Colorama 2009, held at “The Hub Motorcycle Resort” 7 miles south of Harrison, AR, went very well in spite of the rain and cool weather.

This was the first year that we have had the activities at a motel area rather than in a campground. The way this came about is a long story but it was fortuitous due to the weather conditions we faced. We had the worst weather we have ever had for Colorama in its 13 year history. That was easily dealt with by having a very nice indoor facility where we could visit with each other around a fireplace with unlimited hot coffee, lights, and heat. We had the use of a large screen TV and DVD player which was utilized by showing “Ride Like a Pro, “ “Hard Miles”, “IBA Rally tips”, and similar motorcycle related videos. This was all on Friday during the day. The scenic tour for the Friday night dinner ride was cut short due to the possible road hazards from the rain during the day and due to the cool night. The rain had stopped so we rode down and back via Hwy 7 to Ozark Café in Jasper. We had a nice crowd and a really enjoyable dinner ride. 50/25/25 winners of $38 were Vickie Christianson and Mary Ann Stallings.

The rain was over for Saturday so all plans were still on. Kent Hott, MSF Instructor, offered a short discussion on riding the curves. This discussion is always important to help prepare the participants for the coming rides through some of our country’s greatest motorcycle roads. Following the rides, we had a group discussion led by Steve Short and myself on GPS usage followed by a similar discussion on touring tips. It was a great day topped off with a great buffet meal at the restaurant next to the motel.

Following the dinner, we had the awards presentation. The conditions for the awards are that the recipient must have ridden his/her motorcycle to the rally. Youngest rider went to Shauna Painter, MO. I don’t recall a time when this award has gone to a female. Congratulations to Shauna. Most senior rider was Chuck Stallings, TX. Longest distance two up went to Bobby and Joetta Williams, TX. Longest distance male solo rider went to Kent Hott, MO. Longest distance female rider went to Glennys Stroud, TX. So far as I recall this was another first in that this award went to a female rider that had a male passenger on board. Long term Chapter E director E.R. Stroud is Glennys’ husband and rode as the passenger. They both richly deserve congratulations. Highest mileage motorcycle went to J. L. Smith, MO, with 172,000 miles on his GL1500. Lowest mileage motorcycle went to none other than Steve Short with 600 miles. The awards were on Saturday. Steve had picked up his 2010 GL1800 on Wednesday. What makes this remarkable is that Steve is an Iron Butt Rider of National acclaim. His 2005 GL1800 that he left home has 280,000 miles on it. I’m sure this is the first and only time Steve Short will receive an award for having the lowest mileage motorcycle. Hey, it’s all in fun! Congratulations to Steve on his new Wing. 50/25/25 winners of $48 each were Phillip Duncan and Deb Siepker.

For those of you into statistics, we had 81 in attendance from 6 states. This included AR-1, KS-3, NE-6, IA-10, TX-12, and MO-49. We were pleased to have in attendance our new Region E Directors, Tommy and Aileen Dossey, Region E Assistant Directors, Chuck and Mary Ann Stallings, and Iowa State Directors, Don and Kathy Thomason. We had many chapter directors in attendance. We appreciated everyone that made it.

The facility and our hosts were simply fantastic so some important decisions were made. We have reserved the entire motel for next year’s Colorama as well as the convention center area that served us so well this year. The restaurant/convention center is owned by the motel owners. We were not at all pleased with the host campground. We will not be using Shady Oaks campground again, other arrangements will be made. Much of the reason for this is that those that had to cancel their camping reservation through no fault of their own were charged the full camping fee regardless of their inability to attend. There were other incidents in trying to get everything set up but this was the clincher.

Colorama 2010 will be held in Dogpatch (now named Marble Falls), AR. All Colorama activities will be held at the motel area. The Hub Motorcycle Resort (800-597-9963) is now taking reservations for next year’s Colorama. Many of our participants this year made their reservations for next year while checking out.

We are planning a rally very similar in most details to what we had this year—not including the inclement weather. Specific camping arrangements are still being worked on. I shall communicate those as they develop.

Hope you can join us for a great time the second weekend of October in 2010.

Wiliferd and Charlotte Lair Lake Country Riders