Iowa's State Fun Fest at Storm Lake

Remember Iowa's Fun Fest, August 22-24th at Storm Lake, Iowa. This should be a fun event and has a very nice campground by the lake. There is a lot to see and do around the town and a great ride is planned as well. You can print off your registration from from the Iowa site
www.iowagwta.com
and if you pre-register by August 1st, you get it at a cheaper rate.

Chapter H is responsible to sell 50/50 tickets on Friday and Saturday.

There is a State meeting for all State and Chapter Directors, including assistant and State Safety Director, Sunday a.m.

Chapter J has a fun run, August 17th. Check out the State site for more information on this as well.

We continue to have weekly Monday night supper rides, starting from Wynsong Theater Parking lot, in Johnston, leaving at 6:30 p.m.

Don't forget to pre-register for Colorama, being held this year at Eureka Springs.

Ride Iowa

Connie and I did the Ride Iowa event, Saturday, July 26th, a ride to raise money for March of Dimes. We met Pam and Bob Beverage there. We started out at the Newton Speedway, where for $10.00 you could ride on the race track with your motorcycle. There was a lot of bikes there, not sure of the exact count. We left the speedway in a long parade of bikes through Newton, Colfax and ended up at Baxter for a meal, music and bike show and more.

It is amazing to see all the motorcycles for miles ahead and behind you. We had fun last year and felt this was a good cause to ride for.

Sunday, July 20th headed home from Goldrush

After a quick breakfast, we were on our way home on I-80. We had several hours of riding and wanted to get home at a decent hour since some of us needed to go back to work on Monday. The "retired ones" were ready to get home too, I think :).
It was a very warm day and we drank plenty of liquids, had ice available and used our Chilly pads as well.
The Tourmaster Air pants, jacket and gloves were amazingly cool. We had always thought it would make you too hot, but keeps the sun off the skin and air flowing through the mesh, even hot air, was cooler with them on. Plus, you could wear shorts with the air pants on.
Everyone arrived home safely and I think had a great time on this trip. Pam and Bob had several challenges all along the way.

We clocked about 3,000 miles!

If you get a chance to go to Goldrush, there is so much to see and do. It is an experience! Goldrush is what you make it! If you choose to participate in events or ride and check out the beautiful scenery around the site, it is a great experience.

Please feel free to submit your trip or experience so we can add it to the blog.

Saturday, July 19th

Several wanted to see Mt Rushmore, so we went through Spearfish Canyon, Lead, then drove by Mt Rushmore, some of the Black Hills, Keystone mountain with twisy, winding roads and then through Custer State Park on our way out of South Dakota.' We took some beautiful pictures of the country side. We saw deer, anelope and a large herd of Bison.

Connie's camera battery died just as we saw the bison herd, but will check with others to see if they got the picture of them.

We went through NW Nebraska. They kind of have their own BadLands in the area of the sand dunes. Again, gas stations are few and far between. We stopped at a gas station where some other GWTA members were having tire problems and had to wait until Monday for the nearest Honda dealer to open and get it replaced. Judy and Holly were needing to get on towards home so rode with us as far as North Platte. We went from Mountain time to Central time after Ogalala and arrived late at North Platte. Several of the hotels were full and we were able to find rooms (the last ones) for everyone at the Comfort Inn at North Platte.

Friday, July 18th

Dennis and Donna Pittman took down their camper and headed for Glacier National Park and would return the following Tuesday or Wednesday.

Rick, Patti, Stan, Tammy, George, Peggy, Sherrill, Ben and Carla all headed for Bear Tooth Pass and then Yellowstone before heading for home.


Steve, Connie, Bob, Pam, John and Rosalee, after breakfast, took down camp and headed for home. As we were leaving Billings, Connie saw a hawk flying over carrying a snake in it's talons. Connie told Rosalee over the CB "we better hope it doesn't drop it." I am sure Rosalee was thinking, gee, watching for snakes on the ground and falling from the sky???"


We stopped at a trading post said to be the begining point of Custer's Last Stand. The tomb of the Unknown Soldier was there, as well as statues of Custer and Sitting Bull. There was a trading post/gas station there as well.
Gillette, Wyoming was a busy place with the BMW convention being held there. .

We saw several antelope, prairie dogs along with the rocky bluffs, sagebrush, bales of hay, cattle and horses.

