Hanging out with friends…

OK, now what have I been up to for the past couple weeks? I have missed hanging out with you all here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com, but there’s been a lot of activity at work, which is a good thing in this day and age! After long days of training followed by evenings of entertaining guests, my blogging juices have been pretty much dried up for the past couple weeks. But I’m back in the saddle and ready to jump back into my Brickyard blog, The Experience.

A lot of the experiences and camaraderie we all share are centered around the enjoyment of common interests. As you all may have ascertained over the past two years, I love motorcycles. There are endless ways to share these common interests with other like-minded enthusiasts through various clubs, forums and events.

The local chapter of the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA) is a group of like-minded enthusiasts who take every opportunity to get together for rides and activities centered around our mutual love of motorcycles. Many of these MSTA gatherings eventually include the breaking of bread and the enjoyment of various gastronomic delights around a table or camp fire with tall tales of our last motorcycle adventures.

One of my favorite MSTA events recently was something called a “Hobo” picnic. Meeting in Brown County State Park on a bright Sunday afternoon, everybody brought a veggie item, and our fearless leader, Don “Moose” Parish, supplied the meat and other supplies. For those who never have indulged in a Hobo Dinner, let me explain. Forming an aluminum-foil boat, you fill it with a cornucopia of veggies, a portion of hamburger, add a little water, wine or beer for moisture, wrap it up tightly and set it in a charcoal fire for about a half hour with the result being a “Hobo” stew. Matt Carr gives his creation the thumbs up. Um, um good!

Another recent event was the first annual Ducati Indianapolis September Fest this past Saturday. Many activities took place, including raffles, demo rides, a poker ride, bike show and standing-stop competition. How slow can you go for 10 feet?  Local Indy Desmo Owners Club member Rob Camarillo, aboard his 1995 Monster 900, took first place in the standing-stop competition, beating 16 other riders to take the honor of the slowest rider at the event. The weather was perfect as a large contingent of motorcycle enthusiasts took in the atmosphere on a perfect autumn Saturday afternoon at the dealership. And like all great events, copious amounts of bratwursts and hot dogs were served up to fully sate everyone’s appetite.

One of my favorite riding seasons of the year also started last week with the September Equinox at 5:18 p.m. (EDT) Sept. 22. There’s nothing better than a crisp autumn day to explore your favorite twisty back roads and see the first glimmer of autumn colors starting to peak out of the dense greenness of summer.

Well, it’s already been a month since the ultimate motorcycle enthusiast’s event took place out on West 16^th Street here in Speedway, Ind. We’re now counting down to Aug. 29, 2010 for the third running of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, so I’ll do my best to continue sharing all the experiences of hanging out and clubbing with the local motorcycle community here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com

Greg