We hung around Neumann's for about an hour allowing people to show up and check in, pay the $20 per bike fee and sign a waiver. Michael's sister Kim and brother-in-law Greg and mom Karen were all instrumental in this part of the day. I especially appreciated this as that allowed me to concentrate on taking photos, which was proven difficult to take pictures on the motorcycle. Bikers would check in with them, collecting their commemorative Cherry Ride pin and having the option to purchase any of the "cherry" items we had for sale, including a metal kickstand plate for the motorcycle that one of Cherrie's former co-worker Jacques (goes by Bat) created and donated for the special day.
*Click on each picture to enlarge*
Here are some of the groups of people hanging around until we launched.
We left Neumann's around 11 am and first headed east on Highway 36, north to and through Mahtomedi until we hit Stillwater and went north which brought us to our first stop which was Brookside Bar and Grill in Marine on St. Croix.
We left Brookside after a beverage and headed back on the road and headed up Hwy 95 and cut over across the bridge to go through Osceola, Wisconsin up to St. Croix Falls.
One of our road captains, Johnny Fitz. I'm so sorry that I didn't get a good picture of our other road captain, Sean. Both of these guys are so crucial to our ride and our safety.
Riding the beautiful secluded River Road that rides along the St. Croix River
Our destination was Little Swedes Wolf Creek Bar. We arranged with them to have a lunch ready for us that included pulled pork sandwiches, chips, au gratin potatoes and pickles for $5 a plate. The food was very good. At this time, everyone was free to do what they wanted. If they wanted to go back early or stay here, they could and did.
Thanks for Kim for providing the next three photos
Most of the group from the day
A good amount of the riders had dropped off after Wolf Creek so it was a smaller group that made it to the final resting place of Mi Casita in Scandia before heading back towards North St. Paul and disbanding for the day.
- We raised over $800 to go specifically towards liver cancer research and awareness
- We made new friends along the way including people that had no affiliation to anyone prior to that day including Joe, Pat, Javier and a couple whose names I did not get (Sorry!)
- Our best count totaled 31 bikes but may be up to 33 bikes at one point
- We all had fun for a good cause
- We paid tribute to Cherrie
If anyone is still interested in donating, funds have not yet been given to the American Liver Foundation so there is still time to donate. If you decide to donate, I'll send you the 2010 Cherry Ride pin that all of the participants received this year.
