TLCMC

Jan 7th, four riders (BobK, Dave, Larry and Mel) met in Ball Ground to take advantage of a nice (for January) day. But with a start in the upper-30’s, electrics were the order of the day (jacket liners, gloves, grips and, for one lucky rider, even seat!) We made a large loop heading E on 53, then NW on 183, then W on 136 thru the Burnt Mtn area, then across 515 and down thru the Henderson Mtn area back toward our lunch in Ball Ground. The day warmed quickly and layers came off (or at least came unplugged).

One unusual event… we helped another rider (and his friend) pull his downed Indian Scout up an embankment off Hwy 136 between the scenic lookout area (which views Sharptop Mtn) and the upper area (near the lake and the Monument Rd / Sunrise Rd turnoffs). The rider was very fortunate because the shoulder area on the outside of this curve was very wide (12’ or so) and comprised of deep, loamy soil and thick grass, all nicely softened by recent heavy rains. The bike had just started down a sharp embankment (rear first) leaving just the front wheel at the top edge when it stopped. After righting it, pulling it up and removing the dirt it collected, it fired right up. With some minor tweaks, the uninjured rider was able to ride it home. God is good!

Lunch was at Choate’s BBQ just N of Ball Ground. Their menu is extensive and it took a long time to narrow down the many good choices. Very good and worth a stop.

Wow, where to begin? I’ll simply start with… this was the coolest thing I’ve done in years! I think the best way to tell this story is to give a brief rundown of the trip followed by individual rider comments, then “let the pictures do the talking”.

So here goes… Last spring, Dan, Dave, Larry and Mel decided to make this trip and purchased two camping plots (20’ x 20’ ea) and three-day passes to attend what has to be the best vintage motorcycle festival in the country. They left early on a beautiful fall Friday for Barber Motorsports in Leeds, AL (just outside of Birmingham). Upon arriving, they quickly set up tents and dining fly in the rapidly-filling camping area before touring the expansive “vendor swap meet” area which is combination of parts, projects and bike sales. Breakfasts were prepared in camp allowing them to get a jump on the day, lunches were around the venue, and dinners were off property in Leeds – Rusty’s BBQ gets eight thumbs up from this group!

Even though four of us just camped two nights a couple weeks earlier at the Barber Vintage Festival, we just couldn’t pass up a trip to our fabulous N GA mountains in their fall peak. So three riders left Hickory Flat (BobK, Dave, and Larry) and met Mel in Cleveland, then headed to the mountains. Although it was a very brisk mid-30’s start, it warmed rapidly into a gorgeous day. After a trip up the Richard Russell and across Wolf Pen Gap, they landed at Wildcat BBQ N of Suches where they met Dan and his daughter Pres (they drove up to join in the camping fun, her first!). The location was picked to strategically view the 50cc True Grits scooter rally/race pass by. It’s always a hoot watching this group flog their small bikes for all they’re worth. Wildcat’s front porch and “staightaway” makes a great place to watch them try to pass each other before the curves quickly return.

By mid afternoon, layers were peeled off and the group (now six) headed to TWO in Suches for our camping. Although the rally had around 60 bikes, it seemed we were among the very few tent camping!