Past Rides

2019 May 30 - June 4 -Louisiana Shuffle-Tribute to Dave

A Bayou, Voodoo, Gypsy journey, a special ride that you won’t need a motorcycle to take, and there's even a little country stirred in for y’all.

Lafayette, LA. Thursday May 30th Friday May 31st Saturday June 1st

New Orleans, LA. Sunday June 2nd Monday June 3rd

Meridian, MS. Tuesday June 4th

The Lucky 13

2013 Lucky Thirteen.....Thirteen days ... Maine to North Carolina

A motorcycle ride, casino gamblin’, and seein’ old friends, what more could a guy from West Texas ask. Well, an adventure from Maine to North Carolina for thirteen beautiful days in June sounds good. The best part of this experience would be riding with some of the finest riders on the road. The ride would take us to five gaming houses along the Eastern Seaboard.

The riders met up in Poland Spring, Maine. They came from Canada, Illinois, Oklahoma, and all throughout the New England states. Some of us had met before, for others this would begin new bonds. Each rider would ante up $100, from which any casino winnings would be split at the end of the ride.

After a get-acquainted dinner and rider’s meeting at the Oxford Casino, all spent time in the gaming rooms. No overwhelming success here, but hey, there would be more casinos along the way.

Our next stop was Mystic, Connecticut. Touring this historical seaport was fun, as well as a great dining experience. The best of chowders and oh, the seafood ... wow, nothing like this on the Great Plains! And the casino welcomed our wallets with outstretched palms.

Leaving for Vermont, ‘Joey Bones’, our ride coordinator, split off to take delivery on a new bike, the end result of some motor problems on the way North from Tennessee. Soon we ran into others who joined the group, even if just for a short while.

From Mystic to New York State all riders were together again. The ride up through the Adirondack's was spectacular and chilly—ahead, some more great chili and a stop at Lake Placid. You should see the ride video.

The Akwesasne Mohawk Casino in Hogansburg, NY provided good food and a place to leave some cash behind. Then out along the St. Lawrence Seaway and on to Auburn, NY for a couple of nights.

Next, we headed toward West Virginia's capitol, Charleston, spending an evening in Pennsylvania; then on to La Valle, Maryland. Nearby at Cross Lanes, we spent two nights. The first was our best attempt at winning more than any other evening, and the next was to rest up from our day exploring the New River Gorge and the historic railroad town of Thurmond, WV.

A quiet ride to Hillsville, VA turned out to be a rain drenched soaker. A quick lesson from a master in setting up a dry cleaners in a motel room, resulted in warm and somewhat fresh clothes for the next day's ride to Cherokee, North Carolina.

A visit to Harrah's Cherokee Casino left us all wanting for more. Unfortunately, the next morning brought the end of one of the most exhilarating rides I had ever done. I believe the bonds of friendship we formed will remain with us for many rides to come, if not eternity.

Oh, you're wondering how we did at the gaming tables? Well, I’m still workin'

2013 To Hell with my Friends

It was a dark and stormy Monday in September when the riders left Clarksdale, Mississippi for Robert Johnson's gravesite. Their charge had begun 12 days earlier in Paradise near Sault Sainte Marie. Riding south into Hell, the group of 22 riders had been tasked with retrieving the soul of the father of the Blues and returning it to his

gravesite near Greenwood Mississippi.

Upon meeting the devil, Joey Bones made a challenge, his soul for Robert Johnson's. Fooling that demon wasn't easy, but a quick flip of a coin was all it t

ook. With a toss of that coin with the two sides the same, Joey bested that old master of trickery. "We make our own luck in The Flash Mob!", he shouted. With that we each showed our exit visa from Hell and were freed onto the open road.It was a dark and stormy Monday in September when the riders left Clarksdale, Mississippi for Robert Johnson's gravesite. Their charge had begun 12 days earlier in Paradise, near Sault Sainte Marie. Riding south into Hell, Michigan, the group of 22 riders had been tasked with retrieving the soul of the father of the Blues and returning it to his gravesite near Greenwood Mississippi.

Headed past the Damn Site Inn we dined on a fine feast. Traveling through Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee, the riders came from as far away as Japan to make the pilgrimage. The ride would confirm many old friendships and establish several new ones.

Further south the Demon had another challenge in store. A ride through the Devil's Triangle was the next call to action before we arrived in the Secret City to visit Big Ed. Big Ed's son presented us with delicious Italian pies.

In Lynchburg some visited with Jack who bestowed a commemorative container, emblazoned with the Flash Mob logo, upon the few who stopped there in the wilds of Tennessee.

Drifting down through Fall Creek Falls State Park the riders enjoyed the coolness of the water and the shade of the trees, then down the Natchez Trace into Tupelo and on to Clarksdale. Stopping for the night at the Shack Up Inn the riders rested up in the comfortable surroundings and celebrated with another party. Exploring this town, many were lost in the Blues and music history.

That last morning came with a frightful rain. The Devil was doing his best to keep his hold on the Blues legend's soul. Lots of lightning kept the riders off the roads until after dining at Abe's.

With the clearing skies the small group of remaining riders proceeded to Rosedale, Mississippi and on to the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church graveyard near Greenwood. Here they returned the Bluesman Robert Johnson's soul to him after nearly 80 years.

***Written by Gary Holwick(Sugar Man)

2012 Key West to Seattle

How we got to a ride from Key West to Seattle is a story in itself and much too long for this recap, but I will tell you it started with a conversation in Indianapolis at the Moto GP afterparty.

We met in Key West at Mallory Square where the sunset was good, the drinks were better and the company was great!! There were 22 who took part in some or all of the ride and it was well over 3,000 miles when we reached Seattle, thus completing the inaugural Flash Mob ride.

Some of the "no shit, there we were" highlights, other than the fore mentioned, included places we visited like, Land Between The Lakes, Jack Daniels Distillery, Nebraska State Fair, Red Lodge, Bear Tooth Pass, Cody and the Irma Hotel, Yellow Stone Nat'l Park, Pike Place Market, Space Needle, Original Starbucks and yes, a few Harley Dealers . We ate and toasted the ride at places like the Green Turtle, Lake Harris Hideaway, Black Cow, Lambert’s Cafe, Patti’s 1880’s Settlement, Red Lodge Cafe and The Central Saloon, just to mention a few.

There were plenty of individual side trips we took and each has its own story. I'm sure we will share them time and time again, because if I know anything, I know this may have been the first Flash Mob Ride but it won't be the last!