CHRISTMAS IS COMING!!!

Interesting sermon at church today discussing the preperation for Christmas.  How most people get so busy with the process of getting ready for Christmas (shopping, endless parties, stress, etc.) that they forget the real meaning of the holiday.  Our pastor suggested that maybe we forget about all the fuss and rush and just let Christmas "happen" for us.  I liked the thought of that.  We have many decorations up in the house and a bunch more in boxes.  I think it's time to stop "preparing" and start "reflecting" on the true meaning of Christmas.  Where is that Veggie Tales DVD when I need it.

Making New Riding Friends

I am fortunate to live in one of the greatest motorcycling spots in the country.  We are very close to some of the best twisty roads in the country, and for off roading, there are endless trails and forest service roads.

http://www.klr650.net/
I found a great resource in the KLR650.net website.  It's a great forum for getting model specific information on technical matters as well as finding great motorcycle products.  It's also a great place to meet people who enjoy the Kawasaki KLR 650 and dual sport motorcycling.

SOUTHEAST REGIONAL FORUM
There are regional pages on KLR 650.net.  Here, you can find people in your local area who have KLR's.  I have been able to make some new friends who have shown me around the North Georgia Mountains and introduced me to some great trails and FS Roads.  They have also helped me with tech advice.

A DOCTOR, A UPS MAN, and a MARBLE MINER
I have always found the kind of people you meet who play around with motorcycles a very eclectic and interesting bunch.  You never know who you are riding with.  One day in Florida, I had breakfast with our church's "Praise Leader" on one side of me, and an Attorney for the "Adult Entertainment" industry on the other side of me (he said at first that he represented people in "first ammendment rights cases" - the truth eventually came out through conversation) 

Recently, I have met 3 guys who ride bikes like mine.  Les is a UPS guy, Kerry is a Gastroenterologist, and Jeff is a Marble Miner.  Each with a different "story".  I look forward to getting together with them and riding again soon.

Marco's 4th Birthday

Thanksgiving 2010

We decided that it would be good for our family to spend the Thanksgiving week at home this year.  We really enjoyed the week.  Turkey day was great - we decorated the Christmas tree, Belinda went shopping on Black Friday (in the middle of the night), Diego did some volunteer work, and Belinda and I celebrated 16 years of marriage.  It was a nice and relaxing week.

Ford Championship Weeked 2010

I made my annual trip down to Miami for Ford Championship Weekend - NASCAR's last race weekend of the year.  I worked in the Ford Display all weekend but did get to celebrate Carl Edwards win in Victory lane.  It was really fun - Carl is a great guy - it was nice to see the joy he and his team had after that win.

Fall Fun

Kids will be kids.  Unfortunately, they didn't dispose of the leaves after the play time...oh well, I needed the exercise.

Finding Dual Sport Riding Buddy's

I am fortunate enough to live in one of the best motorcycling locations in the country.  We have great riding weather for most of the year, have many mountain twisty roads, and if you are into it, there are Forest Service Roads and trails all over the place - just up the road from my house.

FINDING FRIENDS
When I lived in Forida, I had a small group of people to ride with - several of which lived in my neighborhood.  Unfortunately, there are only a couple of riders besides me in my neighborhood and none of them are dual sport riders.  Fortunately though, I have gotten to know some riders on the KLR.Net forum.  It's a fantastic website forum that has "regional" pages.  On the Southeast KLR Forum, there is a thread for North GA Mountain riding that guys use to find people to ride with.  I recently met up with 2 really great guys who live in Chatsworth GA and know the GA mountains very well in the area from Dahlonega up to Ellijay and north to Tennessee.  This area is part of the Chattahoochee National Forest. 

A MARBLEMINER AND UPS GUY
Les is Kentucky native who works for UPS and Jeff works for the local Marble Mine in Ellijay.  They both ride KLR 650's like mine.  Great guys - I really like the way they ride too - they like to ride a little, stop, and putz around, talk, etc.  During one of our stops, Jeff was talking about his oldest son.  He is a Marine and is assigned to the Presdential Detail.  In fact, if you have ever seen the picture of President Bush getting on the Marine One helicopter for the last time when he left office, Jeff's son in the Marine on the left that closed the door for him.  Pretty cool - I guess he just got back from a tour in Afghanistan and is on detail for President Obama.  Pretty cool pretty cool.  I look forward to getting together with them in the near future.

Brianna's 7th Birthday Party

Brianna turned 7 last Monday.  We had her birthday party yesterday at a place at the Mall of Georgia called "Alter Ego Kids".  Basically, it's dress up, make up, hair, nails, and dancing on the big stage.  Girly Girly stuff - the kids loved it and we had a blast watching them.  It was a really fun party.

Riding the "Dragon" with Friends

Last weekend, I had 6 friends come visit for a long weekend of riding.  Curt Owens, Steve Landes, and his wife Tina arrived on Thursday, and Andrew Steadman, Chris Galardi, and Bob Lowe arrived on Friday.  The weekend started early on Friday morning as Curt, Steve, Tina and myself went up to the Suches, GA area and did some off roading.  Then, on Saturday morning, the entire group departed for 2 days of riding in North GA, Easter North Carolina, and Southeast Tennessee.  Our route took us from my home up through Dahlonega, GA where we stopped at Riders Hill - a really cool Moto Guzzi dealer and motorcycle cafe.  From there we traveled further up into the mountains and stopped at Mountain Crossings Hiking store at Walasi Yi - this is where the Appalachian trail crosses Highway 129 about 15 miles south of Blairsville, GA.  It's a historic building that is actually the only hike store "on" the Appalachian Trail (so they claim).  From there, we headed on north until we reached Murphy North Carolina where we stopped for fuel.  Then on to Andrews, NC for a snack stop, then we checked into our hotel, the Two Wheel Only Inn.  What a cool place - it's a motor lodge designed for motorcyclists - each room comes with it's own garage.  Very nice. 

TAIL OF THE DRAGON
After dropping our gear, we fired up the iron horses again and headed for Deals Gap and the "Tail of the Dragon".  318 Curves in just 11 miles - cool road - fun people watching! 

MOONSHINER 28
After we rode the section of US 129 called the "Dragon", we picked up US 28 and road a section called "Moonshiner 28".  This piece of road is actually less stressfull riding than the Dragon - more sweeping curves and less blind corners - less hooligans.

CHEROHALA SKYWAY

For me, I think the highlight of the trip was the morning journey across US 143/165 which is the Cherohala Scenic Skyway.  This is one of the nicest roads I have ever ridden on a motorcycle.  Big sweeping curves, beautifull wide open scenic views - and the weather was just perfect with the leaves near their peak.  It was really cool to see that part of the country on a sunny fall day.  We stopped in Tellico Plain's TN for a break, then rode on down to my house taking Highway 60 through Suches, GA - another great motorcycle road. 

In all, it was a fantastic trip and we were very thankful to have all stayed safe on the journe

Carey Chastain Benefit Poker Tourney

Our neighbor and good friend Carey Chastain is fighting Leukemia.  Belinda organized a benefit poker tourney in his honor last weekend.  It was a great event - we have awesome neighbors.

Bert's Farm Pumpkin Patch Field Trip with Marco

What could be better than a day out with Marco on a field trip to a pumpkn patch?  We had a blast.  His teacher is such a nice lady for organizing this trip.

Bey Blades Tournament at the Johnstons

Belinda signed up and won a free Bey Blades Tournament package - she always finds the good deals.  Kids had a good time.