Northwest Sport Touring

Pelican Run the Ride Home 04/25/10

2010-04-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

Sunday we awoke to a cool but clear and warming morning. There was left over pie and some new donuts waiting outside our doors. Today was to be a clear and warm day. Temps would approach 70 degrees.

We assembled for a group picture and headed South on 101. One of the locals had suggested the Hawk Creek Café for breakfast. He said it was right of 101 a few miles down the road. Fortunately I located it on the internet. While is was sort of right of the freeway it was a block in and you would never have seen it if you did not know were to look. It is a small café but was early enough that we were able to get 2 tables together. But it could be a problem for a large group if busy. The food was very good.

After breakfast we headed South on 101 to Hwy 229 or the Siletz River Rd. This has to be one of the top 5 or so rides in Oregon. It is 24 miles from 101 to Siletz. There are options there to go East on hwy 411 or Logsden. But today we were going to do Siletz both ways.

The ride in was at a very brisk pace. On the way back we let Teresa lose or perhaps she just decided to let it rip. I really don’t remember. But I think it will result in another great video. Chasing the Valk II. The pace back was brisk times 2. It scares me to think of Teresa roaring down the road on a Sport or Sport Touring bike. Maybe a Valk is a Sport Touring bike and I don’t know it?

Back up 101 and East on Hwy 18. 26 miles of Hwy 18, how bad can that be? It can be BAD. We are always amazed at the lack of traffic on the back roads of Oregon. But I now believe that is because they are all on Hwy 18. Not only that they are only doing 49 mph on Hwy 18 which has a 55 mph speed limit. We should have ridden a few miles further North and cut back on the Little Nestucca Hwy/Hwy22. But we didn’t.

We finally got to Willamina and headed North on Coast Creek and Gilbert Creek to the Bald Mountain Rd. Bald Mountain Rd is a paved forest service road the winds East. It is very narrow at places and can be full of fallen trees and branches this time of year. So you need to us caution. On this day it was pretty good. Some areas of green slime and some mud but pretty good over all.

Bald Mountain and Meadow Lake Rd make a very nice ride to Carlton and Hwy 47 North. We took some local alternates east of 47 on our trek North. They ran thru some very nice rural valley area.

We stopped at Vernonia for gas and a late lunch. After lunch it was a blast up the famous North end of hwy 47. From here our route was to wind up local Oregon and Washington back roads to the Olympia Washington area. We would then hit the freeway for our final legs home. My total for today was 430 miles. It was pretty much a spectacular ride almost all the way.

Pelican Run Day one (Saturday)

2010-04-24T07:12:00.000-07:00

The Pelican Run for most of us is the first group ride of the year. It is to Pacific City Oregon. This year we had a bit of a downer at the beginning as there were a lot of riders who canceled at the last minute. That however turned out to be a benefit. We had 14 riders initially but the final group was 8. That is really a better number anyway. With 8 riders instead of 14 you have a much easier time at restaurants, gas stops and most other gatherings.

The weather was about 50/50. Rain showers were forecast for Saturday with sunshine for Sunday. That forecast was to prove dead on. Saturday we had right on 50% dry times and 50% showers. One of the showers was really pretty heavy rain. But we got that one out of the way right at the start.

As we crossed into Oregon over the Kelso/Longview Bridge it appeared to be raining pretty heavy to the west and the location of one of our legs on Hwy 47. That felt pretty good as I had altered our route the day before to eliminate that leg of the ride.

This leg was to run south on Fern Hill, Meissner, Cannan, and the Scappoose Vernonia hwy. We were blessed with pretty much dry weather for this section and a couple of sun breaks. Both the Fern Hill thru Cannan and the Scappose Hwy are very nice Oregon roads. Every time thru I am amazed at the lack (no) traffic and high quality of the road in surface and twisties.

We continued west on Hwy 47 and 202 to Fishawk Falls Rd. As in most intersections we stopped to wait for the scenic pace group. After around 10 minutes we decided they were not that scenic so something must be up. We headed back. It was more then a few miles down the road when we crossed tracks with them. So we turned around. A little ways down the road they were parked on the side of the road waving us by. We thought they were just letting us get ahead as we they did not know the exact route. Which is just what they were doing.

But again we are waiting at the turn? This time it is decided that I will run back while everyone else waits here. Some do not have the gas to burn back tracking. I found them back at the side of the road. One ride had installed some hand grip wind protectors and had not gotten the grips properly reinstalled. This caused a short that was killing his bike. He was just finishing up his repair. So we were off again.

We had a great blast down hwy 53 and Miami River Rd to Tillamook which was a gas point. Due to our mechanical issue we were a little behind schedule so we eliminated our little coast road and continued to Hebo for the very fun Hwy 22 and Little Nestucca River Rd. The paces on this leg were very brisk.

We arrived at Pacific City just after 4. I know we had showers but cannot really remember specifically where? It seems that most of the fun roads were semi dry. Some were hungry and did not want to wait so we opted for an early dinner at the Sportsman’s Pub and Grill.

The special as was the usual Prime Rib. So it was Prime Ribs all around. Except for Marv who had the fish and chips. Don and I had our debate on what is real beer. I vote for Bud Light. The Prime Rib was great and no one had any left overs. After dinner we headed to the little lounge across the street from our motel. We spent the next couple hours there.

Around 10 pm as it seemed everyone had retired to there room I looked out my window to see a Pie with extra plates sitting on the guard rail outside my door. Marcus next door had decided we needed pie so he went to the store and brought one back. So I went out and had a piece of pie before bed. I would end up haveing an early pie breakfast as well.

Day one is done.

Portable 12 volt Air Pump.

2010-04-07T10:56:00.000-07:00

When you have a flat on the road you need to make sure you have a plug kit to fix most flats. In addition you need to reinflate that tire. Or perhaps you tire is just low. You could carry and hand pump, co2 system, or a fix a flat can. None of those are very good options. You should have a 12 volt compressor. It runs of your battery and it nevery runs out of air. They are also very inexpensive. I like this slime one with the flash light attached. A tire repair in the dark is not much fun.

Thursday Dinner Ride (04/01/10)

2010-04-01T06:37:00.000-07:00

April 1 2010. April fools day. But it was Thursday and the Dinner ride was for real. The weather was on the edge. It was gray and threatening. We did have a storm warning for Friday and there is always the possibility of it getting here early. On the plus side it was dry. We waited a few extra minutes for a 4th ride who indicated he was coming. After 10 minutes or so we decided to take off.

Fred was leading this ride and for me it is always an interesting game trying to anticipate his route. Fred makes them up as he goes along. Also he sometimes starts deeper in town then I would. This was the case today as we had a significant distance to get out of town. So again as I questioned the start point Fred lead us on an interesting zig zag route out of town.

I did not check the mileage at that point but as I had been planning another ride (or backup) I had planned a meet point in the area more out of town. That meet point was perhaps 4 miles away. As it would turn out we rode right by my meet up point around 15 miles later.

The rest of the ride was just a moderate leisurely pace thru Snohomish County back roads. We skipped the storm lake area that had been featured in our last 2 or 3 rides. Not knowing if Fred would take us that way I had decided if we passed the Storm Lake Store again we would have to stop for a picture.

The dinner location was Hawkeye’s Pub and Grill at Lake Stevens. There was plenty of room. The menu is pretty good and seems to have everything. The 3 of us had Steak, Fish and Chips, and a French dip. I was quite impressed with the salad that came with Fred’s Steak. The food was good.

It rained a little while we were in the Pub but stopped before we headed home of I5

The Plan B Ride

2010-03-27T07:07:00.000-07:00

Another great weather break Saturday. A nice day sandwiched between some rainy days. We had planned a weekend ride to The Dalles. But no one really wanted to do this ride with the forecast rainy weather. So we decided on the first long day ride of the year. As I would wake up Sunday to heavy rain it was a good call.

The Plan B ride was a western circumnavigation of the Washington Peninsula. This is a ride most do not do very often because there are large sections on somewhat boring roads. We departed from the West Seattle ferry to cross the sound. That gave us around 40 minutes for a nice sit down, coffee, and conversation.

