SFO 2016 - Oct. 27th thru Oct. 30th in Jemison, Alabama!

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FJRBandit

Well-known member
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Messages
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Location
Hoover, AL
UPDATED with attendees list- current as of 10/17/16

Yep, you read it right, ALABAMA! Everyone loves to ride the Ozarks, but some folks wanted a little change of scenery this year. There was even a bit of animosity that we've never done an FJR rally in Alabama.
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Shocking I know, but believe it or not there is actually some decent riding around the state of Alabama. While certainly not on par with the Ozarks or the Smokies, there are areas with some nice elevation changes, sweepers and a few areas with some technical riding. I pretty well know the entire northern two-thirds of the state like the back of my hand. I also know most all of the (good) bbq joints, hamburger spots and of course good ole' beer drinkin' joints. Anyway, I guess what I am saying is, it's hard to promote my state for a rally to guys that I know want to do some intense twisty butt riding all day (like I love to do as well). But I guess as long as everyone knows the score, I am game in hosting an event at my property in Jemison, Alabama.

I have also posted this over on the fjrowners forum. There seems to be a bit of interest over there so we're pushing forward. This will be wide open to all, it doesn't have to be FJR only. So tell your non-FJR buddies as well. Generally folks just need to be sport/adventure tour minded and you are welcome! So on with the plan -----


The Weekend

This event will be held Thursday, Oct. 27th - Sunday October 30th. October in Alabama is usually perfect for riding and camping. Minimal rain, crisp cool autumn mornings and pleasant afternoon temps, makes for some fun times. We can expect daytime highs in the mid 60's to low 70's and evening lows ranging somewhere in the 40's. Just perfect!

In the evenings after we return from riding, we'll either grill out or I will arrange to have a catered BBQ. This will depend on how many people we have attending. While there is no "rally fee" the cost for the dinners will only be whatever our food bill is divided by the number of attendees. My guess is that will be in the neighborhood of $10-15 per evening.

Also, I'm going to try to put together some live entertainment for one of the evenings, most likely Friday night. I have a couple of buddies who are excellent musicians. They are very active locally with regular gigs. But as long as their calendars cooperate I plan to have them come out and do some picking for us while we grill out and enjoy the beautiful evening around the campfire. If you enjoy great blues and classic rock, this alone will be worth the price of admission, which has been estimated at $0.
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The Location

My property is located in Jemison, AL, which is only about 30 miles south of the Birmingham suburbs. It's only one mile off of Interstate 65 at Exit 219. The site is located on 21 wooded acres of serenity and is ideal for camping, grilling and chilling.

Directions from Exit 219 to the property


I have plenty of space for as many tent campers as could even possibly show up. There is at least an acre of wooded area that is cleared out, grubbed and generally level. If you are camping you shouldn't have any trouble finding an ideal spot!

For those that prefer not to camp, I have a large metal building that has a 1,000 sq. ft. apartment built inside. It is complete with a full eat-in kitchen and a full bathroom. While I will be utilizing the one bedroom in the apartment, those that don't want to camp are welcomed to use the large shop area inside the larger building if you just want to throw down an air mattress. It's certainly not Holiday Inn but at least it will provide free sheltered "accommodations" and can be used by the tent campers in the unlikely event of inclement weather.

For those like me that need a real bed, I should be able to arrange for a group rate at a hotel about 15 minutes away on Interstate-65. My guess is I can get a group rate in the $65-75 range. I will also arrange for transportation to and from the hotel in the evenings after we get back from riding so that you can enjoy a few adult beverages and not have to be on the bike to and from the evening festivities at the property.

If demand requires I'll rent a porta potty for the weekend since my apartment onsite only has one bathroom. While everyone is welcomed to use the facilities in the apartment, it will just be a space available issue. And you better keep it clean, or my wife will kick your ass!
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The Riding and other Area Attractions

There is good riding within minutes from my property, but the better riding is within an hour to an hour and a half up near Cheaha State Park and other points along the way. Also within an hour of my property is the Barber Motorsports Park and Museum. Barber can be built into a loop that involves the Cheaha State Park area riding, to make a full day of activities including good riding and visiting the museum, for those that haven't visited Barber and would like to.

There are other areas of good riding to the west. It's some good rural back country riding in that direction, or even points to the east have some really good rural, scenic riding. Also there is a national forest nearby that has well maintained forestry roads for those that want to bring their dual sports and enjoy a little that nature has to offer. I have a couple of V-stroms at present that I might be willing to "share" with those that want to go in that direction and aren't on their own dual sport bike.

For those that want to get up and really get after it one day, I can put together a ride up to the Ft. Payne/Little River Canyon area for you. Anyway, there are plenty of options, as long as you don't expect to ride the Dragon for three days.
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Reservations

If you would like to attend please post up here and let me know if you are planning to tent camp or get a hotel room. As far as the tent campers are concerned, there is plenty of space. I just need to get a feel of how many of those we'll have so that I can set up a port-a-potty if necessary.

