Passes & Canyons Blog

This is the kind of flying I can get into.

I’ve read that pilots make better motorcyclists, or motorcyclists make better pilots – I can’t remember which. Probably the latter. Both go beyond the basic right, left, forward, backward movement that you get in a car. Both have to lean.

You do get some lean in a car when you turn sharply, but it is centrifugal force trying to throw you in the opposite direction of your turn, while the seat you’re sitting on essentially remains in the same plane. On a bike, as in an airplane, the entire vehicle rotates clockwise or counter-clockwise on an axis running from front to back. You remain firmly planted on your seat, which rotates with you, and you lean in the direction of the turn, not the opposite.

What this adds up to is fun. Anyone who rides, or who has spent much time with bikers, knows that bikers love “the twisties.” Whereas car tires are shaped like a bowl, with a flat bottom, motorcycle tires are more circular. You roll the bike to the left and to the right and the patch in contact with the road moves up the left side and up the right side and it’s all good because you’re supposed to use the sides of the tires, not just the bottom.

In the twisties, it all comes together into a dance. In a series of s-turns you go into a right-hander and you lean right and the bike rolls right, then, with a left-hander immediately following, you straighten the bike back up and keep going over on the left. Then it’s back up and over on the right and back up and over on the left. There’s no better feeling than rolling those tires all the way across their profile, side to side, and back again, again and again. You set up a rhythm, your body and the bike move gracefully to the music of the road, and the world is a wonderful place. It has to be the closest thing to what pilots feel that you can experience on the ground.

Of course, if you’re a dirtbike rider or a motocross rider you also get the ups and downs that pilots get, and you even catch a little air now and then. But I’m a bit leery of that business of going up in the air more than just over whoops. I like the fact that if a motorcycle’s engine stalls you just coast to a stop, as opposed to being in the air praying you can either restart it or find a place to land safely.

I do like to fly, but I’m happy to do my flying on the ground.

Biker Quote for Today

Motorcycle riding gives you a sense of freedom that you don’t get in a car. Your senses take on a different significance.

The gorge of the Rio Grande about 10 miles west of Taos is well worth a visit once you get that far.

Getting you from one place to another is only a small part of what makes for a great motorcycle road. More importantly, a great motorcycle road twists and winds, climbs and descends, allows you to take your time, and offers a fresh experience that affords numerous interesting stops.

Check, check, and check. Add the High Road to Taos to your list of top two-wheel routes.

The “Low Road” to Taos is the main one, and it’s a busy highway that mostly follows the Rio Grande Valley. The High Road is small and quiet and offers a taste of Southwestern culture that can make you feel like you’re gone to another country. Unfortunately, until recently that culture also included the Third World mentality that “the world is my trash heap,” but an aggressive anti-litter campaign appears to have turned that attitude around.

Starting out from the general vicinity of Espanola, northwest of Santa Fe a few miles, the High Road at first passes through small communities that afford a glimpse of life in this region before the advent of electricity and technology. Homes are hidden deep in the shade of towering trees that keep the otherwise oppressive heat and vicious sunshine at bay, offering a coolness that is delicious in its relief.

The road then rises to the brown, arid hilltops, riding a ridge line that passes above the lush green farming valleys of towns with names such as Rio Chiquito and Cordova. The architecture gives a sense of place that is lost in the ticky-tacky sameness of modern housing developments.

Approaching the small community of Truchas a cemetery alongside the road displays a colorful aspect more common south of the border than north, including one grave site flanked on both sides by sheet metal cutouts of the V-twin hog the deceased once presumably loved.

On through Ojo Sarco, Las Trampas, and Chamisal, the road – NM 76 – winds until it ends at NM 75 near Rio Lucio. East through Penasco and beyond you follow a river canyon, and then at Rock Wall a left turn of about 160 degrees puts you on NM 518, where you start to climb and then climb some more.

Now the road earns its title of the High Road to Taos. Coursing high through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the vegetation is dense pine and spruce forest and the vistas, when they present themselves, are of neighboring mountains and the deep valleys in between. Then you descend into one of those valleys and soon encounter the congestion and fast-food franchises that make the outskirts of Taos indistinguishable from any other American city.

Biker Quote for Today

I want to take you on a motorcycle ride through the sugar cane and the countryside — Michael Franti

Not a whole lot going on at this time of year, and not a whole lot of riding, either. So I’ll make this short and just pass along a video Jerry Pokorny sent out.

