CFO Gathering

Last weekend Chadd rode his motorcycle to La Crosse, Wisconsin, the city with the most bars per capita. It just so happened that there was a CFO Gathering - Central FJR Owners Gathering. So basically, anyone that owns a Yamaha FJR Motorcycle can sign up for the event. This was Chadd's first time. The second day they had a rally where they had to choose a route to ride with checkpoints that had point values. The goal was to get the most points you could in the 8 hour ride.

See those tires on the back seat? That's usually where I sit! More on the tires later.

This first picture is of an American Legion Memorial for fallen soldiers. It wasn't a checkpoint, but Chadd thought this was cool.

This picture is of a church and cemetery in the middle of nowhere. It is the location where Frank Lloyd Wright, the famous architect, was originally buried. I say "originally", because his second wife had him dug up and cremated with the ashes spread in multiple locations. Second wives can be like that sometimes!

Funny story. See the guy in the red jacket, well he approached Chadd when he arrived on his motorcycle and said "Are you Bill? Bill, the piano repair man?" Apparently, piano repair men travel by motorcycle in this part of the country.

This is a military plane that was flown in decades ago for a movie and then housing developments sprung up and the air strip closed so there sat the plane, along the highway. The motorcycle looks pretty small in comparison.

The Grumpy Troll Bar in Mt. Horbe, Wi. Just another checkpoint.

An interesting sculpture garden...yet another checkpoint. Nice cherries in the background.

Sprecher's Bar in Leland, Wi., town of, oh 50 people or so. Interesting tidbit on this bar, you can order a beer, buy a pistol and shells or a shotgun, shells and a hunting license. One stop shop! (Chadd's perfect store!!) They even had pickled turkey gizzards behind the counter. Another checkpoint. Chadd spent some time talking to the owner, Junior, who has been around forever.

Cheese shop. Another checkpoint. Chadd had to buy fresh cheese curds and bring them back. Did you know that the fresh cheese curds that are not refrigerated squeak loudly when you eat them? Just ask Chadd, he bought an extra bag for himself and ate them all at the end of the rally. The white towel that appears on the back of the motorcyle is a "rally flag". Chadd had to take pictures at checkpoints with the rally flag in the picture.

This is Saturday, back in Leland, Wi at Sprecher's Bar. Remember I said town of 50 people, well, while Chadd was at the bar, it rained and then a tractor parade came into town with a police escort. Small town fun!

So, back to the tires. Chadd won the grand prize for the rally on Friday which was a set of tires for his motorcycle. Here Chadd is posing as the Michelin Man with his prize.

So, Sunday morning it was finally time to say goodbye to Chadd's new friends and head home. It was a little challenging for Chadd to figure out how to get the tires home, but as you can see, he figured it out. Chadd and the tires arrived safely home at noon on Sunday.