A little danger on NM 502 (Part 1)

"Where does this road go?" It is a great game for a traveling day. And sometimes serendipity plays and awesome role as it did on a recent winter day just north of Santa Fe. During the winter the high temperatures in the area often linger in the mid 20's for extended periods. However, an occasional window will open up and provide a bright, clear sunlit day where one can gear up and pretend the riding season is not really over.





Actual beautiful, non-tagged road art.


One of the pleasures of living and riding in northern New Mexico is that the slabs and the highways are actually made pleasant to look at which to me is pretty stunning. As a long time resident of central and southern California it is so pleasant not to have a bunch of inconsiderate "taggers" mucking up every public surface with their stupid gang signs.



Nice curves and great scenery greet the rider on US-285N just out of Santa Fe.

Actually the slab riding up here can be downright pleasant as there are lots of mountains and the engineers chose not to blast every curve out of existence.

In keeping with the theme of let's see where this road goes mentality, in this community and surrounding area it pays to keep your eyes and awareness open to small things that are easy to miss.



A case in point being the Cottonwood Gallery just off of NM502 on the way to Los Alamos, sometimes called Atomic City. On an scantily marked dirt side road, one drives on what is little more than a dirt side road to a modest looking faux adobe structure. Waking through the door is a significant surprise. Inside is a very modern, yet intimate and comfortable working gallery inside what used to be a large private dwelling.



The road to the Cotton Wood Gallery

We will get to the danger aspect in part II

Road Show Christmas Podcast and Music Show

As the end of the year approaches and Christmas is a few days away our minds naturally turn reflective and look towards hope and renewal as well. Perhaps because most of us are not in a position to acquire material things to trade with each other the focus seems to be largely turning towards making or remaking connections with our friends and loved ones. In this spirit I took a little break from obsessing on motorcycles and turned towards the language of music to communicate the spirit of the season and hopefully bring a little extra joy to those around me.

In that same spirit I want to share the same joy and communication with our Road Show family. However in keeping with the focus of Road Show Podcast it also seemed appropriate to have something about motorcycles included in show.

In this sense I was fortunate enough to connect with David Woodby a biker, writer and web publisher from Panama City, FL. Woodby seemed like a natural choice to spotlight on this Christmas episode because of the helpful and supportive nature of his websites.



David Woodby Panama City, FL motorcycle examiner




Woodby and his wife started the website panamacitymetro.com a number of years ago as a service to help stranded travelers connect with hard to find resources such as shelter, medical care, clothing, etc. As an ex-soldier and area police officer he was well positioned to have access to this type of information. This website has been tremendously successful and its attitude of giving is very much in the Christmas spirt.

Woodby recently launched another website which really takes the form of on online magazine. His panhandlebiker.com website features events and things of interest to the riding community and is updated almost daily. Anybody in the area or thinking of traveling to an event there should check it out.

---------------------------------------------------

About the music: I first had the idea to do this album back in October with grand plans to do an entire CD's worth. As the project progressed and demands on my time and technical problems increased it became clear the scope of the endeavor would have to be severly cut back. I very much like the idea of re-arranging Christmas songs in different settings without disturbing the integrity of the original melody, at least too much. I also thought it appropriate to compose at least one original piece that captured, at least through the lens of my experience, my personal feelings about being in Santa Fe at this time of year.

Credits: Heartfelt thanks go out to two special people who helped this project come together. Mike Ferenci who played all the guitar tracks from his studio in Los Angeles.



Ace guitarist and producer Michael Ferenci ponders a mix from his LA studio.


I also want to thank my great friend and overall master musician/mixer Raul Duarte who contributed valuable advice on mixing and instrumentation.

Of course many thanks belong to my wife Patti who continues to support the whole process.

The tracks you heard on the show are all available for free MP3 download at my music website. I hope they bring you some pleasure and joy.

Merry Christmas to all...

Cameron Weckerley (bmweerman)

Tribal Trouble

On a cold sunny day not too long ago the task befell on me to deliver a motorcycle to a customer living in the no man's land between Santa Fe and Los Alamos. The customer to whom the bike was being delivered wad, well interesting. The map the shop manager gave me was a good one, but a lot of the little roads and small communities out barely show up on them at all if at all. So here I am driving the company truck with a motorcycle in the back looking for nonexistent information on a map and trying to read these funky little county road signs. I keep pulling over to call the customer who sometimes answers the phone and sometimes does not and gives conflicting directions. OK, you get the idea.

