The Ride That Made It...Despite the "Precipitation"!

12 bikes & trikes all lined up at the Wal-Mart!!

Charlie Brown giving his safety Briefing.

Well the day dawned cloudy (expected) but damp (odd) and we set off for the Chapter U meeting point for our ride to Cuero to meet Chapter V2 from Victoria.  Unfortunately as we traveled to the meeting point, the damp to a mist that turned to a weird drizzle.  Brad and I thought, "oh well, perhaps no one else will show up!"  We proceeded into the MacDonald's at Wal-Mart because if you don't go on a ride, you still need breakfast, and lo and behold by 10 am, 11 other bikes and trikes had shown up in the parking lot.  The common comment seemed to be "such & such __________ channel didn't forecast any rain" and "yes, I put more clothes on my bike in light of the unexpectedly chilly ride last Saturday!"  Martha Gover said she packed everything but her umbrella and she was trying to think why she hadn't added it to the trunk!

 

Most of the bikes parked in the back        Dale and Diane wanted to be next to the other orange bike!

 

With bands of drizzle and mist passing over and then clearing up, Chapter U settled down to listening to a passionate pre-rider's briefing from Charlie Brown about the hazards of riding in wet conditions followed by a route briefing by Brad Severe.  We managed to sort ourselves out into 2 groups and headed down 3009 in an unspeedy fashion due to 1) wet pavement and 2) hitting every traffic light!  Spirits and speed soon increased as we moved out from under the misty and drizzly clouds that weren't supposed to rain into cloudy skies and dry pavement. Though there seemed to be a lack of bluebonnets, there were lots of other wildflowers as we enjoyed low 70's temperatures and great camaraderie.  We managed to rendezvous (again) with Bill and Jane Johnson, and with one quick pit stop in Nixon, we rolled into the parking lot of the Longhorn Restaurant in Cuero to meet up with Chapter V2. 

 

 

     Whole table of Chap V2 plus 4 from Chap U                              2 tables of Chap U folks

                   Table of Chap U Folks!                                                      Table of Chap V2 folks!

 

Chapter V2 had 7 bikes and we had 13 bikes so there were Gold Wings a lot of places in that parking lot!  We were delighted to see that the Longhorn Restaurant was able to not only accommodate the 30 people projected but the 36 people present.  The staff and kitchen did a great job handling the surge of people ordering and eating, and again, everyone seemed to think that the food was very good!

View of some of the live stock out back!!

 

Coordinating with V2 staff Merlyn and Alyce Hartman, and Ricky Martinez, it was worked out that we would take a scenic loop outside Cuero, and look for a scenic location to take a group picture.  After Chapter U refueled, 20 motorcycles and trikes proceeded down the main drag of Cuero and proceeded onto a loop that had gorgeous vistas but was short of pavement and long on patches!  Thanks to Bob and Patrice Cook who managed to point out the worst potholes for the 4 trikes at the back of the second Chapter U group!  We wound by the very scenic Cuero prison, past sweeping landscapes bordered by wild flowers on either side of the road, and managed to find one place large enough for all of us to pull off the road...the Bellevue Cemetery!  Well at least we all managed to pull off and we all managed to pull back on the road!  There were a few fun moments of Chapter U trike and motorcycle craziness as everyone tried to get back in the order we came, but we moved off again, led by Chapter V2 until we parted on Highway 87 where Chapter U headed north. 

16 bikes and 4 trikes!!!

Shot from another angle!

Some wanted their picture with the graveyard in the back!

Candy did it again!

 

As we headed north, the rain that was supposed to around today, seemed to pop up in a mist or drizzle here and there, and after our pit stop at the DQ in Nixon, sometimes it seemed like a sprinkler was going on and giving us a pretty steady amount of wet pavement.  I know everyone appreciated Charlie Brown's safety briefing before we set off, smug in our thoughts that the dampness would soon disappear just as our favorite TV or on-line weather channel had predicted!  It seems everyone made it home in damp clothes but good spirits!

 

Thanks to Dale and Diane Goree, Richard Watson, Candy and Charlie Brown, and Olin and Martha Gover for helping lead and drag various sections of the route today!  David Lonning AND Dave Weaver were there as well as Delores and Mike Hausman, and Nancy and Tom Byrd.  It sure is nice to have three trikes to join my trike, Black Pearl!  Kenny and Connie Jordan were there (no shopping today but we will plan some soon, I promise!).    I think that if we had all known what the weather really was going to be, we really wouldn't have set out on this adventure BUT since we did, it is nice to know that we made the best of it, and had a safe, memorable ride!  Next time, remember to pack the long underwear AND the umbrella/rain suit:)  You never know what a Chapter U adventure will entail but you do know that it will involve FUN, SAFETY AND KNOWLEDGE!