Monday October 6

Welcome to Monday folks. Sorry for the delayed posting, but Ive been busy getting Connor to ride the 50 with me. At almost 2 years old hes already very confident on 2 wheels. Now all we need to do is teach him throttle control. The weather is beautiful, if not perfect. Hope you get to ride some today.

The weekend went over pretty well other than a quick saturation by our local THP department late Sunday evening. Not sure why they are coming out that late at night, but I guess it must be more than just "safety", as we didnt see any the whole weekend til about 5 on Sunday. While I appreciate their efforts as Law Enforcement, its getting painfully obvious that their presence is not about "Safety". I guess there was nothing else going on in east TN late Sunday that they could afford 4 Troopers in 9 short miles of road. Man, is this getting old fast.

The leaves are just now starting to change, but its nothing spectacular just yet. Some of the hardwoods are going yellow and red, but the vast majority of the trees are still green. As always with this time of year, I try to recommend being weary of others traveling and looking for the perfect view. This means that you never know when you will come across a slow moving vehicle just wanting that view. As well, leaves can play havok with motorcycles if they are wet, so be careful there too. I wouldnt worry if they were dry, but the wet stuff can certainly mess with you.

Keep the emails coming folks. I do appreciate hearing from you all. The last couple of days I have been communicating with Christine. Though Im not sure where she is from, I do know that she is an avid rider and reader. Chris wanted to point out to me that she felt my statement about trikes in the mountains seems a bit tough, and that I should really try to judge riders by their abilities and not what they ride. In all fairness, this is a very good point, and I appreciate having it proven to me. Sometimes I generalize(as we all do) to get my point across in short order, and that doesnt always work well in the transfer of information. I do still feel that a trike is a tougher tool to utilize in the mountains, but as Chris pointed out, if the rider is able the type of tool said rider chooses should be as safe as anything else. Thanks for the grounding Chris. I look forward to hearing from you more.

Special Mention: Todays mention goes out to my good buddy Connor Talbott. If I was going to have a kid, I would want him to be just like Connor. If Im allowed, Im going to try to make him into a killer road racer.

Thats it for me. Im off to GA to get a dual sport for the wife. Thanks to everyone at Yamaha for getting it together for her. You guys ROCK !!!

Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Sunday October 5

The day of rest is here, and its looking like good weather so I strongly recommend getting out and doing something. What a great morning. Weather looks good through the week, so no worries there.

We have gas folks. We have plenty of Regular, but no Premium. I do have octane booster though, for all you folks that feel the need. No worries on fuel, so get on your bike and go for a ride.

The weekend went fairly well with the hunters and the bikers. I heard many were showing them respect and slowing down when passing the hunters areas. Thanks to all that were polite to them in their quest.

While we are thanking people, I feel it prudent to mention a thanks to the BCSO. Deputies Craig and Aycocke were up here patrolling/assisting and generally keeping the stupidity to a minimum.  While I never did agree with the heavy presence we had last year, I am quite happy knowing that there are a couple of the local Sheriffs on the mountain, especially on a busy weekend.

Chilhowee lake seems to be as low as it will be going for the next while. It is very interesting to see the old roadbed, the old bridges and all that was covered with water when they flooded the valley. The local Sheriffs Department reclaimed a couple of stolen trucks and an RV out of the lake, but nothing more. There are some artifacts(loosely termed) showing up in the form of an old Ford van, a couple fo sunken boats and various auto parts, but other than that, nothing spectacular. Please be careful when coming down the lake because many non-biker types are out looking at the lake. You never know when someone could step out on the road.

MotoGP: Todays race is on SpeedTV(shudder) at 6pm. Its actually looking like a good motorcycle Sunday on SpeedTV(shudder). FIM starts at 3 and goes til 5, then GP from 5 to 7.  Wiht Rossi cinching up the championship last weekend(his 8th world championship) it will be intersting to see how he rides the last 3 races of the year. I personally don think he will sit back, but you never know. Theres only one way to find out though, so come out and watch with us. Races will be on in the Grill all afternoon.

Fontana Rally was this weekend, and it seems everyone is having a great time. I didnt get the chance to go down and enjoy the atmosphere, but I was told everyone was enjoying themselves, and all was well in the Village. Great to hear. Thanks to all that came out for the event.

