Fredericksburg Ride (September 5, 2016)

Got this new motorcycle (Triumph Speedmaster) last Friday and finally got some miles in on it after the rains of Saturday and Sunday from the hurricane. Rains were not much thankfully - have had thunderstorms worse this year - but enough. Still, got to Fredericksburg where I visited the battlefield again. This house was in the battle and was one of the few remaining after. Part of the stone wall which made such a formidable defense can also be seen. This was my second visit to the battlefield.  

Made time to wander some in Fredericksburg's old town section. Very interesting with a lot of things to see. Fredericksburg has a very good Visitor Center which can give you a map to some of the sights.
There is a lot to see there, and a lot of history in that town. Not just Civil War either, being Virginia it also has a Revolutionary War history as well. Plus to be honest some good places to eat and shop if you are so inclined to do either.  

I went on the grounds of the Old Plantation named "Chatham". Owned by a hard core successionist and slave owner, the estate was seized during the battle. Was a headquarters for the Union Army and also due to its commanding position was used as a point to shell the town. Later it was a hospital and even as stables (in the rooms) for horses. The owner was ruined but sold the house and the next owners restored it to its former glory.  

I also mentioned in my Racing with the Wind post on this same topic finding The Confederate Cemetery. They are not buried on the battlefield (those are all union troops) but are in this cemetery called "The Confederate Cemetery" in town. Long and tragic war but to me a very necessary one to end slavery and in some respects to bring us together as a nation.
The ride was a lot of fun and was a good cap to what I consider one of the best Labor Day weekends ever in my case. Had a great time here in Virginia over the holiday.

Shirley Plantation and some new Richmond sights (September 4, 2016)

Heading down Virginia 5 with some friends on a very nice Sunday over the Labor Day holiday got some new sights in. Many times on motorcycle rides I have ridden past this, but made it finally to see the Shirley Plantation. It dates to 1613 (six years after Jamestown) though this house is "newer" being built between 1723-1738. Needless to say it is the oldest plantation in Virginia and has quite a history over the centuries. There are a number of buildings to explore and some interesting sights to see. Highly recommend a visit to this plantation!

While at the Shirley Plantation visited the winery there. Some nice wines and they are made from grapes grown on the grounds. The winery is also located with a great view of the river and there is also a restaurant there if you get hungry.

We also made a stop at Stone Brewing. That has gotten over the past few months to be quite an operation and in fact they are planning some new additions in the months to come.
The beer is very tasty and I even got this trip to take a look at some of the brewing operation. I like their beer which has a number of different types and it is easy to get samples to try different ones to find one you will like or would like to take home.
Nice addition to the Richmond brew pub scene and enjoy my visits there.

This was a first...we made a stop at Kabana Rooftop. Its a bar and is outside on the 20th floor of a Richmond building. Nice views of downtown and pretty good drinks as well.
Seemed like a real drinking tour and it was sort of, but we kept a good lid on everything. Did not want to get wild for one because that is an easy way to go to jail and two had big plans for the following day...which happened and will be in my next post tomorrow.

The return to Yorktown and Jamestown (August 27, 2016)

I also have some photos on my "Racing with the Wind" Page of this remarkable motorcycle ride on August 27. Started early but before long I was riding the Colonial Parkway along the York River.

I went to Yorktown first, and wandered that very interesting town and walked along the beach there. It is a nice place to spend a Saturday morning, all the better because it was early and not yet a very busy and crowded place. I have been there many times in the past and will be back many times in the future.

It was a free admission weekend (the National Parks are celebrating birthday #100) so made my first stop Yorktown. Lots of amazing things to see there and I saw a few. This is part of the British Army surrender in that they had to leave their cannon. These are some of the cannon they used in the battle. Yorktown was also sadly a Civil War site though not a major battle as the one with the British was. Just an amazing place to spend some time.  

This is at Jamestown, also remarkable. That was 1/2 price but always amazing. Want to read a remarkable story well Jamestown is one. Far from homes in England, and dealing with hostile Indians. During what was known as the "starving time" a large number died. Having run out largely of horses, dogs and other animals they were forced to eat they turned to their dead for meals.
Much of Jamestown was (and for that matter still is as it was on going while I was there) excavated and is being studied. Much of what they found can be seen, as well as the history of the place can be learned from all the items (and even the bodies of the dead) that are left behind over 400 years later.
I have enjoyed each and every visit and though I have been quite a few times now over the years, there is still a lot of things to see. Seems like they always have a new discovery as well to add.      

