Passes & Canyons Blog

Yeah, I felt like an idiot when I dropped it this time.

When I used to fly a hang-glider it was common knowledge that if someone had a bad crash it was more than likely that they would give up flying. Well, I did have a bad crash and I never flew again but it wasn’t what you might think. I got my glider repaired and I took it out to fly several times but you can only fly when the weather conditions are right. Each time I tried the weather did not cooperate.

It was at that point that I decided to sell my hang-glider and use the money to buy a motorcycle. I figured with a motorcycle I could ride any time I chose to–none of this loading up, driving to the site, setting up, waiting all day for the wind to be right, breaking down, driving home, and never doing what I came to do. With a bike, as soon as I threw my leg over I would be doing what I came to do.

But as we all know, that same business about never riding again after a crash is common among motorcyclists. Friggs, now a former OFMC member, had a crash two years ago and got rid of his bike. Todd, another short-term OFMC member, crashed and never rode again. My next door neighbor had a bike when he moved in but he soon sold it. He hadn’t ridden in the three years since he had a crash. This is not uncommon.

I do understand this. I’ve only crashed once, and that was at slow speed so no injury, but it may be the circumstances conspired to my advantage. I had been out on the gravel road that runs alongside the Platte River up by Deckers, with my girlfriend of that time on behind. As we cruised slowly past a couple parked cars a big dog came out from between them, right into our path. We didn’t hit the dog but we did go down.

Not surprisingly, we were pretty shook up. But what were we to do? We were way out there and had to get ourselves and the bike home somehow. So we got back on and rode home. Doing so was very unnerving but there’s that old line about getting back on the horse right after it has thrown you. That may have been a good thing.

Then, a few years later, shortly after I bought the Concours, Judy and I rode out to Eldorado Canyon. What I didn’t count on was that the parking lot was gravel. I got parked with no problem but when it came time to leave it was a different matter.

You have to understand, the Concours is a very tall bike and I had only had it a very short time. I was very intimidated about turning around on this sloping gravel. Of course I told Judy to stand by while I got turned around but I did not make the turn. I dropped the bike. There were guys around who rushed to help me get it back up and turned around but now Judy and I had to ride home, and I was shook. Right at that moment I really didn’t want to get back on the bike.

But what were we going to do? We got on and rode home. Again, that was probably a good thing. Get right back on the horse.

So what will happen if I ever have a bad crash on the bike? I don’t think anyone can truly answer that question until it really happens but I look back at my hang-glider crash and it didn’t deter me. I hope I never find out definitively.

Biker Quote for Today

Why motorcycles are better than women: A motorcycle will kill you quickly…a woman takes her time.

I love having three bikes, partly because they’re so different and each has its own strength.

I maintain the iron rule that I ride each of my motorcycles at least once every single month. (I did finally miss two months following heart surgery two years ago.) As such, when we get to this time of year it pays to be preemptive. You never know when the weather will turn and your plans to ride next week get shot to pieces.

The weather so far in November has been spectacular. Plenty of time to get in at least three rides. So on Monday I was planning to ride one bike, then a second on Tuesday, and the third on Wednesday going on an RMMRC ride. Then life stepped in.

Judy and I had been hoping to squeeze in one last camping trip this year and on Monday she said let’s go camping–today. There was no way I could say no to that, nor would I want to, so Pawnee Buttes here we came. I can ride later.

Of course, that shot Tuesday as a day to ride as well but I could still go with the RMMRC on Wednesday.

Then I woke up on Wednesday feeling decidedly under the weather. Of course probably the first thing most people think of at this moment when they feel sick is, is this Covid? I didn’t figure it was but even if it was just a cold I saw no reason to share it with others so I did not ride with the RMMRC. Besides, I felt like crap.

Now the situation was turning. The weather forecast said the nice days were going to end soon. Snow was projected for Monday. Fortunately, on Thursday, I was feeling quite a bit better. Is that all this cold has to throw at me? Hah! That’s nothing. So I went out on the CB750. Then on Friday I rode the Concours.

On Saturday the cold–which is what I had deemed it to be by this point–came back to bite me and I was not feeling good. But I had that V-Strom to ride and snow was still being forecast for Monday. Sure the likelihood is that after a brief cold spell things will get nice again, but I’ve learned not to trust that assumption. So on Saturday I rode the V-Strom. I made it serve double duty as I stopped off at Walgreen’s to pick up some throat lozenges and Tylenol. And then Sunday I was still feeling like crap, spending most of the day on the couch trying to breathe through all the sinus congestion.

But I got the bikes ridden. I sure hope that’s not the last riding I do in November, but if it is, I did get each one out.

Biker Quote for Today

You know you’re a biker when you make your bike payment before any other bills are paid.

Ripple Creek Pass is beautiful but not the kind of road you want to take a highway bike on, unless you’re very adventurous.

In the early days of the OFMC we were still exploring the roads around Colorado. Nowadays we’ve been pretty much everywhere so it’s rare to find ourselves on new roads, although it does still happen on occasion.

