ES VROC Reunion Rally 2015 and Vacation

Posts tagged ‘ES VROC Reunion Rally 2015 and Vacation’

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: A VROC Wedding in Eureka Springs

Today is Day 7 of our 13-day vacation. We are in Eureka Springs, AR attending the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion motorcycle rally.

We attended “ZMean1” Susan and “Badger” Joe’s wedding at 11:00 am. Their wedding was held at our hotel, Motel 62, at the fire pit behind the hotel.

I set up my camera and tripod on the parking lot above the fire pit. I took photographs throughout the wedding ceremony.

Sherm, Joe, Jim and Al

Susan was escorted to the fire pit by VROC friend Russ. From where I was standing, I could not see Susan and Russ when they arrived at the fire pit.

I knew Susan had arrived at the fire pit by the look on Joe’s face.

I got tears in my eyes, when I heard Joe singing to Susan.

At the beginning of the wedding ceremony, VROC friend Al read William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116.

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no; it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests, and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.
Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle’s compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.”

VROC friend Sherm was the wedding officiant. The wedding ceremony was short, but sweet.

Wedding Vows

Exchange of Wedding Rings

Sherm pronounced Joe and Susan as husband and wife.

The kiss
The kiss that went on and on and on 🙂
In the background you can see Susan’s bridesmaids: Claudia, Melanie and Margo.

Mr. and Mrs. Joe Paradise

Inside Joe and Susan’s wedding program were these words:

“Two lives,
Two hearts joined
together in friendship,
united forever in love.”

After the wedding, we had champagne and wedding cake in front of the hotel on the parking lot.

Joe and Susan enjoyed their first dance as husband and wife
in front of the hotel on the parking lot.

A wedding reception followed at 1:00 pm at the Forest Hill Restaurant.

Susan and Joe are an adorable couple. I am so happy that we were able to share their wedding day with them.

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Outlaw Willie

This blog post continues Day 6 of our 13-day vacation. We are in Eureka Springs, AR attending the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion motorcycle rally.

At 7:30 this evening Bob and I attended a show at Outlaw Willie’s in Eureka Springs. One of our VROC friends arranged for discount tickets, and a group of us attended the show.

Outlaw Willie’s

Outlaw Willie’s is a show where the performers, P. Nutt and Ponytail of the George Brothers, include the crowd as a part of the show. Every show is a bit different, as each crowd is a bit different. The theme of the show always, however, is a tribute to outlaw country music legend Willie Nelson.

Ponytail and P. Nutt

P. Nutt

Ponytail

I captured video during the show. I pieced together the video clips and uploaded the final version to YouTube. The following video contains approximately 12 minutes of good country music, lots of laughs and fun times. The video features P. Nutt and Ponytail and co-stars five of our VROC friends. Enjoy!

This photograph is indicative of the fun and laughter we experienced at the Outlaw Willie show!

The Outlaw Willie show was great! Thank you, Sherm, for your legwork in securing the discounted tickets to this show!

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Downtown Eureka Springs

Today is Day 6 of our 13-day vacation. We are in Eureka Springs, AR attending the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion motorcycle rally.

Bob and I rode to downtown Eureka Springs this morning. Downtown Eureka Springs is an enchanting place. I love the architecture and the overall quaint feeling of the downtown area.

We parked in a privately-owned lot, along S. Main Street, near the Cathouse.

Neither Bob nor I were familiar with this type of parking meter. I learned that this parking meter is known as an “honor box”. Owners monitor honor boxes to make sure that for each space in which a vehicle is located a payment has been made. Nonpayment at one of the private lots may result in your vehicle being towed.

The Cathouse

The Cathouse is a popular Eureka Springs bar. It is where the second half of Susan’s bachelorette party was held last night.

I liked this metal motorcycle, located in front of the Cathouse.

Please join Bob and me, as we walk along S. Main and Spring Streets.