Lastly, I wanted to tell you guys that the wife and I got dual sports recently. While I prefer to go faster than normal, my wife wanted to get into the whole "lets get offroad and explore" kind of riding, and Im not sure about your household, but when my wife wants to do something, we are both getting into it. She is picking up her XT225 on Tuesday, and I got an XR250 to play on. We look forward to playing dirty bikes with our offroading friends soon.

Thats it for this day. Im off to sample bacon in the kitchen. :) Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Saturday October 4

Its Saturday and its looking like it will be a very busy day. Howdy everyone, and I hope this finds you well. Weather is looking good for the next 5 or more days, so get out and do something outdoors.

WE HAVE FUEL. We have plenty of gasoline here, but only regular, not premium. I do have a shelf full of octane upgrade, do dont sweat a thing. Come out and have some fun.

This will be the last day for bear hunting on the mountain, so be weary and ready for anything. This am, I almost took out a hunting dog on #72 then again on the Gap. While I might not be the biggest fan of these bear hunters, they are entitled to have time on the mountain just as we are, so lets all be polite and respectful to them. There were plenty of bears taken out of the area, and most hunters were happy with the season.

This weekend is the Fontana Rally and Im told they have vendors, music and food. Theres are plenty of folks running around to be here, so it should be a good crowd. I hope everyone has a good weekend at Fontana.

Yesterday, there was a small group of Ferrari's running around, and it is with great sadness that I must report one of them took a hit on the guardrail. It was not serious and the driver managed to drive away. All in all, everyone was ok, but its always sad to hear or see of someone that wrecks their stuff.

Thats it for the day. Please be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Friday October 3

Good morning everyone. Wow, its another cool am here on the mountain, but the sun is shining and all looks well for a beautiful day. Weather should be good for the weekend, less the overnight temps.

Hunting Season: In case you didnt read my other updates, its Bear season here on the mountain. This means that there are plenty of guys in orange and dogs galore. Please be mindful of their week to hunt. Be respectful and be ready for anything from a dog in the road, to a bear running across the road. I believe the last day is Sunday, so be weary til then please.

This weekend is the Rally in the Valley at Fontana Village. Fontana will have Vendors, food and music. Take some time and check it out when you get the chance. Ive seen some beautiful bikes rolling through headed that way and I look forward to seeing more over the weekend.

Changing colors: I will do my best to keep you all updated on how the leaves are changing. Because of our cool snap, it seems some of the hardwoods are dropping theirs quickly, but not much color to see just yet. Like I said, I will keep you updated, but I would think it will really begin in the next couple of weeks.

Special Mention: Todays mention goes to one of our local bike shops, the 129 Motorcycle Pitstop. Dave and Jackie have been at it 5 years running now, and they do a great job. I mention them today because on my way home yesterday, I stopped for a burger and a coke(from a Lou Reed song) and got to hang out for a bit. In the time I was there, I saw nothing but great things from these 2. They helped 3 or 4 wayward folks get back on track, fixed some guys bike and made me a killer cheeseburger, all in the name of good business. Thanks for being there for us guys !!   Check them out on the web:  http://www.129motorcyclepitstop.com/ 

Thats it for the day from me. I hope you all have a great weekend doing whatever you choose. Remember the hunters this weekend if you come this way.

Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Thursday October 2

Good morning. Its a very cool morning here with highs only at 40 as of 9 am. The sun is shining and all is well here, but its a cool am.

WE HAVE GAS AT THE STORE !!!  No issues here, unless you cant live without Premium. If thats the case, then you can head down to Robbinsville for premium.

Well this am, there was a truck stuck at the hairpin turn just north of the store on #129. I was told that the truck was there all last night as well. Turns out the local law came out and turned the driver around back down #28. Glad it was not worse.

Hunting season is upon us as well. There are plenty of hunters out, so please be weary and careful when you head through the Gap.

This weekend we have a rally expected at Fontana Village. Rally in the Valley starts Friday and goes through Sunday. Fontana will have vendors, and plenty of other things going on, so if you get the time, get down there and check out all the action.

Thats it for the day. I hope you get out and enjoy your day. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Monday September 29

Its Monday, and its also the start of Bear season. Morning folks and welcome to it. Weather is great so go do something, if your not chained to your work.

HUNTING SEASON on DEALS GAP: It looks like the Elmer Fudd look alike convention out there, with all their orange and camo. Bear season opened up for the week, so please be polite and very mindful. Chances are good you will find many hunters through the Gap, and lots of hunting dogs too. And for the record, I use the term "hunter" loosely. This will be going on for the next 7 days, so please be respectful and polite. We have the mountain all year, but these folks only get to do this one week out of 52.

