Truck Dead Got a Bicycle

 

There I am at the Tennessee Motorcycles & Music Revival (TMMR) at about 2 o’clock in the morning.  I am awakened in my slumber by a pull-behind RV backing into the campsite next to me.  I am nice and comfy in my hammock.  The hammock is hung off the back of my jeep at a 45-degree angle and partially in the path of the reversing camper trailer.  I see the red tail lights getting closer to me.  The trailer safely halts several feet from me and moves forward.  I am grateful the driver has some good backing skills and sees my hammock in the darkness.  The driver readjusts his reverse approach and positions his trainer with plenty of space between us.  I feel safe and it turns out there is plenty of room for his dirt bikes to be lined up between his camper and my Jeep.  

I admit I was a little bummed having someone camping next to me.  After all, when I am not motorcycling, I am camping somewhere remote and usually alone.  The crisp night air was pitch black.  I had to pee, so I exited my hammock and made my way to the nearest porta-john. I pass two figures in the darkness and proclaim “welcome” as I walked swiftly to the porta-john.  I was happy that our figures were outlined in the darkness and it was too dark to make eye contact.  I was on the verge of doing the pee-pee dance and was avoiding conversation.  I take care of watering the horse and return to my comfy hammock in hopes to get some sleep before sunrise. 

Less than an hour passes, and I need to pee again! It must be an old man symptom. I tried to ignore the urge to pee and go back to sleep.  That didn’t work.  I had to go!  I know my new neighbors had recently finished setting up their trailer.  I hurried down the familiar route to the porta-john. I pulled on the porta-john door while simultaneously getting the urge to do the pee-pee dance.  The door to the porta-john wouldn’t open.  I was confused.  There were not many tents in this area.  It was around 4 o’clock in the morning.  The late-night parties had stopped hours ago.  I thought to myself, could there really be someone else using this porta-john? I think I have been the only person using this particular facility for the last three days.  Could the door be stuck?  So I lightly tapped my finger three times on the plastic door.  Tap, Tap, Tap.  I heard a response echoing my same soft tap and rhythm. Tap, tap, Tap.  It confirmed to me that someone was inside. I quickly turned and made a beeline directly to the next closest porta-john as I could not wait. 

The next closest porta-john was less than a minute of walking fast.  It wasn’t a big deal - just me running around in the dark.  I returned to the shelter of my hammock to get some sleep.  As I lay relaxing, I heard a soft female voice in the darkness.  The voice confirmed she was my new neighbor and wanted to apologize for arriving in the middle of the night, making noise.  She shared that she and her husband had been traveling from Ohio when their truck broke down.  So they purchased a new truck to make the journey.  I learned my new friends were named Jo and Jason.  Jason went to sleep after the long day and drive.  Jo and I shared stories while watching the moon set and the sun rise. We moved from my hammock area and drank our morning coffee while sitting in the river, watching the sunrise.  Jason joined us shortly after sunrise then continued setting up there camp.

This couple made a major purchase of a brand-new truck to complete their journey to TMMR.  It was that important to them to attend.  Jo and Jason are small business owners and work hard all year long, so this event was a true revival for them.  Jo posted her and Jason’s truck broke down story on the social media app Instagram.  The TMMR officials learned about their story of determination to attend the revival despite their truck breaking down.  The TMMR officials text messaged Jo and wanted to meet her.  Jo and Jason returned from the meeting and were excited to report that the staff was to honor them during opening ceremonies on the main stage for the bands.  Jason was preparing what to say during the ceremony.

On the evening of the ceremony, Brad and I arrived early to get close to the stage.  Each evening, the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem were played before the bands performed.  This was a neat experience to feel the positive patriotic energy of the performers and of the crowd.  Jo and Jason were introduced by Loretta Lynn’s daughter or granddaughter. She spoke a little about Jo and Jason.  She was holding the microphone in front of Jason so he could tell his story.  Jason took hold of the microphone and began walking around the stage as he told his story.  I could tell that the organizers didn’t plan on that.  Maybe they were trying to keep to a schedule, and Jason was going to keep talking!  I had a flash of amusement as I thought the organizer was discretely trying to take the microphone back from Jason.  The story was told.  It was then announced that TMMR sponsor, Budweiser, had a gift for Jo and Jason.  The gift could help out if their truck broke down again.  Brad immediately thought Budweiser was donating a pickup truck to them.  As the spotlight moved to the side of the stage, a red and white Budweiser-themed bicycle rolled out.  Jo and Jason were presented with a Budweiser beach cruiser-type bicycle.  Cool gift!

