You’ve probably seen on the news that a rockslide has closed Glenwood Canyon, and repairs will take quite awhile. The latest news is that they do hope to get two lanes open as soon as today.

What this means for anyone traveling I-70 between Debeque and Glenwood Springs in the next couple months will be facing delays, assuming they can get through at all. This is not generally a good thing.

But let’s look on the bright side. It may be interstate but Glenwood Canyon is a stretch of road that I include on this website as well worth riding if you’re coming to Colorado on your motorcycle. The problem is that you’re on the interstate and through most of the canyon you can’t stop to get a good look at the gorgeous rock walls or shoot pictures.

Well, now maybe you’ll be able to. Consider this image. You’ve got thousands of cars all bottle-necked at one spot, and the driving is stop and go as you move east through the canyon. The slowdown for westbound traffic will mostly be just before you enter the canyon, so that may not work as well for you.

But if you’re eastbound you could find yourself creeping through the canyon. And that will give you lots of time to take a good look and I’ll bet you can even get some shots.

I definitely want to go over there during this period just to test out this theory. I’ve been frustrated for years over my inability to get photos that really do the canyon justice. Maybe this is my chance. I’ll let you know how it goes, and if I do get those great shots I want I’ll definitely be posting them on the site.

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Biker Quote for Today

From hell hot days to cold blue skies, thru moonless nights with headlight eyes.

The streets of Sturgis, SD, are lined with two-wheelers–more of them than most people have ever seen in one place. Only these two-wheelers are not motorcycles, they’re scooters. Cushman scooters to be exact. Welcome to the rally in mid June.

That’s right, the Cushman Club of America (CCA), which has a rally every year, is coming to Sturgis this year, from June 14 to June 18. It’s going to be just a bit different from what Sturgis is accustomed to.

“Come Play Where the Big Boys Play,” is the promo line the CCA is using and they’re looking for it to be the largest of their gatherings ever. Events will include a “Rough Rider Ride” that will be limited to 100 scoots, taking a route that will be challenging on a Cushman. And there will be other organized rides through the Black Hills. The Knuckle Saloon in Sturgis will be ground zero for rally activities.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tempted to drop in on this rally–on my Kawi, of course–just because it’s going to be so totally different from the usual Sturgis rally scene. And my calendar looks clear in mid-June. We’ll see. It could be fun. At the very least, I’m sure it would make for some great pictures.

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Biker Quote for Today

It’s more fun to ride a slow bike fast, than a fast bike slow.

I am asked frequently to suggest routes for bikers planning to come ride in Colorado, and I’m always happy to comply. Chris Peterson is the most recent and here is his (abbreviated) question and my reply.

From there (Laramie) I was going to take three days to travel Colorado from north to south on the way to Arizona. I’d appreciate any can’t miss or gotta see’s or suggested routes to take.

Here is the map I sent him and my reply.

Chris–Always happy to offer my suggestions. Here’s a map; I’ll run through it step by step.

Starting at Laramie, head southeast into Colorado on US 287 until you hit the mouth of the Poudre Canyon a little northwest of Fort Collins. Turn up CO 14 through the Poudre, over Cameron Pass and down into North Park and Walden. From Walden stay of CO 14 until you hit US 40 at Muddy Pass, between Kremmling and Steamboat Springs.

Go west on US 40 over Rabbit Ears Pass to Steamboat. Each lunch, perhaps. Then backtrack a bit to catch CO 131 that split off from US 40 just south of town, and head south on it to Toponas. From Toponas take CO 134 over Gore Pass to Kremmling, where you will reconnect with US 40. Take US 40 east to Granby and then turn north on US 34 through Rocky Mountain National Park and over Trail Ridge Road. This brings you down into Estes Park.

Take CO 7 south out of Estes Park, on the first leg of the Peak-to-Peak Highway. Where CO 72 takes off from CO 7, take it to stay on the Peak-to-Peak. After passing through Black Hawk you’ll intersect US 6 coming up out of Clear Creek Canyon. Go west and get on I-70 just east of Idaho Springs. At the second Idaho Springs exit, get off and so south on CO 103 toward Squaw Pass, but make the turn-off before the pass and go to the top of Mount Evans. Then backtrack to Idaho Springs and continue west on I-70 until you reach the Loveland Pass/US 6 turn-off just before you get to the Eisenhower Tunnel. Take US 6 over Loveland Pass, down past Keystone and turn off on the Swan Mountain Road that takes you along the south side of Dillon Reservoir.

