Welcome to the 2014 Alabama State H.O.G. Rally Ride Page! SURVEY SAYS….. 68% come to the rally for the rides and 32% come for the events. Well, 68% of you should be very pleased. The 2014 Alabama H.O.G Rally is all about the rides from 8am to 2 pm. So get ready to get your knees in the breeze! We have 3 premier long rides and 3 shorter rides with all rides back to Mobile Harley Davidson by 2 pm so you won’t miss any of the 15 minute seminars that repeat starting around noon or demonstrations that don’t begin until 3:30 pm. Following are our ride details with links to detailed information in Harley’s Ride Planner, GPS files and PDF files. If you don’t have a profile set up in Harley Ride Planner, do it to view the rides in detail. The PDF files are an overview map with simplified driving directions in a 1 page format. If you want a color printed copy please print it out before you come. B/W copies will be available while they last at registration only. All of the routes have 2 parts. This is because Google apparently doesn’t hire bikers in the map division and their software just can’t understand our way of navigation. So bookmark http://mobilehog.com/statehogrally2014.html and keep coming back as it will be continually updated right up to rally time. You can go to the end of this booklet and check the revision dates to know if you have the latest version. We have a great venue for our rally in downtown Mobile, AL. You can safely park your bike for the night and walk to everything. And yes, Mobile Alabama is the “Open Carry” city. Open carry of alcohol within the entertainment district of downtown Mobile in approved container, which is where you will be at night. The only problem with a downtown venue as well as Mobile Harley Davidson being within the city is getting large groups of bikes out of the city for guided rides. So to eliminate this hazard and confusion, ALL RIDES START FROM REMOTE LOCATIONS EXCEPT THE BUBBA GUMP RIDE! At the end of the rides section of this booklet we have provided maps and links to these locations. Please pay attention as it only takes 10 minutes to get to the start point (Felix’s) for East and South East rides, but it takes 20 to 40 minutes to get to the West (Winn Dixie-Snow Rd @ Airport Blvd.) starting location. So keep this in mind when you see the KSU time. These times to the start locations are based on starting from the host hotel in downtown Mobile. Saddle times in the ride planner are based on time from the starting points and are typically LESS than what the actual ride will take. ALL RIDES WILL END AT MOBILE HARLEY DAVIDSON STORE. A couple of the long rides offer “jump off points”. From there you can sign out with the road captain and jump on the interstate and be back at Mobile Bay Harley Davidson or the host hotel within 25 minutes to 1 hr. Sorry the Around the Bay offers no such jump off, unless your bike has scuba gear! Map to Felix Start Point Map to West Start Point (Winn Dixie) DUE TO SOME CRITICAL CHECK POINT TIMES, WE MUST ASK YOU TO SHOW UP FULL FUEL TANK, EMPTY BLADDER AND AT LEAST 15 MINUTES PRIOR TO KSU TIME! For those using a GPS or anyone with a smart phone PLEASE PLACE Mobile Bay Harley Davidson as a favorite location or contact. If you should get separated or lost during a ride, they will help you get back. Mobile Bay Harley Davidson, 3260 Pleasant Valley Road, Mobile, AL, 36606-2712 (251)471-2174 NOTE: You must sign up for a ride at the ride table in the registration area. We must know how many are on what ride for the safety of all. We have created a new position called “Pack Rider” or PR. These people know the route and have pre rode it. They are not leading the ride, but serve to keep a group on route when it gets broken up. You will be instructed how to signal one forward during the pre-ride talk should you find yourself at the front of the pack and need this person to come forward and lead. Long Rides Posted: 3/11/14 Complete: Yes Ride Name Distance Saddle Time Total Ride Time Around the Bay 120.6 miles 4 hr. 6 hr. Departs-KSU Depart Location HRP Link- Part 1 HRP-Link- Part 2 7 am Felix’s on Battleship http://bit.ly/1aHIhPt http://bit.ly/1aHIke3 Pkwy. Lunch Stop PDF Map- Part 