[M]

In a little less than four weeks, the second annual 'post-Thanksgiving' Pops RTE
& mini-rally will occur. This years event will be on Saturday, November 27th.

The mini-rally will be eight hours in length, from 0500-1300. The RTE
portion will be at about 1315, after all the rally riders are checked in.

Once again, rally riders may begin anywhere within the state of OK, with a
valid OK receipt at or after 0500 on the 27th. While I may recycle a few
bonni, the majority will be different than the past two rallies.

As in the past, there is no-cost to participate in the mini-rally. However,
a donation to Hoagy's Heros is encouraged. Details are on The Rally website.

Complete details and registration information:
http://therally.us/Pops_2010.htm

[M]

We're eleven days away from a great day of riding and camaraderie afterward. We now up to 13 bikes and 15 riders. As is the norm, TX represents the most riders. Maybe I should re-name the site 'The Rally TX, within OK'? ;o)

The weather looks to be about 60* cooler than the 'Sizzler' mini-rally this past summer. That translates to low temperatures hovering around the freeze mark, with afternoon weather a sunny 45*. With any luck, we won't have 45mph wind gusts! I did request a monsoon (remnants of a Gulf hurricane) for the ride, but Mother Nature denied the request this year...

I'm still missing 'release forms' from several riders. I must have the forms in-hand before the bonni list is sent to the participant(s). You can check your release form status here: http://www.therally.us/pops_2010/pops_rider_list.htm

Bonni distribution: The bonni list will be released later this week; either Friday or Saturday. If you want the bonni list to go to an alternative e-mail address, or additional address, just let me know.

The bonni list is released in a format that allows easy manipulation of the data. Meaning, one can import the data into 3rd party software, such as GPS Babel or GPSU, to then import into MapSource or Streets & Trips. A GPS is NOT required for the rally, but certainly gives a rider an advantage by utilizing one.

Below is a sample bonni (not necessarily being used this time):

************************************************************************************
BWS / 1921pts
Black Wall Street / N Greenwood Ave @ E Archer St, Tulsa OK 74106 / 36.15974, -95.98603

The backbone of the black community in the 1920s, was Greenwood Avenue. Running North for more than a mile - from Archer Street and the Frisco yards all the way past Pine - it was not only black Tulsa's primary thoroughfare, but also possessed considerable symbolic meaning as the 'black Wall St'.

That all changed on May 31, 1921. For 16 hours blacks & whites engaged in a race riot (known as the Tulsa Race Riot) along Greenwood, with over 800 people admitted to local hospitals with injuries, an estimated 10,000 were left homeless, and 35 city blocks composed of 1,256 residences were destroyed by fire caused by the riots.

Take a picture at the above intersection, of the businesses along Greenwood Ave.
************************************************************************************

One note about bonni. The description is the definitive answer to location, not the provided GPS coordinates. Some coordinates may put you three meters away from a bonni, while others will be 500 meters away. As a general rule the coordinates will be no farther than one mile from the bonni location. If you feel that a coordinate is off, it's entirely possible, then feel free to share this with the group.

I will continue accepting entries up until the evening before the RTE & mini-rally. So, if you are still on the fence, you have time to make up your mind and jump off.

Remember, the point of this scavenger hunt is to have FUN! If you have trouble with a bonni, move on to the next one (ask the Getzendanners about spending an hour looking for one...lol). Some bonni can be challenging to acquire! If you have questions/concerns, due diligence using the Internet for some research will probably benefit you (while keeping your blood pressure lower during the rally).

2011 continues to look brighter for LD riders in the South Central US. I'm making progress on both the 12 hour and 24 hour rallies. The main difference for the longer duration rallies will be an entry fee. This will help cover expenses I'm currently absorbing myself (insurance) & rally swag (shirts, food, prizes, etc.). Details to come soon, along with registration for the Spring 2011 rally.

Finally, James Stovall will host a 12 hour mini-rally next April within Texas. Check it out at http://www.heartoftexasrally.com/

[geekonabike]

Michael I can't say for sure but I'm going to try hard to make it to the lunch part of the rally. Motorcycles and food: what more is there to say about priorities? I'll send you a PM too.

Thanks for all you do to organize these things and spread the word.

--Mike D.

[M]

[emdsd]

I'll have to keep this one in mind for next year. You folks have a good time.

Doc

[rats4ever]

Last year, it was pleasant enough that I decided just to use my regular gloves instead of my insulated gloves. Freezing hands from 6-9am taught me my lesson. This year, I didn't make that mistake. The only problem being that the frost didn't disappear from my windshield until 8:30. Maybe next year, M will bump the rally up another 2 hours, and the temperature down another 10 degrees. When we passed Talihina about 3 hours into the ride, it was up to 25*F .

So maybe it's time to farkle the Strom. Or stop agreeing to get my butt out of bed at 4:30am to ride 4 hours in below-freezing temperatures, and spend the next 4 hours "warming up" in the low 40s at 80mph...

/rant

Thanks again for organizing this, M.

-Matt

[geekonabike]

It certainly seemed like a well-attended rally. I came at the end to eat, but was impressed by the folks who ran in it (and the folk who ran it). Maybe if you added Matt's and Han's ages together you'd get the average age of the folks there. (At least the low end of the upper quartile!) Indeed I think they were the youngest. There were three V-Stroms (all 650's), I think three ST1300's, at least that many GoldWings, a Versys, FJR (we helped to push start), and a few Beemers. Maybe a KTM? A lot of Darien and other Aerostich apparels were present. The fellow who won said, "I had a good radar detector." He also had hands that looked like they could palm a hole-less bowling ball. And one fellow I didn't meet had his new BMW smashed by a hit-and-run car rather early. Police found the car, but no word if they had insurance, and not sure if any bones got broken yet. He was apparently more upset by what happened to his bike than to himself.

Still a very good crowd of serious LD'ers, including our own rats4ever (Matt) and his better half. Not bad food either. I'm glad I showed up. Maybe a few electric clothing items and a year later I'll even "rally."

--Mike D.

[geekonabike]

[ithaca00]

[M]

OHP caught up to the driver, as he came back by the accident later. Hopefully, he has valid insurance.

The rider suffered a possible broken hand, mitigated by AGATT. Those who don't suit up are shunned away from the sport.