From Jamestown I wanted to go back a different route.  To get to VA10 from VA 5 requires a ride on the Ferry. The cool thing is that it is free and is a fantastic trip in and of itself. When we boarded the birds were waiting and followed us to catch bits of bread thrown from the back of the ferry. It was pretty cool. Just a great way to get across the river and then back down the road. Both 5 and 10 are mostly country two lane roads and make for a beautiful ride.
It was a very fun day and one I will remember for a long time. Just enjoyed being out to see the wonders of the area. Have not been for awhile but there is also Colonial Williamsburg there. Have to add that to the list of things I do on my next ride to that area.  

Journey to West Virginia (August 19-21)

 Visiting an old friend, we decided to meet up (she came from Ohio, I from Richmond) in West Virginia. On the way down visited during a stop the town of Winchester, VA which is very cool with a lot of historic buildings (a hotel there which is still in use was a hospital for the Union and the Confederates).
Winchester is one of my favorite places when I go though this area, not just the "Old Town" section which is seen at the left but a whole of the town is very historical.
It is also a nice place to take a stop along the way!I also stopped at Fort Necessity which is the site of one of the first commands of George Washington who at the time commanded a British force during the French and Indian War. The fort is a recreation on the original site. Located in Pennsylvania it is also well worth a stop and was my second time to be there.  

Went to Chester, VA which was my first time to be there. Beautiful place and enjoyed wonderful weather. Actually a foothills region but did pass up and over mountains to get to it.
This horse race track was there, and though I did not make the races, did get to see practices such as these which was going on in the morning. Love horses and enjoyed this a great deal.  

Kind of a different thing, Chester, VA is home to The World's Largest Teapot. It actually used to be a root beer stand made to look like a jug of root beer and was converted to this.
Thought it was neat and enjoyed the site of it, and even got a shirt for the festival they had for this...last week.
It has been there quite a while and was a fun thing to see. My lady is a big tea fan, so she got a kick out of seeing this.
Have found that most places have interesting things to see if you look for them.    

This was also in Chester, VA. Nice VFW memorial with a B-52 as a backdrop. Nice model and enjoyed this. Thought the church in the background was also pretty cool.
West Virginia had a lot of things to Veterans and I like that being one myself. There was a nice military park with planes, cannon, as well as a tank up the road a ways plus a lot of signs with soldiers, sailors and airmen on the streets. Nice the way they do that.

We drove around a lot and saw many cool things. One thing I enjoyed is the Ohio River which runs though that area. Love the James River here in Richmond but also grew up in Louisville, Kentucky and this river was a big part of my life there.
It was a very interesting trip and enjoyed seeing so many sights and visiting many of the locations there. It was a fun place, with nice people and was a very good trip over the weekend. Looking forward to a return to West Virginia in the very near future.  

Dragon Boat Races (August 6, 2016)

I go to this about every year, other than weather I don't miss it. Rocketts Landing is a really nice area of Richmond. Pretty view and one of my favorites, plus this event is a lot of fun. Free (except for food and drink if you buy any) and different from most of the local events in the area it is a lot of fun to watch.

Dragon Boat racing has 20 rowers, one person to steer and a drummer to help the rowers row in unison.
The boats usually race in three or four boat races, and the races are not overly long, but as some of the racers told me they are quite a workout and look to be so,
I liked watching the races and even had quite a few teams from where I work to root for. No, did not do it though have considered it over the years.    

I first went to these events when I was in the Navy and stationed in Thailand. The event started in the orient and there was also dancing there. Had a great crowd, it seems to get bigger and bigger each year.
Looking forward to going back to this in 2017, though sure would have been nicer with a bit cooler temperatures which had a heat index well over 100 degrees. It was a great deal of fun though.  

Midlothian Mines (August 5, 2016)

 Went on a dusk motorcycle ride tonight...temperatures and humidity were both way down. Tomorrow will be a different story though!
At any case, rode out to Midlothian Mines (among other places) but this is worth a post. Have been here before but the area has some improvements (along the trail here at the site of the First Coal Mine is North America. I did read that early mining there sent coal in service of the fledgling American Army in the Revolutionary War. It was a successful operation for some time, but as the nations needs for coal increased their were easier places to get it.