Aqua Banjo Man

There we are, under two blue pop-up shelters that are usually seen around the fields at youth sporting events.  It is a dark and chilly night.  We were sharing stories with Kevin and Donna’s family when rain began to fall in sheets. Water was pouring off the edges of the pop-up shelters and splashing the backs of people seated in their camp chairs.  People stood and scooted their chairs towards the center to escape the range of the splashing cold rain.  Then, all the lights went out in the campground.  Kevin turned on his generator, which turned on the outdoor lights strung under the canopy of his two pop-up shelters.  The camping area immediately around us was pitch black.  The only lights were the lights under the shelter we were in.

There are about 8 of us under the two shelters.  We were engaged in stories, resulting in smiles and laughs as we shared some drinks.  Kevin and Donna shared some unique and awesome experiences raising a family abroad.  All their children are now adults and have impressive accomplishments.  Brad and I were telling stories from our Nowhere Rides.  

As the rain began to fall in sheets, a man and woman came running from the darkness.  The man had a banjo on his back.  The woman had dreadlocked hair that hung to her waist.  Their energy screamed minimalist, carefree nomads.  They asked if they could seek shelter from the rain under the canopy.  The couple stated they were on their way back to their tent when the heavy rain hit.  Brad offered the man with the banjo a can of beer.  The man gladly accepted the beer.  Instead of opening the beer, the man immediately placed the beer in his back pocket.  Yes, he hurriedly slid the beer can in his back pocket! I saw the man’s eyes light up when he spotted the bottle of bourbon on the table.  He asked if he could have a shot of bourbon.  I grabbed the bottle and a disposable shot glass and poured a shot for him.  He took the cup from my hand and poured the shot down his throat in one quick, fluid motion.  He obviously had experience with this motion of drinking shots. Without voicing any words, the guy smiled and then showed me the empty cup.  It was as if he was silently asking for another second shot.  After the second shot was gone, he silently held the empty cup to me.  He was asking for another.  Three shots of good bourbon in a row!  I usually sip and enjoy good bourbon.   

After the third shot of bourbon, the man started playing his banjo.  The group under the canopy gave attention to the first couple of songs.  Then we returned to their conversations, which were previously interrupted by these two carefree nomads.  I spoke with the banjo player’s girlfriend.  I learned that the man plays with one of the bands playing on stage at the rally.  As conversations continued, I heard the banjo player singing a chorus over and over.  The tuned words chanted something like this: “Would you pour me some more bourbon, please? I know you want to. I want you to.  Pour me a little more bourbon, please.”  He sang these words a few times as I saw his girlfriend smiling ear to ear at my discovery of the chorus.  I obliged and poured a shot. I extending the shot to the banjo player.  One fluid motion, and it was gone, the cup returned and extended towards me for another.  I poured another.  He extended the empty cup to me again.  I grimaced.  He spoke this time.  He told me this one was for his girlfriend.  Well, okay, I poured another shot, acknowledging this girlfriend on the opposite side of the shelter. The banjo man quickly drank it and formed a big smile.  Moments later, he thanked us for the hospitality.  He and his girlfriend departed the shelter, running into the rain and darkness.  Brad snapped this picture of us.  He said I reluctantly poured the bourbon.  The rain-soaked banjo bourbon drinker will be forever known to us as the Aqua Banjo Man.  This banjo-strapped stranger appeared from the dark rain.  Pocketed our beer.  Drank our bourbon.  Shared some songs.  Drank more bourbon.  Disappeared into the dark rain shower.  Cheers to you, Aqua Banjo Man, and your girlfriend. 

TMMR Events

The Tennessee Motorcycles & Music Revival (TMMR) 2025 ranks at the top of the list for motorcycle rallies we’ve experienced.  It is a family-friendly environment.  Loretta Lynn’s Ranch is amazing for this type of event.  The river, the hills, and trees offer the perfect outdoor setting.  Everyone we encountered was friendly.  Everyone was there to have. Great time with music and motorcycles.

