My thanks to everyone that came to Sparta...we really did have a good time. Reservations are already being taken for next year, so go ahead and get it done. If you've been getting a room up in the conference building and you were there this year, you know all of the mattresses got replaced recently. John, the Inn manager said they might have to go up a little on the rooms up there.
I got there Thursday afternoon after traveling across US58 from Damascus to Volney in the rain. But in a portent of things to come, once I dropped down into North Carolina, the rain went away and it was pretty fine. We had a few other riders arrive Thursday as well, and several of us went down to the "Main Street Pizzeria and Taphouse" for dinner. This is a new place with a good complement of pizza, Italian dishes, the usual burgers and such, and a big selection of Craft Beer with 36 varieties on tap including some local NC microbrewery favs.
Friday morning I got up and did a little more socializing (and isn't socializing with friends that share a common bond a big part of what our events are about?), had breakfast at JB's across the parking lot from the Inn, and got ready to do some set up. John was putting up the five 10 x 20 tents later in the day, but we got our MSTA banners hung and streamers were stretched from one corner of the Inn's 2nd floor railing to the other (it's U-shaped). John normally puts the tents up with one of his staff guys, but being a bit windy, I jumped in to help hold the tents down until they could be weighted down. Vicki Gill volunteered (thank you!) to go grocery shopping with me to fill out our larder for the cookout that night, and things moved right along. Vicki knows our group and made some excellent suggestions for the things we'd need, and also took care of the onions. I think her sinuses rebelled at that as she was practically voiceless for the rest of the weekend.
A bit before 6:00 p.m., Syd Mayes, Jim Park, and Woovis (thanks guys!) were kind enough to get things going on the hamburger and hotdog cooking. Yeah, I think I miscounted the number of hotdogs in each package, so we ran out of dogs. But as best as I can tell, no one went hungry as we had plenty of burgers and fixins.
6:00 p.m. Saturday and we had a very good bbq dinner catered Saturday night by the Baywood Boys. They had a restaurant in downtown Sparta last year, but have since closed the location even as they continue doing catered gigs. I'd asked them to bring enough food for 75 hungry folks, so we had plenty! Pork bbq, baked beans, cole slaw, and banana pudding made it a fine feast. We got a bit of "Camelot" rain (only after sundown) on Saturday, but heck, the natural fireworks were a great cap to the show of beautiful weather we had seen all day. And before the rain, we got the traditional visit from the Harley rider who cruises through the parking lot with a big American flag as his pillion.
We had a good representation of folks that have stepped up on the national and state level to help the association, and I was pleased to recognize as many of them as I could remember. Naturally, I failed to remember them all, so I'll just say now that I appreciate everyone who has ever volunteered to help even as we need more volunteers to step up to replace people taking a break.
As part of our Saturday night extravaganza, we took donations for the Ride For Kids with the prize of a night's stay at the Alleghany Inn being graciously donated by John, the manager. With his donation, we'll be able to donate the $405 collected ALL to the RFK.
JB's is closed on Sunday, so almost everyone went down to the Homeplace (formerly The Pines) for breakfast before heading out for another day of good riding or heading for the house. The weather Sunday looked a little spotty (sending a bunch of our attendees heading for home), and while Don Moe and I were out riding, we saw some dark clouds. Don put on his rain jacket after a snack-stop at Meadows of Dan just off the BRP, and that was apparently all we needed to insure we didn't get wet. I guess we saw some damp pavement (not what I'd call wet and not for long) coming down the BRP towards Sparta. Whatever you call it, the moisture was just enough to keep the temps cool, and it was quite nice.
With a down-sized group remaining (15-18 from the full crowd of 65 registered), Sunday night's dinner has became a tradition at the Mis Arados Mexican restaurant on the east end of town. I've made the walk several times with the crowd, but since Ken and Vicki Gill were already planning to drive, it seemed like a good call for the rest of the crowd to pile into my van...so we did. It was the usual good grub there, and we didn't have to walk up hill both ways in the snow with no shoes (as my Dad always talked about his treks to school as he was growing up). We also had a few of our remaining riders pile into the back of Gary Weade's pickup for a visit down to the Kanpai Japanese Restaurant.
As the evening went on, folks disappeared into their rooms to start packing and prepping for the ride out on Monday. But I was pleased to see several groups of people hanging around the parking lot doing what we do...kicking tires and telling lies.
After getting myself and event gear packed up Monday morning, I headed west with plans to see my sister who lives in Johnson City, Tennessee. I got there just in time to meet her at the Memorial Day service at the Johnson City Veteran's Administration campus where my brother-in-law was playing with the Johnson City Community Band. We had a good lunch afterwards, and then I headed on down the big road to the house.
We're already on the calendar at the Inn for next year, so give them a shout and get your room reserved. And don't punt 3 days before just because the weather looks a little iffy.
