Category: Coddiwomple – 2025

Overall category for all Coddiwomple categories

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October 16

This was going to be a rest day on the GA, NC, VA, then back home trip. I slept late, planned a quick route, and dropped a note to an old friend in town to see if they were free for supper. I’ll go ahead and note that they had plans. Since today was a last minute decision to stay the extra night, I didn’t have time to give them advanced notice.

VERY relaxing breakfast. The staff in the morning were top notch. I have been lucky with the people I have met on the road this trip. Even this evening, the bartender was super nice (great Whiskey Sour with Buffalo Trace).

I set route to avoid interstate. I don’t have any time requirement getting back to the hotel since I had extended the stay yesterday so tonight was already set.

The first stop was at Bulldog HD in Smithfield, NC. Construction as I got near required that I hope on the interstate a couple of exits. Great place. Boy, did they try to get me to trade bikes. This as the 20th dealership where I have had the mileage checked this year! I have accomplished all the milestones in the Ride for Heroes challenge for Harley Davidson.

Back roads from Smithfield toward Pinehurst. I love the meandering two-lane roads. Slow moving vehicles aren’t in the way long enough to bother me.

Cox’s Double Eagle HD was my next stop. As I pulled into the lot, I parked ne to the sign for the photo op. I got the picture then started to move the bike. I was going to park on the other side of the car, but as I turned toward where I expected a parking, it was the exit from the dealership. I quickly swung the bike back to the right. I didn’t have enough speed and lost concentration, the bike went down. Bike has 60,000 miles and this is the first time I have dropped it. And I did it in the middle of the parking lot! I don’t think it had fully fallen over before two of the guys ran over to help me pick it up. I wasn’t even off the bike yet! I helped by getting the kick stand down. I parked it and went in for a break. Small dealership, but the staff was super friendly, which is the norm for most Harley dealerships, more especially smaller shops.

Again, backroads to get to the hotel. Many roads that bring back memories. I rode through what I remembered as the “Drop Zone” where we would camp as Boy Scouts. I remember one of the GI’s who would help the leaders bring his dirt bike once. He let a few of us take turned riding in the dirt. Also, I learned to drive a “deuce and a half.” It was a big truck, with a manual transmissions, and we would do donuts while singing “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” by Elton John. Ah, the fun we had.

I passed so many little coffee shops, BBQ places, and even chicken statues. All of which are points of interest for the BMW Coddiwomple challenge. Most I saw too late to stop. I even passed a sign with a mule and passed it, TWICE!

As I neared Spring Lake, traffic was picking up. Luckily, the traffic was coming towards me. I noticed on the other side of the road a pawn shop with two chicken statues! I guess they don’t just want the three balls, they now want your… nevermind.

There was no place to turn around, and I tried to decide if I wanted to turn around at a break in the median. As I was deciding, I saw a Starbucks on that side of the road too! Okay, the stars are aligned to make the U-turn.

I make a quick U-turn and head to the Starbucks. I ride through the parking lot, hoping to find a spot close enough to get a good picture. Not a chance, but I did get a decent picture.

I got back to the main street and headed to Jery’s Pawn. I pulled through the parking lot and parked next to the chicken for the picture.

I left Jery’s and crossed the road to get back on track. I was just shifting when I saw a Dunkin! Another stop for the BMW Coddiwomple. Already here, no reason to not stop.

I turned back onto Bragg Blvd and there was a Seven Brew on the right. Already here, I might as well get this picture too.

I finally was on my way back to the hotel. I decided to not go on the express route, I opted for Honeycutt Rd., an old haunt of mine. As I got to McArthur Rd., I saw one of my favorite quick eats places, Peaden’s. They used to have 24/7 gas pumps. You could put in a dollar bill and it would dispense a $1.00 worth of gas! Five $1’s woulc fill up my old Pinto!

Besides the 24/7 gas, they had the best BBQ sandwiches! I pulled into the parking lot and got a picture of the front. The gas pumps are no longer there, but the BBQ sandwiches are still the best! They have expanded to have seafood and they cater parties. Big place that can hold a couple of large parties.

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October 14

Left home early this morning. The goal was to visit a Harley shop, the Peanut in Plains, GA, and a site to prove we were in Opelika, AL for the Coddiwomple. I had the Fire Department in Opelika as the spot.

I found it rather quickly and was able to get a couple of good pictures.