Some notable rally events we witnessed were:

- Charity Rubber Duck Race.  Ducks were numbered and released in the creek.  The ducks raced down the current to a designated finish line.  Someone scooped up the first duck to check the number to declare the winner.  About a dozen folks with fishing nets captured all the rubber ducks as they passed the finish line.

- Hill Climb.  The Ranch has a designated hill to host the famous hill climb.  Picture-perfect location with old grain silos across the road where visitors park in the grass.  We saw motorcycles of all types - dirt bikes and full dressers (touring bikes) race up the hill.  There were a few riders that were probably 12 years old who raced up the hill competing with the gray-bearded riders. 

- Belly Flop Contest.  There is a pool near Honky Tonk Central camping area.  The pool had guys and gals of all ages competing in the belly flop contest, splashing as they landed chest-first in the pool.

- Dirt Track Race.  This was awesome to watch as bikes raced around the track and through the dust.

- Slow Race.  These are always fun to watch.  All ages and all types of motorcycles.  This one was elimination.  Winners kept circling the track to race again until the slowest rider was remaining.

- Classic Motorcycle Bike Show. I always get excited admiring the details of classic bikes with unique assessors and their paint.

- Burn out contest. Exciting.  Bring ear plugs and stay down wind from the smoke!

- Kick Start Contest. This one was interesting.  Need to know “how” to kick start a bike to win. It is more than just kicking the pedal!

- Parade of bikes through the camp.  This happened a few times I think. I saw a lot of young riders on their small bikes enjoying the attention.

- Cage of Death.  I think there were two motorcycles and a person inside the round cage.  The motorcycles were orbiting the person standing in the middle. 

- Bands.  It impressed me that the Pledge Of Allegiance and the National Anthem were played each night during opening ceremonies before the bands performed. 

This was a family friendly music and motorcycle event.  Brad and I felt like it was definitely a revival - we enjoyed it and consider the rally the best we’ve attended!

Black Widow

I arrived at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch a day or two before the events started.  I set up my hammock next to the river.  I put my rain tarp up over my hammock for shade.  I was relaxing in my hammock when a woman parked down the river from my campsite.  She drove a small car and parked where the gravel meets the grass.  She was obviously  much older than I.  She displayed a handicap tag from her vehicle.  I saw her pull a new tent out of its box.  I know tents can be a challenge to set up for the first time.  It is a good idea to practice setting up the tent at home.  I watched her efforts figuring out the new tent for a minute or two.  Then I went over to introduce myself.  She welcomed my assistance setting up her tent.  Together we made the task much easier.  It was a large tent and I could not imagine setting it up alone.

I discovered that this woman has been attending TMMR for several years.  She was here last year, and her friend had been killed in an unfortunate freak accident.  A motorcycle was traveling through the vendor area.  Her friend and she were crossing the street.  The motorcycle struck her friend.  Her friend hit her head on the pavement and later died from the head injury.  The woman telling me the story was walking next to her friend when she was struck by the motorcycle.  It was a difficult thing to experience.  So the woman decided to come to the TMMR event this year to honor her late friend.  She rented a golf cart to get safely around the venue.  The golf cart was a great idea.  She had a seat at all the events.  The cart could be parked in prime spots to view the events.    

As the conversation continues, I discover this woman went on a cruise last fall.  This is the same year as the unfortunate accident.  It was her and a different girlfriend on the cruise.  While the ship was underway, her friend passed away.  This was just a few months after the motorcycle accident that claimed her other friend.  I decided to keep my distance from this woman who was now referred to as the Black Widow.  I say that lightheartedly.  She was a nice woman honoring her friend.  I remember mornings sitting in the creek sipping my coffee.  I look downstream and see her tent perched on the riverbank.  The door to her tent opens.  She’d step outside and give me a wave before starting her morning routine.  I’d wave back.  

