Archive for the ‘Colorado motorcycle rides’ Category

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The Ride Home From Cheyenne

Thursday, July 23rd, 2026

Heading home from Cheyenne after test riding the Yamaha Tracer 9 I did not want to backtrack, nor did I want to take I-25. No problem, US 85 runs between Cheyenne and Denver, just to the east of I-25. That would be my route.


This was my route home. (Courtesy of Google Maps.)

It was wide open at first and a nice ride but I knew I would be hitting several towns along the way, just as I had hit several on the way up the day before on US 287. I would just take it as it came.

By the time I got to Greeley I was already locked in on the theme for this whole ride: This is the industrial heartland of Colorado. A big part of that industry is agriculture, but it’s still industry. Plus, these days, there is drilling and fracking and all of this oil and gas work going on. Everywhere. This is not scenic Colorado.

That’s OK. I’m kind of a Tom Waits kind of guy; I like to immerse myself in the grittier sides of life now and then. It helps keep things real.

Greeley turned out not to be any kind of issue. They have a bypass and I just cruised right around the town. I might have made it a point to go through just to see how things are changing but I was really more interested in getting home. It was already getting hot.

From Greeley it was Evans, LaSalle, Gilcrest, and then Platteville. Time to stop, stretch my legs, and get a bite to eat. Feeling adventurous–and not particularly interested in most of the other stuff this convenience store had–I opted for some rolled up mystery tubes of some kind of food that were rolling on a griddle. And you know what? They actually tasted pretty darn good. I don’t know what they were, and who knows what food value they had, but I liked them.

While I was standing outside eating a young guy going in asked, “Does your bike go fast?” “Fast enough,” was my reply. He grinned.

And the whole time I was standing there I watched truck after truck after truck going by.

From Platteville it was Fort Lupton, then Brighton, and into the metro area. Lots of traffic signals. Very hot when sitting still. Now I really wanted to get home.

Not enough to take the interstate so I went into Commerce City and then down through Denver on city streets. Again, more stop and go, more heat. I just want to get home. And finally I was home. I’m heading for the shower.

Biker Quote for Today

Biker by birth, rebel by choice.

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An Easy-Going Ride To Cheyenne

Monday, July 13th, 2026


Wyoming 210 heading east from Laramie to Cheyenne.

I needed to go up to Cheyenne but there was no way I wanted to take the interstate. I-25 was certainly the most direct way. I live about 1 mile from the highway and it takes you straight up to Cheyenne, less than a mile from my destination. Nope. Not gonna happen.

Instead, I figured I would cruise out to the west side of town and take Colorado 93 up from Morrison, to Golden, and on to Boulder. Then I’d head to Longmont, catch US 287 north to Laramie, and then cut east on a short stretch of I-80 and the rest of the way in on Wyoming 210. Much better, but a lot slower. Hey, I’m in no hurry. I just want to get out for a nice ride.

It has been blazing hot lately, and it was when I headed out on the V-Strom on Thursday. But we’ve also had a lot of smoke from forest fires further west and that smoke, while making the air hazardous to breathe, does provide some relief from the heat. You don’t have that blistering sun beating down on you. So it was a hot ride across town but a bit nicer along the foothills.

I got through Golden and up to the turn-off up Eldorado Canyon, just south of Boulder, and turned east to pick up Cherryvale Road to continue north. I wanted the bypass around Boulder and then the Longmont Diagonal up to Longmont. But I must have missed a turn somewhere. Doesn’t matter, as long as I take roads going either east or north they’re all heading in my direction. What this wandering did though was to add a lot of slow travel in the heat. There’s a reason I try to avoid Boulder County and this is a big part of it.

Coming into Longmont I knew I could skirt around the more congested parts of town but I intentionally wanted to go straight to 287 because I had not been this way recently and wanted to see the changes. There is so much development and redevelopment going on up and I’m curious. And what I saw confirms that Longmont more and more seems like a place it could be really nice to live. Not that I have any intention of moving. But a very nice smaller town.

Once I finally got through Longmont I was able to pick up speed a bit. Meanwhile, the sky ahead was looking decidedly wet. Bring it on. As long as it doesn’t come down too hard I won’t even stop to put on my rain suit. And I did get a bit wet as I got close to Loveland. I got through Loveland surprisingly quickly and then on to Fort Collins. Even Fort Collins was less of a traffic jam than Longmont and going out of town I needed a break.

I stopped for gas–not that I needed it but it’s a reason to stop–and spotted an ice cream shop right next door. Score! I had been thinking about an ice cream stop. I enjoyed the air conditioning and the ice cream, then looked out to see that it was actually pouring rain. OK, I guess I’m in no hurry.

