2022 Brown County Indiana GS Thang, 6/9-6/12, 2022 - SAVE THE DATE!

[Redman]

I am currently on the road trip of my lifetime. Started in Buffalo N.Y. on April 19. Went to Florida,then across to California,then up US1 from Santa Barbara to Montery. Continued up the coast to Fort Bragg,then popped through parts of Oregon,to Yellowstone. Salt lake and currently in Zion NP. Did not post about trip and pics because I am not very computer savvy. Hope to hit Arches national park soon then Denver,Omaha,St Louis,and stop at the rally on the eve of the 11th. Looking forward to meeting you all!!

Would welcome a visit.

First time poster, thanks to Redman for tipping me off to this event on the GSResources facebook page! I just sold my '79 750E so I will be frantically getting my 81 1100E back in one piece in time to try to ride down there on Saturday! Waiting on some fork caps. I suppose as a backup I have my well worn '76 Yamaha XS500 (that I would probably trailer down), as long as you guys would tolerate a Yamahammer interloper.

Welcome to TheGSR. And would welcome a visit to the rally.

On Friday and Saturday, typically folks head out on rides (form own groups) in the morning and are gone most all day till late afternoon.

[ddaniels]

First time poster, thanks to Redman for tipping me off to this event on the GSResources facebook page! I just sold my '79 750E so I will be frantically getting my 81 1100E back in one piece in time to try to ride down there on Saturday! Waiting on some fork caps. I suppose as a backup I have my well worn '76 Yamaha XS500 (that I would probably trailer down), as long as you guys would tolerate a Yamahammer interloper.

You won't be the only Yamahammer interloper there. I'll be there with my FZ1. Looking forward to meeting some new folks.

[ddaniels]

I am currently on the road trip of my lifetime. Started in Buffalo N.Y. on April 19. Went to Florida,then across to California,then up US1 from Santa Barbara to Montery. Continued up the coast to Fort Bragg,then popped through parts of Oregon,to Yellowstone. Salt lake and currently in Zion NP. Did not post about trip and pics because I am not very computer savvy. Hope to hit Arches national park soon then Denver,Omaha,St Louis,and stop at the rally on the eve of the 11th. Looking forward to meeting you all!!

Looking forward to meeting you and hearing some interesting road stories.

[ddaniels]

Does anyone remember if there is a place in Jay's parking lot to plug in a battery tender? I'm having some charging issues and there's no time to deal with a stator replacment.

[bwringer]

Does anyone remember if there is a place in Jay's parking lot to plug in a battery tender? I'm having some charging issues and there's no time to deal with a stator replacment.

I don't remember whether there are any outside outlets; maybe an extra behind the Coke machine. But one way or the other, we'll make it happen.



Also, we do still have a few rooms open, so email me at brian@bwringer.com if you're interested.

[Dogma]

Almost time... Only 4 more working days for me. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again. Somehow you people don't wear this introvert out, like everyone else does.

[Baatfam]

Pulling things together to leave thursday....
Found my rain suit...gave the GS a goin' over....all good...checked over my trailer...plates are expired...doh...renew on monday...suv wants an oil change...etc, etc, etc....
So....can't wait to get there....

[cowboyup3371]

I'll be in a class for work so I won't get in until very late Thursday evening but like the others I am looking forward to this.

So much that I am running out to Bedford today to drop off a very carefully packed and taped up box containing this:

IMG_6598 by Scott Baker, on Flickr

IMG_6599 by Scott Baker, on Flickr

IMG_6600 by Scott Baker, on Flickr

I'm told Jay is out of town until Monday but the person covering for him has promised to ensure Jay doesn't touch it at all. Sadly it's too big to fit properly within my top case so I can't bring it out with me on Thursday.

[storm 64]

Also fellows, remember Cash is King at the Rosemont

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone there that can make it.

[cowboyup3371]

Jay actually made it back today and is looking forward to seeing everyone Thursday.

[bwringer]

Nice work, Scott!



Some items of "business"

- Some of us will meet up for lunch on Thursday at the Mayberry Cafe in Danville, IN (just east of Indy) at 1:00 EDT. All are welcome. Please bear in mind any time changes if you are coming from Central time. From there, I and whoever chooses to tag along will meander along multifarious miles mysterious and mazy to end up at the Rosemount eventually.

- As stated, cash is appreciated but not necessary.



Here are links to some of my area GPX tracks from past years. These are pretty flawed, but could help show you a good time if you don't take them very seriously.

