Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/727617
56 nOctober 2016n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS by Teri Troyer Photos by Reed Schmitt SPOKANE VALLEY, WASH, AUG. 25–27—As the summer winds down in Spokane Valley, Washington, as the excitement of summer begins to fade, there comes a loud roar. Over 1,000 Harley-Davidsons roll into Lone Wolf Harley-Davidson for the 2016 Pacifi c Northwest H.O.G. Rally, a.k.a. Three H.O.G. Nights. The work to put on this rally began over a year ago as the 2014 PNW H.O.G. Rally committee reformed, with a few new faces and missing a few of the original staff. This commit- tee was responsible for putting together three prior rallies, 2009 Idaho State H.O.G. Rally, 2010 Pacifi c Northwest H.O.G. Rally (the fi rst one of its kind on the West Coast where three state H.O.G. rallies were combined into one) and the 2014 Pacifi c Northwest H.O.G. Rally. All three rallies were over the top in attendance and entertainment. This year the committee consisted of Rally Coordinator John Lusardi, Site Coordinators Willie Howe and Jack Bauer, Treasurer Paulene Honcik , Secretary Deb McGarrigle, Registration Coordinator yours truly (Teri Troyer), Events Coordinator Lynn Terhark, Marketing Coordinator Ron Siewert, and Nikki Bauer as the volunteer coor- dinator. What makes for a great rally is a good committee and all of the hard-working volunteers, the people behind the scenes. Our number one rule of thumb as a committee was that we are family fi rst and rally second. When we can work together as a solid unit, anything is possible. With an anticipated 1,100 partic- ipates coming, the staff pulled out all of the stops to make sure that this rally would be the most fun, memorable and unbeatable rally around. The fun started on Thursday with geocaching. In the event brochure 17 geocaching spots were listed. The participants were to take pictures of them. They were only given the latitude and lon- gitude of the caches and a hint of what to look for. They had all weekend to accomplish as many "fi nds" as possi- ble. Jim Coate from Camano Island, Washington, won with a total of 29 points out of a possible 30. The prize was a $100 Harley-Davidson gift card. At Lone Wolf the crowds were entertained with live music and games put together by Lynn. Later in the after- noon a ride lined up to leave Lone Wolf and ride 15 miles east to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for a mini-Sturgis event. The bikes paraded right into downtown and then parked on Sherman Avenue (the main street in downtown), just like in Sturgis. The Coeur d'Alene Business Association had a poker walk for anyone that wanted to participate and have a chance at a nice prize. Sherman Avenue is the heart of this tourist town and is lined with several restaurants and bars as well as small shops. Back at the host hotel, Mirabeau Park Hotel, a Hawaiian kick-off party got into full swing. Hawaiian music and food greeted the rally participates as well as a no-host beer garden. To keep the laughs going Lynn kept the games rolling and the laughter rang all evening. On Friday the Lone Wolf H.O.G Chapter road captains lined riders up for any one of 11 rides. The Up One Side and Down the Other ride took the riders headed north to follow the Pend Oreille River to Metaline and Sullivan Lake. The ride went so far north that they were just a stone's throw from Canada. The Silver Mine/Dobson Pass Ride took the riders east and along the Coeur d'Alene River and then down twisty Dobson Pass into Wallace, Idaho. In Wallace, groups of 16 were taken to the Silver Valley Silver Mine. Those that were waiting for their turn to go into the mine had time to wander the streets of Wallace. Now, Wallace has an interesting history. Known as the Silver Capital of the World, every building in downtown Wallace is on the National Register of Historic Places. One such building was the Oasis Bordello Museum. Wallace has a seedier side to its past—until 1988 it was common to see bordellos in Wallace. Hey, those miners had to spend their money some- where, right? For the veterans there was the Medal of Honor Ride led by Jim Chambers and Michael Brazil as sweep. This ride headed south on Idaho Highway 3, the Medal of Honor Highway, through St. Maries and in and out of two national forests. On the way back the ride took you through the Coeur d'Alene Indian Reservation. For the movie buffs, how about the Wild HOGs Ride? This ride also headed south to the little town of Tekoa. In this town they have a restored movie theater, the Empire Theatre. After a nice hot ride the riders, for $10, were treated to a lunch and showing of the movie Wild Hogs. This ride was a real hit. Another ride was the Twist & Shout, which took the riders through the rolling hills of the Palouse, which is rich in farms and ranches. All of these roads are two-lane back roads, many of which have plenty of twisties winding through canyons and ravines. Back at Lone Wolf, Lynn kept the crowds busy with bike games and off- bike games with names like Frisbee into Motorcycle Tire Throw, Junk in the Trunk, Waitress Game and How's it Hanging. The evening entertainment was a PRCA Rodeo and County Fair in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. As tradition goes at rodeos, "Real Men Wear Pink" (to support Breast Cancer Awareness). Each of the 200-plus rally partici- pants going to the rodeo were given a pink bandana to wear. That bandana got them into the VIP seating right up front. To allow everyone to enjoy themselves, bus transportation was provided so there wouldn't be a con- cern about enjoying a couple of beers at the fair/rodeo and riding their bikes back to the hotel. 2016 PACIFIC NORTHWEST H.O.G. RALLY Three H.O.G. Nights A rockin', ridin' party Jim Chambers, Lead Road Captain on the "Medal of Honor Ride" just leaving staging area behind Lone Wolf Harley-Davidson-Photo by Reed Schmitt Dave Palmer was the lead road captain on the "Twist and Shout Ride" See "Pacifi c Noerthwest'," page 58, column 1