Well as promised Long Lake and Missauke Junction.
Left the house around 7:30am once my buddy Joe (CRF450) picked me up. It was raining, but the weatherman said that it wasn’t in Cadillac. We will see. WE got past Big Rapids and it was still raining. We got to just south of Cadillac and it was still raining. We got to the trail head at Long Lake and the Gods smiled on us, it stopped raining. It was cloudy overcast and cool. It had been raining here and the ground was moist and tacky. This was looking like the makings of a great day.
My buddy Jim (YZ426) and his riding partner Scott (DRZ400) were already there. Soon after Denny(KTM300EXC) arrived with his son Gavin (KDX200). All these guys are friends of mine from another dirtbike site (COUGH thumpertalk COUGH COUGH) We all chatted a little as we geared up. Scott pointed out that Skippy had a boo boo. I looked at what he was showing me and sure enough, Skippy has a flat spot on her rear rim. Oh well just a reason for me to get them black Excel rims.
Another fella drove up with a KTM525 and his buddy soon thereafter on another 525. They introduced themselves as Dave (1) and Dave (2). So we were ready to go with our total numbering 8 riders.
Picture=> Long Lake staging area
I have never rode Long Lake and have been Johnzing all summer to it. So to say I was happy to be on the trail was an understatement. We quickly found our running order and rode on. Joe, Jim, Dave and I all took turns leading for a while. But it was obvious that our new friend Dave1 was by far faster than the rest of us, because as he got ahead he was gone.
Joe told us about how Scott on the Drz with bald tires was going down a sandy hill with both brakes locked up and was picking up speed. He wacked a tree at the bottom and just before he hit the ground hit his blinker. Pretty considerate of him to hit the hazzard lights before crashing. That turned into the running joke of the day.
I let Scott ride my 250X for a while. He stopped after and complained “Why did you let me ride that now I want one” His DRZ with bald street tires and tall gearing wasn’t the bike of choice for the day. Which kept him at the back of the pack all day. But that’s ok as Scott and Jim had only been riding for just over a year and were both still learning.
This trail was tight, rooty, muddy in spots, and sandy. I suspected that I would be able to run at the front in these conditions. A little history here. A month or so ago Joe and Gavin laid out a woopin on me at Little O. I was seeking a little vengeance today.
As I was trailing along behind Joe I did manage to pass him in these tight conditions 2x. The 1st was on a tight little snake trail that I spotted and managed to cut him off with a big ol smile on my face. The 2nd time wasn’t as big a victory as he was lying on the ground with Gavin stuck behind him. With them behind me I turned it up trying to catch Dave1 and Jim. As I came around a deeply rutted out cornered hill I came to a screeching stop behind Dave1 had crashed in the deep rut. He was fine and seconds latter I was chasing him again only to find him laying under his bike again in the exact same manner as the 1st time. This time I contemplated passing him on the 6” of trail next to him but realized that if he lifted his bike up as I came but he would take me out so I waited. We continued on and as before Dave1 left me behind only to have me come around another corner to find him on the ground again. This time I got past him and took off in chase of Jim, who I thought was still in front even though I couldn’t find even a trace of him. Eventually I found him stopped and waiting for the rest of us.
Picture => Rest Stop
As we stopped and chatted I learned a little history about Dave1. he had raced enduros in the past but couldn’t because he was laid up most of the summer with injuries. I asked if he got hurt in the UP and he said yep. I asked if his buddy got help from someone in a neighboring home that was a EMT and he said yep. I said I know you!!! Here is his picture.
Picture => Lightning fast Dave
Well we continued on for a while with Dave1 and Joe out front. I was having fun taking turns ridding behind everyone else getting to know there riding styles. I came around a corner to find Gavin stopped and Jim picking his bike up. Latter on I came around a corner to find Gavin just getting moving (there were a lot of footprints on the ground) a crash perhaps?
I managed to get a few action shots. So here ya go.