After riding thru the urban areas we got to Hwy 106 on the way to Union. This was perhaps the first time I was able to ride this road with no significant traffic. There was really no traffic in the lower end. It was very nice for a change.

Here is were George was to introduce me to a couple new roads that would change my negative view of the Shelton area. Purdy road is one I think I may have heard of but never done. It was very nice. After a short piece of 101 we headed west on the Shelton Matlock road. I was just settling into this know stretch of road when all of a sudden we took a left hand turn. Degan Road, Shelby Valley Rd, Cloqallum Rd, together they make a great alternate to Hwy 12.

We connected with David at Montesano and continued on 12 and 101. 101 around the peninsula is really pretty boring. A lot to straight stretches with some good scenery at times punctuated with a few twisty spots. Instead we headed west to Pacific Beach. This was a new area for me and is a very nice ride and alternate to 101. We had a good lunch in Pacific Beach.

We rejoined 101 and loop around now heading back east and home. After a quick gas stop at Forks it was a short run to Hwy 113, Hwy 112, and Joyce Peidmont Rd. In my mind this combination of roads is one of the best in the state. As we were rocking and rolling along I tried to think of a better road to ride but could not. Together they are around 43 miles of almost endless twisties. It might be interesting to count the curves. I think they would be significant. The only problem with this road is it is at the very North West portion of the state and you have to ride very far and some very boring roads to get there. So most like me are not often going there. But when you get there what a joy.

I almost forgot the Little River and Black Diamond rd alternates into Port Angeles. I think I got some good viedo here. It is a great narrow to single lane pave backroad.

Little River and Black Diamond Rds from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

We finished up with a fun little blast down Big Valley Rd, Sawdust Hill, Gunderson, and South Kingston. This is a great final route to the Kingston Ferry. As I rolled home at around 6 it had been a little over 400 miles and a great Saturday. The clouds were starting to roll in and the weather would turn bad soon. The Plan B ride was a good call.

Click here for picutures.
Click her for a google map.

Happy Valley Rd to Kingston from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Carnation Valley Ride to The 13th Ave Pub for Prime Rib

2010-03-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was looking great. Can’t waste a good day. How about a Carnation Valley ride to the 13th Ave Pub for Prime Rib. Any excuse for a dinner ride.

The weather was looking great and I was in my car on my way to a service call. Suddenly the phone rings. It is my boss and he has a couple of registers that he needs to ship asap. They need to be programmed. So I band aid my morning service call and head to the office that is 40 miles away on the other side of Seattle and the horrific traffic. I am thinking it should not take long to bang out the programming.

Well I get to the shop and find the machine he needs is one I have not worked on before and has a rather large program. Crap I am in trouble now. Fred has not responded to this ride and I need new ride leader to plan a ride. So I call Fred. As it turns out he was going anyway so he would lead a ride if I am not there.

I managed to get the bulk of the programming done with just a couple small items left and the UPS truck had already been by so it would not go out today. So I left Kent for the 40 mile north drive thru normally grid locked traffic. But a miracle happened. The traffic was very light so I made it at 5:33 or so. Not bad.

There can be a lot of commuter traffic in the Valley at that time but we only had to follow a couple cars. It was a great 80 mile or so Carnation Valley wander. As we were approaching the Pub I hoped that they were not out of Prime Rib as everyone was looking forward to that. I thought I should have called and had them hold 6. But they were not out and we had a great dinner. Heading home around 9 in 60 degree weather. I was not aware that we had set a high temp record that day.

EOW (End Of Winter) 2010

2010-03-20T06:59:00.000-07:00

As I rode up to the shell station at 11:15 it was pretty full already. There was Jason sitting on his bike that is parked the same place along the road every year. He must always be one of the first ones there. Only a few minutes later as bikes were coming in by groups from all over I ask Jason if he could remember how many bikes we had the first year in 2006. He thought 20. I really think it was around 40 but a drop in the bucket as compared today.

Our group of around 8 had started from Tacoma. We had some coffee and a little chat with one of the South Sound Rider groups. They were doing a straight run down to St Helens. We were taking a back roads route which was a little longer. The ride down was great through some of the best South Sound back roads.

As we approached noon the departure time the bikes had taken over the gas station parking lot. There was still some parking to the south but the north end of the lot was biker heaven. Marv would have needed medical attention?

At noon I called everyone over to go over the basic plan. The sport bikes were the first group to leave. They did get together but no one wanted to lead. I had told Teresa our own speed demon she could ride with the sporties if she wanted to. As I am walking up to the sport bikes to tell them just to head up the road I hear the beautiful ROAR of a Valk racing away. There goes our Teresa. I yelled at the sport bikes to follow her. They did. As I walked back I said “bet ya can’t catch her”

I then lead the Sport Touring group out and we were off. The South Sound Riders were in charge of getting the cruisers of this year. A couple miles up the road we turned on the Tower Rd alternate. What a great little ride. That road eliminated the somewhat boring lower section of hwy 504 and one town you have to go thru. It also offers some very picturesque views of St Helens. As we approached intersection back to Hwy 504 I was going to adjust my camera as it was a little higher then I like. But as we approached 504 my fears were realized. A big chunk of the cruiser group had not gone on Tower Rd. So as I look right I see them coming. We can’t wait as we don’t want to get behind that group so no camera adjustment would be possible.

From here the road starts to reach the high speed twisties and spectacular scenery. We can up on a high speed cruiser group and followed them along for a while. There is a stretch of road that is straight and runs over a bridge. It is very long with a clear view ahead. As we hit that the road was open ahead so it was off on one of my favorite things. The high speed pass of a high speed cruiser group. I believe that is were my GPS registered the max speed. I believe that was 125 indicated 113 actual. In case no one knows Japanese speedometers are intentionally calibrated to read fast?

The road was pretty clear the rest of the way up. There was no snow at all. The gates to the upper observatories were closed. So we were around 5 miles short of the Johnston Ridge goal. Some of us (me) missed the few miles of bare road thru canyons of snow. But hopefully it is a good sign for a warm dry summer.

The skies were clear blue. The temps started out in the low 40’s. The day was to quickly warm up. We saw temps up to 72. My electric liner had been long turned off and on the final leg home I had to take the liner off. Today was summer.

Click here for more info and Pics.

Thursday Dinner Ride (03/18/10)

2010-03-18T06:33:00.000-07:00

The early weather forecast for Thursday 03/18/10 was for lots of sunshine and upper 50’s. It is now daylight savings with sunset at 7:20 or so. Looks like time to schedule the first ever dinner ride. The Golden Corral in Marysville is a place that has had some heavy advertising and I wanted to give a try so let’s go there.

We would meet at 5:30 at the old Cathcart Store at the west end on Highbridge Rd. If you are looking for it on the map it is really Elliot Rd at that point. But locally we refer to it as Highbridge. It is one of the best close in local rides in the area. You cannot ask for much more then Highbridge gives you.

From there we continued north thru Monroe to the Storm Lake area. There are perhaps 6 great roads in the Storm Lake area. You can connect them many ways for a different ride every time. The one feature you seem to find each time is the Storm Lake Grocery. While most to the riders will not have a good idea were they are they will all remember the Storm Lake Grocery. It was around 55 miles of which most was very fun roads.

We arrived at the Golden Corral right about 7. Most were pretty hungry. I was worried that there might be a line as some review indicated that. But we got right in and were able to move 2 tables together. Wow what a buffet. They had everything and it was all great. We talked about what other restaurants to try on other dinner rides. They seemed to leave that decision up to me. But everyone wanted to make sure the Golden Corral was a frequent return destination.

We returned via I5. For me it was around 110 miles including a short ride I did before the meet. I got home around 9pm.

Click here to view the Map.

Microsoft Streets and Trips and Garmin GPS

2010-03-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010 version now supports imports and exports of GPX files. Thes files will work with any GPS units or software that use GPX files. I do not know if that is a standard format used by all GPS but it is used by Garmin.

