This was my second trip to Outer Banks Bike Week in North Carolina and
again, I had a great time.
I changed accommodations this time and stayed at the Roadway Inn, Nags
Head. Although the motel sits several hundred yards off the beach, with
other buildings between it and the surf, it boasts of "ocean view"
rooms. The rooms were in fact ocean view but don't expect to see waves
crashing on the beach.
OBX bike week runs from Sunday to Sunday, but my buddy and I decided to
ride down on Wednesday. Originally, we were going to leave on Sunday
morning, but looking at the weather forecast, Sunday did not look like a
favorable travel day, especially on a motorcycle.
The trip down, some 350 miles, was about 8 hours, 7 of which was in the
rain. Looking at the weather radar before leaving, I was hoping we
could dodge most of the bad weather. Such was not the case. We hit rain
about an hour after leaving. My rain suit did a great job of keeping me
dry. My buddy was not so lucky and had to use a hair dryer at the motel
to dry out his boots.
The next day was absolutely great weather. Since this was my second
trip and my buddy's first, I served as a "tour guide". We went back
north to Outer Banks Harley Davidson, looked around there, spoke with
some vendors and did some buying of a few things. Then made our way
south, stopping at various vendor locations. One church had a biker
vendor location set up in the parking lot. As soon as we pulled on the
lot, a fellow approached us, handed us a microfibre cleaning cloth and
offered to clean the windshields on the bikes.
We continued up and down the main 4 lane highway, stopping at Hooters
for lunch. The waitresses were friendly, good looking, and as last
year, bikini clad young ladies in high heels were washing bikes for a
$10 donation. Not certain what the donation went for. My buddy was
going to get his bike washed but wanted to eat first. Right as we sat
down, about 15 or 20 more bikes pulled in and got in the "wash" line.
Oh well, those who snooze, lose. He left with as filthy a bike as he
pulled in with.
We made a stop at Vertigo Tattoo on Roanoke Island. Pretty much the
same activities as last year. The "Wall of Death" stunt show where they
guy runs a motorcycle around the inside of a large cylindrical structure.
They also featured a "Hot Wing" eating contest. Now, I am somewhat
partial to spicy foods, but did not enter this one since I was still
pretty full from lunch. I didn't watch the entire contest but when I
left, a Hispanic girl wearing a cowboy hat was leading after having
eaten 16 or 17. Afterwards, the organizers offered a free sample of the
leftover wings to those who wanted to try one. I tried one and will say
it was pretty spicy. Sort of a delayed reaction, where you eat it, and
2 minutes later, you are scrambling for something liquid.
Certainly opened up my sinuses and "stayed" with me for quite awhile.
As it turned out, my buddy's wife was staying with some of her gal pals
on nearby Roanoke Island near Manteo. My buddy wanted to drop of some
of his purchases with her to transport back in the van making more room
on the bike for the trip home. Wife and gal pals were staying in a
pretty upscale part of the island in a gated community. When we pulled
up to the guard shack, we simply told the guy were were there to drop
off something at a particular address. He said to go on in. No ID. No
registering. Guess its good we were not there to drop of a low yield
nuclear device. The gals recommended several restaurants nearby. One
was "Sugar Creek" which is where we went for dinner. Great food, good
service and and beautiful view overlooking the sound. Pretty nice
upscale bar in the room next door and it sounded as though the patrons
there were having a great time.
Friday we had planned a fairly long ride. This was an "all day" trip
covering a total of 180+ miles. The plan was to leave about 8 in the
morning, drive south to Hatteras, hop a ferry with a 40 minute ferry
ride to Ocracoke island, eat lunch, and then another ferry ride back to
the mainland at Swan Quarter. The second ferry ride was about 2.5
hours. The first ferry ride was free, the second was $10 for a
motorcycle. I was somewhat concerned about the stability of the vessel
and the bike riding on it, but both trips were extremely smooth and none
of the 15 or so bikes on the ferry had any problems. The second ferry,
much larger than the first, had a second floor enclosed area with plenty
of room to sit down at a table, eat a snack, socialize, or whatever.
There were some vending machines on the second floor with only the
beverage machines in operating condition. The candy/snack machine was
out of order.
Once we docked at Swan Quarter, we followed the main group of bikes
until they decided to make a fuel stop. We refueled on Ocracoke island.
