Lake Wylie Classic – Shriners On Bikes

by: Wally WerSching

was looKinG for somethinG to Do

on Saturday May 8th so I looked at the Full Throttle Cruisin’ Calendar and found an event close to home – just in Kings Mountain, NC. It was the Lake Wylie Classic - Shriners on Bikes Spring Poker Run. It started at the Kings Mountain American Legion Hall on Gold Street. Registration started at noon with the first bike out at 1pm. For just $20 per hand, which included a meal ticket at the end of the run, a person could have a full day of camaraderie with fellow bikers. 50/50 tickets were sold at every stop. All the money raised went to the Shriners Hospital for Children.

The first stop after the American Legion Hall was Johnny’s American Bar and Grill in Lincolnton, NC. The second stop was the Double Barrel Saloon in Gastonia, NC. The third stop was the South Main Bar and Grill in Clover, SC. The fourth, and final stop, was the Red Fez Shrine Club in Charlotte, NC where hot dogs and hamburgers were served after the run.

The Shriners are a great organization helping children. I decided to go to donate and visit with the riders before they left the Legion Hall.

I left home at about 11:30 heading east on Rte. 74. I exited at Rte. 161 and turned right. I followed it through the first stoplight and turned left into the large parking lot in front of the Legion Hall. There were already quite a few bikes parked in the lot. I found a spot along the side of the lot where I wouldn’t be in anybody’s way when they left. I took a stack of the Carolina’s Full Throttle magazines to the registration table and made my donation.

Everyone was very friendly, and eager to go on the run. I didn’t see anyone who I recognized from past events so I walked around talking to new friends.

One young man was attracted to this one unusual bike in the group. It was a Curtiss Warhawk. We both had never seen one before – especially at a local poker run. He looked it up on his phone, and he gasped when he found out that it cost more than $70,000. It was an unusual looking bike. It was what they call a naked bike. There was no paint or chrome – only bare metal. It was easy to see the complete workings of the bike with clear plastic covers over the gears and such. I looked it up when I got home. The first model was made in 2018 by the Confederate Motors, which sold for $105,000, had 150 hp, and could go 165 mph. It was really a mechanical marvel! But it didn’t look very comfortable for a long trip.

We looked around for the owner but we figured that he was inside the Legion Hall – the bar was open.

A little later, I saw a man ride in on a beautiful Victory Cross-Country. I had to talk with him, so after he registered, I found him, and learned that he lives in Dallas, NC. As we talked, he told me the story of his bike.

He inherited his Victory from his wife’s uncle who was on his way to Sturgis, SD last year for the 22nd time. He died in his sleep in his motel room. The bike was impounded by the police and released after a few months. He flew to pick up the bike and carry it home. After he got it home, he cleaned out all the uncle’s personal stuff from the bike and found $2,500 in cash.

This year, he’s thinking of riding out to Sturgis himself with a few of his friends. He figures that the bike already knows the way, and he’ll just be along for the ride. I wished him well. It’s a long trip.

I continued walking around and started talking to a young lady. She lived in Mooresville, NC, and told me about the great things they are doing for the veterans there. Every

Thursday, they have Veteran’s Day at Richard’s Coffee Shop and Military Museum. She said that it was a great place for veterans to get together and support each other. One Thursday, I’ll have to ride up for breakfast. It should be interesting.

I saw John Murphey from Murphey’s Scooter Shed, ride in on a Harley. I expected him to be riding his custom Indian wannabe. He told me that he only rides that bike on his toy runs, and it only has about 3,000 miles on it. We had a pleasant conversation, then I continued walking around taking pictures.

It was getting close to 1pm, and all the bikers gathered around for a pre-ride prayer.

After the prayer, the bikers went back to their bikes, and got ready for the ride. I walked to the end of the parking lot to get some pictures as they left. A couple bikes were out front to act as Road-Guards to stop traffic so the group could leave together. Then the leader took off, and everybody else followed. It looked like a mass exodus instead of a controlled run but everybody made it out of the lot and onto the road OK.

I left after they did and headed home. I took Cindy out for lunch to our favorite Mexican restaurant – Mi Pueblito’s. It was a great way to spend a Saturday morning.

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