It is the time of year when the temps drop and the colors start to change in this part of the world. The LSBMW Riders always plan a fall trip up to Northern Arkansas. We have been going up for the past 4-5 years so we were ready for the 4 day adventure of great roads and hopefully… changing colors.

Jamie and I had agreed to meet up with Herman and Rob at our usual starting place of Starbucks. Kick stands were up at 6:30AM and we were on our way to meet Jackie in Paris Texas at our breakfast destination of Nancy’s cafe. The ride was uneventful as we slabbed to Paris. The weather was fantastic and we met up with Jackie right around our arranged time of 8AM.

We took our usual route to Eureka Springs. We ran into some construction on 259, but other that that it was a great day. We arrived at our hotel around 4PM. We logged 400 miles in beautiful weather. Not a bad day at all.

We ran into this truck while stopped for fuel in Broken Bow OK. I have to say, that everytime we are there something strange is around. The guy below was seen riding away from the station on our 2008 trip. Still makes me laugh.

When we arrived at the hotel, the lady behind the counter was chatting and we told her that Jamie and I were celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary on this day. We also told her that Jackie was having a Birthday. He was telling us he was 49 again. We had barely gotten into our rooms before the hotel sign was changed. It was a very cool gesture and we really did appreciate the thought.

We ended up eating at a local catfish place that evening. The food was so-so and over priced, but hey we got full and the company was amazing. I love our friends and it seems we always have fun when we are all together. Day one was in the books and so far it had been a great trip!


We had decided to start Friday off at 8AM with a little breakfast at the Pancake place in the Springs. We had a wonderful day of twisty roads planned for the day, so everyone was excited to hit the road. We had a fellow club member join us today. His name was Ben and he had just purchased a new BMW 1200RT. He wanted to tag along and go for a ride with us. Today was going to be a day that Ben would be introduced to “SPORT” touring.

All I can say is “WOW”. The morning was fantastic. The weather was great and expectations were high, for a fun filled day. We were not disappointed. We got to ride Push mountain a couple of times, as well as hitting our all time favorites of 14, 16, 123 and more. I know that I preach about Push all of the time, but if you have not been there and ridden that little piece of heaven, you have missed out! It is such a great stretch of road that twists and turns in just the right ways. The kicker is the fact that there in little or no traffic.. ever! It was awesome.

I have no idea what Jackie is looking at.

We did talk with Ben and warned him that the pace would be brisk and that he was in no way, obligated to try and keep up. We all knew he was on a new bike and just learning the little subtle things of the new BMW. He decided to jump in the back. It was probably a good choice. I think our style of riding took him by surprise. We are not straight line demons, but when it comes to leaning the bike over and having some fun, we are all for it. After a couple of trips up and down Push we stopped in Codys for some pie. Everyone was all smiles, including Ben. He had survived his first trip to push and seemed to be having fun. I sure know we were! Wow! Great stuff.

The rest of the day did not offer a letdown as the entire day of riding was spectacular! There are many great days of riding in my memory banks, but if there had been a better day. I could not recall it. We stopped a few miles from the hotel to soak it all in and just cherish the day. it was smiles and high fives all around. It will be a day that I will never forget.

We got back to the hotel and was trying to figure out what we would do for dinner. We wanted to be back to the room in time to catch the Texas Rangers game as they were playing game six against the dreaded Yankees. We decided we would just order pizza and get some beer. The bad news was the Pizza hut did not deliver. The good news was our host was awesome and volunteered to have her kids go and pick up the pizza. This was our first time staying at the hotel and I have to say that it was not a bad place to stay. the price was great; $49.00 a night and they did the extra things that make people come back. Hell they even found a long cable and extension cord so we could set up a TV outside in the parking lot.

I would recommend the place to all who is looking for a small, clean hotel with great people in charge. Check out Carolyn’s Swiss Inn the next time your in the springs. Oh yeah.. The Rangers won and advanced to the World Series. How cool is that?

We went to bed with a great day of riding under our belts and the Rangers as American League Champions. The weather Gods were looking to ruin the mood however as Saturday looked like it could be a total wash out. A large storm was looming, so we all went to bed hoping and praying that the weather Gods were lying.

Saturday morning arrived and when we looked outside, we were greeted with cloudy skies and no rain!. So the day would be full of more good roads and fun times, or so we thought. I went out to load up the bike and noticed that my back tire was looking a tad thin. I went back inside and told Jamie that we would be taking it easy today, as we needed to make it home on that tire.

We started the day with everyone else, as they were headed to jasper and AR 7. Jamie and I would split off and enjoy the roads at a much slower pace than the rest of the guys. It was a beautiful morning of riding. We watched as the guys took off for more speedier routes, while we just took our time and enjoyed the views. AR 7 is a great road but has way to much traffic. It was great for us as we needed to take it easy. It was a nice way to spend Saturday morning, just me and my baby on the bike.

Well Jamie and I started to look at the tire and we both started to realize that we needed a better tire to get home on. So we shot over to Harrison and our favorite Yamaha dealer. We had visited them in the spring when we needed two new tires. They had a PR2 in stock and had the tire on in just over an hour. They are nice folks and I hope that we don’t need their help on our next trip.. haha. Really if you are ever up in that area and need help this is the place to go. Make sure to tell them that we said hi!

Even with the side trip, the day was a good one. We got a little rain about 12 miles from the hotel, but it was nothing to bad. I do know that we were feeling much better about the ride home. The new tire sure set our minds at ease. Kicking tires and chatting with old and new friends always makes these trip special.

The LSBMW Riders had set up a dinner at a local establishment. It is always hard trying to find a place that can support dinner for 40+ people. It was a good try. Using my best Forest Gump voice.. Pricey, food not very good and the entertainment was well let’s say… kinda of cheesy.. and that is all I have to say about that.

We went back to the hotel and kicked tires and just hung out. We were leaving early on Sunday and doing the slab thing as we wanted to get our beloved Bella out of the kennel. We left under cloudy skies but did not get any rain until we pulled into our alley at the house. It was a great weekend, with good friends and great roads. I am ready to go again. We did a well rounded 1283 miles for the 4 days. Not a bad way to spend a weekend. See all of the pictures from the weekend here in our smugmug gallery.