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Jim Vanderlinde rode his Triumph up from Rock Hill, SC.
BIKES From Page 1
Brit Bike Breakfast group on the last Sunday of the month at Grits N Greens Southern Cuisine in Lowell. Almost immediately the attendance at our gathering began to dwarf that of the other Brit Bike Breakfast gatherings, and, at the same time, fewer and fewer British bike were within the mix, with many desiring a more inclusive name, but it became obvious that was not going to happen. Earlier this year, Todd Daczkowski, Greg Harmon, and I established the Catawba River Basin Bikes & Breakfast group, with Grits N Greens as our home base, meeting the second Sunday and the last Sunday of each month. At present we have 111 riders as members of the Facebook Group Page I set up for the group. I do not have demographics for the group. Off the top of my
Rick Lee of Rock Hill with his exotic 1972 Italian-made Laverda.
head, I would say we range in age from the mid-thirties to late-seventies. Motorcycles regularly ridden to our breakfast range from an immaculate Robin Egg Blue 1947 Cushman Model 54 scooter to a state-of-the-art 2019 KTM 1290 Super Adventure S, or perhaps a KTM 1290 Super Duke R. John Clayton of Mt. Holly attended his first breakfast meeting on September 12. He rode his Royal Enfield Himalayan. “They are a nice group of guys,” Clayton said. “They are fun to be around and have some incredible bikes.” Another local member, Ben Bonds of Belmont, rode his tricked out Yamaha Super Tenere the same day. “They are a group of guys who enjoy riding and each other’s company,” Bonds said.
Aprilia, and KTM. The bikes gleam in the sun and are certainly eye catching. Members of the group come from a wide variety of backgrounds including retirees, truck drivers, IT professionals, mechanics, and an airline pilot. They call places like Kings Mtn., Belmont, Mt. Holly, Charlotte, Rock Hill, and other locales home. Not surprisingly, the group is dubbed “an eclectic group of motorcyclists with an eclectic blend of bikes”. After breakfast, the group meanders outside to stand and talk bikes, then they often go on rides to area attractions and backroads and ends up in places such as Kings Mtn. State Park, Ninety-Nine Mile Dam, or some other interesting spot.. Al Roof was one of the group’s founders “In some ways we are a spinoff of the Brit Bike Breakfast Group, which was established by Glenn Kellis in 2012, based out of the Mooresville/Davidson area,” said Roof. “But our Catawba River Basin (CaRB) Bikes & Breakfast group is more than that, in so many ways. It encompasses friends and riding companions from the Brit Bike Breakfast group, the Blue Ridge Pathfinders Motorcycle Club, and the Burger Run group. In 2017 we asked if I could host the A rare 1978 six cylinder Honda owned by Lloyd Blythe.
Part of the lineup.
Thursday, September 23, 2021
Al Roof, one of the group’s founders. Don’t think that you need a vintage or exotic bike to take part in the gatherings. “If it has two wheels and handlebars you are welcome,” said Roof. Interested in taking part? The next meeting will be September 26. Grab your helmet, hop on your bike and be at Grits and Greens by 8:30am. For more information on this interesting group of riders contact Al Roof at John Clayton’s Royal Enfield Himalayan adventure bike. al.roof.3224@gmail.com. Photo by Al Roof
Italian high performance machine.
The rear end of a vintage Honda.
Photos by Alan Hodge
More interesting machines.
An interesting helmet design.
An expressive license plate.