Streets and Trips is a very easy and good program to use. You can create complicated custom routes. These can be save to your pc as at Streets and Trips file as well as a GPX file. The GPX file can be downloaded to any Garmin that can handle routes.

I have created a short video to show you how to use these together.

Streets and Trips to Garmin from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

What is the EOW Ride

2010-03-09T13:39:00.000-08:00

The End Of Winter 2006 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

What is the EOW ride? EOW is the currently annual End Of Winter Ride. I believe 2006 was the first year. It is a ride to celebrate the End Of Winter and the beginning of a great new riding season. Full of hope and joy.

The Spirit Lake Hwy (Hwy 504) is a spectacular scenic 40 mile ride up the west side of Mt St Helens. Depending on the weather you may be able to ride to the foot of the crater of the Volcano. There can be a significant amount of snow. But the west side highway is plowed and has always been passable.

The Castle Rock exit for Hwy 504 on I 5 has a couple of gas stations, restaurants, fast food, and a motel or 2. It is a great and natural meet point for riders from all over the west side of the state. We have had riders from Albany Oregon come up. It is about the same distance for me from Lynnwood, Washington. It can make for a long ride. Round trip including the ride to the top and down is over 400 miles for me.

Most begin arriving just before 11. With 100 plus bikes it is a good time for a short visit of riders whom you may only see this time of year. A lot of bikes to mill around and view. You then enjoy a 40 mile spectacular ride to the top.

Bill Anderson Says.

The first End of Winter ride was organized by Randy the X Man in 2006. What started out as a ride to celebrate the end of winter has become an annual gathering of motorcyclists up and down the I-5 corridor of Washington and Oregon. You have survived another winter, so come ride with us as we officially kick start the 2010 riding season. The 2010 ride is on March 20, 2010. Click here for more info.

Here are the Videos from the 2009 Ride. Over 100 bikes Started the ride.

End Of Winter (EOW) 2009 The Start from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

The EOW 2009 the Mountian from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

80 some bikes road all the way to the end.

EOW the Find 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

2008 was a SNOW DAY.

EOW 2008 The Snow from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

The EOW Ride for 2010 is March 20th. Depart 12 noon from the Castle Rock Exit.
Click here for more info.

Sunday Mystery Ride 03/07/10

2010-03-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

A Mystery ride is always one of my favorites. If I am not leading the ride and there is no specific destination I prefer not to know what the route is. Just ride and enjoy.

One of the best to lead a Mystery Ride is Fred. He may have a general route in mind but a lot of the time he makes it up as he goes along. Generally I post a Google map but it would be too hard to plot out. I will post a jpeg of the Garmin tracks.

The weather held and no rain. Fred lead an excellent Fred route out if Snohomish. It went all over the place. There was one spot where Fred showed his ability to adapt. He was signaling for a left hand turn. But just before we got there a slow moving vehicle turned up the same road. Rather then follow the slow vehicle Fred just changed the route on the fly. At least I think that is what happened.

After the serpentine route around Storm Lake we headed east for a run up Kellogg Lake Road, Reiter Rd, Index Galena, Old Cascades Hwy to Skokomish. We stopped there for a lunch and or pie break.

After lunch/pie we continued a few miles east for a run up Beckler Rd. We return west for a run up Sultan Basin which we missed on earlier for some reason? Fred had to leave at the far end of Sultan Basin for some reason so we returned via Ben Howard and High Bridge.

North Cascades (Hwy20) to The End Of The Road

2010-03-06T19:43:00.000-08:00

This is an early report. There will be pictures and video later.

Highway 20 AKA the North Cascades is the North Washington Highway that connect Western and Eastern Washington. It crosses Washington Pass in the North Cascade Mountians. It is closed every year due to heavy snow. It is normally due to open in late March or early April after they dig the road out. This time of year it can be a fun ride to the road closed sign. The road is great and the traffic very light since it cannot go anywhere.

Almost thought I was going to miss it due to some work crap. But got to the Buzz Inn around 9:20. Doug, Dean, and Fred were there. Roland and George rolled up just before departure. So 6 of us took off. The route north from the Snohomish/Monore area thru storm lake was fantastic. A great combination of nice local roads.

Fred decided he could not do 3 miles of hwy 2 so he broke of as we turned east on 2 for some backroads. We saw Fred one other time a few miles up the road. The next time we saw him was at the Ross Overlook. Hwy 20 from Marblemount was very good for the firs 2/3's or so. The last stretch had some light sand and frost. George, Dean, and Myself made it to the road closed sign. The road was bare as far as you could see and there was hardly any snow visible on the low mountains. No much up high either. We stopped at the Clark Cabins Eatery for some late lunch. Then we headed home via a couple different routes. A great day and ride.

Click here for a Map.

North Cascades (hwy20) End Of The Road from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

The Last Sunday Breakfast Ride 02/24/10

2010-02-28T21:03:00.000-08:00

The Last Sunday Breakfast Ride. There may be one more this spring on March 28th. But this could be the last one. Stuff will be starting to get into full swing April 1.

The weather man had promised a warm sunny day for today. We would not be disappointed. Some scattered clouds on my way to the garage but we would be greeted with almost clear blue skies as the day continued.

As approached the Jack In the Box I saw Marv pulling into the gas station. Almost right after that I saw Roland pulling into the JIB and Dean was already there. So we would be four today. After a few minutes of talk and a little coffee we headed north.

It was around an 85 mile serpentine route back and fourth to the Farmhouse which is north of laconner. I tried to incorporate all of the best short twisty roads on the way. As we were heading west on Pioneer Hwy we encountered a deer crossing the road. We saw him a fair distance away and slowed down looking for the rest of his family. As we rounded the corner re ran right into a sheriff coming the other way. Phew the deer had slowed us down. Not sure but I think we may have been a little over the speed limit? Thanks Mr. Deer.

We arrived at the Farmhouse almost right on 11am. The Farmhouse is a very nice restaurant. It has lots of seating and can handle a large group. The menu is large and the food very good. They also have a good buffet on Sunday. That was my choice.

The return route was around 130 miles. Heading north to Edison and looping east to Alger and south to Sedro Woolley. From there we took Highway 9 South using many alternates. The roads were all dry and in very good condition. Not much traffic on the side roads.

I plotted and very interesting route thru the Storm Lake area. This is an area of Snohomish County that can be very difficult to follow a route thru without a GPS. Just too many corners to take a wrong turn in. I know when I started riding that area I always wanted a full tank of gas so I could get out if I got lost.

The day was spectacular for this time of year. The roads have not been messed up by and snow. The weather was perfect. It was a fantastic day.

Click here to view map to the Farmhouse.

Click here to view the map home.

Get Lost on Whidbey

2010-02-28T08:19:00.000-08:00

TRW is Team Ride West. That is the ride group from Ride West BMW. I think it is really the only organized regular ride group functioning out of a dealership. All makes are welcome.

The ride is called Get Lost on Whidbey. I call it the Whidbey Wander. Whidbey is a small island just North West of the Seattle area. It is accessed from two ferries and one bridge. There are no long great rides on the island with the possible exception of Highway 20 with runs down the middle. Highway 20 can be a nice ride with some good hwy and long sweeper curves. But the traffic is generally heavy. The pace is slow and it is heavily patrolled. If you could run the hwy the full length at a reasonable speed it could be a very nice ride.

There are many many side roads on either side of 20. Some feature some nice but short twisties sections. Some have nice along the water sections. Many more are just straight. With perhaps thousands of intersections. It really requires a rider with good knowledge of the island or a GPS.

With the great weather there was a good turn out of 20 or so bikes. We did get a few sprinkles but not much. It was not long after the departure from the ferry that the group got split with many going other directions other then the planned route. Most all ended up at the lunch spot in Coupeville.

After lunch one group headed of to parts unknown. I believe they were heading back to the ferry. The other group which I was with continued our wander north. Stopping for gas near the Naval Station the rest of the group was going to continue north. I had a dinner with friends to get back to so it was time for me to return home. I was departing routes. Continue north to get off the island or return south to the ferry. This was the firs time I used my GPS to tell me which way. I punched in home as the destination and it took me back south down 20.

