MOONLIGHT TRAIL RIDE

Thanks to all of you who participated in our first Moonlight Ride held Saturday night October 17, 2009.  

This was our first night ride and everything went well. The moon forgot to show up and he kept his friends, the stars, away too, but that didn't dull the enthusiam of those who showed up. The temperature was 41 degrees and there was a slight drizzle, but not enough to dim the spirit of the stout hearted. It did, however, cause a number of riders who had planned to attend to cancel out. The official registered count on the Georgia side was 21 and there were approximately a dozen riders from Alabama.

All the riders from Georgia began the ride at 9:00 PM EST from the Cedartown Welcome Center and proceeded  toward the Alabama/Georgia state line.

All bikes were inspected for lights and the riders were accompanied by a member of the Polk County Sheriff's department.

There were some difficulties with the lights on our golf carts which were resolved and in general we gained a lot of experience for our next night event.

The bike lights worked well along the Trail, especially considering that there was no moon out, so we feel comfortable that future night rides will be successful.

                                                            
Our prognosticator of moon phases has spoken with the representatives of the government who, he said, moved the full moon from the 17th to the 3rd after the event was already scheduled and has assured us that in the future we will have a fuller moon for our ride which will also improve our trail visibility.

Riders were greeted at the state line by Dr. Berry Nicholls and his wife Anna, of the Northeast Alabama Bicycle Club, who had arrived early with snacks and hot apple cider. These were very much appreciated as the refreshments from Georgia were on a vehicle which had some mechanical problems and was delayed in getting there. Thanks Anna & Berry.

With the cooler weather, it was suggested the we have hot coffee, hot choclate and/or hot apple cider in addition to cold drinks. A nice portable fireplace and more lighting at the gathering place was also suggested.

This was our first, but were still looking for suggestions, so let us hear from you.

We have a lot of T-Shirts still for sale and would appreciate it if you could help us out in buying one. These monies go to paying for the programming of our WEB site.
Please see the pictures under our T-Shirt link. Shirts sell for $15.00 each plus S&H. Please specify Style, size and quantity if you choose to opine.



Please E-Mail us at Grits_Ga@silvercomet.org and give us you comments