We hurredly sent the word out but unfortunately with such short notice, folks' availability was extremly limited, and it just wound up being three of us. No matter; the weather wound up being stupendous for mid-November and we had a great day.
First up was to grab a toy - a quick jaunt along the aisles of my local Wally-World and I found what I first presumed to be a simple stuffed animal. Only after I was walking up to the register did I realize there was more to this little guy than met the eye.
This thing was two animals in one! It's a Flipazoo critter and apparently there are like 8 different ones. The one I'd grabbed (which was the only one on the shelf) was a dragon by all appearances. But this thing had...a...I guess "hood" would be the best way to describe it. In it's "dragon" form, the hood folded over the back but if you lifted it up and over the dragon's head, you revealed a unicorn, underneath. You had to see this thing - it was so cool!
Here he is, all anxious and ready to get rolling to the run.
You can also see in the pic how nice and sunny the day was, too. I was thinking I should have taken a pic of the sky - it was nothing but blue for as far as you could see. Not even a single cloud anywhere. Awesome!
I met up with Dale and Kathy at the Post and we headed off to the rally point. There was a fantastic turnout already parked at the ready. This run is well known, and somehow they always seem to have fantastic weather - pretty amazing for mid-November!
We headed inside and registered...and we wound up with the last available tickets. Judging from the ticket numbers, they'd had 350 to sell and were all out. Other folks were still showing up, and they were just asking them to pay their $10 at the Commercial Club (the place the run ends at, and where the massive after-party is).
Oh yeah - when we'd parked, the guy in front of me had this thing on his antenna.
I've never seen one of these before but I Googled them and they're out there. $10 apiece. I'd like to get one but I'm pretty sure someone would swipe it pretty quickly and then I'd be po'd. So I'll have to think about it.
This year's run was somewhat shorter than prior years. I don't know the reason for it, but it was still a nice scenic ride - despite one road being nothing but serious bumps and potholes. Nevertheless, we all made it safely to the Commercial Club.
Heading inside, we placed our toys upon the masses of other toys already there.
It's so cool to see such outpouring and support for kids!
We grabbed a frosty and some grub, then headed out back to enjoy the warmth of the sunshine still flowing down from above. The band was hammering some amazing biker tunes, our bellies were full, there was a feeling of camaraderie in the air. It was an awesome vibe.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to stick around for long. One beer and it was back to the roadways to meet up with a friend of mine who'd lost her husband two years ago on this day, and needed some cheering up. We hung out with some friends, had some laughs, and managed to distract her from her thoughts for a few hours. All in all, a good day.
The Higgins run is something I look forward to each year. It's a great time and for a great cause. But it's also bittersweet because it's usually the last organized event for the year. Which means I don't currrently have any other runs on the docket. Oh sure I'll still find some mischief between now and next year's riding season but it's kind of a bummer knowing that the rides are done for the year.
Although...I did hear rumblings about a frosty nuts ride on January 1st. I'll have to see if I can find anything out about it...
Ride Hard, Keep Your Nuts Toasty
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