I will have a video blog posted in the next few days so check back. Note on the video log if I say TREND west I meant TEAM west. Sorry Dave

Get Lost On Whidbey. from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Thanks
Randy

Unbelievable Trail Ride

2010-02-26T11:08:00.000-08:00

This is a holly crap video. I did not do this ride. Yikes

This is a Video that they need to tell you what happend. Are they still in the mountians?

Astoria ride videos

2010-02-24T22:18:00.000-08:00

It will take a while to get all the videos done but I will post them all on this page as they are complete.

Here is the Cannan Road video ridden from east to west.

Cannan Road West Bound 02/21/10 C2 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

This is the Lost Valley Road and the South Fork road.

Lost Valley and South Fork Rds from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Tower Road.

Tower Road from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Lost Valley Solo

Lost Valley Rd from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

More to come.

My Frist Video Blog Weekend Blast 1 Astoria

2010-02-23T20:12:00.000-08:00

Here is my first effort at a Video Blog.

Lynnwood to Astoria

Video Blog Lynnwood to Astoria from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Sunday Astoria Home

Astoria ride home comments 02/21/10 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Weekend Blast 1 The Sunday Road Home

2010-02-22T15:44:00.000-08:00

Sunday was a clear but pretty cold morning. The old story this time of year with no cloud cover we loose all our heat during the night. I was planning on having breakfast down the road somewhere but with the temps only in the low 30’s I watched some TV and had breakfast at the Pig N Pancake next door. Even at that I ended up on the road around 9:30.

I headed south from Astoria. Originally I had planned on checking out the Lewis and Clark rd. But looking at the map the Youngs River Road was calling. Little did I know I was about to discover a gem. The first 3rd of the road had a couple nice curves in it. But not enough for me to have the camera on. But of the few corners they were nice enough for me to say maybe I should get the camera running. But then comes the last 2/3rds. Nice clean pavement great twisties beautify scenery. The only problem was with the low temps and areas of frost. Just enough to make you cautious. It definitely is something to redo and I think I can work in on the Pelican return.

Connecting back with 202 I headed east. 202 is a two faced road as you head east from Astoria. The road it self could be awesome. But on the east section there are a few pieces of good pavement but also some VERY bad ones. I did discover another use for my GPS on this road. I can now look ahead and know ahead of time when my camera should be on. In the past I used to miss a lot of good stuff not knowing what is ahead. Except for the rough spots the ride was very nice. There are sections setup for elk viewing with pull outs. There were a lot of elk in the fields. Maybe they raise them there? I stopped at one point for a few pics.

The morning was still cool enough that there was significant frost on the road. I was starting to wonder about my plan to ride Hwy 47. It gains some decent alt from this road perhaps I should take a different route?

I stopped at Berkinfeld for a few more pictures incase anyone wants to know what the home town of the best party in 3 states is. That would be
Run 21 and I will be there in July. Currently the group I will be leading is around 28 riders. A few sport touring bikes and a lot of cruisers. Marv ya want to go?

After Berkinfeld the frost really became heavy and lots of it. So I decided Hwy 47 would not be a good idea today. Besides there are some virgin roads east of there that will take me to Cannan Rd. I continued south on 202 to the Apiary junction and headed north to Meissner Rd.

The combination Meissner Rd and Cannan Rd is another of those fantastic combinations of roads that make motorcycle heaven. It is in my top 10 of Oregon. Originally I was going to ride it to 30 and head north to Rainier. But I have learned in the last few months that you can ride a road both ways. And that each way is a different road. So I decided to do a George (thanks George) and turn around ride it back and head to Rainier on Fern Hill road.

As I crossed the river into Longview I decided to abandon my preplanned route from there and improvise the rest. I wanted to check out Tower road which I plan to use on the End Of Winter ride. So I stopped and deleted the rest of my route from the GPS. I set Tower Road and home as destinations. I improvised some variations from there to the castle rock intersection. Not touching the freeway on the way there.

I had to stop at the Burger King for a Whopper with cheese. Still for me the best burger there is. Topping up with a little gas just in case I decide to explore more I headed up 504 and took Tower road. It is a very nice alternative to 504 in that section. I think it will be a great addition to the EOW ride. There is one great vista of St Helens along the way.

From there it was a run back to I5 and the ride home. As is the GPS was saying it would be 4:30 by the time I got back. So all the other back roads I had planned would have been to late. We will save them for another day.

Click here for the Map.

Astoria ride home comments 02/21/10 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Here is part 2 of the George manuver.

Cannan Road West Bound 02/21/10 C2 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Weekend Blast #1 Astoria Saturday

2010-02-22T07:01:00.000-08:00

The weekend blast. This has been an idea in my head for a long time. We do several multi day rides a year but they are usually 3 days or more and require using a vacation day. All of our local roads have been ridden thousands of times. Why now get out of town more on the weekends. Take of Saturday and ride some where. Find some new roads and don’t worry about having to get home that afternoon. Spend the night somewhere and return Sunday. The weekend blast as I termed it?

I had always planned to try the first one the first good weekend of the February. We have had great weather for the winter of 2010 but most of the weekends have been pretty wet. But the weekend of 02/20-21 started to look good. So I posted it and planned a ride to Astoria. As it turned out there were several riders who wanted to come but I had picked the weekend most were working or had other plans. So as the possibly one of the greatest February weekends in history came it would be a solo ride for me.

I had been wanting to try a solo ride for a while so it would turn out to be a great weekend for that. The weather was exactly as predicted with clear blue skies as I headed out Saturday morning. I had even remembered to make a thermos of coffee. But as I packed my bags I found I did not really have a spot that it was not worried about the unlikely event of a leak. But I did remember the day Larry’s thermos leaked all over. In addition to the simple idea of a leak the top box where it would have gone was full of cameras and a laptop. None of those items deals well with a leak? So I left it home.

Heading south on I5 the traffic seemed a little heavy for Saturday morning. But heading south from Seattle there is not much else to do. You can deal with traffic on the freeway or on the back roads. I just want to get out of town so I will take mine on the freeway.

The original plan was to stop at the Poodle Dog in Fife for breakfast. But since there would be no one there I decided to head a little further south and try one of the Nisqually exit restaurants. This is to be the meet spot of the next Blast (Blast 2 to The Dalles) so it would be good to scout it out. Norma’s and the Nisqually Bar and Grill were both open and served breakfast so I opted for the Bar and Grill. They have good seating area and served a very good and plentiful breakfast. So that will be a good option or we could try out Norma’s.

A few more miles of freeway and it will be time for the real ride to start. I turned south of f 101 af Mud Bay and headed south on Delphi Rd. There are several good routes south from here. I believe this is one of the nicest areas of the South Sound to ride. Today it was Delphi Rd, Waddell Creek Rd, Michigan Hill, Lincoln Creek and Bunker Creek to Adna.

These roads are thru some sparsely populated rural areas and can invite some crisp speeds. Since I was solo I did make several stops for some video notes and pictures. Would not have done this with a group. Heading west from Adna I took a jog south to catch the Lost Valley Road. This was the first time on that road for me. The last 5 miles or so are some very nice twisties. Well worth the trip. I have decided that from now on any road with the word "Lost" in it needs to be ridden.

Back on Hwy 6 and heading west to Raymond. Just before Raymond I remembered about the alternate route I had seen on a map and thought that’s part of the reason I now have a gps. I pulled over and looked for it on the Gps. There it is South Fork road. I had just passed it. So I turned around headed back and took it. It is a very nice alternate to Raymond. There are some options to totally avoid Raymond if you want.

After a short stop to stretch my legs at South Bend I continued south on 101. 101 is a nice scenic ride for the most part. But the south end as you turn west towards Long Beach is one of the best motorcycle roads in the state. A short but very nice set of twisties with some parts along the water. Well worth the trip if you are in the area.