Picture => Denny
Picture => Joe
Picture => Scott
Picture => Me and Skippy
At our last stop Dave informed us that he was gonna ride the remainder of the trail nonstop. And as he was getting his helmet on I hit the e-button and was off. Joe said that Dave1 had a big ol grin on his face as he took off after me some 30 sec latter. I was riding with all I had to try to hold off Dave but with like 2 miles to go he caught me. I tried turning it up harder riding way way beyond my comfort level, taking stupid chances, and I still couldn’t loose him. Man that guy is fast.
We all gathered back at the staging area. Joe had mentioned earlier that his shoulder was bothering him from a crash last weekend at Big Air and didn’t know if he wanted to ride Missauke. But once back at the staging area he said he was game. So we loaded up and headed to Missauke.
Once at Missauke we lost Dave2 but gained a friend of Denny’s on a XR400 that was waiting for us when we got back to the staging area at Long Lake
Picture => Missauke staging area.
Joe had said that he had to get home by 6:00pm an it was already 2:30pm so I knew we had to keep up a good pace. No one else wanted to lead so I jumped in and headed out. I had heard that this trail had been destroyed by the quads…. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. The trail was awesome. Maybe it was the recent rain that helped but I was having a riot. Dave was right on my tail and I decided that I wasn’t gonna stop and was gonna run the entire trail. Maybe I can just outlast Dave if I cant outrun him. No such luck. He never got more than 20 feet behind me the entire 18 miles. Joe was within sight of us but eventually fell behind and was gone. At one point I overshot a corner big time and as I brakeslid to the top of the berm teetering there I glanced over my shoulder to see Dave with red in his eyes and his clutch finger twitching. I dumped the clutch with a big ol smile and managed to stay ahead.
An hour later we pulled back in the staging are with no one else around us. Dave and I had big ol smiles on our faces. He said that a long run like that was exactly what he needed. I suspected as much which is why I went ahead with him and pushed thru the entire thing.
5 min latter Gavin and his dad pulled in and about 5 min after that Joe, Jim, and Scott followed. We all told a few trail tales and loaded up to head home.
All told I think everyone except Denny spent some time on the ground during the day including me.
I think I have found 2 more favorite trails to ride on. If you get the chance to ride these by all means do so. They are awesome. If possible try them after a rain.
Left the house around 7:30am once my buddy Joe (CRF450) picked me up. It was raining, but the weatherman said that it wasn’t in Cadillac. We will see. WE got past Big Rapids and it was still raining. We got to just south of Cadillac and it was still raining. We got to the trail head at Long Lake and the Gods smiled on us, it stopped raining. It was cloudy overcast and cool. It had been raining here and the ground was moist and tacky. This was looking like the makings of a great day.
My buddy Jim (YZ426) and his riding partner Scott (DRZ400) were already there. Soon after Denny(KTM300EXC) arrived with his son Gavin (KDX200). All these guys are friends of mine from another dirtbike site (COUGH thumpertalk COUGH COUGH) We all chatted a little as we geared up. Scott pointed out that Skippy had a boo boo. I looked at what he was showing me and sure enough, Skippy has a flat spot on her rear rim. Oh well just a reason for me to get them black Excel rims.
Another fella drove up with a KTM525 and his buddy soon thereafter on another 525. They introduced themselves as Dave (1) and Dave (2). So we were ready to go with our total numbering 8 riders.
Picture=> Long Lake staging area
I have never rode Long Lake and have been Johnzing all summer to it. So to say I was happy to be on the trail was an understatement. We quickly found our running order and rode on. Joe, Jim, Dave and I all took turns leading for a while. But it was obvious that our new friend Dave1 was by far faster than the rest of us, because as he got ahead he was gone.
Joe told us about how Scott on the Drz with bald tires was going down a sandy hill with both brakes locked up and was picking up speed. He wacked a tree at the bottom and just before he hit the ground hit his blinker. Pretty considerate of him to hit the hazzard lights before crashing. That turned into the running joke of the day.
I let Scott ride my 250X for a while. He stopped after and complained “Why did you let me ride that now I want one” His DRZ with bald street tires and tall gearing wasn’t the bike of choice for the day. Which kept him at the back of the pack all day. But that’s ok as Scott and Jim had only been riding for just over a year and were both still learning.
