Bandera, TX

Bandera's Metal Cowboys took over the town for the second time in two weeks this weekend- the roar was deafening, unless, of course, you turned off your hearing aid.

The streets were full of crome and leather, the gas stations, the parks, the restaurants, had no space, no seats for us locals. Tunes blared from a loud speaker at City Hall- everthing from country to heavy metal, just what you wanted to hear as you headed home with the kids on a Saturday afternoon.

I like seeing the different types of bikes, some with neon lights on the sides, different types of riders, unique apparel and hair and tatoos. Most are professionals living their dream on the weekends and they love the Cowboy Town that is Bandera.

I like that they spend their money here, the waitresses and waiters get extra money to buy the things important to them and their families. The city collects revenue from the motel business and the merchants can stay open another month or so.

Hopefully, no one got hurt or arrested (I know some got arrested). There was a Chili Cookoff and a Cabrito cookoff- both at the 11th St. Bar. Hopefully, someone remembers what the chili and cabrito tasted like.

The streets are now quiet with a slight scent of rubber.

This past weekend, hundreds of motorcyclists descended upon Bandera for the phenomenon known as Wild Hog Explosion. The event kicked off on Friday, March 14th and concluded Sunday afternoon.

Events were for all ages, there was an all bike rally, wild hog catching, pork rib cook off, hog kissing contest, a children's bicycle rodeo, lots of food, fun, and arts and crafts to help lighten your wallet.

Besides the festivities, traffic up and down Main St. was impossible, 10mph at best and try to find a parking spot on Main St. or even off Main- not gunna happen. The restaurants were packed, the bars were crowded and noisy, good for the business owners, bad for the regulars.

Things are back to normal today, hopefully a biker or two will want to settle down in Bandera and buy some real estate- Ya think?

Ricki Eichler & I met here on Active Rain back in November when she joined and I was one of the first members to welcome her. There was an immediate connection - of course, we're both in Texas and both with Coldwell Banker franchises but there was more to it.

We've been scheduling lunches since November and life and business kept getting in the way. But, yesterday, we were finally able to work both schedules so that we could meet in Bandera, TX (with a little tweaking of schedules throughout the morning). What was supposed to be a 12:00 o'clock lunch turned into a 1:00 o'clock lunch.

Ricki arrived a few minutes before I did and was waiting in the parking lot - directing me into town and to the parking lot. Big hugs in the parking lot and non-stop talking for the next 5 hours!

Just as we were seated in a comfortable booth and trying to stop talking long enough to order lunch, my cell phone was ringing. I checked the number and was not familiar with the area code so decided I had better answer. OMG!!! It was Lenn Harley calling from Virginia! What perfect timing - a true AR Gathering with Lenn, Ricki and me. Lenn & I chatted a few minutes and I handed the phone over to Ricki so she could speak with Lenn too. Lenn had no idea what she had stepped into!

We finally ordered our lunches and the time just flew! We had lots to talk about and plans to work out. Just as we were finishing lunch, Cheri Lynn arrived and we visited for awhile, then decided we had things to do so we better get out of there! OH WAIT!! We had to take pictures in the restaurant - K's Seafood. We took lots of pictures - hmmm, I think there were other people in the restaurant but none of us really noticed we were having way too much fun.

Ricki & Cheri Lynn have the Pomarosa RV Park in Bandera, TX listed for sale and we needed to go put the sign up. Well, I just want to say it was hilarious! The battery for the drill had very little charge left. We managed to get the sign secure but just barely. Then Ricki says, "I know where we can get another drill". And we headed to another one of her listings to "borrow" a drill. That's where the story ends...I'm pleading the 5^th!!! I will say that the sign is now very secure!

Cheri Lynn had other errands to run so Ricki & I headed to the Flying L Ranch. It is sooo beautiful out there! We were driving along the road in the Flying L Ranch and we noticed 2 adult antelope - as we got closer to them - suddenly the rest of the herd popped up out of the tall grasses and there must have been 20 or 30 of them. Running (hopping) thru the grasses, bushes and trees to take cover!! They ran so fast we couldn't get a picture of the entire herd! While we were at the Flying L Ranch, Ricki gave me a tour of another one of her listings - it's a beautiful home on the creek with a huge patio overlooking it - absolutely breathtaking.

From there she gave me a quick tour of downtown Bandera, TX. I had only been there once before and that visit was a very brief business trip. So, I really enjoyed getting the driving tour of the downtown area.

We certainly enjoyed the day and will be planning future AR Gatherings. We hope to persuade some other AR Members to join us - we promise you that it'll be a fun, memorable experience!!!

Here's a link to Ricki Eichler's post about our afternoon - "Another great afternoon, aother great AR gathering".

Bandera Texas is definitely a small town- in fact, Bandera is the only incorporated city in the entire county. The population hovers around 1000 residents, in about a 2 mile square area. They are happy with who and where they are, and I don't expect they'll change anytime soon. In fact, the hub of commercial activity has moved to the highway that intersects the City of Bandera, Highway 16. Without any zoning in place, the highway is a hodge podge of office buildings, strip centers, and car dealers and retail. Water and sewer needs will increase as more businesses move to this corridor of activity. TXDOT does what it can to regulate access off of the highway, to avoid accidents with 70 mph traffic on 16. All of this activity hopefully will not change the heart and soul of Bandera- the cowboy and western influence that has attracted visitors and residents alike.

One aspect of Bandera that I hope will never change is the friendliness and compassion of the people of Bandera. I like walking into the Bank, the supermarket, the post office etc. and it's "Hi Mary Jo, How are You?". Can the same be said for bigger cities like San Antonio, Austin, even New Braunfels and Boerne have gotten too big for the warm hugs I receive in Bandera. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE big cities- the excitement, the activities, the shopping, I could go on & on, I just appreciate the love. Thank you Bandera, I feel the love!