TMMR

 The Tennessee Motorcycles & Music Revival (TMMR) was the highlight of our 2025 Nowhere Ride.  Brad and I both agree that it was the best rally we’ve been to!  The annual event goes in the spring at the Queen of Country and Legendary Songwriter, Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee.  The Ranch is an awesome setting with lots of trees, a creek, hills, and cool people!

 TMMR is four days of music and motorcycle events that will revive your soul. The Ranch is huge and offers many RV and camping sites.  There is Vendor Alley where swag and related products are for sale.  There are a couple of bars and food trucks. Many events throughout the days are scheduled.  All events are family-friendly.  The venue was packed with folks of all ages.  I was impressed by how friendly, respectful, and happy everyone was at this rally.  I saw zero aggressive behavior.  This was truly a setting to revive your soul!

 Brad was on vacation, spending some time with family in Virginia.  There must have been a lot of alcohol involved because he told me he woke up one morning to see Yogi Bear driving a golf cart through the campground.  I met Brad at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch.  He had reserved an RV site at Honky Tonk Central, a camping location designated for RVs.  He set up his RV and unloaded his motorcycle and mini bikes.  I am happy he brought two mini bikes.  We rode those bikes all over the camping areas!  

 I set up in what is called Camping Area 3 along Hurricane Creek.  I drove my Jeep and pulled my motorcycle on a utility trailer.  I was one of the first campers to arrive in that area, so I set up my hammock pretty close to the creek.  I enjoyed every morning with my feet in the water.  I returned to the creek in the afternoons.  I put a chair in the creek at just the right depth to enjoy the water’s current around my back and body.  A few folks would join me sitting in the water.  Several people floated by on rafts and tubes.  What a way to spend the day!  An amazing camping experience!

2018 Ride to the Prairies of the Midwest (Iowa & Illinois)

Stafford to Gatlinburg. Have you ever been on a motorcycle trip wishing it would rain? The ambient temperature gauge on my 2006 Street Glide reads 100 degrees. It is hot and sunny. I could see the dark rain clouds ahead. I can see heavy rain falling in the distance. The cold rain showers me for a few short minutes. I immediately took shelter by stopping under a gas station pump canopy. I check my handy dandy weather radar phone app. The app shows more rain ahead. I put on my rain suit with the idea that the rain is not going to interrupt my ride. I am back on the road. The ambient temperature gauge fell to just below the 90 degree mark. The cold rain feels pretty good cooling my skin as it pelts against my rain suit. In less than ten minutes the sun appears. The clouds are gone. The sky is clear ahead. That ambient temperature gauge on my dash shoots back up to 100 degrees. I still have my rain suit on. I begin to think, that radar app has been accurate in the past. Where is the rest of the rain? I start to feel like a turkey baking in a plastic oven bag. All I see is blue skies ahead. Where is that rain? I’ve only been in the rain suit a short distance. I feel that it took longer to put on the rain suit than the time I spent wearing it in the rain. Should I take it off? Will it rain again as the weather radar app indicated? What if I took off the turkey oven bag...the rain suit? How long will it take me to dry off if it does rain again? I was suited up and ready for more rain. Baking in the rain suit I wanted a downpour so badly. I eventually stopped to get out of the rai suit. 

Great Smoky Mountains. 

My first stop was Gatlinburg Tennessee. During breakfast I did a map study plotting the day's ride. I was to navigate west making my way from Virginia to Iowa. I jotted down a few notes with a numbers direction indicators such as LT (left), RT (right), EAST, WEST in large enough writing for me to reference while navigating the mountains. I began the days ride enjoying the cool morning air as I rode thru the tunnel of trees in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I had the direction notes wedged to my gas tank for quick reference. I found the road leading to Clingman’s Dome. It is the highest point in Tennessee and the Appalachian Trail crosses it - so I had to go. I enjoy backpacking while not on the motorcycle and could not resist a short hike. So as usual, I deviated from the loosely planned route. I changed out my riding boots for my hiking shoes and walked up to the lookout known as Clingman’s Dome. Awesome site above the trees. 

