22 Miles in First Gear.

The Apache Loop, and certain stops along the way, are popular destination among Phoenician motorcyclists. Wanting to check it out ourselves we so we happened across an seeming reasonable local travel guide and borders and began using it to explore




Day Trips by Sheila Stein has a partiulary useful quality to this author. The trips dont require and planing, one just gets up and goes. The Wrench Wench and I were quite pleaesed this format because it fits our traveling style so well, One major detail this book has though is lack of detail, particularly in the area maps.. This has gotten us into an adventure situation a few times.

The following narrative is but one of those adventures.

This ride actually turned out to be an attempt to connect with one of the local BMW riding clubs. As these things often work out for us there was no real connection with the people. We did make an effort to go along with the plan though, but the ride captain for that day was too aggressive and I soon let us fall back and lose the crowd and then ride our own ride. This had two advantages, first, we could ride our own pace and enjoy it more. We got to turn down a road and play "where does that road go?" And in this case it was very, well interesting little exploration.

Following the group leader for the first part of the ride had put us well into The Apache Loop, or as it is known in the local vernacular, The Apache Trail Circle Road




Without the proper details on the map, we did make it to Roosevelt Dam, and we had to decide whether to go to some of the further possible destinations, or finish the Apache Loop.



Because we were both feeling a bit beat up that day we decided on the shorter route...which finishes the loop. Unbeknown to us the rest of the trail from Roosevelt Dam onward is 22 miles of fairly rough dirt road. And the lovely travel guide we had failed to mention this particular bit. Needless to say it was an interesting 22 miles.



There is a whole lot more story to tell here...but for now I hope this video keeps you entertained.

Thanks!

BMWeerman

Motorcycling to the Stars

This is part two of a journal entry about a recent overnight trip to for Phoenix to Tucson which include some moderate terror and some great joy. As I stated in the previous entry the mechanical problems and change of schedule on Saturday night had put me in a funk and I woke up pretty cranky the next day. However, I really wanted to get my mojo back so while the Wrench Wench slept in a little I was up before dawn hoping to catch some great "sunrise over the mountain" pix. Some reading in the local literature in the hotel room told me that Catalina Mountain Park was just up the road a ways. So in the pre-dawn hours I took my tools and flashlight down to the bike, wrenched on the starter a little bit, which seemed to help, and headed off toward the park.

Because we had not planned for any real early or real late riding there was not a lot of warm stuff packed in the panniers. So, it was pretty chilly ride to the park. I turned off on the exit and drove into the park. A few hundred yard in I encountered the ranger booth. At the booth was a stooped over, elderly woman who regarded me, dressed in full black riding gear, and my motorcycle with profound distrust. I told her I just wanted to come in the park and shoot a few sunrise shots. She was clearly trying to discourage my interest by pointing out that is was yet a ways 'till sunrise. Not swayed by this argument I told her I would need time to set up so that would be OK. Her next tack was to lay the six dollar charge on me which I would be subject to if I was in the park longer than 15 minutes. She made an obvious show of checking her watch and telling me "exactly" when I had to be back. No problem, I handed over six buck, she reluctantly gave me a pass and off I went.

Navigating the narrow, unmarked roads by high-beam it very quickly became apparent that the paved portions of the park were very short and led to RV parking spots and the heads of hiking trails. No way to get any elevation for the shots I wanted. Checking the clock on the bike I noted that there were 3 minutes left of my alloted 15 free minutes. Quickly motoring back to the small, dimly lighted haunt of my nemesis I reminded her of the time and asked for my money back. After another bit of unpleasant exchange I returned my pass and got my six bucks back. I watcher her watch me leave in the rear-view. It was obvious she was happy to see me go.

It was still dark when I arrived back at the hotel so I made do by taking some shots of sunrise over the Santa Catalina Mountains from the window of the hotel room.





