G2G Ride Report

[RedGreen]

(G2G stands for Grandma’s house to Grandma’s cabin, or Twin Lake to Kalkaska)

7:00 – We leave Twin Lake, MI to start on our journey. We had a breakfast of Pop Tarts, toast, and milk. :nod:

7:15ish – Over50 meets us on Raymond Rd., road just outside of Twin Lake. He joins us for awhile.

8:00ish – We stop at Taylor Bridge on the White River in Hesperia. Over50 heads back home

8:10 – Mile Arrive at White Cloud trailhead. The girls meet us for the first time on our trip. We get some gas and a granola bar, and head off again.

9:30ish – We enter the best trails of the trip, the Big O. It was fast, smooth, moist, and no quads!! It was basically awesome.

10:30 – Bowman Bridge. The second gas of the event. The girls had picked up some mountain dew and krispie kremes mini crullers for us, so we were pretty excited. It had warmed up quite a bit, so we switched to vented gear.

12:00 – Mile 99.9 exactly at noon on the Little O

12:10 – Mile 101.1. Baldwin, North Little O parking lot. We come up on Quadfest 2007 gathering at the trailhead. About 20 quads, 1 three-wheeler, a home-made two-seater dune-buggy, and about 6 coolers of beer, take over the quad trails, and we change our plans to go away from wherever they went. We ate some more crullers, some Gatorade, granola bars, and advil. Oh yeah, we aren’t even half way yet. Great.

1:00ish - Little M ORV trail. We passed our friends from the Little O parking lot, part of Quadfest, parked on the North Little M parking lot. We continued on to Lincoln Hills

2:00ish – Arrive at the junction of Lincoln Hills and Boon trails. The Boon trails proceeded to flatten us into pancakes. We came up with some other names like, The Doom Psycho trail (Boon Cycle trail), Stump Junction, and the Root Canal. :p It was tight, slow, rough and whooped. We laid down what looked to be like the first set of tracks in like 5 years… I wonder why?? There were more roots and stumps on that trail than any trail I had ever seen. It was nasty. :bang:

2:45 - Mile 133.5. M-55 crossing – No pit crew!! They were supposed to meet us at the MCCCT crossing on M-55, but they accidentally went too far down the road to the snowmobile trail crossing. No big deal, we called them and they fixed it. We used about a half bottle of Anti-Monke Butt powder. I put some tape on my palms now, because my blisters were getting blisters from the Root Canal. There worst was yet to come.

3:30 – We got back in the nasty stuff again. Everything Mother Nature could think of throwing at us, she did. There were thirty-year-old trees down on off-camber trails, stumps the size of manhole covers that made it like riding through a mine-field, whoops that could have filled an underground pool, and I swear I even saw a jaguar running alongside the trail, through the jungle. It would have been fun if we hadn’t just rode 150 flippin’ miles. :coocoo:

4:45ish – Cross M-115. Awesome single track! It looked like it had been made about a month ago.

5:30 – Mile 176.4. Baxter Bridge, Manistee river crossing. Fifth and final gas. We reached the home stretch!!

6:30 – Grand Traverse trail. Almost there! There’s dust everywhere.

7:40 – Mile 223.6. We reach the finish line!! It was a very very long day, but it was totally worth it, and totally awesome, dude!! We will definitely do it again. Maybe even as an organized event, with more participants!!

:cool:

Pics will follow.

