As some know, I have taken a hiatus from LD rallies for the last few years due to my goals in other areas of my life. I stayed connected by volunteering and bonus scouting. It still was a pain to watch rally riders leave and come back and not be a part of the fun. 2009 marked my return and I had a blast.
A couple things were new this time around. Deb and I road together (she had a blast too!). We didn't have much for technology aids and what we do have is outdated by todays standards. Another thing that was new is neither one of us has put on a thousand mile day in over two years due to other commitments. We new we had our work cut out for us.
This years event focused bonuses north and east for the competitive riders. Our route plan headed us east to Green Bay, WI, North to Marquette, MI, west to Duluth, MN, south to Hinckley, Mn for our rest bonus, Then back to the start Leo's in Lakeville, MN. Deb and I thought this would be a nice conservative 1000 route and that many riders would choose because it was a natural circle with many bail out points toward the end if for some reason we would need them.
Animal highlights of the rally included skunks, coons, possums, deer and a bear (Since when did they change the rules and deer could dart out in front of you in the middle of a north Wisconsin town!). Our bonus highlights included sending us to Lambeau Field to get a photo bonus with Vince Lombardy (mean rally bastard), the worlds largest talking cow in Neilsville, WI, Stonington lighthouse in Michigan, Victoria Dam in Michigan, and riding through the after-Grandmas Marathon party in Duluth (live music while waiting at the stoplights was awesome!).
My favorite bonus was Bob's Java Hut Sunday morning. The bonus was open Friday, Saturday, and for about 40 minutes Sunday morning. If you went Friday it was worth 500 points, Saturday it went up to 700, Sunday it went up again to 850 points. They opened up a half hour early Sunday so the 30+ of us riders who were waiting could tell lies about the rally while slurping down the best Lattes in town before we headed back to Lakeville and the scoring table. That's the way all rallies should end!
We finished respectable- Deb took fifth in the expert class, and I took second in the Sport/Touring class so we both won wood. We didn't leave anything at the scoring table and we had a full 24 hours of non-stop Fun!
Alls-right again in my little world, I wonder what's in store for next year?