Sunrise over the Santa Catalina Mountains from a thid floor hotel window

Patti slept in kind of late and we lazed around the room for a bit, went downstairs for the free breakfast-which was unexpectedly excellent, then had to make a decision on what to do that day. The working plan was to go visit Tombstone, but after a bit of research it became apparent that, in spite of its colorful history, it was merely a tourist trap and we wanted something less touristy and a bit more interesting. So, we opted to drive out into the Sonoran desert and visit the Kitt Peak observatory.

In order to get to Hwy 86 we had to travel the length of Tucson from north to south. Given our newly acquired sensibilities gained by living in Phoenix for six months we assumed an hour and a half drive at least. It turned out to be more like 20 minutes.
Turning west on Hwy 86 we headed onto the Tohono O’odham wilderness.



Riding west into the Tohono O’odham wilderness

Not too far on down the road we came to the intersection of 86/386 which turns roughly north.



Looking north from the 86/386 intersection..probably not visible at this picture scale but you can see the dome of the 4 meter telescope dome at the far upper right



From the same vantage point, but with a bit of zoom

It is a fair distance down 86 to the bottom of Kitt Peak, but the road is reasonbly well pave with a minimum of rock and sand patch hazards to be avoided. Once you start climbing the peak it goes from 2000 feet of elevation to 7000 feet in just under 12 miles. Quite a ride. Because the mountain is made of granite there are none of the hazards of rock slides on the road or patches of blowing dust that have characterized so many of our other mountain rides, very pleasant.







A couple of views ascending Kitt Peak

The tempature began to drop dramatically as we rapidly gained altitude and the wind also picked up considerably. Enough that once we had reached the top and parked in the visitors lot we needed to dig out another layer of clothes.



Red at the chilly and windy top of Kitt Peak

Note-In order to get a scale for this picture, the four-meter telescope pictured in the upper right is ten stories tall from it's base to the bottom ring of the dome. The actual dome towers another several stories above that.

Places of this nature, observatories, etc, have always fired my imagination and this was spectacular. Having been a regular visitor to such places as Griffith Observatory and Mount Wilson with their few attraction, the scale of this instillation was amazing! The four-meter optical telescope in the upper right of the above photograph towered over the parking lot with other mysterious and magic structures stretching into the distance.





Ok I have been working on this post now for quite a while...the best is yet to come, but also some very detailed work to do on it. I am going to publish this one and get to work on part 2. Keep your eyes open for that. In the meantime...keep your eyes on the road and your thoughts in the stars...

BMWeerman

The Flat Tortilla

Click on the Blubrry Blueberry to listen to PodCast------------>





A couple of weekends ago, the lovely Wrench Wench and I took a half-day trip to a popular biker destination near Phoenix called Tortilla Flat. Tortilla Flat is an authentic remnant of an old west town, nestled in the midst of the Tonto National Forest, Superstition Mountain Range. As well as being home for six adventurous people, Tortilla Flat has a charm that has surpassed time.

Once you get out of the blob the is Phoenix metro it is quite an fun ride. SR88, AKA The Apache Trail, winds up through the Superstition Mountains past a series of man made lakes.





Above a couple of views shot by Patti from the back of the bike of the initial ascent up the Apache Trail



Canyon Lake just coming into view



Overview of Canyon Lake from Apache Trail





And, or course, my favorites, "The Bridge Shots."


Overall the actual experience of visiting Tortilla Flats proper was interesting for about five minutes, although it did yield some interesting photographs.









For a brief history of the area follow this link







Probably the most interesting, or infamous, part of this little jaunt was on the return. Coming back on the Apache Trail I had an earplug start to come out. Looking for a place to stop, I thought I saw a good patch of shoulder with hard pack dirt with a light dusting of gravel. As it turns out the surface their was about four inches of gravel packed with sand, and, well, you can guess the rest. No major damage was done except for some scratches to a cylinder head, and my pride of course. Naturally, when you need assistance, people will blow right by you. But in this particular case four other bikers were right behind us and saw the whole thing happen and pulled over to assist. This was actually very kind of them, but just made the whole incident more embarrassing. Also, on that particular day, I thought I would be really cool and wear a half-helmet which bought me a nice face plant in the gravel, hence the title of this post, which took a couple of weeks of explanation. Oh well.