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October 8

Patsy Cline House

I was out visiting some Harley dealerships in the Northern Virginia area. I visited three Harley dealers. But, the highpoint was the Patsy Cline House in Winchester, VA.

As I pulled up, there was a group starting a tour. I asked one of the people if they could take my picture. A lady came over, I showed her how to focus, zoom, and take the picture. She took two pictures,. I thanked her, we looked at the pictures, and I was on my way.

I stopped at the Winchester Harley Davidson, Bull Run Harley Davidson, and Patriot Harley Davidson. I got the pictures for the Harley dealership challenge and the check-in for two other Harley challenges.

Went to swim class with the grand sons, then fajitas for supper with the family.

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October 7

Happened to just run into a cannon! I was out doing rides for the Tour of Honor, HOG challenges and AULDR. Found this cannon at the Harley Davidson dealer in Gettysburg, PA. Didn’t realize when I parked, but I was parked was directly in the line of fire for the cannon.

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October 5

Spent most of the day at either Harley shops or at Tour of Honor sites. I did manage to get to the Country Music Museum in Bristol, TN. It took two photos to meet the requirements.

The picture above is the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol. Easy to find, but challenging to get the bike and the sign in the same picture. The bike can vaguely be seen in the right side behind the “Do Not Enter” sign.

This picture has a cleared picture of the bike. Sun was starting to set and a lot of shadows between the buildings didn’t give the best lighting.

After not hearing back from the scorers on the resubmission, I was preparing for them to reject it a second time. I had also realized that I had listed Bristol as being in TN. Though Bristol is in TN, the museum is in the VA part of Bristol!

I headed back this morning on my way back home to Alabama to get another picture.

Looks better than the other two, doesn’t it?

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September 29

Randy and I were headed out to ride the Illinois HOG 50 Rides on Nation challenge. As we get near the starting point, we stop for lunch as Kentucky Hillbilly BBQ in Wickliffe, KY. We each got the BBQ plate, then hit the road.

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September 27

After a couple days working almost full time on the bike to get the camera working, I needed to take it for a ride. One option was to go for a couple of days, but I wasn’t getting started early enough, so I decided that I would just do a day ride.

The next question was simple: where? The question was simple, not the answer. I thought out a few options. I settled on a ride to Memphis. I picked out a couple of Tour of Honor sites and plotted a route. I got the GPS connected to the computer and waited. And waited… And waited. It seemed to take several minutes for the GPS and computer to recognize each other so I could load the route.

I had moved the bike outside before MaryJo went to run her errands. That was when I brought in the GPS. As I went out to put the GPS back on the bike and leave, MaryJo pulled back into the driveway. I was leaving MUCH later than I had planned.

I stopped at the bank to pick up some cash for the trip.

I’ll add more text later… But I need to get the pictures loaded…

Picture at the Dixie Memorial Pet Cemetery where the K-9 Memorial is located

Leaving Millington, I spot a Scooters Coffee.

Memphis Veterans Cemetery

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September 19

Last night, Randy and I were talking about a day ride for today. I had just gotten back from Tallapoosa and I am always up for a day ride with a friend. I asked if he had any particular place in mind, he didn’t. I asked if he had ever had Grilled Cheese on Crack. I watched as the text message screen scrolled three dots while he prepared his response. he took his time, eventually, his response was “with a straight face, I can honestly say NO.” I told him he was in for a surprise.

I did let him in on the town, Lynchburg, TN. I did ask if he had ever been to the Jack Daniel’s Distillery; he had, several times. We had talked about maybe making a stop at our Widows Sons State Rally on the way home. Just to stop in and say hi to people.

I got to the gas station before Randy and got the tank filled up. I pulled over to the side and searched for the address of the rally. The GPS wouldn’t accept the address I had, so I went with the GPS coordinates. I was just getting it saved when Randy walked over. He was gassed up and ready to roll.

I didn’t need the GPS to get to Lynchburg. I know several ways to get there and even more how to get home. We pulled into the parking lot of the Barrel House BBQ just as they were opening. We got a seat. Randy was intrigued by the Grilled Cheese on Crack, so he ordered it. I love it, so I got one too. Sorry, no pictures of the sandwich, you will have to go see it in person for yourself. It is worth the trip.

