RIDE THE RIBBON 2023

[SidecarKen]

Labor Day Weekend

September 1-4, 2023

 

[tdbru]

SK,
details?
-tdbru

 

[robertv]

Event ride details from the calendar page...

Concours Owners Group - Ride the Ribbon [OR]

concours.org

Location:
Sunset Inn
390 W Main St
John Day, OR 97845

Ride the Ribbon
Ride the Ribbon traditional Labor Day weekend get together. We will plan on sharing dinner at the OutPost Pizza Pub and Grill Sunday night. Order on your own.

Come for the great weather, great roads, and great fellowship. Remember there are more deer than humans in this part of the state, so RIDE AWARE.

Lodging

Sunset Inn is under new management and room rates are approx. $115/night at this date. Working on getting a group rate.

Registration/Fees
There are no registration fees, but we are asking everyone to register online so we have an idea of how many people to expect. Online registration will close at 11:59 pm on Monday, August 28th.

 

[Daboo]

Just got back from the Cedar Springs Rally in Utah. We're still doing the Ride the Ribbon, correct?

Chris

 

[Daboo]

Is there a group rate?

Chris

 

[mtntec]

Chris,

I'm attending. Haven't finalized my Friday route down yet.
I didn't hear that any group rate was finalized but figured $115/night for a single wasn't too bad.

 

[Daboo]

The Sunset Inn gets a 5 out of 10 rating from me personally. The AC unit in our room worked well until it didn't. Would shut off once set temperature was reached and then not come back on unless power switch was cycled.
No luck getting a break on the room rates also. The new owners are trying hard but it would appear with very limited resources. If you like soft mattresses, you are in luck. Not so much of you prefer a firm bunk.

Thanks Rufus for the update in our email. I read some of the reviews of the Sunset Inn yesterday before making my reservation. As one person put it, you have to set your expectations against what else is in town. The fact that they are trying, means a lot to me. Times are tough, and if I can help them out by
staying there a few nights, it's all good.

The memories of the Ride the Ribbon weekend for me, are not the room...though if the A/C didn't work, I'd probably remember that. My memories are of friends I've come to know over the years and miles we've shared together.

Chris

 

[stevem]

Great rally! Thanks to all that made this year’s Ribbon happen: Kendra and Susan for preparing the fine vittles, Rufus for getting the ball rolling and Island Bob for taking over the task (and donating door prizes), and to the 23 COGers who showed up for the usual camaraderie, bench racing, and lie telling. And a posthumous thanks to the late Rich Wayland for the Ride the Ribbon banner that was so clearly displayed.

It had been a while since I attended this event in John Day and boy was it worth it! I chose a nice 285-mile loop on Saturday, riding with Dave Fors from Cottage Grove and Kevin Turner from Spokane. We flew along the Middle Fork road from Austin, then up 395 to Ukiah, over to Heppner, and back to base camp via Monument and Long Creek. Some of my favorite roads, and I never tire of them. Others rode the Little Dragon, cruised up toward Anthony Lake, etc. As far as I know there were no performance awards (despite the pair of state cops hanging out on Hwy 26 on either side of John Day) and one only one unintended dismount. All in all a great weekend Looking forward to doing this again next year.

 

[charlie gary]

So much Good Stuff happened this weekend. Seeing so many of the older "more experienced" faces was great. There were a few others missing, but 2024 is another chance to hang out with the incontinent crowd.

Google maps estimates I did 1357 miles from Friday to Monday, and I enjoyed all of them. Even the ones covered in cow pies that tried to crash me. The roads around John Day never fail to deliver, so if you’ve never been to Ride the Ribbon on Labor Day weekend now is a great time to put August 30th-September 2nd 2024 on your calendar. You’ll be glad you did when you get back home.

 

[Daboo]

I thought I had posted pics, but I guess I didn't. I'll try to make up for it now.

Yakima River Canyon. It was one of those times when I was really glad I had the Sena 10C EVO. My phone/camera was buried in my pocket, and the shoulder wasn't suitable to park the bike because of the angle. But I still captured a unique scene.

I'm fascinated by geology, and the area is rich in it.

Cathedral Rock

Sheep Rock. The ranger said it was named because they used to have a lot of Big-horned sheep on it. That makes sense. I just couldn't see a "sheep" in those rock shapes. Take a moment and zoom in on all the textures.

Painted Hills

There's an overlook above them with a different perspective.

It was a great ride to there...and well, not so great a ride from there. All was well until I got to Ellensburg where I got notification of a wreck ahead...with an 11 mile backup. Garmin wanted to route me south over Naches and Chinook Pass. I stopped to get gas and check the traffic again, only to find that both Garmin and Google had no traffic reports at all. Garmin then wanted to route me over to Wenatchee and Hwy 2. Just after I exited the freeway to head up Hwy 97, I saw a sign pointing to Cle Elum. Hmm...so I took it.

The roads around John Day are full of curves with good pavement. Few LEOs, and those concentrated around John Day itself, not out on the roads you'll spend your time on. The company was great. And the motel was good as well. The bed was soooo comfortable...or maybe it was just being tired after a full day of riding. Oh...and the food was great too. Thank you ladies!

Chris

 

[charlie gary]

I'm glad I chose White Pass coming back, but I will say I was a little surprised by how many cars I was following on Skate Creek Rd.

 

[red fox]

I thought I had posted pics, but I guess I didn't. I'll try to make up for it now.

Yakima River Canyon. ... I still captured a unique scene.

I'm fascinated by geology, and the area is rich in it.


Chris

Now that's a winner of a photo!