Dueling Banjos and Halloween

[Whip]

Growing up in Detroit movies like

and

taught me to fear the back roads of the deep south. It was time to meet those fears head on.

 

But I couldn't go it alone...

 

Originally Mrs Whip was gonna fly out and meet us "there", but she didn't want to miss any of the "action".

 

My first choice for Wingman was none other than the man that lives in the southern most part of Texas. He's also trained in live saving techniques and putting out fires. Ya never know when these things can come in handy.

 

eddd met up with us at the Louisiana border.

 

I felt much better knowing he was at our side as we crossed those long bridges over gator invested swamps.

 

Some of the gas stations along the way have upgraded their security from dogs to cats??????

 

As we continued east staying as far south as we could...nothin happen. I kept listening for Banjos, and keeping my eyes open for Jethro, but...nothin. Then I realized the problem. We were on I-10.

 

We needed to travel "the back roads".

 

As night closed in the second night I found what I thought was a friendly place...cause it had a bunch of motorcycles out front and it felt very familiar to me.

 

It didn't have much of a view....

 

But I liked the decor....

 

There seemed to be a party goin on.......and it was only Thursday.

 

Not everyone was happy to see us....

 

Some spoke a funny language.

 

Others just ignored us.

 

They had strange rituals...

 

...that would get stranger.

 

Some of there customs were easy to understand.

 

...others...not so much.

 

 

We were offered a room in the "basement" away from the others.

Needless to say I slept with one eye open and was very restless.

They made eddd sleep on the floor, upstairs, keeping him as far from us as they could. I don't think eddd slept one minute that first night.

 

In the morning they wanted to take us on some "back roads".

 

Their leaders name....RoadScholar.....hmmmmm?????

 

I had followed a man named "Killer" in different a part of the country... I don't scare easy.

 

I was asked to ride in back so I didn't slow anyone down.

 

Mrs Whip was "placed" in a vehicle and "escorted" by "Mama Hoon" and "KMG365". I know she was nervous, but she didn't want to miss the banjos.

 

 

They won Mrs Whip over quickly by assigning "KathyR" to befriend her.

 

They stopped often for photos...I bet they have an album somewhere of all their victims.

 

Some of the places they took us to were beautiful.

 

I wonder...is this the name of a Banjos Band or a type of music???

 

Mr and Mrs "Right Spin"....with our leader...Planning somethin????

 

As I approached the water I could hear banjos for the first time. The next thing I know... off come kathy's shoes!!!!!!!

 

...as I turned around everyone was sitting on the rocks and starting to remove their shoes.

 

At this moment I realized I had seen this kinda strange behavior before thousands of miles away in a different life.

 

I decided to run over to my Katoom and start the motor with the hope of breaking the "Spell of the Banjo"

 

 

 

 

It worked.......

 

I will continue this tale tomorrow.....many of the participants have there own photos to share. I hope they will add them here.

 

I would only ask that you keep your powder dry and save your Halloween pix for tomorrow.

 

Teaser...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Firefight911]

Oh, this is gonna be good!!!!

[BULLman]

Nice report

[gottago]

Beautiful country. Can't wait for the next installment.

[azkaisr]

This entire story is pure fiction and photo shopped. How do I know? The very first line gives it away. "Growing up..." Son, you and I both know we have not, nor ever will grow up. And I am NOT jealous....well not really....well sort of.....Grrrr

 

 

[Joel]

[tobyzusa]

Sir, may I please have some moooorrrrreeeee.....

[Bill_Walker]

Excellent! But I'm callin' "Photoshop" on that last shot, and all similar ones that may subsequently be produced.

 

 

 

It's worth a try, anyway.

[Huzband]

I know where you were. I've had lunch on that rock.

[Les is more]

Awesome Whip! Almost like I was there--I'm admitting nothing!

[Kathy R]

Trembling, I met 3.04 fellow flying Halloween travelers for the drive towards the sound of banjos...

 

We were fed BBQ WhooHoo

 

Although the ghostly images were a concern

A couple were less ghostly

One was just perplexing

 

The next, day after a FUN non paved road ride, I was introduced to the ritural of the hammer

 

The water was calming until we were told that some scenes for Deliverance were filmed just down stream

 

 

a short walk and we were ready for our picnic (which I didn't photo )

 

More riding and then back to the hacienda and what came to be our gathering place

 

There were moments of tenderness...