As I rode along the last stretch of road with the Astoria Bridge in site I rode by Fort Columbia. It is an old fort along the river that used to be part of the naval defense network. I turned around and made a quick stop.

From there it was on to Astoria and the Lamplighter Motel. I must comment that they did not have the soup or stew as advertized? As the sun went down Saturday night I was wandering the area around my motel. 4 Bars, and 2 restaurants. One Chinese, one Mexican, and one American restaurant. After 3 beers at 3 places I opted for some comfort food and a great chicken fried steak. A very nice first day of the Blast.

Video Blog Lynnwood to Astoria from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Lost Valley Rd from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Click here to view the map.

Weekend Blast #1 Astoria. Quick Comment

2010-02-20T19:32:00.000-08:00

What a day what a day. Glorious weather for mid February.

I left for my ride to Astoria around 9. Maybe it was a little earlier. As I approached the Poodle Dog I decided I was not really ready for breakfast. So I continued on. It seemed like a good day to check out the options at Nisqually. I had a great breakfast at the
Nisqually Bar and Grill. They serve breakfast until 11 on weekends.

From there I rode the mapped route with a minor modification.The gps helped me locate the alternate around Raymond. I will call it the Fern Hill route. It will be added to my maps. It is a very nice road.

The Lost Valley Road was also nice with some very good twisties on the last 4 or 5 miles. I have decided that I need to check out every road I find this year that has the work LOST in it.

I did make a fuel error as I knew I could make it all the way on one tank. So I did not fuel when I had the chance. Later I found a couple of side roads I wanted to try but did not due to The fuel question. As it turned out I had plenty of fuel. I gassed At Astoria and after 244 miles I still had almost 2 gallons. I stopped several time as I was solo to take pictures and video notes. We will see what I can get out of those

The Lamplighter is a nice motel just off the bridge. I have found 3 interesting bars in the area and had a great country fried steak at the Restaurant right next door. I will be heading out in a while with some folks I meet here at The motel. We will check out a spot for the Saturday night crowd.

I think I am feeling a little of the freedom on a solo ride. You can do anything you want. Turn around here, change the route there, reride that section, stop here. You never have the thought in mind of what the others may think or want. It is all up to you.

This weekend blast is a Blast. There will be many Blasts.

Thanks
Randy

Astoria here I come

2010-02-20T08:28:00.000-08:00

On my way to the garage in a few minutes. Clear blue skies above.
My bags are packed and I am ready to go.

Thanks
Randy

Weekend Blast #1 Astoria

2010-02-19T15:18:00.000-08:00

Yikes what great weather out there. It is forecast to continue thru
the weekend. The landscapers are all over the complex mowing
and cleaning. It must be summer.

The bike is ready to go. New rear tire. Air pressure good. Oil
good. All camera batteries charged Video and Still. Gps loaded
with routes. Reservation made at the Lamplighter Motel. Need a
squirt of gas but will do that in the morning. Throw a few things in
the bag insert and I am off. Its time for Weekend Blast 1 to Astoria.
I can't wait and will not be sleeping well tonight. I am like a little
kid at Christmas the night before a ride.

This is my first overnight ride this year. There will be many more
Weekend Blasts as I call them. simply ride to someplace Saturday.
Spend the night and return Sunday. I am surprised that with such a
great weekend that no one else is going. I know 3 would love to
but have to work. Fortunately I have never worked weekends

Thanks
Randy

Low cost GPS (Update)

2010-02-18T06:54:00.000-08:00

I have summarized my experiences over the last several weeks on
the subject of low cost GPS and the Garmin 765. If you are
interested here is the link. You can have it all including mapping
software for under $250

Click here to read more.

Thanks
Randy

Riding the South Sound

2010-02-09T08:37:00.000-08:00

The South Sound area around Centralia Washington offer some
very nice riding. As in most of washington you are close to hills,
farmland, mountians, coast, and deserts.

Here are a few of my favorite area rides.

Adna to Rochester 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Johnson Creek 10/04/09 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Elma to Centralia from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

EOW (End Of Winter) 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Washington Hwy 506 and Wildwood Rd 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Mount St Helens Windy Ridge 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Click here for NWBikers, Ride Reports, Maps and Videos.

Thanks
Randy

Not complaining But

2010-02-09T08:17:00.000-08:00

Really I am not complaining but. We have had a really great
winter so far in 2010. It started with a lot of rain. In fact we had
twice as much rain as normal in January. But we have had the
warmest January in history. The rain came in a big pile at the
beggining with much heavier then normal rain fall. But for the last
5 weeks or so it has been very dry and warm.

The problem is the timing. Every week we have had many sunny
warm dry days. But most weekends we have had rain and drizzle.
Out of the last 12 weekend days 4 have been nice. The rest not
so good.

It would be fantastic if we could get a slight adjustment so the good
days are on the weekend?

Thanks
Randy

Squiggly Line Hunt 02/06/10

2010-02-06T06:48:00.000-08:00

Wow what a day for the first part of February. Clear sunshine day
with highs up to 63. There were hundreds of bikes on the road.
My arm got sore from waving.

There were a couple of roads on the map that I wanted to check
out. So I headed north on a GPS squiggly line hunt. The roads in
question were around the Kayak Point area. The road seemed to
have some promise. There were some nice residential scenic areas
with some good twists. But the roads were covered with almost
killer speed bumps. They were killer in that they were old and the
paint was worn off. So some were very hard to see and you could
hit them faster then you want.

Click here to read more.

Some Funny Stuff.

2010-02-03T14:10:00.000-08:00

Here are 3 videos of some funny stuff that happened on rides over the last year or so.

Hwy 142 The Danger Zone. We were haveing a blast right up to the end.

Hwy 142 The Danger Zone. from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

A relaxing ride thru Indian Territory in Eastern Washington. $300 dollars?

The Wellipinit Incident from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

It was a beautiful road untill it wasn't

Lost In Oregon from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Normally you do not want the have a bicycle rider pass you. It was
close on this ride.

Thanks
Randy

The Last Sunday Breakfast Ride 01/31/10

2010-01-31T15:51:00.000-08:00

The first Last Sunday of 2010. The weather had held some promise
during the week. But the sun breaks never materialized. It was misting
drizzle kind of day. No real rain just drizzle. The roads were damp
but not bad. So far we have lucked out with no snow this winter so
the roads are in great shape as compared to this time last year.

We have had twice as much rain as normal but at the same time we
have the warmest January in history. We have also had 3 nice
weekend days to date. So there will be no complaining from me today.
Maybe tomorrow?

To read more click here.

My favorite Road (Ride)

2010-01-28T07:12:00.000-08:00

I think the has to be my favorite road right now. It is Idaho Hwy 14. Just east of Grangeville it runs around 40 miles to the little town of Elk City. It does not go anywhere else so you will be returning on it. But that just means another great 40 miles.

Here is the route West from Elk City.

Idaho hwy 14 west 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Here is the route east from Grangeville.

Idaho hwy 14 to Elk City 2009 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Idaho Hwy 14 a Few Miles More from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

These videos were taken on the Cyclebarn Rat (Triumph) Ride to
Lewiston on 06/26/09.

Click here to view the Ride Report.

Click here to check out other Lewiston Idaho area roads.

Thanks
Randy

Saturday Weather Alert Ride 01/23/10

2010-01-23T21:52:00.000-08:00

A good January Day. Low 50s with some sun and mostly dry roads.
Found some misting rain for a short time but otherwise a great day.
4 of us meet for Breakfast at the Smokey Point Buzz Inn. Tad, Doug,
Fred, and Randy. After a nice breakfast meet and chat we headed
out for a North Skagit/Snohomish loop. Going as far north as Acme.
We stopped there for a light lunch. To many roads to mention. Below
is a map link. I could not map the whole route as google runs out of
waypoints. It was a total of 188 miles ending up back in Lynnwood.

We are of to a very warm start to 2010. Perhaps global warming has
arrived?

Click here to view the map.

