DAKAR OKLAHOMA or how to ride the wheels off your bike
PROLOGUE
Ive always stood amazed at endurance racing in its finest form. That would be the Dakar, and the ISDE as a close second. The requirements of bike, rider, conditions, support, and just plain luck always seem to make it a sketchy thing. Jeff Fredette is one of my heros as is people like Meoni, Depres, and Peterhansel. The race is not just speed but grit and focus to the end. Of course Im none of the above but I do like to ride and mileage is a measure of riding. As a result, I like to check my odometer at the end of the day.
THE IDEA
I have always wanted to participate in a long distance multiday event but never had the money to do Baja or the Nevada to Reno deal. I have done multiday dualsport rides that racked up 200 mile days but most of that was two track stuff. I wanted to feel what the ISDE guys feel at the end of day 6. You know the day when you really don’t want to ride but HAVE to. Some say the pain in any kind of endurance event is unique. I have competed in some sprint triathalons and have an inkling about the grind to the end thing. That said, a couple of years ago I thought I could do my own 6 Days by incorporating 6 different riding areas. I bounced my musings off some forums and actually got some responses. The original plan was to ride the following.
1. Barnwell
2. INT
3. Stillwater 500
4. Lake Draper OKC
5. Crossbar
6. Muenster
The goal was to ride 50 miles each place and in consecutive days. Logistics, riding, bike maintenance, and finding ways to rest would be the challenge. After a consult this winter, it was decided to be run on Spring Break to accommodate some of the riders. In the end we trimmed it to 4 places to fit some more schedules. We ended up dropping Barnwell and Muenster.
Like most group rides, we lost a few riders before we even began. In the end there were only two of us going to make all four days and boy what a four days it was.
THE RIDERS
There were lots of riders that participated in this ride. Most only did one day but it allowed for a good time. The major plus for traveling circus was that I would get to ride with many of my Oklahoma friends. Some days we had 6-8 and some days there were only two. Riders included myself tx246, billyij ( Mike), Dwrek(Derek),Buzzardflats (Jim), Kramer, OKKXR(Don), Bswift (Brian),CraigEnid(Craig), Crashnburn (Dr. Don), Jeff, Lorin, and Oldmaiconut (Butch).
THE EQUIPMENT
There was an eclectic collection of bikes on this ride. Quite a few KTMs, a GasGas, a Honda, and a couple of hot rod Yzs. We chose a Honda for tow vehicle…..a Honda Accord that is. A tired 200,000 mile work car with a hitch hauled us around quite nicely at the tune of 24mpg or so.
THURSDAY AFTERNOON
I am packed and heading home from work. The wifes car is making a noise. I speed up and it goes away. I slow down and it comes back. I speed up to see where it goes away and GOTCHA said the nice police officer. That would be a 47 in a 30 to my local court fine. Damn. Mike and I decide to get a late start so we can spend the afternoon with our respective families. He pulls into town around 6pm and we load up quickly while Im going over my mental checklist in my head. I hit the garage door button for a final time and the cable comes off the drum. For those of you who know what that means, quit snickering. Now my door is half off the track and we have to manually lower and lock the door. Ill tackle that when I get back. Im getting an uneasy feeling about this trip. Anyway, we make the trip north to Talahina and it is uneventful. We arrive late and quickly find Dwrek and Crashnburn snoring in a tent. Well, it is 12:30am. It was apparent that it had been raining pretty hard prior to our arrival. We set up tents and tried to get some rest.
FRIDAY (INDIAN NATIONS TRAIL)
Ive written about the INT before and to sum it up in two words is pretty easy. Think RELENTLESS and ADVENTURE. You never know what is going to happen out there on that 26 mile track. Some of us had been here before, and some of us had not. The INT is for people who like to ride and that is all I have to say about that.