 

Our guard was down. No one had hummed The Banjo Duel in a while.

 

Actually, we were pinching ourselves

 

 

 

 

[steve.foote]

Careful, Kathy! The Ritual of the Hammer is a very secretive ceremony. Not everyone understands it's meaning.

[Kathy R]

Careful, Kathy! The Ritual of the Hammer is a very secretive ceremony. Not everyone understands it's meaning.

 

Oh gosh, I hope I don't turn into a newt

[eddd]

While Whip has set a standard in story telling and photos that I'll be unable to match, and Kathy is demonstrating similar skills, I thought I'd throw in a few of my shots.

 

This ride started out all wrong. Most every ride I take with Mr. and Mrs. Whip starts at their house and heads west. This time we would somehow catch each other on the road heading EAST on I-10.

 

A few phone calls at gas stops got us close, and finally I spotted a familiar bike.

 

Yup, it was Larry and Louise!

 

The next day the scenery started to change.

 

The trees were showing some color.

 

And the riders were happy.

 

As we approached our destination, the colors improved dramatically, and the roads were no longer straight.

 

 

Our host spoke glowingly of the need to arise early to see the spectacular sunrise. Being an early riser, this was no problem for me, but the late sleepers didn't miss anything on this morning.

 

While this next photo is unfortunately not in focus, it couldn't be left out. Indeed, the fact that it isn't focus is kind of appropriate. We had all traveled many miles to be together, yet you can see how focused we were on those we had traveled to see...

 

It seems to be past someone's bedtime, while the child-bride is still going strong.

 

One last thing for now. Our host said he needed a new set of rear brake pads for his R1100RT, which I was glad to replace with help provided by others in attendance. I'm not sure why they needed to be replaced. One side of the pad still has some miles left in it.

 

More to come later...

[roadscholar]

Careful, Kathy! The Ritual of the Hammer is a very secretive ceremony. Not everyone understands it's meaning.

 

And I can only hope it stays that way.

[steve.foote]

Oh gosh, I hope I don't turn into a newt

 

I doubt that happens, but we'll know for sure in the next twenty-four hours. You didn't drink any of Whip's secret concoction did you?

[roadscholar]

Bad brake pads, bad!

[Kathy R]

Oh gosh, I hope I don't turn into a newt

 

I doubt that happens, but we'll know for sure in the next twenty-four hours. You didn't drink any of Whip's secret concoction did you?

 

Why yes Steve, I did drink the Koolaid

 

No worries, I forgot the meaning already. You can count on my mind! YessirieeBob, er Bill.

[Bill_Walker]

The Edmonds' and I flew in to Atlanta from San Diego, where we met up with Kathy R, and then drove in "The Sanctuary" in the mountains of North Carolina.

 

I, too, admired the sunrise (or as close to it as made no difference) on the first morning:

 

We met at high noon (it must've been noon somewhere) on the bridge:

 

We looked upstream:

 

We looked downstream:

 

We appeared to be safe. But all was not as it seemed!

 

Some of us became mysteriously hostile to one another:

 

...but then were able to shake it off:

 

Eventually, many of us were overcome by hunger:

 

...while others were overcome by technology:

 

"Gee, this new Palm Pre is really great!"

 

"No, really! You won't believe it!"

 

"Let me just look up the data on this river..."

 

"See, it's loading now!"

 

Others were more people-focused:

 

The batteries in my camera then mysteriously depleted themselves (under Palm Pre influence, perhaps?), so I took no more pictures until we returned to the Sanctuary.

 

Later, Mr. and Mrs. Rightspin were about to enjoy our second barbecue dinner of the trip:

 

The events of the evening also escaped my photographic eye.

[Francois_Dumas]

Hey ! When did all this appear here !?!???? :-)))

[enfoman]

All very nice pictures! Looks like everyone had a great time in spite of the gloomy sunrise.

[SageRider]

Looks like a lot of fun!!!

[Bill_Walker]

Looks like a lot of fun!!!

 

And that was just the first day!

[eddd]

Gee, those Macs sure possess sophisticated technology.

 

And now I understand why you don't have to worry about a Mac getting a virus.

 

[SageRider]

Looks like a lot of fun!!!

 

And that was just the first day!

I understand your third day wasn't quite as fun for you (unless you are a masochist, in which case you were probably in heaven!!!)