Thanks
Randy The X Man

Why I like Lewiston Idaho

2010-01-22T06:25:00.000-08:00

We are having some warm weather for January. Maybe global
warming has reached the Pacific Northwest. Some planning is
going on for the Spring Break ride that will be in the Lewiston
Orofino area. I was just watching some old videos.

This is why we like Lewiston.

The Spiral Hwy from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Idaho Hwy 13 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Idaho Winchester Grade. from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Rattle Snake Grade 2006 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Mt Idaho Grade from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

I saved perhaps the best for Last
Idaho Hwy 14 to Elk City.

Idaho hwy 14 to Elk City from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Lo Lo Pass 2008 (short) from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Thanks
Randy The X Man

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2010-01-17T23:02:00.000-08:00

Wet wet and wetter. That is the start of 2010. Its rained 20 out of the
last 21 day. Over twice the normal. Please stop.

Whidbey Island 01/10/2010

2010-01-10T16:32:00.000-08:00

Its mid January and we have had no snow so far. It may be looking
good for non of the white stuff this year. Its been pretty wet but we
have had a dry weekend. Temps today are to be mid 50's.

We thought it might be time for the Whidbey Island wander and GPS
Squiggly Line ride. Fred, Roland and I met at the Local Jack In The
box for a coffee and bite to eat. Then we were off heading north west
towards the Island.

The idea on a Squiggly Line ride is to simply ride in a general
direction and look for Squiggly lines on the GPS and check them out.
You don't know exactly were that is going to take you. Just keep
going until you think you have to turn around. We got about half way
down the island before we turned around. Will finish the rest some
other day.

Click here to view the Map.

Thanks
Randy

Riding with GPS

2010-01-07T12:03:00.001-08:00

Riding with GPS. That is something like riding with heated gear.

Untill you do it you don't understand. I did have a low cost GPS

several years ago but I broke it before I could really use it.

The main idea behind it was that it would ride in my bags. I would

then use it when I was unsure were a road went or were I was. It

was used in that fashion a few times before I lost it.

Now I got a new Garmin Nuvi 255W. It has a big wide screen
and will allow me to plan a custom route. At $120 it is low cost
and works very well. The Ram mounts cost around $30. I wired
in a switched power adaptor that can also power any other option
that uses a automotive (cigarette) lighter.

For the most part I don"t plan on plotting a route with it except
for something more complicated or maybe finding an address.
What is great about it is the abiliaty to see were roads go or don't
go. As you ride down the road you can see other options all around.

I will on occasion easily set the destination and let it plot a route
and adjust as I ride. It may then show previously unseen options.

To day I was coming back from the bike shop getting some break
pads. Instead of taking the normal route I was able to look at the
GPS and see were all the roads around me went. I headed in the
general direction and could see what roads went thru and what did
not. I could also see some nice twisties. It provided me with a
trouble free new route home.

Some will say as I did "I don't need a GPS I use a map". So did
I but now my map is on all the time and scrolls down the road with
me.

It was sort of the same thing with the heated gear. I said to a guy
once. "I don't really get why you bother with the heated gear".
"I ride all winter and I am not cold". He said "you may not THINK
you are cold but you are not warm and you are dressed like the
michelin man". He was 100% correct. I am now warm and dressed
light. I know now I WAS cold.

The Garmin 255 is easy to read. It tells you what the speed limits are
and tracks very fast. For $150 total investment it is very nice.

Thanks

Randy

The end of another year with good intentions

2009-12-30T11:00:00.000-08:00

Here we go again. It is the end of another year and I think "I should

Blog"? Man that is a laugh. Looking at this blog I see I have not made

one entry in 2009? That is pretty funny considering that 2009 may

have been one of the best weather years in a long time.

As usual I have spent 100s of hours on local groups sites and still

frustrated by what I perceive as a lack of participation by members.

It seems many want to read but not post? So I am thinking again I

should just concentrate on the blog? I quess we will see?

As in times past I am thinking I should update this with my 2009

rides? Man that would be a choir? Maybe I will mostlikley I won't.

But if you are interested here is a link to my 2009 Ride Reports.

Last Ride of 2009

2009-12-27T06:31:00.000-08:00

The weather cleared for a few days giving us a chance for a last
sunny ride of 2009. But the problem was that when we have

clear skies here this time of year it is cold. Fred measured the

road temp at his house around 10 at around 29 degrees.

We meet at the local Jack In The Box at 10am for a cup of coffee

and to see if anyone else showed up. After 45 minutes or so of

chat we decided no one else was coming so we were off. It was

a tip toe thru the daisies type of ride as we headed north to Sedro

Wolley. Some areas of heavy frost and light snow on the sides

of the road.

We had a good late breakfast at the Iron Skillet. Trying to stay in

the sun we thought we would try a little wander around Whidbey

Island. It started out ok but we soon came to an uphill corner in the

shade that was covered by heavy heavy (almost snow) frost. I
stopped and waited for Fred. I asked him what he thought. He
said something like "whatever you think"? Frak it is heavy frost on
and uphill corner as far as you can see. I said we better go back.
He looked relieved and agreed.

I then put my foot down to backup and almost slip on the ice. Crap

we are on a pretty ice piece of road. Not sure if it was actual black

ice but it was slippery. It was down hill so at least backing up was
easy. But as you made the back up swing left you now had to turn
right and you were on a slippery downhill roll. Would be pretty easy
to slide into the ditch.

We made our turn around and headed back the way be came. The
sun was getting low and temps dropping so we took some local back
roads back home. Not much of a ride but enough to get out on the
road for a few miles to finish the summer. Have not checked my mileage
yet but I think I am a few miles short of 20k.

But it has been a great year.

Thanks

Randy

Saturday Ride to the Italian Christmas at Eastside 12/19/09

2009-12-19T07:34:00.000-08:00

Italian Christmas at Eastside? That is a little sales promotion at

Eastside Motor Sports a local Ducati, Yamaha, Suzuki dealer

in Bellevue Washington. The weather man was telling us we should

have a good day. Temps near 50 and some blue sky. The year is

winding down and you need to take every ride day you may get.

So a ride to the Italian Christmas sounds in order.

The day started damp with some heavy fog and mist. Some rain
the night before so the roads were wet. But we were still hoping for
some clearing. 7 of us meet at the Buzz Inn at Harvey Field in
Snohomish. We had some breakfast and good chat then 4 of us
head north for a ride.
Click here to read more and view maps.

Black Friday Pie Hunt Ride 11/27/09

2009-11-27T07:41:00.000-08:00

Its Black Friday. Ya know the shopping day after Thanksgiving.

After weeks of double the normal rain fall we have a dry day. The

sun looks like it will be out now and then. The Gerbings will take

care of the 45 degrees. Lets ride.

Its a real quick throw together. Contacted a few local riders. Some
still sleeping some slow to respond. So around 10:30 Fred and I
head out from the local Jack In the Box. We cant really decide on
any specific route but we want to hit Willow's and Jims in Silvana
to check out the pie.
Click here to read more and view the maps.

Mystery Ride 11/14/09

2009-11-14T07:45:00.000-08:00

The great summer of 2009 is over and we are into a pretty wet

late fall season. But this Saturday was shaping up to be a good

break in the weather. It was to be cold but Dry.

The night before (Friday Night) there were some short vicious
snow/hail mix. The sky turned pitch black and it was not looking
good. But Saturday morning is was just cold. Around 35 at 6am.
But it was clear with a slight overcast but the sun was out.

I meet Fred at Old Strokers around 10. We had coffee and some
chat with Randy (a different Randy) the owner. It was around 11
when we geared up and headed out. It was just us.
Click here to read more and view maps.

Centralia South Sound Loop 10/04/09

2009-10-04T07:53:00.000-07:00

The south sound lowlands areas south west of Centralia contain

many very nice roads. The terrain is much different then the local

north sound forest areas. It features open rural areas and low

rolling hills thru some trees but opening up to large vistas. The

roads are somewhat like back road Oregon. Great twisty roads

with little or no traffic. I have been wanting to do this loop for

some time.

