Talk about a walking contradiction! Rocky is originally from New York City - Brooklyn, to be more precise. However, he also happens to be one of the very best BBQ impresarios I've ever encountered! Co-owner of the Woodyard Grill in Newberry, FL, and a nice guy to boot... I was starting to wonder if that amazing establishment, and Rocky himself, would survive this latest challenge to commercial dining places... Last Saturday I felt an overpowering urge to go find out...
Yes, there was a bit more than simple concern for that transplanted Yankee in-play here... Sure, I also wanted some reassurance that one of the best BBQ places around was still hanging on. Naturally, if they were surviving, I also wanted to throw a little business their way, as well, to help in their struggle to keep the smoldering smoker fire going and the doors open… and to maybe enjoy some of that very fine swine, too… you know… as long as I would be there anyway…
I also confess there was at least one other aspect to such a journey on my mind… I simply had to get my knees back in the breeze, if there was to be any hope at all of my maintaining even the most tenuous of a grip on sanity! Dang! This self-imposed stationary, secluded isolation was…
Not so much the seclusion itself or the isolation, as I’ve long ago discovered that I tolerate those quite well… No, it was the absence of riding that was undermining my enjoyment of life and standing squarely in the way of the pursuit of happiness… and that, my friends, is downright unconstitutional!
Our girl could tell my entry into the garage this time was more than a routine visit or pass-through… I could sense the lift she was feeling, as the anticipation built for both of us… Yep, she was ready for sure! I donned my jacket, helmet, and gloves, threw my leg over her ample saddle, and assumed my preferred position…
Not even a hint of protest from our girl! I switched the petcock to ‘On’, backed her out, switched the key on, set the choke lever, and… a for-real varoom this time! No more pretend, we were going forth in the face of much claimed danger for her rider, but she and he were both well beyond the point where they considered it worth the risk… Let’s go see what ole Rocky is up to!
We’d just endured sixteen strait days of self-imposed quarantine. It’s one thing when circumstances just work out that way, but when we feel we are required to deliberately impose such a ‘sentence’ upon ourselves for an unspecified period ahead… well, that’s a whole nuther matter entirely! Individual tolerance varies considerably, of course, but… Perceptions and perspectives do directly impact our moods and state-of-mind!
Yessiree, all that pent-up frustration was being relieved, and… Well, if I hadn’t been surgically ‘modified’ (anatomically altered) nearly fourteen months ago, my handle could now be justifiably changed to ‘Gunner’… even as we approached the end of the driveway! Ahhhhh, it was so good, too… for both of us.
Many on here have pointed out the value of quality versus quantity when it comes to riding, and I wholeheartedly subscribe to that assessment, myself. I didn't record the miles we actually rode, but I can accurately report that every inch of it was sensational! A more or less direct ride over and back would have been around 90-100 miles... we did a bit more than that… quite a bit more, in fact!
Backroads over and back… with some different roads interspersed on the return to add some variety and interest… Yes, the return was longer than the route over! The Woodyard Grill was indeed open… for take-out only, of course; however… that surely beats a blank!
I’d considered calling in advance to place an order, but… you know… I really didn’t want to box us in like that… to more or less commit to an arrival time, etc. Nope, we just rolled the dice and figured we’d make any necessary adjustments when or if the need arose… it didn’t.
We made our arrival at Rocky’s Grill, placed our order… and commenced the wait. They were by no means swamped with business, but there were half a dozen folks ahead of me, so… Not a problem! Heck, I was off on an adventure and loving every second of it! Even the wait proved interesting…
Folks were awkwardly doing ‘the right thing’ by maintaining proper spacing, a few of us made occasional trips outside… and everyone had a stilted, nervous smile, but more of a look of concern and hope the people closest to them were not carriers/spreaders of… the dreaded bug! The ‘Q’ there is fabulous, but no one apparently figured it was ‘to die for’… I shared their view!
While standing around people-watching, Rocky came out… It felt really weird not shaking hands this time, but… we didn’t. I seriously doubt a brotherly toe-tap will be catching on, and neither of us offered a friendly foot in greeting…
He did reassure me that both he and his business were holding up well, and that they would make it through this and survive. I was greatly relieved, and I told him so. It is important that he and they do hang on, as that has become my favorite BBQ destination, and… He seemed resolute but also happy to hear that…
Ole Rocky… Yep, he’s still upright and cranking out superior ‘Q’…
No place to sit down to dine! On the way over I’d anticipated that and cruised by a couple of parks I’ve stopped at over the years to read and/or take a break… None were open! I finally spotted a place where we could pause, at least, and I could dine in relative privacy…
I stopped in front of the locked gate to a ball field complex and proceeded to devour one of the two pork sandwiches I’d purchased and to sip some of the sweet tea… It was actually good grub, but the ‘ambience’ of the location was rather interesting, too! No place to wash my hands beforehand or afterward, naturally, but I was still able to discretely discharge some used tea over by the fence.
My appetite for several necessities having been sated, it was time to return to the primary mission… that would eventually end back at my landlady’s hospitable home… Yep, you could now call me ‘Gunner’… well, almost…
DDT
