Cave Spring

1:57.814 on the factory Screaming Eagle Road Glide. Brother Travis Wyman would top that time on the second qualifying session at 1:55.687. That is about 5 seconds slower than their sport bike counterparts which translates to a top speed of 170 mph ! on the back straight. It was looking like it was going to to an all HD race, but don’t tell that to Tyler O’Hara on the Mission Foods/S&S Indian Challenger as he would start off with winning the 3 lap sprint and take home the bacon. The weather had changed the scheduling quite a few times and no one was for sure when the first race would go off on Friday. Tyler O’Hara would go into that first race with confidence only having to start at the back of the grid because of a technicality. As the the green flag dropped, Tyler had an incredible start passing 5 or 6 riders before entering turn 1. The Wyman brothers stayed out in front lap after lap and it appeared they would take the checkered flag, but the last lap O’Hara got up to the back of them and stayed in the draft till the last turn where he used a slingshot maneuver and dropped the hammer on both of them. There would be some disappointment in the Harley Davidson camp tonight and they would have to regroup to find some strategy for the next race. I don’t care what you think, but people love to see that kind of battle between the two brands, it’s been going on for 100 years. This is what the bikers came to see, this kind of racing was born for the new and old fans. Saturday would be the 2nd race and again Mother Nature would not cooperate as a cold front came through with thunderstorms and tornado watches. Someone above must really like racing as it blew through quick, the sun came out, the NASCAR dryers took care of the moisture and BAM! Time for race number 2. As the race progressed the Indians started showing their teeth, and horsepower. The Wymans started falling behind on the Screamin Eagles and at the white stripe when the checkered flag waved, it would be a clean sweep on the podium for the Indians. Tyler and Kyle Wyman had gone backwards finishing over 10 seconds slower. I wouldn’t want to be in that meeting back in the garage as expectations were high as the current King of the baggers. That race was going to sting. Could the crown be changing hands in 2022? This was some of the most exciting racing experienced in quite awhile and it brought out a lot of new fans that normally may not have attended. The King of the Baggers series was a brilliant idea that will pay off over time.

Go to www.MotoAmerica.com for the complete schedule for the rest of the racing season. There are 5 races left in the King of the Baggers series as they cross cross the country. You will not be disappointed.

Cave Spring is located in Floyd County and is 25 minutes from Rome, Georgia and less than 5 minutes away from the state of Alabama. It is like any typical off-the-interstate, sleepy small town in the South. With a population at just over a thousand, it is more a community of friends and relatives than a city. Everyone you meet is overflowing with hospitality and you always feel like you’re minutes away from the possibility of enjoying a cup of black coffee, or a beer on the porch with a new friend.

Cave Spring is actually located on the Trail of Tears in Georgia. The Cherokees once occupied huge portions of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and North Carolina and Cave Spring was home to a major resistance at Beaver Dam of the Cherokee against the whites who were forcefully removing them from their own land. Named after a cave and fresh water spring that is located at Rolater Park in the central part of the town, the cave is made of limestone and features stalagmites. The cave is open year round to visitors and locals alike. The spring pours out from the side of a rock building that surrounds the entrance to the .25 mile cave. From there the spring flows into a sparkling pond from Rolater Park and then into a 1.5-acre swimming pool filled with the cold spring water.

So mark your calendars for July 29th and 30th, the Cave Spring Motorcycle Rally and Music Festival is held at one of those places that is quintessential Georgia and a place that is worth driving through on any road trip or ride. While you’re there, make sure you bring in your bike for the Choppertown ‘Live’ Ride In Bike Show. It’ll be the coolest thing to hit Cave Spring since stalagmites!