Biker Quote for Today

Why motorcycles are better than women: You can choke your motorcycle.

Heading up the pass.

I’ve only mined this ADV thread a few times so there’s a lot here. The theme is “Stupid questions people ask you when stopped.” Here are a few, although some people get off the train of the question.

Out for a ride?
Nope, pushed it here just to hang out…

Pulling up at lights, gas stations, etc. – I guess because I’m only 5’4, 115 pds, and female.
“Do you ride that thing?”
I usually just look at them, or say, “Yea – why not?”
Perhaps I should come up with something snappier, like….
“No – I just push it around, so I can sit on it at stoplights.”

The comment that gets me is “That’s a murdercycle!” or something similar. When someone tries to tell me how DANGEROUS my Bandit is, that one day I will die on her, I simply reply “well, my best friend died in a car crash, as did my Grandfather. I don’t trust cars!”
If they keep going on about it, I tell them I’d rather die on my bike, doing what I love, than driving in my car on the way to Safeway.
So far all I get from those comments are blank stares.

There are so many TYPES of questions. Some nice, some smart-assed some incredibly stupid. I got asked by some smart-assed kid what my ADV sticker meant today and used someone else’s reply of “Antisocial, Disturbed and Violent and that it was court ordered” This kids eyes got big and then he just walked away while looking over his shoulder. Guy sittin’ on the bench was in tears laughing when I turned around. I just grinned and went in the store.

I stopped in at the little camp store on Mount Pisgah on the Blue Ridge Parkway Saturday and chatted with a guy who was sitting out front taking in the scene.
He was on a Honda Shadow (a 600 cc or so bike). He said that when people ask him why he doesn’t have a Harley, he says, “I can’t afford all of them t-shirts!”

LEO: License Please.
ME: (already have it out and hand it over)
LEO: I have you on radar going 74 in a 50, do you know how fast you were going?
ME: Huh, are you asking for a second opinion? Cause I might have a conflict of interest.
He didn’t think this was funny, it cost me.

You ride a motorcycle? (Amazing how often I hear this walking to or from my bike.)
No, this stuff protects me from hyenas.

Stupidest question has to be when I ride up on my Commando with the big fuel injection emblems on it, and some says “I see it says fuel injection….what kind of carburetors do you have on it.”

My least favorite: “Do you know why I stopped you, Mr.Wade?”

This is a little bit of a tangent. Being on the other side as a motor cop, I nearly got hit turning around and when I got to the driver’s door, I asked the driver “Do you know why I stopped you?” When he said no, I had forgotten and had to say, “Neither do I, thank you for stopping and please drive safely.”

Biker Quote for Today

Life without a motorcycle is no life at all.

Of course putting this new battery in couldn’t just be simple.

Joel, my mechanic, came by and checked out the V-Strom, then went and got his volt meter out of the truck. The battery was gone.

I had intended to look at my records and see when I last replaced the battery but had not done so. I looked then and found out that amazingly, this was the battery that came with the bike when I bought it in 2014. Wow.

So the charge I thought I gave it was of no use. There was enough to turn on the lights and try to turn the starter but with the reading Joel got he was surprised it could even do that.

A couple days later I got out and bought a new battery and once I got it installed (more about that in a moment) I turned the key and pushed the starter button . . . and it didn’t want to start. At first. Then it did. OK, that’s good.

Our road was still covered in ice so I couldn’t take it for a ride but on Wednesday things were clear and I figured I’d head out. I pushed the starter and it didn’t want to start. And then it did. This is not instilling me with confidence.

I was cautious about getting far from home but as I rode it and it continued to run, and in fact to run better, I did eventually take it out for a real spin. And when I got home I turned it off, opened the garage, moved Judy’s car, and then started it again to ride it in. This time it fired right up. So at this point I’m just going to keep a wary eye on it.

Besides that, while it had previously seemed like there was a fuel line leak or something, the paper I had underneath it showed no sign of a drip. Joel had checked what was on the floor of the garage and said it appeared to be coolant, not oil or gas. All in all he told me to put in a new battery and then let him know how it did and whether other problems persisted. We’ll see how that goes.

As for putting in the new battery, what a pain. Taking the old one out had been easy, just back out the bolts and lift it out. Why couldn’t putting a new one in be so simple.

