Thunder on the Rock -Sat

First I want to thank all the people who put the Thunder on the Rock www.thunderontherockonline.com  (Monteagle Mt.) Together . and for letting us come out and cover the Rally.

If you love bikes and embrace the thunder I hope you didn’t miss this years Thunder on the Rock on Monteagle Mt. They say there are 160 acres of tents, bikes, babes, and beer. The rolling beer carts offering nothing but the most beautiful of woman. My thought is.    I am the one who would love to see a hunk of a man driving or selling beer,maybe next year.

If you weren’t on the Rock  www.thunderontherockonline.com let me share some of my pictures , and thoughts. This is one of the few places I cover that isn’t family friendly. What makes it different?I love the Thunder ,now what did I see?

I saw a crazy wet T-shit contest and more nuidity then I care to talk about. Between you and I, the wet t-shirt contest takes more than a body – it takes courage. The contestants need to dance on a stage while being splashed with ice-cold water. The young lady that eventually won deserved the prize.  Not only was she beautiful but she could also dance. I won’t however be showing her picture just the ones that are family friendly.

Thunder on the Rock www.thunderontherockonline.com is one big campground. Where beer comes by in a wagon. Of course that is the point – you don’t have to go anywhere to eat, drink, laugh, sleep.  I think however, they should give prizes for the best camp, most unique camp, If you want to enter get a number and post it out front and let the people choose.  It is a shame to have such efforts go unrewarded. I didn’t say unnoticed because, well, we all noticed some of the efforts. That is why we kept driving by.

The Music, games, food, drink, bike show and the Thunderettes walking around. I had a blast as I meet new people and learned a lot about bikes games.  The games started Saturday off, how slow can you go, get the hot dog and water balloon catch. I didn’t see the mud wresting. The How Slow Can You Go, usually called the ‘Slow Roll’, doesn’t make good still pictures unless they need a photo finish.  The hot dog catch, however you can see for yourself. And the water balloon toss. My least favorite game was the rev your motor game.  Who could tell as they all sounded equally loud? The burn out pit was smoke’n as we came up you could see little bits of tire go flying off everywhere and smoked fill the air.  (I don’t know how they judge that one either.) 

I loved the bike show even though I didn’t have any one to walk me thru it and point out the good or the not so good points.

The Winners are (Sportster H-D – #5 Brandon Worthey, #32 Tina Hennen), (Full Dresser – #1Weirdo, #11 Glen Fowler, # 2 Snoopy), (Antique – #8 James Owens, #18 Kristi Slack, #3 Terry Payn), (Foreign sport bike – #7 Alan Franks, #33 Keith Smith, #27 Mike Roggers), (Dyna – #17 Bill Deason, #9 Joe Warren, #12 Tammy Williams), (American Sport Bike – #28 James R. Owens), (Sport Dresser – #36 Gerry Vandergriff, #41 Jeff Lee, #24 The Alabama Kid), (Rat Bike – #21 Aaron Conner), (Custom Chopper – #38 Randy Hamilton, #93 Richie Rich, #41 Michael Boyd) and the (Peoples Choice “Weirdo”).

Of course a Special thanks goes to the Thunderettes for posing on each of the winning bikes. To see more pictures of the winning bikes go to http://myspace.com/jaynestnpicscom    

  The bands are the next big thing at the rally. It didn’t matter if there was anyone in front of the stage, music can be heard all thru the complex. This was my first time to hear Big Engine http://www.bigengine.com/band.html, or Liquid Fire www.myspace.com/lfiremusic, Stimulus Package, or Stone line www.myspace.com/stoneline. I have heard Shane Worley http://www.myspace.com/worley1974 a local favorite, Sammi Moore http://www.myspace.com/sammimooreband, and Arlo Gilliam, www.myspace.com/arlogilliammusic is an Americana, Acoustic Guitar playing, Arlo Guthrie, James Taylor style together in a Southern Style.  You can read more about the bands on the Thunder on the Rock web site www.thunderontherockonline.com. 

My rock pick was Big Engine http://www.bigengine.com/band.html, which referee’s to itself as “A finely tuned rock n’ roll machine! Hailing from Jacksonville, Florida. The band brings their high-performance rock show to festivals, rallies, events, and clubs throughout the United States.” I think this is an understatement. Benny Puckett doesn’t just play the drums he becomes a part of the set to the point where he can balance, juggle, and twirl the sticks and never miss a beat. Hans Oellerich is on lead, with Ryan Wilcox on bass. Hans I know was influenced by the old MTV videos. I don’t know if Ryan was, but together they bring that old school playing and performing to the group. They don’t just stand and play waiting for me to take their picture they perform. Last but in no way the least Tony Mikus- guitarist, vocalist and founding member of Big Engine http://www.bigengine.com/band.html once know as The Motion. He pulls all this http://www.bigengine.com/band.htmltalent together and gives it direction.  Big Engine  is a must see band for those who like to be entertained.