S. Main Street
Walking toward the Carroll County Courthouse

Downtown Eureka Springs is a shopper’s mecca, a shopping community. Whether you like to shop for clothes, jewelry, fine art, gourmet food, kitchen supplies or home decor, Eureka Springs has it all. We explored many stores during our walk along S. Main and Spring Streets. It took willpower, but we made only one purchase. I purchased a Route 66 shoulder bag.

Carroll County Courthouse

Carroll County actually has two county seats (Eureka Springs and Berryville) due to the seasonal swelling of the Kings River, which divides the county in a nearly vertical line. Historically, this made the river non-navigable and severed the county in two. Modern bridges solved this problem long ago, but the twin county seat solution remained.

Continuing our walk along S. Main Street, we discovered a mural.

This historic mural (12 feet high by 55 feet wide) dramatizes the early days of Eureka Springs; from the Indians who first camped here and discovered the curative properties of the many springs to the tourism of the early 20th Century. This painting was done by members of the Eureka Springs Guild of Artist and Crafts people. It was designed and supervised by well known artist and muralist Louis Freund, longtime resident.

Located on Spring Street near its intersection with Main Street, Humpty Dumpty sits on a wall.

The Humpty Dumpty sculpture weighs 500+ pounds.
I hope he doesn’t have a great fall!

Continuing our walk along Spring Street, we approach the Basin Spring Park.

Approaching the Basin Spring Park (on the left)

Basin Spring is a legendary Indian healing spring known to Native Americans and early pioneer settlers. It is now the heart of Eureka Springs.

Basin Spring Park

Basin Spring Park
looking toward Spring Street

Basin Spring Park

Basin Spring Park offers a picture-perfect resting place for busy shoppers. There is often live music performed in the bandshell.

the Doughboy statue at Basin Spring Park

At the intersection of Spring and Center Streets,
we discovered a building that reminded us of a similar building found in our hometown of Warren, PA.

I read that the Flatiron Building is one of the most photographed buildings in Eureka Springs. The original building was built in 1880 and was destroyed by fire in 1890. Shortly after, a new building was erected and also was destroyed by fire. The current building was built in 1987, constructed entirely of concrete. Can you see why this Eureka Springs building reminded me of the flatiron building found in my hometown?

Standing on the corner of Spring and Center Streets

This is the Basin Park Hotel.

Last night’s bachelorette party began here, with dinner at The Balcony Bar & Restaurant. We ate outside, under the green awning.

What follows are six more photographs that I took, while walking up Spring Street.

Looking back to the Spring and Center Streets intersection
You can see a small piece of The Balcony Restaurant’s green awning.

New Orleans Hotel

I hope that you enjoyed walking with Bob and me in downtown Eureka Springs. Bob and I certainly enjoyed our walk and hope to return to downtown Eureka Springs sometime again!

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Susan’s Bachelorette Party

This blog post continues Day 5 of our 13-day vacation. We are in Eureka Springs, AR attending the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion motorcycle rally.

We had just unpacked the car, when Vicki H. stopped by. Bob and I met Vicki and her husband Scott in June 2009 at another VROC rally — the Wandering Wolfman’s Rally held in Richmond, KY. We hadn’t seen each other since that rally, although we had some contact since then via Facebook and email. Vicki asked if I wanted to come to Susan’s bachelorette party. I grabbed my purse and off we went.

Our mode of transportation was a trolley that stopped in front of our hotel, Motel 62.

Boarding the trolley
(Photograph provided by Shannon Mackey)

Fifteen of us accompanied Susan to her bachelorette party.

Riding the trolley to downtown Eureka Springs
We had the entire trolley to ourselves.

The trolley ride cost $6.00. I believe the pass is good tomorrow as well, given the late hour that the ticket was purchased. The trolley driver left us off very near to where the bachelorette party festivities would begin.

