Leesburg Bikefest 2009

[mrbones]

Ok, here it is, our trip to Leesburg 2009. We decided to skip Daytona this year and go here instead. I'm glad we did as the weather was better, there were more motorcycles and friendlier people. Instead of staying at an over priced hotel, we camped at Windy Acres: http://www.windyacresfarms.com/bikefestcamp/. Great place to stay and they even had there own events every night to make things interesting. Such as a jumbo slip n slide, barn pole dancing and thong pull to name a few.

First pic is of the bikes packed up and ready to go. We got a '04 SV650 and a '98 Sportster to make the trip.

[mrbones]

Made it to the campground without trouble. Paid the $48 and off we go to setup camp. The campground is about 10-15 minutes from Main St. They also sell ice, beer and food. What else to do you need? On top of that, combined with a friendly country family owned atmosphere, our hosts were willing to sit down with us with a map and discuss places to go and find bike routes outside of Leesburg. More on that later.

[mrbones]

After camp is setup we head out to Main St. All I can say is wow! What a lot of bikes! It took 8 minutes to get from one end to the other. Saturday had even more and was super crowded.

[mrbones]

Some cool bikes.

[mrbones]

More.

[mrbones]

More.

[mrbones]

More.

[mrbones]

Got to see Miss Bikefest just off Main St. on Friday night. Went back to the camground and got there a little late for the barn pole dancing, but the madness carried over to some naked slip n' slide action.

[mrbones]

Ok, on Saturday we wanted to head out for a ride and with the help of our hosts at the campground, they recommended going to Ozello park in Homosassa Springs. It's a straight shot west on highway 44 to 19, then west on Ozello trail. Very cool road with lots and lots of curves. At the end it Ozello park. There's also a seafood restaurant out there with great sandwiches, like oyster and the famous soft shell crab sandwich. See the photo below for that one.

[mrbones]

Below: My bro trying to figure out how to tackle that soft shelled beast.

[mrbones]

Got back to the campground around 5:00 and went back to main street. Basically the same thing with even more people and more bikes. Here's a thing to note. Vendor quality was a little lame. Most vendors were trying to sell there old Daytona 2009 t-shirt stock, which was lame. We did find an official Leesburg shirt being sold, but it was hard to find. Other vendors were selling cheap sun glasses or crappy saddle bags. There were so many of them most looked all the same. Where were the parts vendors?

After that, we went back to the campground for the thong pull. This was about 5 women pulling cases of beer on a minisled. The lucky girl who wins gets to keep the beer. Not a bad prize! I'll have video of this up shortly. After more drinking,  a nice bonfire, and a cap of 180 proof everclear, it was time to call it a night. No nakedness to be witnessed on Saturday night, .

[mrbones]

On Sunday we packed up, chilled out with a great egg sandwich and sausage, with coffee at the campground (awsome, btw), we said our goodbyes. It just so happens that the winner of the thong pull was there with her significant other (don't know if they were married) and their '58 VW Bus. They weren't bikers at all but had a contagious free spirit and the most remarkable VW Bus ever witnessed. It was a true survivor and looked like it was straight from the 60's (which it is) with hippy paint, converted inside for traveling. It had port holes for windows and all kinds of awsome decorating. They told us they had it for 14 years and the guy that sold it to him made him smoke a big joint even before he was allowed to test drive it! He decided to sell it to him instead of a museum for less money because he was going to live in it and travel around the country. They take 3 months out of the year to do just that. Very cool. The Bus' name is Juicy Lucy.

*Notice the 4 cases of beer, she won 5 I think the night before in the infamous thong pull.

Also, the inside of the bus might look like wallpaper, but it's actually cut out comic book character all glued on. Above the windsheld are jazz muscians photos and signature of previous hitchikers.

[mrbones]

We left the campground at noon on Sunday and went to the Leesburg Harley dealer. Not a big scene really compared to Daytona. But at least I was able to buy a part for my bike as a souvenir (an HD chrome carb cover to replace the faded black plastic one).

We headed back home down 301 heading south. Got to be part of a 60 bike pack for about an hour. Ended up in Zyphyrhills for a Chinese buffet. Damn good!

And that about does it. Got home and climbed into the hot tub to unwind and reflect on what happened over the last 3 days. It was a good trip. A good trip indeed.

I'll post up some videos, soon.

[mrbones]

Thong Pull Videos!!

1st Place Run:

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FReOamK07Tg" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FReOamK07Tg</a>

2nd Place Run (determining the winner):

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2vVAQ65uoY" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2vVAQ65uoY</a>

[mrbones]

A ride down Main St.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ir0ZB9KtnI" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ir0ZB9KtnI</a>

[bagobones]

Holy shit, man that's an awesome write-up of the Leesburg trip. I really don't have a whole lot more to add. That picture of the soft shelled crab beast is killing me! The only thing I would add is that the folks that run that campground are amazing. They could not possibly have been nicer to us or have been better hosts. I think if we do that fest again next year, it will mostly be because of the campground. Those guys really do deserve the support! Some of the best hospitality you could ask for!!!

[mrbones]

I agree absolutely.

Here's another video.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGJQNbBkrHc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGJQNbBkrHc</a>

[mrbones]

The Ozello Ride.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5GPwX9MmuE" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5GPwX9MmuE</a>

[mrbones]

One more.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-ICsYfVMjE" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-ICsYfVMjE</a>

[dt]

Awesome!

[mrbones]

Did you go?

[Nocturnal]

Thanks for the write up and pics / vids. 
 I've never been to a bikefest before but, from what I'm hearing Leesburg is the place to go. Hopefully my finances will be a little better next year and maybe I can tag along with you all. 

[mrbones]

Hey, no problem. We can make it a group thing next year.

[nobull60]

Hey mrbones.....great job. I wish I stayed at the campground instead of the Microtel on 27. The folks I went with were in bed by 10:00pm every night and I was on main by myself but I found alot of cool people to hang with. Next time you all plan on a fest let me know, I sure would like to tag along. 

[mrbones]

10:00? That's pretty early. But yeah, sure thing. I'll let you know about the next fest.