I had just pulled back out on to the road when the dreaded flashing lights showed up behind me. I had no idea what I had done wrong but I dutifully pulled over. Seems I had run a stop sign which I did not see, and honestly, could barely see it even after the "cop" had pulled me over.

Here I must digress for a moment. One of the things that is unusual about this area of New Mexico is how the land is divided up piecemeal between United States property and Tribal Indian lands more commonly known as pueblos.



Above is an overall map of New Mexico tribal areas. For a more detailed map click here


Turns out when I got the ticket I found out I had actually been stopped by the tribal police who have jurisdiction even on public roads they happen to cross pueblo land. The traffic tickets they hand out do not go on your driving record nor are they reported to your insurance which is a good thing, but they still cost you. However, the information the tribal police and justice system gives you about how to clear things up is incomplete and misleading.

Initially the officer told me that I had to go to court, in Pojoaque no less, then he said I could just pay the $60.00 fine. Ok great, but wait, you have to show in in court even if you just want to admit guilt and pay the fine. I did a mental double-take on that one and asked for clarification and was assured that indeed, yes, one does have to show up to court just to plead guilty and pay the fine. The paperwork (ticket) I was handed seemed to confirm this.

Two week later I had to take the morning off from work and drive from Santa Fe to Pojoague, checkbook in hand, to sit out my court appearance and pay my fine. When I walked into the tribal justice building there on the left was a little window with a large sign that said, "pay traffic fines here." As it turns out you can go to the justice center any day of the week during business hours and handle your fines or, I also found out, you can indeed just MAIL THEM IN! No one in the system will tell you any of this in advance of course. But wait, they have one final trick up their sleeve. They only take cashiers or certified checks, not cash, no credit cards, nothing. Another fact that appears nowhere on the paperwork or will anyone tell you. Which means you either have to go to one of the local grocery stores and pay an overpriced fee to get a certified check, provided you have the right kind of debit card or cash, or go somewhere else to get one. The other option being, which is the one I chose, just go home and get a cashiers check from your own bank at mail it in which is what you could have done the first place.

Is there a point to this rather long rant? Yes there is, two in fact. First, be very careful when driving on tribal lands, the local lawmen are just out there waiting to pop you for the slightest infringement. Second, if do get busted just get a certified check and mail it in! Of course one could try to fight it in tribal court, but given my experience that seems like it would be a pointless venture.

Don't believe everything you read: Pecos, NM

Having never lived in a place where there was such a thing as a "riding season" it has been somewhat disconcerting to watch and feel the temperature get lower and lower each day here in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Chipping ice off the seat of the bike in the morning to go to work and see actual snow fall around our apartment. Nevertheless, as wise man once said that, "...there is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes." With that in mind the Wrench Wench and I set off on a short adventure today to visit Pecos, NM. I had been curious about "The Old Las Vegas Highway/NM 300" which runs from southeastern Santa Fe almost all the way to Pecos.




Old Las Vegas Highway/NM 300




The Old Vegas Highway is a popular spot for local vendors to sell firewood and the ubiquitous strands of red peppers.

For sure it is not a road to burn off chicken strips, but it is an interesting late morning scenic ride through the outskirts of Santa Fe. Although it mostly parallels I-25 it is a much more interesting ride. It rejoins I-25 at the village of Canoncito although if you are just passing through all you will see is a really sharp turn with some bad pavement and a lot of gravel, caution is indicated.

After a few miles on I-25 we took exit 299 heading south on NM-50. It is a pleasant little six mile, mildly curvy ride into the Pecos.

Now, as is my normal practice I had researched on-line our destination of the day. From the website it looked very promising. Lots of pictures of quaint, rural activities and the quote, "Pecos is a an ancient place with modern amenities, a village of small, family-owned lodges, restaurants, shops and guiding services. Pecos is a place of senses for people who value their sense of place." (http://www.pecosnewmexico.com/about.php)

Upon our arrival we were greeted with something completely different. The Pecos we saw driving through was almost a caricature of a declining small town just barely hanging on.



A typical scene from the street of Pecos

We rode up and down the few small streets that seem to comprise the town looking for something captivating enough to stop for, there was nothing.

At the east end of town NM 50 ends and NM 223 begins. Since it seemed to head up into the mountains there was the promise of a twisty road and maybe some good riding. So off we headed.




Looking west from NM 223 towards Pecos, Glorieta, and the western slopes of the Santa Fe National Forest

After pausing to consult the map and consider our next move we decided to continue on with the game of "where-does-this-road-go" and a couple more miles east on NM 223 landed us at the end of the pavement and onto hard pack gravel.



The end of the "paved" road.

