I haven't done Uncle's the last few years, so this time was like riding BBNP and TR for the first time. I had the pleasure of riding with some great guys including Scott (Stingray), Tim Bearden and his brother Terry, Kentucky Ken, Moose, Colton, and the last addition Marshall from Virginia. We were a fast group of riders, hence no many pictures were taken. Tim and I met Moose and Colton Thursday afternoon as we were about to head out explore Valley of the Moon and S. Co. Road as a warm up ride. They asked us if they could join us and we were glad to have them join us. Tim found the tracks using his phone app and they consided with the tracks JT had share with Scott and I. We started the track right behind the RV Park and we quickly figured out that Moose and Colton were fast riders. We had a great time riding through the area and measuring each other skills. Colton and Moose quickly showed us that the only reason they stayed behind was because they had no GPS tracks to follow. We arrived at Start Light about 4:00pm and enjoyed a few cold brews there as we got to know each other a bit more.
Friday ride started early since we wanted to beat the line at the park entrance. We got there before 8:00 am and nobody was at the entrance booth. We had a group of 7 to start with but we quickly went down to 6 as Ken lose his oil plug and had to stop just after Santa Elena Canyon trail head. Fortunatelly, Colton had spotted an oil drip during one of our stops to regroup and caught up with Ken just in time to let him know of his misfortune.
We evetually got a message through Curtis and he came to the rescue, way to go Curtis. Funny how the world turns! Once we secured rescue for Kentuky Ken, we continue riding to River Rd, Blak Gap, Old Ore, and bact to town. We had a blast riding those roads.
Moose and Colton decided they were going to head out back to Ok. for a race they already had scheduled. Moose gracefully donated the oil plug from his bike so Ken could at least ride one day, Saturday. Way to go Moose! Kentucky Ken had a smile bigger than the cat from Alice in Wonderland once he had his bike ready to ride!
Saturday: We decided to ride Valley of thre Moom again connecting to Black Canyon, TR and back to S. Co. Rd toward Top of the World. Black Canyon proved to be a great section worth the effort. Just as we were out of that track, we met a group of riders and one of them asked us if we could take one more rider. We gladly accepted and we came to meet Marshall and his KTM 990 Adventure. The biggest bike in our group this far was a 701. Marshall quickly showed us how a 990 should be ridden. He could have overtaken any of us in 530's or 500's, but again, he had no tracks and was completly new to the area. He had a smile like the previously mentioned cat as well during the whole ride.
We were about to reach TOTW when we ran into a group that had a fallen rider. The later did not looked too well as he laid on the ground. We enquired about his well being and were notified that he was "okay" but hurting. We offer our assistance, but they already had sent for help. Later on our way back, we went through the same place and the rider was still in the same position as we saw him before, but more people trying to help. A few minutes later, we ran into the sheriff deputy and an ambulance that were on their way to help the down rider. I hope he is okay now and his injuries are not so bad.
We arrived at Starlight porch about 3:00pm, enjoyed a few brewskies with the group and eventually said our goodbies to Marshall. The wind had picked up quite a bit making it look like a sand storm. The town eventually lost power and we went to diner at the Taqueria, great choice since the food was great and they closed just after we finished eating. They could run the kitchen, and the Ipads with their generator, but no bathroom light! That's my take!
Thank you Richard and your wife for putting this together. I am sure there are others behind the scene, and I thank you as well.
Mud Missile