Mopeds Ruined My Life

Who the fuck are the Casserollers you ask?

The Casserollers are a moped gang based out of Minneapolis, MN. Over the weekend Craig, Walter, Tex, Brent and myself blasted six hours southeast of the border with a truck and trailer packed with bikes to participate in the Casserollers second annual Tot Fest moped rally! To say the least, it was quite the experience.

There was beer and BBQ at nearly every stop over the course of the weekend, along with roaring fires, flowing kegs, prizes to be won, dice games, 'tatertots galore and an overall enthusiasm I couldn't get over. It was awesome. A real privilege to witness and enjoy firsthand.

Baby's first rally was a good one! Thanks America.

We arrived at five in the morning on Saturday and spent the day tearing up the city behind our fearless leader and host, Jed. Craig tuned up our bikes primo early in the morning (including a full motor rebuild on the fly for this lucky gal) while I wandered the neighborhood. Once the bikes were ready, Jed led us to local watering hole Legends Bar in the afternoon to meet up with the rest of the gang with plenty of time to mingle before the scheduled evening group ride.

And then it started to rain. But it must be said that we Winnipeggers are all-weather party animals and ride we did. The 50 riders quickly dwindled to 15, 11, 7 as the rain poured. Thanks to my excellent mechanic and the natural elements, my water-cooled motor never ran better! It was a hell of a ride in the pouring rain without a hot clue which direction was north; there was no choice but to keep up. I'll never forget that night. There was much whiskey downed, layers peeled and supreme dancing that followed upon our soggy return to Legends.

Sunday was the scheduled long ride out of the city. It was sunny, dry and epic. Two large moped groups converged beautifully at an intersection before the scheduled breakfast pitstop at the Wienery diner. The following route was scenic, winding, well-organized, well-paced for all to manage, not to mention traffic conveniently corked by Casseroller captains making for a smooth ride. Stuff of legends, really. No camera necessary, I was too busy blasting alongside the Mississippi river.

Monday was Race Day. There were many heats for separate classes of mopeds and I was happy to shoot and observe my main squeeze as he tore up the track on the only Peugeot at the rally! The Casserollers rented out a large go-kart racetrack for the day and the weather was right. Not much more to say. I learned a lot about leadership and hosting this weekend. Thanks again to the Casserollers for a HELLUVA time.

* All photos shot with Kiev 60 TTL // Tmax 400