Friday, May 15, Ride to Meers Store & Restaurant

[Valkpilot]

For those of you who can get away on a Friday, I'm planning to ride to Oklahoma to the Meers Store & Restaurant on May 15.

It's planned for a Friday because you practically can't get near the place on weekends.  

I'll plan some additional diversions into the ride and post more details later.

This is a shakedown / develop-your-butt-callous ride before everyone departs for Inzane.  It will be about a 400 to 450 mile day after we get done diddling around.

Takers?

[Bosman]

Count me in!

[Baron]

I will try and make it.  Sounds like fun 

[Valkpilot]

Here's the tentative route.



I've got us going through Archer City on the way up.  Archer City is both the childhood and current home of Larry McMurtry, author of Lonesome Dove and a plethora of other works.  He moved his 250,000 volume book collection there a few years ago, and uses it as the basis for a rare book store.

Archer City is also where another of McMurtry's works, The Last Picture Show, was filmed.

Archer City was featured in a recent Ride Texas magazine article.

After we consume mass quantities at Meers, we'll head for the top of Mount Scott by way of The Holy City.

If we are KSU by 0800 from the Denton area, we'll pull into Meers right around noon, assuming a 30 minute gas & gawk stop in Archer City.

All in all, it will be a 388+ mile day.  Not a bad little day-trip.

Any more takers?

[BnB Tom]

  Looks like I'll have to pass on what looks to be a fun trip. 

Decisions based on:  "Income" - "Out go" ,  "Income" - "Out go"...

                        Permanent loss of "Income" - NO GO 

  Actually, I could probably get the day off without repercussions but since I'm taking a lot of time off for "ROADS NORTH" in a couple of weeks, I sorta feel guilty. 

 

[RainMaker]

Out of kitchen passes at the moment.  Plus I'm doing some work on the Valk this weekend and anticipating parts I'll find I need (that I don't have - I know, what could that be?) won't be here in time for me to get everything back together before next weekend.  I could be wrong about the parts but I'm definitely not wrong about not having a kitchen pass.

Kinda' had my run to Tyler for the practice.

RM

[Houdini]

I'm out, headin' to Austin Friday morning.

[Wheelman]

I would like to go!


Bob
214-869-4668

[Valkpilot]

Here's a link to a GPX file of the route if your GPS can pre-load routes: Meers Route  Right click on the link and choose "Save File As" or "Save Target As" or some variation of same depending on your browser.  

Plan to be KSU from the Race Trac at 2834 W University Dr, Denton, TX 76201  (on 380 just east of I-35E) at 0800.

Looks like a limited field of players.  If you're going, please PM me your cell number in case we call off due to weather.  Localized rain won't be much of an issue.  All-day rain or threat of severe weather is a no-go.

[Valkpilot]

How many are still interested in going tomorrow?

[Valkpilot]

How many are still interested in going tomorrow?

Looks like it's just Wheelman and I, so we changed the departure location to my house.

[Valkpilot]

Wheelman and I launched from my place at 8 am, under cloudy skies and fully expecting to get wet in the first 100 miles.  But wet on the roads was the only wet there was and after the first couple of hours the sun came out and the rest of the day was beautiful with almost perfect riding temps in teh 70s and low 80s.

Per the plan, we first rode to Archer City and checked out the Royal Theatre, featured in the movie The Last Picture Show, and I think its sequel, Texasville.   At least they were both filmed in Archer City.






The theater is only the facade and ticket booth now.  The rest burned a number of years ago.





Archer City has a long history independent of the minor celebrity brought by Larry McMurtry, as witnessed by this marker stone:




From there we headed up to Meers, but not after the obligatory DFW VRCC u-turn because the GPS decided we were there (when we weren't) and turned us around on the I-44 toll road.  Since it was the toll road, it was a 20 mile one-way u-turn, perhaps setting a record.  Wheelman argued that since we did two, they cancelled each other out, so they never really happened.  I can live with that, so you can all just forget I said anything.

Finally, the destination:





And the target:



Half-pound burgers from grass-fed beef, raised by the restaurant for the restaurant.

There was also pie, but disguised as peach cobbler.


After Meers, we rode to the top of Scott Mountain, the highest peak in the Wichita Mountains.  There were some great views from the top.







After a brief stop in Medicine Park at Chaps My Ass motorcycle shop (suggested by Baron) we beat feet home, rolling in about 6:30.

It's been a while since I put in a whole day of riding.  This 450 miles was the warm-up I needed for our June trip.

Oh yeah, BTW, the Wing is The Thing.

[Red Diamond]

Thanks for sharing Pilot, didn't know there are mountains that high up there. A must check out for me, food is very inviting.

[BnB Tom]

  "I'M" sorry I missed the trip...  my "BUTT" is not.  

Didn't know you were going all the way to Kansas (Wichita)  

   Glad you boys had a dry trip.    

Not so much around Dallas.  But then I was in an enclosed vehicle that provided boring, dry transportation to each of my destinations.  

[WilliamRS]

 "I'M" sorry I missed the trip...  my "BUTT" is not.  

Didn't know you were going all the way to Kansas (Wichita)  

   Glad you boys had a dry trip.    

Not so much around Dallas.  But then I was in an enclosed vehicle that provided boring, dry transportation to each of my destinations.  

the 'Wichita mountains' are just outside Fort sill,Oklahoma

[Bosman]

Sounds like you had a great trip. I'm sorry I was unable to go with!
Glad you made it home safe!

[Baron]

VP,

I enjoyed the pics. 

I hope I get a chance to make the same route.  Glad you all had a great ride!