Over a mountain and on to the Junction!

Went on a killer little moto-adventure with Matt Wilson on the dual sports. Matt rode his AZ plated Honda CRF 450 and I rode my DRZ400s. This was a true dual sport adventure- we jammed up Main Street Chula Vista, behind Cricket Amphitheater, onto the dirt and up to Otay Mountain. A little bit of a covert, lean the bikes under a locked gate and we were jamming over the mountain. 

Basic overview of our trip. Follow the yellow pin markers and you can see how far we went. The pins mark the return route, on the way there we crossed mountains on dirt roads. Saw a big old black snake jam across the road too- rad.

It was fun to be back on the dirt again and in about twenty miles we were cruising down onto Old Highway 94 and back onto the pavement for a little road riding to Barret Junction. A couple of plates of fish and chips, an order of hush puppies and two cold mugs of beer later we were primed to head back home. We took a different route this time, looped around Otay Lake and then Matt showed me his short cut across the backside of the lake, across some beautiful rolling hills and back onto Main Street. We ended up riding close to eighty miles- what a great way to end a week of work!

The Barrett Junction Cafe... cold beer, good food... great hush puppies!

This makes me want to just start riding...

One of those bikes is a Triumph Bonneville. Like mine.

It's very dangerous... it's very fun.

I'm all over the place now on my new-to-me Triumph Bonneville. I blast up and down the beach, ramble all over downtown San Diego and have even crossed the Coronado Bridge a couple of times. The thing gets close to forty miles per gallon so for eight or ten bucks, I can cruise for a few hours. Here's a couple more shots of my new girlfriend: 

2007 Standard Triumph Bonneville, $4700, 12k miles on the odometer- one smooth runner!

This is where it's at- the open road! I'm just learning about riding curvy roads, taking it slow and being as careful as possible. Fun stuff.

Dirt for dirt... street for street- oh my!

I'll save you the long story- check out my new road bike. Picked it up to cruise around town- damn she's a looker!

2007 Triumph Bonneville

Desert Riding and Exploring!

Had a great couple of days of riding out in Ocotillo. I made it a solo trip but I'm finding out that moto-folks are good people and was stoked to make two new friends within five minutes of pulling up. Josh and Claudia were on a five day tour of the desert and surrounding countryside, they invited me to camp right next to them (they had one of the few wind sheltered spots- the wind was CRANKING) and we shared beers and firewood.

Josh- charging!

The best part? Josh took me on a couple nice long tours, showing me some cool spots and taking me through some twisty, banked, slot canyons. I saw spots I didn't even knew existed and I got to try terrain I didn't think I was capable of riding. Josh is one of those kind of riders who doesn't need to brag or boast, he lets his riding speak for him- and believe me, the guy rips. Josh rides sand banks like a surfer, drawing big lines and throwing down some sweet carves. He even convinced me to give it a try and I learned that, like in surfing, if you're going to do it, you've got to commit. That means twist that throttle and lean back- I didn't quite master it but I can see where I wanna go. And that just means more moto trips out to the desert... stoked!

Top of the ridge looking out towards Split Canyon Road. Yeah, I did need a little ride assistance (translation: I pussed out on one of the hills and had Josh ride my bike down it) down one of the hills- but we don't need to tell anybody about that right?

 I also pushed myself to complete a little excursion I'd read about and have been wanting to do for awhile now. The trip would be from Ocotillo out to the Scissors Crossing back onto S2 and down to Blair Valley. I'd read about the Blair Valley trail in an offroad book I bought. The eleven mile loop is supposed to be super scenic and there are sites to see along the way. The one I really wanted to check out were the Native American pictographs in the valley. The only think stopping me was about fifty miles of highway that I'd have to ride to get to Blair Valley. I'm not that experienced with fast moving traffic and I have zero experience riding through twisty (well kind of twisty- for me anyway) canyon roads. I was a little nervous about it but I wanted to push my limits and grow a little as a rider so I charged it. I was stoked I did. Check out what I saw:

The desert was beautiful- still wondering where all the wild flowers are out there. I'm talking about the big, open fields of desert wildflowers- any hints for me people?

I had to walk a mile in full moto gear but this is what was at the end of the trail. See the pictographs?

One more pic of Josh sand shralping!

More riding shots from Logansdale trails, Nevada

Super fun place to camp and ride:

This is the road into camp. As you veer to the right, the canyon gets really steep. Lot's of folks pull toyhaulers into the canyon and find sweet little camp spots in there.

The rides continue: Otay Mountain, Corral Canyon and Logansdale Trails... Wow!