With our NW weather continuing to give us a great summer and

fall I thought it time to try and setup a group ride. Having some

members in Oregon I thought a mid point start point would be

good. Meet for breakfast and run the loop with a late lunch then

everyone could head there own way. Sounded good to me and
there is a good restaurant just about midway that has a good buffet.
Click here to read more and view maps.

Washington Hwy 506 and Wildwood Rd from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Vashon Isle TT 08/30/09

2009-08-30T07:56:00.000-07:00

The Vashon Island TT is the annual VME Vintage motorcycle

show and Rally. Each year the Rally is held at Vashon on

Vashon Island. The date is unpublished in a loose effort to

keep the rally from getting to big. It makes for a very pleasant

local Sunday activity.

It was another great sunny warm day in the wondrous summer
of 2009. A short ride thru Seattle along alki beach to the ferry.
Hundreds or thousands of bikes would be crossing today. Hit
town early and grab some breakfast. Spend a hour or so
wandering town looking at all the bikes. New, classic, vintage,
rat, all types. You can then join the poker run or just do a tour
of the island. I rode the full poker run route this year and it was
very nice. I left town around 1:30 or so.

Vashon Isle TT 2009 @ Yahoo! Video

Windy Ridge. 08/24/09

2009-08-24T07:38:00.000-07:00

Its been a year or more since Windy Ridge has been open.
There was a large washout and it took a while to repair it.
Windy Ridge is a very technical narrow road up the backside
(east) of Mt St Helen's. It goes right thru the damage zone.
Still looks like no mans land in places.
Click here to read more and view Maps.

Mount St Helens Windy Ridge from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Mt St Helens NFR 26 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Eastside Weekend (Weekend at Larry's). 08/21/09

2009-08-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

Man what a summer this has been. It certainly has been one for
the record books. I have a few vacation days left and it appears
that the season is winding down for longer multi day rides. For
various reasons our annual fall ride does not look like it is going
to happen.

Hey hold on the weather for this weekend (08/21-24/09) is looking
great. Larry is living at Crescent Bar in his bachelor resort condo.
Hmmmm. A quick call to Larry finds he is alone this week end and
has some free bedrooms. Monday and Tuesday vacation days and
an early after noon departure on Friday. My 4 day weekend is on.
Click here to read more and view maps.

The Road to Flowery Trail from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Run 21. 07/24/09

2009-07-24T07:34:00.000-07:00

Run 21 is fast approaching equal status with the Redwood Run.
Two warm star filled nights and 8 great bands. The crowd was
huge this year. In prior years you could get there early afternoon
and find a spot. Normally I am a solo rider or with only one or
two others. But this year I lead in 10 or so other bikes.

There was no place for a group of that size in the normal area.
However they had just opened and overflow area. We were the
first in there. At first it looked pretty crappy. Just a hole in the
fence and a trail down a ditch to the other side. But after getting
in we found a nice grassy area and even had shade. It was a walk
to the downtown area but after a trip or two was not bad. Most
have already decided to go straight to that spot next year.
Click here to read more and view Maps.

PSMC Burch Bay Fireworks Ride. 07/14/09

2009-07-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

The PSMC July 4th Burch Bay Fireworks Ride. The idea of this
ride was a nice day ride to Burch Bay in the upper most nw
corner of the Puget Sound area. Then have dinner and ride
back on I 5 just a dusk and view the area fireworks.

I joined the ride at the Edison lunch stop. I found a group of
around 18 riders. After lunch we continued North via Chuckanut
drive. Thru Bellingham and some nice scenic ocean side beach
road around Portage and Lummi Bay.

We arrived in Burch Bay and found large crowds on the beach.
It was still early for dinner so we continued on to Blaine and
spent a little time on the water front with a view of the Canada
and the Peace Arch.
Click here to read more and view Maps

The Search for No Where. 07/03/09

2009-07-03T07:29:00.000-07:00

July 3rd. Its great when the 4th falls on a weekend creating an
additional day off and a 3 day weekend. I am on call however
so I need to stay local. The weather is fantastic for the Pacific
North West. It is a perfect day to continue the search for
No Where.

The legend says it is a great motorcycle town but very hard to
find. I have been searching for 2 years now. I think I have seen
it briefly but it then disappears like a nice dream.

Wil and Marv joined me for breakfast at the Buzz Inn at Harvey
Field in Snohomish. After we polished off some loggers specials
we headed east on High Bridge road. Will had made the comment
that he had never ridden the Sultan Basin area. That is a road
the ends and goes no where so perhaps that was a clue? But it
is a great ride until it ends then it is a great ride back so lets take
a look. There are tons of signs on this road that say "No Shooting".
They are all full of holes LOL.
Click here to read more and view Maps.

Cycle Barn Rat Ride to Clarkston Wa. 06/26/09

2009-06-26T07:22:00.000-07:00

I almost missed it this year. The Cycle Barns Rat Group ride to
Clarkston Wa. It is the annual early summer ride to the Lo Lo
pass area. I had cancelled my motel reservations for several
reasons. But at the last minute I decided I had to go. I could not
miss the first real summer weather and ride of the year. So I
headed out late afternoon on Friday. Most of the rest of the
group had gone that morning. I would go to Colfax Washington
and spend the night at my cousins and meet the Rat Riders
Saturday morning.

Left my cousin's around 6:30 for the 45 mile or so ride to Clarkston.
It was a cool but comfortable ride thru the Palouse Wheat country.
Beautiful green rolling hills and a easy winding road. Most of my
fellow city riders do not appreciate that area. But as an old farm
boy and coming from a farm back ground I see it different.
Click here to read more and view Maps.

VTX Sisters Oregon Campout 06/19-21/09

2009-06-19T18:37:00.000-07:00

WOW what a weekend. Sisters Oregon is a great motorcycle
weekend getaway. Several motels in addition to camping. The
town has several good restaurants and Bars. What else do you
need? The weather I have to say for me was pretty much crap.
We got rained on a little on the way down but not to bad. It was
cool but not as cold as it might have been at night. I was ok in my
fleece sleeping bag with clothes on and a light blanket I borrowed
from Ric.
Click here to read more.

Oregon FR 19 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Oly Rat Ride 06/13/09

2009-06-13T17:03:00.000-07:00

The Oly Rat group has a regular scheduled ride every 2nd
Saturday. The rides are generally long and interesting. The
Oly Rats ride a brisk pace.

Well the ride started out ok. Steve, Randy (me) and 3 Oly Rats.
Terry and I am afraid I don't remember the other names. I stayed
out of any route talk as I was going to return early for the PNWRR
Dinner. So off we went north to cross the bridge and head to
Shelton. The route was something thru Matlock. Steve was in the
lead so I followed him. At Shelton we turn west on Highway 3.
The last I saw of the Oly riders was as we turned left they were
there. A few blocks later they were gone? I thought they may
have stopped for gas. We went back. They were no were to be
found. We rode back and fourth all over the downtown area.
Click here to read more.

Elma to Centralia, Wa. @ Yahoo! Video

X Men Spring Opener Winthrop 05/29-31/09

2009-05-29T16:58:00.000-07:00

May be we are going to have a summer this year? It is about
time. The X Men and Women gathered at Winthrop for the
Spring Opener. We gathered all day as some still had to work.
3 tents and 2 cabins.

Tony and I meet at Rockport around 9:30 for a short ride to
Marblemount and breakfast at the little eatery at Clark's Cabins
resort. Then we headed east on Hwy 20. The traffic was light
and the weather great. As we hit the summit at Washington
Pass there was some snow and the view point was not open.
Click here to read more.

VTX Memorial Day Chuckanut Ride 05/25/09

2009-05-25T16:53:00.000-07:00

This was a quick little thrown together Memorial Day ride. We
started at Jon's house in South Everett. A quick stop in
Marysville with a final meet a the Krispy Kreme in Burlington.

We ended up with a pretty good size group at the Krispy Kreme.
Don't think I took a count but you will get an idea in the videos.
From there we took a nice ride up Chuckanut drive and
continued on to Ferndale for lunch at the Sonic drive in.
Click here to read more.

