2012 Uncle's Around the Bend rally: Mar 1-4, 2012, Terlingua, TX

[Trail Boss]

Registration for the 2012 Around the Bend rally is now open. You can download the registration form here: 2012 Around the Bend registration

Mark your calendars: The 5th Annual Uncle's Around the Bend motorcycle rally is Mar 1 - 4, 2012 in Terlingua, Texas.

This is the 5th year of Uncle's rally and, as always, this event is open to all. It doesn't matter if you are a street only or a dual sport rider, there is plenty of good riding for all, so come on out.

What kind of event is this? It's a motorcycle rally open to one and all. Street-only, adventure, and dual sport riders all all invited to attend. Come by yourself or bring some friends. Ride when you want and where you want. Have an adventure. Got a few extra days off? Then come on out early. Or stay a few days late. The main point is to have fun.

Street riders There are some awesome paved roads in the Big Bend area that really shouldn't be missed, especially if you are a Texas motorcyclist. In fact, Hwy 170, aka "River Road" is one of the top 5 motorcycling roads in Texas.

Dual Sport and Adventure Riders Lots of dual sport riders show up to ride the Big Bend boonies, so if you've always wanted to go play in the dirt at Big Bend but just haven't made it yet, this is a wonderful opportunity to do so.

Registration Check-In Pick up your registration packet on Friday morning in the Starlight Theater parking lot, 7-8am. Registration ends Wednesday, Feb 15th to provide enough time to order the commemorative glasses. Registrations received after Feb 15th will be handled as late registrations.

Late Registration Got commitment issues? You can register late at the rider check-in table on Friday morning, 7-8am, in the Starlight Theater parking lot. Late registration gets you the breakfast buffets and the Saturday night banquet and show.

Thursday Night Meet and Greet Fajita Dinner The High Sierra Grill is hosting us on Thursday night with a Fajita Dinner on their upstairs deck. 6-8 pm This dinner is included with your paid registration.

Breakfast Buffet and Rider Meeting: The Starlight Theater Restaurant is providing a breakfast buffet on Friday and Saturday morning from 6:30 - 8 am. Buffets both days are included with your paid registration.

Friday Night Rider Rally Friday evening 6-8 p.m. the Starlight Theater will have a bar set up just for us on in their back courtyard area.

Saturday Night Banquet and Show This year's banquet is at the Party Barn in Study Butte. We have a special Fire Dancer show scheduled for this year's banquet that you don't want to miss. The banquet and show are included with your paid registration.

Commemorative Drinking Glass A commemorative engraved drinking glass is included with your paid registration. You get one glass with your registration but if you want extra order them with registration because only a very few extras will be available for purchase during the event. If you wait until the event to late register the odds are that you probably won't get a glass. If you wait till the event to buy an extra one you probably won't get it. Like I said, limited quantities.

Texas Adventure Rider t-shirts? A time or two each year I have a new batch of limited edition Texas Adventure Rider t-shirts printed up. This is one of those times. If you don't have one of the new ones, now is your opportunity. Order one with your registration.

Texas Adventure Riders stickers You can order stickers with your registration. Medium stickers are $2 each, Small stickers are $1 each.

Hanging Out at Uncle's Place: Uncle's got a nice place in Terlingua. Please feel free to stop by and say hello. The grid coordinates to Uncle's place are 29°18'49.32"N 103°36'33.39"W.

Sleeping: Need a place to sleep? The El Dorado hotel in Terlingua is "hotel central". Their phone number is 432-371-2111. Call early, ask for Deena, and let her know you are with Uncle's group to get the group rate. They always get booked, so make your reservations now. For other motel options in the area, see the Big Bend ride guide.

Want to camp? Free camping is available at Gareth Park (across the street from the El Dorado Hotel). The land is private property but the owner allows us to use the land during this event. It's just raw land, so no hook-ups or anything like that but it did have an outhouse the last time I was there. In the past, most campers end up at Gareth Park, which can be good and bad (good = lots of folks to hang out & visit with; bad = might be a little too close to snoring campers; the good probably outweighs the bad). There are also several pay camp sites where you can pitch a tent for a few dollars. See the Big Bend ride guide for a list of all the motels & camping places.

Can we ride in Mexico? Absolutely. There is a really awesome canyon (Peguis Canyon) about 25 miles south of Ojinaga, Mexico that is well worth a visit. You don't need to do any paperwork to visit it either; just cross the border and head south, you can't miss it. Bring your passport or passcard though, because you will need it to get back into the United States.

Is it safe? Mexico sure is close. As of this writing all the border drug stuff you've been hearing about on the news hasn't been an issue in the Big Bend region.