Just got back from a couple of super fun rides. Check 'em out:

So cool that this spot is only minutes out my front door. Matt W. showing me the way and checking it all out. This is a ride that my local moto buddies do almost every Friday. It's kind of a tradition to hop on the bikes, ride surface streets to the beginning of the trail and then moto up to the summit.  Top of the world on Moto Friday- with a couple cold beers waiting at the truck down below. 

Off to explore Corral Canyon but what a bummer... flat front tire! Well, might as well learn how to replace an inner tube- so we used the trailer as a bike stand and got busy changing it out. 

It's not too hard... but I've got to invest in some tire irons and get a little repair pack together. And practice on all the different bikes we're on- if this happens way out in the bush in Baja, I've got to be prepared to do it myself.

The trouble was worth it- Corral Canyon is a fun place to ride. Since I'm a beginner, I liked the easy perimeter road. We didn't get to ride the whole length of the road, I'm excited to get back out there and do the whole thing. It's an hour from my doorstep to the trail at Corral Canyon- that makes it an easy day trip for me. Stoked!

Another shot from the Corral Canyon perimeter road- beautiful back country out there.

Just got back from this trip: Logansdale Trails outside of Las Vegas, Nevada... insanely beautiful, red rocks with fun moto-trails all through them.

Red dirt, red rocks, blue sky.

It's the kind of place that makes you feel really small.

Big Changes, Big Rides... just Big.

Okay, so as predicted by various readers and friends, I did the unthinkable and moved up to a larger bike. This, unashamedly, was predicated by the purchase by my younger brother of an insanely rad KTM 400 EXC. If any of you have younger siblings, you know that you CANNOT be upstaged by them, especially if we're all meeting up for a ride in the desert. I do love the TW200 and will keep it around as my town cruiser/grocery getter/back-up bike but, let's face it, when you're 210lbs you kind of look like the big clown on the little bike. And, really, I didn't want to hear the heckle fest that would undoubtedly rain down on me when we got together. 

So, I scored a great deal on a 2006, Suzuki DRZ 400s with only 1300 miles on it (the story of this purchase will be told in a future post- it's a good one!). Best part? I only paid $2600 for it- the thing is practically new! No, it's not hot. It was just purchased by a guy who barely used it. Standard story: Guy bought it to ride with friends, did a couple rides, friends don't ride as much, so he just let it sit around... until Mom demanded he get it the hell out of the house. YES, a motivated buyer, me with a cash offer well below his asking price (and no shame when it comes to wheeling and dealing), a Mom demanding the bike be gone... perfect! Here's a couple shots of the new ride: 

My new bike! 2006 DRZ 400s

At first, I was worried about how big the bike was- it looked giant next to my little TW200. It only took one ride for me to fall in love with it. I putted it around the neighborhood and got used to the extra power of the bike and then took her right out to Ocotillo Wells to see how riding this beast would feel. Guess what? The bike is unreal. Specifically, I like the extra suspension travel and the solid, down the line feel of the bike. Right off the bat, I was able to cruise the deep sand washes at more than twice the speed I was going on the TW200. 

The bike is heavier which I think helps its stability in the sand. The power enabled me to putt up hills that I had to gun it on with the TW and for some reason, it just inspires confidence. I really like the bike. There were a couple issues I had to deal with to get her up to speed (I'll discuss later) the biggest issue being the removal of the Kouba lowering link the previous owner had installed. Check back for more of that story and some pics from a couple great rides on the new bike.

Moto envy?

Dang it. Just when I thought I was cool my little brother one ups me! He went out and bought a 2004 KTM 400 Exc... and from everything I've read, this is the bike I should have. It's got the power without the head snap twitchiness- it's built like a tank and... damn, it just looks bad ass! I'm hiding the check book because I see my future... and it's looking kinda orange.

Canyon riding in the land of plated bikes: I'm so glad I got a dual sport!

It got rainy and cold in San Diego over MLK weekend so we packed it up and headed two hours east to the land of sunshine, smiles and dirt! Check out what we saw: 

Canyon cruising in Anza Borrego

If you want to ride this spot, your vehicle has to be street legal. Luckily, I made the decision that I'd spend a little more to have a bike with a license plate- so I was invited in to ride the trails and roads of Anza Borrego. There's a giant filter that you pass through if you've got the bike to get you into Anza. Basically, all the quad kooks and dirt bike rippers get left behind with their green and red stickered buddies- there are way fewer bikes and people out in Anza. We do still need to get our permits and M1 moto license to  be completely legal but basically, if you've got a plate the "man" won't hassle you. More to come about riding in Anza- it's the new frontier for me!

Respect the Desert!