Heal well, Bill.

[Les is more]

It was indeed an enchanted weekend. Unfortunately there was an evil effect on some of us.

 

I believe the malevolent force lurked in the mists of the river. We were drawn to it as if hypnotized.

 

 

As shown in Bill's photo, Jamie was cleverly distracting Whip with a joke or two.

 

 

Things soon took a turn for the worse as Jamie was drawn in by the evil river's siren song.

 

 

Before our very eyes he snatched Whip's camera---and possibly his wallet and probably his soul.

 

 

Jamie headed for roadscholar's car to make his get-away but found a hammer and in his zombie-like state, vandalized it instead.

 

 

Jamie then vanished in a puff of acrid smoke. All that remains is the wanted poster in the post office.

 

 

 

[eddd]

Great job by all contributors!

[Bullett]

[Whip]

Great job by all contributors!

 

Wait till tomorrow

 

 

[Bill_Walker]

Looks like a lot of fun!!!

 

And that was just the first day!

I understand your third day wasn't quite as fun for you (unless you are a masochist, in which case you were probably in heaven!!!)

Heal well, Bill.

 

Actually, the third riding day (fourth full day) was great, right up until about 5:00 PM. It kinda went downhill after that.

[Kathy R]

 

It's sweet reliving this most fabulous of Halloweens!

 

 

[KMG_365]

Before our very eyes he snatched Whip's camera---and possibly his wallet and probably his soul.

 

Hah! I've got your "It's all 'Black and White', Baby" right HEEERE now, pal!

 

Gee, those Macs sure possess sophisticated technology.

 

And now I understand why you don't have to worry about a Mac getting a virus.

 

Cleanliness is next to heathenness! I had to scrape the BBQ sauce off of those cards first before counting to make sure they were all there!

 

[rocks]

Great collaboration!!

[Paul_Burkett]

Loven it...bring it on.

[roadscholar]

I believe the malevolent force lurked in the mists of the river. We were drawn to it as if hypnotized.

 

 

Indeed we were, but I believe other forces were also at work. As if two great opposing vortex had collided but somehow had mysteriously integrated into a symbiotic relationship that had a power all it's own. Rightspin, Leftspin, Rightspin, Leftspin. Whhrrrr.

[steve.foote]

Alrighty then, here's some more...

 

Silvia giving her best, "Where did all these motorcycles come from?" look.

 

Bill doing what Bill does A LOT.

 

Everyone hanging out at the bridge.

 

In this picture, new visitors to the "lunch room" were unknowledgeable about there whereabouts. Bill would take care of that soon enough.

 

[beda...bing..bing..bing..bing..bing..bing..biiiiinnnnng]

 

Silvia watching the impending carnage from the safety of the steel bridge.

 

Would you trust your lives out in the woods with these guys?

 

No Bill, there is no calling for help out here.

 

The "lunch room."

 

All lined up and ready to go.

 

My favorite kind of road - no stripes, no names.

 

A sign of things to come. Packed like sardines in the scary bus.

 

That's all for tonight. We'll see what we find on the thread tomorrow. Hee, hee.

[g_nuse]

Great report, I was warned it was coming.

 

I regret the weather kept me in the Georgia mountains.

 

I really wanted to catch up with Bill and tell lies and truths about places like "The Dip" at Road Atlanta. There is nothing like looking to your right, lap after lap, at 150+mph and knowing Bill was going to be there, every time.

 

Thanks Bill for the encouragment, I am picking the Dakar up today.

[roydog007]

Dang I miss u all, Looks like fun

 

 

[Francois_Dumas]

Keep it coming..... I'm up and ready again :-)

[roadscholar]

Sorry we missed you George. Look forward to seeing you on the DS.

[Albert]

OK Steve, sumpin' ain't right here. There's 7 people standing around and 1 crawling around on their hands and knees. Lost contact or what??

 

Alrighty then, here's some more...

 

 

The "lunch room."

 

[Whip]

As I slept Friday night and into Saturday mornin my dreams were interrupted by the ghosts of Halloween Past, Present, and Future.

Instead of rattling chains and ghostly voices these specters of

history and prophecy all carried banjos. When I woke I was alone in a bed made for elfin rednecks. Fear and loathing crept through my entire body as I made it upstairs. Little did I know I would stare directly into my own face and feel like I had two heads by night fall. This event would bring back memories I have been tryin suppress for years.

