3rd annual rally in raleigh...

went to the rally in raleigh a couple weekends ago... was a lot of fun. nice to see the event getting bigger. this year it was as big as the first and second years put together. there was talk of closing even more streets next year if it was big enough this year. that would be nice to see...

we left the dealership and headed over to the rally - normally a three minute trip stretched to about fifteen with all the bikes and confusion getting in... i think the original plan was to ride down fayetteville street and snake around to moore square, where the opening ceremonies were taking place. however, people started parking on fayetteville street as soon as they got there, choking the road for everyone else that was following... seemed a little odd, but the ride to start the rally was lead by one of dale jr.'s race cars. guess if i was more of a nascar fan, there'd be more of an ooohhh and aaahhh factor.



lots to see and a lot to do at the rally this year. one of the first things to catch my eye, both because of the bike and he was parked next to me was this 1947 harley. well, it wasn't just a 1947, more like mostly a 1947. the guy was real proud to talk about his bike, the miles he's put on it and the work he's put into it to keep it on the road. he's had it coast-to-coast several times and hasn't had any problems with it. of course with the amount of work he has to put into the bike to keep it running, he might not consider it broken down were the rest of us might... anyway, as with any old harley work its weight in gold, after about ten minutes sitting, there was a pool of oil forming...





another bike that immediately caught my eye was "plan b" from widow maker custom design and repair. this is the guy the build the gold school bike i liked at the first rally... i talked to hank for a couple minutes, found out he had taken it down to the smoke out this year. love his work - will have to check out his shop some time...







also talked to a marine what served two tours in iraq... thank you very much, by the way... apparently he had a sportster and his dad decided to trade it in to show his appreciation for what his son was doing. his son didn't know anything about what his dad was doing. when he returned from his second tour, his dad told him they had a problem with his sportster to lure him into the dealership. at the dealership, packed with family and friends, his dad gave him the bike. as you can see, it's been customized as a tribute to the marines and the six fellow soldiers from his unit that never returned... very interesting guy to talk to - very humble, very giving. we spoke to him for quite a while. if we had more people in this world like him, it would be a much better place... if you look closely at the picture of the derby cover, you can see the names of his six buddies that never came home...




while wandering around the rally, saw the new victory vision...



ray price and his new rider were giving out autographs...


the hero bike from homes for the troops...



various pics from the bike show... i don't know that this first "bike" should have been in the show - it was more like a three wheel car than a motorcycle.but the judges will decided that, huh?? seems like skulls were the theme this year...






not sure if this guy entered the "bike" show... guess he's a cool cat, huh??



other pics from the rally...











i guess if i was going to join a motorcycle club, this would definitely be one of the patches...