I'm so excited to be able to get back out to Ocotillo Wells again this weekend and go for a couple of long rides through the desert. Last weekend, I had a blast getting out and cruising around. On a couple of occasions I even took off on solo rides. As I think back on that, I've come to the conclusion that solo rides probably aren't a good idea, even if you think you're just going to do a short loop. I remember being out in the desert a couple times last week and having to stop to pick up a bike, or check the map and thinking to myself that it's damn hot and bone dry out here. 

Now that I really think about it, there were times when I didn't respect the desert. I may have left camp without water or without telling anybody where I was going- bad idea! I stumbled across this story (click here) that really hammered home how thin the line is between being alive and laughing on your motorbike and being dried up and dead in the desert. The place isn't a joke and when I go back this weekend I'm going to remember to respect the desert!

Surfed out... on a moto!

I was just commenting to a friend how finishing a day of riding makes you feel all buzzed and tired like a good day of surfing. The two really fit together. Our two days of riding, cold beers around the campfire and sunrise moto rides out at Ocotillo Wells really put a smile on my face. It felt like a Baja surf trip. Here's some more shots of that trip:

Here's what it looks like when you come rolling into Ocotillo Wells. Your first stop should be at the Ranger Station. We came in around 8am and were greeted by the nicest, volunteer docents at the station. The woman I spoke to made sure I got a map for every bike in our group. The map is a must-have it shows you all the major roads in the park. I'd never been there before and was able to use the map to get out to some of the major spots. I was kind of blown away by the desert- it really is a beautiful place, especially if you're up early in the morning.

The Ramble Machine... locked, loaded and sporting my birthday gift to myself: a Thule Professional Grade awning (hugely discounted because the shop was just trying to get rid of the thing). The awning is perfect for the desert- the sun can be brutal. Check out the trailer, loaded with the two TW200s and the XT225. I also brought five extra gallons of gas that we didn't even need- these bikes sip gas!

Here we are on our "big" ride the second day: Off to the Pumpkin Patch. We had to ride up a sandy wash to get to the Pumpkin Patch trail- riding in sand is tough! I was stoked at the girls and how they handled the conditions. This was their first time on the bikes since we all took the Dirt Bike class together. The TW200s were fairly easy to ride in the sand, the XT225 was a bit more squirrely. Liza's bike is the XT and she was an awesome rider- she told me she didn't like the sand but she realized that it was part of the whole deal and was a skill she'd have to learn. What a rad chick. Dakotah powered her bike through the sand, the mud canyons and the rocks- dumping it twice but never complaining (even when her leg got caught under her back wheel which then ate a hole through her riding pants!) and overcoming whatever the road threw at her.

Liza's bike got tired halfway there and decided to lie down in the road (for your information, that's a common internet moto-guy joke, that whole "lie down thing" funny, eh?). We found out that when the bike lies down, the carb get's flooded. At first it kind of freaked us out when the bike wouldn't start- I mean we were really in the middle of nowhere- but I figured out how to start them once they stood back up and we were on our way.

We did make it to the Pumpkin Patch... check that place out- it's a trip!

Can you find the human in here?

Whipped out the map on the way back and decided to check out Shell Reef.

The road to Shell Reef was pretty solid and easy to ride.

Shell Reef was pretty impressive- there were moto trails that looked like they went vertical. We were there during the week so there weren't too many hot shots getting crazy- I'd like to see what the good guys can do here.

We cruised home with enough light for me to climb a couple little hills around the campground- they were enough to get me nervous but it was fun to push my boundaries a little and work on my skills. The bikes are pretty amazing- the TW just motors like a tractor up the hill, all I did was put it in first gear and stay on the throttle.

Coming home to camp after a great day of riding- can't wait to head back out again this weekend!

My First Big Ride/Campout: Ocotillo Wells!

Oh man, I'm totally hooked. First of all, I can't believe I haven't been out to the desert to check out the place- it's beautiful! And it's close to me, only two hours away which makes it perfect for a rainy day escape during a cold, gray winter. Secondly, the place is famous for dirt bike riding and finally, there is free, no-reservations-needed, camping out there. Total freedom! Check out these pics, I'll post and write a bunch more about the place when I've got a minute:

Here's our campsite at Holmes Camp in Ocotillo Wells. I've been told that on the weekend, every one of these sites would be occupied- there was nobody around when we went there.

Here's a shot of a typical road in Ocotillo Wells- we road out to the Pumpkin Patch which was a nice little cruise out to a weird little rock formation.

You can see, it's wide open out there... check out the tiny, little grom patrol on their tiny quads... pretty cool until they turn into teenagers on quads who like to spin donuts in front of your site.

More to come about riding and camping in Ocotillo Wells.