Richard tells me we have been here before, but I think it's been a while. It must go back farther than the web site.
Digging a little deeper I found we had been to Tampa several times before. But for some reason I missed those rides, and as most of you know I don't miss many rides.
It's Tampa or bust! We're leaving Sleep Inn at 10:00
TIME....................11:00
Here it is.............. Tampa Grill
301 Main St
Tampa, KS
(785) 965-2054
Facebook page........https://www.facebook.com/Tampa-Grill-98 ... 8/?fref=ts
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Map site.............http://bit.ly/1uLkbOc
7/6/16 We again woke to what looked like a perfect riding day. The deep rumbling in my belly told me I wasn't going to make it to Tampa without breakfast. So mustering my best culinary techniques I did as much damage as I could manage to a couple of eggs. I stumbled through getting the bike ready and loading Leo up and off we went. Leo barking to the neighborhood “We're going riding!” We rolled into Sleep Inn to find Bud there feverishly detailing his Goldwing trike. When he finished with his he attacked mine. Not that it didn't need it. The polish he was using made my tank shine like I never saw it before. Bikes steadily rolled in and eventually we had nine gathered for the trip. I noticed several guys perusing the map trying to decide on a route. Taking the lemming position I let them hash it out. I checked the time and noticed it was 10:02. So with a quick toot on my horn I loaded Leo and everyone mounted up. John's bike was in the lead position with me following second. I was waiting for John to pull out but he kept on waving me by. Pulling up beside him I advised him that I thought they had settled on a route. At his insistence I took the lead choosing the only route that I was sure of. Down to Roxbury and take a left. Not the best road . What with all the gravel patches and all. None the less, off we went with me in the lead. God help us all. We might end up in KC. When we reached K15 John pulled up beside me and I asked him if we should proceed straight ahead. He agreed. By that time there was another bike coming south on K15 that we needed to wait for. As it turned out, it was Chuck on his HD 500. He made the turn onto our road and we followed. I was glad to see Chuck turn in front of us because there were eight other bikes behind me who thought I knew where I was going. Feeling a little better after seeing a sign pointing to Tampa and following Chuck my confidence level grew. We soon rolled up on the giant metropolis of Tampa. Now to find the restaurant. A quick gaze down the street revealed the bright ROMEO shirts of those already there. WE HAD ARRIVED AT OUR PLANNED DESTINATION! We all got parked and at 11:00 sharp the doors opened and we started filing in. I had Leo tied to my bike and went about getting the pics. Shade being at a premium Leo was making the best of the bikes shadow. After getting the shots I noticed some shade on the north side of the building so I moved him hoping he'd be more comfortable there. While shooting I counted the bikes 3 times, but trying to trap information in my head is like trying to catch minnows in a whale net. Inside I found a spacious and comfortable dining room with space for all 38 of us. After getting all the shots I grabbed a seat and got my order placed. By this time the bike count had evaporated so once again I stepped out to get another count and did by best to hammer it into my cranium. A few more arrived in the mean time. The special of the day was chicken fried steak and I chose that option. I was not disappointed. All bellies full we trickled outside for the usual tire kicking session and gradually mounted up for the ride home. Lethargy took it's toll on me and I had a hard time motivating myself to mount up and leave. Randy Gantvoort and I were the last to leave and rode back together. Getting back to old 81 we found the official annoyance team out pretending to work on the road so we had to detour to I 135 and I just stuck with that til I got back to Crawford where Randy and I parted ways Leo and I dismounted at home, spent after a great ride.
We had riders from Salina, Oxford, Hutchenson, Moundridge, Culver, Carlton, Bennington, Minneapolis, Junction City, Denmark, Culver, McPherson, Lindsborg, and Canton, with the long distance going to JR Wege from Oxford on his KLR at 146 miles.
We were riding Honda, Harley, Yamaha, Suzuki, BMW, Kawasaki, Kymco, Can-Am, Ural, Moto Guzzi, a custom trike.
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