Day 18 (9/23/11)

Well, my string of dry cloudless days ended today. As I was packing up to head off to the BMW Motorcycle Owners Association Head Quarters this morning it was raining slightly. So, I broke out the rain gear again. I really can't complain, as it has been stowed since Chicago on day 3. The BMW OA is essentially a large club of BMW enthusiasts that is made up of smaller local clubs around the world. The head quarters ataff are the paid employees that tend to the business of the club and produce the monthly Owner's New Magazine. This magazine is one of the best motorcycle magazines out there and is chocked full of interesting ride reports, product reviews and regular articles on a number of topics of interest to the enthusiast. Several members of the Mac Pac are regular contributors to the effort, and others have supplied articles of interest over the years. It was great to meet the staff, take a few pictures and share the story about my mission trip. Vince has already linked my website to the BMWMOA website and written a short story about my trip. Thanks folks and I look forward to seeing you at next year's rally.
From Ellisville, Mo. I headed south and crossed the Mississippi into Illinois. I changed my route slightly to hug the river and ride through some of the low lands behind the levies. This route made sure I hit the very western edge of Kentucky which was my goal. Also on my list for the day was to sample some "Memphis Bar-B-Q". Well my stomach was growling and it was clear that I would need to eat before I got to Memphis. The first place I stopped had an outdoor pit and the smell of the burning wood was fantastic, but the cigarette smoking, beer drinking owner quickly told me he was all out of Bar-B-Q. Obviously he was not much of a business man as Bar-B-Q was all he sold. Oh well, sometimes fate has something better in store for us and today it did! About 20 miles down the road I saw a small place called Nicky's Bar-B-Q. Nicky was sitting at the counter tending to his papework and I was the only customer. I asked if I could have a sample plater of each of the kinds of meat he smokes. He said "sure we can do that". The two waitresses quickly had a heaping plate of smoked pork ribs, pulled pork, ham, bologna, and beef briskit along with a side of cole slaw and a piece of pecan pie ready for me. This was a real man's platter and not for the"Calfornia Vegan Crowd". :-) I was up for the task today and it was fabulous. There is something about hickory smoked meat that just sends the taste buds into overdrive. I got talking to Nicky (Imagine that ) about the certificate on his wall relating to the "winter storm of 09". It seems these parts had a terrible ice storm that deposited 3 to 4 inches of ice on everything including wires telephone poles and trees. He showed me pictures of the damage and it was like nothing I have ever seen. He said parts of the are were without power for 27 days. Crews came from all over the country to clean up the mess and restore electric to the region. I told Nicky about my ride and our compassion corner. As I was getting ready to leave he handed me a card with $50 stapled to it. I insisted that I did not want to take money as I preferred people send it directly to the church. I left him with the website and I am sure he will probably make a donation. When it came time for me to pay for my dinner, he would not allow me to pay. This trip has instilled in me a new faith in America. Lately I have been pretty down about the goings on in Washington with politicians that have forgotten what this country is all about. When you get out here and meet people like Nicky and the countless folks I have met along the way that have opened their homes to me, made donations to the cause and offered assistance and encouragement, you realize what a great country this is. I would encourage everyone to take on a cause and do something like this once in their life. It is truly an inspiration and something you will never forget. If you are ever in very western Kentucky please stop and have some of the best Bar-B-Q this land has to offer at Nicky's. He can be found at 3243 US HWY 51N. Clinton, KY 42031. You won't be disappointed. As a side note, I mentioned to Nicky that I had never seen a Pecan Tree. He quickly took me outside and showed me one I had almost parked my motorcycle under. This tree was 15 years old and he had grafted it onto another stem when it was young. He told me that for some reason, grafted trees produce nuts usually befor ungrafted trees do. Isn't nature amazing? I then headed south, crossed over the Ohio River into Tennessee and teen back across the Missippi into Arkansas. It gets confusing down here as there seem to be rivers everywhere, but it is easy to keep them straight because the Mississippi is muddy and the Ohio is clear. Hmmm never knew that, but it makes sense. I decided to stop in Arkansas across the river from Memphis as it seems a little safer to park a motorcycle over here and the motels are cheaper. I was able to find one for less than a camping spot at the local KOA, so I will sleep in a bed again tonight. YES! No "Iron Butt" hotel for me. The sky has cleared, so hopefully I will not have to wear the rain gear again tomorrow. One of these days it will surely warm up and it is so much more bearable if you don't have to wear that extra rain gear. It sounds like the east coast is still getting hammered by rain. I hope it all clears out before I start heading up that way. I am ready for a nice clear cool fall! I am having trouble adding pictures. Will try to edit them in when I have a better connection tomorrow.