The rain didn’t last that long and I went out and now had to decide what gear I needed. I knew the roads would be wet and even if it didn’t rain any more I could still end up with wet, dirty pants. But I decided against pants. I did put on my rain jacket, just in case I did run into actual rain. Somewhat to my surprise those were both good decisions.

Yes, at first my pants legs got a bit damp but soon the road was drying out and that was that. Meanwhile, the rain had cooled things off enough that the extra warmth and wind-breaking quality of the jacket was appreciated. It was actually a little chilly.

Then it was a direct cruise up to Laramie. I stopped again to stretch and have a bit to eat and what a difference Wyoming was. It was a good bit cooler than Colorado and no smoke in the air.

Heading east out of Laramie you have little choice but the interstate but in just a few miles you can get off onto the two lane. I took the exit, crossed over the highway, and then came to a T intersection. Going left seemed to go straight north, while going right was headed east. Easy choice. Until I went about half a mile, crossed a small bridge, and found nothing but gravel on the other side. What the hey?

I turned around and went back, then consulted the map. It turned out the road that appeared to go due north only did so for a very short distance and then it bent east. This was my road. And what a nice road! Not mountains but hills and a much nicer transit to Cheyenne than the interstate would have been. Time to find my hotel.

Biker Quote for Today

A true biker knows that life begins at the end of your comfort zone.

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Posted in Colorado motorcycle rides, motorcycle touring, Suzuki motorcycles, V-Strom | 1 Comment »

Pre-Riding Comes Through Again

Monday, June 29th, 2026


It seems the worst of the flooding damage was on the road that is part of my planned route.

I wrote about pre-riding a route you plan to lead a group ride on just a few weeks ago. Well, it seems there’s a very good reason not to do that pre-ride too far in advance. Conditions change.

We just got back from two weeks in Alaska. We flew from Juneau to Seattle and needed to change planes in Seattle. We found right away that our flight was delayed a bit more than an hour. As it turned out, the plane to Denver was coming from Denver and they were delayed more than an hour from taking off. It seems there was a bit of a weather event. We never did learn much about it because it was all over by the time we did get home.

We’ve been home a week now and it occurred to me that if I intend to lead this ride that I’ve been planning since before I got hit head-on exactly one year ago, this is really when I should do it. I was leaning toward posting the ride on the RMMRC site Saturday and meanwhile I was catching up on all the emails that piled up while I was gone.

Surprise, surprise! I came across a new item saying there was extensive flooding in Evergreen and Kittredge, connected to the tornado that shut down the airport. Roads were completely blocked. And my route for this ride goes right through Evergreen and Kittredge. I figured Sunday I’d better take a ride up there and check it out before posting the ride.

So I did. As I headed up Colorado 74 out of Morrison I thought I ought to see a warning sign if the road was closed ahead, and there was no such sign. That’s positive. You go through Idledale before you reach Kittredge and there was a sign just outside of Idledale but I didn’t see it in time to read it, so no help. But that said to be cautious.

I got into Kittredge and the first thing I noticed was that the restaurant I planned to stop at for lunch on this ride seemed to be closed. It is right beside the creek so that was foreboding. I’d have to check on that. Then I got to the west end of Kittredge and where the creek crosses under the road it was obvious what had happened. There was an area to the side where a lot of logs and stumps were piled up, obviously from a clean-up effort, and the bridge abutment still had a lot of the same packed against it. But the road was open, albeit with a good bit of gravel remaining.


It appears they will be reopened in time for us.

On to Evergreen. Everything looked pretty good in Evergreen, though when I reached the fork where one way goes north and the other south, my route being south, I made that turn and it was clear they were not done cleaning up from flooding right there. But it was not bad. On south about a tenth of a mile and you get to the turn-off up Little Cub Creek Road–my route–and then the flooding became extremely evident.

Mostly it was where the stream had come out of its banks and left gravel–a lot of gravel–on the road. Then a little further along I came to a spot where at first I thought the road had been carried away altogether. I turned around and stopped to shoot that picture above. On closer inspection I could see that the adjoining road had been nearly washed away and all that rock and soil was covering the road I was on. It’s all passable but don’t try screaming down this road on a motorcycle. No problem as long as you know what to expect.

At this point I headed back the way I came and in Kittredge I stopped to check out the restaurant. They had a sign on the door saying that due to the flooding they were closed over the weekend but would reopen right away.

OK, I guess I can lead this ride. Now I just have to get it posted.

Biker Quote for Today

Cause one day you are gonna say that today was bumping. We’re living on the edge and my motorcycle’s speeding. It is what it is and this is how I’m feeling. — Charles Smith

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Posted in Colorado motorcycle rides, Day Rides, motorcycle clubs, Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Riders Club | 1 Comment »

Making The Most Of The Ride Home

Thursday, June 18th, 2026


At a pull-out going up Independence Pass.

Day 5 was the last day of our RMMRC 5-day Utah ride. It could have been a quick blast east on I-70 but there was no way we were going to do that. Heck, we were in Basalt, which is right next door to Aspen, which is the gateway to . . . Independence Pass. One of Colorado’s real gems. Which direction do you suppose we went?

We heard from a cabinetmaker staying at our hotel that the morning commute into Aspen is killer. Because no one who does any of the hard work in Aspen can afford to live in Aspen. But either because we started a little later in the morning–9 a.m.–or because it was Saturday, we had no issue with traffic. That’s a win.

There’s no way in the world they’ll ever be able to build a bypass around Aspen so we had to go right through the middle of town. Not a win, but that’s life. Then we were out in the open, heading up the pass. And there was very little traffic this early in the day. That’s a win.

There are a couple places along the road going up the west side of Independence where it narrows down to one lane. I was riding sweep and as we came around a bend in one of these one-lane stretches I joked on the intercom that we should stop here for a group picture. Gene, in the lead, said OK. I came around the bend then and saw there was a pull-out right there and everyone was pulling in. Had to laugh about that one.

Of course, then as we left the pull-out I forgot to plug my electric vest back in so it was going to be a cold ride up to the summit. Dang. I knew it was totally unsafe to try to plug that thing in while riding but I still considered it. I thought if I secured the the female connector between my leg and the tank that maybe, on a straighter stretch, I might be able to insert the male connector. The opportunity came and I made a feeble attempt but clearly it was not going to work, and I was not willing to risk my life to avoid being cold for half an hour. When we stopped at the top I made absolutely certain to plug in before we headed down.

That was a good thing, because on the east side of the pass there was a ferocious wind blowing and that wind was cold! It didn’t really get warm until we were almost to Buena Vista. But oh hey, Independence Pass was its usual gorgeous self. What a nice ride.

We didn’t stop in Buena Vista. Too early for lunch and a couple guys had said they did not plan to do a lunch stop. Usually about the time we get onto US 285 headed back down the hill it’s time for the group to dissolve as the horses head back to the stable. Amazingly, this time that did not happen.

Dave and Lindsay told us as we made our final stop at Johnson Village that they intended to peel off on US 24 at Antero Junction, where you come down the hill into South Park. They did and then Tom and Gene and I stayed together all the rest of the way into town. The two of them finally got separated from me coming across town when I caught a red light they got through. Then it was home and this really good trip came to an end.

Biker Quote for Today

The road is a mirror; it reflects who I truly am.

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There It Is–How Do We Get There?

Monday, June 15th, 2026


Stopped on McClure Pass Summit

The fourth day of this 5-day Utah ride brought us back into Colorado. We were continuing south out of Moab, down US 191 to where Utah 46 splits off to the east to cross the base of the La Sal mountains into far southwestern Colorado. If you’ve never taken this road you are missing a really sweet one. The decline into Paradox Valley is magnificent.

First, though, I had to get all screwed up. I left the motel ahead of the others telling Dave I would stop at the first gas station out of town on the right. There is no gas station going out of town on the right. I ended up doubling back as the other guys came past me heading out of town and I had to do a U-turn and hit the road without having all my riding gear on properly. What a pain that was.

So we got into Colorado and reached Naturita and had two options: go left up to Gateway and then out to US 50 north of Delta or go right down to Placerville and over to Ridgway, then north on US 550 to approach Delta from the south. The north route takes you along the Unaweep Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway and is a terrific ride. The south route is very pretty and a good bit shorter. We went south.

There’s not much in Placerville but we wanted a pit stop so we pulled in. The only store in town had no public facilities but a note on the door saying there was a park two blocks north where there were restrooms. We never knew that. And what a nice little park. Now we know.

Reaching Ridgway we were planning to stop for lunch but we got into town and it was jammed. A festival going on. OK, we’ll go on to Montrose.

But first, going north out of Ridgway, Lindsay had an idea. The turn-off to Owl Creek Pass is right outside of Ridgway and he wanted to show us something. Some rich dude had built an amazing house just up the road a ways. But Lindsay, this road is gravel. I was on a dual-sport but the others were not. Are they really that interested?

We went a distance and they were not. Through the communicators Tom and Gene said we’re going back. Lindsay was out of communications distance so I passed the word along. We never saw that house. Not all ideas are actually good ideas.