As far as hotels are concerned, there is a Quality Inn and a Hampton Inn located at the Calera exit, 12 miles north of Jemison and there is Holiday Inn Express, Best Western and Days Inn 14 miles to the south at the Clanton exit. Once I get a feel for how many rooms we'll need I'll get that all set up and let everyone make their own reservations directly with the motel that is selected.


As it stands there are seven or eight folks that are generally committed. It doesn't have to be a big thing and it doesn't have to be a small thing, we're going to have a good time either way!


Here's the current list by my count -

fjrbandit and Mrs. Bandit - owner's cabin
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Committed from fjrowners.com

Doug36854 - possibly camping / hotel if boss says so!
Roadtrip - hotel
oldironsights - hotel

r.horsch

Victor Sierra
N4HHE
OneMoreTime

coondawg07 plus one- camping Friday (maybe) and Saturday night (definite)


From fjrforum.com

stose85 - camping

hppants plus one- camping
fjrfarrier - quasi camping

bseelbach -camping

poolboytoo - camping

Cav47??? - camping

cornbread - hotel
LA2wheeler - hotel
winewhisperer - hotel

GPrider - hotel

E.T. - hotel

creg-ny-baa - hotel

Maybees -

griff - hotel

twisted cricket

Also, four or five other local riders not on either forum will be in attendance.

 
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While I do not foresee being able to attend this one, I will throw out an opinion or two.

While Alabama does not offer a "Tail of the Dragon" experience, there is some damn fine riding around Cheaha State Park and the Talladega Scenic Byway. Alabama does have mountains and they are almost as tall as the Ozarks. Further up, Little River Canyon offers some fantastic views and some very good riding also. For my money, Northeastern Alabama is a beautiful place.

I recently took a week long camping trip up there with my wife and son and it was awesome. Except for the locals seeing Mrs. Redfish on a hiking trail and reporting BigFoot. That kinda sucked.

 
While I do not foresee being able to attend this one, I will throw out an opinion or two.
While Alabama does not offer a "Tail of the Dragon" experience, there is some damn fine riding around Cheaha State Park and the Talladega Scenic Byway. Alabama does have mountains and they are almost as tall as the Ozarks. Further up, Little River Canyon offers some fantastic views and some very good riding also. For my money, Northeastern Alabama is a beautiful place.

I recently took a week long camping trip up there with my wife and son and it was awesome. Except for the locals seeing Mrs. Redfish on a hiking trail and reporting BigFoot. That kinda sucked.
1. That's a shame Fish.... maybe you could just play hookie that weekend.
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2. I completely agree... Little River Canyon is a beautiful place and the riding around Cheaha is some fun stuff!

3. You were just around the corner and you didn't call me? WTF???? I've been looking for Big Foot all my life.
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Actually, you are spot on RF. Northeastern Alabama is a beautiful place and has some nice riding to offer. Cheaha is a great place to ride as well and I know some of those back woods areas that are merely gray lines that most people would never even see on the map. I don't profess Alabama to be the next sport touring meca, but for a three day weekend there's certainly plenty to whet a whistle!
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You're down stose! Btw - I'll be coming through OK next weekend. Shoot me a PM when you get a chance, maybe we can at least have a beer as I swing through.

 
Griff - Barber Vintage Festival is Oct. 7, 8 & 9th. For some reason, that weekend wouldn't work for me this year. But for an animal like you, simply ease on down for the festival then make it back three weeks later for our little gathering.
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Homecoming and the annual Reck Parade. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.

"Contraptions" are propelled by means other than direct connection to an internal combustion engine.

Impulse jet powered a Radio Flyer wagon in 2006; the kids started it with a leaf blower and a long-handled barbecue lighter. Impulse jets were outlawed immediately after that parade.
 
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You can mark Pants down as IN! I've marked my calendar for taking off Thursday and Friday. Possible Monday, but I've got to get out of a thing right now.

I'll work on my usual suspects for accompanying me.... but if necessary, I'll go by myself.

From my house, 450 miles for a nice, non interstate route to your place. I know the area pretty good. If I leave early, I'll have plenty of time to stop and sniff along the way.

Tent camping for me as well - if the weather is total crap, I might opt for the sleeping bag/pad inside the metal building.

Shall I bring the Tequilla? Or the Rye? Hmmmmm - decisions, decisions......

 
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You can mark Pants down as IN! I've marked my calendar for taking off Thursday and Friday. Possible Monday, but I've got to get out of a thing right now.

Nice! And BTW, no worries on a Monday departure for those that want to hang around Sunday as well.

