Rolling Thunder 2010

I succeeded in my attempt to hit the road early, sliding out of the driveway and onto the roadways at 5:55am on Friday morning.

I'd expected to be delayed in New York but it was more of a token delay than anything. I had feet down only once, I think, and the rest was just a slowed-pace until I cruised over the G.W. Bridge. New Jersey was more of the same; decent traffic volume but nothing that couldn't be dealt with.

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However, Jersey did involve a pleasant surprise this year. I'd stopped at the first (second?) service plaza to fill my tanks and belly. No sooner had I put my kickstand to the tar than I heard a woman's voice say "Dave?". Looking up at the two smiling faces that were approaching me, I had no idea who my welcoming party consisted of. All was explained in short order, though; it was Shannon and Janice, two members of Zig's Angels, from his Tail of the Dragon adventure last year (Shannon being the guest blogger from that trip, too).

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Apparently they've been sneeking peeks at my blog from time to time and knew that I'd be on the hiways and biways at the same time as them, and they'd been keeping an eye out for me (they were making the run to DC as well). We shared some brief laughs and then said farewells as they were heading back out onto the roadways, while I still needed foooooood. but I felt badly afterwards as I realized I should have exchanged phone numbers and seen if we could all meet up somewhere in DC. So to Janice and Shannon; drop me a note to say hello if you get a chance, we'll have to see if we can all catch up for a ride sometime. Oh yeah; and consider your crew invited to next year's Cinco de Roasto, too!

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Anywho, the rest of the ride was uneventful; traffic got heavier as the hours passed along, with things culminating with my feet once again greeting the pavement of the 495 Beltway (We hates the 495 Beltway!!).

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Nevertheless, roughly 10 hours after pulling out of my driveway, I found myself sliding into Kerry's driveway. She was there to give me a big welcoming hug and make me feel welcome, and there was an added bonus; John and Judy (K's parents) were there, too.

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I brought my bags to the bedroom I'd be taking over this weekend, and what did I find waiting for me? None of those wimpy chocolates that you get in some fancy places! Nope, here I had a gen-you-wine Pentagon shot glass!

How frikkin' cool is this! Thanks K!!

Here's a shot of my bike in the driveway, resting and cooling off from its long ride down. (Hey, what's that object in the lower left corner? Ha ha, thanks John!)

And speaking of John, here he is, taking a rare break and enjoying some beerverages with the tired travelers.

The rest of the day was spent unwinding and gnoshing some fantastic nachos and chicken, cooked by Judy. Thanks Judy!!

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That night, K took me out to Murphy's, an Irish bar, and the guy working the stage was frikkin' amazing. He had us all belting out songs at the top of our lungs, all while doing our best to empty the pub's stores of beer. Yes, a great time indeed and we have to hit that place again next year!!

Saturday found us doing a bit of yard work and then bringing John and Judy to the airport for their return flight home. We hope to see you guys again soon!

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That night, we went into DC and hit a area called Oldtown (I think I've got that right...or maybe it was Georgetown...or Old Georgetown...anyway, it was some kind of 'town'). The first bar we tried (Old Glory, I think? Maybe?) didn't really do it for us so we mosied along to a second one; "The Rhino Bar". This place runs with a Boston, MA theme and it was decent...but us Massholes were hard to please and the decision was made to meander further and see what the night held in store for us.

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We hit the docks and checked out the boats that were lined up and whose passengers were partying hearty. Personally, I haven't witnessed this kind of thing before but I guess it's pretty common. Boats come in, tie off to the wharf, and the party begins! We were strolling down the line and happened upon a very cool, World War II era personell carrier/boat. The captain invited us onboard and offered us a beer. And that is how we spent Saturday night; rocking gently on the waters, listening to Frank Sinatra, all while beers (and mixed drinks for the ladies) were offered graciously. Hell, he even had a mini grill and cooked us up some late-night dogs! So K, please tell Jamie, the very cool captain, that we said thanks again!

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Sunday found us up and rolling into DC ahead of the run. We'd opted to do the spectator thing this year, instead of the actual run. It gave us some time to check out a few things ahead of time. Things like the Washington Monument...then the Lincoln Memorial and Reflecting Pool...

After these, we walked to the Vietnam Memorial and absorbed the emotions that come with walking those sections of black granite. To see the pictures, the flowers, the mementos, the people doing charcoal rubbings, the notes...and the folks standing quietly with tears on their cheeks. It's very touching.

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From here, we stopped on the corner where the Marine stands at attention for the duration of the run. This guy is truly amazing (Tim Chambers is his name, you should do a Google search on him when you get a chance). Here, he's just stepped over the crowd barrier and is making his way to inspect the spot he'll be standing in.

But before the bikes began rolling through, he even had some free time so what did he do? He walked around, shaking hands and letting folks take pictures of him.

But then the call came in; the bikes were approaching! He quickly strode over to his spot and took up his position...the position he'll be standing in for 4+ hours...in full dress uniform...at full attention...in the blasting heat and humidity. 4+ hours of this! And he volunteers for it, too!

And the bikes responded, with many of them waving, beeping, saluting him back, passengers taking pictures, etc. An amazing display of strength and intestinal fortitude.

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From here, we meandered our way back to where the bike was and did the spectator thing for several hours. Sadly, we weren't able to watch things in their entirety as we had to get back to K's homestead, for a planned cookout. So we fired the bike up and took a back way out of the city, headed back to Arlington, VA.

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There, the night ran long, with many of K's friends coming by to share a drink, a bite, and a story. And one thing which seems to be a ritual at K's parties (or maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part); there was another friend there again this year with bagpipes! Nice!! Big Mike was more than happy to break them out for us and play some great tunes. I could get used to this!

And that brought us to the end of Sunday night. I helped with some of the cleanup and then retired to sleep the rest of the darkness away...what little there was left of it.

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Monday, I was up @ 5, had the bike packed in short order, and then pointed my tires northward. Thankfully, it was another uneventful trek, with traffic not hampering me badly at all.

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Once again; major thanks to you, K! Thanks for having me down! Can't wait to do it all over again!