2007 Dogwood Trail Rally Weather report: Chance of thunderstorms 50%. Gusty winds with tornadoes possible. Nighttime temperature in the 40s. Unfortunately, that report kept many people away, resulting in only 123 registrants; our smallest rally ever. We got riders from as far away as Illinois and Arizona, but not as many as in past years. In reality we had cool nights but only had three hours of rain - from 4:42AM to about 7:45AM Saturday morning. We began on Thursday when the setup crew arrived. Terry Baldridge, Wayne Barrios, William Biel, Duane Carpenter, David Coles, Richard Coyle, Will David, Frank Glamser, Lyle Grimes, Chris Harrington, Tom Hill, Paul Hughes, Martin Lewis, & Doug Meloche. Tents were tossed up and the club's trailer was cracked open. Tables, chairs, PA systems, cooking grills, and so forth were exhumed and laid out where they were needed. As the setup progressed, we realized that there was already a contingent of Texans camped on the hill and a cluster of Alabama riders tented over by the lake's point, all raring to go! Thursday night was a harbinger of things to come. It wasn't rainy, but the day's 77 degree temperature dropped into the mid 40s and it got right chilly. That evening when the Great Circle of Wisdom convened, we didn't have any firewood. The stuff on Askew's bonfire was just too big. David Coles put a little florescent light in the center of the circle as our bonfire. Kinda hard to warm yourself from it, though. Friday morning the kitchen crew served pancakes hot off the grill. On Friday and Saturday mornings the pancakes came from Paul Vegas with a happy cooking crew of: Terry Baldridge, Wayne Barrios, Debbie Biel, Duane Carpenter, David Coles, Richard Coyle, Jim Finney, Frank Gable, Frank Glamser, Brandt Griffing, Ron Grisham, Tom Hill, Tom King, Tom Lindsley, Doug Meloche, Regis Tratton, Bob Vaughn, and others I missed... For those not in a pancake mood, there was a quick run to Bovina for breakfast at the little restaurant named Restaurant! The little old ladies were in fine form and piled plates high with bacon and eggs. We were a bit taken aback because some genius had decided to paint the interior a bright international orange and mustard yellow, but the food was still great! Back at Askew's we got a pretty good production line going stuffing the individual rally envelopes with information, maps, and giveaways. Registration tables and banners were set up, and Doug Meloche produced some of the finest rally t-shirts for sale that we've ever had. Around 10AM Friday everything was set. Skies were overcast and we expected some rain, but it never came. Registration opened at noon and the riders began to trickle in. The Registration crew was: Richard Coyle & Robert Bunce, Tom Hill, Jim Finney, Wayne Barrios, Tom King, Frank Gable, Debbie Biel, and many others ... Paul & Mary Hughes brought along a little Yamaha 250 that several of us used to putt around the campsite. But the master of the day was William Biel. William put together a Grilled Chicken and Sausage Gumbo that was fantastic! So few folks were coming in that we started a guessing pot for rally attendance. For one dollar you could guess how many attendees we’d have by noon Saturday. William, obviously reeling from the gumbo fumes,put in a guess of122.5 people and won a $23 pot. The other $23 went towards the club charity. I looked and never saw a half a person running around the rally. A lot of folks made new friends and renewed old acquaintances. We had some motorcycling notables amongst us: Kermit Easterling, inventor of the famous camp chairs came and set up as a vendor with his new line of moto-luggage. Tom Sherril, the man who bought the business, had Kermit chairs for sale. A rally favorite, Helen Two Wheels, came with a large pavilion filled with her clothing and gear bags and straps. And our own James Gordy of Lumalink fame had motorcycle auxiliary lighting systems for sale. To top it off, our friends at Hebert Cycles in Baton Rouge sent two demo bikes and started giving rides immediately. Friday evening, in addition to munching on the fantastic gumbo, we were delighted by a return visit from Vicksburg's Mayor Laurence Leyens. He showed up driving a Cobra, which we immediately attempted to raffle off. He was good-natured but said we'd have to sell many thousands of tickets before he'd consider it... He spoke to the folks gathered to welcome us and then pulled tickets for goodies to be collected in town the following day. Besides 5 Vicksburg lapel pins he brought along certificates for food, liquor, and hotel rooms. Rusty's Riverfront Grill gave four $20 gift certificates. F&G Beverage gave three $25 gift certificates. The Main Street Program donated four packets of $25 Downtown Dollars good anywhere in downtown Vicksburg and Horizon Casino Hotel donated two $50 gift certificates for Joshua's Restaurant, and two 1-night hotel rooms. It was a cooperative effort. We routed the poker run through downtown Vicksburg, and they gave riders free lunches and shopping! A win-win deal! At 4:42AM Saturday, high winds and rain struck. We had a noisy night, though it was warmer than Thursday night. By a little after dawn the rains stopped. We had overcast skies all morning, threatening more rain that never came. Because of the threatening skies, few people went out on the poker run. We only had fourteen entrants, from which we collected $89 from the $5 registration and additional card sales. The Best Hand was won by Mary Hughes with a Jack high straight. She got $23 and a plaque. The Worst Hand was won by Britt Gable whose King high hand won her a plaque and $23. Our charity got $43. The Poker Run crew was Will David, Jim Finney, Martin Lewis & Doug Meloche. For those who'd rather ride the area instead of going on a poker run or participating in field events, Martin Lewis set up a 3-hour tour. This route took riders through some nice twisty roads to the Ruins of Windsor and then to Alcorn University, before bringing them back northward on the Natchez Trace. Again, weather impacted us and only 4 riders took maps and instructions. By noon all the clouds had burned off and the weather was a delightfully sunny 77 degrees. President Biel decided to not hold a business meeting, so the Treasurer reported that our club had $3,452.31in the bank as of April 13th 2007. End of "meeting". Dan Askew and his Merry Men served hamburgers and hot dogs at noon. Of course Lyle Grimes kept the coffeepot running 24 hours a day, and even kept the 10- gallon drums of lemonade going. Then came the field events! Again this year the Field Events were run by Vech, with helpers Robert Bunce & Bill Gower. There was a lot of laughter as contestants balanced their Beemers through precarious courses, happily splashing about with water balloons and tossing tennis balls atop cones. And the winners were:
Saturday evening we had a vendor who delighted the ralliers with some excellent catfish and chicken. These folks have fed us in the past and have always evoked pleased smiles! The awards ceremony Saturday night led off with a very special presentation - RICHARD COYLE was presented with the first BMWROM Distinguished Service Award. Most of you know Richard. He's a quiet man who always seems to be there when help is needed. He served a President 2000-2002 and has handled the rally's registration for years. Richard is a mainstay at club gatherings and a darn good mechanic. He's a fitting recipient for this honor. Congratulations, Richard! Rallymaster David Coles then gave away some very nice plaques to category winners:
I have only a partial list of the folks who won goodies, so I'm publishing the source. These are the businesses and individuals who contributed door prizes to help make our rally a success. Do business with those who support us and say thanks to the ordinary folks who chipped in stuff from their garages and closets.
After the awards ceremony it started to get cold. The canvas flaps were dropped around Askew's pavilion to help block the rising wind. Folks began adding layers of clothing and the bonfire was lit. Into this not-so-good environment came the band Billy's Porch to play for our Saturday entertainment. They were delightful. Husband and wife on the vocals, a solid bass player and one of the most versatile lead guitarists you ever saw. Mandolin, steel guitar, electric axe, he played them all well. It's a tribute to the band that the pavilion was full of people until they finished playing at midnight. Shoot, most of us there were singing along to tunes we grew up with: country, soft rock, folk, and a mix of off- the-wall tunes that set your toes a-tapping! Sunday came cool and overcast but still without rain. We picked up, packed up, and cleared the campground by mid-day. So it was a small rally, but a good rally. Thanks to Rallymaster David Coles and to all who contributed to the 2007 Dogwood Trail! 2007 Dogwood Trail demographics
The 90 people who recorded mileages on their registration forms rode an average of 334 miles. The low was 18.5mi from Vicksburg and the high was 1516mi from Phoenix, AZ.
Average age 54 Oldest 86 Youngest 16
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