If you ever decide to make this trip, I would suggest refueling in
Hatteras. Even if you really don't need to. There is only ONE place on
Ocracoke to get fuel. Once headed back north towards Roanoke Island and
eventually Nags Head and our hotel, we traveled through some pretty
isolated and desolate territory. Straight, flat roads surrounded by a
marshy, swampy, bog on either side. There were a few small communities
along the way, but this was not a place to break down or run out of
fuel. We arrived back in Nags Head a little before 6pm and had steak at
a nearby Outback restaurant.
Back to the motel for a nights sleep before our return trip.
I woke early Saturday morning and checked the weather radar for our area
and the route home. Did not look good. Lots of rain showing all around
us, so I put on my rain suit before leaving. We encountered some light
sprinkles about 1 hour out but were out of them fairly quickly and had
only partly cloudy skies the remainder of the trip. When we stopped for
our lunch meal and fuel break, I took my rain suit off and stowed it.
In hindsight, I could have managed without the suit but it hurt nothing
to be prepared.
All in all, a great time.
(t-o) Andy
--
Two most common elements in the universe- Hydrogen & Stupidity
> This was my second trip to Outer Banks Bike Week in North Carolina and
> again, I had a great time.
> I changed accommodations this time and stayed at the Roadway Inn, Nags
> Head. Although the motel sits several hundred yards off the beach, with
> other buildings between it and the surf, it boasts of "ocean view" rooms.
> The rooms were in fact ocean view but don't expect to see waves crashing
> on the beach.
> OBX bike week runs from Sunday to Sunday, but my buddy and I decided to
> ride down on Wednesday. Originally, we were going to leave on Sunday
> morning, but looking at the weather forecast, Sunday did not look like a
> favorable travel day, especially on a motorcycle.
> The trip down, some 350 miles, was about 8 hours, 7 of which was in the
> rain. Looking at the weather radar before leaving, I was hoping we could
> dodge most of the bad weather. Such was not the case. We hit rain about
> an hour after leaving. My rain suit did a great job of keeping me dry.
> My buddy was not so lucky and had to use a hair dryer at the motel to dry
> out his boots.
> The next day was absolutely great weather. Since this was my second trip
> and my buddy's first, I served as a "tour guide". We went back north to
> Outer Banks Harley Davidson, looked around there, spoke with some vendors
> and did some buying of a few things. Then made our way south, stopping at
> various vendor locations. One church had a biker vendor location set up
> in the parking lot. As soon as we pulled on the lot, a fellow approached
> us, handed us a microfibre cleaning cloth and offered to clean the
> windshields on the bikes.
> We continued up and down the main 4 lane highway, stopping at Hooters for
> lunch. The waitresses were friendly, good looking, and as last year,
> bikini clad young ladies in high heels were washing bikes for a $10
> donation. Not certain what the donation went for. My buddy was going to
> get his bike washed but wanted to eat first. Right as we sat down, about
> 15 or 20 more bikes pulled in and got in the "wash" line. Oh well, those
> who snooze, lose. He left with as filthy a bike as he pulled in with.
> We made a stop at Vertigo Tattoo on Roanoke Island. Pretty much the same
> activities as last year. The "Wall of Death" stunt show where they guy
> runs a motorcycle around the inside of a large cylindrical structure.
> They also featured a "Hot Wing" eating contest. Now, I am somewhat
> partial to spicy foods, but did not enter this one since I was still
> pretty full from lunch. I didn't watch the entire contest but when I
> left, a Hispanic girl wearing a cowboy hat was leading after having eaten
> 16 or 17. Afterwards, the organizers offered a free sample of the
> leftover wings to those who wanted to try one. I tried one and will say
> it was pretty spicy. Sort of a delayed reaction, where you eat it, and 2
> minutes later, you are scrambling for something liquid.
> Certainly opened up my sinuses and "stayed" with me for quite awhile.
> As it turned out, my buddy's wife was staying with some of her gal pals on
> nearby Roanoke Island near Manteo. My buddy wanted to drop of some of his
> purchases with her to transport back in the van making more room on the
> bike for the trip home. Wife and gal pals were staying in a pretty
> upscale part of the island in a gated community. When we pulled up to the
> guard shack, we simply told the guy were were there to drop off something
> at a particular address. He said to go on in. No ID. No registering.
> Guess its good we were not there to drop of a low yield nuclear device.
> The gals recommended several restaurants nearby. One was "Sugar Creek"
> which is where we went for dinner. Great food, good service and and
> beautiful view overlooking the sound. Pretty nice upscale bar in the room
> next door and it sounded as though the patrons there were having a great
> time.
