Square Route Rally

Thurmont, MD

June 2 - 4, 2000

Friday morning dawned sunny and warm and, with the humidity in the air, I knew it was going to be a muggy one.  I had mostly packed the bike the night before, so all I had to do was load the last minute items into the side bags and hope that I didn't forget anything.
On the road by about 10 am with my destination being the annual Square Route Rally held at Camp Westmar in the Catoctin Mountains, west of Thurmont, MD.  My route of travel took me west to Rt. 10 and then south to pick up Rt 372 west through Lancaster County and across the Susquehanna Bridge.  By that time it was beginning to get very warm and I realized that I had forgotten my neck snake which I had left cooling in the refrigerator at home.  Oh well, these things happen.
Once on the other side of the river back roads took me in a generally westerly direction through small towns such as Airville (according to the sign, named for the quality of the fresh air in those parts), Railroad (with a railroad track running through the town, of course), and Fawn Grove (no fawns, or groves in sight, though).  Then south into Maryland and through Manchester, Westminster, Taneytown, and Keymar where I gassed the bike and downed a bottlle of water.  The thermometer at the gas stop was reading in the low 90's and it was hot.  Off again, west on Rt 77 through Thurmont and up into the mountains.  Mercifully, the temperature dropped a little as I climbed in elevation.  Reached the turnoff for the rally site and pulled in about 1:30.
Camp Westmar was originally built in the 1940's (I think) by the local American Legion Post as a camp for kids, complete with WW II barracks style bunkhouses and a fully functioning mess hall.  With the bunkhouses, rallygoer's have the choice of either sleeping indoors, or tenting.

Rally Registration in the tent behind the caboose.

The bunkhouses were ready.

More bunkhouses
Don Eilenberger arrives
After changing out of my riding gear I selected a nice spot in the shade to sit and cool down for a while and watch the riders arriving and setting up their tents.  Fortunately, there was a nice breeze blowing and, shortly, I was beginning to feel almost back to normal. After saying hello to some of the other early arrivals, it was off on a stroll through the vendor area to see what might entice me to open my wallet.  I was kind of looking for a set of motorcycle jumper cables, but no luck.

The last thing I needed was heated clothing in this weather!
After a grand supper of complimentary chilli the sky began to darken with serious rain clouds and the wind picked up sending everyone dashing about to cover their bikes and secure their tents in anticipation of the forecast thunderstorms.  Fortunately, the whole storm blew over with only a few spits of rain, but it did start cutting the heat and humidity.

By this time the evening socializing began to get into high gear.  The Beer Hall was open for business and various other bottles of adult beverages started appearing.

Don E., Brian C., and Anton #1 enjoying the hospitality of Helen 2 Wheels.
Using my better judgement I retired to the bunkhouse about 11pm since I knew that sleeping much past  6:30 would be an impossibility.  Sure enough, I was awakened by the early risers and was up by 7 am.  The cold front had done its work and the day promised to be beautiful with temps in the 70's and no humidity.  I noticed that Anton was looking a little on the raggedy side and learned that the gathering at Helen's lasted well past midnight supplemented with the enjoyment of some unidentified 100 proof adult beverage.  He did rally, however, and even made the 8:30 GS Ride. After a cup of coffee, I decided to partake of the $5.00 breakfast buffet being served in the mess hall.  The bowl of chilli the night before had left me kinda hungry for a good breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, home fries and more coffee.