The first problem was that the cable ends that connect to the battery were form-fitted to nest over the posts, but the new battery had larger posts and no nesting was going to happen. If I could have reached the vise with the cables I would have flattened them out but that was not possible, so I took pliers and bent them enough to get the metal in contact.

Next, the bolts were not long enough to reach down and thread into the nuts. I had some longer bolts but when I tried using them they were too long and I couldn’t get them tight. So I tore off some stiff paper and stuck that in the space below the bolts, to elevate the bolts, and finally was able to thread the bolts into the nuts and tighten them up. What a pain, but I’ve had to do that before so it didn’t require any new creativity.

So the V-Strom is running again. But now I’m going to be nervous every time I ride it for awhile until it proves itself trustworthy again. And what the heck is the deal with this leak and the fuel?

Biker Quote for Today

The keys to success: Waking up in the morning. Going to bed at night. Riding a motorcycle in between.

Leaders gotta lead. Followers gotta follow. Others . . .

Having taken many trips on the road with my biker buddies I’ve had a lot of time to observe and think. That happens when you’re out burning up mile after mile, alone in your own head.

One of the things I had a lot of time to ponder is how different members of the group fall into different categories as riders. I started thinking up names and characteristics for types and saw how each person falls into several of the types, and how they will sometimes switch from one extreme to the other, and then back.

Here then are the types I identified.

The Leader
The Leader is the guy who knows where he’s going. He may be the guy who planned out the route or he may just know the area and how to get from Point A to Point B. The Leader likes knowing that there is a plan and enjoys taking the responsibility of herding the rest of the group along.

The Follower
If you’re going to have a leader you also need followers. The Follower is not concerned with where the route is taking him, he’s just content letting someone else handle the organizational aspects of the trip. The Follower is just out to relax and enjoy the ride, wherever it goes.

The Explorer
While the Leader may have a specific route in mind, the Explorer may be inclined to try something different. If the Leader is inflexible he may come into conflict with the Explorer. If the Leader is flexible he may at times step aside and let the Explorer take over as Leader. If the two can’t reach agreement the Explorer may go off on his own, or with others who wish to, and rejoin the group at the day’s destination.

The Loner
The Loner and the Explorer may often be the same person. The Loner isn’t necessarily sold on the idea of traveling in a group, and at times may wish to go his separate way until meeting up with the rest later.

The Family Man
The Family Man is the polar opposite of the Loner. He’s likely to say, “I can ride alone anytime I want to. I go on this trip to ride with my buddies.” The Family Man is generally opposed to breaking the group up, even if interests diverge. He would rather someone give in and keep the group together.

The Dawdler
The Dawdler is the guy everyone waits for every time you’re ready to roll. When everyone else is mounted up and ready to push the Starter button, the Dawdler is still standing next to his bike with his helmet off. Alternatively, many of the others will keep an eye on the Dawdler until he has his helmet on and is ready to mount his bike before they put their own helmets on and mount.

The Straggler
The Straggler is the guy who likes to be at the rear of the group and doesn’t care if he gets a long way back. When he’s in the middle of the group he may still lag far behind the rider ahead of him, causing the riders behind him to get frustrated and pass, eventually putting him in the rear. When passing through towns, rather than closing up ranks, he continues to lag and often will get stopped at a red light that the others got through on the green, necessitating that the group pull off to let him catch up.

The Tailgater
The opposite of the Straggler, the Tailgater seemingly gets target fixation on the rear of the rider in front of him and stays right behind, closely, no matter the speed. The Tailgater has no conception of riding in a staggered formation and makes the guy in front of him very nervous.

The Old Dog
The Old Dog has been riding for a long time, and while his riding habits may not adhere to safe riding protocols, he has no interest in learning new tricks.

The Safety Maven
The Safety Maven believes strongly in formal practices such as riding in staggered formation and using hand signals. He despairs at the failure of the Tailgater and the Old Dog to change their ways. He tries to lead by example but doubts that anyone else is even paying attention.

The Easy Rider
The Easy Rider is the one who is ready to go when everyone else is, keeps up with the group, follows safe riding practices, and is alert to the issues that arise on the ride. He doesn’t annoy anyone and he’s a welcome companion on the road. Significantly, every rider is a part of him, and no rider is entirely him.