The weekend went off without a hitch. We had some incidents, but everyone is recuperating well, and seem to be doing fine. This upcoming weekend Fontana are having their Rally, and a couple other groups are around, so get ready for a good one.

Special Mention: Todays mention goes out to a fellow Canadian that just finished over 2 years on the road traveling through the Americas. Daren LaBranche just made it home from his little trip, and all went well for him. If you have some time, and like ride reports, Darens is fantastic. Hes a great writer and takes lots of pictures, so how can you go wrong. Check his updates out at www.dmotorider.com Great to hear you made it in one piece Daren !!!!  Looking forward to seeing you again soon.

Thats it from me. Go out and have a great day. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Sunday September 28

Sunday is here and so are we. Morning everyone, I hope this finds you all well and getting ready for a banner day.While its still pretty foggy right now(8 am) it will clear and get pretty, Im sure.

GP Sunday folks. The races start at 3 pm on SpeedTV today, so come on out and watch the races with us.

Nothing major to report from the weekend. It was busy, and most seemed to do well. There was an accident on 129 south of the store that involved a trike. Both rider and passenger took the flight over the mountain. I know some of you will feel Im picking on trike owners, but I really dont feel they have any place in the mountains, because of the inherent dangers they possess. There was a reason the GOV blacklisted all those 3 wheelers in the 70's/80's folks... they are dangerous on tight roads.

We raced 50's in the parking lot last night. Good times were had by all. Til next time...

Enjoy your day folks. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

 

Saturday September 27

...And were back. No thanks to our ISP who didnt care enough to inform us that they were going to have an outage with their servers, and their customers sites would be down. My biggest pet peeve with this country is how people shelve good customer service. Very poor business.

Good day and welcome to Saturday. Rain came in last night and all is damp, but not soaked. Rain/cloud should be gone later in the day, and fairer weather is on its way back in. This weekend looks to be pretty busy based on the crowd yesterday, but not crazy. Theres a Busa Bash this weekend, and a group of Can-Am Spiders over around Sevierville. Otherwise I dont know of anything else going on. Should be a good weekend.

Gas Situation: Well, I managed to get a load of fuel in yesterday, but I could only purchase regular test. We do have fuel folks. The area is coming back strong too, but I understand its still a bit of an issue east of us around Ashville and such. Robbinsville has fuel, and there doesnt seem to be any shortage in TN either. Prices are roughly $3.90 a gallon. There is fuel in this area, so dont sweat that part.

Hunting season and the lowering of the lake. Folks with the lowering of the lake weve seen an increase of people hanging out/walking around the road and lakebed. This means people parked on the side of the road, walking down the road and basically standing around in places they shouldnt. This all goes without saying for the bear hunters too. They will be here for about a week, and I recommend being as polite as you can. These people are not going away, and we all need to learn to share the area with others. Im sure we will see plenty of police for the next while as the lookers come out though, so be careful.

MotoGP. Tomorrows race is in Assen, Japan. This should be a good one too with the promise of Rossi clinching his title as world champoin. All will be on the edge of their seats as this race goes down, so come out and watch it with us. Does anyone know what time it will be on, and who will butcher it wither commentary this weekend ?? Yep, you guessed it. Im still bitter with Greg White for reminding me that the left hand covers the clutch and that the riders are adorned with cowhide leather.

Ive just confirmed that the Deals Gap Road Crew will be coming to a town near you over the winter for a motorcycle show or two. This year, we will be going to Washington, NYC, Cleveland, Chicago and Minneapolis. Hope to see all our friends over the winter in their area, instead of ours.  Check out www.motorcycleshows.com for more info on where and when.

Im pretty sure thats about it. Keep the emails coming folks. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Thursday September 25

Welcome to it folks. Hope this finds you well and almost finished with your work week. Weather is still holding pretty but it is noticeably cooler out, so dont forget to grab a couple of layers before leaving the homestead.

Well, Ashville is effectively shut down right now, with no fuel in town. I was told that if they didnt get fuel by monday that there would be limited services regarding public safety as the reserves are dwindling quickly. We here are not able to get another load of fuel in this week, which will make for some small issues over the weekend, but thats days away yet, so lets see how this all unfolds. I doubt we will have fuel this weekend so dont say you werent warned.

Chilhowee Lake keeps draining. Now it looks like a huge empty farmers field out there. I was told that theres a possibility that they will have to completely drain the lake to fix the dam, but we wont know til they do it. So far, they have found a few cars and trucks and some portapotties but nothing special otherwise, but its not over yet. Please remember to be safe and slow down the lake. With all the people gawking you never know when someone can step out in front of you.

Facebook: Well, I was introduced to Facebook over my time off. Seems thats where everyone I was wondering about is hanging out. I can see how it could be addicting to some right out of the gate, and I must admit, it is definitely interesting to see "where they are now". Catching up to old friends is always interesting, and I thank Facebook for that. If youre on Facebook and you are reading this, hit me up.

MotoGP update: as I type this, I am watching the latest episode of After the Flag out of the corner of my eye. If your not on I-Tunes, you need to sign up so you can watch this podcast. Its one of the best after-shows I have watched. Thanks MotoGP. This week is Assen, and it will be another great race so come out on Sunday and watch the race with us.

Todays special mention goes out to Randy Ailey, of the BCSO. Randy is a bike cop and does a great job in our area of keeping people safe and grounded. While Randy is pretty tight with his laws, he also understands that its good to get out and talk to riders as well as scorn them. Presently Randy is starting up a Full Dress/Tourer riding class for riders of bigger bikes, and I am 1000% behind him in this endeavor. Theres never enough training when it comes to anything, so why not get more for bikes too. You are never too old to learn folks.

MG is back after his R & R of the appendix issues he had on the way to Indy for the big race. For those that dont know, MG had an Appendicitis attack on the way to the Indy and stopped at a hospital at the TN/KY border to get it dealt with. 12 hours later he was out of surgery and on his way home. Unforunately he missed the GP altogether, and we in turn missed our friend at all the festivities. While hes not wearing real pants yet, he is back at work. Great to have you back MG.

Thats it for the day. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Monday September 22

Good morning and welcome to Monday. Its going to be a banner day here, with sun, sun, sun and highs in the 80's all week. Looks like a great week to get out and enjoy the less traveled weekday roads.

The weekend is behind us, and most had a good time, but there were a few wrecks and some stupidity that left a few riders and drivers alike either in trouble or in some form of pain. We had a few wrecks, and some of the stupidity was overwhelming. I hope this isnt the trend that comes with the motorcycle changeover that we are seeing with this summers police presence.

Speaking of accidents, I passed an ambulance on the lake just north of the Gap on my way in this am. I then found a car wrecked at th 5mm. Not sure what happened, but it must have been bad for a car driver to need an ambulance. I hope all involved are ok, and they get better soon.

Chilhowee Lake water is still dropping. Now you can see the old riverbed, and a ton of other stuff. The old roadbeds, the railway and a couple of older homesites. It also seems that half the town of Maryville is coming out to check it out, and its because of all the lookers that I strongly recommend taking your time down the lake.

Thats all I have for today. I do hope you all have a good one. Keep the emails coming. Be safe, ahve fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Sunday September 21

Morning folks. Hope you are having a peaceful Sunday am, and are getting ready for an enjoyable day. Here, its overcast, but breaking. Seems we had a little shower over the evening hours, but nothing major. Sun is in the forecast for the next 5 days in case you are wondering.

Well, another crazy weekend is upon us, and yesterday was exceptionally busy. With all the Rallies in the area, we found ourselves inundated with riders and drivers alike. I was told of many people that were not respecting anyone yesterday, and we had no less than 3 ambulances on the mountain making for a dangerous day. I cant stress enough how important it is to maintain calm and control, which I know seems like something I shouldnt have to say, but yesterday proved me wrong yet again. Im not sure what goes through some of your heads. The attitude is changing too, regarding bikers. I see a lot of hostility towards one or the other type of bike, and all I can tell you we are all riders. No one type of rider is better than the other. I hope many of you come to realize that sooner than later because its just sad to listen to some of you go on about it.  'Nuf said ??

Last night was a late one here. We ended up hanging out with the PJsparts.com group to have some jerk chicken, a motorcycle rodeo and some 50 racing. Thanks to all for another great evening with good friends. I had a blast, thanks.

Go forth and enjoy fellow riders. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

 

Saturday September 20

Welcome to it. Another Saturday at Deals Gap, and the weather is perfect for a nice day. Get up, get your underoo's on, and go do something worthwhile.