We went through Wyoming and could see Devil's Tower in the distance. We arrived at Spearfish, South Dakota, but again, hotels were full now because of a corvette convention. We went back to Bel Fouche and stayed in a quaint western style motel, Sunset Motel, at the edge of town. The rooms were clean but cozy. We went for a quick evening meal and got back to the motel, covered the bikes, right before the wind and rain hit. At least the rain seemed to be in the evening, although it was warm enough we might have welcomed a little rain as we rode.

Thursday, July 17th Goldrush

Everyone got together for breakfast at the Cracker Barrel then headed to the convention center. Many events were going on and we spent the day there. Dirty Bingo, Vendors, Bike show, Riding competition and more. We went to the Q & A with ED (Bruce Keenon.) It was interesting. We stayed for Chapter Olympics and Chapter H Iowa got SILVER!!! Good job!!



We did our skit - gals in black gauchos, our GREEN shirts, GREEN beaded bandana scarves and GREEN Cowgirl hats. Guys wore jeans, GREEN shirts, had GREEN bandanas, and GREEN Cowboy hats. Each couple had painted a cardboard copy of their motorcycle and we sang our own version of "ON TOP OF OUR MOTORCYCLE" to the tune of On Top of Old Smokey. We won 2nd place in the musical skit! We had a lot of fun preparing for this and we got a lot of great comments about all of our GREEN, including the gals scarves with the beads and all the GREEN cowboy hats! :)


Closing ceremonies covered awards and recognitions. There was to be a slide show but there was some computer technology problems and they weren't able to show pics.
Region C got 2nd place in the ice cream eating contest. 1st place had received a silver spoon and Region C received a regular spoon. Randy and Jen will post all the winners in our region soon.

Bob Beverage was in the last few for the $5,000.00 drawing but was 2nd to the last name drawn. So close...
A lady from Canada won the bike raffle and chose the Harley. We said our good byes to our GWTA friends and family as everyone prepared to go home or continue on vacation. As we left the parking lot, George Hoy and Peggy Clark arrived and were continuing on with Rick, Patti, Stan and Tammy. Everyone packs up and leaves Billings in the morning.

Wednesday, July 16th Goldrush

We had decided that we wanted to check out Bear Tooth Pass in Wyoming. Dennis Pittman, John and Rosalee, and Connie and I decided to go check this out. Several of the others were going there at the end of their week after Goldrush. We rode through Red Lodge. The temperature was almost 80 degrees. We saw some beautiful hills and rocky mountains. There was a place along the road where people were taking small rocks and stacking towers of rocks along the curve. Interesting... Someone said that if it stayed standing, they would have good luck going up the mountain, but if they fell down, beware... Fact??? or Fiction???

We have so many incredible pictures it is hard to know what ones to put on here. We saw some mountain goats on a hillside, deer and some elk. There were beautiful flowers, small flowing creeks, some small lakes and a rusing river at the bottom of the mountain. There were signs that was free range and beware of bears....

We left there looking for gas ands ome place for lunch. We took Chief Joseph highway and ended up at Cody, Wyoming for lunch. We had a good ride back to Billings and John and Connie thought they saw a bear at one point. We arrived back at camp safely just as another rain storm was coming in. Some of the others had gone to the Harley open house and it had started raining there.

Tuesday, July 15th Goldrush

Everyone got up early, had breakfast and went to the soccer field and lined up for the LIVING LOGO. Look for the GREEN shirts and handkerchiefs in the first part of the W of GWTA.

Dennis and Donna Pittman went to get a tire fixed; somehow picked up two nails in their tire. Pam and Bob had some things to take care of as well.

Connie and I, John and Rosalee decided to go for a short ride while we waited for everyone to be ready to ride. We soon found out that roads in Montana are not like Iowa, where every few miles you have a road to turn left or right on. 45 miles or so later we finally turned left. We ended up making a big square about 250 miles total. We did find a cool restaurant that served Buffalo Burgers and Buffalo chips. (seasoned sliced potatos.) The landscape is amazing there. One side of the road is covered with sparse grass, sagebrush and rocks, and on the other side of the road, lush green fields or trees and creeks.

We arrived back to camp and met up with the others. We got ready and rode to the Depot in Billings, where the dance and dance lessons was held. We had a good dinner and then went over to check out the Depot. Tables were decorated in Western decor and judged according to the decorations. Iowa had one with cards and western theme. The DJ played music and taught Cowboy Up, a line dance and a circle dance. Several participated in this and had a lot of fun dancing. There was a silent auction as well. The sky became dark and we headed for the campgrounds just as the sprinkles began and it rained for a little while.

