Gold Rush XXI: Day 1

After all our sight-seeing on the way to Montana, we needed every mph we could get to make it to Billings in time for the Gold Rush Welcome Banquet.  We did it with a few minutes to spare!  While the guys checked into the hotel, the gals grabbed our dinner tickets and tried to tame our helmet hair. We’d logged 956 miles between home and Billings.  One member of our group summed up the final two hours of the trip nicely when she said, “I no longer feel the need for speed”.  The evening was filled with western barbeque, brownies, hugs, and hellos as we met up with GWTA friends old and new from all parts of North America.

On Monday morning, we grabbed our registration packets and attended the Opening Ceremonies. Nebraska ralliers were easy to spot with our red bandanas and red shoe laces.  The Larson’s of Michigan were honored as GWTA Family of the Year, and the site of Gold Rush XXII in July 2009 was announced – Lexington, Kentucky!  As expected, the crowd immediately headed to the vendor area to pre-register for GR XXII, reserve a Lexington hotel room for next year, and get a look at all the bike stuff in the vendor booths.  Unfortunately, my plans for getting a new windshield and some chrome were not to be.  Most of the rallies were back east this year, and high fuel prices had made a big hole in some vendors’pockets.  Hence, the vendor turnout was disappointing, especially for those of us in remote locations who’d saved our pennies all year in hopes of finding new toys for our bikes.   That’s not to say we didn’t find some enhancements to liven up our rides.  

After lunch, some of our group headed off for a Mountain Riding Seminar.   While the rest of us spent the day visiting, signing up for the week’s activities, and preparing the bikes for the big night ahead, Hammy made a bee-line for the Dirty Bingo game-room.  Dirty Bingo always draws a crowd as people listen for their numbers, cross the circle of chairs, shake hands and introduce themselves to other players, and then proceed to steal their colorfully wrapped Bingo prizes.

Monday night was High-Point #1 of the rally – the light parade.  Long-time GWTA members said this year's parade was one of the best light parades they’d ever ridden in.  Over 270 bikes made a solid line of lights from a Billings neighborhood church parking lot all the way up to the top of the bluff over-looking the town -- five miles away.  As the lead bike hit the top of the bluff and turned around for the trip back to town, he could see the lights from bikes still exiting the church parking lot.  Awesome.  The police did a great job leading the parade and blocking off intersections.  What really made the parade was the number of local people out on the curb in their lawn chairs and standing along the parade route to yell and cheer as we passed by.  Billings loves bikes!!!  

The light parade ended at Cold Stone Creamery and we all lined up for the Ice Cream Eating Contest.  Employees worked late into the night serving and tallying up the ice cream orders according to each customer’s GWTA region.  Region C won 2nd place in this year’s contest, and we made it back to our hotels and camp sites by around 1:45 AM.

posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 4:08 PM by U2Farmer

Comments