If I had to pick a southern rock group, it would be Liquid Fire www.myspace.com/lfiremusic. This one would be it even though it was very clear to me that there is more to their southern spirit that rock. If you have never heard Hendricks at Woodstock then you need to hear Joe Riley play. His rendition of the National Anthem is a perfect start to any concert and a tribute to Jimi Hendricks, to this country, and to music in general. In Joes own style. Jeff Lewis handles bass while Josh Reed comes in with vocals. Michael Scott Howard. Holds the heartbeat of this band with a defiant metal feel. Liquid Fire www.myspace.com/lfiremusic is the brainchild of Josh Reed. They have managed to combine all genres of music into one ball of raging fun. For more information about Liquid Fire visit them on My Space @ www.myspace.com/lfiremusic. It isn’t every day that a band refers to itself as “country/metal.”

Stoneline  www.myspace.com/stoneline is a local band that is full of the old school hair-flying guitar playing Metallica, Pearl Jam, and Nirvana etc. Stoneline comes from Soddy Daisy, TN. That’s right music fans, from that small town comes some big music. I look forward to seeing this group in the future.

 Scott Towers: Lead Vocals & Guitar, Aaron McNeece: Lead Guitar & Vocals, Beier: Drums & Backup Vocals, Jon Hise: Bass Guitar 

The head liner for Saturday night was the Atlanta Rhythm Section http://www.myspace.com/arsAtlantaRhythmSection. This iconic American band has changed faces but the music is still the same. “Doraville”, “I’m Not Gonna Let It Bother Me Tonight”, “Champagne Jam”, “So Into You”, “Imaginary Lover”, “Angel”, “Do It Or Die”, and “Neon Nites.” Most of us hear one or two of these songs every day. A.R.S is a band of a generation. What makes them great in my book is the fact that they didn’t change to disco! Every one knows that back then they would have had a runaway hit if they had compromised their sound to Disco. (This is my opinion on disco – a little went a long way.  It swept thru this county like a cancer trying to take out some of the best musicians of our time as well as radio, radio stations and personalities.)

 Who is A.R.S? The current members are Dean Daughtry – Keys, Andy Anderson – Vocals, Steve Stone – Guitar, Justin Senker – Bass, Jim Keeling – Drums, Dave Anderson – Guitar. I could tell you the history of the band members who have come and gone but you should check that out yourself.  And enjoy the sounds of one of our most Iconic Bands of a generation. http://www.myspace.com/arsAtlantaRhythmSection 

Sunday, (Echo), Sunday, (Echo) Sunday (Echo)

A lot went on Sunday their were services and bike blessings if; you choose to participate.  The bands took stage in the afternoon, all leading up to Tracy Lawrence. http://tracylawrence.com Some bands stayed over Liquid Fire, to entertain the audience while Tracy Lawrence’s crew sets up. Tracy Lawrence’s crew is great!  And I want to give a big shout out to the Light man. (When they light the stage correctly it makes my job sooooooooo much easier.)  If you haven’t seen Tracy Lawrence in concert I suggest you give it a try I don’t think you will be disappointed. The combination of the lightshow, band, and his singing will give you a performance you haven’t seen in awhile. One of the main reasons people come to this rally is to forget the hard times out side of the gate.  His show allows that to happen.  You become in gulfed in the whole illusion of the show so you can’t really have a bad time since the show is great.

 I have left out two people in my story until the last : Cousin Ricky www.CousinRicky.com   You may not know the name but I am sure you know his voice. Cousin Ricky Peardon is the voice of CMT’s 20 Greatest Redneck Moments II and CMT’s Most Outrageous Motorsports. When you combine Cousin Rick with Big Ed Caylor www.myspace.com/bigedcaylor you get “Hicks Gone Wild.” Big Ed and Cousin Ricky alternate telling stories of marriage, family, growing up and living in the south. What makes them so funny is everyone at some point can relate. You don’t have to be married if you have ever been in a relationship or just around children you can relate to point of Cousin Ricky and Big Ed. Today we need to laugh more than ever. If you get a chance to go see “Hicks Gone Wild“ take it. It will keep you laughing for days if not at yourself than someone in your family.

 I hope to see you guys at the Thunder on the Rock Next year.

I know I may have left your favorite band out Please understand I do my best

Special thanks to Steve Thruman, Still Smoking barbeque and catering in Fayetteville Tn,  THUNDER ON THE ROCK, LLC,423-242-8578 | 423-290-2166,P.O. Box 1223 | Monteagle, Tennessee 37356,THUNDER ON THE ROCK HEAD HONCHO ,Rally Coordinator, Rodney Kilgore, THUNDER ON THE ROCK .Consultant Glenn Matthews ,THUNDER ON THE ROCK. General Information .Danny Barnes. THUNDER ON THE ROCK. General Information. Sonny Kilgore THUNDER ON THE ROCK. Thunderettes Calendar Girl .Scout / Photographer. Danny Givens.

THUNDERETTES