Recently, the Spyder Team caught up with Marc Pukos of SpyderTalk.com to discuss details of the Smoky Mountains Owner Ride that is set to take place September 23 – 26, 2008. The event is being organized by owners and is welcomed to all who are interested. Check out the Q&A below for more information...
Smoky Mountains Owner Ride
September 23 – 26, 2008
Gatlinburg, TN
• Tell us a little bit about yourself, website, etc.
My business partner, Craig Deats, and I are long time powersports enthusiasts. We started www.Can-AmTalk.com in 2006 and added Spyder forums to the site in 2007. The Spyder forums have become so popular that we are spinning www.SpyderTalk.com off to be its own site soon.
• Tell us about the event planned in the Smoky Mountains?
Bill Laurie, member billybobnbaxter on SpyderTalk, came up with the idea to have an owner’s event around the one year anniversary of the first Spyder delivery. It started as a thread on our forum and the idea caught fire. Bill is from Tennessee and suggested the Smoky Mountains as a great meeting point. Last November, Bill and I met in Gatlinburg to scope out the area and make some plans.
• Who is organizing this event?
That’s the beauty of this event. It’s really just a grassroots owners gathering. Steve Pickles, owner of the Olde English Tudor Inn in Gatlinburg and RidetheSmokies.com website has volunteered to lead rides each day through the Tennessee countryside – including a day on the world famous Tail of the Dragon. We also will have a gathering planned at a local BRP dealer, Mountain Motorsports in Kodak, TN, for a BBQ and a lot of SpyderTalk.
• Who can attend this event?
Everyone is welcome to join the fun.
• When is the event?
The guided rides are Wednesday, Sept 24th through Friday, Sept 26th. The BBQ at Mountain Motorsports is Friday afternoon at 3pm. Many are coming in on Tuesday and staying through the weekend and others will just be making day trips to Gatlinburg.
• What is the cost to attend?
Participants will make their own lodging and meal arrangements. The BBQ on Friday, Sept 26th, that will be pay at the door and there will be an optional visit to the Wheels Through Time Museum which is offering a discounted entrance fee of $10 for Spyder riders. There also is an entrance fee for the National Park.
• Where are the participants lodging?
People planning to attend should arrange lodging somewhere in the Gatlinburg area. The Olde English Tudor Inn is offering up to 50% discounts for Spyder owners and their room rate includes a home cooked breakfast each day. Other local motels are also offering discounts.
• What is the tentative schedule?
Tuesday, Sept 23rd – Bill is planning a meet and greet at Crawdaddy’s restaurant in Gatlinburg starting at 2pm.
Wednesday, Sept 24th - Steve Pickles will lead a ride starting at 10:30am from the Sugarlands Visitors Center. The ride will travel through the scenic byways of the Great Smoky Mountains to The Tail of the Dragon at Deal’s Gap. The ride will then head over the hills and through the woods to Cherokee were we will stop and shop. The ride will then roll back over the Smokies, arriving back at the Sugarlands Visitors Center around 6:00pm.
Thursday, Sept 25th - Steve will hit the road again at 10:30am from the Sugarlands Visitors Center. He will lead a ride through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park to the Blueridge Parkway into Maggie Valley, NC. The group will stop at the Wheels Through Time museum (discounted $10.00 entrance fee for Spyder riders). Steve will be leaving the museum at 2:00pm for the twisties of highway 209 and the Pisgah National Forest to Hot Springs, NC and then take back roads arriving back in Gatlinburg around 6:00pm.
Friday, Sept 26th - Steve will start the “Hillbilly Ride” from the Winery Square parking lot on hwy 321 at Noon and will take the group on some of the most outlandish country roads in the area…you might even hear banjo music! This ride will end around 2pm at Mountain Motorsports in Kodak, TN, for the Famous Daves BBQ.
• Will there be any prizes given out?
Yes, BRP has offered to donate gift certificates as have several sponsors from SpyderTalk.com. We will hand these out at the BBQ.
• Do interested owners have to sign up?
Since this is a grassroots gathering, there is no formal registration or sign-up. We do encourage people planning to attend to add their names to this event on SpyderRyder.com under the events section and also add their name to the BBQ list on SpyderTalk.com so we can get an estimated count.
• How many participants are currently confirmed to attend?
So far, we have about 50 people planning to attend coming from as far away as California and Quebec.
• What else can owners do in the Smoky Mountains area?
The Smoky Mountains area has many attractions for tourists from shopping in Pigeon Forge to visiting Dollywood. The greatest attraction is the great outdoors, it’s a beautiful area of the country.
• Where can owners go for more information?
We have set up a special forum on www.SpyderTalk.com just for the Gatlinburg event. Spyder owners can find all the information they need on that forum as well as ask any questions.