Feb 11, 2007 - Chocolate Run
Ride Leader: Curt and Sue Pratt

Despite the weather's futile attempts to be 'too cold' for riding, 17 bikes (24 riders) from Chapter 124 were in Pontiac, ready for a ride north toward Marion, NC, just this side of Mt. Mitchell!  Carolina Chocolatiers held promise of chocolates and an amazing Sunday Buffet, so there was no good reason to stay home this day.

The ride took us on a tour thru the small towns west and north of us: Winnsboro, Chester, York, Blacksburg, Gaffney, then up into NC for Forest City and finally into Marion, NC.  Temps got up to the 50's but as we got into the foothills we began to lose even that bit of warmth but no one was worried, it was a beautiful morning and afternoon, the sun was bright and it was gorgeous back road cruising. 

We did learn some good places NOT to stop for rest breaks, places with no bathroom and places sporting only one room.  Waiting your turn with this many people just makes everything 'closer'.

The clock was always a factor and with just about 30 miles to go we stopped to call Joe at Carolina Chocolatiers to see if he could accommodate us being late.  Joe was perfect, he not only held the place open, he made us all feel welcome and put a veritable feast before us when we arrived.  I know we all appreciated this warmth and good food; we had been on the road nearly 6 hours by the time we arrived.  The time we spent eating was relaxing and replenishing.

The ride back home was fast, to beat the cold and the dark.  As we rolled south, the temps managed to stay in the upper 40's until our last stop in Newberry but again, no one was worried.
 
There weren't many other bikes out today, not unusual for February in the mountains so we raised the bar again.  The ride was an aggressive one, going that far in these temperatures but this group continually meets such challenges.   I come away with a new respect each time we ride. 

On being 124:
A line of bikes winds over small roads, the sun shines from a blue sky, engines roar almost as one, a person watches and waves hello, the line runs up the hill then slips from view ...

Ride total was 352 miles!