Cavaliers ride proud in gay pride parade

The Cavaliers celebrated gay pride with a ride through the French Quarter in New Orleans' annual gay pride parade on September 28. Tropical storm Isidore gave way to a sun-drenched sky just in time for the spectacular parade.

Six bikes, two with passengers, showed up early to line up along Elysian Fields Avenue at Washington Square Park. We had a great time getting to know some new friends before the colorful parade stepped off at 12:45 in the afternoon.

-Mark rode his 1998 Honda Shadow 750 named "Betty"
-George rode his 2002 Honda Shadow Ace
-Guy rode his 2001 Harley-Davidson Road King
-Tim rode his 1990 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200
-Tedd and Tom rode Tedd's 2002 Honda Reflex
-David and Michael rode David's 1996 Honda Gold Wing SE

Four of the riders were attending their first Cavaliers event. The ride was a great way to promote our new group. We were stopped along the way by several parade-goers who asked about our rides.

It was a really fun ride. We made a lot of noise along the way, blaring our horns, roaring our pipes, waving at the crowd gathered along the streets of the French Quarter, and tossing rainbow-colored beads to the parade-watchers.

Our group got especially noisy as we roared past Johnny White's bar on St. Peter Street, the notorious biker hangout in the French Quarter. The straight dudes pretended to ignore us.

We got an especially warm reception as we passed the French Quarter's gay bars along St. Ann Street and Bourbon Street. We waved at friends as we turned past the Rawhide, rumbled past Good Friends, cruised past the Bourbon Pub and Oz, and roared around the corner at Lafitte's.

The warm day and slow riding took a toll on some of the bikes. David had to pull out right before the end of the parade as his Gold Wing was overheating and exhibiting some clutch problems. Things were fine after the bike sat for a few hours and cooled off.

The group met up again at the pride festival in Armstrong Park. The bikes looked great lined up under an ancient oak tree in front of the Armstrong arch on North Rampart Street. We strolled around the festival shopped, ate, drank, and had a good time hanging out together before we all headed home one by one.

Cavaliers have a blast on inaugural ride

The Cavaliers painted a rainbow stripe down the middle of the River Road on their inaugural ride on September 15. Four bikes arrived right on time for our first-ever group ride, with two of the bikes carrying passengers.

-Michael and Doug rode Michael's 1999 Honda Shadow 750
-Poncho and William rode Poncho's 1996 Harley E6 Classic
-Alan rode his 1996 Honda ST1100
-David rode his 1996 Honda Gold Wing SE

Cavaliers stop in front of Destrehan Plantation on their way to Oak Alley. From left: Alan, William, Poncho, Michael D., and Doug.

After briefly getting stuck in Saints game traffic, the group cruised out Claiborne Avenue and Jefferson Highway to pursue the twists and turns of River Road. We dipped through the Bonnet Carre Spillway and made a brief stop at Destrehan Plantation to stretch our legs and snap a few pictures.

On the road again, we headed upriver past Ormond and San Francisco plantations before crossing the river at Gramercy. The view from the top of the bridge was oddly eerie, with a thick haze hovering over the water. Once on the West Bank, we continued upriver to Vacherie, passing Laura Plantation on our way to our lunch stop at Oak Alley.

The six of us had a tasty lunch at the restaurant located on the plantation grounds. The restaurant's air conditioning and ice water were welcome after the heat of the highway. We had a good time getting to know one another, and everyone seemed very enthusiastic about future rides, making many good suggestions about great roads and destinations to try in the future.

Michael D., a new rider with his first bike, a 1999 Honda Shadow 750, prepares to take his first ride with the Cavaliers to Oak Alley Plantation.

After lunch some folks had to hurry back to the city, but a few of us took a leisurely stroll around the grounds to admire the 28 stately oaks that form the Oak Alley leading up to the plantation's manor house. These magnificent 300-year-old oaks were planted long before the plantation house that bears their name was built.

The remaining riders soon headed back to New Orleans under cloudier skies and gratefully cooler temperatures. A quick ride on the Interstate got everyone home soon.

This ride was a great start to our club. Many thanks to everyone who came out to support our inaugural run. We look forward to many more fun rides together in the future.