One early experience we had, that turned out to be something we did not expect, was Ripple Creek Pass.

John and Bill and I were headed to Utah on our bikes. Having been that way so often before, John, our master of maps, was looking for a route we hadn’t been on. He found it in Ripple Creek Pass.

Colorado 131 comes down from Steamboat Springs to hit I-70 at Wolcott. About midway on that route, at the small town of Yampa, the Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway heads west, crossing over Dunckley Pass and Ripple Creek Pass as it skirts the Flat Tops Wilderness. At its western terminus, 65 miles away, the road comes out to Meeker, along CO 13.

“Let’s take this road,” John said. “There’s about 10 miles of gravel but it shouldn’t be too bad, and the country we’ll be going through should be spectacular.”

Bill and I were game, so off we went.

Heading out of Yampa the road was good, smooth gravel, the kind you can ride a street bike on all day with no problem. We wound over some hills and through some ranching valleys, enjoying the high plains beauty of western Colorado.

Then the road started climbing, and it also started getting rougher. Washboard became the norm, not the exception. This was the kind of surface that dual-sport motorcycles are made for, but not street bikes. No big deal; we can handle 10 miles. Except, hadn’t we already gone almost 10 miles? That pavement was going to look good.

The further we rode, the more civilization gave way to nature. Pine forest and mountainsides replaced grassy valleys, and we continued to climb. The washboard continued, the miles passed by, and the fillings in our teeth were in danger of being shaken loose. We were well past any 10 miles by now.

Up over Dunckley Pass we rode and down the other side. The origin of the name Flat Tops Wilderness was evident in those un-pointy mountains to the south of us. Heading up Ripple Creek Pass, this was nature at its grandest but by now our minds were not so much on the scenery as on the seemingly endless miles of rough gravel. Our master of maps had read this one wrong.

Along the way John went down on his brand new Honda Shadow. He was leading and decided to pull over and ran into deep sand. That’s why it’s good to have buddies along when you’re riding this sort of road.

Over Ripple Creek Pass we fared and down to Buford, where the long-awaited pavement finally showed its face. We had ridden fully 50 miles on gravel that was now smooth, now wretched. Our faith in John’s map-reading skills was tested sorely. But for now, let’s just burn up some miles.
And don’t go proposing any unpaved roads again anytime soon.

Biker Quote for Today

We know you’re a poser if you don’t own a rain suit.

Sadly, someone obviously did not ride this poor Harley safely.

“Have a safe ride.”

That’s an admonishment we’ve all heard countless times and my standard weak-joke response is along the lines of, “Oh darn, I wasn’t planning to, but I will if you insist.”

It’s not that we ever plan to have an unsafe ride, but then, that’s why they’re called “accidents.”

At least many people use that word, but among those serious about motorcycle safety, the preferred word is “crash.” The point being that a crash does not happen by accident, it is allowed to happen by riders who fail to remain alert and to engage in basic crash-avoidance practices.

Don’t get me wrong. Anyone who rides knows that the primary scenario for motorcycle crashes is when someone in a car pulls out in front of you or turns left in front of you. It’s their fault.

Or is it? Is it entirely their fault if you could have done something to prevent the crash? (Within reason: You could stay home and never go anywhere and that would prevent a crash, but that’s not reasonable.)

More importantly, does it matter that it’s primarily their fault if you’re the one with the concussion and broken bones? I have a friend, Jungle Fuhrman, who argues that without exception, if you are involved in a crash, you screwed up. I tend to agree with him.

When I was preparing to take RiderCoach training several years ago, the program put together by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) for training the people who train new riders, I rereading the Basic Rider Course (BRC) Rider Handbook, which is the study manual given to all the beginning rider students. (Which is to say, I had taken the BRC myself some time before that.)

The BRC focuses on both riding skills and the rider’s mindset. One key point they make is that crashes seldom have one specific cause; in fact, they usually have several. They call this the Crash Chain, and use an illustration of a motorcycle chain looping around two sprockets, connecting one sprocket (you) to the other (the crash). Each link is a factor that contributes to the crash. Break any one of those links and the crash is avoided.

So now that idiot talking on his cell phone is turning left in front of you. Is it foreordained that you will T-bone him? Are you traveling at an excessive speed? Were you day-dreaming as you approached the intersection? Were you not thinking about the fact that the setting sun is directly behind you, making it difficult for him to see? If you answer yes to all those questions then yes, you may indeed be irretrievably headed for a crash.

But you had it in your power to break that crash chain, and didn’t. He’ll get the ticket but you’re the one who will pay in pain.

Some highway safety agency used a catch-phrase years ago that has stuck with me and I think it bears repeating here: Safe driving is no accident. For motorcycling I’d go with that times 10. Have a safe ride.

Biker Quote for Today

Why motorcycles are better than women: You don’t have to deal with priests or blood-tests to register your motorcycle.

The Riders Share website.