Now I have taken street bikes before where street bikes ought not to go, but on this day I was just not in the mood and was wishing we were on a dual sport. So I dutifully and carefully executed a three point turn and we headed back down the hill.

With one more place to visit, the Pecos National Historic Park, we turned south on NM 63 and followed the signs to the Park.

The park documents at least 1200 years of human habitation in the area. There are remains of pithouses going back to the earliest Pueblo dwellers, 17th century farmhouses, and the centerpiece the remains of the first mission built in 1625.



"Red in the foreground with the Mission Church in the background

We were going to linger, but since it was already cold and the sky was quickly turning ominous, as it does this time of year we decided to head for home and shelter.



Ominous skies sent us packing or shelter

It was just a preliminary excursion, but worthy of more exploration in the future with more promising weather or more appropriate clothing.

BMW Track Day 2009

Sponsor: GoToMyPC: As secure as online banking. Try it FREE for 30 days



I have always been curious about track days, but as a primarily touring motorcyclist it has, until now, remained just that a curiosity. This year as a perk of my job I was offered a free ticket and there was a chance to see the new BMW S1000RR up close and personal. It was also a chance to watch my buddy and co-worker Ben aka Mr. Wizard show off his Frankenstein airhead build.





Sandia Motor Speedway from "The Tower"



BMW S1000RR looking lean and mean from the front all taped up for track day.



Traditional racing design with some special improvements compliments of Motorrad engineering. For more info on this bike visit bmwplanetpower.com



Beemerman with BMW factory rider Gary Hardin



Mr Wizard aka Ben Grant with his "slightly massaged" airhead.





We are going to do a whole article on this bike, there is just too much to go into here.



It is the only "Santa Fe" model BMW in existence!



Andy Caparones also made an impressive showing on the track with his two custom builds.



Andy's aqua Honda performed reliably and FAST



His "7/11" Gixxer also showed promise, but was plagued by oil leaks and was disqualified early on




And then there was ever faithful "Red" shown here decked out for her track day debut



Glad I left my ego at home and signed up for the novice class, where I put a a respectable showing, otherwise I would have had my ass handed to me.

In other Road Show news, Rupert Piston a good friend and part-time guest host of the show is taking his motorcycle based art in a new direction using some new media and introducing some new characters. Check out his latest work at Cartoon Thunder.

Also thanks to the guys at 1 OFF Motorsports for the video!

Be looking for more details on Mr. Wizards bike soon and thank you for downloading Road Show Podcast.

Searching for the Real Santa Fe - Los Cerrillos

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines ghost town as, "a once-flourishing town wholly or nearly deserted usually as a result of the exhaustion of some natural resource." By this definition Los Cerrillos, NM certainly fits the bill. And if
you are looking for a way to experience some local history and culture without the crush of the downtown tourists Los Cerrillos is a good bet.

Los Cerrillos means "little hills" and can trace it's history back 1500 years when the first Native Americans exploited the lead and turquoise deposits rich in the area. The town was not officially founded until 1879 when it became a hotbed of Western mining and railroad activity. The great depression of 1929 put an end to large scale commercial ventures in this once prosperous crossroads, but enough remains to make a fascinating historical visit.

From Santa Fe there are two ways to get there. Take NM-14/Turquoise Trail South toward Madrid and follow the signs. Or a more adventurous route.



Take I-25 S/US-85 S to exit 267 and turn south on County RD-57. This route is probably navigable by an experienced and adventurous rider on a street bike, however a dual sport model is recommended for this road. It is mostly hard-pack with light gravel, but there are some deeply rutted and steep stretches as well as some severe washboarding which could be problematic with shorter suspensions.



Yeah, you could do this on a street bike.



This bit could be a little more problematic.

One of the main attractions in Los Cerrillos is the What Not Shop. It bills itself as an antique store but in its cramped and dim interior one can find everything from gemstones of dubious quality to worn wooden children's toys and just about everything in between. Next door is Mary's Bar where one can still buy a cold beer, if you are not riding, but it requires navigating past the lounging locals and lazy dogs who look like they appeared there about the same time as the town.

Other businesses that are still open include the Casa Grande Trading Post and Mining Museum. There is also an art gallery still operating which hosts some interesting pieces and a petting zoo. One hardly need to visit the petting zoo though due to the preponderance of local dogs. None of them a menace, just lazy and sometime creating a hazard to riding due to their tendency to loll in the sunshine in the middle of the road.