We lunched in Montrose, went north to Delta, and turned east on Colorado 92, picked up Colorado 133 at Hotchkiss and up and over McClure Pass. I was glad to see McClure. My lunch had been unexpectedly large and I had eaten it all. Heading for Delta I started getting drowsy and the whole was to Hotchkiss and Paonia I was struggling to keep my eyes open. The curves on McClure woke me up. Just what I needed!

If you’re familiar with Aspen you know the Maroon Bells. McClure Pass shows you the back side of the Maroon Bells. Nice ride.

Down to Carbondale and then we needed to take Colorado 82 toward Aspen, though we were stopping today in Basalt.

I was never familiar with the old Basalt but it’s a certainty that it looked nothing like current-day Basalt. Basically an extension of Aspen. I noticed one young woman in particular who was truly decked out in Aspen chic attire. Whatever floats your boat.

Finding our motel was the challenge of the day. We could see it. We could get about 100 feet from it. But there was all this construction going on and there didn’t seem to be any way to get to it. Crazy. Finally we ducked down what looked like an alley and got there. Crazy.

Biker Quote for Today

I ride to feel alive, not just to reach a destination.

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Off To Utah On 5-Day Ride

Monday, June 1st, 2026


Stopped to catch a view in Utah.

Five of us with the RMMRC headed to Utah last week on a 5-day ride. On the BMWs were Dave, Lindsay, and Tom. Gene was on his Yamaha and I was on my Suzuki.

We met out at the Phillips 66 in Morrison and the first order of business was to link our communicators. We failed and headed out with only two linked, Tom riding lead and Gene riding sweep. It was a chilly morning destined to get a lot colder before it got warm.

Our destination on Day One was Green River, Utah, which is about 330 miles. We were doing it all on I-70, just to get there. We ran up from Morrison past Red Rocks, got on I-70, and blasted west.

The first point of interest came at the foot of Floyd Hill. At that spot I-70 comes down a steep incline and then makes a hard turn left into Clear Creek Canyon. That hard left makes the turn a bit of a hazard. The state has been working for a couple years now to straighten out the bend and generally improve that stretch of road but all that has been visible all this time has been some earth-moving as they cut into the hillside a bit.

That has changed. Down at the bottom you now see tall pillars with a short slab of what will be highway indicating the route of the new flyover they’re putting in. Around the bend you see more pillars indicating that they are raising the highway leading to the curve and you can see where the lane will go right through a notch they have cut in the hillside. Very interesting.

We climbed on up toward the Eisenhower Tunnel and by now my fingers were getting numb and I was cursing my failure to wear my electric vest. I had it with me but it wasn’t doing me any good in my bag. We got through the tunnel and headed down to Silverthorne and as it didn’t get much warmer down there I knew I was going to be cold all the way to Vail.

Up from Silverthorne, past Frisco, past Copper Mountain, and up Vail Pass. Just over the top of Vail we encountered more major highway construction. Apparently they are widening the road on that side and there is already a high median barrier in place. However, we were heading west on the eastbound side of that new barrier because they’re just in the process of building the highway on the westbound side. Also, up at the top of Vail Pass, there was a brand new rest area to replace the old one that has been closed for a couple years. Your tax dollars at work. Probably good expenditures.

Tom was setting an aggressive pace the whole way and after we got down and through Vail he bumped it up another notch. We stopped for lunch in West Glenwood and headed on toward Grand Junction. We had discussed where we would need to get gas and we all agreed we could make it to Fruita. But at this blistering pace–80 to 90–my gas mileage was suffering badly. We got into Debeque Canyon and I was down to just one bar on my fuel gauge and it was flashing red. I had no helmet communications but Gene, just behind me, did and I waved him up. I pointed to my gas tank and he got the idea. He told Tom I needed to stop for gas so Tom pulled off at Palisade. I really don’t think I would have made it to Fruita.

Off we went again and once we got into Utah we were truly blasting. That stretch of I-70 has an 80 mph speed limit and we were going the obligatory 5 to 10 mph faster–or more. And the wind was blasting us in the face. Google says from Palisade to Green River is 113 miles. My fuel gauge was showing three bars of five when we got there. Normally I get about 140 on my first two bars.

So now we were in Utah. The slog portion of the trip was over. Tomorrow the real fun begins.

Biker Quote for Today

The bike is an extension of my being; we ride as one.

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Posted in BMW motorcycles, Colorado motorcycle rides, motorcycle touring, Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Riders Club, Suzuki motorcycles, V-Strom, Yamaha motorcycles | 3 Comments »

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