APRIL 26TH, BREAKFAST or LUNCH, 10:00 AM, OLD 56 CAFE, OLATHE, KS‬

[Al Hayes]

Several have been suggesting this place. Normally my pick for the week would have been the “Old 56 Cafe” in Ottawa, Ks, but since it’s closed, Olathe it is. It looks like the weather will be dry but a little cooler than last week. But still not too bad for the month of April. You may still need your “Long Johns” so dress warm if riding on a 2 or 3-wheeler.

The servers here are second to none; always willing to go the extra mile in getting to know their patrons. Most of us know something about this place, particularly when it comes to good cooking and food. They are known for their “Family Friendly” atmosphere. A suggestion from the MGR is, don't come before 10am, it could be crowded before then. The restaurant is looking forward to our coming. So, what-ya say? Let’s gather together again to enjoy some more friendly fellowship and some fine country cooking at good “Old 56 Family Restaurant” in Olathe, KS. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed, and hope to see you there. “Happy Trails” to you all until then!

EVERYTHING YOU WOULD EVER WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE ROMEOS:

Have you ever wondered how our Romeo Riders was founded? To answer this question, the first informal rides started somewhere around 1993 or 94. There seems to be some ambivalence as to the precise date, but we do know it was around the early to middle 90's.

I will be starting a series of historical sketches given by Richard Kurtz from Lindsborg, Ks., who originally started this first group of riders. They called themselves the “Wednesday Lunch Bunch.” It was sometime much later that they changed the group name to the Romeos. Years later a WEBSITE was formed by Jerry Mattson (our official Web Master) on November 16th, 2008, and was recognized as the romeoriders.com. This began replacing the calling tree and the email lists being used for scheduling weekly rides, and the group took off from there. You will be seeing future postings of these sketches each week, giving a brief peek as to how this organization was brought to life, and now, how we view it today.

SKETCH 1: This organization indeed begin as a result of Jack Robinson and his FSSNOC (four stroke singles national owners club) discontinuing their Wednesday lunch rides. There were quite a number of his members who still wanted to continue the lunch rides without the FSSNOC association. Richard, another member of the association, gathered as many phone numbers as he could find to start up a trial ride to “BRICKS Diner” in Arkansas City, Kansas, the following Wednesday. The actual names have been subsequently lost, but he does recall Alan Patton, who was one of the seven or eight present that day. The day was a real success, and everyone had a delightful time, which led the new group to a unanimous decision to continue the weekly rides on their own, unaffiliated with any organization, and using the name of “The Wednesday Lunch Bunch.” (to be continued …)
 
OLD 56 FAMILY RESTAURANT
912 S Chestnut St
Olathe, KS 66061
913-390-9905

Here is the link to all scheduled Romeo Rides:
https://tinyurl.com/wd4hsez

[Al Hayes]

What a smashing good time we had yesterday. We came in like a whirlwind and Old 56 cafe hardly knew what hit them. When I booked the cafe I told them that there would be about 15 to 25 riders. I was told later that they were only expecting 15 maximum. After the dust was settled we had almost inundated them with over 30 riders. But after all was said and done, the waitresses did a fabulous job getting everyone served and keeping everybody happy. As usual, it was good to see everyone again.

There were several new faces who came to our ride yesterday and we want to welcome all of you who were new to our group. We invite you to join us again and that we will see you again soon. Enjoy the photos taken yesterday and “Happy Trails” to you all!

Just a quick note in passing! The “Spring Rendezvous” in Eureka Springs, AR, (May 15th-17th) is just around the corner. If you haven't signed up yet there's still plenty of time to do so. I’m looking forward to it and hope to see many of you there!