Coop's Corner: Iowa 2018 Moto Guzzi Rally / William M. Black

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Iowa 2018 Moto Guzzi Rally / William M. Black

A hot and sticky one, still fun as always. Yes, there was some rain, we had a blast or two of wind, strong enough to put the beverage/cookie tent over against the pool building but on average, some fairly typical rally weather. We knew attendance would be down; the competing BMWMOA National Rally was being held over in Des Moines and many of our Elkader faithful felt the strong pull of a National in our relative back yard. They have already been forgiven but are expected, same time, same place next year. Dennis took over from George this year and for those of us lucky enough to be their complete and waited upon guests, I think we'd all have to agree that we were well served and served well. Dennis had help; I saw familiar faces that have given much in year's past right there in front carrying on as they had. Mrs. Dennis (next year I'll introduce myself!) was there, just as Kaye always was half of George's team. Thanks to you all!!

Some of the folks start the rally early but I headed down Friday morning, waiting for Jeff in Frontenac and he was right on time.

Taking a break in Mable, MN, right on the Iowa/Minnesota border.

Before leaving Mable, I texted Mike and Colleen, coordinating a lunch meet in Gunder, IA for a world famous Gunder Burger.

This was mine....

Mike making great use of sultry conditions...... he and Colleen had gone down early Thursday.

Jeff and I rode down almost completely rain-free, a small shower or two around Decorah. Friday early evening in Elkader it got nasty; hard rain and harder wind.

Hard wind to the extent that it blew our beverage/cookie shelter away. It's over there, just around the corner, in a heap against the swimming pool building.

Big puddles and some very wet tents.

The first wave went through and then the Police came to check on us and let us know that another bunch of radar color was coming our way.

Louise and Randy rode through some of the worst of it. Both 80+, Traverse City, MI is a long ways away. Louise's Honda, Randy's Norge was off somewhere.

The pool still open Friday evening ....

Early Saturday brother Kevin and I hiked around a bit waiting for 6am coffee. He'd planned on riding down after work on Friday but all sorts of challenges came up; he drove and hauled his CM400T, arriving around 9:30 that evening.

Madison Bill's 750 Breva, just like mine but better outfitted.

Tom's quick, just not quick enough. I really like Steve's V9....the color, how he's got it rigged up, etc.

The plan going into the weekend was to enjoy the pancake breakfast provided at the shelter and then ride down to Dubuque to visit the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. There are multiple exhibits and things to see, many of which I'd seen before but missed previously was the steam powered paddle wheel dredge, the William M. Black. We had a nice ride down, managed our way through downtown traffic and got down to the harbor area.

Bikers....

In the machine shop....

From there and only a few blocks away, the Shot Tower.

We left Dubuque, rode to Sageville where Kevin attempted to instruct us on a proper gas fill. When he finally finished that, it was up C9Y to Balltown and Breitbach's for lunch.

Back in Elkader, the Pork Producer's were grilling the pork chops out behind the pavilion.

Ned's Auto & Motorcycle Repair Shop had items for sale and prizes to win.

Prizes weren't for the most part just given....they had to be earned. My brother brought back an until this weekend dormant Coop skill that's most likely been in our bloodline for thirteen, fourteen generations, possibly even longer. I was 75 yards away, my back turned to avoid the many certain accolades and continuous cheers; these videos shared with me only later ....thanks Mike, they mean the world to our family (I was actually calling our old loyal and regular-attending rally buddy Dave P, currently recuperating at home).

If this looks important to you, no need to feel left out. M. Gladwell advises that 10,000 hours will bring Mastery. It's now just after 8PM CDT as I write this....no time like the present to get yourself started......10,000 is a lot!

I won't sign anything but honestly believe that actually very little alcohol if any was involved.

Waiting for pork chops, I hustled down to our tent to grab my Dinner Ticket for the evening meal. The fine hostess that she is, Colleen supplied the beer and Mike supplied the nuts. Problem was, none of the critters knew enough to go after the beer. The nuts didn't fare as well.

Some were started and left for later?? You know how almonds are, you'll get one a bit more bitter here and there. It wasn't like Mr. Squirrel was without options.

Kevin (other Kevin) was there.....

Paul was there....his wasn't the only machine serving as a dryer rack; humidity had found a home in the Elkader valley.

Bert was there....

Diana was there....

Dave and Dan were too.....along with Buddy and Jill.

The food line....

The crew with much of their work already completed.

Many, not sure how many, lined up for the parade through town. On the Pro side, we didn't penetrate the Industrial Park this year. On the Con side, city dwellers were all inside where the lucky ones were enjoying A/C.

Still, we tried.

Sunday morning....you'd think that 100% humidity would have been enough.

My brother's outfit....

A coffee break in Lansing....Horsfall's across the street.

474 miles for the Breva and I, ~140 attendees and another great Iowa Goose Rally. Once again, thanks to everyone involved.

4 comments:

RichardMJuly 15, 2018 at 10:25 PM
If the MOA was in Des Moines, then it must've been 120°F in Iowa...