No line for the breakfast buffet.  I timed it right!
The food vendor truck was an alternative.
After breakfast I ran into Don E. who was going out to look for a gas station since he was very low on gas.  I offered to follow him in case he ran dry and off we went down the west side of the mountain.  Gas was found within 6 or 8 miles and all was well. We then took off to explore Cunningham Falls on the east side of the mountain.  For all the years I had been coming to this rally I had always seen the sign for the Falls, but never took the turnoff to check it out.  As it turned out, the Falls were a part of a state park which included a large lake and campground which required an entrance and camping fee to be paid.  Since we were unable to persuade the young girl at the gate to waive the fee for us to just go in and check out the Falls we elected to bypass this attraction and explore the back roads in the area.
Off we went at a moderate pace and soon got into touring mode enjoying the sights and smells of the mountain forrests.  Most of the time we really didn't know exactly where we were, but that's part of the fun of exploring back roads.  Many of the roads were flanked by multitudes of Mountain Laurel which were at the height of their bloom and were absolutely beautiful. Winding our way off the mountain, we came across an historical site of the ruins of the Catoctin Iron Furnace.and, being in touring mode, we stopped for a look.  Seems it was originally built in 1774 and was finally abandoned about 1900.

One of the original furnaces
Ruins of the Ironmaster's House

There was even a bike detailing service!

Scenic Overlook up on the mountain
After more "getting lost" we arrived back at the rally site in mid afternoon just as the Field Events were finishing up and the Tech Sessions about to start.  The first was a session on batteries given by our own Mac-Pac'r, Anton #1.

During the afternoon a few more Mac-Pac'rs showed up.  Todd Byrum, John Wong, Joe Venslavsky, and Jay Wassall among others.  John had the honor of having his R11 used as a demonstrator for the seminar on the Twin Max carb balancer.  Rumor has it that his bike is now so finely balanced it no longer needs the center stand to hold it up! Jay entered his /5 Toaster in the Concours and ended up winning his class!  Congrats Jay!
As the afternoon got later the smell of dinner cooking filled the air.  The caterer had trailered in massive charcoal grills and was busily grilling copious quantities of chicken and beef brisket.

After dinner the traditional Awards Ceremony kicked off with Bob Higdon as MC.  Of course, yours truly didn't win any of the prizes which is not unusual. With the beer flowing, the band started setting up for the evening's entertainment and everyone appeared in a festive mood.  About 9 pm they fired up the instruments and the dancers took to the floor.

After chatting with various old friends and having a few after dinner scotches, I though it prudent to return to the bunkhouse so that I would feel relativly good the next morning for the ride home. Up at 7 am to the noise of people packing up and bikes reving up to get an early start.  Over to the showers for a wake up and get dressed in riding gear and then off to the mess hall for a large cup of coffee.  No breakfast buffet available this morning.  That's ok since I filled up on the barbecue dinner the night before. Run into Don E. and we chat about riding home.  Don's from Spring Lake, NJ.  He has a route across Northern MD and is looking for a riding partner so we hook up for the ride home.  My bike is packed and we are ready to go.

While waiting for Don, I see a cage with a trailer pulling up.  Wait a minute, I know that trailer!  Turns out that it's Anton's car with Brian's trailer attached.  Tracy had driven up on Saturday, with the trailer in tow, to meet Anton at the Rally and spend the night and, apparantly, they would both go home together with the bike on the trailer.  Anton took a good ribbing for trailering a perfectly good running BMW!

Don and I finally got off on the road.  Nice and cool with a high overcast which prevented the morning sun in our eyes.  East on Rt 77 through Keymar and through the back roads of northern Maryland.  After an abbreviated gas stop at Herford where Don thought he would find a Men's Room (not!) we continued on and stopped at a little General Store (closed) for a rest and pee stop.  As we were talking, the sound of a K bike comes up the road and we turn around to see Brian flashing by.  I give a big wave to Brian, but think he doesn't even see us.

Back on the road we take some of the more scenic roads, ending up on Rt 1 several miles south of the Conowingo Dam across the Susquehanna.  After a brief rest stop at the Dam overlook we take off again.  Don peels off on Rt 273 to pick up 95 and I continue north on Rt 1 to pick up Rt 52 north to West Chester and home.
All in all, BMWBMW did another fine job of organizing the rally.  The weather really cooperated and everyone seemed to have a fine time.  The attendance, however, seemed to be a little lower than normal.  No one seemed to have an answer as to why, since there weren't any competing events for the weekend.  On the other hand, there was plenty of food on Saturday night that seconds were available to anyone who wanted them.
George
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