Jacksonville – Flagler Beach FL loop
Friday March 16, 2018
(~196 miles)
It was refreshing to walk out of the hotel room into spring-like 50 degree temperatures and see motorcycles almost exclusively filling the lot (the IBA had reserved the entire hotel). Ken had plans to hook up with a local ST rider, Ashley, for a tour of some of the local roads off the beaten track en route to a big lunch RTE for the IBA crowd in Flagler Beach. I was invited to tag along with a few other familiar faces from the northeast. We met for a hot breakfast buffet in the hotel dining room before kick-stands up at 08:30.
Our guide led us on a merry chase south, briskly moving out of Jacksonville in the light (post rush-hour?) traffic, and along the St. Johns River. There wasn’t much opportunity to stop for photos with this group, but we enjoyed occasional views of the river and some nice tree-lined avenues with Spanish moss hanging down all around. We even found some places where the road actually curved (!), though the local cagers rode their brakes in these sections like they were about to fall off a cliff.
We turned east at Seville and began seeing a lot more bikes on the road as we went through Bunnell and the scenic Tomoka Marsh Aquatic Preserve. There were a couple rider photographer outfits camped out along this stretch, similar to Tail of the Dragon, so I knew we were in a popular riding area. After a brief stop for the drawbridge over the ICW, we crossed to the barrier island and hit route A1A, the main coastal scenic route in Florida. There was so much traffic cruising through (including scores of bikes – probably from Bike Week) that it took several minutes for our entire group to make the turn north into Flagler Beach.
We pulled almost immediately into Martins Restaurant, our lunch RTE destination, right there on A1A with commanding views of the Atlantic Ocean across the street. Winds were mild and the ocean still as a lake. Doors wouldn’t open until 11:30, so we had a half hour or so to do some tire kicking and tale-telling as more and more riders arrived.
Greg Rice pulled in on his 2018 Gold Wing which was immediately flocked by just about everyone getting their first look at the new model Wing. When asked if this was its maiden voyage, he said no way. Greg, true to form, had ridden a Bun Burner Gold (1500 miles in 24 hours) upon delivery from the dealer, with only four miles on the odometer! He already had a custom auxiliary fuel tank being fabricated to convert the bike into a true LD machine.
The second floor dining area was reserved for our RTE and the IBA crowd showed in good numbers to fill it. Seven of us grabbed a prime table by the windows to look out over the ocean while we ate. The food was OK – standard beach fare, but the company was stellar and I enjoyed meeting and chatting with a few new faces.
We were also treated to something out of a nature documentary as we saw some larger birds down in the surf attacking what we first thought was a baby turtle, but turned out to be a smaller injured bird.
I chose to peel off from the group after lunch, to slow down the pace for some photos and to visit the lighthouse just north in St. Augustine. My Lighthouse Tour had fallen to the wayside last year for some reason (*cough*, bison!), so I was hoping to jumpstart it during this trip.
After getting some tips from my local table mates, I suited up and cruised north on A1A, enjoying the warm sunshine, temps in the 70s, and sights/smells of the ocean as I passed through several beach towns.
I rolled into St. Augustine and found my way to the lighthouse, which is on the grounds of a museum now. I snapped a couple photos from the road with my IBA flag, but wasn’t quite satisfied. Seeing as I had some time before needing to be back at the hotel, and I don’t always have the opportunity to actually climb many of the lighthouses I visit, I parked and paid my admission to the museum, for the full experience.
There’s a nice little display area with artifacts and ship models of some of those that wrecked by the light in years past. The light station has an interesting history, including a (unwilling) parachuting cat. Leaving the gift shop/museum building, a short walk through the native hammock woods area gets you to the lighthouse itself.
I knew there were 219 steps to climb up the tower in my MC boots and pants, thanks to the helpful signs posted at each major landing, giving one an opportunity to save face by reading while catching your breath.
At the top, there was a viewing window into the actual fresnel lens and rotation machinery chambers, so you can see the mechanism in action that generates the flash of the light.
There were a bunch of tourists at the top, but there was plenty of room for everyone to take things in. The views were pretty nice from that height, more so on the eastern side, as the lighthouse is situated somewhat inland along Salt Run inlet. You could look out over downtown St. Augustine to the west.
Going back down was easier, though still not ideal in MC boots.
Leaving north out of town, I had meant to rejoin A1A for a bit more of the coastal vibe, but missed the turn and ended up on US-1 for several miles back to I-95. I then headed west to rejoin the route from this morning and capture the small community of Switzerland FL as my first bonus in TeamStrange’s season-long Melting Pot Grand Tour. Towns named after countries is one of the bonus themes.
I made it back to the hotel right at 16:00, when the IBA certification presentations were scheduled to begin – to recognize folks who did a certified ride-in from home or had done one of the special rides scheduled earlier in the week. I got confused with the start time and came in late, missing my name getting called, but they went back through the missing folks and I collected my newest cert in person from the IBA.
I made a point of seeking out and meeting all IBA staff (volunteers) that I could, to thank them for all they do to promote and support this crazy hobby we have.
Dave McQueeney, pictured here in black on the right was recognized later in the evening for his two million documented lifetime miles, one of his many impressive and pioneering long-distance achievements.
Keg beer was included with the price of the event, so we enjoyed a couple beverages and socialized in the hotel’s common areas for an hour or so while waiting for the banquet rooms to open. The local BMW shop brought a couple of the latest models to the hotel to make fodder for tire-kickin’ and pontificatin’. Riders began lining up well ahead of eating time, and finally we were released to massacre the buffet platters, filled with chicken, beef, salad, potatoes, etc. It was a good spread!
I’d estimate a good 180-200 people in attendance at the banquet. After dinner, Mike Kneebone, IBA president, took the microphone and spoke some words of welcome. Then he called out various types of certified ride, starting with the “simpler” ones and asking finishers of those rides to stand up, then calling out the more difficult variations while people sat down, etc.
It was pretty cool to see how many people there had done some of the crazy-difficult rides and to see them receive a bit of recognition from their fellow inmates. For any one of us who has done a long-distance ride and gone through the routing and paperwork and riding through the night and dealing with traffic, bad weather, and beautiful sunrises – there was likely someone in this room who had done it 10 or 20 times over, and then took the long way home afterward.
Some presentations were made to award some particularly noteworthy ride recognition to several individuals. Big binders of documentation were finally returned as keepsakes to a couple riders who had done major rides back in the early 2000’s, proving that the IBA take their documentation requirements very seriously. Jim Bain, legendary rallymaster for the defunct Cape Fear rally spoke a few words and teased the crowd by dropping hints of a possible return to rally organizing.
We were treated to a couple very special presentations. First, Jim Owen, the 2017 Iron Butt Rally winner, regaled us with a tale of strategy and fortitude, relating his amazing final leg of last year’s IBR. Then Paul Tong and Peter Green, the only single-sex 2-up team to have competed in the IBR, had us all laughing in amazement at their story and wit, and impressed with their very serious fourth place finish.
Things wrapped up soon thereafter. While there looked to be a lot more fraternizing to do, I had been on the go since arrival and didn’t yet have a firm plan for embarking on my trip home the next day. I took leave of my companions and retired to the hotel room to do some routing and figure out how to make the best of my return journey while avoiding the next(!) storm that was forecast to hit New England by Wed – Thurs.