You rode the sidecar rig down! Not a Moto Guzzi?
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motormikeJuly 16, 2018 at 5:42 AM
As the parade of motorcycle's exit'd the RV park.. I enjoy'd the many RVer's who gather'd with a pair of large American flags and gave everyone high fives... one fellow had a large blow up doll on his shoulders.

Perhaps we should check into a camp'n spot at the RV park ! :)
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Coop a.k.a. CoopdwayJuly 16, 2018 at 6:34 PM
It was pretty cool to see their turnout and enthusiasm; I hope you bombarded them with sweets!

We can invite them over next year.
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Others say....

"it was auspicious to approach any situation from a deferential, inquisitive place. Conceding that there is much to learn is the best blueprint for discovering something new." ----B. Fuller

The Man straightened stiffly above the block of salt fixed to the stake and looked at the young cattle ringed about him. The pasture was holding out well and the stock was looking good. This bunch would be ready to sell in another month, maybe sooner if the market was right.

A stir among the cattle down near the river brought him round to face the swinging bridge he'd built years before. Someone was coming toward him from the bridge. Someone in breeches, but it didn't look like a man, somehow. What was a woman doing in his pasture this time of night?

He bent over the salt again; maybe if he paid her no heed she'd go on past and let him mind his own business. He heard her footsteps come nearer and stop. "Good evening," she said.

Her voice was smooth with book learning but friendlier than most, and somehow almost shy. When he made no answer she went on, "I've been sitting on your swinging bridge....I thought I'd like to say thank-you...." Her voice stumbled a little, then she tried once more.

"You are Mr. ____". His name sounded strange in her voice, but she went on to tell her own.

"That's what they've called me the last sixty-eight years," he said, looking past her face to the hills fast darkening under a single star. "I reckon the woods are free for those that like to walk there."

The unfamiliar voice laughed a little. "That's what Emerson said: the grove belongs to the man who walks in it with an open heart....On that basis I guess I've owned part of your woods for a good many years.....". She made a final effort. "I've always wanted to thank you....."

Something deeply hidden stirred in him. "There's a stump up there, in the notch of the woods", he said slowly, "that before the timber grew so tall you could stand on it and see all over this country."

He kept still a minute, remembering, then, "I used to stand up there an' look at things, an' wonder how they come to be like they was, an' how the hills was created, an' all the things in Nature.... I told my wife I guessed all the religion I ever had I got standin' on that old stump, a-wonderin'..." He turned his face away from her.

She helped him out. "I know about that, a little. This afternoon I saw......." Her account of a thing she had really taken time to look at eased him, and he answered with telling of the badger den at the foot of the swinging bridge.

When she had gone, he turned to watch her. After a moment she stood clear and unmoving against the sky. You could hear the sounds of the river where she stood. She was one that could stand still long enough, he thought, really to hear what a body was saying, or a river.

Then she walked down the farther side of the slope and was gone. ------Margaret Snyder from A Chosen Valley

Fall was the end of harvest, end of the growing season, a burst of color and sun-warmth before killing frost turned the land gray and cold. Fall was a moody time, full of both life and death, a time when we were reminded of the power outside of us, reminded that the seasons happen to us. We do not invite the change to come.-------Ben Logan, from The Land Remembers

When you get those rare moments of clarity, those flashes when the universe makes sense, you try desperately to hold onto them. They are the lifeboats for the darker times, when the vastness of it all, the incomprehensible nature of life is completely elusive. So the question becomes or should have been all along, what would you do if you knew you only had one day, or one week, or one month to live. What lifeboat would you grab onto? What secret would you tell? What band would you see? What person would you declare your love to? What wish would you fulfill? What exotic locale would you fly to for coffee? What book would you write? ------- Ben Tyler

We were also cautioned about journeying far from home. As an example of the dangers, the town had a badly crippled lady named Lucy, who as a girl had traveled to New York City. As she traveled along a sidewalk, sightseeing, she was struck by the outstretched hand of a suicide who had leapt from high above. Her spine had been shattered and for the rest of her life, she was to walk bent forward at the waist, tapping the sidewalk with two black canes. Whenever the subject of travel to a big city was raised, someone would say, "Just remember what happened to Miss Tripp." ---- Ted Kooser, from Local Wonders

"Steamboats are like wedding cakes without the complications...." ----Mark Twain

"It's not about having lots of money, it's about having lots of options......." -----Chris Rock

As the very proud father of three former ponytail wearers, hopefully I can get away with this....."For the past few years it's been fashionable for young women to wear ball caps and to snap the strap on the back under their ponytails. I like the looks of that, their shiny ponytails jauntily swinging, but it's hard not to think of the rear ends of horses. There's a piece of harness called the crupper that goes just under a horse's tail to keep its nose down. If the horse lifts its head to look for a way out of whatever predicament it's in, the crupper tightens and hurts the horse. But it's foolish for parents to think that a ball cap might keep a young woman from running away. Anybody can see they're made for running." ------Ted Kooser, Local Wonders

"I tell the guy's girlfriend that the only difference between the book's main character Phaedrus and myself is that I am neither brilliant, tortured or insane, she looks at my bike and there is an uncomfortable silence." --------ahendepe (a.k.a. Vermin)