We had a new face at breakfast this morning at Bayrd's. Chuck Reinhardt came to join us and ride with us to the Dutch Kitchen tomorrow. Welcome aboard Chuck.
While in my usual state of oblivion I was asked where we are going tomorrow, and of course I had no idea, so I asked someone else who knew. After having my memory jogged we settled on a rendezvous at Sleep Inn kick stands up at 10:00. That should give us enough time for a leisurely ride to Hutchinson. See you in the morning.
TIME....................11:30
Here it is.............. Dutch Kitchen
6803 W. K61 Highway
Hutchinson, Kansas
620-662-2554
Facebook page........https://www.facebook.com/Dutch-Kitchen- ... 6/?fref=ts
Web Page.............
Map site.............http://bit.ly/1uLkbOc
I'll start today with an announcement. I was informed that Gibbo, our senior statesman had a mishap while moving some furniture and he broke his collar bone. That's my understanding anyway. So as a result he's off his bike for a while. I hear he's in generally good condition but nonetheless this is quite a setback. I understand he's also coming up on his 89th birthday. Lets all wish him a speedy recovery and a happy birthday and hope to see him at another ride soon.
Tuesday started with the usual shower and shave in my usual semi-comatose state and when all was said and done I tried to drain the sink. The rod to open the drain fell off several eon ago and I never got around to fixing it, so I had become accustom to reaching under the sink and moving the lever manually. However this time it just laughed at me. Here I am with a sink full of soap and whisker permeated water, and no way to drain it. Sometimes this home ownership thing seems more trouble than it's worth. It would be so much easier to call the landlord and say “FIX IT”. With time running short I had to leave to get to our weekly world peace summit. The sink had to wait. After stopping world hunger, or at least my hunger, I made my way to the hardware store in hopes of scoring the necessary parts to effect the needed repairs. I made my way to plumbing department and much to my surprise the sink drain parts were there. As my luck would usually have it, the item I'm seeking is usually not in the logical place. I once wanted some J B Weld, so I searched in vain in the area of adhesives. In utter frustration I put aside all the testosterone and sought assistance. Silly me! It was in automotive with the other lubricants. So naturally I half expected to find the drain kits in sporting goods. They were in fact in plumbing but now the problem was overabundance. They had what looked like an acre of wall space devoted to them with prices ranging from pocket change to second mortgage. I wanted some quality, but I didn't need gold plated. I saw a kit that included what appeared to be only the offending parts. It looked tempting, but it did generate visions of a return trip to exchange it for the right parts. Throwing caution to the wind I opted for the parts kit. Grabbing my most appropriate talismans and my best magic incantations I proned myself on the bathroom floor to attack the problem. There I was met by two wiener dogs who were overjoyed at the sight of me coming down their level. Their gratitude expressed with slapping tongues. That assault thwarted I proceeded with this project. Shockingly the whole thing went rather smoothly with no return trips to the hardware store. It looks like that mirror I broke was more than seven years ago.
Dawn broke on Wednesday broke promising a spectacular day. By 6:00 two wiener dogs decided that I had slept long enough. It's like having two perpetual two year olds. I spent most of the morning shaking out the cobwebs and as the morning progressed Leo started putting things together, and by 8:30 he was bouncing off the walls. By 9:30 I had Leo loaded up and double checked that I had everything I needed, and we set off for the Sleep Inn. A quick stop at the gas station. They must have called in an exorcist for the pump because it cooperated this week. Another quick stop at the ATM for some cash and off to the Inn. There were some new faces and some I hadn't seen for a while. As bikes steadily rolled in I was kept busy snapping pictures. Bikes just kept coming and all told we had 21 leave from the Sleep Inn including the ones who left early to take a more leisurely pace. I understand that there were another four or five that left with the dawn patrol. It was decided that we would take the freeway, which wasn't my first choice but I followed along. The ride started out as an almost perfect day, but as we got further south the wind started to pick up out of the south and by the time we turned west it became a little less than enjoyable with the crosswind, but only slightly. Arriving at the Dutch Kitchen there were about half of the bikes already there but parking was more than abundant. I parked on east side of the lot where there was plenty of shade for Leo. I leashed him to the bike and set him up with water and started snapping away with my little red camera. An initial count came up with 38 bikes and after I went in there were more that came in. We had pretty much packed the place and the staff had their hands full, but handled the crowd easily. The special of the day was a Mexican dish so I opted for the fried chicken. I made a good choice and did not leave hungry. A cursory head count came up with 54 which was a great turn out. But considering the weather it was no surprise. Several good Samaritans kept Leo in mind and brought him some treats. Leo had a feast.
All bellies full it came time to feed our mounts at the neighboring gas station. Ensured that we have enough to get home I fell in with Big Jim, Little Jim and several others with Big Jim in the lead. A few miles down the road Jim took a right and we found ourselves on a small road sans pavement. Where are you taking us Jim?!? Fortunately it was only about a half mile and we were back on hard surface. Eventually we were headed north again and found K4. At last I knew where we were. Heading east we were confronted with the cross wind again only this time it was a bit stronger. By this time I was pretty well spent and didn't feel like dealing with a lot of curves and hills. So when the others turned to go over Kanapolis dam I chose to press on down K4 to Lindsborg and take Burma road after tooting a friendly farewell. We arrived home to a very excited and relieved Fritz and I just collapsed in a heap. I checked the temp when I got home and it read 94. It was a great albeit exhausting ride.
The total head count was 54 and we had riders from Salina, Minneapolis, Chapman, Cuba, Junction City, Denmark, Culver, McPherson, Lindsborg, Carlton, Moundridge, Bennington, Wellington, Dalton, Burden, Chase, Sterling Newton, Lincoln, and Canton. Our long distance rider, Jim Borror form Burden, who came 128 miles.
The total bike count was 43 and we were riding Honda, Harley, Yamaha, Suzuki, BMW, Kawasaki, Can AM, And Moto Guzzi.
Just a side note. If your riding 2 up could both the rider and passenger sign the sheet individually. It makes it easier to get an accurate head count. Thanks.