AMERICADE 2022

And I feel like I’ve been here before Feel like I’ve been here before And you know it makes me wonder What’s going on under the ground, hmm -C,S,&N

Americade in Lake George had been scheduled for its traditional time of the year - the rst full week of June. Would the event be the great Phoenix rising from the Pandemic era, or would it be a continuation of the slow pre-pandemic contraction? I was packed and ready to nd out.

Departure from Northern NJ was on Tuesday morning. Cruising up the Hudson Valley under partly sunny skies in the mid 70’s made for a perfect travel day. Arrival in Lake George was by mid-afternoon with plenty of time and daylight left. The skies started to cloud up, the precursor of some wet weather due to arrive overnight. Rain after all, is also an Americade tradition. Preregistration check-in was in the Holiday Inn right where it should be. I pulled in and surprisingly found the parking lot virtually empty. On the bright side, check in was easy and ef cient with no lines. Wrist band on, parking pass purchased - it was of cially Americade!

With a bit of time available before heading to the motel, a quick trip through Tour Expo was in order. I was on the hunt for a new cover as mine had seen better days. In no time I found the Nelson Rigg/Rigg Gear booth and met Deb Drinan, Director of Business Development. More than cordial and helpful, she helped pick out the correct cover and made the transaction easy breezy. After a walk around the rest of the Expo in Charles R. Woods Park (formerly Gaslight Village) it was clear the event would be light on vendors. Some familiar companies were on hand, but over all about half the vendors from a decade ago. A ride up through the center of town on Canada Street brought me to The Heritage Motel, where I was greeted like family. The Heritage has been our Americade home for over 30 years! The grounds and rooms are clean and neat. Located within easy walking distance to town, and amenities including heated pool, covered porches outside the rooms, re pit and bike cleaning towels if needed. I could not ask for more with all the essentials.

My Brother Ed was already settled in. After a quick chat to catch up, it was off to Warrensburg for an Oscar’s Smokehouse run, another Americade tradition. A walk through town that evening for dinner was next. A light rain began to fall which seemed to keep the crowd away. Only a few dozen people with their bikes were out. Many venues had yet to open.

The weather report called for rain to linger into the morning. We woke to clearing skies and cool temperatures. Brother Ed and I decided to

take a ride to Queensbury, then take a ride around the lake itself. Under partly sunny skies there was a slight chill in the air which was enough to make the heated jacket earn its place in my saddle bag. Plugged in and grip heaters on we continued up to Crown Point. Just before crossing the Champlain Bridge, we decided to go separate directions. Ed headed back to town, not wanting to press his luck with an ailing FJR, I continued to Vermont. Over the gaps and down Route 100 past Killington, Rutland and down to Fort Anne then back to Lake George. I was able to get back in time to check out the Demo eet.

This year Harley Davidson, Indian, Yamaha, Triumph, KTM, BMW, ZERO and Honda were all on hand with full compliments of their respective lines. I was able to schedule a ride on a Yamaha Tenere’ 700 which got me thinking. It was interesting to see ZERO present with many people lined up, and I predict we’ll see more E-Cycle manufactures on hand in the future. KTM had a sample of their electric E-ride offroad trainer present as well.

We regrouped at the motel and agreed we were glad to get a ride in as the next day’s forecast was not looking good. Grab the ride while you can. That evening Paul and Diane Donoghue graciously invited me to join them for dinner at the Boathouse in Diamond Point. Having accepted, I took a quick ride through town and was pleased to see the nice weather attracting a decent crowd to line the streets. It was starting to look more like Americade of old. With a gorgeous lake front view at The Boathouse, setting sun, good conversation, food and drink provided a pleasant ending to the day. It rained overnight and most of the morning. Being this is vacation time, it was nice to sleep a bit late and catch

up with Brother Ed while eyeing the weather forecast. Later in the morning it was still cool and raining so I took a walk to Tour Expo to spend some time looking around. The rain was providing some issues for the vendors, but most were in attendance and eager to show their products. A new addition was Cycle Gear with a semi-truck display with all types of street and dirt gear. Glad to see them join the event. The skies cleared in the early afternoon, so we managed to get in a short ride on some local twisties around Stony Creek and Lake Luzerne. The rain returned for a short time in late afternoon just before we arrived back at The Heritage.

By that time Brother Dave arrived and good friend Ed Straub shortly thereafter. We had dinner at the Barnsider and settled in by the motel re pit, drinks and cigars in hand. We spent the evening reminiscing about our many years at Americade and, of course, our friend Jose. As a group the ve of us had been together for Americade for no other reason than tradition for 3 decades. Even with a man down, the familiar feeling was present.

We were greeted Friday morning with sun and temperatures in the mid 60’s. We took advantage of the opportunity by spending time on demos and perusing Tour Expo. There we found the MotoMotion stunt show This all-star team is led by professional trials rider Jordi Trey, who put on a fantastic stunt show. Part trials, part freestyle including a back ip on a Beta 2-stroke trials machine!

By the afternoon Americade was in full swing with tours departing, boat cruises, seminars and demos all day long. Despite the crowds being signi cantly reduced, all the elements of Americade were present. The volunteer staff was well organized, and the event had a laid-back feel to it. Never crowded enough to be a hinderance- just the right amount to navigate all the venues but get a good rally vibe. The evening provided several entertainment options including Alonso Bodden, moto-celebrity and podcaster, headlining a comedy show. Triumph motorcycles even sponsored an adventure ride led by none other than Jeff Stanton. Stanton is a three-time AMA 250cc Motocross, and three-time Supercross, Champion. Having seen him race - he didn’t just win, he dominated - simply one of the best champions in the history of the sport.

This day we had some somber duties to attend to. Ed Straub and I were asked by Jose’s family to spread some of his ashes in and around Lake George and Americade as was his wish. We were more than happy to oblige visiting many of the familiar haunts he enjoyed and leaving a bit of him in all the right places.

We spent the evening walking up and down Canada Street checking out the variety of machines on display. The weekend crowd was lling in the town and it was about 75% of what a peak Americade crowd was. Bikes were lining both sides of the street; music was playing in the park and in many of the bars. A warm and familiar scene indeed. The crowd was large but not enough to snarl traf c in and out of town or impede getting a bite to eat. A welcome end to the evening were the reworks over the Lake. Glad to see many of the mainstay events and highlights back on the schedule.

Saturday weather was also pleasant, so we put some miles on our own bikes meandering up around Ticonderoga, Brant (Continued on Next Page)