One Sunday in October of 2010 the street where I live was suddenly flooded with motorcycles and riders from the Patriot Guard and the Christian Motorcycle Club. The post I did at that time can be found by clicking here. Since that time I have run into several of the bikers I spoke to and photographed that day. On one recent encounter I was given a flyer announcing the clubs upcoming rally. So on Sunday, July first the Old Salt and I headed over to our county seat to attend the Rally. Here are a few of the shots I took that day.
Motorcycles of all ages, sizes and descriptions were
lined up for viewing and judging.
This officer and one other are assigned to patrol the eastern part of the state which includes the St. Louis area and surrounding counties.
There were a few bikes at the rally with for sale signs.
This biker has a constant companion
Free food, prizes and lots of live music were also part of the rally.
The Med Vac helicopter and its crew, above, were also on hand
distributing literature on Motorcycle safety. A short while later we learned it isn't the bikers that need this information. When we left the rally we were behind one of the bikers who was going our way. After several miles I ask the Old Salt to stop so I could photograph something I noticed. About ten minutes later we were sitting in a line of standstill traffic. We finally got a few miles down the road and encounter a serious accident involving the biker we had been following. A motorist making a left turn failed to see the motorcycle and pulled out hitting it. The motorcycle became wedged under the car and bike and rider were dragged a shot distance. By the time we arrived on the site the biker was being treated in an ambulance awaiting for the above Med Vac chopper to arrive to airlift him into a city trauma center. We learned from the story in the local newspaper that the biker was extremely lucky that day and was going to recover.
I also photographed as many of the bearded bikers as I could and they are all included in the Beard Parade slideshow on my sidebar.
I have post a few other shots from this event on my Photo Blog they can be found by clicking the following links.
The post below contain photos taken while attending the rally but are not biker or motorcycle related
Linking to:
Great shots of the bikes and an important reminder to watch out for our two-wheeler neighbors on the road.
ReplyDeleteTara, I'm just thankful that we made that stop. I would not have wanted to be right behind that motorcycle when this accident happened. It was bad enough having to go around the results after the biker was out of sight.
DeleteWhat an interesting post. I LOVE the bikes!
ReplyDeleteOne of those State Motorcycle troopers is my nephew - JD - he patrols that area, lives near the city. He is a hoot - has some hilarious stories to tell. So glad the biker was ok. Also, another nephew flies MedVac - he lives down around Steelville. His wife used to fly also, but got burned out and now works in the hospital. The trooper's wife also used to fly MedVac. They are sorely needed around there!
ReplyDeletesorry, I did not get the troopers head in the shot so no way for you to tell if it was your nephew. The Old Salt spent a good bit of time swapping cop stories with him while I was busy with my camera.
DeleteLol, at your 'beard...braid...and shirt parades!' And good for you going on an outing that would be out of my comfort zone, I don't know about yours......I love the old bikes - my husband rides, but I don't!
ReplyDeleteOoooo - - - that aqua bike is kinda pretty, no?
ReplyDeleteWait, are bikes pretty? Handsome? Tough?? Cool?
Very nice photos! I like the retro paint jobs on the two in the first photo...
ReplyDeleteNice shots. Glad the rider was not seriously injured. So often that isn't the case. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun and interesting rally! Glad you got some great photos. I don't know what kind of motorcycle those are in that first photo, but I LOVE that 50s green!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear about the biker being hit. It happens far too often to bikers.
ReplyDelete