Lisa transversed the bridge like a champ.  She even maintained highway speed across the bridge.  I even had a sigh of relief as we the bridge disappeared in my mirror.

We stopped a total of 5 times in 153 miles, but we eventually made it to our final destination.  We didn’t make it there on time to go to the Ridley display, but that would be on our agenda for Wednesday morning.

5/17/2006

We were greeted with a beautiful day and we headed out on the Autoglides to find the Ridley display.  Lisa used to live in Myrtle, so we headed right for the Lakewood Campground (which is where the Ridley website indicated the display would  be).  We were not able to find Ridley anywhere at that campground.  We headed on farther south to another location based on what some other biker told us.  He told us Ridley was behind Hooters.  Once again, we came up empty handed.  Later that day, we found the Ridley display about 1/2 mile north of the H-D dealer.  I checked Ridley’s website today when I got home and they had corrected their location.  Hopefully other people had better luck finding the display.  When we did find the display Mike gave us a very warm greeting and we had a nice conversation with Mike and many potential customers. 

I got to sit on a Ridley that I really wanted, but I decided to stick with the one that I already have.  

We eventually went to the Rat Hole to meet some friends.  We spent the rest of the day watching a Motorcycle Rodeo.  It was awesome.  If you haven’t seen one before, be sure to put it on your calendar for your next rally.

5/18/2006

That was my birthday.  We spent the day looking at different vendors trying to find a fork bag that would fit my fancy.  I am too picky because I did not find one that met all my prerequisites.  That night I probably had a few too many birthday shots, but I made a lot of friends.

5/19/2006

This day was similar to 5/18, but my birthday was over.  I did buy a stuffed parrot that talks when you squeeze him.  Sorry, I can’t tell you what he says.

5/20/2006

Lisa and I had scheduled an event at the State Park for 1100, but it was raining heavily.  We moved the event to a different location and a different time.  At 1530, Lisa and I were married.

 We were accompanied by about 15 other bikers that are friends of ours. 

After the ceremony was over, we put on shirts that said, "Just Married", and headed out on Lisa’s Autoglide.

The traffic was terrible and Lisa wanted to ride instead of drive in the traffic that day.  Besides, she had enough to worry about.  We left the chapel and stumbled onto another Ridley display.  Boss Hoss, had a Ridley banner up and they had several Ridley’s  for sale.  They even had a Speedster.  We met a potential customer and we took them to see Lisa’s bike.  That night it rained, so the festivities weren’t as wild as expected.  We did manage to have a good time though.

5/21/2006

We loaded up our stuff, put it back on the bikes and headed for home.  The weather for the trip home couldn’t have been nicer.  It was a relaxing trip and Lisa did fine.  It was her first major trip on the Autoglide, so I am glad that it went well for her. 

All in all, we made several new friends and talked to a lot of people about Ridley Motorcycles.  Maybe we can get something started and set up a Ridley Rally.  Wouldn’t that be awesome?