6th Annual Almas' Ride & Pancake Breakfast
Almas' ride is forever etched into the history of North Country Rider Magazine and for that reason it is a ride that we will always make. When we started the magazine our thoughts were that after several years of being on-line we would eventually earn the privilege of having McDermott’s Harley Davidson as an advertiser. We went on Almas' ride last year and wrote an article in the August 2010 issue. We sent McDermott’s an e-mail asking for someone on the staff to review the article and let us know if there were any factual errors. The response that we got was, “Great Magazine”; “One Correction”; “How do we advertise with you”. When you get a response like that from an account that you have not even called on, it lets you know that you are doing the right thing and for that reason Almas' ride is now an annual event for us. It was an instant gratification of the magazine, not only in our minds but in the minds of others as well.
For those of you have never experienced Almas' ride please let me assure you that this ride is well worth your participation. If your idea of a run is to bar hop then you will be sadly disappointed as this run is hosted by McDermott’s Harley Davidson but is executed by the Adirondack Chapter of HOG and they have a no alcohol policy. Does that mean you should not go; hell no. As a family, the McDermott’s are there for the Harley riders in the area and for that reason alone they deserve our support, especially when they are celebrating and honoring the life of one of their family members who is no longer with them.
This ride attempts to accomplish several goals and it always does it very well. The first goal is to honor Alma McDermott who left the motorcycling family that she loved so much in June 2005. The second goal is to insure that everyone in attendance has a good morning breakfast before hitting the road, the third goal is to make sure that everyone has a good time and returns home safely and the fourth goal is to support a local charity with the proceeds of the event.
The funds from this year’s event are to be used to support the “Hugs for Heroes” program of the Salem United Methodist Church. If you are a regular reader of this magazine you know that we covered the Hugs for Heroes Run and Blessing of the Bikes in the July issue. It was a pleasant surprise to see that the funds from Alma’s ride were going to be used to support that program. I also had the opportunity to meet Donna and Chuck Alexander again and to personally thank Pastor Debbie Earthrowl for her words of support in July. The unplanned and unexpected opportunity to bump into old friends is one aspect of attending these events that I enjoy so much and this event was no exception.
Eventually you will need to register so get that out of the way first. Fill out and sign the waiver, pay your entry fee, get your wristband and pins and move on. Registration is efficiently managed by ADK HOG and the lines are never long and move quickly. If registering the day of the event is something you would like to avoid, you can always pre-register for the ride. During registration we had an opportunity to meet Lisa Pritchard. Lisa was instrumental in organizing the “Around the Lake for Charlie’s Sake” ride that supports the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (read the article). Last year was the first annual ride and it was a wonderful ride. As I had hoped, the second annual ride is in the planning stages and Lisa promised me that we would get the information for the schedule of events as soon as things are finalized.
Next on the agenda is breakfast. McDermott’s has a large covered pavilion with plenty of picnic tables. The grills are fired up and there are pancakes and sausage available as well as coffee and juice. The food is always excellent and those items that should be hot are hot and those items that should be cold are cold. Grab a plate, some breakfast and a seat at a picnic table with some friends or riders who are about to become friends and enjoy. It just seems like such a natural way to start the day, breakfast and friends.
Nadine Szewczyk is the Road Captain of ADK HOG and this was her baby to lead. I will say that she and her staff always do an excellent job of planning and executing the rides. After an orientation by Nadine and a blessing from Pastor Debbie Earthrowl we were off with 116 bikes total.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Department had an officer at McDermott’s to handle the departure traffic and with the way clear the ride departed. The first segment of this ride is always the same. North on Route 4 to Fort Ann where another Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy had the traffic well in hand at the intersections of Route 4 and Route 149. The ride then proceeds east on Route 149 until it intersects with Route 9L. The ride the proceeds on route 9L along the east side of Lake George and then through the village of Lake George. In the village of Lake George the ride intersects Route 9 and proceeds north on Route 9 until it intersects with the Diamond Point Road. The ride turns right onto the Diamond Point Road until it intersects with the Truesdale Hill Road. There is a small cemetery at this intersection which is the final resting place of Alma. We all dismounted and paid our annual respects to Alma. After a few words from Alise and Tom McDermott the ride continued.
I was totally unimpressed with the fact that the Warren County Sheriff’s Department rescinded their agreement to provide traffic control at the intersection of Route 149 and 9L just 2 days prior to the ride(this a rumor from a trusted source not a researched fact). I was even less impressed with the fact that a ride of this magnitude was left to fend for themselves as they passed through the Village of Lake George. It seems that there is a major problem in obtaining cooperation from the Warren County Sheriff’s Department to provide traffic control for these charity events. Maybe that is why the vast majority of the rides bypass Warren County if it is possible. For this ride it is not an option as the objective of the first segment is to visit the final resting place of Alma which is near exit 23.
The ride then headed east on the Diamond Point Road and then north on the East Schroon River Road. We crossed the Schroon River using the County Home Bridge Road and then proceeded north on the Schroon River Road to our 1st stop which was the Stewarts in Chestertown on Route 8. After a short pause for the cause we continued west on Route 8 through Riparius, Wevertown, Johnsburg and Bakers Mills. Route 8 eventually crosses a river and connects with Route 30. This ride was different in that it took County Route 8 with connects with Route 8 just before the bridge. I found this to be rather refreshing in that it was a piece of road that I had never travelled before and the views of the river were both pleasant and spectacular as we proceed to Wells NY. In Wells we connected with Route 30 and proceeded south on Route 30 to our next stop which was the Robin gas station in Northville.
Now cramming 116 bikes into a small variety store was a challenge, but it was a challenge that we were able to meet as we were able to do it and still leave enough room for a line to form at the gas pumps as riders refueled. The stop was pleasant and the local folks were both pleased and eager to see us arrive unlike the old fart in Warrensburg that was pissed off because he had to wait an extra 2 minutes for those damn bikers to get out of his way so he could get onto the Diamond Point Road.
The ride left Northville and proceeded on County Road 113 to the Northville Road in Edinburg where we crossed over the Sacandaga Lake and proceeded south on Route 7 and worked our way over to our final stop at the C&R Restaurant in West Galway NY. Our meal was served buffet style. The food was excellent, the portions were generous and the service was somewhat fast. I was one of the last in line and I only waited about 6 minutes to be served. After eating I headed home to join Karen at a chicken barbeque at a local church.
As you can tell, I love this ride because it is well planned, well executed, well-paced and provides many diverse riding conditions. But mostly I love this ride because it provides me a chance to meet with my friends at McDermott’s and our growing list of friends in ADK HOG.
To McDermott’s and ADK HOG, well done and I am already looking forward to next year’s ride.
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6th Annual Almas' Ride
Tuesday, August 09, 2011 NADINE