This will connect you to CO 9, which goes up through Breckenridge and over Hoosier Pass, down to Fairplay, where you’ll meet US 285. Take US 285 west to Johnson Village and turn north through Buena Vista on US 24 to Twin Lakes. At Twin Lakes (Balltown, really), go west on CO 82 over Independence Pass and down to Aspen and Carbondale. At Carbondale, take CO 133 over McClure Pass down to Hotchkiss. At Hotchkiss, take CO 92 south through Crawford and along the north rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Cross the Gunnison over the dam that forms Blue Mountain Reservoir and then, if you desire, take US 50 east either into Gunnison (if you wish) or to the turn-off for CO 149 at the east end of the reservoir.

Take CO 149 south through Lake City and over Slumgullion Pass, down to Creede and to South Fork. At South Fork, pick up US 160 over Wolf Creek Pass and over to Pagosa Springs. Continue west on US 160 to Durango and then go north on US 550 over Red Mountain Pass to Ouray. From Ouray, continue north on US 550 through Montrose and now, on US 50, continue through Delta to Whitewater, where CO 141 goes off to the west to run down through Gateway as the Unaweep Highway. Stay on CO 141 to Vancorum and Naturita and then pick up CO 145 to Telluride. South from Telluride you’ll cross Lizard Head Pass and come down through Dolores to Cortez. From there you’re very close to the Four Corners area and Arizona. Also very close to Mesa Verde.

My mapping software shows this entire route as about 1,300 miles. That’s a lot to do in three days. Here are some shortcuts you could take. Rather than going over Rabbit Ears to Steamboat and then over Gore Pass to Kremmling, instead, turn south from Walden on CO 125 directly to Granby. Then pick up as before over Trail Ridge Road.

You could skip Mount Evans, but I wouldn’t.

Rather than take Hoosier Pass to Fairplay and then to Buena Vista, get back on I-70 briefly at Frisco, get off at Copper Mountain and take Fremont Pass through Leadville over to Twin Lakes and Independence Pass.

From Ouray, rather than doing the Unaweep loop, just go north as far as Ridgway and then take CO 62 over to Placerville and south from there to Telluride.

That should at least give you ideas to think about. I’d love to hear about your trip afterward.
_______________________
So there you go. That’s all good riding. If you don’t have three days pick any part of it and you can’t miss.

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Biker Quote for Today

If you can’t get it going with bungee cords and duct tape, God’s telling you to stop for the night.

Eight months ago I went up Taylor Canyon and over Cottonwood Pass shooting pictures and gathering information to put these places up on the Passes and Canyons, Motorcycle Touring in Colorado website. Taylor Canyon is a beautiful canyon, with lots of good motorcycle-accessible camping spots. Cottonwood Pass is only paved on the east side but the gravel road is passable on the west. Both deserved to be on the site.

I’ve been busy. But I finally got it done. Here are some photos from these places.

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Biker Quote for Today

To me, the best kind of trips are the ones you planned on the way, allowed yourself to change, and maybe didn’t end up where you expected.

Here’s an interesting looking challenge. Have you ever heard of the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge? This 7,000-mile run starts in Key West, Florida, and ends on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. The race begins on June 20, 2010, and the winner will take home half a million dollars in Alaskan gold.

Hoka Hey, the organizers tell us, means “It’s a good day to die.”

“HOKA HEY” was the roar of every warrior that rode into battle with Crazy Horse. Join us as we ride into battle. As we put ourselves on the line to find out just who we are.

More from the organizers:

Known as the Conch Republic since the city seceded from the union in 1982; Key West reflects the rebel spirit of the Hoka Hey Challenger and we couldn’t think of a better place to kick-off the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge!

Key West is said to be the southernmost city in the Continental United States. It is also the southern terminus of U.S. 1 and State Road A1A. The Southernmost point in the continental United States is claimed to be at the corner of South Street and Whitehead Street and this is where our adventure will begin on June 20, 2010.