 

 

It had rained almost all night and was still raining when we got up.

 

The view was about the same.

 

 

Bill piled us all in his van and we went to check out a water fall.

 

The view from behind the water fall.

 

RoadScholars friend Latane....pronouced lat-nee.

 

 

How did he get over there....?????

 

Cool...you can walk under the falls.

 

 

 

 

When we got back to the house, after lunch.

 

I went out to the garage and found Bill Walker sitting in RoadScholar's Porsche making motor noises with his mouth.

 

RoadScholar had already told us we couldn't take his car out in the rain. Sooooooo....there was Bill. It was a sad sight.

 

RS went inside to welcome his friend, and BW released the parking brake. "Jump in Whip"

 

As RS came out of the house he was left with no choice, but to take us for a ride.

 

Things happen kinda fast with RS behind the wheel.(I'll get Killer to make a gif file for later today)

 

 

RS was weakened by the moment and BW got behind the wheel. It didn't sound anything like those noises he was making with his mouth in the garage.

 

 

I didn't crash....well maybe a little.

 

As night began to fall I got an uneasy feeling of impending doom.

So I got a glass of Scotch and went out to the back porch. The rain had stopped and the temps were dropping. As the scotch began to course through my veins I started to relax. The dreams of the night before were beginning to be no more than a distant illusion created by an over active imagination.

 

 

 

 

 

....and then IT began.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It didn't start slowly and build.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was no warning

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One minute everything was calm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the blowing wind on the wings of a bat......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My "life" was changed forever.....

 

 

 

 

 

 

I tried to run, but there was no where to go.

 

 

 

 

I was trapped like a skinny Armenian on a porch on the side of a mountain.

 

The only way out was back into THE HOUSE, but before I could reach the house she told me I would be visited by three ghost this Halloween. I opened the door and slipped in before she could finish her sentence.

 

It was too late....Mrs Whip and eddd were already assimilated.

 

 

...and they liked it...

 

 

I tried to resist, but everywhere I looked.......

 

...there were smiles.

 

...this man must be the ghost of Halloween past.

 

 

It was over for me.

 

 

 

At dinner I was introduced to Halloween present....she looked great!!!! I had steak.....rare

 

This must be my future...

 

The Townies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me and my second head...

 

 

My ghost of Halloween present turned into a present......for me.

 

...but I already had a little devil to keep me warn.

 

When I saw this I knew the evening was coming to a close.

 

 

 

I had one last visit from my guardian, I really am sorry I ran from you. She was still sad, I hope I have another chance to make it up to her.

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow.....more riding.

 

Teaser

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Firefight911]

This is epic.

[hopz]

This is all great... just wondering who I need to see about buying the rights, in case I wanted to make a movie...

 

As a native of Tennessee, I appreciate the visit to memory lane.

[Kathy R]

OK Steve, sumpin' ain't right here. There's 7 people standing around and 1 crawling around on their hands and knees. Lost contact or what??

 

Alrighty then, here's some more...

 

 

The "lunch room."

 

 

 

 

Albert, I believe that is called the "roll over, get on your knees and stand up" manuever practiced by middle aged women wearing too much hard body armor.

[Francois_Dumas]

ROFLMAO !!!!

[Albert]

OK Steve, sumpin' ain't right here. There's 7 people standing around and 1 crawling around on their hands and knees. Lost contact or what??

 

Albert, I believe that is called the "roll over, get on your knees and stand up" manuever practiced by middle aged women wearing too much hard body armor.

 

Ahh, that explains it. Been there, done that (so it can't just be a women's thing).

[SageRider]

Hillarious!!!

[SageRider]

OK Steve, sumpin' ain't right here. There's 7 people standing around and 1 crawling around on their hands and knees. Lost contact or what??

 

Alrighty then, here's some more...

 

 

The "lunch room."

 

 

 

 

Albert, I believe that is called the "roll over, get on your knees and stand up" manuever practiced by middle aged women wearing too much hard body armor.

Kathy,

Where's the dog???

[Kathy R]

14 people

1 bus

 

magical Dry Falls

 

Behind the falls

 

 

a wee ways down the road

 

curves galore

 

Lunchtime

 

and back to the abode to relax, we thought...

 

and then...then