Riding with a group means dealing with all these types and more, and accepting that we’re all human and no one is perfect. We all just share a passion for riding motorcycles.

Biker Quote for Today

It’s amazing the number of great people in my life who I wouldn’t have ever met if it wasn’t for motorcycles.

Why is this bike giving me trouble?

Somebody clue me in here if you know something I don’t.

I went riding with the RMMRC Tuesday, the standard ride out to Kiowa to Patty Ann’s. Bob was leading, which is something he has done many times.

So we headed out Parker Road, which is about six lanes. We were in the left lane. Bob was in the lead, Kim was on her Spyder, Val came next on her KTM, and I was behind her.

We always ride in staggered formation and in my experience and understanding, the leader should take the left position and everyone following staggers, although with the Spyder you sometimes see those take the center, so whoever is behind them gets to choose either side.

So Bob settled in the right hand position. Huh? Kim did stagger to the left on her Spyder so Val was right and I was left. That was fine, but why was Bob to the right? Is there some protocol that on a multi-lane highway the leader takes the position where they can see clearly in the adjacent lane? Or something else like that that I’m not aware of?

Once we got onto the two-lane Bob took the spot on the left, and Kim shifted and the rest of us did, too. So what the heck was he doing on the right previously? Yes, of course–I should just ask him. I’m just hesitant to appear to be criticizing someone and there wasn’t any time he and I were alone together. Maybe I’ll have the chance some other time.

On another subject, my V-Strom crapped out on me that day. I was going to ride it and I geared up and rolled it out and it would not start. It ran fine the last time I rode it a couple weeks ago.

But it appeared to be completely out of gas. Completely. How does that happen, except if you have a leak. And there was a new drip spot on the garage floor underneath it, though not particularly big. Anyway, the engine would turn over briefly but it would not catch and then it would quit turning over.

I had just a little gas in a can and I put that in but that didn’t help. The way it would try and then die I thought maybe the battery was failing so I put it on a charge and the next day I got more gas. I put that in and then with plenty of gas and good charge I tried again. The very same things happened. Wow, now I really have no idea what the matter is, although whatever else it may be it does seem I have a gas leak.

I put some paper under the bike to catch the drip and see how much it really is dripping and I called Joel, my mechanic. I’ve been keeping Joel busy. I have three bikes and this is the third one I have turned over to him in the last six months. We’ll see. I’ll let you know.

Biker Quote for Today

Hobby is when you buy a new bike. Passion is when you keep the old one running.

A stop on the Canada trip in 2018.

As a member of the American Motorcyclist Association I am on their email list, and in their emails they ask members to submit their answers to different questions. This month the question is “What is your motorcycling goal for the new year?”

Now, I actually addressed that question at least a bit in my last post but I’m wondering if I can take that a little further. Writing is a method I use to process my thinking–if I’m unsure about something I write to find out what I think. Let’s see where this goes.

First off, I want to take a long trip with Judy. A couple years ago we joined some friends on a 3,000-mile ride up to Banff and Jasper, reaching British Columbia and Alberta. In 2020 I’m not sure if Judy was on the bike at all. If she was I don’t remember it. We sure didn’t take any motorcycle trips.

In the last couple years we have both bought new helmets–the best helmets we’ve ever owned–and a new Sena communicator system that finally allows us to talk easily and actually hear each other clearly. Far better than the two systems we have used previously. There’s no point in having bought these things if we don’t actually use them. We bought them to use them. In 2021 I intend to make sure we use them.

I also want to ride more on my own. While I did put 5,049 miles on my three bikes in 2020, that’s nothing. There have been a few years when I put more than 10,000 miles on just the Concours, and then additional miles on the other two.

For some people, riding is a social thing, and if they’re not riding with friends they don’t ride. I like riding with friends but I love riding alone. I love being able to stop and go at my own pace and pleasure, to take any road that catches my eye at a moment’s notice, and to ride as much or as little as I wish. Load camping gear on and this becomes total freedom.

But then this gets back to riding more with Judy. If she and I have taken or are planning a big trip, she is not as likely to resent it if I then choose to go off for a several days ride alone. And it feels a lot less selfish to me.

These objectives, plus anything else I can think of boils down to this same basic idea: my goal for 2021 is simply to ride more. Why complicate things? I’ll just leave it at that.

Biker Quote for Today

Not sure if I want to ride to work or call in sick and ride all day.