From the trolley drop-off location we walked to the Balcony Bar & Restaurant,
where we began the evening’s festivities with dinner.
(Photograph provided by Shannon Mackey)

This is the Basin Park Hotel.
The Balcony Bar & Restaurant is located on the second floor.
We ate dinner outside, on the balcony, located under the green awning.

Susan, the bride-to-be

Susan was showered with a few gifts.

There was lots of laughter during dinner.

After dinner we walked to the Cathouse, where we enjoyed more fun and laughter. I had only my mobile phone with me, with very little charge remaining by the time we arrived at the Pied Piper Pub. I am happy that I had sufficient battery power remaining to capture a photograph of everyone who attended Susan’s bachelorette party.

?, Vicki, and Evelyn

Sheila, Katie and Sandy

Susan and I

Carolyn and Melanie

Susan and her bridesmaids, Melanie and Margo

Shannon, Kay, Vickie, Debbie and Traci

There was some discussion as to how we would get back to our hotel from downtown Eureka Springs. The trolley stopped running at 6:00 pm, I believe. It was mentioned that we could telephone a couple of the guys back at the hotel to come pick us up. We decided, though, to find the way back on our own. We rode back to the hotel in style, via limousine service!

Susan and the pink limousine

What a surprise when we discovered our mode of transportation back to the hotel would be in a pink limousine! Pink is Susan’s favorite color. Well, not really. You would think so, though, based on the amount of comments and shared pictures Susan receives on Facebook. I don’t know when or why Susan gets teased about pink. I thought how appropriate, though, that we would be riding back to the hotel in a pink limousine.

The limousine cost $6.25+tip each and made two trips back to our hotel. Ten of us, including the bride-to-be, went on the first trip to the hotel. When we pulled into the parking lot, we were greeted by camera flashes. I think everyone thought it cool that we returned to the hotel by limousine. Bob was nowhere to be found. I called him on the phone. He was in our hotel room. Someone told me that he had “turned in” a while ago. Given the location of our room in the back of the hotel, we can’t look out the window or open the door to see what is going on. After I telephoned Bob, he come out front and did see the pink limousine when it returned to the hotel for the second time. The bachelorette party was a good time, full of fun and laughter. I am happy that I attended the party.

Shannon, who gave me permission to use a couple of her photographs, also uploaded a blog post about Susan’s bachelorette party. You may read Shannon’s account of the party by clicking here.

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Getting There – Dyersburg TN to Eureka Springs AR

[Please note that this blog post is backdated to September 15; the post was published on October 2.]

Today is Day 5 of our 13-day vacation. We are traveling to Eureka Springs, AR to attend the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion rally. We have met up with 13 VROC friends in the past two days. We now have riders from Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Kentucky. All 15 of us (8 motorcycles, one car and one truck) are riding together to the VROC Reunion Rally.

We awakened earlier than planned this morning. Bob set the alarm for 6:00 am. We awakened at 5:00 am. I asked Bob what time it was. Bob’s response was that the alarm would be going off so he turned it off. At least this is what I heard him say. Bob said he told me it was 5:00 am. Thinking it was 6:00 am, I got up and took a shower and got dressed. I noticed then that it was not yet 5:30 am! It is going to be a long day.

We departed the hotel at 9:00 am and fueled up at a nearby gas station.

Preparing to leave Hampton Inn Dyersburg

There are 15 of us in the group today: eight motorcycles, my car and pulling up the rear is Toby in a truck pulling a trailer. We took I-155 out of Dyersburg, TN and crossed over the Mississippi River into Missouri.

This is the bridge that crosses over the Mississippi River.

In Missouri we saw a couple yellow crop dusters flying low over yellow fields, with a bright blue sky as a backdrop. This was a cool thing to see, in addition to being picturesque. I wish I had been able to take a picture. We followed U.S. Routes 412, 412/62 and 62 most of the way to Eureka Springs.