Have you ever rented a motorcycle? It’s really great to go somewhere on vacation and get a bike to ride around but if you go through any of the major rental outfits you’re going to pay an arm and a leg. As I recall, the last time I rented a Harley from Eagle Rider it cost me above $150 per day. Ouch! That’s a lot of money if you’re looking at a week-long trip.

I’ve written about a couple different rental options, basically the sharing economy thing, as with AirBnB, such as Twisted Road. Well, I recently learned of another such outfit: Riders Share. I would have sworn I had written about them before but multiple searches of this blog turns up nothing, so maybe I haven’t. In that case, now is the time.

Looking at the Riders Share site, they list cities where they operate. For Denver they say they have 64+ bikes for rent. There’s quite a range. For $150 a day there is a 2004 Honda CB600F. There’s a 2018 BMW R Ninet Scrambler for $122 a day. There are a bunch of scooters for $38 to $40 a day. A 2015 Suzuki GSX-S750ZL5 for $72 a day. In Fort Lupton there is a Honda VT1100C2 Shadow Sabre for $52 a day. In Westminster there’s a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R for $53 a day. In Lakewood there’s a 2004 Harley FLSTFI Fat Boy for $67 a day. You get the picture.

These are realistic prices that won’t break the bank. Plus, it works the other way. Riders Share does not own these bikes, they’re owned by people like you and me who have agreed to rent their bikes out to other folks. I’m not sure what the price split is between the website and the owner but if you’re interested I’m sure they’ll be happy to explain it all to you.

A few things about the website. On the home page they have a listing of cities where they operate and you can click on the city and be taken to those listings. Looking at what was offered I clicked to see more and found myself cycling through the same seven or eight bikes, not the 64+ they claimed for Denver. Looking around I found that if I used the map on the home page to zero in on the Denver area they have an interactive map that shows you every offering within that map area. That’s where you see all the other available bikes. If you’re interested in a particular price range or specific make they have filters for that.

Unfortunately, if I clicked to see one particular bike and then hit the Back button it took me all the way back to their headquarters in the Los Angeles area. Then I had to drag the map back to Denver to look at another. Again and again. I suspect that if you sign up as a user they have it set to you can always return to your specific area. Or something of that sort. Boy, if they don’t, they really need to. OK, digging around further I see they do have that option. You just have to plug in the city where you want to focus. Good.

So this looks like a good option. I know there have been plenty of times I’ve been somewhere away from home and wished I could go for a ride in the area. Now maybe that can happen.

Biker Quote for Today

100 Reasons not to date a motorcyclist: We rev our engines when going under bridges.

What sort of things make a place biker-friendly these days?

I started building this motorcyclecolorado.com website in 2004 and at the time I figured it would be helpful to include a page on biker-friendly hotels and motels. So I did and I have added to it over the years.

Things change, though, and more recently I have had people ask me what the idea is. Which is to say, what with doctors, lawyers, and people from every walk of life taking up motorcycling, a lot of people have no understanding that there was a time not so long ago when bikers might find themselves turned away from lodging purely because they were on motorcycles.

Now, that’s great. It means we’ve come a long way. The image of the evil, dangerous outlaw biker has largely faded from the public consciousness.

That raises a question then. What today constitutes a biker-friendly hotel or motel? Are there criteria I should use when adding places to the page?

One criterion I’ve always used is that if the establishment contacts me asking to be added, I consider that biker-friendly and I add them. Also, if they buy ads on the website that’s a pretty clear indication they are actively seeking business from bikers, so obviously they are biker-friendly. That’s pretty simple.

Most of the others I have added are places we have stayed where they have been very nice to us. And seeking to be helpful beyond pointing riders to one place or another, I have even listed a place or two that I would not recommend and explained why. The example that comes immediately to my mind is one place where the bed was absolutely horrid. But I’ve grown concerned about that. We stayed in that place a long time ago now. I have to believe they have gotten rid of that terrible bed by now; is it fair that I have not changed that listing in all these years? We haven’t been back so I can’t revise the rating upward; should I just delete it now?

What about the design/layout of the place? Planning this year’s OFMC trip the guys told me they really like the places where you can park your bike right outside the door. That makes it an easy schlep of your gear and the bike is right there in case someone tries to mess with it. Does that make a place biker-friendly? I know I prefer that because I hate carrying all my gear through a hallway, up a stairway, and down another hallway. Still, if they have carts that you can load it all onto, and an elevator, and you can easily roll it all then it’s really not that bad. Do carts and an elevator make a place biker-friendly?

What else? Some places make a point to offer rags for cleaning your bike. Now, certainly many of them do this for their own interests because too many bikers have been jerks and used good towels and washcloths for that purpose, and those towels and washcloths are then ruined. Still, it’s always nice when at check-in the clerk tells you where to find rags to clean your bike. That definitely seems biker-friendly.

But what else? I’d really like to hear your thoughts because if it makes sense I want to revise this page. But in what way? Should I include a checklist: rags–check; actively seeking biker business–check; preferred motorcycle parking–check. You get the picture. Or what? Let me know what you think.

Biker Quote for Today

100 Reasons not to date a motorcyclist: We have grease under our fingernails.