15,000 Visits to Southern Comfort

While Irene was steamrolling over Alexandria last night, Southern Comfort had its 15,000th visit! Pretty cool.

Visitors find SC mostly via Google, but also Bing, HD Forums, and manufacturers' web sites. Many are looking for pictures of events, but almost as many are interested in the articles on the Joker Machine products, Pitbull Lifts, and Kendon Trailers. I wrote these articles hoping I could make life a little simpler for other bikers having similar interests, and maybe I have.

Lots of peeps also get to SC via the links on Facebook, so thanks for that interest too. As long there's interest, I'll keep writing this blog.

If you're curious, there's also financial incentive to keep the Southern Comfort blog going. I've been at it well over a year now, and have earned a grand total of $7.96, before taxes. That's not quite enough for retirement, but if I can keep at it another couple hundred years, I'll be set.

And that's all for now. I'm headed back to work tomorrow after a nice vacation, and the thought of getting back behind a desk is positively depressing.

Cowboy

Tail of the Dragon, 2011

One of the best part of my Southern Comfort 2011 vacation was getting the chance to run Rt 129, better known as Tail of the Dragon. The road is famous, and bikers from all over come to run this route, which is not without some serious challenges. The week before I got there, the road claimed another life. It's not to be taken lightly, and as I told a friend a while back, don't ride it beyond your limits.

I picked up 129 coming out of the Asheville, NC area. I rode Rt 19 out of Maggie Valley, NC, making a right on 28 a little west of Bryson City, NC. You can also access it from points north and west. North, from the Knoxville area, or west from the Bristol area. However you get there, it's 318 curves in 11 miles and you almost never get a chance to catch your breath if you're running hard.

One of the cool things about the Dragon is that 3 professional motorsports photography companies set up at strategic curves along the route, snapping awesome hi-resolution photos of riders (and yes, drivers if you're in a car). A few days after your run, you can access their websites and purchase the photos if you like 'em. I think they run about 5 bucks each for a hi-res download, which is how I purchased mine.

Here are the websites:

• www.killboy.com
• www.129slayer.com
• www.us129photos.com

And here's some of the pix of me and the Joker. I thought these were cool, and I'm thankful these guys caught me running the Dragon. Eagle-eyed people will note that my jacket is zipped in some photos, and not in others. On the way up, running into Tennessee, it was unzipped, but I bought a t-shirt at 129 Harley Davidson and had no where to put it, so I stashed it in my zipped jacket on the way back.

I made no contributions to the Tree of Shame! Amen.

Cowboy

Southern Comfort 2011 - That's all, Folks!

I rolled out of New Orleans on Monday, August 22, heading towards home. Of all things, there had been a earthquake here and I was concerned about damage to the condo or the garage. And if that wasn't enough to think about, there was a hurricane threatening the East Coast later in the week. (In fact, Hurricane Irene is now dumping rain all over my windows as this is being written!) So I just decided it was time to get my ass home.

The trip home had one additional element that made it interesting. I had picked up a case of food poisoning in New Orleans (those oysters?) that made the entire trip back anything but a fun ride. Suffice it to say that during parts of the trip, I did it one rest stop (or Harley dealer) at a time....

Hmmmmmmm?

It wasn't ALL drudgery. I did a slight detour at Birmingham, over to Leeds, Alabama, to re-visit the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, which is simply not to be missed if you are anywhere nearby. Heck, it's worth a trip for the visit alone. It seems they have almost one of every motorcycle ever built worldwide, and it's an amazing collection. There's also a great collection of Lotus race cars to see too, but the museum is decidedly focused on motorcycles.

But all good things must come to an end. I stayed the night in Sweetwater, Tennessee, where the Comfort Inn staff offered rock-star parking so my bike would be safe that evening. Totally cool. And the next morning, they were shooing people away that were checking the bike out. I'll say this again. I don't know exactly what it is about the  Joker that makes it so interesting to people, but there's no question that whatever it is, the Joker has "it". Heck, I wish I had a little of "it"!

From Sweetwater, I began encountering the density and hustle of the US East Coast, and by the time I hit I-81, the fun was over. 80 million trucks, competing with 80 million cars for space on that long-ass road. Bummed me out, but I quickly got over that. Or I hope so. And like last year, I took very few pix on the ride back.

So during Southern Comfort 2011, I got to:

• Visit Maggie Valley, NC
• Run Tail of the Dragon and Hell Bender....twice.
• Visit Memphis, including Beale Street, Sun Studios, and Graceland
• Do some substantial repairs on my aunt's house in Azle, Texas
• Sightsee a bit in Shreveport, LA, and Vicksburg, MS
• Hit New Orleans/Bourbon Street for a couple days of R&R
• and visit the Barber Museum.

Now that ain't bad for a couple weeks, is it?

I also checked on the mileage. Between here and Azle, Google Maps tells me it's 1,375 miles each way, so a round trip with a little running around might add up to about 3,000 miles. Doing it my way resulted in 3,640 miles on the Hummer, PLUS another 374 on the Joker! So yep, it wasn't exactly a straight path, and the bike didn't collect any dust during stops.

I'm not sure I'll try this kind of deal again though, or at least not in the same area. My next long road trip will be out west someplace, and won't have any serious time constraints. Next year, it's Daytona Bike Week for my season opener, and then all my remaining 2012 vacation plans will revolve around a trip to Sturgis, South Dakota, for the annual biker event in August, and I'm thinking about riding.

Cowboy

NOLA, Revisited......

...and right back at the same hotel as in 2010: Old Towne Inn

I rolled out of Vicksburg, Mississippi, yesterday morning, headed east for Birmingham, Alabama, to visit the Barber Motorsports Motorcycle Museum again. It's an awesome place, and I wanted a second shot to see what I might have missed the first time. Well into the drive, about halfway, I was cruising in the fast lane, when I saw a sign that said I-59 New Orleans - 1/4 mile. In the couple seconds it took to cover that 1/4 mile, I had crossed 3 lanes of traffic, hauling a trailer, and found myself heading the 170 miles south to New Orleans.

Of course, in the true tradition of Southern Comfort travel, I've always taken any new path that looked interesting, regardless of the general itinerary, and this side trip is no exception. NOLA was the halfway point for last year's ride, and I had nothing but fun memories. An annual refresher seemed like a damned good idea. I called ahead and booked a room at the Olde Town Inn where I stayed last year, set the cruise control to 75, and several hours later I was booked into Room 13 and unloading the bike!

  

Someone's missing!

The only possible first stop was Bourbon Street, which seems to never disappoint. There's a party going on there all the time, even on a Sunday afternoon. There's something for everyone on Bourbon Street, regardless of where those little twisty-bits go in those dark corners of your mind.

Bourbon Street is easily the nuttiest place in the US, and I've been to Duvall Street in Key West, Beale Street in Memphis, and many other US hot spots. While checking things out, I walked down toward one spot where a crowd of guys were competing for a view inside a bar where music was blaring. Not one to miss the action, I muscled my way in, camera at the ready, and was horrified to find that I had one foot in the door of a gay strip joint! I slipped back through that crowd in a millisecond, getting both feet firmly in heterosexual territory before I was spotted! No... no pictures!!

I'm on a slow internet connection and also anxious to get moving, so I'll cut this short by saying that within 10 minutes of parking the Joker, I met some cool people including 4'10" "Hammer", a little gal on a Sportster something like the Joker. She introduced me to other folks, and after hanging with them a while, I had some oysters at Acme Oyster House, and then started my sightseeing. There were LOTS of sights to see.

and a few from other places....

 Voodoo Shrine

Stay tuned for an update....maybe tomorrow.

Cowboy

Leaving Texas - Running East.....

I pulled up stakes this morning and rolled out of Azle, heading due east. I actually felt like I was making a run for it. It seemed that every repair to my Aunt Annie's house led to an additional repair, and there seemed to be no end to it! And working in the heat was not easy. And Aunt Annie was putting the pressure on for me to stay on a bit longer. Like forever!  But the truth was that the big stuff was taken care of, I'd spent the week doing chores, and I needed to get back on the road if I was ever going to make it back home.

And maybe I should write a little post about the "Girls of Azle", but I won't. What happens in Azle stays in Azle!

I fought my way through Fort Worth and Dallas traffic, which is almost as bad as DC sometimes, and don't let anyone tell you different. As I cruised through Arlington, which is between the two cities, I had fun memories of running into Michael Irvin the night before in Hooters, Arlington, which was cool. So was Michael, who gave autographs and happily posed for pictures for those who stopped by and asked. Heck, I did! I watched Michael Irvin catch a lot of Troy Aikman's passes for Cowboys touchdowns!

And I also hit Cavenders on the way out, convincing myself I could offset the cost of (another pair of) new boots by staying in cheap hotels on the way back. One more pair of 1883 Lucchese boots in the closet. This pair IS for riding so the last pair stay in decent shape. 

I-20, running east, gets you to Vicksburg, Mississippi via Louisiana. It is, without a doubt, the straightest, most boring road ever. It wouldn't be hard to fall asleep. I was glad I wasn't riding, and with the 105 degree heat, the combination would have been unbearable. I finally got out of Texas, looking forward to cooler temperatures and a change in scenery. Didn't happen. 

Louisiana didn't offer much more driving excitement, but I happily stumbled upon the "Boardwalk" built along the Red River in Shreveport, LA, which was really cool. Live alligators hanging out at Bass Pro Shop, and a Hooters for those who might be hungry....folks like me! I gassed up there for the last leg of the day's trip.

I hit Vicksburg, Mississippi, and found my economy hotel. Remember, I'm offsetting that boot purchase. I found out, again, that cheap hotels are cheap for a reason. The value of the combined contents of this room, including carpet and linens, wouldn't cover a payment on my monthly cable bill. Furniture is nothing but hand-me-downs from the upper class members of the hotel chain, and I think this carpet came outa the local Exxon station.

But it's only for one night, and tomorrow night, wherever I am, I'm climbing up at least one notch on the ladder of hotel ratings. Makes me really glad I'm traveling alone. Otherwise, I don't think this would be a pleasant evening. At least the sheets are clean...I checked and double-checked. Even I have limits as to what's endurable. Ask me sometime about the Travelodge in Brunswick, GA. Yuck.

This Vicksburg post wouldn't be complete without a mention of last year's Southern Comfort ride. I was here last year, and in the spot shown in the photo above, I rolled my Softail Custom right down to river's edge for a great shot with the riverboat in the background. As I was positioning it, I lost my balance and the damn bike fell over. With all the luggage and extra weight, I wasn't able to get it back up, but a big ole' Mississippi gal in a pickup offered assistance. With a mighty heave, we had it upright and on the stand. She wasn't even breathing hard. I made a mental note NOT to make any moves on her. She'd have killed me......

I'm rolling tomorrow, taking some route that won't overlap last year's ride. I'm thinking Birmingham next for another trip to the Barber Motorsports Museum. I was there several years ago, and I'm due for a refresher. After Birmingham, who knows.......

Cowboy

Intermission

SC 2011 has been interrupted by work. And horrific heat. Rather than update the blog with tales of contractors, time limitations, crazy laws about money and senior citizen assistance, Alzheimers, etc, not to mention temperatures that make riding ANYTHING but fun, I've just decided to ask everyone to read some old Southern Comfort articles now and then, giving me a couple days to get some things done and get back on the road before the paint melts off the Joker.

Thanks for your kind cooperation, dedication, and patience
Cowboy

Far end of the Loop....

Leaving Memphis

I'm now checked into my room in Lake Worth, Texas, and all done for the night. No late night bar runs on the Joker for me. A little Monday Night Football, I'll read a bit, and hit the rack.

I just checked mileage, and had I not taken the long, lazy route to Lake Worth, the distance would have only been 1,419 miles. But my route was anything but straight, putting an extra 105 miles on the Hummer and 305 miles on the Joker! 230 of those Joker miles were from the Tail of the Dragon/Hell Bender run, but that's still 75 miles worth of bar-hopping and sightseeing in Memphis! There's no dust collecting on me or the vehicles, and that's why I'm staying in. I'm worn out from having fun!

Fort Worth, or maybe Austin, is about as far away from home as I'm gonna get, so it is actually the far end of the trip "loop". From Texas, I'll begin making my way back and I still don't have the remotest idea what route I'm taking. It won't be the same, and I might run south to see what's between here and Alabama.

Feels good to be here in Lake Worth. My Aunt lives in Azle, just west of here on Jacksboro Highway, and Fort Worth is just east. Like a mile or two. I don't need a map here; it's like home. I learned to swim at Possum Kingdom, learned to water ski here on Lake Worth, and the family says I fell in love the first time (at 16) with Betty Joe next to the lake. Not sure where that rumour started, but it's hanging on after all these years. And just for the record, down here, second cousins are legal! 

And my late best-friend Spider (Paul Griffith) and I had a ball running the roads around here. Lots and lots of good memories here. My Mom is buried just up the road, and there's more extended family sprinkled around here and there on both sides of the grass. 

I've spent every summer here from birth well into my teens, and Texas is in my blood. I'm proud of my Texan heritage.

So that's today's update. Fortunately, on the way in I found a place that served wholesome food that will get me through the week ahead. I may go back for more.

Cowboy

Walking in Memphis......

Memphis snuck up on me. I wasn't actually expecting too much, and quite frankly, figured this stop as an overnighter on the way to the next point of interest. I came in through the back door of the city, which didn't help much, and having a panhandler hit me for money as I'm unloading the bike in the hotel parking lot didn't help to improve my viewpoint.

Still, I had some strong urging from friends to stay here and check the place out. Linda and Charlie stayed here, giving Beale Street rave reviews, with a special bit of advice to check out Coyote Ugly. Fred hammered away on Graceland and the Elvis stuff, insisting these hot spots simply shouldn't be missed.

So I finished unloading the bike, finding a halfway secure place to park it, but pretty sure the bike, the Hummer, and the trailer would all be gone the next morning, probably stolen by that panhandler. I checked in, resolving to give it at least two days before hightailing it west.

I found the Best Western Gen X Hotel at 1177 Madison on the H.O.G. Best Western Trip Planner link. 90 bucks a night, which wasn't bad, and no bitching about the trailer. Pretty nice room too. Recently remodeled. Location-wise, just 2 miles to Beale Street, and 5 to Graceland.

My fears of being ripped off turned out to be unfounded. The panhandler didn't get a thing, but he waved to me every time I went by on the bike!! There are many hotels nearer Beale Street, but I didn't see any strong indication of them being trailer-friendly. They all seemed to have typical high-rise parking facilities which could make getting a trailer in/out/parked a pain in the ass. And staying in Graceland puts you further from Beale, and Beale is where you'll be at night.

About Memphis....

It is kinda gritty, and retains it's character. No one's polished it up to impress anyone, and if they did, I think they'd ruin it. There's one thing particularly interesting, and it's that they still use trolleys. These cool little streetcars run back and forth moving peeps around. That's both good and bad. Good for the reasons stated; bad because the streets have tracks imbedded in them that add a whole new dimension to running the streets on a scoot. Get a wheel caught in one and who knows what's gonna happen.....

Sun Recording, the home of rock and roll is here, and looks exactly like it did in 53 when Elvis walked in wanting to cut a record for his Mom's birthday. And like it did when Chet Atkins, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Elvis Presley recorded 40 songs together as the Millionaire Quartet. And like it did when U2 used that studio to record Rattle and Hum. Best yet, like it did when the very first R&R record was cut: Rocket 88. I took the tour of Sun Recording and it was the best, most enjoyable hour I've spent in a long, long time.

If I got any of those details about Sun wrong, let me know. I'm running from memory, and the tour guide was pretty hot so maybe I missed something!

Beale Street is about 3 blocks of fun, much like Bourbon Street in New Orleans. There is literally one cool bar after another, each different and fun in its own way. Music was everywhere and it was all good. Will Tucker was playing BB King's place, and he and his band were great. There was a band just as good playing in alley on a makeshift stage, with people partying and dancing.

I spent time in a voodoo shop, checking out the potions, and then discovered those nifty little dolls you stick pins in. I didn't know that there's actually a white and black pin. White gives your "victim" GOOD luck, and black puts the whammies on him/her. Extra black pins are optional at additional cost. No kidding.

Next I went into Memphis Music, instantly getting an unsolicited Blues history lesson from an ancient guy who also told me tales of his old pre-war Harleys. He called over another equally ancient guy, and the three of us laughed and BS'd for an hour. Those guys made sure I knew (just as at Sun Recording) that Rocket 88 is recognized as the first rock 'n roll recording. Remember that fact if you go to Memphis, and don't bother to argue with them. Seems they take this particular matter serious.

I ran into fun conversation and cool people to chat with everywhere. People were laughing and enjoying life, with no one seeming to pay much attention to being black, white, or whatever. And no one I met seemed to be down on bikers, which is also pleasant. I was also fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of my new buddy Joe from St. Louis ( I think that's right!), also a guest a my hotel who was in Memphis on vacation with his family. Joe has a Sportster, and has been riding for a while. We had daily parking lot discussions of Harley mods and the good old days, and he helped make the stay even more fun. Always good to meet folks when I'm on the road. Heck, that's why I'm out here!

I'll also grudgingly reveal that I was definitely NOT an Elvis fan when I rolled into town. I may not even be one right now, but I got a feeling I might listen to an Elvis tune or two when I hear 'em on the radio. The (hot) tour guide at Sun said there were two kinds of people in the world: Elvis fans and the rest who just hadn't yet had sufficient exposure to Elvis music.

To be sure, Graceland is a huge commercialized tourist trap, but make an effort to look under the surface, and there's something there worth seeing. I found myself becoming interested, and finally mesmerized by the story of Elvis, the rise to fame, and the sad ending. Being surrounded by the places it all happened lured me into wanting to get  to know more, and I plan to.

And yes, I got a Graceland Harley Davidson t-shirt.

To sum it up, Memphis slowly but surely charmed me. Made me comfortable, fed me well, kept a smile on my face, and made me wanna come back. I know some people who could stand to take a lesson or two from Memphis. Just saying.

Cowboy

PS A well-deserved thank you to Fred and Linda for suggesting this as a stop on SC 2011. You guys were right!