BOB Run In Hartville
BOB rumbled into Wyoming on June 7th and left a mark…the good kind.
The 13th annual BOB Run expanded this year by making the ride from Golden, Colorado, to Hartville, Wyoming, in a generous effort to raise money for the volunteer fire department in Hartville.
The run was successful, raising about $2000 for the tiny fire department.
The motorcycle run made locally famous by the late Bob Buford stayed true to its roots. After being revived by Bob’s son, Stacy, last year, the 13th Annual BOB Run was all about having a good time and helping out a volunteer fire department.
“We decided to make this a little more than a local run,” Stacy said. ‘So, we rode up Hartville, where my dad retired, had a little party and helped out the volunteer fire department a little.”
A couple dozen riders left the Buffalo Rose bound for Hartville. After a tough ride through the infamous Wyoming wind, everyone rolled into Hartville without incident, being joined by others who drove up in cages, and a group that had come up the night before.
It was a good day,” Stacy said. “The wind was a bitch, and it rained a little after we got there, but overall it was a good time. There were quite a few people there when we arrived, and a good-sized group of riders from Cheyenne had already been to Hartville and left by the time we got up there. Right away the party started.”
A bar-be-que, auction, and raffle were just a few of the party elements.
The Miners Bar was open and donated the first couple kegs,” Stacy explained. “The bar was packed, and in addition to our group there were other people from Denver there, the Cheyenne group, the entire town of Hartville, and a bunch of folks from Gurnsey.” There were a lot of people there.”
And the Hartville fire fighters were great hosts.
“Those guys were great,” Stacy said. “They cooked and did other stuff for us all day Saturday, and then Sunday morning they were out there cooking breakfast for everybody. It really was a community-wide event.”
Another community was involved, too. When things wound down in Hartville, the party migrated to nearby Gurnsey, where things rocked into the night.
“It was quite a night,” Stacy said. “Everyone had a great time. Then we all had to get up Sunday morning and ride through the wind again to get home. It probably would have been better if there wasn’t any wind, but then it might not have been Wyoming.”
The BOB Run started after the elder Buford was involved in a motorcycle crash in the Four Corners area some 13 years ago. A small volunteer fire department in the area was holding a fundraiser at the time, and after responding to the accident, the department donated the money they’d raised to Bob to help him out. As a way to remember and repay that generosity, the BOB Run was born. Every run since has donated money to volunteer fire departments.
“I’m not sure what we’ll do for next year’s run,” Stacy explained. “We’ll think of something good, and go have a bunch of fun doing it.”