More information here: Around the Bend web page

2012 Around the Bend registration



About the $85 registration fee

Some of you may have noted that the cost of registration is quite a bit higher than in past years ($85 this year vs. $45 in year's past). I realize that is a pretty big increase so I would like to explain. In past year's your registration fee has covered the commemorative item (t-shirt or mug), banquet meal costs, banquet hall rental costs, and some money to pay those working at the rally. Well, this year we have added 3 additional meals (Thursday night dinner and 2 breakfast meals) plus we are having paid entertainment at Saturday night's banquet. To pay for the additional meals and the show on Saturday night required an increase in the cost of registration. My past rallies have shown that most riders do indeed eat breakfast and supper, so I thought it was reasonable to add the additional meals as part of registration.

With the closing of Kathy's cafe, we had to find a new spot for our morning coffee drinking, breakfast, and rider's meeting. The parking lot of the Starlight is ideal for a rider's meeting, but the Starlight is closed in the morning, so no coffee or breakfast. I thought it made sense to have coffee and breakfast available at our rider's meeting location and asked if they would open for us. They agreed but decided a buffet made more sense than trying to have full menu service.

Hopefully this all makes sense and won't discourage attendance. Hope to see you in Terlingua.

[cdc]

Looking forward to this.
Registration will be sent this weekend.
Thanks Richard!

[Andrew T]

Thursday Night Meet and Greet Fajita Dinner The High Sierra Grill is hosting us on Friday night


Thanks for (dis)organizing all this, Richard. Can you clarify whether the Thursday Night Meet and Greet is Thu or Fri night? Thanks again!

[Trail Boss]

The High Sierra Grill is the restaurant at the El Dorado Motel, at the intersection of Hwy 170 and the Terlingua Ghost Town Road (the road to the Starlight Theater).

BTW, is that commemorative drinking cup anything like a Tequila shot glass? Surely, that will be encouraged after a full day's ride.

Red,

I hit "edit" instead of "quote" when I went to reply to your post. Now I've dorked up your post and can't fix it. My apologies.


The glass will be a 15-20 oz engraved drinking glass. Similar in quality to last year's drinking mug, but a glass instead of a mug. So, not a shot glass but suitable for consuming adult beverages of all types.

Rich

[kemper's gigi]

The Thursday night meet and greet is going to be Thursday night at the High Sierra. The dinner being served that evening is included in the price of your registration and I will be set up there that evening checking in riders.

[WoodButcher]

I'll fix the first post so the Thursday Event says it is on Thursday.

[Trail Boss]

Doh! My apologies for the error. Yes, the Thursday night Fajita dinner really is on Thursday night. Connie, thank you for clarifying and Rusty, thanks for making the correction.

[TWTourist]

I'm in. But it's not going to be the same without the breakfast campfire.

[subcomm]

This ride coincides with a trade show for my industry that will be going on in San Antonio. I gotta keep my priorities straight and do the prudent thing.

I am going riding of course!
Play before work always!

Does anyone know the name of the campground at the top of the hill inTerlingua that has the teepee tarps?

[tricepilot]

Originally Posted by subcomm

This ride coincides with a trade show for my industry that will be going on in San Antonio.

Ah, no

The AVN Adult Entertainment Expo is held in Las Vegas

[Trail Boss]

Originally Posted by subcomm

Does anyone know the name of the campground at the top of the hill inTerlingua that has the teepee tarps?

It's the Las Ruinas Camping Hostel.

[subcomm]

Thanks Richard.

[Shadman]

Richard,

This ride just keeps getting better and better and we all appreciate your efforts to open doors to us and make it a complete "vacation" package

For anyone who hasn't been to Terlingua / Big Bend, or who hasn't been on a group DS ride, this is the way to do it. Richard's Ride has it all.

See you there!!!!

Peter

[greeneggs&ham]

Is anyone else having a problem downloading the registration form PDF. It loads to 800k then I get a blank page...

[WoodButcher]

Originally Posted by greeneggs&ham

Is anyone else having a problem downloading the registration form PDF. It loads to 800k then I get a blank page...

Just worked for me.

[WoodButcher]

Originally Posted by greeneggs&ham

Is anyone else having a problem downloading the registration form PDF. It loads to 800k then I get a blank page...

Just worked for me. Try doing a right click and save as.

[greeneggs&ham]

Thanks Rusty, now does that mean I have a problem in the majic box? I went back and downloaded the Ark. registration with no problem. But each time I tried to open this one it would not complete.

Hey look, there's Big A on the front page. Half sideways on that 690 I see!
I am looking forward to this one.

[WoodButcher]

PM me a regular email address and I'll send it to you.

[greeneggs&ham]

Oh Sorry, once I did download it into a file it worked OK. I guess I forgot to add that to the Thank You in the last post. That's how I knew BigA was on the first page.