Monday July 14th, Goldrush

Grand Opening ceremonies was held at the Billings Hotel Convention Center. There was a lot of excitement. Region C was prepared to show their spirit! Many things were discussed about the week. One thing that was stressed was to watch out for rattlesnakes. That really made Rosalee happy :(

We were told that Stan and Gwen from Chapter Z, Nebraska, went down on their way to Goldrush. There was a rod in the road, they hit it and blew a tire and went down. Stan has cracked ribs and Gwen has road rash.

The vendors were in the convention center across the parking lot. Events were scheduled in either of the two buildings. The ice cream contest between regions would be at Cold Stone Creamery.

Pam and Bob, John and Rosalee and Stan and Tammy went to the First Timers meeting and met several members doing so.

2009 Goldrush is in LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY!! There was a special rate that if you signed up at Goldrush, you got in at 2 for 1.

The light parade was specatular. There were a lot of bikes and it was a near full moon. The route wound up the side of a bluff overlooking the city and the line of bikes was so long that as they did a u-turn and came back down, we got to see those that had been in the beginning of the parade. We ended up at Coldstone Creamery.

Sunday July 13th Goldrush

Yes, Connie's camera settings got goofed up and her pictures say 2004.
Sunday morning, July 13th, we stopped for breakfast on our way out. We were pleasantly surprised to see Dave and Bump at the same restaurant. We took 212 towards Billings. Gas stations were few and far between so we gassed up whenever we could. There was about a 9 mile stretch of road that was gravel and dirt with pot holes. We all made it through safely and arrived at Billings KOA on Sunday afternoon. We set up camp and went to Billings Hotel for the Sunday evening meal. The food was wonderful and we had a good time visiting and meeting some new GWTA friends.

Our Goldrush adventures

Saturday, July 12th, we ate at a restaurant in Valentine, Nebraska, called The Bunkhouse. We had authentic Indian Frye bread - Indian Tacos.

As we were going through South Dakota, the GPS led us on an interesting road where we happened to run across Wounded Knee and then ended up on a road that was labeled: service road for the Rosebud Indian Reservation. We did go by a Native American School playground with a medicine wheel on the east side of a hill.

We did see some of the Badlands on our way out. Ask Bob and John about the honey bees.

Spearfish motels were full because of a Pontiac convention, so we rode on to Bel Fouche Motel 6. We were so happy to find a motel and get settled in. We found that Don and Kathy Thomason were staying there as well and headed to Billings.

Goldrush 2008 Billings Montana

Goldrush 2008 in Billings, Montana is now over and we left with a lot of good memories. We saw some amazing scenery and there is a lot of history in the area.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Stan and Gwen, from Nebraska, Chapter Z, that went down on the way to Goldrush. We hope that the cracked ribs and road rash heal quickly.

12 members from Chapter H were there, "way to go, Chapter H, Iowa!" Rick and Patti Harvey, Stan and Tammy Hyer, Ben and Sherrill Ress and Carla Hoskey, left early in the week and did some camping on the way to Billings. Steve and Connie, Dennis and Donna Pittman, John and Rosalee Driskill, and Pam and Bob Beverage all left Friday afternoon, July 11th. We had an interesting ride there. We spent our first night at Norfolk, Nebraska.

Chapter H rides to meet Chapter L

7 Chapter H members (Steve and Connie, Bill and Dee, Jon and Rosalee, and Rick H)rode on a beautiful day, Saturday, July 5th to Shenandoah, Iowa to meet Chapter L for a noon meal at the Depot Deli restaurant. The train depot was converted into a restaurant and has many unique antiques and more. The food was good and the friendship was enjoyable as well.

We left and rode into upper Missouri and stopped in Winterset in Rudy's for Broasted Chicken and more. It was a great day for a ride, fun, and friendship.

www.depotdeli.com

Parkersburg

Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones affected by the tornado that destroyed most of that town and their homes and some lives. We were on our way home from Clear Lake and went on HWY 14 through town. The site was unreal.........

Fort Custer Maze in Clear Lake Iowa

4th of July, Dennis and Donna Pittman, Connie and I took a ride up to Clear Lake. It was a beautiful day for a ride. We arrived at Clear Lake with the destination of Fort Custer.

It is a 2 mile maze made of crates used previously for carrots and potatos.

http://www.fortcustermaze.com/

When we arrived, we were told that the record was 45 minutes and the worst was 2 days, 12 hours and 45 minutes. We knew we were in for a challege. We started out with our cards looking for the 8 stations to stamp our cards. We tried following well traveled paths, but came to dead ends. We found the first Station and began our search for the 2nd, only to find that you can't find them in order ;). We finished in 62 minutes, not bad for us!