We awoke to clouds on the ground. That was not good as we were waiting for Jim and Kramer. Oh yeah, Kramer is our token semifamous person. Kramer is somebody I met at work. He works in our autoshop and he had a DirtRider24hr Tshirt on. I asked him if rode and he said yes. Then he went on to say his uncle writes for DR and I quickly recognized the family resemblence before he got to blurt his uncles name (Karel Kramer). Jim and Karel Kramers nephew were hoofing it up early in the morning to make our anticipated 9am start. Nine am came and went and I got a phone call. Seems in the fog, they missed their turn which also means they missed their gas stop, which means they siphoned gas out of the bikes twice to make it to the parking lot.
It is 10am and we are still not quite riding on the pegs but we are close. The time comes and we are all running and heading to the trail. The ground is wet (no dust today!!) but not muddy. Looking good! We round the first corner and WTH? I swear it looks like somebody sabotaged the trail. Every 3-4” pine tree was bent over the trail as if on purpose. We quickly realized this was storm damage from the snow/ice storm a week ago. We have to reroute through the bush….make that sticker bushes. It isn’t looking good. At this pace, we wont make 6 miles. About a mile in the trail opens up and we get moving.
Of course the first 3 miles are what armpump is all about. It is here that you get comfortable riding rock or you don’t. They don’t stop and neither do you. We get to FS6010 and reassemble. I think everybody is having fun. I know I am and assure those new to the INT that the rocks are going to get smaller….not. Riders are starting to feel the groove and we make some time. We take a detour and make our way to a scenic overlook. We do a little rockclimbing and do some picture taking. It isn’t long before Derek is asking about food. The man is hungry so we head out. There is an uphill and I pass Kramer on his trusty XR. Thinking that he just stalled, I keep going. I get to the top and wait a bit but no Kramer. I head on back to find him scratching his head. His chain managed to jump off the sprocket and wad itself against the case. First thing I looked at was the case and luckily, there were no windows. A few smacks with a Talahina hammer (rock) and we were good to go.
Ohhhh man that was a square hit! I felt it through the rim. Now my back tire starts swaying from side to side. Yep, it’s a tire without air. Crap. I stop and start the drill by looking for a suitable bike stand. It doesn’t take long as there are plenty of rocks to choose from. Flat repair slows us down 20 min before remount our bikes and hit the trail. We get through the last gate and the trail gets fast and less rocky. Out in the sticks like we are, I try to not hero log crossings, but Mike thinks otherwise. I get to witness a superman combo auger all the way to the ground on a log crossing gone bad. It was a nasty get off but did not require stitches or real medical care. Food is a callin’ and we blast the last section. I get some good water crossing pictures at Billy Creek. We then take the slow road into Muse and get some grub. As Im rolling my bike to the gas pump, I notice a front tire that looks like it has 3lbs left in it. The Flatmonster is stalking me!! I got to spend the late lunch busting tire. Thank you Jim for getting my deli sandwich. By the way, those sandwiches rival the burgers.
After lunch we powwow a bit and decide to hoof it back as far as we can on the INT before bailing due to darkness. Its 4:45 when we actually leave the parking lot. Our goal was to go back the way we came. We are hooking it pretty good and making good time. No BS stops, no picture breaks….just riding. Well, until the turkey shows up. It just ran along the trail for a bit then flared to the right. We ride another half a mile or so and stop to check up on my tail. Lets see I got Kramer, Dr. Don, and Derek. Where are Jim and Mike? Kramer says they bailed off the trail in chase of the turkey. What was he thinking? He knows turkey season isn’t for another two weeks. We wait a bit and hear nothing. Jim and I talked about a bailout a couple of miles up the trail. I thought he might of taken an alternative route. He was equipped with the same GPS software as was Mike and I. We decided to press on and wait at the intersection.