Due to its close proximity to Santa Fe, Los Cerrillos makes and ideal afternoon jaunt. Or, for a bit of a longer ride one could continue south a few more miles to Madrid where the movie Wild Hogs was filmed. Either way just the ride itself provides plenty of interest. Fairly high speed roads which are well maintained and the mixture of high-desert and alpine surrounding often accented with small yellow and purple wildflowers provide plenty of interest. Add to this the punctuation of brightly colored and uniquely shaped rock formations that seem to come out of nowhere and it makes a non-commercial ride that is sure not to disappoint.

Discovering the Real New Mexico - Hyde Park Part 2

In the previous entry of this post I said I would be back after a little more research. Which I did, but surprisingly came up with very little background information on Hyde Park other than the facilities it offers.

What I did find out is that the Sangres are the very southern end of the Rocky Mountain Chain. Which stretch from Poncho Pass in Colorado to Glorieta Pass in New Mexico. Fascinating!

To continue the story riding through Hyde Park proper is pleasant, but can be quite annoying with gawking cagers slowing down the two wheel mojo and the ever present bicyclists who seem to regard everyone else from some kind of moral high ground only they seem to possess, even when they are riding down the middle of the road.

Past the park though things get a little a lot more interesting, the traffic thins out, the rangers disappear and the road gets really good.



Somewhere on the road above Hyde Park

A little further on up the road, as they say, we stopped at a turn-out/campsite parking area.



Bike and Road Shot...I know, I know...again....

While Patti took the camera and went searching for interesting subjects I was accosted by a vintage BMW motorcycle fan who would NOT let me break off conversation with him politely. So I did not get to look around a lot, but Patti got some good pix which follow...







It had been a nice sunny, but cool ride all day. But, in this neck of the woods, particularly in late September the weather can change fast. The temperature dropped suddenly and menacing clouds starting rolling in. Since we were not packing any rain gear we decided to high-tail it for lower elevations closer to home.



Fall Weather Moving in Fast

In the next installment of this blog the first impressions of the back streets of Santa Fe.

For a great preview of things to come check out this great slide show Patti made.

Hail, Lightning and Hot Pockets:More Tales of Fun on the High Desert.

It started off accidentally, almost. I had been contemplating riding out to Springerville, AZ and catch a little ride down AZ 191 which is reportedly some of the best canyon carving in AZ. Much to my surprise one of my younger shop mates was willing to take me up on the offer. The ride I had planned was to be 730 +/-, something I would of once thought nothing of. However, since the events of 2007, my endurance wings have been clipped a bit. To my surprise my young friend took me up on the challenge, so a Saturday morning ride was on.

Scheduled time was to have rubber on the road by 7AM and to his credit he was ready to roll with emergency water bottles packed, etc. We headed out for the 45 minute drive just to escape Phoenix. Beyond that we head north east on AZ 60 AKA the Superstition Highway. We were vaguely headed for the time and place where the Devils Highway run was supposed be begin that day out of Springerville, AZ.



There was some weather predicted but it was supposed to stay west of Flagstaff, not anywhere near the New Mexico border in which direction we were spinnig our wheels rapidly. North of Globe we had just carved our way through a series of worthy twisties.






However, we unexpectdedly found the skies turn foreboding and the dusty smelling wind rise around us.



Looking east on AZ 60 towards Springerville:So close and yet so far.

Out of nowhere it felt like we were getting shot at with a rapid fire BB gun. I looked down to see pee size pellets forming on my riding jacket. Behind me my young partner was ducked down as far as he could get behind his tiny windscreen shielding himself with his non-throttle arm as best as he could.

Fortunately the riding gods were with us that day and we soon found shelter at a little mom and pop general store in Vernon, AZ. For the budget conscious and somewhat taken aback traveler it proved to be a perfect stop. A kindly lady with a long silver braid greeted us and sold us some hot pockets and soda. She also let us consult her atlas which was a good supplement to the adequate but not extremely detailed map of Arizona we were already carrying.



A moto-friendly oasis in a suddenly hostile desert.

The weather conditions were changing rapidly and I could not see clearly what was trending on the small screen of my Blackberry. Fortunately my wife was home with access to bigger screens and better radar maps. My companion and I spent of hour of back and forth indecision before deciding we should head back but by a slightly different route than we had come.

Heading back from Vernon we had decided to catch AZ160 north west which would put us on a circuitous route back towards Phoenix. Unfortunately, being in the lead I took the first exit for 160 which actually took us back in the general direction we had just come.

30 Miles later we pulled off in the woods in the middle of nowhere and took a location with the Blackberry. At that point it was decided we had come to far to return to Show Low and the best course of action seemed to retrace our steps back to AZ 73, an unknown, which would put us back at AZ 60 at Carrizzo.

