Memorial Weekend BC Trip

[Netnorske]

Well I'm sure most of you know Tricia and I had planned a trip up to Armstrong, BC Memorial Weekend to visit and ride with Mike and Lorna Donahue....aka lomax. Ballast was hoping to go too but you know about his problems as well....

We had planned to meet Rickyboy, Hammer and Elvis just across the border and share some miles on our way north. Well...with the crappy weather we were facing for the weekend.....we decided to GO ANYWAYS.... ::)! We decided we weren't going to let a little rain spoil our plans to get away for a few days.

Saturday we awoke to a pretty serious rain, but donned our rain gear and headed north. Just across the border, we did meet Rickyboy and Hammer for a coffee....although they were smart enough to drive their cars over. Elvis called and took a rain check, understandably so as he had farther to come. After a short visit, Tricia and I trudged onward.

We made gas stops in Hope and Merritt before shooting east on 97C toward Westbank, a suburb of Kelowna. In Merritt, I called Mike and could almost hear the disbelief in his voice when I told him where we were . Nonetheless....it was drier near Kelowna so he and Lorna rode down to meet us in Westbank. We took a leisurely route back to their place in Armstrong (about and hour north of Kelowna), then settled in for a good home-cooked meal and a few (too many) cocktails before calling it a day!

Sunday we awoke to a pretty decent day, with broken clouds and a good deal of sunshine.... ! We fired up the steeds and took some great back roads west towards Kamloops, then back east toward Salmon Arm and Sicamous, where we stopped for a great lunch just as a little shower fell. After lunch, we headed back south toward Armstrong and out from under that brief shower. All in all....it was great day of riding....and the nap we all took upon our return was just about as good!

On a side note....the place we had lunch in Sicamous is where we plan to meet up with Mike and Lorna for breakfast on our way to Kalispell later this summer (Kamloops to Banff leg)!! It is a gorgeous area for sure!

It was on the ride Saturday while following him when I really took notice of how great Mike's bike looks! His sig pic does not do it justice. His is as clean and chrome a Nomad as I have seen anywhere...just an outstanding looking motorcycle, well cared for with great sounding V&H Baggers! It is a 2001 and only has 20K on it.... !!!!

Monday (today)....we got an early start toward home and rode about an hour to Kelowna before we stopped for breakfast and fuel. Here we put our rain gear back on until we reached Hope, where the leathers went back on for the remainder of the ride! I will say this....I am very happy with the rain gear we have. It is top-of-the-line two-piece Carhartt stuff (about $300 a set)....but is breathable and completely impervious to rain. We rode in it all day long on Saturday and arrived dry as a bone.

As for finally meeting Mike and Lorna....it was a real pleasure to spend some time in their home and their company....what a great couple! They were very gracious in their hospitality and we can't wait to return the favor. It is so very cool to get to meet and hang out with the people from this forum.....it really brings it full circle and strengthens the bonds and friendships we make here.

Do yourself a favor and make every effort to attend one or more of the Regional Rallies planned for this summer. Give yourself a chance to meet the good folks of KawaNOW...they are a great bunch! Ride safe and thanks again to Mike and Lorna for all of their wonderful hospitality! And one last thing.....don't let a little rain get in the way of a good ride....you don't know what you might miss... ;)!



Just after crossing the border at meeting place with Rick and Dave...





Lomax (Mike) and Netnorske (Kris)





Mike and Lorna





Kris and Tricia





All four of us......

[schoeney]

Nice write up Kris. Glad you all got to meet and had a good time.

[elvis]

Kris,
Sounds like you guys had a very good time. Thanks for the write-up and photos. I'm sure you're already planning your next ride... Hope to ride with you this Summer.
Cheers,
E.

[ballast]

Really glad to hear it was a success. I'll get it together so I can do some of these with you. Thanks for sharing.

[rickyboy]

Glad to hear you and Tricia made it home and had a good time with Mike and his wife. It would have been nice to ride for a ways with you. But we'll get a chance sometime soon I'm sure.

I sure agree with you about meeting the KawaNOW members Kris. Everyone of them so far, have been great people.

[lomax]

Thanks for posting the pics and the very nicely written notes Kris. We are a very unruly looking crew, aren't we??

The weekend was an absolute joy for sure. Meeting Kris and Tricia and hanging out/riding with them was a real pleasure. They are both outstanding people and we were most happy to have them in our home. We had some nice conversation, some laughs and a few to many cocktails (Tekillya- I have since recovered ) But they do have funny accents EH?

Our Sunday ride was very nice, although the weather seems like its always a factor these days. I finally had the chance to hear the Ultimate Baffles and they do sound very nice, although a bit louder than regular V+H baffles. I'm sure Kris would have liked to show his bike some cleaner, but after the ride they had coming up, it had a good amount of road grime on it. I still had to admire his ride and how he has it nicely pimped out. Sunday evening we visited a local eatery and enjoyed a nice meal and some more conversation. Later, a few more cocktails and some more laughs.

A very enjoyable weekend for sure. Thanks to Kris and Tricia for braving the elements to get up here.

Lorna had to watch closely that Tricia was not stuffing our little dog into a saddlebag when they left.

We're looking forward to our next chance to visit with our new friends! :)

Ride Safe!

Mike and Lorna

[Netnorske]

Originally Posted by lomax

Lorna had to watch closely that Tricia was not stuffing our little dog into a saddlebag when they left.....

Good thing too....'cause she was sure taken with that little guy and would have found a spot for him in a second!! For me....I would have hijacked your grand-daughter Faith. Wow.....she sure is a cutie... :)! She stole both our hearts in the short time we got to be around her. We can easily see why you guys will be so sad when your son and his family move south... :'(.

Originally Posted by schoeney

Nice write up Kris. Glad you all got to meet and had a good time.

Thanks Greg. Mike mentioned he is anxious to meet you....although I'm still trying to figure out why.... ::)....lol.....J/K!