 

[YZMAN400]

(2:00ish – Arrive at the junction of Lincoln Hills and Boon trails. The Boon trails proceeded to flatten us into pancakes. We came up with some other names like, The Doom Psycho trail (Boon Cycle trail), Stump Junction, and the Root Canal. :p It was tight, slow, rough and whooped. We laid down what looked to be like the first set of tracks in like 5 years… I wonder why?? There were more roots and stumps on that trail than any trail I had ever seen. It was nasty. :bang:

Oh common..I was just thru there May 1st. Then again at the end of January (in the snow) There should be lots of tracks on the ground! :nener:

3:30 – We got back in the nasty stuff again. Everything Mother Nature could think of throwing at us, she did. There were thirty-year-old trees down on off-camber trails, stumps the size of manhole covers that made it like riding through a mine-field, whoops that could have filled an underground pool, and I swear I even saw a jaguar running alongside the trail, through the jungle. It would have been fun if we hadn’t just rode 150 flippin’ miles. :coocoo:

Were there trees down on the trail thru there??? Thats one of the trails I help maintain and when I was out there last month there wasn't anything down. If there are lots of downed trees we may have to get back out there.

4:45ish – Cross M-115. Awesome single track! It looked like it had been made about a month ago.

Close. About 2 years ago actualy


Sounds like a fun ride. Glad you made it all the way. Cant wait to see the picts :cool:

 

[fatherandson]

Excellent report!! Thanks for sharing the good and bad experiences.

Hope to see you guys at the Pine Cone/Jack Pine. The blisters and monkey butt should heal by then.

 

[BadgerMan]

Were there trees down on the trail thru there??? Thats one of the trails I help maintain and when I was out there last month there wasn't anything down. If there are lots of downed trees we may have to get back out there.

Yeah, there was some storm damage blocking the trail completely. You will need to get back in there with your saw. There is a large tree blocking the trail south of 55 and two or three blocking the trail north of 55. They are in the really thick over grown areas.........difficult to get around.

There is a very large tree across a dirt road on the MCCCT south of Baxter Bridge just over a rise in the road. That one is pretty dangerous, IMO. It was in that maze of numbered roads....may have been N 19 1/2 Road.

BE CAREFUL IF YOU ARE IN THAT AREA! :nod:

 

[YZMAN400]

Thanks. I passed on the info.

 

[woodsy]

WOW - sounds like you two had a BLAST!! Great write up and also lookin forward to those AWESOME pics!
Woodsy

 

[Don Marsh]

Sound like fun, I would like to try it sometime.
Don

 

[Fred T]

Sweet ride. What did grandma make ya for dinner? :nod:

 

[SPARKEY]

Looks like YZman400 was right
"Looks to be about 12.5 hours of ride time". :nod:

what a Awesom ride for a father and son, to make memories for a life time.

congraulations

 

[3KDXXR2]

Glad you guys made it in one piece.Cant wait to see the pictures. How bad where the blisters?. Did you both ride 250 2strokes? How many miles did you get on your tanks. Man you guys are sooo lucky to have the girls pit for you like that. They are top notch in my book :cool:

 

[SweepRider]

G2G Pit Crew Ride Report

Hey, it’s Hurricane, I thought I’d write a report from the Pit Crew’s side of the story. So my mom, Sweep Rider, and I ran gas for the boys, meeting them at five different spots.

My mom picked me up from Evart on Friday, June 22 after I was at Springhill camps for the week. We drove home to Grand Rapids where Ian and my Dad were waiting for us with the truck packed and bikes loaded.
From there the four of us drove to Twin Lake, which is northeast of Muskegon. There we stayed at my Grandma’s house for the night, hence the first ‘G’ in G to G. The next morning, we woke up at 6:00 a.m. We scrambled to get ready and eventually, the boys left at 7:00 a.m. My mom and I had breakfast and pulled out at 7:30. We rushed to get to Hesperia, but on the way there, we drove past Power’s Motor Sports where my KDX was bought a few years ago. The first gas stop was at the White Cloud Trailhead. Our timing was perfect because the boys arrived not even five minutes later. While there, my mom received directions from my dad to the next stop at Bowman Bridge over the Pere Marquette River.