This weekend there are a few Rallies going on as well as a couple of car clubs in the area, so expect to see a lot of cars, bikes and people. Yesterday was an extremely busy day overall, even with our power failure at about 5. Power stayed out til about 7 pm when I threw in the towel and closed the place for the night. Im very sorry if we missed you folks late in the day, but no power here means no services at all.

With the power failure came a rescheduling of sorts. I got home to have dinner with friends in from Canada, then turned around to go back to the store to make sure the power was back on and everyone in the motel was ok. On my way towards the Gap, I was stopped for speeding by the local Sheriffs Deputies on #72 just north of #129. I was stopped by 2 very professional officers that were polite and respectful to me. Not once did I mention that I was the guy from Deals Gap(not sure that would have helped anyhow) or ask for any exceptions otherwise. After the officer checked me out, he was very polite and gave me a warning ticket for speeding. It was only after the business was completed that I introduced myself, and thanked the guys for being cool and for watching out. Ive said this time and again, but I feel the need to say it once more. Thanks goes out to the local Blount County Sheriffs Office for being a great bunch of guys and gals. We appreciate you very much.

The water is still receding on Chilhowee Lake. So far they have pulled out a couple of stolen trucks, a motorhome and a few other miscelanious items. In case you are wondering why there are so many police on the lake its because you never know what might surface on the lake, and they have to be around to take care of it immediately if need be. I personally think we will eventually find a couple of bodies, but Im not sure that anyone will share that info with us when the time comes. It is pretty cool to watch all this old stuff come back up out of the depths though .So far, weve seen the old road bed, the old railway, and a few frames of old houses. When you are coming in through TN, stop and check it out, cause its pretty cool.

Recap of Indy: What a great time we had. We saw good friends, had some great food, and saw one of the craziest races in GP history. How many people can say that they got to watch a motorcycle race through the tail end of a Hurricane ? The folks at the Indy Motor Speedway were very good to deal with as well. I guess when you are used to a couple of hundred thousand people there for a NASCAR race, then whats a little GP. Thanks to all at IMS for doing such a great job with the motorcycle group.

Lastly, I want to touch on something that seems to be popping up more and more these days. I seem to be hearing more and more about "those bikers". Either a sportbike guy is bitching about a cruiser guy or the other way around, where a cruiser rider is bitching about a "crotchrocket". Folks, at the end of the day, we are all bikers. Neither side has place to brag or bitch. None of us are perfect, and to segregate one group from the other divides us all as a community. People.... we are all bikers, no matter what we ride. Get over yourselves.

Thats it from here. Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Friday September 19

Whew, its already Friday, and even though Ive been in the office since 7:30 its been tough to get back on all things going on. Weather is perfect for the weekend, so dont sweat that.

Although Im not exactly up on whats happening, I do know theres a Wing-Ding close by, as well as another Maggey Valley Rally, coupled with a Porsche Car Club, and a couple of other groups, like the customer appreciation party here for www.pjsparts.com Things are very busy, and I expect a solid police presence this weekend.

The water id quickly falling, and things keep popping up everywhere. So far, the Sheriff's Office has brought up a few stolen cars and a motorhome. We have not heard of any dead bodies yet, but we arent done. Also, I have not heard of any guns or otherwise crazy stuff, but again, its early. Pretty cool to see the old roadbed and all around it though.

Indy was perfect, and we had a great time. Thanks to all for the emails, and the images. Even with the weather, it couldnt have been a much better weekend than it was. Thanks to all that braved the weather to enjoy it with us.

Sorry I dont have more, but things are still rolling in. Once I have it all processed, I will give you a better update.

Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben

Saturday September 13

Well, its another great day done at the IndyGP. Rossi is on pole, and the red bike is in 4th for tomorrows start. We got to be part of the Ride for Champions at the end of the day and we did the lap on our little fifties and had a complete blast. Thanks to www.rideforkids.org for the opportunity.

Weather, I was told was great and every bike for a few hundred miles was at the store, but not us. Sorry we missed you guys. Thanks for not being scared of the weather or the over-inflated gas prices either. I hope you all had a great day.

Tomorrow doesnt look as good as today. I hope your Sunday is as good as today was here. We are heading out for a huge group dinner, so I will sign off for now.

Todays mention goes out to Brad Talbott. Brad, is oneof the best friends anyone could have. Thanks for being such an awesome guy. We love you very much.

Be safe, have fun and respect all you see and meet. --- Ben