I do not have any sense of what detours or construction projects are out there this year. I am WAY behind on my riding and scouting for assorted boring reasons, mostly this spring's super-crappy weather. That said, I do not believe there is any flooding, so that's nice.

As ever, these routes are only a faint echo of the reality on the ground, and are the product of a deeply imperfect memory coupled with a terribly flawed computer translation of what may or may not be actual roads that may or may not be passable on two wheels shod with street tires.

Plus, in several spots I couldn't figure out how to alter an incorrect route I already created using Alltrails, so I just drew some alternates.

I cannot offer any assurances that these routes exist, or are paved, or are safe. There could be anything from dead animals to tractors, Orcs, dragons, weird cults, or even wormholes or minivans out there. Yes, there WILL be gravel in every corner. There WILL be unexpected construction projects.

Take these routes as only the vaguest hand wave of a suggestion. Pay attention, stay sharp, CARRY A PAPER MAP (I will bring some), and you may eventually figure out how to get back to Bedford.

Still, this is Indiana, so there are no mountains to get trapped behind. Or bears. I did see a camel once.

Except for the "short" route, the entire route makes for a VERY long, exhausting day of intense twisties; there are lots of opportunities for shortcutting as needed.

Bedford 1 - 280 miles
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/ma...rd-1-280mi?u=i
https://www.bwringer.com/gs/bcgsrall...-280-miles.gpx
Starting at the Rosemount Motel in Bedford. Nice paved twisty road track. 280 miles. Includes detour around 2021 construction on 145 south of Birdseye. No idea whether this is still needed, so go look, I guess. Stay on 145 if you can; it's much more fun. This one mostly goes south of Bedford.

Bedford 2 - 305 miles
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/ma...-305-miles?u=i
https://www.bwringer.com/gs/bcgsrall...-305-miles.gpx
Nice scenic twisty road track starting at the Rosemount Motel in Bedford, Indiana. Paved. 305 miles is a lot, so choose where to cut off a loop by continuing on a main road as needed. Wesley Chapel Gulf, Orangeville Rise, Story, Tulip Trestle, etc. Includes small detour around construction on 135 for 2021 that probably isn't needed, but may be worth a look if you're curious. This one mostly goes north of Bedford.

BC North Short - 115 miles
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/ma...orth-short?u=i
https://www.bwringer.com/gs/bcgsrall...orth-Short.gpx
About 115 miles, originating from Bedford, IN. Includes detours for 2021 construction that add about 12 miles and probably aren't needed any more. Nice shorter route, mostly north of Bedford.

Bedford Borden Blunk Bash - 258 miles
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/ma...blunk-bash?u=i
https://www.bwringer.com/gs/bcgsrall...Blunk-Bash.gpx
INTENSE Twisty Route. Contains error in up and down loops around Borden: Souders Road is nonexistent; use The Force and wander around a bit until you hit another loop. Mostly southeast of Bedford.

BC Rally Southern Classic - 289 miles
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/ma...th-classic?u=i
https://www.bwringer.com/gs/bcgsrall...rn-Classic.gpx
Starting from Bedford, IN, the classic southern route. Incredibly scenic and twisty. Includes route around 2021 construction on 145 south of Birdseye, most likely not needed, so you can probably just stay on 145. South of Bedford, obviously. Closely related to Bedford 1.

[bwringer]

One more:


Most folks are veterans, but as a reminder, and for the few newbies, I'll say a few words about how we generally do things at this shambolic unorganized gathering. Basically, we've learned that the safest way to proceed is to make the actual riding as close to your "normal" riding as possible, and remove as many factors that lead to "groupthink" as possible. We've very consistently found that the less things are organized, the safer everyone is, the more fun everyone has, and (importantly) the less work I and others need to do.

- As far as the actual riding, I put most of what I know into this article: https://tro.bike/motorcycle-safety/group-ride-leader/

- Ride ONLY in SMALL GROUPS or even BY YOURSELF. This is the most critical. Parades are stupid, no fun, and stupidly dangerous. Three is good, maaaaaaybe six at a maximum if you all know each other well. Again, feel free to wander off by yourself and explore if that's what you feel like that day. Go look at a cave, or do tourist stuff if you want.

- Groups are ad-hoc, fluid, and fairly random. If you have a GPS or can read a map, offer to lead a few like-minded folks. Talk to each other, please. Feel free to hop between groups or strike out on your own; just tell folks what you're up to, please.

- Pass and be passed; the idea is to stretch out and create space between riders. Again, parades, formations, hand signals, road captains and suchlike SUUUUUUCK all the fun out of riding, plus they are STUPID dangerous. Read my article for more on how this works.