About the destination:

Homer is on the shore of Kachemak Bay on the southwest side of the Kenai Peninsula. In fact, Homer is just 15 miles away from the westernmost point in the North American highway system at Anchor Point, AK.

Homer’s most distinguishing feature is the Homer Spit, a narrow 4.5 mile (7 km) long gravel bar that extends into the bay. And it is here that our Challengers will find the end of the road. Plus, when the Challengers arrive in here; they will be greeted by one of the most enthusiastic and endearing group of people you could ever hope to meet!

The event is a benefit for the following charities.
Paralyzed Veterans of America
Warrior Weekend
Disabled American Veterans
American Gold Star Mothers, Inc.
Vietnam Veterans of America
American Indian College Fund
National Multiple Sclerosis Society

This looks like one to watch for. If you decide to run in it, let me know and I’d love to carry your reports.

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Biker Quote for Today

If ya ain’t flyin’ ya ain’t tryin’!

I met Alisa Clickenger last year covering the Dirty Dozen, Adventure for the Cures ride. Alisa is now embarked on a solo ride to the southern tip of South America. Following her trip is giving me an itch.

First off, I’ve always been more interested in seeing South America and Central America than a lot of other places in the world. But now I’m seeing her pictures and one thing is coming very clear: Riding in a third world country has got to be a lot like riding used to be in the U.S. about 50 or 60 or 70 years ago.

Sure they have some major highways, and some major cities, but much of these countries is still what we would call “unspoiled” by development. Tiny, twisty roads that we exult over when we discover them here are the order of the day down there. Take a look at this photo, one that Alisa put up on her blog. Does that look like sweet riding? It does to me.

Now, I have to say, Alisa’s stories of the hassles of getting through customs have reinforced my reluctance to do the kind of trip she’s doing. But I’d love to fly into some place, such as Panama, in the photo, and rent a bike. And of course, tours are offered just about anywhere these days, in case you really don’t want to worry about the hassles.

I’ve never really given this sort of thing much thought before, but the more I see Alisa’s pictures the more I do start dreaming. Now if I just had a bit more disposable cash . . .

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Biker Quote for Today

The mother road remains, it provides no more. It can only take us away.

Imagine if you had a large network of contacts all around the country, so you could travel on your motorcycle and have a place to stay the night pretty much everywhere you went.

Well, you can. I don’t know why I only just learned about this but that’s exactly what the Motorcycle Travel Network (MTN) is all about.Through a membership in the MTN you have the ability to locate people where you’re headed and arrange to stay at their homes, rather than getting a motel. You also can provide accommodations for other motorcycle travelers and receive a small compensation for putting them up at your own home.

Of course, the best part of this has to be that you get to meet and make friends with other people who share your interests. I’m very interested in learning more about this, and when I do I’ll pass along what I’ve learned.

The way it works is that you pay $30 a year to join for one year, or $45 for two years, or $90 for five years. Then when you stay at someone’s home you pay them a gratuity of $15 for one person per day, or $20 for two people per day.

Here’s a bit of what the MTN has to say on its site.

The goal of MTN is for motorcycle enthusiasts to share their knowledge, experiences and stories with each other in a warm friendly and comfortable environment, namely, in a member’s home. We want to help insure that as you travel you will be staying with people that share your enthusiasm for motorcycles and travel. When you stay with MTN hosts you will be staying with “local experts” on where to ride, where to eat, sites to see or where to get mechanical service. Likewise you will be staying with someone who is interested in hearing about your riding adventures, and sharing their own.

They seem to have this thing pretty well worked out; check the site for a lot of info on how it all works. And if you have any experience with this network I’d love to have your comments. Thanks.

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Biker Quote for Today

I would rather wake up in the middle of nowhere than in any city on earth. — Steve McQueen

The Motomarathon is back in 2010 with four events on its calendar. “The Motomarathon Association,” says founding Route Master John Metzger, “sanctions an annual series of four-day rides over the best roads and most scenic routes in the nation, and now with organized sport-riding tours on both coasts.” Its first season was 2009.

Here is the list of this year’s events.