 

I felt satisfied after the hike. I am back on the bike enjoying the twisty road thru the National Forest. I enjoyed the coolness of the shade and curves so much that I must have missed a turn. I was surprised to read a road sign that stated, “Asheville 10 miles.” I think to myself, how did I end up east of Gatlinburg and almost into North Carolina? Easy fix, I’ll avoid a U-turn and navigate west again. The minor detour was worth it when I recognized that the revised route took me to the “Tail of the Dragon.” It had been a few years since I rode this route. I’ve also taken a motorcycle safety course or two since then. I was stoked to be able use some of the new leaning skills from a sports bike course taken last year. So in my brain I was flying around the turns. Lifting my body off the seat pushing the bike upright more so I could take the curves faster and with more tire traction. I was getting the hang of it, moving off the seat to the left, then immediately to the right and so forth. The curves were coming faster and faster. I was feeling like a pro sports bike racer on my old Harley. Well, that was until I downshifted while leaning in a turn. The rear tire squealed sliding slightly to one side. It felt like I was sliding on a banana peel. Reality set in and now in my mind I was a weekend rider who was riding the curves much to fast on an old Harley. So I counted my blessings for keeping the motorcycle upright. I slowed down the rest of the way into Maryville, Tennessee. 

Brad will tell you that my bike needs service or breaks down during our annual rides. Well....It did. I arrived in the Tennessee town of Franklin. It is near Nashville. I stopped on a not so busy street to check the map. I needed to find a place to sleep. I searched for parks and hotels. Yes, I sleep in parks at times. I got back on the bike and it would not start. The battery was dead. I am in a no parking zone. It is dark. I pushed the bike around the corner to a better parking spot along the street. I am in downtown Franklin. No hotels near. I think that I should have learned to use that Uber App! Instead of calling a taxi to help me find a hotel, I contacted a new friend who I met running the Marine Corps Marathon the year prior. Surprisingly the new friend arrived in minutes. We decided that I’d go to a hotel and tackle the problem together the next morning. The next morning we went to my bike. Removed the battery and took it to the Harley dealership to get a new one. By the time we got back to my motorcycle the temperature was pretty hot. I put the new battery in the bike and it started immediately. Sounds simple - not. In order to access the battery I had to remove my seat. In order to remove the seat I had to take off my chopped tour pack. Lucky I had a tool kit with everything I needed. I need to add a short screw driver so I might not need to take off the tour pack next time. 

My new friend and I went to lunch in Nashville. We both ended up with parking tickets! 

Iowa. The next day, I met Brad near Burlington, Iowa. He was at Conesvilles, Iowa at the RedNeck Revival and Rally. Brad had already parked his camper and was making new friends. I rode the camp grounds observing the temporary residents. There was a paved drag strip with bleacher seating. Tent camping was on one side of the strip and RV type camping was on the other side. This was a motorcycle type rally and it had four wheeled vehicles to race down the track. The race participants are some awesome fearless people! I saw professional cars with nitro, professional motorcycle race bikes, every day riders racing their bikes, golf cart racing, ATVs racing and there was a picnic table that raced down the track. Yes, a picnic table. I got to ride it around the camp ground. It was pretty neat. There is a pole on it for entertainment too. I hear it is pretty popular at Conesville. 

Conesville Drag Strip - you can race your bike against yourself if you like. There is plenty of open track time before the competition begins. 

In addition to the drag strip I witnessed:

· That motorized picnic table was an automatic party where ever it went. 

· Mud bog. I saw a big tired truck get stuck and pulled out. There was a daily driver Ford Explorer that had the doors removed and it was first in the mud. I think the four rednecks inside had removed their clothes too. 

· There was a male and female dash or gash for cash event. It was a foot race thru the mud. The contestants were slipping and sliding to the finish. The prize was a bucket of money that was passed around the crowd for donations. Part of the donations went to a local charity. The runners were pretty smart. They avoided dirty laundry by taking off all their clothes before the mud run. Ha! 

· Zip Line at the main stage area. There was a large ten foot cylinder thingy laying near the end of the zip line. People were falling off the zip line bouncing on the soft cylindrical thingy. I heard a story that some broke their legs the year before so the height of the zip line was lowered. 

· Did I mention there was a drag strip? It was the main attraction! 

Next stop was Savanna, Illinois. 

