Welcome to Barber!My wife is gone for the weekend so the kids locked me up in a room with a cup of water and my laptop. We will see who gets the last laugh. With all that being said, I figured I would add a few more pictures from the recent trip.
On the fourth day, Matt and I left the lovely Deals Gap area and head south west to Birmingham, Alabama. I remember telling myself an hour out that I was ready to go back to our hotel and stay another day or two. I wasn't really ready to leave but we had a schedule to stick to. I am sure I will be back again.
On the way, we rode 129/74/64 to Chattanooga. Once you cross into Tennesse, you are on Old Copper road. This is another area I would go back to. The area was just awesome. The road is part of the Ocoee Scenic Byway.
Ocoee Scenic Byway, the first National Forest Byway in the nation, winds through the Cherokee National Forest, passing Parksville Lake and traveling through the scenic bluffs of the Ocoee River Gorge. I could not get enough the roaring river with the low mountains tucked in behind. As luck would have it, there was construction so we were at a snails pace. This is the one time Matt and I didn't mind rolling slow through an area.
As we were getting closer to Birmingham, the temperature rose. I was fricken hot. I am still experimenting with whats the right gear for me. I realized that when you wear protective clothing (jacket /pants) that are water proof, that also means that your body cannot breath. My jacket did not have the liner in it so I was ok there but my bottom half was miserable. I wanted to just wear jeans but I had the protectice pants on for safety. Matt convinced me to go without and just wear jeans. I didn't like not having the protection but in retrospect, I might have made myself sick as the temp was in the 90's.
Ahh, Barbers Vintage Motorcycle Museum. For Matt, this was a highlight for his trip. This is the mecca of motorcycle museums. 80,000 square feet of metal! Five floors of history. I have seen this place through others pictures but it is another thing to witness.
Matt has a passion for bikes like I do with professional sports. He was like a kid in a candy store. I am sure Matt could be a tour guide with no training if need be. Heck, he could probably teach the staff a few things. Matt was ratteling things off before even seeing the description of the bike. Impressive. It was like having my own tour guide as I learned a lot. He showed me a new appreciation for the history. I don't think the experience would have been the same if was not along with me. Thanks Matt.. I really do mean it.
Here are a few pics from the museum....
Besides the number of bikes at the museum, I was more amazed at the displays.
Even though I find myself favoring old British bikes, I still have a soft spot for the Italian Ducati line.
I was playing with the flash on this one. Sometimes a mistake is not really a mistake.
I was having some fun with some of these shots
There is Old School and than there is this!
Besides, bikes, they had cars, boats, and even an outboard motor collection. Actually, this is the first time I noticed that piano in the back corner.
At times, it just looked like a kids collection on the wall
Yours Truly along side Gary Eagen's Ducati. I understand that Gary lives near Madison Wisconsin. He holds a few long distant riding records including a trip from coast to coast in 36 hours on this bike. Challenge!
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