We made steady progress and soon made the intersection. We waited and heard nothing. Crap again as I hate when I don’t know whats going on. Jim is comfortable with navigation in the area and so I chose not to worry until there was reason. Our little group decided that there was enough daylight to press on to the next bail out. The sun low in the sky and we are riding due west most of the time. I love the strobe light effect while riding through the trees….not really. At this point, Im having those “near cramps” of death. You know the kind that will lock you up if you put any more pressure on them. So I have to sit the last part of the ride and beat on my butt some more. We make it to the last bailout and wait once more for the turkey chasing duo. After 10 min or so, we decide that we really didn’t want to ride the last part of the INT back to the truck due to the fallen trees. It is here we bail out and head back the last 5-6 miles on gravel. One last adventure moment when my bike goes silent. First thought was fouled plug but as I was coasting to a stop, I realized I was out of fuel. Turns out my 200exc is good for at least 68miles on one tank. We buzz back into the park under the cover of twilight. Im still not worried yet. Finally, I hear them coming down from the north on pavement. Reunited and beat we load bikes. It is here that we say see ya to Jim and Kramer. They crawl into the van and make there way back to Texas. We clean up and break camp.
Its 8:45 when we leave the State Park and make our way north to Dereks house in Stillwater. Mike is having a go at a Crampathon and he is really good at it. I really felt for him. Read that as I was glad it was him and not me….j/k. We stop for food at a Braums. Poor Mike took 10 min to get from the car to the table as his legs were not functioning as the Big Man intended. Table discussion went straight to Dr. Dons Cramp Seminar. He thinks that salt is the answer. Mike likes bananas so he bought two plain and one more with ice cream aka banana split. I started pouring table salt in my water. I really hate cramps. We hit the road and drop the soon to be Dr. Don off at his digs in Jenks, Ok. We are in the home stretch to Stillwater now. Another hour goes by and we throw coins every 15 min into the Toll Booth. Stillwater lights show up and we follow Derek in to town. After everything is settled we get to bed at 2:30am with plans to be at the 500 by 9AM. This is the logistics and trying to find rest thing I was talking about in the beginning.
SATURDAY (THE 500)
Its 7am and somehow last night we let Dereks roommate Cooper the Cat out of the house. Problem is that Cooper is strictly an inside critter. Lucky for us, he was waiting at the door when we opened it. It is grey and cold but dry. We load up the vehicles and hook up the trailer. We lost Jim and Kramer but would be picking up some new guys today. First was Jeff from Mo. and he was waiting outside Dereks first thing in the morning. I rode once with Jeff at our virgin attempt at the INT a couple of hundred years ago. Anyway, its off to the scheduled work day at the 500.
We pull into the gate and there are 20 or so club members armed with surveyor tape, aerial maps, loppers and bow saws. Head honchos get their heads together and make a rough plan. It looks like there is some unused area without trail on the place and the plan was to make some trail in there. Right off the bat, I see Don. We get to chatting pretty quickly and it isn’t long before Craig and Brian show up. I forget introductions (my wife hates this) and Mike, who never met a stranger, introduces himself to my friends. Sorry Mike. Mike has had lots of experience with trail making and dives right in. Im relegated to cutting and hacking stuff for the next couple of hours. Before we know it, there is a call for lunch. Just in time as I was thinking of chewing on cedar berries for sustenance.
Lunch was a full BBQ buffet complete with homemade desserts. I think I ate too much. There was much discussion about what still needed to be done but I was getting itchy as it was getting late in the day. Derek felt obligated to continue working but asked the trail elders if these humble visitors could ride. We were told to suit up and take Don with us. So we did. The plan was to ride the first lap and then pick up Derek, Jeff, Craig, and Brian for lap two of the place.
Helmet cam in place and bikes ready to go, we head out on lap one. Don does a great job at keeping pace. Stillwater has oneway trails but there are a few intersections. The best way to describe Stillwater is a motocross track in the woods single track style. They have great dirt and today it was exceptional. Moist with no mud. They do have a Rock trail. It is called the Rock trail because there is one rock on it. Quite the contrast to the INT. I think you could put a couple of thousand miles on tires here before wearing them out. We take a detour and Don shows us the remains of a rock cabin tucked away off the trail. It is rumored the Flatmonster lives here. I get uneasy as Im out of tubes. We get back on the trail and have a great lap.