> Friday we had planned a fairly long ride. This was an "all day" trip
> covering a total of 180+ miles. The plan was to leave about 8 in the
> morning, drive south to Hatteras, hop a ferry with a 40 minute ferry ride
> to Ocracoke island, eat lunch, and then another ferry ride back to the
> mainland at Swan Quarter. The second ferry ride was about 2.5 hours. The
> first ferry ride was free, the second was $10 for a motorcycle. I was
> somewhat concerned about the stability of the vessel and the bike riding
> on it, but both trips were extremely smooth and none of the 15 or so bikes
> on the ferry had any problems. The second ferry, much larger than the
> first, had a second floor enclosed area with plenty of room to sit down at
> a table, eat a snack, socialize, or whatever. There were some vending
> machines on the second floor with only the beverage machines in operating
> condition. The candy/snack machine was out of order.
> Once we docked at Swan Quarter, we followed the main group of bikes until
> they decided to make a fuel stop. We refueled on Ocracoke island. If you
> ever decide to make this trip, I would suggest refueling in Hatteras.
> Even if you really don't need to. There is only ONE place on Ocracoke to
> get fuel. Once headed back north towards Roanoke Island and eventually
> Nags Head and our hotel, we traveled through some pretty isolated and
> desolate territory. Straight, flat roads surrounded by a marshy, swampy,
> bog on either side. There were a few small communities along the way, but
> this was not a place to break down or run out of fuel. We arrived back in
> Nags Head a little before 6pm and had steak at a nearby Outback
> restaurant.
> Back to the motel for a nights sleep before our return trip.
> I woke early Saturday morning and checked the weather radar for our area
> and the route home. Did not look good. Lots of rain showing all around
> us, so I put on my rain suit before leaving. We encountered some light
> sprinkles about 1 hour out but were out of them fairly quickly and had
> only partly cloudy skies the remainder of the trip. When we stopped for
> our lunch meal and fuel break, I took my rain suit off and stowed it. In
> hindsight, I could have managed without the suit but it hurt nothing to be
> prepared.
> All in all, a great time.
Good read, thanks for posting.
--
#128 KOTFAQ's
http://www.rmhfaq.com
On 4/25/2010 5:41 PM, Greasy Rider wrote:
> Sorry I missed you....we also had a great time. Five couples rented a
> beach house with 5 bedrooms/baths for five days for $182 total per
> couple....4220 Virginia Dare right on the ocean.
> Saturday I hit the big time with lunch at Mo's...... roasted oysters
> and dinner at the Black Pelican.....shrimp and grits.
> The weather really looked threatening this morning. We put on rain
> suits and rode all the way to Rocky Mount in glorious sunshine. Took
> off the rain suits and all blue skies back to Raleigh.
> NC-12 is an interesting road!
> Greasy
I was the guy wearing the leather jacket and chaps. I don't see how you
could have missed me. <sfsf>
Thats the way it looked Saturday morning also as we headed back to
Virginia.
I agree, 12 is "unique", however, if you want an isolated, out in the
middle of no-where run, 264 out of Swan Quarter is the road. The road
is in good condition but on Friday afternoon, we had it to ourselves.
Waitress at the restaurant next door said she used to live in that area
and to watch out for bear and deer.
(t-o) Andy
--
Two most common elements in the universe- Hydrogen & Stupidity
XML Sitemap
> again, I had a great time.
> I changed accommodations this time and stayed at the Roadway Inn, Nags
> Head. Although the motel sits several hundred yards off the beach, with
> other buildings between it and the surf, it boasts of "ocean view" rooms.
> The rooms were in fact ocean view but don't expect to see waves crashing
> on the beach.
> OBX bike week runs from Sunday to Sunday, but my buddy and I decided to
> ride down on Wednesday. Originally, we were going to leave on Sunday
> morning, but looking at the weather forecast, Sunday did not look like a
> favorable travel day, especially on a motorcycle.
> The trip down, some 350 miles, was about 8 hours, 7 of which was in the
> rain. Looking at the weather radar before leaving, I was hoping we could
> dodge most of the bad weather. Such was not the case. We hit rain about
> an hour after leaving. My rain suit did a great job of keeping me dry.
> My buddy was not so lucky and had to use a hair dryer at the motel to dry
> out his boots.
