A buddy shot me a text yesterday asking if I was riding today. Well the thought had crossed my mind even though I knew we would wake up to single digits and were only expecting a high of 28 degrees. So yeah, why not ride!
We rolled out a little before noon with the temp-o-meter registering 23 degrees. A few hours later it was a balmy 28 degrees. We got in 183 miles and had a good time. I was plugged in and toasty. Chuck got a little cold and we stopped once to go indoors and let him thaw out. He was wishing he had suggested heated gear for Christmas.
My wife got me a new shirt jacket and modular helmet. They both served me very well today.
If you go back to page #1, post #1 we started this thread with our 2019 Christmas trip to the Florida Panhandle.
Today as I was working in the shop my phone chirped and there was a picture from this day three years ago. It was a nice reminder of good times pre-Covid. We had already enjoyed Christmas and we’re on our way back home.
One of our favorite YouTube channels at that time was John Maxwell. We made a point to ride back in a direction we could meet him and got lucky!
Praise be to God for another good year. Christmas is a wonderful time to celebrate the birth of Christ.
We were blessed to have our daughter and son-in-law with us for four weeks over Thanksgiving. We put our new Recteq pellet grill to very good use. I think my son-in-law enjoyed it more than me and that’s a lot. They escaped San Fransisco earlier this year and now live full time in a Airstream trailer that they special ordered and customized to work out of. This year they have traveled to 23 states, stayed in 19 of them and towed right at 14k miles. We are very proud of them and happy that they can do this at such a young age.
The Carolina Girl had a very bad fall off a step ladder a week prior to the kids arriving and it put a little damper on things as she was not getting around well with a hurt knee. So, no riding for her and she was missing the wind in her face.
We enjoyed a very quiet Christmas with just the two of us. The Carolina Girl was getting around better and missing the wind in her face.
I was checking out the weather online and realized it is warming up considerably over the next few days. The decision was quickly made to pack a bag, load up Olivia and head to the beach. We were leaving on Wednesday the 28th and the only request was we wait to leave unto the temperature reaches 40 degrees.
At 10:15 am the temp was 41 degrees and we rolled out with big smiles under bright sunshine. Eastbound and down we experienced very light traffic on Hwy 64 all the way to Asheboro where we leaned right onto I-74/220 and didn’t go far unto we exited to visit *** Harley Davidson.
We were the only customer bike in the parking lot. Where is everyone I asked? We walked in and were greeted by Big “D”. He is a super nice guy and if you are in the market for a bike in the area, I would check him out. After a short break and a chance to see the new color listing for the 2023 models it was time to roll on. Our next stop was in Rockingham for gasoline and a lunch break. We decided to go to Smithfield’s for some of their delicious chicken. It was a nice, relaxed day, no rush and plenty of time to arrive by check-in and before dark. The temperature reached the upper 50’s and I unplugged my heated gear after lunch.
The roads were clean and dry, traffic was amazingly light and very few police were out. In no time we rolled though Conway and could smell the salt air. We managed a make a 4-hour drive into a 6-hour trip and enjoyed every minute together.
After checking in and finding a nice parking space in the underground deck we checked out the new Surfside Pier construction which is scheduled to be complete next year and checked out the southern view of the strand. After enjoying dinner across the street at Bubba Fish Shack it was time to turn in for the evening. If you like catfish and are in the area, Bubba’s has the best catfish every.
We slept in with the sliding door to the balcony partially open enjoying the crashing of the waves. After getting ready we grabbed some coffee and sit outdoors and took in the beautiful day. We were promised bright sunny skies with temps in the 60’s and Mother Nature did not disappoint. Time for a late breakfast that works well with an early dinner. We rode less than an hour from the hotel to Big Apple Bagels for breakfast.
Our next stop was exploring some of the historic buildings on Pawley’s Island. This is a beautiful area if you are looking for a quieter area without hotels with plenty of houses to rent.
The number one thing the Carolina Girl wanted to do is go to a Christmas store so she could replace a Myrtle Beach ornament that was broken. I scored big when I took her to the Christmas Mouse in Hammock Shops Village at Pawleys Island. We spent over an hour in the village and had a great time. Of course, the Carolina Girl found four ornaments to ride back home with us. I’m looking at them on our tree now and especially love the Grinch holding a sign that reads “You’re a Mean One”.
We rode through Murrells Inlet on the way back North and that area was busy. The Beaver Bar was deserted but there were a dozen bikes or so at Suck-Bang-Blow. Our next stop was at Myrtle Neach HD followed by a visit to Jamin Leathers where the Carolina Girl found herself a new vest.
You can have this baby with Stage IV 131 for only $45K.
We stopped by Jamin Leathers and the Carolina Girl got a new vest.
We rode up to Myrtle Beach and rode Ocean Blvd to check things out prior to returning to the hotel.For dinner we did something we never do at the beach. Yeah, we went for BBQ!
There are several nice restaurants next to the hotel and one is the “Gracious Pig”. The people we met and sit next to, the wait staff and the food were all excellent. I look forward to going back! The Carolina Girl went with the SC Yellow Mustard Sauce, I did Kansas City Red, and on our side order of ribs we tried Alabama WHITE! We ate too much, almost drink too much and just had a splendid day.
Our plan was to be back home before New Year’s Day. If only the rain had held off one more day we would be riding back today, Saturday the 31st. Since the rain was coming in on Saturday we rode back Friday. After sleeping in again we loaded up, checked out and went to Plantation Pancake House for a nice breakfast before hitting the road. It was already in the low 60’s and we saw the temperatures gradually climb to 71 degrees. We made our customary stop in Blenheim, SC for some delicious Blenheim Ginger Ale. It cooled slightly to 69 in Blenheim.
There was a guy stopped there on a 2003 anniversary edition Dyna with a dead battery. The bike was new to him, and he said he had it on a tender the last two days and it started okay when he left home. I offered my jump box, and it did not even get the starter to click. A guy rolled up with jumper cables and his vehicle was strong enough to get the starter to click a time or two, but the bike never cranked. He was getting a ride into town for a battery, and I hope that was all he needed.
As we crossed the border back into NC the clouds were building, and the temperature was steady but soon began to drop off a degree every 30 miles are so. When we arrived back home it was 58 degrees and had just rained prior to our arrival leaving the roads wet enough to mess up the bike. Oh well, I always like to give them a good bath after a beach trip anyway.
This is not the Christmas ride we used to do to Florida but the best we could do under the circumstances. I’m glad I could put a smile on the Carolina Girls face, the bike ran well, and the weather could not have been better.
Supposed to be nice here tomorrow… That means it’s not gonna rain… And if so…I will motivate myself to go for a January 1st ride…
Good deal
The rain here is a one day event and will are supposed to be 61 and partly sunny tomorrow. The plan is to ride up to Crossroads HD in Wilkesboro and do their annual “Frosty *****” ride. I believe the destination is Mac’s Speed Shop in Mooresville, NC.
… Nope… Not today… Hasn’t rained, but the roads are wet… And they spray that **** on the road here to melt the ice, and I’m not gonna take a chance of kicking that up on the bottom of my motorcycle… Looks like I wait for my first day’s ride…
12-24-2022 | 04:56 PM
Christmas Eve Ride 2022
Good deal