After rounding up Craig, Derek, Jeff, and Brian, we head out for lap two. Local knowledge quickly shows who is quick out here. They leave Mike and I PDQ. Once we fall off their backtire, we have to navigate too. That’s OK because we are still having a blast. Stillwater has lots of trees right on the trail. Its nice and tight. I manage to clip a tree at pretty good speed. That in turn sends me off the trail and headed for major stoppage by a big tree. I clank it pretty good. Good enough that Im scared to look at my radiator. Its all good though and we continue. We make our second run through the “80” and have a blast in the Cedar Slalom. Mike and I finish off our lap with a tour of the motocross track featured in Steel Roots. The little 200’s suspension works just fine for jumping duty as I cleared a small table top. We head back to the truck and finish the day with 51 miles.
The plan for Saturday night was to meet at Hideaway Pizza. This eatery is located by the OSU campus and is a local favorite. We get there at 8:00 and it is dead for a Sat night. The only reason I can think of is Spring Break. Doesn’t matter because the food is still awesome. We eat and drink until 9:45 or so and waddle back to the casa for beer and video. At this point we say bye to Brian, Don, Craig and Mary. We then sat round Dereks computer watching the helmet cam footage. The thing works great if you lock the buttons before putting it in the backpack.
Jeff was napping on the couch so Derek got out his nice queen sized airbed for me. We got that inflated and I got comfortable. Remember Cooper the Cat? Well, he is kinda skittish and wasn’t used to a houseful of snoring dirtbikers. He wanted in my room and wanted to lay on my bed. I thought hey he likes me. Cooper is declawed and that is why he is an inside kitty. An hour or so later he is moving his feet like cats do before they lay down. And then I hear it………hssssssss. No way. In the dark I pet his back leg and it turns out that he has functional rear claws. It was a slow ride to the ground but I made it safely.
THE REST OF THIS IS IN THE NEXT POST.
PROLOGUE
Ive always stood amazed at endurance racing in its finest form. That would be the Dakar, and the ISDE as a close second. The requirements of bike, rider, conditions, support, and just plain luck always seem to make it a sketchy thing. Jeff Fredette is one of my heros as is people like Meoni, Depres, and Peterhansel. The race is not just speed but grit and focus to the end. Of course Im none of the above but I do like to ride and mileage is a measure of riding. As a result, I like to check my odometer at the end of the day.
THE IDEA
I have always wanted to participate in a long distance multiday event but never had the money to do Baja or the Nevada to Reno deal. I have done multiday dualsport rides that racked up 200 mile days but most of that was two track stuff. I wanted to feel what the ISDE guys feel at the end of day 6. You know the day when you really don’t want to ride but HAVE to. Some say the pain in any kind of endurance event is unique. I have competed in some sprint triathalons and have an inkling about the grind to the end thing. That said, a couple of years ago I thought I could do my own 6 Days by incorporating 6 different riding areas. I bounced my musings off some forums and actually got some responses. The original plan was to ride the following.
1. Barnwell
2. INT
3. Stillwater 500
4. Lake Draper OKC
5. Crossbar
6. Muenster
The goal was to ride 50 miles each place and in consecutive days. Logistics, riding, bike maintenance, and finding ways to rest would be the challenge. After a consult this winter, it was decided to be run on Spring Break to accommodate some of the riders. In the end we trimmed it to 4 places to fit some more schedules. We ended up dropping Barnwell and Muenster.
Like most group rides, we lost a few riders before we even began. In the end there were only two of us going to make all four days and boy what a four days it was.
THE RIDERS
There were lots of riders that participated in this ride. Most only did one day but it allowed for a good time. The major plus for traveling circus was that I would get to ride with many of my Oklahoma friends. Some days we had 6-8 and some days there were only two. Riders included myself tx246, billyij ( Mike), Dwrek(Derek),Buzzardflats (Jim), Kramer, OKKXR(Don), Bswift (Brian),CraigEnid(Craig), Crashnburn (Dr. Don), Jeff, Lorin, and Oldmaiconut (Butch).
