2008 President's Day Poker Run

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2008 President’s Day Poker Run
AKA “Frosty Nose Run”
The morning dawned gray and cloudy with many BMMC member’s thermometers reading temps only 10 or so degrees above freezing. Friends were calling friends to see if they were riding today – many reported not being able to see the end of their driveway because of the fog. But most of our BMMC riders are a hardy bunch and they showed up at Harold’s sporting many different strategies for staying warm ranging from many layers of clothing, electric vests and jackets, face masks, stocking caps and even helmets!! We were greeted by the ever effervescent faces of Miss Vickie and Ron, John & Nancy Logsdon, Char & Dan Merta and Lynne Whitcomb

All told, we had 74 participants and 68 pokers hands were sold representing 48 motorcycles. After signing in and buying their poker hands and drawing their first card, the members were reluctant to leave the hot coffee and warmth of the outdoor heaters. But leave they did, heading out towards Bartlett Lake and Rattlesnake Cove for their second card. On the way out on Cave Creek Road, riders encountered the road sectioned off to allow a lane for the runners participating in the Foothills Marathon run. Once past the starting point of the race, the road opened up and the fog began to close in. At times, the visibility was reduced to a hundred feet or so. Then, just as it seemed it couldn’t get worse, the fog would lift. The ride to Rattlesnake Cove was in and out of the fog and eerily beautiful. Jerry Perlstein reported the fog was at the 3000 foot elevation and higher. Ah, the advantages of modern GPS electronics. Jerry also took glee in reporting the temperature to our group. None of us felt the need to put a number on our numbness.

Paul Czarnik was manning the stop at Rattlesnake Cove, we drew our typically unlucky cards and missed out on guessing a winning number for a bonus prize. No matter, it was still fun and we were in good spirits in our shared misery. Off we went back the way we came riding in and out of the fog and waving at our fellow members on their way to Bartlett Lake. The marathon runners station at Desert Mountain was gone when we passed by. We headed down Pima Road to Happy Valley and the parking lot of Pinnacle Presbyterian Church and were greeted by Kathy and Jim Wasson who reported there was a group of riders ahead of us. Interesting information in that our group was the first group to Rattlesnake Cove. Something was said about Cave Creek Road being closed because of the runners????? Or cold??? Again, our lack of luck held with our drawing of cards and we also came away empty in the drawing for a T-Shirt. Ah, but there were two more cards to be drawn – such is the thinking of the gambler that lives in all of us. So off we rode heading West towards Lake Pleasant Road.

Amazingly enough, the skies seemed to brighten and the air began to warm noticeably as we went West on Carefree Highway. We finally traversed that mess of an intersection at I-17 – won’t it be great when that is finally finished? Jan & John Chmela greeted our group and a dozen or so members in the parking lot of Wild Horse West Saloon. Again, most of us did not improve our hands with our card draw or the opportunity to draw a replacement card. But, we were warmer and Harold’s and a cheeseburger was on our minds so off we headed back East.

The further East we rode, the colder and more gray it became. We arrived at Harold’s to be greeted with a parking lot full of motorcycles. We found a parking spot, drew our last card and took our lunch tickets and headed inside to eat. The folks at Harold’s did an incredible job of moving the food out fast. The mood of the group was festive and everyone was having a good time eating and joking with friends and waiting for the hands to be scored. Finally the last riders came in and the winning hands were determined.

Now, you will recall the rules require the bodily presence of the winner in order to take home a prize. Miss Vickie took the microphone and thanked John Logsdon and Ray Williams for planning and hosting the ride and all the volunteers who staffed the route. They volunteered their day (they didn’t get to ride the poker run) so all of you could enjoy the poker run. Miss Vickie then got down to business to announce the winners. The First Place Winner, worth $325, was Don Walton, but alas, Don decided to leave early and Bart Iden was awarded the First Prize Money. Second Prize worth $195 was won by Jim Whiting and the lowest hand winner worth $130 was won Jim Neubauer. Additional prizes of gift certificates and T-shirts were also awarded to hands in descending order. Everyone had a fun time and we all are looking forward to a sunny and warm 2009 Poker Run.

Thanks to John & Nancy Logsdon and Ray & Sally Williams for planning, organizing and executing this great ride. Thanks also go to our teams who staffed the stops: Dan & Char Merta, Lynne Whitcomb, Paul Czarnik, Kathy & Jim Wasson and Jan & John Chmela. Special thanks to Ron & Vickie for arranging with Harold’s to use their facility and for planning our free lunch.

Be sure to click above to the see the slide show and take notice that Vince is wearing a helmet!!!