Riding through Impoden, Arkansas

Riding through Hardy, Arkansas

Of all the towns that we rode through on the way to Eureka Springs, Hardy was a town that I most wanted to stop in and check out. Bob and I did stop in Hardy on our way back home from Eureka Springs!

We stopped every 100 miles or so en route Eureka Springs. We ate lunch in Ash Flat, Arkansas — our last stop before arriving in Eureka Springs. Bob and I had a picnic lunch of chicken salad with crackers, cookies and a Snickers candy bar.

I think Bill and Jim A. are happy that we are nearing our final destination!

We arrived at Motel 62 in Eureka Springs, Arkansas around 4:30 pm. As I approached the hotel I saw smoke and could smell burning rubber. I learned that Butch locked his tires, when he braked hard in front of the hotel (the hotel came up on him sooner than expected). Thankfully no one was injured. Pulling into the hotel parking lot, we were greeted by many of our VROC family members.

To the best of my recollection, this is the route that we followed today.

We drove 296 miles today.

Bob and I checked into room 119, our home for the next 5 nights. Our room is located on the first floor in the back of the motel. There is a steep driveway to the back of the hotel. I parked my car there. Our hotel room is a bit on the shabby side, compared with the other hotels that we stayed in on our way to Eureka Springs. The ironing board is missing; the refrigerator door is missing the bar that keeps the beverages from falling off; one lamp is missing a switch knob so the lamp cannot be turned on/off without borrowing a switch knob from another lamp; and the coffee maker is missing. The air conditioner works, though, as do the TV and refrigerator. We have two queen beds, both of which are comfortable. I can borrow an ironing board, if needed. We brought a tea kettle with us, along with coffee and tea makings. Being in the back of the motel has its advantages. Owing to lots of shade trees, the temperature is at least 10 degrees cooler than in the front. Also, it is much quieter in the back than in the front of the hotel.

As of this evening, when we pulled into Motel 62, I have 1,322 miles on the trip odometer.

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Getting There – Greenfield IN to Central City KY

Today is Day 3 of our 13-day vacation. We are traveling to Eureka Springs, AR to attend the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion rally.

Bob awakened at 4:30 this morning, which is normal for him as this is the time he awakens in the morning to get ready for work. I stayed in bed until 5:45 am. I was showered and dressed by 6:30 am. We ate breakfast at 7:00 am. We each had a cheese omelet, one waffle and a Danish pastry. In addition I had an orange juice and a banana. Bob drank coffee, and I drank hot tea.

It was a chilly morning. It was only 46 degrees in Greenfield IN at 7:30 this morning. I checked the weather in Central City, KY – what will be today’s final destination. The high temperature will be in the low 70s. Bob said he is happy that he has chaps to wear, while riding.

We met up with some VROC friends at the Speedway gas station at Exit 96 on I-70 (one exit west of Greenfield IN) for a 3-day group ride to Eureka Springs, AR .

Bob, Jim T., Bradley T., and Tim and Dee W. at Speedway gas station

We departed the Speedway gas station at 9:45 am, en route Central City, KY via New Salisbury, IN. We would pick up two more riders in New Salisbury, IN.

En route New Salisbury, IN
There are 4 motorcycles and 5 riders.

We made one fuel stop on the way to New Salisbury, IN.

Fuel stop in Brownstown, IN

We arrived at Jim and Katie A.’s house around 12:45 pm.

Jim and Katie’s house

We were back on the road about 30 minutes later, with Jim and Katie riding with us. Not quite 3 weeks ago, Jim had a heart attack. It was wonderful that Jim and Katie could ride with us!

Back on the road again
There are now 5 motorcycles and 7 riders.

We crossed over the Ohio River from Indiana to Kentucky around 1:45 pm.

We stopped for lunch at Subway in Brandenburg, KY.

Brandenburg, KY
Lunch stop at Subway

Before leaving Brandenburg, we made a fuel stop at a gas station near Subway.

We made a rest stop at the Dollar General in Fordsville, KY.

Bradley made good use of the rest stop!