THE EQUIPMENT
There was an eclectic collection of bikes on this ride. Quite a few KTMs, a GasGas, a Honda, and a couple of hot rod Yzs. We chose a Honda for tow vehicle…..a Honda Accord that is. A tired 200,000 mile work car with a hitch hauled us around quite nicely at the tune of 24mpg or so.
THURSDAY AFTERNOON
I am packed and heading home from work. The wifes car is making a noise. I speed up and it goes away. I slow down and it comes back. I speed up to see where it goes away and GOTCHA said the nice police officer. That would be a 47 in a 30 to my local court fine. Damn. Mike and I decide to get a late start so we can spend the afternoon with our respective families. He pulls into town around 6pm and we load up quickly while Im going over my mental checklist in my head. I hit the garage door button for a final time and the cable comes off the drum. For those of you who know what that means, quit snickering. Now my door is half off the track and we have to manually lower and lock the door. Ill tackle that when I get back. Im getting an uneasy feeling about this trip. Anyway, we make the trip north to Talahina and it is uneventful. We arrive late and quickly find Dwrek and Crashnburn snoring in a tent. Well, it is 12:30am. It was apparent that it had been raining pretty hard prior to our arrival. We set up tents and tried to get some rest.
FRIDAY (INDIAN NATIONS TRAIL)
Ive written about the INT before and to sum it up in two words is pretty easy. Think RELENTLESS and ADVENTURE. You never know what is going to happen out there on that 26 mile track. Some of us had been here before, and some of us had not. The INT is for people who like to ride and that is all I have to say about that.
We awoke to clouds on the ground. That was not good as we were waiting for Jim and Kramer. Oh yeah, Kramer is our token semifamous person. Kramer is somebody I met at work. He works in our autoshop and he had a DirtRider24hr Tshirt on. I asked him if rode and he said yes. Then he went on to say his uncle writes for DR and I quickly recognized the family resemblence before he got to blurt his uncles name (Karel Kramer). Jim and Karel Kramers nephew were hoofing it up early in the morning to make our anticipated 9am start. Nine am came and went and I got a phone call. Seems in the fog, they missed their turn which also means they missed their gas stop, which means they siphoned gas out of the bikes twice to make it to the parking lot.
It is 10am and we are still not quite riding on the pegs but we are close. The time comes and we are all running and heading to the trail. The ground is wet (no dust today!!) but not muddy. Looking good! We round the first corner and WTH? I swear it looks like somebody sabotaged the trail. Every 3-4” pine tree was bent over the trail as if on purpose. We quickly realized this was storm damage from the snow/ice storm a week ago. We have to reroute through the bush….make that sticker bushes. It isn’t looking good. At this pace, we wont make 6 miles. About a mile in the trail opens up and we get moving.
Of course the first 3 miles are what armpump is all about. It is here that you get comfortable riding rock or you don’t. They don’t stop and neither do you. We get to FS6010 and reassemble. I think everybody is having fun. I know I am and assure those new to the INT that the rocks are going to get smaller….not. Riders are starting to feel the groove and we make some time. We take a detour and make our way to a scenic overlook. We do a little rockclimbing and do some picture taking. It isn’t long before Derek is asking about food. The man is hungry so we head out. There is an uphill and I pass Kramer on his trusty XR. Thinking that he just stalled, I keep going. I get to the top and wait a bit but no Kramer. I head on back to find him scratching his head. His chain managed to jump off the sprocket and wad itself against the case. First thing I looked at was the case and luckily, there were no windows. A few smacks with a Talahina hammer (rock) and we were good to go.
