Passes & Canyons Blog

Have you ever whined that you’d really like to see how fast your bike can go but you don’t want to risk the ticket? Stop your whining, here’s your chance.

Erico Motorsports just announced that they are sponsoring two track days at High Plains Raceway, out east near Byers. The dates are June 4 and August 6.

The charge to just go out on the track is $250. For an extra Benjamin Erico offers “a ton of coaching from Team Erico to include classroom time. Yeah, we’re not pros but I’ll bet we can get you going much faster, staying much safer, and having a blast riding your bike how it was intended.”

Of course, you’ve got to have all the gear, and you need to drain your coolant and replace it with water. They’ll be serving breakfast at 7:30 a.m. and the track will be ready to at 8:30.

If you’re interested, you’ll need to contact John at john@ericomotorsports.com. He’s also there to answer any questions you might have and provide complete information.

I did a track day once and I have to tell you, it was humbling. There were the folks who knew they belonged in the beginner group and then some of us who couldn’t conceive that we should be in that lowly position. I went out with the mid-level group and promptly found myself the slowest guy on the track, by a long shot. But I had fun and maybe I learned enough to get at least a bit better. It definitely made me a lot more respectful of the skill those guys have who go really, really fast.

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I’ve never been afraid to get my hands dirty, but that doesn’t mean I’ve ever been all that much of a mechanic. Granted, with the guidance of some experienced friends I did once drop a new engine into a 1964 Ford Fairlane, but that was long ago and far away.

When it comes to my motorcycles I have always been the guy paying someone else to do all but the most basic maintenance. Heck, I’ve never even replaced a tire. I generally replace oil and filters, and adjust the chain on my old Honda CB750, and that’s about it. I did replace the shift-shaft seal on the Honda recently.

I’m open to learning more. To that end, I plan to attend a basic motorcycle maintenance session the Erico Motorsports is offering on Saturday, Nov. 5. Here’s what they intend to cover:

1. Chain/chassis lubrication and adjustment
2. Oil level inspection and change along with coolant level checks
3. Brake pad and fluid inspection
4. Inspection of tires along with correct tire pressure settings
5. Frame and suspension inspection
6. General safety check
7. Benefits of a dynamometer and power commander
8. Set up for storage/winterization
9. Pre-ride inspection
10. Scheduled maintenance
11. Performance enhancement

Of course I have two interests in doing this. First, I’m hoping I might learn something. Second, I figure it will be an interesting session to write about.

In case you’re interested, you’ll need to contact Tai Beldock at Erico to RSVP at tai@ericomotorsports.com. There is no charge but they’ll be providing lunch and want to have an idea how many people to expect.

So stay tuned. Or maybe I’ll see you there. If you do come, please find me and introduce yourself. I’ll be the guy shooting pictures. I love meeting the folks who visit my website.

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This looks like it could be an interesting event. Tomorrow (Friday, Aug. 5) from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Erico Motorsports is hosting “The Art of the Ducati.” For this event, Carlos Guerrero, a local “Graffiti Artist” (that’s with their caps, so I hope that means he’s an artist dealing in murals, not some tagger) will be creating a multi-media piece that includes the bodywork from a Ducati Monster. The piece he creates will be auctioned off, with proceeds going to Ronald McDonald House.

This is all part of the RINO (River North Art District) First Friday series of events. Music will be provided by Canyon Station, a band that includes John Beldock, the co-proprietor with Tai Beldock, of Erico.

Figuring that the more the merrier, Sqream, Denver’s scooter club, which has received a lot of support from Erico, will be there as well celebrating their 7th anniversary and “doing a scooter crawl of the River North First Friday Art Walk.”

Sounds like it could be a good time. Erico is at 2855 Walnut St., in downtown Denver, north of where Broadway cuts diagonally toward the river.

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I’ve ridden motorcycle trikes before and I’ve never cared much for them. They don’t lean and they’re too much like driving a car for my taste. So I’ve been very interested for a long time in trying out the Piaggio MP3 scooter, which has three wheels but is not at all the same as a trike in its handling.

With abundant thanks to Tai Beldock at Erico Motorsports, I can now report that I have ridden an MP3 and it really is everything I expected it to be.

The difference with an MP3 is what Piaggio calls its “parallelogram suspension.” What they’re saying is that whether you’re leaning into a turn, one wheel’s going into a pothole, or whatever, those two front wheels remain parallel to each other. It’s like having one wheel in front in terms of handling, but two wheels in terms of stability.

That’s not to say that, trike-like, the MP3 won’t fall over; it will. Remember, it handles just like a two-wheeled motorcycle. If you come up to a stop on a regular bike and don’t put your feet down you’d better have exceptionally good balance. Same with the MP3, except that the MP3 has a button you can push at below 5 mph that will lock the fork and keep you upright. The lock disengages as soon as you start rolling again. Still, I found it easier to just treat it like any other bike and put my feet down.

Thanks to the elements I had a good chance to test the MP3’s stability. Going up and down Lookout Mountain there was gravel in many of the curves and having three wheels was very comforting. Later it rained heavily and splashing through puddles and turning on rain-slicked streets the MP3 again felt very secure.

This scoot–and it is a scooter, no gear-shifting going on here–comes in three engine sizes, 250cc, 400cc, and 500cc. While the 250 will theoretically run at interstate speeds, when I tried it I felt best in the right-hand lane. The bigger models do go faster, though not much. The main thing the bigger engines offer is increased acceleration and carrying capacity.

Now, I’m not about to go adding a scooter to my garage any time soon, but presumably decades in the future these big bikes I ride now are going to be a bit much for me. A lot of guys I know say they figure someday they’ll have a trike. Not me. Come that time I’d rather move down to something lighter, whether it’s a motorcycle or a scooter. And the MP3, or whatever like it is on the market at that point, would definitely be an option I would consider. Meanwhile, for anyone today who finds the stability of three wheels appealing, the MP3 is definitely something I would suggest looking at.

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The word from Erico Motorsports is that Paolo Pirozzi, who is riding around the world on his Ducati Multistrada 1200, will be coming through Denver this weekend and they’re rolling out the red carpet for him.

According to the blurb, Paolo has mapped out a 90,000 kilometer route that is taking him from Europe to Russia, Asia to Australia, then on to North American and North Africa, ending up back home in Italy. Ducati gave him the Multistrada for the ride but the Ducati community is taking car of everything else.

In Denver, there will be a meet and greet at Erico on Saturday from 2-4 p.m., after which he will be given a tour of the sights of Denver on a bus loaded with the first 20 to sign up. (“Yes, free beer on the bus,” says Erico.)

When the bus returns to Erico at about 5:30, the party will move to Vintage Moto at 2762 Walnut for a private viewing of Jim Dillard’s vintage motorcycle collection. Then the local Denver Ducati Owner’s Club will be taking the guest of honor out to dinner.

The entire event is open to anyone, although the bus is expected to fill up quickly. For more information, contact Erico at 303-308-1811.

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This is a little bit of short notice but I finally paid attention to it myself. Jerry Pokorny, who is associated with the British Motorcycle Association of Colorado and who I’ve mentioned here before, is the featured speaker tonight at Erico Motorsports.

“Tales of Speed” is the title for his presentation, and it is about setting land speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Jerry has set two such records, the most recent a little over a month ago on his 1954 BSA A-10 “Golden Flash.” He also set a record in 2008 on his 1945 Triumph 3HW.

Erico is located in downtown Denver at 2855 Walnut St. . The doors open at 6 p.m. and the presentation begins at 6:30. As an added attraction, after Jerry’s presentation, Erico will unveil the new Triumph Sprint GT.

The invitation I received said to RSVP to Tai at Tai@ericomotorsports.com. I’m not sure that’s totally necessary but it can’t hurt. I’m sure they’d like to know how many to expect.

Maybe I’ll see you there.

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