On the way there, we stopped in White Cloud to get ‘second breakfast’ at Sally’s. I had a huge waffle with strawberries and whip cream and my mom had pancakes with ham and eggs. We compared that to the pop-tarts, toast, and milk that the boys had. After that, we walked over to the food mart where we got some snacks for the guys. We then drove to Bowman Bridge, where our timing again was perfect because we parked and took cameras out to the road and saw the boys turn out from the trail. We chased them back to the parking lot where, to their delight, they discovered food. They fueled up and took off. We packed up and headed to the next stop at Wolf Lake, the Little ‘O’ Trailhead.

On the way there, we ‘lost our way’ into Peacock. After looking at all the sweet KTM stuff, we went on to the trailhead. Again, our timing was perfect because we saw the boys pull in just as we turned into the parking lot. At this point, Ian’s odometer read 101.1 which was not even half-way, we later found out. After the boys pigged out on Fig Newtons and Gatorade, they took off onto the Little ‘M’. The pit crew took off to the next gas stop which was somewhere where M-55 crossed the trail.

First though, we ‘detoured’ through the Dublin General Store where we picked up some awesome jerky and bagels for the guys’ lunch. We went back to M-55 and found a spot which we thought was the stop. Don’t blame the pit crew because a certain father gave us vague descriptions. “It’s the dirt bike trail that crosses M-55” doesn’t work. Dad eventually called and we found them and they ate and left, but not before applying the famous Monkey Butt Powder. You can imagine why. The boys continued on their long journey and we went to Baxter Bridge which was over the Little Manistee River.

The timing wasn’t so great this time because we had to wait two hours for the boys to get there. I fell asleep as mom ran around taking pictures and the boys came eventually. They looked pretty sore. The odometer read 176.4 and the boys ate and ate some more. Ian asked me if I was tired and said I just woke up. He gave me that look. Anyways, they went off on the home stretch and we drove toward the cabin and stopped in Northland in Kalkaska and got supplies for dinner, which later turned into Mom’s awesome chicken stir fry.

We got to the cabin and unloaded. About five minutes later, we heard bikes in the distance. After rushing to get the ‘filming equipment’, we saw them coming all excited and such. What a day!

The whole thing was inspired by Long Way Round, two English guys that ride around the world, and we’re already planning our next trip, which is to start at 7:00p.m. Stay tuned.

 

[SweepRider]

SweepRider’s Executive Summary:

1 Restaurant stop: $8.00
2 Gas can refills $15.00
3 Grocery Store supply runs $55.00
4 AA Batteries to run the camera $10.00
5 Gas Stops $30.00
180 Miles in the F150 + 12.5 Hours creating an adventure with your kids = PRICELESS :nod:

 

[Z-8]

Awsome reports from everyone :cool:!!
You guys ROCK!!

 

[woodsy]

Now THAT is one of the funnest, coolest ride reports I have read in a longgg time! I 100% enjoyed the family approach of a Dad and son out getting it done, then with Hurricanes chiming in with the P.C.'s perspective and the followup of the executive report - folks, THAT was/is very well done indeed! From a person who misses ripping up the woods very much I say THANK YOU!!!
Hey Hurricane,, you mentioned Springhill.. Does the name Doug Blakemore ring a bell with you?? Years ago I was Night Superintendent at Baker College in Cadillac for a while and I shared offices with him. He had just finished his Masters at Ferris and we hired him to Head up the CIS Dept at the school,, it wouldnt surprise me if he is still hard at it up yonder.. Do you guys know him??

 

[Fred T]

Hey RGO and Badger and Sweep and Hurricane........


That is some of the coolest stuff right there man. :cool:

You will remember that trip for the rest of your lives for sure.


NOW think about this....
at the ISDE the riders ride about that much for 5 days (about 200 miles a day) with special tests and then at the end of the day they get to work on their bikes for 15 minutes. :yikes: Can you imagine that now? :whoa:



Anyway, hearing both sides of the story is awesome and some how the "ladies" fit some shopping into the trip, they always do! :cool:



Awsome stuff!

 

[INCA]

Thank you for refreshing the memory of almost four years ago. Rides of this type will be with you forever, I know mine will.