"Helpful" bikers examining the damage to "Red" and explaining to me that maybe I might not have wanted to stop their...Thanks Guys! :>

Premium Touring With Ayres Adventures and Good Eats!

On this installment of Road Show we have a chat with Ron Ayres of ayresadventures.com
Ayers has one of those great stories, the kind we love here at Road Show of lives being transformed by motorcycling.





In his book, Against the Wind, he skillfully recounts the tale of of a high-power, high pressure executive who, after a couple of missing the run a couple of times due to work conflict, runs the Iron Butt rally in 1995. Although it is his first attempt, he scores well, gets hooked, and after retiring in 1999 formed his tour company.

Now operating off of several continents Ayres is quick to point out that, although some of his destinations represent the holy grails of adventure motorcycling, his tours are of the premium variety meaning mostly pavement and five star hotels.

Having just returned from a 14,000 mile scouting trip in the Ukon and Alaska Ayres continues to expand his horizons and makes new opportunities for his customers.

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Also in this edition....



A shout out to my friends at the Willard Cantina and Cafe who served me such a great meal. Look for a full review in the next edition of Road Show Magazine.

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AAAAAAAAAAAAAnnnnnnd finally, the return of Ghetto Garage and the weirdest wrenching day ever.


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The Roswell Episode...

The making of this episode of Road Show has been so freaking' bizzare if I didn't believe in Aliens before I can certainly see there input in this situation.

Rewind a couple of weeks. We had just recently arrived here and I had alredy met up with some of my new biker buddies. We had only been in town a few days and they invited me out to the major boonies. I Googled the address they gave me and thought I had everything wrapped up. But out here in the high desert maps and reality seem to have little correlation outside of the major metro areas.

Long story short hereI ended up being lost, at night in the desert. Even though I was nowhere near Roswell at the time I can easily see why people see things out here. It is WILD!

Ok back to the present....

The fourth of July was coming up and with it the Roswell UFO festival. Since our downsizing from a 3 bedroom house with three car garage to 750 square foot pad with micro porch we have had doggie-hosting issues. Since the house we left also had a big back yard we would just leave the doggie door open and she was good for a night or two. Now she has to be taken out manually everytime. Possible solution turn her into a motorcycle dog!




Here Tuesday aka Motorcyle Dog is Ready for her first test run

A quick run down to Einsteins Bagels and a little dog friendly public hanging go so well I, yes believe it our not, dog skeptic me, says "oh, she will be fine let's just take her to Roswell.

NOT!

What my brilliant mind failed to compute was that a trip down to the local market DOES NOT equate to a hardcore slab-ride. It is astounding how aggressive the semi-trucks are on 70 going through Albuquerque. Actually it is amazing how aggresive all cage drivers are around here. Unfortunately a great percentage of them drive aggressively, but not well. Shoulder checking and rear-view mirror using seem to be against the rules. Fortunately we had only gone 23 miles so turning around and dropping off the Wrench Wench and the pup. Then I turned around and started over.

Fast forward to Roswell....






During the UFO festival at least most of the action takes place on Main St. from Second Ave to the South running to about Fifth Ave to the north. There were also some events being run from the Civic Center and the Military Insitute about 9 blocks North. Some may call that walking distance, but me, Nah!

Alas that, like many other details of the story are beyond the scope of this blog and must wait for the next issue of Road Show Magazine.

Here are the things which are specific to the podcast.


An interview with one of the proprietors of Planet Roswell who gave us a great interview and recommended reading.

Highlights from a conversation with the proprietor of Earth Station Roswell.

A bit of fun and a bit of terror from the road...

Please see the accompanying slide show, directly to the right for a kind of random sampling of the last couple of days of photography.


Keep your eyes peeled for the full story in Road Show Magazine.