- If you remember nothing else, engrave this on your soul: Thou Shalt Stay The Hell Away From Each Other. Strive for the ideal of a school bus of space minimum between each rider when in motion. Riders in front wait for the followers at turns and stops. Simple.

- You are on your own. RIDE YOUR OWN RIDE AND MAKE YOUR OWN CHOICES. This is all strictly choose your own adventure. Absolutely nothing is organized ahead of time. This makes things a lot safer for everyone. And coincidentally, makes for a lot less work for me...

- I'll provide some paper maps, there are GPX files above, but again, where you go, what you see, where you eat, and how you ride are strictly your own choices. Are you seeing the theme here? Seek the information you need to make your own plans. Try not to be that "oh, I dunno, I'll just follow someone's tail light" sort of rider.

- All that said about un-planning, we usually order a stupid amount of pizza on Friday, and this year there will an Indian Feast on Saturday. For Thursday, nothing is un-planned for dinner, so scatter and forage. All other meals are scatter and forage as well, although Jay usually puts out a nice bit of continental breakfast.

- Bring some damn cash, willya? You'll need about $10 per head per meal if you want in on the pizza slaughter and Indian Feast. Also, backwoods gas stations are usually OK with plastic for gas, but you're going to get a hard "nope" when you try to charge that $1.58 for a water and a pack of gum on your big city card. There are even some small town restaurants that only take cash. Hit the ATM and tuck $100 or so into your wallet, and rural life will go smoother. You're a guest here... be nice.

[ddaniels]

Well, I've been dealing with a nasty bad cold since Friday. Questionable if I make it this year...which totally sucks. But don't worry, if there is any chance of being contagious, I'll stay away. But if it clears up before the.end of the weekend, I might come down for the Jay feast at least. Dang it!

[cowboyup3371]

I do not have any sense of what detours or construction projects are out there this year. I am WAY behind on my riding and scouting for assorted boring reasons, mostly this spring's super-crappy weather. That said, I do not believe there is any flooding, so that's nice.

From what I saw on my drive Sunday, southbound 135 from Brownstown looks to be closed as there's a lot of detour signs around there. Also, 135 towards Story had road construction signs and 235 towards Medora also had some. Jay also said 37 has a LOT of construction on it again. And while looking for some others today I found Indiana's road website has a bunch more in our fun area:

https://511in.org/@-86.60797,38.8689...meras,flooding

[bwringer]

Good to know, Scott.

After pondering a map and cudgeling my wobbly memory for a bit, the closures on 58 and 135 (north of 50) should be fairly straightforward to route around on paved county roads, costing only a few miles out of the way. On 58, it looks like you could try north or south, and north might be shorter. On 135, east or west should work.

For the other closure on 135 north of Salem, just south of the river, you can detour to the east fairly easily on the first road just after crossing the river, but it may not be paved the whole way. Not sure. Detouring to the west is a little harder to navigate, and it's difficult to avoid a short segment of gravel.

It's probably easiest to cross the river at Ft. Ritner, then wander southeast to Salem; some really pretty roads and scenery in that area.

56 in Salem is a hell of a mess, but easy enough to route around in town. If you're just headed through on 135, it won't be an issue.

The other that could affect our usual "operations" is on 150, southeast of Shoals. The obvious detours south are paved, but only sort of, and take you to 62 west of French Lick. A better plan would be to attack from the southeast, then enjoy a couple of trips up and down a nearly deserted 150... If you start in Huron, you can wander south on pavement and end up on 150 at Prospect.

It also looks like 62 is closed west of Sulfur, but there's a county road route to the south that should be easy enough to figure out. Most of us tend to head south on 66 at Sulfur. 62 does have some mighty tasty high-speed sweepers between Sulfur and St. Meinrad if that sort of thing is the sort of thing you like.



One other matter, folks: there's a new BBQ place in Bedford that's highly recommended, but they will be closed this weekend for the owners' vacation. However, Jay has talked to the owner and has floated the idea of arranging a spread of meaty treats for Thursday evening.

I think the buy-in would be around $10-$15 each, and I count about 17 potential carnivores arriving sometime Thursday. (Total attendance will be more than that, but some folks are not carnivorous, arriving later, etc.)

What I'd do is just tell the BBQ guy a total headcount and let him figure out what to bring and shoot me a price. Maybe keep it simple and limit it to pulled pork, a selection of sauces, some buns, a few sides, etc.

Does this sound like something I should set up, or would you rather just let everyone trickle in and figure things out for themselves as per usual?

Here's the standard menu if you're curious (we'd just order several pounds of stuff):