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The Texas governor spoke to more than 400 people during a sold out Williamson County GOP Reagan Dinner Monday night.

It was Perry's first public appearance since he abandoned his run for the GOP presidential nomination Jan. 19. Perry entered the race strong in August, but his popularity dwindled under the weight of debate flubs and public gaffes.

For the first time since returning from his failed bid for president, Perry reflected on his experience on the trail.

“Aggies have a really interesting way of admitting defeat,” he said. “It was just extraordinary. I would not trade it for anything that I have ever done in my 60 plus years of living.”

He kept a low profile since returning home, and a recent poll commissioned by leading state newspapers showed his standing plummeting even among Texans.

Nearly half of respondents said Perry's presidential campaign hurt the state's image, and a majority said they don't want him running for a fourth full term as governor in 2014.

While Perry focused much of his speech on boosting area Republican candidates, and Texas as whole, he reassured the crowd he's back for business.

"I'm not slipping off into the sunset. I'm not riding off into the west. We got plenty of work to do right here in Texas and I got plenty of fight left in this old 61-year-old body,” Perry said.

Between ticket prices and an auction, the Williamson County Republican Party expected to raise as much as $80,000 during the event.

Perry's advisers aren't ruling out another gubernatorial run or a second try at the presidency in 2016.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.