Young Ted

 

[Smit-Dog]

Awesome adventure! :cool:

 

[RedGreen]

Here's the pictures:
http://s211.photobucket.com/albums/bb226/KTMboy89/G2G/

I hope this works, let me know if it doesn't

Most of them are self-explainitory, but if you want to know details about them, go ahead and shoot

Here's the hi-res copies:

http://s211.photobucket.com/albums/bb226/KTMboy89/G2G%20Hi-res/

 

[morgan]

Man if more families were into stuff like this the world would be a better place. I just don't get it when various "groups" try to shut down motorized recreation.

 

[BadgerMan]

Oh common..I was just thru there May 1st. Then again at the end of January (in the snow) There should be lots of tracks on the ground!

It's true man......we did not see a track between Lincoln Bridge and Boon. We were told that it had rained mid-week and the hills were really washed out. The roots hammered us and the trail was pretty grown over, more than I remembered. Up until that point I was thinking this ride was going to be a breeze. A couple hours later I had changed my mind!

Hope to see you guys at the Pine Cone/Jack Pine. The blisters and monkey butt should heal by then.

Planning on it..........no blisters and the powder did its job!

Sound like fun, I would like to try it sometime.

We are thinking about doing the trip in reverse, starting at 7:00PM!

Sweet ride. What did grandma make ya for dinner?

She ordered pizza the night before we left! LOL!

what a Awesom ride for a father and son, to make memories for a life time.

congraulations

The only way it could have been better is if you would have been riding with us............and if you were supplying the post ride celebratory beverages. :cool:

Did you both ride 250 2strokes? How many miles did you get on your tanks. Man you guys are sooo lucky to have the girls pit for you like that. They are top notch in my book

Yeah, I rode the 250 2T. I suggested that I ride the 450 but Ian said that would be cheating. When we got to Baldwin via the faster ORV width stuff I said, "man, I wish I would have taken the beloved MW450". However, after riding from Lincoln Hills to M115 I said, "man, I am glad I did not ride that 450"!

We never went more than about 40 miles between gas stops so range was never a problem.

Heck, I'm lucky enough to have a girl let alone one who will pit for me! Yes, they are both top notch.

From a person who misses ripping up the woods very much I say THANK YOU!!!

You are so welcome!

NOW think about this....
at the ISDE the riders ride about that much for 5 days (about 200 miles a day) with special tests and then at the end of the day they get to work on their bikes for 15 minutes. Can you imagine that now?

Can't imagine that. However, Tanya did "make" me go running with her the next morning!

Thank you for refreshing the memory of almost four years ago.

You are so welcome! I guess that recounting the memories is the next best thing to making them, eh? I wish that I could do it again, with you, this weekend.

Man if more families were into stuff like this the world would be a better place. I just don't get it when various "groups" try to shut down motorized recreation.

Yeah, I look back at how our riding opportunities have diminished over the last thirty years or so and I worry about whether or not my grandkids will be able to enjoy the same freedoms that we take for granted. That's why I do these things with the kids......in hopes that their passion for the sport will prompt them to continue to fight for their right to ride free.

Thanks all for sharing in our little adventure. :nod:

 

[SNDMN2]

SweepRider’s Executive Summary:

1 Restaurant stop: $8.00
2 Gas can refills $15.00
3 Grocery Store supply runs $55.00
4 AA Batteries to run the camera $10.00
5 Gas Stops $30.00
180 Miles in the F150 + 12.5 Hours creating an adventure with your kids = PRICELESS :nod:

I rode the western part of the U.P. Trail Safarie with my 17 year old last year after we were through with trail marking for Six Days. Memories for a lifetime

Sounds like you guys had great time.Hats off to ya.

The ruts between the Lincoln Bridge and Caberfee were probobly the result of our futile attempt to do trail maintanance earlier in the spring when we had all that soft snow :rotfl: