It was a long winter. Then monsoon season. Now we’re pretty close to summer and it’s time to ride!  Today is a gorgeous day. I hope the weather holds for the Blessing of the Bikes at Hosanna! Lutheran Church this Saturday. If it’s half-way decent, I’m sure the motorcycle crowd will be there.  Ralph and I are going to be there, taking orders for Ride Minnesota, listening to the Daisy Dillman Band and, I hope, going on the ride.

Two Sundays ago, we rode up to St. Cloud to join a ride that benefitted the St. Cloud Children’s Home. We paid $10 each to participate (the money from the wristbands went to the home), and had a wonderful chicken dinner at Shortstop. Then everyone jumped on their bikes and we rumbled decorously through St. Cloud. It was a gorgeous day–one of those perfect Minnesota days–with lots of blue sky and a few puffy clouds. Lilacs were in full bloom along the highways, and their scent wafted over the green earth.

Before hitting the backroads, the group rolled through the grounds of the children’s home to let the kids have a look at all the bikes. Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be many kids around to view this spectacle. The guy on the Harley next to us was forced to drop out when the drive belt on his motorcycle suddenly broke. Thank God, this happened at 15 mph instead of 60 on the highway. He was able to pull out of line without causing any trouble.

We rode the curves and hills with the group until we got to Orrock. Ralph wasn’t feeling well–it turned out to be pneumonia–and we were half-way home, so we decided to ride Hwy. 47 back to the Twin Cities rather than return to St. Cloud.

I haven’t heard how much money the ride generated. It gave me and Ralph a chance to see a part of the state that we haven’t spent much time in.  We’ll have to go back and explore it more thoroughly.

Here’s to good weather on Saturday!

Benefit ride for the St. Cloud Children’s Home