From Fordsville we rode to Central City, KY, arriving there around 5:00 pm Central time.

Today’s route is displayed in the map shown below.

We drove 263 miles today.

We checked into the Best Western Plus Venture Inn. We have a two queen room. It is spacious and nicely furnished. The bathroom is larger than the ones we have had the past two nights.

We ate dinner at El Bracero, a Mexican restaurant located next door to the hotel. Bob and I ordered taco salads, with beef.

The taco salad was uniquely shaped,
like an over-sized taco.

Dinner was delicious!

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Getting There – Hudson OH to Greenfield IN

Today is Day 2 of our 13-day vacation. We are traveling to Eureka Springs, AR to attend the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion rally.

We left Hudson, OH at 7:15 am. It wasn’t a bad travel day, although it was a chilly day and rained for the first couple hours.

Storm clouds breaking prior to reaching U.S. Route 30 rest area

We made a rest stop at a rest area in Ohio, along U.S. Route 30. The first thing I noticed, as we pulled into the rest area, was a truck pulling four homes on wheels.

I like the gray home on wheels with the red window!

We crossed over the Ohio-Indiana border at approximately 12:30 pm.

This is the state border along I-70, leaving Ohio and going into Indiana.

We arrived in Greenfield, IN at 1:30 pm. The majority of today’s driving was on routes I-271, US 30, I-75 and I-70 as seen in the map shown below. We drove 315 miles today.

We are staying at the Quality Inn in Greenfield. This is a Choice Privileges free night accommodation. We had enough points (8,000) to buy a free night. Our room is spacious. The furnishings include two Queen-sized beds separated by a nightstand, an arm chair with footrest and small round table, a desk and chair, a large chest of drawers and TV, a refrigerator and microwave. The bathroom is clean and generously sized.

Greenfield is the county seat of Hancock County. We drove downtown to take a look at the courthouse. The Hancock County Courthouse sits inside the Courthouse Square Historic District. Opposite the Courthouse Square is the Hancock County Veterans Park. I took several pictures of those two areas.

Hancock County Courthouse

Hancock County Veterans Park

Hancock County Courthouse

James Whitcomb Riley statue
the “Hoosier” Poet

After checking out downtown Greenfield, we stopped for dinner at Montana Mike’s Steakhouse. According to its website, “Montana Mike’s is a full-service steakhouse…Our steaks are naturally aged, USDA steaks, hand-cut at the restaurant and grilled to your liking. The atmosphere is reminiscent of a mountain lodge and our service is first class.” When we arrived at the restaurant, a waitress accompanied us inside. She said “I will wait on you; I’m a good waitress.” She seated us and took our order.

Bob, at Montana Mike’s
He is anticipating a good steak dinner.

Shortly after our dinner orders were taken, another waitress came to our table and asked for our drink orders. She said that our waitress walked out. I asked if she had placed our dinner order before she walked out. I was told “yes”. Our new waitress brought water to our table. Another waitress placed two small bread plates on our table. A little later our waitress brought a sirloin steak dinner to our table. The sirloin steak dinner was the only order placed by the waitress who had walked out. I ordered sirloin steak and a fully loaded baked potato. The baked potato was not fully loaded. I told the waitress that my husband ordered a steak dinner as well and that we had not received our salads or dinner rolls. The waitress said “let’s forget this ever happened and start over”. She took our orders. A woman and then a man came separately to our table to apologize and to let know us that our dinners would be taken care of. We learned that the waitress walked out because she was “frazzled”. After “starting over”, all was good. It was a crazy time, but the food was good. Our new waitress took very good care of us. We rewarded her with a $10.00 tip.

After dinner we went to Walmart, where Bob picked up a couple pair of jeans. We returned to the hotel, where we spent rest of the evening. We found two more reasons to like this hotel. They provide complimentary popcorn from 3:00-11:00 pm (approximate time) and coffee/hot tea 24 hours a day.