On the other side of the parking lot is BBQ Caboose Café. MaryJo and I have eaten there before and it is also fantastic. But it doesn’t have Grilled Cheese on Crack!

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September 18

I was planning to do a multi-day ride with Randy. He wasn’t feeling well this morning and decided not to go. I understand, if you are sick and try to ride, you WILL be miserable.

I thought about a couple of plans, then decided to make a little change to the route I was planning to ride with Randy. I got the GPS out, edited the route then got ready to go.

I gassed up the bike, started both trackers, and started rolling. I got a few minuets down the road and went to turn on the route in the GPS. I couldn’t find it! I knew the first location, so I entered it into the GPS. I would just add the next site once I got to each stop.

My first stop was at Hooligan’s HD. This is in Oxford, AL and Tim belongs to the HOG chapter here as well as the chapter where we got our bikes.

I went in and was warmly greeted! I regret that this isn’t usually the norm. The salesman helped me get the check-in with the HOG app, then helped me got checked it with the riding challenge, even getting the latest keywords. I can see why Tim likes this place.

I went outside and got my picture with the bike in front of the dealership for the dealership challenge. Harley has so many challenges going on at one time, it can be confusing which dealership participates in which challenge and and which challenge is yearly or one that is on-going. Maybe one on-going challenge and one annual would be enough for people, but there are a lot of people who ride Harleys and each one like different challenges, so Harley wants to have something for every one.

The only one that I did which required a picture was the dealership challenge.

The next stop was in Tallapoosa, GA. This was to verify that I had been to a town mentioned in Johnny Cash’s song “I’ve Been Everywhere.” Tallapoosa is one of the towns he mentioned. I learned a few weeks ago that BMW is VERY specific as to what is and isn’t allowed. I used the Chamber of Commerce in El Dorado and they denied it. I had used a historical marker in the past with a sign “Welcome to Waterloo” in the background. They denied that one. I was able to go back to Waterloo and and took a picture at the Post Office. So, for Tallapoosa, GA, I was going to use the Post Office there. I entered the Post Office into the GPS, and I was on my way. Only about 30 miles away, so I would be there quickly.

As I entered the town, I remembered the Veteran’s Park which had a Huey and several other military items. I thought that across the street from the park was a city limits sign for Tallapoosa. And I also wondered if there would be a cannon in the park. As I got into town, the GPS pointed left for the Post Office, but I made a right turn to go to the park (also, there was a “no left turn” sign at the intersection.)

I got to the park and went to look for the Huey. I found it, but they were doing some restoration work on it and I didn’t think it would be a good picture. I looked around for a cannon or two, no luck. As I left the park, I didn’t see a city limits sign. Okay, at least I have to Post Office in the GPS!

As I head back into town, I pull into the parking lot of a BBQ place, “Turn Around Bar-B-Que.” It is in the same building as an equipment shop.

A few blocks away, I found Owen’s BBQ.

As I was leaving, I noticed a coffee shop! I parked in front and ran across the street to get the picture of K&M Coffee.

As I started rolling, I saw the Police Department on my right with the parking lot mostly vacant. I liked the idea of pulling into the parking lot on the right, then make a right to get back on the road. I have had great luck with police officers and sheriff deputies in the last few weeks, I thought this would be a fitting tribute, as long as they don’t come out and office me a tour and a place to stay for some reason.

I sat here for a few minutes to try to enter in my next locations. This was turning into too much trouble having to type in the names, especially when the keyboard is split between to pages that I would have to switch between. I decided to just head back home. I managed to get 400 miles on the bike today, which was what I was going to get if I had stayed with the initial plan. But, this was I get to sleep in my own bed tonight!

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August 6

I am posting this on the 15th, so it will appear out of order.

Memphis is known for BBQ and Blues. Actually the entire west Tennessee area is known for BBQ! I have a RTE (Ride To Eat) each month in Collierville (a town in the Memphis/Shelby County area). I thought I took a picture a few months ago, but couldn’t find it. Since I am usually there each month, I took one this month. I thought that I had downloaded it, but couldn’t find it. I went through the camera; not there. I finally checked my phone; there it is!

Of the BBQ places, I like Corky’s and Collierville/Germantown Commissary the best. There are others, but they are hard to get to and often too crowded. There is one place (that I will not mention) that I feel is over-rated.

Anyway, I finally have the picture for the BBQ points from Collierville Commissary!