Archive for the ‘Colorado motorcycle rides’ Category

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A Mild January 1 Means ‘Go Ride’

Thursday, January 5th, 2017
motorcycle in winter

Snow doesn’t matter if it’s not on the road.

When the projected high for January 1 is 50 degrees that means one thing to me: ride three motorcycles.

It’s an unbroken rule with me that I ride each of my bikes at least once every calendar month. And at this time of year, considering you never know what weather will follow, I often take all three out in quick succession on one day. I mean, they need to be ridden. Whereas I had just ridden the Kawi the day before and it started just fine, the Suzuki hesitated a tiny bit for the first time since I’ve owned it and the Honda battery was so weak I wasn’t sure it would start at all. If I hadn’t put it on the trickle charge an hour earlier I’m sure it would not have.

So anyway, riding them all three one after the other ensures that I’ve got it done. I hope I’ll be doing a bunch more riding during the month but if the weather turns and stays really ugly, at least I got out that one time.

Weather turning, that is, to what we have right now. Very cold with snow falling.

So I got out, and I didn’t even do the full bundle-up that I did on December 31. I didn’t wear the chaps and I skipped the balaclava. Didn’t need them.

Fact is, we’ve had a pretty mild winter so far, despite a few days like today. I rode across the top of the Cherry Creek Reservoir dam and by golly, there is still open water in the reservoir. I can’t ever remember that happening before this late in the season.

There were a couple other interesting things I saw on the southwest side of the dam. A soccer game was in progress on a field so green it had to be summer. Or had to be AstroTurf. That’s got to be new. And I noticed a lot of small groups of people wandering around in a semi open field and wondered what they were up to till I noticed the dogs. It has been made into a dog park. That’s got to be new, too.

Anyway, I went riding. I wasn’t the only one. I didn’t go to the New Year’s Day brunch in Castle Rock with the RMMRC because I wasn’t ready to head out that early. But I’m betting that between the three groups there were a lot of bikes in Castle Rock. As it was, I saw a good number of other guys out as well.

At this time of year you’ve got to do it when you can.

Biker Quote for Today

We ride not to escape life but for life to not escape us.

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Great Colorado Weather Means Two Rides This Weekend

Thursday, December 29th, 2016
Last Brass Monkey Run

This will be the 29th year for ABATE’s Last Brass Monkey Run.

Pity those poor folks who have to put their motorcycles away for the winter. Not us! This is Colorado and we ride all year round.

And just to make that point, there are two rides coming up this weekend.

On Saturday, ABATE of Colorado is sponsoring its annual Last Brass Monkey Run. This is a last-day-of-the-year ride that often occurs when riding is, shall we say, problematic. Not this year. This forecast I’m looking at right now calls for a high of 43 and only a 10 percent chance of precipitation. There are going to be a lot of bikes at the Grizzly Rose on Saturday.

The ride starts from four locations around the area: Longmont, Colorado Springs, Aurora, and Golden. All roads lead to the Grizzly Rose. And of course there are a variety of activities going on at the Rose, starting at 11 a.m. Tickets are $20.

Then on Sunday the Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Riders Club will be having its annual New Year’s Day ride, which ends up at Rockyard American Grill and Brewery in Castle Rock. This is in conjunction with similar rides sponsored by the BMW Motorcycle Club of Colorado and the Pikes Peak BMW Riders Club. The forecast for Sunday is a high of 45 and zero chance of precip.

The doings at the Rockyard is brunch with friends. For the RMMRC crowd it’s kickstands up at 9:45 a.m. at Performance Cycle, 7375 S. Fulton St., in Centennial. Brunch is set for 11:30 so that should be an easy ride. No cost but of course you pay for your own brunch.

So hey, got any riding plans for the weekend? You’ve got a great opportunity–don’t miss out.

Biker Quote for Today

Motorcycle you love–ride you must.

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Loving Warm Days

Monday, December 12th, 2016
empty, torn bag

It could have been something fabulous, but no.

Saturday was overcast with strong, gusty winds, so I was not inclined much to go ride. That is, not until I looked at the thermometer and saw it was in the mid 50s. I guess I’ll go out after all. Besides, I still had two bikes that had not been ridden in December. As soon as I threw the door open to roll the Honda out I was hit with surprisingly warm wind and I knew I would not be disappointed.

Both the Honda and the Kawi were prime examples of why I make a point to ride each bike at least once a month all year round. Neither one was eager to start. Each turned over weakly at first but fired up, and then needed to run awhile before they settled into smooth purrs.

The Honda was first. The only difference in my gear from my last time out was that I wore long underwear this time. They were a nice addition. I never got cold at all.

So I rode for a bit and on my way back I came across the top of Cherry Creek Dam and spied a duffel bag or whatever that someone had lost along the road. There was traffic, though, so I kept going, but I wondered what might be in it. At home, I parked the Honda and fired up the Kawi and went right back the way I had come, this time trying to ensure there was no one behind me so I could stop right there on this road with no shoulder.

The bag was still there so I picked it up and rode on (see photo above). Turns out it was nothing; just an empty, torn bag. And all the things it might have been! Fifty thousand dollars in $100 bills. A fancy camera with exotic lenses. Someone’s dirty gym clothes. Nah. None of the above. I threw it in the trash.

I don’t care. I got out for rides on two of my bikes on a surprisingly nice day in December. That was all the reward I needed.

Biker Quote for Today

It takes 37 muscles to frown, 17 to smile, 7 to twist the throttle.

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The Winter Guessing Game

Monday, December 5th, 2016
motorcycles on the highway

Get out an ride while there’s no snow on the road!

I took the V-Strom out for a first ride of December on Sunday. It would have been a crime not to take advantage of such a nice day.

So how warm was it really? We have thermometers outside our windows in the front of the house and in the back. Our house faces south, so in the front there is sun, while in the back there is shade. The difference in the two readings can be 4 or 5 degrees. The thermometer in the rear said 52.

OK, so how warmly do I need to dress? This is the winter guessing game that I play again and again. It’s easier when it’s only 30 degrees–I put on all the warmest gear I have. At 52 it gets tricky.

I opted for just jeans, no long underwear; my winter gloves, not to be confused with my heated gloves; and a sweatshirt and my electric vest. No scarf. I wavered on the electric vest, wondering if I really needed it, but decided it wouldn’t hurt to have it just in case. But 52 is pretty warm.

However, the wind chill at 60 miles an hour knocks that perceived temperature right down 10 or 15 degrees. Within a mile I had flipped on the vest and with my legs getting chilly I was wondering if omitting the long underwear had been a mistake. Plus, my hands were getting pretty chilly.

I got over it though. It didn’t take long and I wasn’t minding the cool legs and my hands didn’t feel so chilly. It was a really nice, sunny day, and I was glad to be out on the bike. Of course the fact that the electric vest was keeping my core nice and toasty made a huge difference. But after awhile I even cracked my visor so I’d get some breeze on my face. It felt good.

Didn’t see a lot of other folks out on bikes, just one guy on a sportbike on Parker Road. Come on now, you’re telling me you weren’t driven to get out on such a nice day? It’s only going to get colder, at least for this next week.

I didn’t go a long way; I’ve got this shoulder that was hurting me pretty bad because of some strain I put on it doing some work on my driveway earlier in the day. That was another project that needed to be done on a warm day and it was actually my first priority. I’d go for a ride afterward. But that meant when I got on the bike I was hurting.

Still, I got out, and it was nice. I suspect next time I get out on a bike it’s not going to be so nice. But in that case I won’t need to play the guessing game.

Biker Quote for Today

When life gets you down, remember, it’s only one down and the rest is up.

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Passes & Canyons On The Radio (Or Podcast)

Thursday, December 1st, 2016
The "Bernie's Colorado Journeys" website

The “Bernie’s Colorado Journeys” website.

I did a radio interview today. Bernie Jwaszewski had contacted me and wanted to talk about the website for the benefit of people interested in touring Colorado. Bernie does a podcast/radio broadcast called “Bernie’s Colorado Journeys” on KCMJ.org or at 93.9 FM.

Seems Bernie has been into touring for a long time but just last year got himself a Harley trike. That opened up a whole new world for him, as you might well imagine. So he is interested in the best motorcycle roads in Colorado. Bernie, you came to the right place.

So we talked about the Passes & Canyons: Motorcycle Touring in Colorado website.

First off he asked about myself and why I built the site. That was easy: it combined my interests in writing, motorcycling, and tech. And then we went through each of the tabs at the top of each page that go to the main pages on the site, discussing each as we went along.

What was interesting for me was to have a chance to see the site at least partially through someone else’s eyes. For instance, Bernie looked at the page for motorcycle-accessible campgrounds along the Peak-to-Peak Highway and he came to the conclusion that Cold Spring Campground would not be suitable for someone pulling a camper. No, no, no, I assured him. The campground has pull-through sites but I just don’t go into that because the website is about motorcycles. I also mentioned that the campground pages are very dated and it is my intention in 2017 to update all of them.

That was the other point of interest for me. Time and again we would discuss this section or that page and I would add that my intentions are to expand this or update that or redo this–it just comes down to time to do it all. Hopefully I will find that time once I am no longer working for the National Park Service (hello end of January). But the updates and revisions I want to do could probably keep me busy for a solid month.

And then there are the other states in the region. When I first started building the site it was my intent to then do the same for other states in the west. When you figure I’ve had this site up for 11 years now and still have a ton of work that I don’t have time to do, it’s not hard to see why that plan has never gotten off the ground. But I haven’t given up on it. I’m thinking that maybe I’ll do a Kickstarter campaign to raise funding and then just go off for a month to two months and do an entire state all at once. Ride and shoot pictures and gather information during the day and build pages in a motel room in the evening. Get up the next morning and do it again. We’ll see.

So I’ll be interested to see what Bernie does with the interview. I mean, I’m sure he’ll want to do some editing, so it will be interesting to see what he focuses on. Also, just a note, he has also spoken with Steve Farson, who wrote the book The Complete Guide to Motorcycling Colorado. Steve’s book is very good and I’ll be interested to listen to Bernie’s podcast with him, too.

And one other thing: I’m interested to explore Bernie’s site. Who knows, maybe he has found some places in this state that I’ve never seen. You never know.

Biker Quote for Today

A cold hamburger can be reheated quite nicely by strapping it to an exhaust pipe and riding forty miles.

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My Close-Up Experience of Roy’s Mystery Ride

Thursday, October 20th, 2016
aerial view of area south of Elbert, CO

All you need in order to understand how nice this route was is all the green.

I gave an overview of Roy’s Mystery Ride last week but that report was necessarily short on details. It’s often the details that make something really interesting so that’s what you’re going to get here.

Heading out from Performance Cycle this route immediately put me on roads in the Tech Center (I use that term loosely, I guess) that I had never been on. That’s a plus right from the start. Winding around a bit I turned onto Jordan Road headed south. Next I needed to turn left onto Pine Lane.

The hardest part about this ride was having such detailed directions and needing to stop and consult them frequently. Mileage was very precise but I didn’t zero out my tripmeter before starting so I made it a little harder on myself than I could have. I kept looking for Pine Lane, even pulled over at one intersection to consult the directions again, and kept going south. Too far south, I was convinced. And then I reached Hess Road where Jordan ended and I turned around and headed back north. It turned out Pine Lane was where I stopped to consult the directions, and I apparently didn’t see the street sign when I stopped. OK, back on track.

Pine Lane took me east into the hilly area beyond Parker Road and there were numerous interesting sights to locate: a giraffe, a pair of pink pigs, a psychedelic cow, and much more. These were all things we were to watch for. The point of this ride was to be observant while riding your motorcycle.

It was funny to see how easy it was to identify other participants on this ride. I’d be consulting the directions and someone would go past on a bike. A couple miles later I’d pass that same rider and he would be looking at a very familiar piece of paper.

The route led down through Elizabeth, on roads I had mostly been on before, and then on south from there to Elbert. I think I may have only been to Elbert once before, but I saw then that there is some very intriguing landscape around there. My memory was confirmed and now I want to go back there again and do some real exploring.

Heading south out of Elbert I was looking to go east on Sweet Road. The main road seemed to sweep to the right (west) at one point, and that was Sweet Road, but that didn’t seem right so I stopped to consult the sheet. While I was there two other bikes blew on past, with one yelling to me “This is west!” And they kept going. I looked to the south and there was a road heading east about another 100 yards down that way. I went to check and it was Sweet Road. I was on track; they weren’t.

More zig-zagging around carried me further and further to the southeast. Finally Falcon Highway carried me west again and then the route cut through a neighborhood in the eastern suburbs of Colorado Springs where they seem to have a penchant for interesting lawn ornaments. I can’t imagine what it took to design this route.

A stop at a shopping center was built in, so I got a mocha at Starbucks and waited for other riders to show up. A few did, circling the parking lot, but nobody stopped, except a couple who needed gas. So I pushed on. Now the roads were carrying me back east, away from town, and once again into the Black Forest area. McLaughlin Road, Eastonville Road, Meridian Road, Hodgen Road: all of them could be called highways. And if they were called highways I would have known they existed, but they’re not so I didn’t. Now I do.

Then once again it was time to cut through a neighborhood. I’m sure the folks living there wondered why all these bikers were going by this day. That road wound around and eventually came out to CO 83 and then it was just a straight shot back to the Denver area and the finish point.

The whole thing was such a nice ride on a gorgeous autumn day that I told Judy I would take her on a repeat if she has time in the next few days. And next time I won’t have to stop so often to consult the sheet.

Biker Quote for Today

True happiness is when you think of your bike and an automatic smile is on your face.

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