This trail was tight, rooty, muddy in spots, and sandy. I suspected that I would be able to run at the front in these conditions. A little history here. A month or so ago Joe and Gavin laid out a woopin on me at Little O. I was seeking a little vengeance today.
As I was trailing along behind Joe I did manage to pass him in these tight conditions 2x. The 1st was on a tight little snake trail that I spotted and managed to cut him off with a big ol smile on my face. The 2nd time wasn’t as big a victory as he was lying on the ground with Gavin stuck behind him. With them behind me I turned it up trying to catch Dave1 and Jim. As I came around a deeply rutted out cornered hill I came to a screeching stop behind Dave1 had crashed in the deep rut. He was fine and seconds latter I was chasing him again only to find him laying under his bike again in the exact same manner as the 1st time. This time I contemplated passing him on the 6” of trail next to him but realized that if he lifted his bike up as I came but he would take me out so I waited. We continued on and as before Dave1 left me behind only to have me come around another corner to find him on the ground again. This time I got past him and took off in chase of Jim, who I thought was still in front even though I couldn’t find even a trace of him. Eventually I found him stopped and waiting for the rest of us.
Picture => Rest Stop
As we stopped and chatted I learned a little history about Dave1. he had raced enduros in the past but couldn’t because he was laid up most of the summer with injuries. I asked if he got hurt in the UP and he said yep. I asked if his buddy got help from someone in a neighboring home that was a EMT and he said yep. I said I know you!!! Here is his picture.
Picture => Lightning fast Dave
Well we continued on for a while with Dave1 and Joe out front. I was having fun taking turns ridding behind everyone else getting to know there riding styles. I came around a corner to find Gavin stopped and Jim picking his bike up. Latter on I came around a corner to find Gavin just getting moving (there were a lot of footprints on the ground) a crash perhaps?
I managed to get a few action shots. So here ya go.
Picture => Denny
Picture => Joe
Picture => Scott
Picture => Me and Skippy
At our last stop Dave informed us that he was gonna ride the remainder of the trail nonstop. And as he was getting his helmet on I hit the e-button and was off. Joe said that Dave1 had a big ol grin on his face as he took off after me some 30 sec latter. I was riding with all I had to try to hold off Dave but with like 2 miles to go he caught me. I tried turning it up harder riding way way beyond my comfort level, taking stupid chances, and I still couldn’t loose him. Man that guy is fast.
We all gathered back at the staging area. Joe had mentioned earlier that his shoulder was bothering him from a crash last weekend at Big Air and didn’t know if he wanted to ride Missauke. But once back at the staging area he said he was game. So we loaded up and headed to Missauke.
Once at Missauke we lost Dave2 but gained a friend of Denny’s on a XR400 that was waiting for us when we got back to the staging area at Long Lake
Picture => Missauke staging area.
Joe had said that he had to get home by 6:00pm an it was already 2:30pm so I knew we had to keep up a good pace. No one else wanted to lead so I jumped in and headed out. I had heard that this trail had been destroyed by the quads…. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. The trail was awesome. Maybe it was the recent rain that helped but I was having a riot. Dave was right on my tail and I decided that I wasn’t gonna stop and was gonna run the entire trail. Maybe I can just outlast Dave if I cant outrun him. No such luck. He never got more than 20 feet behind me the entire 18 miles. Joe was within sight of us but eventually fell behind and was gone. At one point I overshot a corner big time and as I brakeslid to the top of the berm teetering there I glanced over my shoulder to see Dave with red in his eyes and his clutch finger twitching. I dumped the clutch with a big ol smile and managed to stay ahead.
An hour later we pulled back in the staging are with no one else around us. Dave and I had big ol smiles on our faces. He said that a long run like that was exactly what he needed. I suspected as much which is why I went ahead with him and pushed thru the entire thing.
5 min latter Gavin and his dad pulled in and about 5 min after that Joe, Jim, and Scott followed. We all told a few trail tales and loaded up to head home.
All told I think everyone except Denny spent some time on the ground during the day including me.
I think I have found 2 more favorite trails to ride on. If you get the chance to ride these by all means do so. They are awesome. If possible try them after a rain.
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