> The next day was absolutely great weather. Since this was my second trip
> and my buddy's first, I served as a "tour guide". We went back north to
> Outer Banks Harley Davidson, looked around there, spoke with some vendors
> and did some buying of a few things. Then made our way south, stopping at
> various vendor locations. One church had a biker vendor location set up
> in the parking lot. As soon as we pulled on the lot, a fellow approached
> us, handed us a microfibre cleaning cloth and offered to clean the
> windshields on the bikes.
> We continued up and down the main 4 lane highway, stopping at Hooters for
> lunch. The waitresses were friendly, good looking, and as last year,
> bikini clad young ladies in high heels were washing bikes for a $10
> donation. Not certain what the donation went for. My buddy was going to
> get his bike washed but wanted to eat first. Right as we sat down, about
> 15 or 20 more bikes pulled in and got in the "wash" line. Oh well, those
> who snooze, lose. He left with as filthy a bike as he pulled in with.
> We made a stop at Vertigo Tattoo on Roanoke Island. Pretty much the same
> activities as last year. The "Wall of Death" stunt show where they guy
> runs a motorcycle around the inside of a large cylindrical structure.
> They also featured a "Hot Wing" eating contest. Now, I am somewhat
> partial to spicy foods, but did not enter this one since I was still
> pretty full from lunch. I didn't watch the entire contest but when I
> left, a Hispanic girl wearing a cowboy hat was leading after having eaten
> 16 or 17. Afterwards, the organizers offered a free sample of the
> leftover wings to those who wanted to try one. I tried one and will say
> it was pretty spicy. Sort of a delayed reaction, where you eat it, and 2
> minutes later, you are scrambling for something liquid.
> Certainly opened up my sinuses and "stayed" with me for quite awhile.
> As it turned out, my buddy's wife was staying with some of her gal pals on
> nearby Roanoke Island near Manteo. My buddy wanted to drop of some of his
> purchases with her to transport back in the van making more room on the
> bike for the trip home. Wife and gal pals were staying in a pretty
> upscale part of the island in a gated community. When we pulled up to the
> guard shack, we simply told the guy were were there to drop off something
> at a particular address. He said to go on in. No ID. No registering.
> Guess its good we were not there to drop of a low yield nuclear device.
> The gals recommended several restaurants nearby. One was "Sugar Creek"
> which is where we went for dinner. Great food, good service and and
> beautiful view overlooking the sound. Pretty nice upscale bar in the room
> next door and it sounded as though the patrons there were having a great
> time.
> Friday we had planned a fairly long ride. This was an "all day" trip
> covering a total of 180+ miles. The plan was to leave about 8 in the
> morning, drive south to Hatteras, hop a ferry with a 40 minute ferry ride
> to Ocracoke island, eat lunch, and then another ferry ride back to the
> mainland at Swan Quarter. The second ferry ride was about 2.5 hours. The
> first ferry ride was free, the second was $10 for a motorcycle. I was
> somewhat concerned about the stability of the vessel and the bike riding
> on it, but both trips were extremely smooth and none of the 15 or so bikes
> on the ferry had any problems. The second ferry, much larger than the
> first, had a second floor enclosed area with plenty of room to sit down at
> a table, eat a snack, socialize, or whatever. There were some vending
> machines on the second floor with only the beverage machines in operating
> condition. The candy/snack machine was out of order.
> Once we docked at Swan Quarter, we followed the main group of bikes until
> they decided to make a fuel stop. We refueled on Ocracoke island. If you
> ever decide to make this trip, I would suggest refueling in Hatteras.
> Even if you really don't need to. There is only ONE place on Ocracoke to
> get fuel. Once headed back north towards Roanoke Island and eventually
> Nags Head and our hotel, we traveled through some pretty isolated and
> desolate territory. Straight, flat roads surrounded by a marshy, swampy,
> bog on either side. There were a few small communities along the way, but
> this was not a place to break down or run out of fuel. We arrived back in
> Nags Head a little before 6pm and had steak at a nearby Outback
> restaurant.
> Back to the motel for a nights sleep before our return trip.
> I woke early Saturday morning and checked the weather radar for our area
> and the route home. Did not look good. Lots of rain showing all around
> us, so I put on my rain suit before leaving. We encountered some light
> sprinkles about 1 hour out but were out of them fairly quickly and had
> only partly cloudy skies the remainder of the trip. When we stopped for
> our lunch meal and fuel break, I took my rain suit off and stowed it. In
> hindsight, I could have managed without the suit but it hurt nothing to be
> prepared.
> All in all, a great time.