2013 Rallies & Events
Ol’ Mitch got through his phone pleasantries about his still-unfinished ice mansion and future family plans quickly and got on to the real phone business at hand saying, “Hey P (he calls me ‘P’ or at least that’s how I think he spells it), how come you didn’t make it up to the Thousand Island River Run this year? Mary [Compeau-TIRR event organizer] and I were expecting you this year and you didn’t show as usual. We appreciate all the press you gave us last year, but, man, we thought you were coming this year. You promised you were.” By now, Ol’ Mitch probably realizes its easier for me to promise than to actually come through, but he still loves to try and get me there and one of these years I’m going to make it ─ maybe.
In the meantime, Ol’ Mitch and his shutterbug sidekick, Captain Slick, have sent a photo gallery of the event that is slightly more thorough than if the NSA decided it needed to photograph this event for security reasons. If you went to this event and your photo’s not included somewhere in the gallery, you must have been hiding really well or lying that you went. Just in case, here’s a video of the TIRR event I found online so look there too.
Why Ol’ Mitch loves the Thousand Island River Run is easy to understand if you not only like riding to events, but like to be able to ride around a gorgeous area when you get there without spending all your time idling in traffic like some famous rallies. This fairly new (this year was the 7th annual) event is more old school at heart and that’s a good thing. Sure there’s plenty of music nightly, stunt shows, tattoo shows, custom bike displays, vendors, and local drinking holes to sample, but it’s still about the ride here. The only trailers you usually see here are attached to the back of motorcycles (although I gotta admit that the jury in my head is still out on pulling a trailer with two wheels) and that’s why there’s no Main Street Daytona scene. I don’t think I have to explain that radical customs are not Interstate-friendly.
What there is here is a lot of fun whooping it up like we used to do back when motorcyclists were the bane of the average person’s existence. Harleys as far as the eye can see, loud exhausts, loud music, booze, great food, laughing, dancing, tattoos, great riding, dyno runs, what more can you ask for? Hmmm, maybe I should go next year. Where’s that damn 2014 insurance freebie calendar of mine? All righty then, I’ve marked it down for the 8th Annual Thousand Island River Run that will be held on June 20-22, 2014. I’ve just got to try and not make this my 8th annual Thousand Island River Run no-show.
If you’ve got any questions about this event, you can always contact the lovely Mary Compeau, one of the nicest and most pleasant event organizers of all time, at 315-482-4105 or punch up www.tiriverrun.com/.