We kicked things off bright and early with our monthly business meeting. The Cat Herder was showing off the new Sheepdog patch, and we heard all about the SS United States coming into Mobile soon. Thanks to everyone who participated and contributed to another great session. It was great seeing SpecreSteve again, who is spending more and more of his time with his wife in the Philippines.
Once the business was taken care of, it was time to hit the road. Our destination: DeFuniak Springs, Florida. We said our farewells to those who couldn’t make the ride today, and one by one we donned our gear and started our bikes.
Seven Sandies made our way up north. Soon after getting out of traffic, the Dark Prince embraces the awkward and points out the Ace has nine RAM® Ball mounts on his Can-Am. A discussion ensued regarding the potential road name change. George pointed out that there are only so many jokes one can make with “Ram”, “Ball”, or “Mount” as a road name. Waldo pointed out that we would be relegating Tony to a life of 70’s mustaches. The group tabled the discussion because about halfway down Bob Sikes Rd, we see a few bikes roar past heading west. GQ mentioned the last one looked like a Triumph. Tim chimed in with looked like a Rocket 3 to him. About 10 seconds later Tommy noted the Triumph had made a U-turn and was behind him now… After a brief stop at the nearby Ritz (Food Store), we confirmed that MacRocket had joined our band.
Eight Sandies rode into DeFuniak Springs. We rode past the tiny library, train depot, caboose, and pulled into the downtown storefronts on Baldwin Ave. It was great to catch up, share some laughs, and enjoy a delicious meal together at Perla Baking Company.
With our bellies full and spirits high, we strolled outside, where JoeJoe was actually included in a picture with the new Sheepdog Patch. Since Joe is typically behind the camera taking photos, we don’t get too many with him organically visible (he usually adds himself during post processing).
Back on our bikes, Tim lead us through a few loops in central/eastern Walton County. The sun was shining, the air was a perfect 66°F, and these are some of the absolute best (and my personal favorite) motorcycling roads in the Panhandle. It felt like a special treat. George and Sam E separated from the group early to go visit someone in the area. The rest of us looped and swooped our way back to 285 where the fun ended, and the commute home began again. All in all, I clocked us with 129.7 miles (but I didn’t start tracking until a few miles after I started)
A huge thank you to everyone who came out and made this day so fantastic. Whether you were there for the meeting, the ride, or both, it was great to catch up and see some of you again. We’re already looking forward to our next adventure!
Upcoming Events:
1. March 9th Ride to Food (Remember Munchkin: Time springs forward one hour on this morning!)
2. March 16th Chili Ride
3. March 23rd Skills
4. March 29th Conecuh Sausage Ride
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