Maumee River Run

While all the cool kids were heading to Yokohama we headed to Ohio. The plan was a 250 mile loop starting from Detroit, then south to Toledo, catching one of the best roads around here on the southern bank of the Maumee river in Perrysburg.  West from there along the river to Napoleon and then back north through the dormant cornfields into the mitten and home.  After a stop in Maumee for lunch at a decent Mexican joint we made it to Grand Rapids, Ohio on the river.  It was a good place to stop and cozy up to the local bar at Laroe's.  I think we scared off most of the regulars so we had the place pretty much to ourselves.  While we relaxed over drinks and story we watched the sun fall into the river, turning the sky a churned up red and gold.  In a few it  would be time to move on to Napoleon - the next town on the big river to the west - and our dinner spot.  After firing all the bikes back up and getting them pointed in the right direction we rolled out of town heading towards Napoleon. We got about halfway when Rosemary decided that after 63 years of use, she no longer needed her main sprocket which promptly sheared off of the brake drum, leaving me with a big hand full of revs and nowhere to put them.  Of course we were in the middle of absolute nowhere - one of the best places for a roadside party which instantly began.  A few hours later Len from Speedcult showed up for the rescue.  While we waited we had had a blast. Proving that what would appear on paper to be a total bummer turned into the best way for us all to say goodbye to our little indian summer - under the stars, on the last warm night, next to a big river, with friends, and our beloved machines.