1 PDF Map- Part2 YES AroundtheBay-Part1 AroundtheBay-Part2 Around the Bay- This ride begins by going down the Eastern shore on scenic 98 through beautiful Daphne, Fairhope and Point Clear. Then we stretch it out down the back county roads of southern Baldwin County working our way around Weeks Bay and down to Fort Morgan where we catch the ferry across Mobile Bay. The ferry ride cost $8 and is good for 2 trips just in case you decide to do the ride again or you can pass the ticket to a buddy doing the ride on a different day. PLEASE NOTE THE KSU TIME! This ride leaves early to allow us to take a normal break and reach the ferry at Fort Morgan in time to catch the 9:45 a.m. ferry. If we miss it, it is a 1 hr. 45 minute wait for the next one. Once we reach Dauphin Island on the West shore we will be stopping for lunch and group pictures. Then we head north because Bubba is calling. We cruise through Coden and Bayou LaBatre which are Alabama’s seafood cities. PLEASE NOTE: You need to have at least $20 to $30 CASH on you for this ride. The Mobile Bay Ferry does take plastic, but the special lunch is cash only @ $10 per person. Mississippi Twist-N-Shout Posted 3/11/14 Complete: Yes Ride Name Distance Saddle Time Total Ride Time Mississippi Twist-n- 152.4 miles 3 hr. 36 min 5.1 hr. Shout Departs Depart Location Link 8:30am Winn Dixie-Airport & http://bit.ly/1ghNYe6 http://bit.ly/1ghO3yr Snow Rd. Lunch Stop PDF Map YES Mississippi Mississippi TwistNShout-Part1.pdf TwistNShout-Part2 Mississippi Twist-n-Shout- So you think the Gulf Coast is just flat and straight? WRONG! This ride takes on the twistys of southwest Alabama and southern Mississippi. Riding through the Pascagoula River Wildlife Management Area and the Desoto National Forest, you will experience shade to sun, straight to twisty, forest to grasslands, old vs. new and come away thinking you had no idea that existed on the Gulf Coast. You will cruise the Mississippi coast down Casino row and take in lunch at a local Italian restaurant called Sicily’s. To make this ride return by 2 pm, there is a 35 mile stretch of I- 10 used from Ocean Springs, MS back to the Alabama Line. We hate it, but the first 2/3rds of the ride just couldn’t be compromised. So come join us and you will know where Elvis got all that hip action from. Up the Creek and No Paddle Posted 3/11/14 Complete: Yes Ride Name Distance Saddle Time Total Ride Time Up the Creek and No 135.9 miles 3 hr. 17 min 4.5 hr. Paddle Departs Depart Location Link- Part 1 Link- Part 2 8 am Felix’s on Causeway http://bit.ly/1aLD3Ub http://bit.ly/1m2XYJs Lunch Stop PDF Map- Part1 PDF Map- Part 2 YES UPCREEKNoPaddle- UPCREEKNoPaddle- Part1 Part2 So Up the creek and no paddle is a bad thing right? Nah, we like getting lost in the river region which is the North West and South East sides of the Delta. Ok, so if you breakdown on the North West side, it will be awhile before a tow truck arrives. But we even have that covered. Mobile Bay Harley Davidson is keeping a technician with truck and trailer on call for us the entire rally. This is a ride to nowhere and a lot of fun getting there. We will stop for lunch at a great family restaurant named Stage Coach Café with a buffet of homemade meats, vegetables and desserts. Biker friendly as some of you may have attended their annual Iron Butt destination on New Year’s Day. This ride also offers a jump off point. If you wish to return to the rally site or Mobile Bay Harley Davidson for one of the seminars, part 2 begins at I-65 & Hwy 225 (Exit 31). So via interstate you are only 30 miles from the Harley shop or the host motel. Short Rides Some may look at these and say “short rides?” Well for a chapter who in 2011 had members ride in 48 of 50 states (yes Alaska & Hawaii were covered), yeah we consider anything less than 3 hours saddle time short. These rides are designed for those who can’t seem to be KSU at 8 am. We also realize there are many legitimate reasons why one can’t do our longer rides. But that won’t stop us from giving you a warm friendly hard time about it. Hey, it is how the 0040 spreads the love But we still wanted to show you a few twistys we have or something unique to South Alabama.