That turned out to be a fortuitous decision because AZ 73 turned out to be deserted and wonderfully well-maintained. Just the kind of place a person might get their ya yas out with a bit of throttle twisting should one be so inclined.

Prescott, AZ

Prescott is, in this writers opinion, one of the "old-west" towns which has retained a modicum of authenticity. It is also a destination amenable to taking a guest, it is a nice ride and there is something interesting to do when you get there.



Mixed company at the saloon.

Whiskey Row is where most of the action happens in old-town. Oddly, it is only a two block or so long piece of AZ 89. On weekends and holidays lots of bikes, and other vehicles, congregate in the area. The west side of the street sports a variety of motorcycle friendly saloons and interesting, odd shops. Along the east side of the street runs one side of the court house park which is quite pleasant.






Most of the action in Old Town takes place on Whiskey Row
.

I happened to arrive in Prescott on Memorial day and there was an art fair set up along the park. I get the feeling from the looks of it that it is a regular event, Prescott being known for commitment to the arts as well as its western heritage.



Street fair at the courthouse park, Prescott, AZ

To make a loop out of the ride from Phoenix take I-17 north to AZ 74/Carefree Hwy. and turn west. Pass Lake Pleasant and then continue north-west on US 60 to Wickenburg. At Wickenburg catch AZ 89 north taking you directly to downtown Prescott. When you are ready to leave head west on Gurley St. which will take you to AZ 69 and


After having a pleasant afternoon in Prescott the ride home is somewhat boring, but quick. A turn to the east on Gurley Street will put you on AZ 69. And on the subject of AZ 69, with no disrespect to the fine citizens of Prescott Valley, riding east through the valley is like riding along the longest and most remote strip mall know to man.

Before too long you can catch I-17 south where you can make REALLY good time back to Phoenix. The speed limit on the open freeway is 75MPH which means real traffic speed is 85MPH and they will run you down if you do not go with the flow of traffic, so be prepared for a speedy run down the hill.

Be aware of brake lights and slowing traffic as you approach Anthem just north of entering Phoenix metro. It is a big city and there is big city traffic to contend with.

Salt River Canyon

This article really is just a preliminary report, but should be useful to other riders not having been through Salt River Canyon from the west side. As I wrote about in a previous article we got significant part of the way there when we visited Miami, AZ Recently. However, to go into more detail, just past Superior, AZ US 60 passes through Queen Creek Tunnel





The eastern end of the Queen Creek Tunnel

There is a turn out and day parking spot on the southern edge of the road just past the tunnel where one can pull over for a photo op or descend the rather steep and primitive trails to the bottom of the canyon for some hiking or rock climbing.



Rock Climbing in Queen Creek Canyon, AZ



Water, wind and time have created and enormous 3-D panorama of spires and other fascinating shapes here.



Interesting working on a photo job with the Wrench Wench...she sees small things, such as the lizard above who makes his home nearby, and I see the bigger, more dramatic scenes.



Beyond Queen creek stretches 15 miles of sweet canyon riding towards Miami heading toward Salt River Canyon. The road here is in excellent shape and this part of the ride consists mostly of back to back high speed sweepers. US60 then takes you through some more twisties and sweeper into Globe. Globe is a fairly large town for being in the middle of the desert and, most interestingly, still boasts a working drive in movie theater.





Great pillion (passenger) shot by Patti Weckerley.

Just past Globe pick up AZ 77 and ride north into Salt River Canyon. The road into the canyon continues to be of excellent quality and because it is cut out of parts of the mountain that are largely granitic, there is little danger of accidently washing out on a sand hazard or something of that nature. The road continues to get more interesting as one gets higher in the canyon. The aforementioned sweepers then become mixed up with an interesting assortment of twisties and switchbacks.



Another great pillion shot by Patti.

Our exploration of Salt Creek Canyon was unfortunately cut short by a mechanical failure which occurred at the Becker Butte Outlook. The view from which you see pictured. To our good fortune the machine was able to be restarted and ridden back to homebase. Which brings me back to what I said at the beginning of the article, this is really just a preliminary report because we were not able to finish exploring it.

However, what we did get to ride was outstanding and as you can see there are some breathtaking views. During the next couple of weeks or so a full report should be available. In the meantime, if you have a chance to head out that way it is a great ride and will take you about 300-350 miles round-trip give or take depending on where you start from in Phoenix. There is a Google map here, which will show you how to get there from the outskirts of metro. Some of the pins on the map are interactive and some are not, but it will point you in the right direction.

Back soon with a full report. In the meantime shiny side up!