Right Half Roundup – Matewan, WV
June 1-7, 2006
Annual Gathering of the ACE 750 ~ Rat Bastard Pack.
3,045 Miles Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
This year’s “Right-Half Roundup” was held in Matewan, West Virginia and planned and hosted by Willo. Previous get-togethers were held in Helen, GA, Hocking Hills, Ohio and Crossville, TN.
Bill from SCRC Conroe joined me on this one, he rode his VTX.
I really looked forward to this trip, since I lived in WV and completed high school there. My Dad’s side of the family is from WV. Matewan is rich in history, with the Hatfield-McCoy feud and the Battle of Matewan (coal miners vs. coal companies, also inspired the Academy Award-nominated movie, Matewan) occurring here.
Thursday, June 1st Super-Slab, Conroe, TX to Jackson, TN. About 715 miles. BORING.
Friday, June 2nd Not too much more Interstate, north of Nashville picked up hwy 80 across Kentucky. Met up with Wolf (Ken) and She-Wolf (Mary) along the way. Rain. Plenty of it, sometimes pull off and wait for it to stop rain. Oh well, all part of the fun.
WRECK(s) Unfortunately, as we neared the KY/WV border, while stopped at an intersection we saw part of the group parked on the side of the road, and the flashing lights of cop cars. On the slick rain-soaked streets part of the group was involved in an accident, with four bikes going down, thank God, the damage to bodies and bikes was minimal!
We originally planned to spend Friday & Saturday nights “camping” on the floor of the barracks in Matewan with others, but after the long wet day, we decided to get a room at the Super 8 where some of the others were staying. After a bit of hanging out, a dozen or so of us headed of to dinner ( wild $1.75 cab ride! ), then hang out in front of the motel telling lies for a while before calling it a day…
Saturday, June 3rd About 8AM or so Bill and I head over to Matewan, after a quick spray-off washing of the bikes. We have no trouble finding the group, as we have pretty much taken over the town for the weekend. Said some hellos to folks staying in Matewan, took a group photo, then headed out on the planned group ride. AWESOME! This was a 200+ mile ride through the twisties of WV with a stop at the famous New River Gorge Bridge. Until a 2003, this was the longest steel-arch bridge in the world. The bridge is 3,030 feet long and 876 feet above the river below.
After the ride it was time for the Dinner & Party! Much fun was had by all.
Sunday, June 4th
Sadly, these things always seem to end too soon. After saying goodbye to some of the folks at the hotel, we headed back to Matewan one last time say so long to my friends there. It was really good to see everyone again, especially since I missed last year’s and with Steve “Blacktop” who started the Strictly ACE 750 Forum, making the trip from California (by plane, wimp!) to his first ever Roundup!
Bill and I leave with no particular plan. These can turn out to be the best rides of all, It’s Sunday morning and we don’t have to be back until Wednesday night. I had been thinking of spending a couple days riding in WV, I also thought about riding the Blue Ridge Parkway, and even another visit to the famed Dragon. We headed south then east, and decided that the best plan would be to head on south, catching the Blue Ridge Parkway and saving more WV riding for another day, it would be hard to top yesterday’s group ride anyway!
We take some great roads to Bluefield, still unsure of any particular route, we stop at the East River Mountain overlook (3,500 feet above sea level, breathtaking views of Bluefield and East River Mountain) While stopped we start chatting with couple of somewhat local motorcyclists, they give us some great advice – a mile over the mountain is Virginia, with some great two lane roads heading into Wytheville, so that is what we do! A great full day of back roads in West Virginia and Virginia. We get a room, I finally breakdown and buy a new road atlas (you can always find a Wal-Mart) and plan tomorrow’s ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway. By the way, this is one great easy to read (large-font) atlas!
Monday, June 5th OK, I’ve heard it before from lots of motorcyclists, don’t miss the Blue Ridge Parkway. Yep, they were right. Awesome views with lots of overlooks, bridges, tunnels, and well-maintained curvy roads. I suppose the only downside is the 45MPH speed limit. We enjoyed it, and though we stayed close to posted limits, never really saw much enforcement, better this way to take in the scenery anyway.
One should always give their motorcycle a thorough checking-out before any long trip. I know that, we all know that, but the sound I heard as we exit the BRP to Ashville for gas is the metal on metal when I hit the rear brakes. Oh Crap. As it turns out there is a shop only about a mile from where we are, and they are open on Mondays! The guys at MR Motorcyle got me fixed up in about 2 hours! New rear brake pads, went ahead and had them do front brakes and an oil change too…We decided to stay near Ashville, and head to Deals Gap in the morning.
Tuesday, June 6th Bill and I hit the road for the last day of “fun” riding…Stop for breakfast in Maggie Valley, then on to Deal’s Gap to tame the Dragon (on 6/6/6 no less). After the customary stop at the Deal’s Gap store for souvenirs and photos, off we go. The ride IS a lot more fun on the ST than on the ACE, but still I don’t set any records (LOL) I just wanna have fun and get home in one piece. Of course, I have to do it more than once 🙂 After our fun we head towards the interstate for the journey home. We make a pretty good dent in the miles, stopping in Mississippi for the night.
Wednesday, June 7th
Uneventful final leg home, we arrive around 5 PM Tired and full of great memories, and I’m already looking forward to next year’s Roundup!
LINK to all the Photos from this trip