Ohhhh man that was a square hit! I felt it through the rim. Now my back tire starts swaying from side to side. Yep, it’s a tire without air. Crap. I stop and start the drill by looking for a suitable bike stand. It doesn’t take long as there are plenty of rocks to choose from. Flat repair slows us down 20 min before remount our bikes and hit the trail. We get through the last gate and the trail gets fast and less rocky. Out in the sticks like we are, I try to not hero log crossings, but Mike thinks otherwise. I get to witness a superman combo auger all the way to the ground on a log crossing gone bad. It was a nasty get off but did not require stitches or real medical care. Food is a callin’ and we blast the last section. I get some good water crossing pictures at Billy Creek. We then take the slow road into Muse and get some grub. As Im rolling my bike to the gas pump, I notice a front tire that looks like it has 3lbs left in it. The Flatmonster is stalking me!! I got to spend the late lunch busting tire. Thank you Jim for getting my deli sandwich. By the way, those sandwiches rival the burgers.
After lunch we powwow a bit and decide to hoof it back as far as we can on the INT before bailing due to darkness. Its 4:45 when we actually leave the parking lot. Our goal was to go back the way we came. We are hooking it pretty good and making good time. No BS stops, no picture breaks….just riding. Well, until the turkey shows up. It just ran along the trail for a bit then flared to the right. We ride another half a mile or so and stop to check up on my tail. Lets see I got Kramer, Dr. Don, and Derek. Where are Jim and Mike? Kramer says they bailed off the trail in chase of the turkey. What was he thinking? He knows turkey season isn’t for another two weeks. We wait a bit and hear nothing. Jim and I talked about a bailout a couple of miles up the trail. I thought he might of taken an alternative route. He was equipped with the same GPS software as was Mike and I. We decided to press on and wait at the intersection.
We made steady progress and soon made the intersection. We waited and heard nothing. Crap again as I hate when I don’t know whats going on. Jim is comfortable with navigation in the area and so I chose not to worry until there was reason. Our little group decided that there was enough daylight to press on to the next bail out. The sun low in the sky and we are riding due west most of the time. I love the strobe light effect while riding through the trees….not really. At this point, Im having those “near cramps” of death. You know the kind that will lock you up if you put any more pressure on them. So I have to sit the last part of the ride and beat on my butt some more. We make it to the last bailout and wait once more for the turkey chasing duo. After 10 min or so, we decide that we really didn’t want to ride the last part of the INT back to the truck due to the fallen trees. It is here we bail out and head back the last 5-6 miles on gravel. One last adventure moment when my bike goes silent. First thought was fouled plug but as I was coasting to a stop, I realized I was out of fuel. Turns out my 200exc is good for at least 68miles on one tank. We buzz back into the park under the cover of twilight. Im still not worried yet. Finally, I hear them coming down from the north on pavement. Reunited and beat we load bikes. It is here that we say see ya to Jim and Kramer. They crawl into the van and make there way back to Texas. We clean up and break camp.
Its 8:45 when we leave the State Park and make our way north to Dereks house in Stillwater. Mike is having a go at a Crampathon and he is really good at it. I really felt for him. Read that as I was glad it was him and not me….j/k. We stop for food at a Braums. Poor Mike took 10 min to get from the car to the table as his legs were not functioning as the Big Man intended. Table discussion went straight to Dr. Dons Cramp Seminar. He thinks that salt is the answer. Mike likes bananas so he bought two plain and one more with ice cream aka banana split. I started pouring table salt in my water. I really hate cramps. We hit the road and drop the soon to be Dr. Don off at his digs in Jenks, Ok. We are in the home stretch to Stillwater now. Another hour goes by and we throw coins every 15 min into the Toll Booth. Stillwater lights show up and we follow Derek in to town. After everything is settled we get to bed at 2:30am with plans to be at the 500 by 9AM. This is the logistics and trying to find rest thing I was talking about in the beginning.
