|
(posted to r.m.h. on Aug 9, 1999)
Barkeep, once around the house. Because I am lazy, I thought I was going to get out of this with my last post on the subject; but somebody, who shall remain nameless for his own safety, wanted me to post my observations of the actual festivities so... After I wrestled the tent into submission and had something resembling a shelter to sleep in I grabbed the remainder of my water and wondered over to the Jinks compound. I thought the fuzz in my head and blurred vision was a by product of hours in the heat on a 90 MPH paint shaker and lack of water but I soon discovered that it was something sinister from a far off land. I sat recovering as everyone started to appear one by one to meet me. Fuzzy, JohnBG, and the others in the compound were eager to meet me as I sat cooling and recovering. Suddenly I felt a chill and turned to see a harmless looking gentleman in a red shirt. Someone said "meet Dennis" and as I extended my hand I thought "who is Dennis?" As his hand grasped my I suddenly realized that I covered with the thickest slime I had ever seen; it dripped and flowed over the picnic table and totally covered the area around the camper. The little voice in my head started screaming "The 'Slug' Dennis fool, run!" but it was too late, I realized the entire campground was covered in the goo and this was the cause of my disorientation and confusion. I quickly discovered that looking thru a film of slime made everything blurred and the thick covering on the ground made movement sluggish. Realizing that there was no hope of escape I settled in and relaxed as the patrons of Pub 44 returned from dinner and introduced themselves. I noticed a colorful Hawaiian shirt that didn't quite fit in among the denim and assorted T-shirts; Pippi was introduced to the late arrivals and soon the group began to drink and get rowdy. I sat most of the night watching lies being tossed about like a frisbee while trying to find enough water to prevent renal shutdown (no beer for me while dehydrated). Amid the war stories and tales of stupid people doing stupid things with predictable results the crowd started to thin as people sought air conditioned cabin comfort. Around 1:30 I decided I would hit the showers before turning in and went to find my tent. Thirty minutes later I noticed Arie and a couple of others going strong as I headed from the cool shower to my hot tent. As I drifted off to sleep I heard someone in a nearby tent sawing logs happily. After a night of sweating off a few extra pounds of water weight, I awoke to the sounds of nature and decided that a shower would be a waste of time. I wandered back to the Jink's compound where the breakfast patrol was gathering. We loaded up and headed to my kind of place; "Biscuits & Gravy" where they serve clogged arteries on a plate with real chunks of sausage in the gravy. Once the heard was fed we headed back to SENS Central where we split up with JohnBG leading one pack to Millers with DP and Arie in the Slugmobile in tow. Another group of the happy campers arrived at Millers while we were attempting to inhale all of the cool air in the building. After sliming all of the chrome in the shop a few of us decided to head for Smiley's Tap to find refreshment and cool air. Once the tire smoke cleared from the group panic braking test and we pulled a few U-turns in front of the cops we found the place with the cold air, peanuts, and cole slaw wrestling on video tape. Finished with refreshments, a small group decided to ride thru Tomoka State Park. This is a beautiful place to ride with trees growing within inches of the pavement. I started thinking I would need a machete to clear the path ahead. Even in the hot sun this place was cool because of the tree cover; a very nice place to ride that I never would have thought existed in Florida. Following JohnBG once again we found ourselves at a bar. The Boot Hill is all that is advertised and the neighbors never will complain about the party because they are all dead. Here Fuzzy found the cool spot under the air conditioner vent so I spent a while talking to him. Outside I noticed that I had lost my brake pedal rubber so I decided to hit the dealer near the campground. The '41 knuckle on the floor was cool to look at but they didn't have the part I needed so I headed back to Daytona to find the dealer there and see what I could find. The Daytona shop is neat but I hate seeing all of those bikes hanging from the roof when they should be on the road somewhere. I got the pedal and even found a T-shirt on the clearance rack before heading back to the campground and the shade. A few lies later BillB and I decide that dinner is in order because we don't like skipping meals. As some of the group try to decide on where to eat, Bill takes charge and heads for Pub 44 with me close behind. Frank arrives shortly and we have a good time eating good food and talking bikes. We notice an old guy in a wheel chair in the corner with two girls and his tryke parked outside; makes me wonder about them 3 wheelers. Back at the campground I hit the pool for the last 15 minutes it is open and enjoy a dip in hot water. Forced out I return to the compound where the rest of the dinner crowd return and the festivities begin again. Lies are told and those with early departure times start to slowly drift away while the die hard continue to try to empty the cooler. I sat once again an listen to the tall tales as the crowd gets thinner and thinner. Good-byes are said as individuals turn in and I manage to stay awake until 1:30 again and see the last half dozen still going strong. I awoke to the sound of someone leaving the campgrounds at 6:30 and decided to grab a quick shower before breaking camp and heading home. Fuzzy is awake and we talk as I break down the tent and load up for the trip home. Leaving the gate I realize that it went way to quickly and I have met some good people, I have to do this again soon. Now if I could only stop that green trail that is flowing behind me.
Paulie |