COBRA

Yes, you heard it right.  This will be the final year of the now famous (or infamous?) WVBR!  If you’ve been putting this off in years past this is your final chance, so take it!

The rally is over the August 19-21 weekend with plenty of riding, fun, food and camaraderie.  Come out and meet fellow Buellers from all over and enjoy good conversation with good people.

When: August 19 – 21, 2011
Where: Northbend State Park — same place as last year!!… and the year before.. and the year before….
Why: Riding… eating… campfire… does there need to be any other reason??

We can pitch our tents at the same location as last year in the overflow camping area or if camping is not your thing… make your reservations at:

The Heritage Inn
315 E. Main St
Harrisville, WV 26362
304-643-2938

Full details are in the BadWeb Storm Fronts HERE.

Hope to see you there!

Mike Farrenkopf is heading out on a month long, 12,000+ mile trip to Alaska and back.  Be sure to come out this Saturday, July 30 to wish him a safe and adventurous trip!

For whatever reason, 2011 has been a slow year for COBRA group rides.  I for one have been enjoying quite a bit of my own riding this year (closing in on 4,000 miles already myself) but for some reason we just haven’t been able to get a group ride going.  Hopefully, this one will bring more of us out!

We have a fun twisty tour mapped out and scheduled for Sunday, August 7.  Kickstands up at 10:00am sharp, so show up early with a full tank of gas so you’re geared up and ready to roll out at 10:00am.  We’ll be hitting the Hocking Hills area with a lot of hills and twists, and there will even be a short (1 mile or so) bumpy, gravelly portion through the Clear Creek Nature Preserve.  No worries though, road bikes will be fine but I’m sure the Uly riders will enjoy it!

Total ride is 130 miles, half of which is pure twisty fun!  Lunch will be at the Grouse Nest around 11:30am, after which we’ll hit the majority of the ride.

Here’s a link to the Google map of the ride.

Please note that this ride is technical for much of the twisty portion, be aware of that. I would rate it a 4 on a scale of 1-5.  We want to enjoy the twists and turns while riding safely at the same time.  Newbies are cautioned against making this their first group ride.

That being said, feel free to bring a non-Bueller friends if you feel so inclined!

Roll On Columbus is a family friendly, motorcycle enthusiast focused charity event to raise money for Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

Doors will open Saturday, May 22nd at the LC Pavilion in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio at 12:00 PM.

There will be vendors, dealers, demonstrations, live music, vintage bike show, custom bike show, The Trials Guys, The Motosphere, MiniGP racers, MSF demonstrations, fun, games, prizes, and much more. The entire day has been planned to keep every age entertained.

Let’s show our support for the children!

“Erik Buell, Chairman and Chief Technical Officer of Buell Motorcycle Company, will leave the company to establish Erik Buell Racing, an independent motorcycle race shop.” (full press release)

Woohoo!!!!

Erik Buell Racing

MORE INFORMATION: Here are the details on where we’re meeting Sunday morning (October 25).
Pilot Station/Wendy’s at 3600 Interchange Road, at the corner of I-70 and Wilson Rd.

Kickstands up at 9:00, so show up early for food/gas

IMPORTANT UPDATE: This ride is turning out to be a pretty significant event.  The BadWeb forum now has a heavy thread on the QuickBoard with riders across the country showing their support and desire to ride.  A few of those “in the know” have made contact with the factory and there is a green light for us all to show up mid-day on Monday, October 26.

If you arrived at our humble website from outside of central Ohio, please see the BadWeb thread for details and hopefully riders in your area.

ORIGINAL POST FOLLOWS:

Shocked…stunned…at a loss for words.

Buell Motorcycle Company is closing their doors. For good.

Buell has a very emotional video from Erik on their website. Here are a couple of New York Times links with some additional information.

New York Times AP Article

New York Times blog report

In a last ditch effort to see the business (in it’s current state) as well as attempt to extend condolences as well as appreciation, Mike F. is riding to East Troy and has generously offered to lead a group of any and all who want to come.

The rough plan at the moment is:

• Leave Columbus the morning of Sunday, Oct. 25th
• Arrive in East Troy Sunday evening
• Stay in a hotel/motel
• Spend as much time as possible at Buell Monday morning
• Ride back Monday afternoon/evening

That means we’re looking at about 500 miles a day, two days in a row. It may be a bit uncomfortable, and a bit emotional.  But it will be well worth it to pay respect to a motorcycle company and the visionary man who built it.

It’s a very sad day for Buell owners. Buell has always been one of the most distinctive bikes on the market. With the factory doors now closing for good, these awesome machines have just become even more rare.

If you’re interested in the ride, you can email us at contact@cobrabuell.com or post into our BadWeb forum.  More details will follow.

Welcome to the brand-new COBRA website!  We’re excited to get the club going!

We’ve put this site together to help coordinate and disseminate information among our members, as well as provide information to other Buell riders.  Are you looking to join a fun, dedicated, knowledgeable group of riders in Central Ohio?  Look no further!

See the Join the Club page for information on joining.  And thanks for stopping by!