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2002 Rally XIII |
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Host:
John Marrs ( johnmarrs@alltel.net
)
When:
June 14-16, 2002
Where:
Dahlonega, Georgia
I am still accepting any pictures of the rally that you may have. You can either email them to me or even send me the pictures. (If you wish the pictures returned please include your return address and I will return them). Send them to your webmaster Colin Goodall .
Rally XIII in Review
Here's the traditional group shot of all the bikes at the rally taken Saturday morning before the big ride. (Click on the photo's for a larger version!)
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Over the past few years the word has gotten out about what a good idea it is to stay for the whole rally, not just Saturday's ride. Thursday night saw a good deal of the participants rolling into the hotel.
The most notable early arrival being that of Mike Chestnut. He had only been released from the hospital a few weeks before but was helped by an entourage of friends and family (including his mother) to make it to the rally.
And he did not arrive empty handed. Mike made sure he brought lots of GPZ goodies with him just in case. This turned out to be a good call, a large local boy by the name of Lester Bruce wandered by. Turns out he had a GPZ 750 that had recently stopped running. By Friday night Mike was sitting in the middle of the parking lot while directing Roger Twito (among others) to "repair" the two GPZ's. (And of course he got them both working!)
The weather had been hot and humid for the entire week leading up to the rally. But on Friday Mother Nature co-operated with the arrival of a cold front and rain. This resulted in Saturday morning arriving with clear skies and comfortable cool temperatures. (The best riding weather at any Turbo Rally I have ever attended! Ed.)
The morning riders meeting went well. (Apparently the local law enforcement had wandered by late Friday night and read the group the riot act after someone had apparently pulled a wheelie in the town square. They were in no mood for this type of behavior and made that fact quite clear.) We were notified of this and told to behave, which of course we all did.
After the group photo the riders led off on a wonderful route laid out by rally host John Marrs. Within 10 minutes of leaving the hotel we were into twisty mountain roads and switchbacks. After a couple of hours on the road we stopped to regroup and discuss the run so far.
The second half of the morning leg was spent blitzing across the bottom of North Carolina and a lovely wide smooth divided highway. These "Wide Open Spaces" provided the group with a chance to stretch the throttle cables a bit.
All parties arrived safe and sound for lunch in Franklin, North Carolina. (However, some had problems with the directions and arrived a little later than others. Well at least he didn't crash this year!)
After lunch we took off down a lovely scenic route that was clogged with traffic but provided ample photo opportunities. The road followed a river up a narrow valley resulting in some magnificent water falls. Including a convenient drive through version.
On the way back Chris Morgan from Texas had been riding with yours truly (Colin Goodall) when the only accident of the rally occurred. Coming into a somewhat tight corner Chris slid out on some gravel and went into the grass at the side of the road. Fortunately our speed was fairly low at the time of the crash and Chris was wearing full leathers. So other then some good scrapes and bruising he came out OK. The bike has some road rash to the left side but was serviceable enough to ride. (In fact he road it another 60-90 miles before we got back to the hotel that night!)
After the incident we headed straight for TWO (Two Wheels Only), a campground about 20 minutes north of Dahlonega. Here we met up with the rest of the group and a great dinner. Entertainment was provided by Steve Smith after he was attacked by a two headed vibrator. (If you don't know what I'm talking about then it serves you right for missing the rally!)
Sunday morning we headed out to find some straight roads for some speed runs. We were thwarted by the fact that the group got split up halfway out. After waiting for a while the group headed out onto what was hoped to be a good road for the runs. But unfortunately there just was not enough space to really get the bikes going. Steve S was able to manage a measly 163 mph before having to back off for other traffic.
By Sunday night most of the people had taken off for home. But a small group remained and headed out to dinner. Highlights of the dinner include Mort Milne who just could not get a drink in the "dry" city of Dahlonega. (No matter how many times he asked!). We also learned the story behind dancing "Steve Turbo". (Again, see what you miss when you don't stay for the whole rally!)
Monday morning everyone headed for home. However I was lucky enough to be joined by John Marrs and Allen Lough for a great ride up to Franklin again for lunch. I continued on home while John and Allen had a great run over to Tellico Plains and back to Dahlonega.
Thanks to all those TMIOA members who traveled near and far to attend this years rally. Great weather and a relatively incident free ride combined with a great route made for a great rally.
I would especially like to thank John Marrs ( johnmarrs@alltel.net ) for his efforts in setting up this years rally. It would not have been this successful without his efforts.
Photo's seen on this page were donated by John L. Atom, Steve Smith and Colin Goodall.
Last Modified March 06, 2007, 18:41:38 Eastern Standard Time
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