These are the last remains of the original building. Sometime in the late 1800's an explosion trapped some miners in the tunnels...if I remember correctly some 30 or so died and are still down there. They could not get them out.
It is an interesting place to visit with some nice trails and even now some replica mining equipment. This is a couple of shorts from a walk around it of the last remaining original structure from those days.

Concord Motorcycle Race Road Trip (July 30-31, 2016)

I enjoy Richmond a great deal, but lived in Concord, NC for 14 years. I also love Flat Track motorcycle racing so getting to see both at once was a no brainer. Up at 3AM on Saturday the 30th and down the road I went. Went in the car due to the rain forecast (mostly in Richmond) and the heat. It was toasty wandering around town. This is the Veterans Park Memorial in Kannapolis. I wandered around Kannapolis for a while, good to be back and to see the sights there in "formerly" Cannon Village. Said hello to the Dale Earnhardt Statue as well.  

 Went by RideNow Powersports. They had a number of the new motorcycles out in 2016. Nice place with a wide selection. They have Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha, Triumph, Victory and Indian. Of all the bikes the one I took most note of is this Kawasaki H2. It is a hell of a thing, and being the first in many years to be turbo charged. There is even a hotter non-street legal version to be had (limited quantities and something like 100k). Would of loved to take a quick test ride on this. Apparently they do have test rides there; some of the people were taking them on other motorcycles.    

Went to downtown Concord and visited the Memorial Garden there. Beautiful cemetery there with some amazing flowers. I saw it last spring as I remember, with the lilly's They had a lot of work done during the last few months, was more beautiful then I can ever remember.
It was very warm and humid and I also made a stop downtown to Cabarrus Creamery. It is an old (though in a new location in its 80 years) but some damn fine ice cream. I have to say love my ice cream and this stuff is probably #1 on the list of the greats. Downtown has a lot of interesting stores and enjoyed wandering around the streets.  

Anyhow, cooled off and with a bottle of water wandered around Concord and checked out some of the big houses there. Many of them are very old and on the national historic list.
This house was once owned by Mr. Cannon who founded Cannon Mills. He employed thousands of people and in fact that company was once one of the largest employers in the state. It later became Pillowtex and went out of business some years ago. People still speak fondly of working there.  

On  my "Racing with the Wind" page I posted some photos of the race, but here is another one. I just had a fantastic time there. Love this sort of racing and it was very exciting to watch.
I was grinning all day long but this really got me excited. Flat Track motorcycle racing is some of my favorite and certainly my favorite motorcycle racing. The races were quick and hats off to the people who made this happen.  

This is a shot of the crowd and of the track. While cloudy never got a drop of rain all day (all weekend in fact) and frankly I thought the sunset was pretty impressive. Very nice bunch of people.  I enjoyed talking with, laughing with, and just having fun there. The race signed a multi-year deal and will be back next year. I will also be back next year.
Getting out of the track was no problem, and traffic in the area (it was a bit after 10) was light. Made a quick stop to downtown Concord to see the lights, and got back to the hotel room for a good nights sleep.    

 Sunday went to the big Concord Mill Mall. When I say big, I mean big. It is laid out like a racetrack. As it was another hot day on Sunday, I was partial to air conditioning. They are remaking this huge outlet mall, but there are a number of stores and restaurants. Kind of sad in a way but Concord Mills I have read is the #1 tourist attraction in North Carolina. Whatever, it was fun to walk around.
Heading out saw that stores have expanded beyond it and I mean way beyond it. If you like shopping this is your place. Went to the nearby airport and that amazed me. There is a lot of building going on there, many new buildings and parking lots thanks to the non-stop Florida flights .

Brewing like in Richmond is getting big in Charlotte. Concord is also getting in on it. Went again to Cabarrus Brewing Company and enjoyed a couple of beers. They are good! There is another in Concord as well (right next door, will check it out next visit) and a number in Charlotte. That is new pretty much in both cases. After that, visited with a friend and then rolled for an early dinner at El Amigo in Kannapolis. After that, gas and go back to Richmond.
The drive back was pretty good. Did have to take a detour near the NC border which was either a crash or road construction. I got home during a raging thunderstorm right around 10PM. This was a fantastic trip and I enjoyed it a great deal. Most fun I have had in Concord in quite some time. Looking forward to the next visit and the next motorcycle race at the track.