SATURDAY (THE 500)
Its 7am and somehow last night we let Dereks roommate Cooper the Cat out of the house. Problem is that Cooper is strictly an inside critter. Lucky for us, he was waiting at the door when we opened it. It is grey and cold but dry. We load up the vehicles and hook up the trailer. We lost Jim and Kramer but would be picking up some new guys today. First was Jeff from Mo. and he was waiting outside Dereks first thing in the morning. I rode once with Jeff at our virgin attempt at the INT a couple of hundred years ago. Anyway, its off to the scheduled work day at the 500.
We pull into the gate and there are 20 or so club members armed with surveyor tape, aerial maps, loppers and bow saws. Head honchos get their heads together and make a rough plan. It looks like there is some unused area without trail on the place and the plan was to make some trail in there. Right off the bat, I see Don. We get to chatting pretty quickly and it isn’t long before Craig and Brian show up. I forget introductions (my wife hates this) and Mike, who never met a stranger, introduces himself to my friends. Sorry Mike. Mike has had lots of experience with trail making and dives right in. Im relegated to cutting and hacking stuff for the next couple of hours. Before we know it, there is a call for lunch. Just in time as I was thinking of chewing on cedar berries for sustenance.
Lunch was a full BBQ buffet complete with homemade desserts. I think I ate too much. There was much discussion about what still needed to be done but I was getting itchy as it was getting late in the day. Derek felt obligated to continue working but asked the trail elders if these humble visitors could ride. We were told to suit up and take Don with us. So we did. The plan was to ride the first lap and then pick up Derek, Jeff, Craig, and Brian for lap two of the place.
Helmet cam in place and bikes ready to go, we head out on lap one. Don does a great job at keeping pace. Stillwater has oneway trails but there are a few intersections. The best way to describe Stillwater is a motocross track in the woods single track style. They have great dirt and today it was exceptional. Moist with no mud. They do have a Rock trail. It is called the Rock trail because there is one rock on it. Quite the contrast to the INT. I think you could put a couple of thousand miles on tires here before wearing them out. We take a detour and Don shows us the remains of a rock cabin tucked away off the trail. It is rumored the Flatmonster lives here. I get uneasy as Im out of tubes. We get back on the trail and have a great lap.
After rounding up Craig, Derek, Jeff, and Brian, we head out for lap two. Local knowledge quickly shows who is quick out here. They leave Mike and I PDQ. Once we fall off their backtire, we have to navigate too. That’s OK because we are still having a blast. Stillwater has lots of trees right on the trail. Its nice and tight. I manage to clip a tree at pretty good speed. That in turn sends me off the trail and headed for major stoppage by a big tree. I clank it pretty good. Good enough that Im scared to look at my radiator. Its all good though and we continue. We make our second run through the “80” and have a blast in the Cedar Slalom. Mike and I finish off our lap with a tour of the motocross track featured in Steel Roots. The little 200’s suspension works just fine for jumping duty as I cleared a small table top. We head back to the truck and finish the day with 51 miles.
The plan for Saturday night was to meet at Hideaway Pizza. This eatery is located by the OSU campus and is a local favorite. We get there at 8:00 and it is dead for a Sat night. The only reason I can think of is Spring Break. Doesn’t matter because the food is still awesome. We eat and drink until 9:45 or so and waddle back to the casa for beer and video. At this point we say bye to Brian, Don, Craig and Mary. We then sat round Dereks computer watching the helmet cam footage. The thing works great if you lock the buttons before putting it in the backpack.
Jeff was napping on the couch so Derek got out his nice queen sized airbed for me. We got that inflated and I got comfortable. Remember Cooper the Cat? Well, he is kinda skittish and wasn’t used to a houseful of snoring dirtbikers. He wanted in my room and wanted to lay on my bed. I thought hey he likes me. Cooper is declawed and that is why he is an inside kitty. An hour or so later he is moving his feet like cats do before they lay down. And then I hear it………hssssssss. No way. In the dark I pet his back leg and it turns out that he has functional rear claws. It was a slow ride to the ground but I made it safely.
THE REST OF THIS IS IN THE NEXT POST.
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