If you are looking for a nice ride and something fun to to, this would be fun to have several small groups come and see who can get the best time. After we walked the maze, we found that they had just changed the maze, so following the well worn paths didn't help at all. There are 15 different set-ups for the 2 miles of maze but the use 5 certain ones the most.

If you can get to the center Lookout post, there is a pop machine to help quench your thirst!:)

It was a fun trip.

Wind energy in Iowa

I am sure you have seen the wind "mills" all over Iowa and in other states as well? They produces a lot of energy. I once heard that the windmill at Stuart Iowa, produces enough electricty for about 400 homes.
Iowa is rated 3rd in States with most wind energy, after California and Texas. Several are around Clear Lake, Iowa and as we go to Storm Lake for Iowa's State Fun Fest you will see several wind farms already done and some being built. Some links with more information about this are:
www.iowadnr.com/energy/wind/index.html

www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/sources/renewable/wind.html

Barn Quilts in Iowa

Have you seen the barns and buildings as you go on rides, that have quilt blocks on them?

Here is a link explaining a little more about them.

www.barnquilts.com

Goldrush in Billings Montana

Our next big event is Goldrush, in Billings Montana. It is a theme of The Legends live on. With a western theme. It should be a lot of fun. More to come on this.

Grand Canyon in Arkansas

The Arkansas Grand Canyon is on Hwy 7 near Jasper, Arkansas. If you get a chance, stop into the Cliff Restaurant (it has a gift shop too) and have a meal or get a glass of tea or cup of coffee and go out onto the balcony. What a view. There were hummingbirds all over the place there as well.

Iowa's Chapter P Funrun

June 29th was Chapter P's fun run in Griswold, Iowa. It started out a little rainy here but as we went west the sun shone and it warmed up. Windy, but that is a norm these days. At least it was dry and good temps. Steve, Connie and Rick Harvey all rode over for the event.
Local fire department fixed us biscuits and gravy and then when we returned from the ride, had roast beef sandwiches and the fixings. The ride went to Lake Anita, Lake Icaria near Corning and to Viking Lake near Stanton. We returned to have to rescue a duck from Chapter Pee's lake ;) and the number on the duck was our door prize. There was a 50/50 drawing and winners from the poker run.
We had a good time and enjoyed the ride.

The Snake, road near Bristol, TN

Bill and Dee Kirkpatrick have been on vacation checking out some new rides that are said to be great for motorcycles. Will see what they say next time we see them. Here is a link about the roads in the area.

http://www.motorcycleplayground.com/Roads/421/roads421.html

Region C Family Reunion

OK Who is camping inside the building?

Wow. What a great job Randy and Jen/Region C directors did on this event. There was a lot of things to do and a lot going on. Several people were dealing with flooding issues and were not able to make it, but several members of our chapter went and camped. This was at Nebraska City, Nebraska at a girl scout camp. There were dorms that many stayed in, some camped and some moteled. Friday night was a hot dog roast with some food that had been cooked in Dutch ovens. Pretty good food. Later there were games and a camp fire.

Saturday was a nice ride to the Honda dealer and then back for some "new" ways to play dirty Bingo. Jack and Joyce May really shook it up! and it was a lot of fun!

Our Region C Family of the Year is Wendel and Peggy Hokanson, Nebraska's Chapter Z that lives in Iowa ;) Congratulations and we know they will represent us well.

Saturday was busy with many things going on, including auction, 50/50, pizza as our meal and then a light parade and ice cream for those that wanted to attend.

Many left early because of a threat of bad weather. During the night and a.m. Sunday was rain and we rode home in rain and ominous looking clouds all the way home. Later found out that a tornado had hit a Walmart and neighborhoods in Omaha (40 some miles from campgrounds.) Also, some hit in Iowa. This has been a strange weather year.

We had a good time despite finding a good place to set up campers and weather. Next year, Region C is going to be held at Chippewa Falls, WI. should be a beautiful place and good time.

June 1, Chapter L's fun run at Lake Manawa

There has been a lot going on for members of Chapter H. A lot of family and GWTA rides and events.
We went to Iowa's Chapter L fun run at Lake Manawa on June 1st. Several members went and we had a good ride. It was actually hot and dry that day... Imagine that? They had good door prizes and fed us a great meal. We had a good time and a nice ride home.