• Southern California Motomarathon – March 26-29
• New England Motomarathon – May 13-16
• Centopassi Motomarathon – June 25-28
• Colorado Motomarathon – September 17-20

With two inaugural rides last season, only six riders completed all the checkpoints out of nearly 100 participants. “With four events scheduled for 2010, it will be a challenge to nail every check,” said Metzger. “This should result in a national champion to be crowned by the end of the year.”

For more information visit the website or contact John Metzger, 303-641-1062, john@metzger.com.

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Biker Quote for Today

Ride Safe. Ride Hard. Enjoy the Ride!

This is an update on Jim Campbell’s condition. I reported this on Examiner.com so rather than rewrite just for the sake of making it different I’m just going to copy/paste what I put up there. The photo is by Beth Egan, Jim’s wife.

My phone rang this afternoon and it was Jim Campbell on the line, calling from the Fort Worth hospital where he is still recovering from his horrific crash three weeks ago. Four weeks ago I wrote about how Jim had ridden 30,000 miles in 30 days to raise money for muscular dystrophy.

Jim was very upbeat and said he hopes to be released from the hospital next week. He suffered a broken neck, hip, and pelvis in the crash but feels fortunate.

“Not too many people would have walked away from what I went through,” he said. “I’ll recover fully.”

The accident occurred when traffic in the left-hand lane slowed abruptly. Jim pulled into the median but just after he did the car that had been in front of him did the same, hitting Jim and his Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic. This drove Jim into the road divider and, as he said, “I went from 70 to zero in one second.” A hole in his helmet attests to the force of the impact.

“That guy threw a card in my deck that I wasn’t ready to play,” he said.

While so many have been concerned for Jim’s well-being, Jim was feeling bad about his failure to get back in touch with people trying to reach him. The woman he had been working with at the Muscular Dystrophy Association had not heard about his accident until he called her yesterday. Of course she was shocked. And he was calling me to apologize for not returning my emails. Believe me, I told him not to worry about it.

Jim’s wife Beth had this to say on Jim’s 30K for MDA Facebook page: “Jim finally got moved to the PT floor in the hospital. He had a rough 1st day and was in a lot of pain today. Recovery is coming along, slowly but surely. Time and prayers are what Jim needs. Thank you to all who have sent flowers, cards & well wishes our way. We really do appreciate them and all of you.”

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Biker Quote for Today

The rubber parts are supposed to be on the bottom.

Clint Parsons sent me an email awhile back asking about riding conditions in the Denver area toward the end of October. He was going to be making a trip out here and hoped to ride his bike, but wondered about the weather.

    Colorado got some snow

I told Clint, in brief, that October is often the most gorgeous time ever in Colorado but that we can and do get snow sometimes during the month. I also told him it was good he was coming the week before Halloween because we almost always get snow on Halloween.

Well, we had some great days this October but we had snow early and I had Clint in mind as I watched it fall, wondering if he was getting slammed. I was therefore very pleased to receive this report from him.

Ken,

Don’t know if you will remember these e-mails or not, but just wanted to let you know how your advice turned out…

As you predicted Oct was glorious in CO up until about the last week (which happend to be the week before Halloween, which was the week of my trip…..) so on Wed. Oct 21st as it was snowing across CO I headed out. The snow wasn’t going to stick on the roads at least. I-70 across KS was closed so I went across OK into NM and up I-25 on Oct 23rd I made it into Denver. I had hit snow covered ground down around Des Moines NM up through almost Pueblo and again from just south of Fountain Co (Colorado Springs) on up into Denver proper (in town it was gone, but out in the burbs it could still be found).

    Clint Parsons

Sat, Oct 24th was BEAUTIFUL and worth everything I rode through to get there and back!!! in the mid 50’s blue skies and I was in DENVER (and surrounding areas)!

Sun Oct 25th as I headed out it sleeted and snowed on me all the way across E. CO and W. KS to Hays where it stopped and I stayed the night. Mon it was clear and I made it home.

Never had any even questionable roads. Had wet both directions, had cold both directions. But it was a good ride, and that one beautiful day made it worth it.

I appreciated your advice and prognostication prior to the trip, and will keep your e-mail handy for the summer months when I am sure the wife will want me to go again and take her with me, after seeing the pictures. Again, thanks.

Clint

p.s. I have attached a couple of pics just to show I am not just blowing smoke….

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Biker Quote for Today

An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered.