August 29, 2009 - Bayport

In hopes of a dry day and a good ride, eleven of us met for breakfast at Snellgroves this morning. After a good breakfast and better conversation, nine of us mounted our motorized steeds and headed northwest towards the once thriving bootleggers paradise of Bayport, Florida. As you are aware, however, I seldom take a straight route when a more interesting route is available. Click here to see today's route.

Along the way, three more riders who had other pressing business, drop out of the ride and headed home. By the time we made out first rest stop at the BP station at Ehren Cutoff Road and US-41, there were six bikes left - Boyd, Bob, Eddie, J.T., Lloyd and myself. After a brief stop, we again headed northwest. Despite assurances from the weatherman, we watched as dark clouds build up along our route. The rain finally his for only a brief period as we were westbound on Peace Blvd. Luckily, it was not enough to dampen our spirits or even our clothes.

Once east of US-19, the geography changed to salt marsh. The views were great and the salt smell in the air was refreshing as we passed through Lake Baywood, Aripeka, Sunset Island, Hernando Beach and Weeki Wachee Gardens. We finally turned east on Cortez Blvd. for the last leg of our morning run. As we were a little early for lunch, we decided to head to Bayport Park and the eastern terminus of Cortez Blvd. It is a pretty little park that rebuilt after the hurricanes of '04 and '05. It is a favorite launching point for boats heading out into the Gulf of Mexico. It was also here that, during Prohibition, savvy locals collected the barrels of whiskey that rum runners dumped into the gulf for the tides to carry to shore.

Leaving this picturesque place behind, we retraced the two miles to the Bayport Inn. This old restaurant, motel combination is easy to miss, but you would be sorry to do so. Not surprisingly, there were a good number of motorcycles in the parking lot and the atmosphere inside was very laid back and casual. At first glance the fare appeared to be a bit expensive for our tastes, but then we noticed the all-you-can-eat fish and fries for $8.95. All six of us decided to give it a try. All six of us were very glad that we did. The portions were more than generous and the taste was excellent. The first serving was enough for most of us, but Boyd, who was not hungry when we arrived, decided to order a second round of fish. Although he requested just a couple of more pieces, the waitress brought him a basket with more fish than the first serving. On top of that, the fish tasted even better. We know because Boyd had no hope of finishing it himself and shared it around the table. We will have to return again some day.

Waddling back to the bikes, we headed east towards Brooksville, then south towards Powell to pickup a few of our favorite roads (Culbreath, Hayman, Bayhead and Bellamy Brothers) on the way home. By the time we reached San Antonio, we needed another rest break and stopped at the San Ann Market, always a pleasant stop.

From San Antonio, we made a quick run home, arriving about 4:00 p.m. Great day. Great friends. Great ride. Great food.

Be sure to check out the photos on our web album.

Ride with Pride

Gunny

August 22, 2009 - Mt. Dora

Great turn out for breakfast this morning. If my count is right, there were 16 shoehorned in Snellgroves for food, conversation and camaraderie. As usual, there were a number of people who showed up for breakfast who were not able to go on the ride. That is a good thing since we would rather have their company for breakfast only than for them to not come at all.

Later, ten people on eight bikes headed for Mt. Dora where Bill had an appointment for service on his V-Strom. The route took us around the outskirts of Lakeland, across Rockridge and Green Pond then north on 33 to Groveland. After a quick stop for gas, Bill and Boyd took off for Champion Kawasaki so Bill could make his appointment on time. The rest of us followed at a more leisurely pace.

Arriving at the dealership, we spent some time checking out the machines on the showroom floor. Since it was to take two hours for Bill's service, Bill, Boyd, Bob and I decided to go across the street to Chili's for lunch. The other for bikes and riders decided to head for home to try to beat the oncoming rain. And a hard rain did come while we were eating lunch. Luckily we had plenty of time to wait it out. We made it back to the dealership, still dry, about the the Bill's bike was finished.

We quickly mounted and headed towards home. Although it started to rain again soon after we left, the rain stopped by the time we reached 561 and did not start again until we reached Lakeland. At that point, the remaining group broke up and we all headed for home.

It was a good ride in spite of the weather. See you next week.

Gunny

August 15, 2009 - Hayseed's Cafe

It was another good turn out of twelve for breakfast at Snellgrove's this morning

After our morning sustenance and a close examination of all of Bill's new farkles, nine motorcycles headed for Webster via some of our favorite back roads. Click here for the complete route.

Along the way, we stopped for rest and refreshment at Brooksville's motorcycle mecca - the Hess station at Spring Lake Road and Cortez Blvd. It is always a good place to meet and greet other motorcyclists out for a weekend ride.

Leaving the rest stop, we headed in the general direction of Webster. I say "general direction" because most of you know that I hate straight lines.

Anyway, we arrived at Hayseed's Cafe in time for lunch, and a great lunch it was. If you haven't been there, you have missed one of the best home cooking buffets anywhere. All for just $6.95. It is open all week, but I would avoid it whenever the Webster Flee Market is in operation as Hayseed's is directly across the street from the market grounds.

With rain clouds gathering, we headed towards home via some more of my favorite roads. We managed to avoid the rain and arrived home shortly after 2:00 p.m.

I want to thank everyone for your company today and hope to see you next Saturday.

Be sure to check out Bill's blog for pictures and further information.

Glenn "Gunny" Monroe

August 8, 2009

It was another great day for riding in central Florida. It started with the usual meet up next to the Whistle Stop restaurant. At first it looked like the turn ot would be a little light, but first impressions can be very wrong. By the time we headed over to breakfast, we had 12 bikes and 14 people, including 3 new VStrom DL1000's,

Kyle's new 2007 Harley Street Glide

and first time guest rider, Larry Carter. The good people at Snellgroves had to scramble to find seating for all of ussince some interlopers had beaten us to our regular table (truth to be tolds, it wasn't big enough for us anyway).

Here's Kyle showing off his Blue Knights tatoo. Nice job, Kyle.

After a great breakfast we all headed for our ride. We did not have any particular destination set for today, just a list of good roads that would test the new bikes and keep us fairly close to home in case the weather turned bad. Click here to review today's route.

107 miles later, we stopped for lunch at Mojo's in Lakeland. As usual, the food was excellent and the service was, well, let's just say the food was well presented. After lunch, we wandered over to the Fun Bike Center to look around.

Most of the riders headed home from here while Boyd, Bill and on continued on the Green Pond Road via Fussell Road.

The weather held, the company was great and the road was excellent. All together, we covered 187 miles of the best roads in the area. Come and join us next week. You should also check our Bill's blog for pictures and his eloquent account of today's travels.