The ride from Burlington, Iowa to Savanna, Illinois wasn’t far. We had a slight delay to fix the tire on the trailer Brad was using for his bike. We were at one shop to repair the tire but I ended up riding to another shop to get the new tire to be mounted on the rim that was at the other shop. I am scratching my head trying to remember how this happened. Regardless have a cool picture of the spare tire tied to my rear seat. 

In Savanna, we set up camp down the road from a well known place called Poopies Pub. We spend a few days exploring the small town along the Mississippi River. We frequented Poopies and the Iron Horse Saloon. The Iron Horse has a really neat museum in the back of the building. It also has a horse statue up front near the bar. That horse gets rode often with people dancing and having fun around it. Poopies Pub had a live band nearly every night we were there. We ate our meals there since it was close to camp. It rained there every day during our stay. Despite the rain we rode north to Dubuque, Iowa for lunch at Catfish Charlie’s. It rained the whole ride. So from Dubuque we rode west to the J&P Cycle mega store. Well it used to be a mega store. You can still order from the catalog but the brick and mortar (warehouse really) store has down sized. Brad and I both were soaking wet because our rain suits failed. I know my rain suit is about 12 years old with literally hundreds of miles of use. The set has hundreds of hours baking in my saddle bags too. So we were going to get new rain suits from J&P Cycles but there were none on display or in stock. A group of riders coming from Milwaukee had just wiped out their store inventory. So Brad had the idea to go to Walmart and get some water repellent spray - we did and it worked. 

Dutch Windmills at Fulton, Illinois. This Dutch Wind Mill is near the bank of the Mississippi River directly across from Clinton, Iowa. There is a museum to learn about the story of the wind mills and the town. It is worth the short detour if you are riding thru. There are some neat downtown small town shops too. We got some home made pie around the corner. 

Bike Repairs at Rock Falls, Illinois. After sampling all the homemade pies in Fulton, we decided to visit Workman Harley Davidson in Rock Falls Illinois. I lived near the area and the team at Workman’s has done much of the maintenance on my motorcycle. I continue to visit Workman’s during my rides for tires, brakes, and maintenance. This dealership is special because it is family operated and as a result has outstanding customer service - why else would I ride fourteen hours to get maintenance done? So I thought my clutch was failing. I wanted to get a mechanic to take a look at it. On the way, we stopped for gas and Brad’s bike would not start. His battery was dead! I think this was the first breakdown for Brad during our rides together. Brad had the idea that we could connect the pigtails for our battery tenders together to jump the batteries. We connected the wires with no success in starting his bike. We asked a gentleman in a pick up truck for a battery jump. Sounds easy but that seat had to be removed and we were wearing rain suits. Whew what an experience. Check out the pic of Brad. He had fun with the jumper cables! 

We arrived at Workman’s. Brad got a new battery. The mechanic came to talk to me - my clutch was in great condition. When the inspection cover was removed oil exploded out of the clutch side! There is normally four ounces of fluid on that side. The engine seals had blown. The excess fluid had made it difficult to shift into neutral. Luckily the bike warranty was still active. The bike stayed the night at the shop. I have been renewing my warranty since I purchased the motorcycle in 2005. I discovered that I could not renew the warranty for another term. The motor company stated the bike was over 12 years old and they would not issue another warranty for it. Perhaps it was my warranty history. I’ve used it as needed which was frequent. 

Once my bike was repaired Brad and I visited a place called Psycho Silo Saloon. It is located just south of I-80 near Langley, Illinois. It is a grain silo turned into a saloon. This is a unique place to see too if you find yourself traveling I-80 across Illinois. It continued to rain until we arrived in the parking lot at Psycho Silo. We noticed some tents set up for an event. Tables with center pieces and motorcycles on display under the large tents. We saw no people. In the parking lot, Brad was getting out of his rain suit and putting on a dry pair of jeans. He is standing beside his motorcycle in his underwear when two dozen cars pull in one after the other just as if they all convoyed together. The cars were loaded with people. It turns out the tents were set up for a wedding reception. There is Brad getting dressed beside his motorcycle! 

We stayed one more night in Illinois and headed home. I know it rained 100% of the time during the two days it took me to get back to Virginia. 

More photos to view are at:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/tKFeaVb5bgUPtbqZ9