I mentioned other attractions in the original post. I have compiled a list of various attractions and points of interest in and around Central Alabama and provided links to each. Some are historical sites and some are for the nature lovers that that would like to incorporate some hiking and view some of the beautiful waterfalls in and around Central Alabama. Also, for those that like covered bridges we have that too. Some folks like to visit lakes and dams, well, Alabama has a multitude of lakes and hydroelectric producing dams, many of which are located in and around Central Alabama and a short ride from Jemison. So if dams are your damn thing, we've got'em! With the deep history of the civil rights struggle in our state there are many attractions for those interested in exploring that as well.

Most of these attractions I have listed are located in areas that either have good riding in the immediate vicinity or at least to and fro. I have prepared this list, which by no means is exhaustive, primarily to give you all some things to think about that you might want to incorporate into your daily rides. I have been to most of these places, but not all and can give you more specific information on each if you are interested, ie; what's the riding like in the area etc... just ask here for all or shoot me a PM if you choose.

Birmingham Area (to the North)

https://16th Street Baptist Church - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Birmingham Civil Rights Institute - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Sloss Furnaces - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Vulcan statue - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Barber Motorsports Park - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In addition, like many cities across the nation, Birmingham has had an explosion of craft breweries in the city. Here's a list of just a few of them:

https://www.cahababrewing.com/

https://www.goodpeoplebrewing.com/

https://avondalebrewing.com/

Talladega Area (to the East)

https://Cheaha State Park - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://waterfallchasing.blogspot.com/2009/03/alabama-waterfalls-report-part-ii.html

https://Alabama Waterfalls (not limited to Talladega area)

https://J. L. M. Curry House - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Swayne Hall, Talladega College - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talladega_Superspeedway

West Alabama / Selma Area (to the West)

https://University of Montevallo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Tannehill Ironworks - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Edmund Pettus Bridge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church (Selma, Alabama) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Live Oak Cemetery, Selma, Alabama

https://Cahaba, Alabama - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Moundville Archaeological Site - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Gaineswood - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Andrew%27s_Episcopal_Church_(Prairieville,_Alabama)

Montgomery Area (to the South)

https://Dexter Avenue Baptist Church - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Alabama State Capitol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://First White House of the Confederacy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://Fort Toulouse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_Bend_National_Military_Park

Lakes and Dams (mainly to the East)

https://Our Lakes & Dams - Alabama Power Shorelines

Covered Bridges (mainly to the North and East)

https://List of covered bridges in Alabama - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 
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So here's where we stand right now. By my count there are nine that are either IN or tentative from the fjrowners forum and roughly five that are IN from the fjrforum. Plus, there are another five or so that I stay in contact with that haven't posted on either forum but I am fairly sure will be in attendance.

BTW - I need to know whether you plan to tent camp or get a hotel room.


Here's the current list by my count -

fjrbandit - owner's cabin
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Committed from fjrowners.com

Victor Sierra
N4HHE
TexTed
Roadtrip
Doug36854
r.horsch
oldironsight - hotel

maybe from fjrowners.com

Rbentail
Tiger_993


From fjrforum.com

stose85 - camping
LCB
HPpants - camping
cornbread - hotel
LA2wheeler - hotel


Also, four or five other local riders not on either forum will be in attendance.

 
I'm still a "maybe" Bandit, depending on whether I can re-work my October trip to the end of the month. If I can come, I would grab a hotel - no camping this trip.

 
I would absolutely be up for this, but my dance card is full this year, partly from this BC Canada trip I'm on.

Hopefully it will be rockin success for you, and you will feel like doing it again in 2017!

 
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That's too bad wheetie! - but this was planned a little late in the season. Most folks already have their riding plans and necessary vacation time planned out by now. That BC trip you are on is HIGH on my list. Can't wait to see your RR!

Good to see griff and roadtrip (from fjrowners) are now in the IN column! Keeping our fingers crossed for Texted (fjrowners) and twisted cricket (fjrforum). Hopefully they'll be able to make it as well.

I've updated the original post with the current attendees list along with the maybes. If your name isn't on there and you are planning on attending, or I don't have your "accommodations" listed please let me know.

 
I'm a definite maybe. I will get a hotel or trailer down in my motorhome. Would our host have an electrical outlet within 15 of where I can park a 30' rv?

 
Sounds great Allen! I've updated the "maybe" list.

Actually, I have the necessary hook ups for an RV onsite; water, electrical outlet and "black water" hookup as well. There is also a nice RV park at the interstate exit less than a mile from my property.

 
Actually, I have the necessary hook ups for an RV onsite; water, electrical outlet and "black water" hookup as well. There is also a nice RV park at the interstate exit less than a mile from my property.
Wow, that is great! Now to figure out if I can go to SFO three weeks after Hooterville.

 
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