Burger at Zeke's 05/24/09

2009-05-24T16:43:00.000-07:00

Sunday of Memorial weekend. Not much going on today but
another great weather day in our unusual good weather string
this spring. Man a burger from Zeke's sounds great. Zeke's is
a great little burger stand on Hwy 2 just west of Gold Bar. A lot
of small town burger stands seem to make better burgers.
I guess that is because they are not mass produced.
Click here to read more.

Memorial Weekend Saturday Ride 05/23/09

2009-05-23T16:40:00.000-07:00

Where to go today. This could be the one of the best weather
Memorial weekends in a long time. Nothing but good weather
forecast for the whole weekend. Almost unheard of in the Seattle
area. But I am on call so I need to stay local. Otherwise I would
be on my way to Fossil Oregon for the Fossil Campout.

It was hard to decide what to do. There were a couple of group
ride options. The Cyclebarn was having a Vashon Island ride.
The PSMC group was having a Tayhua forest ride.
Click here to read more.

PNW Road Riders Spring Break 2009 05/14-19/09

2009-05-14T16:36:00.000-07:00

The PNW Road Riders Spring Break is an annual multi day ride.
This year was to be our longest and most ambitious to date.
Little did we know that we would experience some of the best
and worst riding in our history.

Wednesday afternoon was a getaway day for a lot of us. There
were a couple rides going that day to get out of town. Mine was
a meeting with Bill, and Doug in Woodburn, Or. Bill got going
earlier as he does not have to work. Doug and I headed out around
noon. I meet Doug at the Pilot truck stop south of Tumwater. From
there we had the wettest ride ever. Not sure about Doug but I know
that is the wettest ride I have ever done. It rained the whole way.
When we got to the Motel the lady at the front desk just handed us
our keys and said clean up then come back to register. No need to
map this day. Some had planned longer and more scenic getaways.
But all slabbed it due to weather.
Click here to read more.

Californi Hwy 36 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Cow Creek Road Pt 2 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

4th Annual 3 Pass Blast. 05/09/09

2009-05-09T16:31:00.000-07:00

The 3 Pass Blast is the annual first real ride of the year. We used
to do it a full month earlier. But the weather the last few years has
made this impossible. The weather broke for us this year and gave
us the first real summer like day of the year.

This year I decided to switch it up and reverse the route. Normally
Stevens, Blewett, and Snoqualmie passes. This year we did it the
other way. It was great change of pace. At the suggestion of a rider
we switched the starting point to Kens Truck stop instead of the usual
North Bend. It was a great decision since the ride was well over
100 bikes this year. North Bend would have been tough.
Click here to read more.

PNWRR Pelican Run 2009 04/18-19/09

2009-04-18T16:26:00.000-07:00

The weather forecasters had been promising a nice weekend
for a while. They delivered and we got a 4 or 5 day stretch of
summer weather. Saw some low 70's and clear blue sky.

We slabbed it down I 5 for the most part for the lunch meeting
at the start point at Clatskaine (I call it Clatwhatever?) and
Humps Restaurant. This year we did not get any Oregon riders
with us. Don from Vancouver Washington joined George, Marv,
Steve, David, Doug, and myself for a small but good group of 7.
Click here to read more.

Pelican Run 2009 hwy 47 from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Miami River road and Hwy 53 2009 Pelican Run. from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Backfire Bike Night and The Long Way Home. 04/15/09

2009-04-15T16:22:00.000-07:00

Cafe Racer, Ratbike, Vintage, Mopeds, And Vespas. That is the
description of Backfire Motorcycle Night. I had heard of it but
never gone. But the weather had thrown a nice weekday at us
and seemed like a good local ride. Made a couple calls to see
if anyone else was interested. Fred meet me there.

The site is a small to medium parking lot on an old gas station in
Ballard. I think it was a bistro before but is closed and being
renovated right now. Across the street is the Bit Saloon. A small
interesting watering hole. They have a ping pong table.
Click here to read more.

Steak and Ride Carnation Valley 04/06/09

2009-04-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Monday night is Steak Night at the 13th Ave Pub in Lynnwood.
With the temps in the upper 60's and a clear blue sky. Fred
and I decided to take an after dinner evening ride in the
Carnation Valley.

We have been considering the idea of a regular week night
ride in the valley. There are many nice local roads in Carnation
Valley. You could do dozens of different rides without repeating
one. This seemed like the prefect time to try one out.
Click here to read more.

Seattle to Quincy Via Portland 04/04/09

2009-04-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

Fred asked over Tacos Thursday night. Did you see the weather
forecast for the weekend? It looks like summer. Were are we riding?

Larry said we could go to my condo at Crescent Bar in Quincy. But
it is still snowing in the pass. It might be hard to get a bike over any
of the passes. I said we could go down to the Columbia River Gorge
and ride the long way around. We all looked at each other and said
yea.
Click here to read more.

Brunch at Sumas 3/29/09

2009-03-29T20:01:00.000-07:00

The Last Sunday (of the month) Breakfast ride. We have these
every last Sunday of the month Fall, Winter, and Spring. If the
weather is to bad drive you car to the meet up.

The weather has been bad the last month or so and was bad as
this ride approached. But the weather men kept saying we were
going to have one good day. Most did not believe that but I held
on to it. Saturday and into the evening was cold and wet. Sunday
morning started cold, gray, and scattered showers but began to
clear as predicted. So this was one of those Pacific Northwest Days
that you have to be ready for. It was pretty nice with some good
sunshine in the afternoon.
Click here to read more.

The EOW (End Of Winter) Ride 03/21/09

2009-03-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

When I got up the temperature was about 28*F on my back deck and
the skies were clear. Things were looking very good considering the
iffy weather forecast as Daren and I rode to the meet up site at the
Lynnwood Jack in the Box.

Seven or eight of us left Lynnwood for Castle Rock. The road was clear
until we hit the section of I-5 undergoing repair in Shoreline. The weather
was clear until we hit Seattle. It remained foggy or overcast all the way to
Castle Rock, where the clouds began to part.
Click here to read more.

The End Of Winter ride Up Mt St Helens from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

End Of Winter 2009 The Top from NWBikers.Com on Vimeo.

Lunch at the Gaslamp Tavern 02/21/09

2009-02-21T14:07:00.000-08:00

This was one of those late winter days of hope and joy. The sun was out in
force the temps rose to the high 50's. At some point you found yourself
turning OFF the heated gear. Thoughts of the upcoming riding season and
the closure of winter flood your brain. You find your face is sore and wonder
why. Then you realize your smile is a mile wide and your face hurts.
Click here to read more.

North Snohomish County Mystery Ride 02/14/09

2009-02-14T13:58:00.000-08:00

This was the ultimate mystery ride to date. I have been riding Snohomish
County for years and thought I pretty much knew every good motorcycle
road around. However once we got out of town Fred took an unknown left
hand turn in the Machias area. So we were off on a ride of discovery and
this was to be one of many virgin (for me) roads.
To read more click here.

Long Beach for Fish & Chips

2008-11-24T08:19:00.000-08:00

This was the first of the Mystery Ride series. The idea that the group does not know where they are going. In this case it was modified as the group knew the starting point and destination. For the full effect of the Mystery Ride the riders will be given a start point the knight or even early morning of the ride. They will just be committed to the ride and ready. The will not know the Start, Route, or Destination. Sounds like fun to me. I just need to get some others to do some planning so I can enjoy a true Mystery Ride.

In this case the start point was known. The destination was Long Beach for Chowder. I don't do Chowder so I changed it to Fish & Chips.

Read the Full Ride Report.

Thanks

Randy The X Man

The ST a year later

2008-11-06T06:18:00.000-08:00

Well it has been just about a year since I traded my loved VTX 1800 on the long looked at St1300. It was a big change from the Cruise ride position to the Sport Touring position. Back in those days I had many discussions about cruiser and sport positions.

My VTX had a mustang seat with a back rest. I had a large windshield with the Laminar Lips and Ears. The windshield was like a mini faring. It was a lounger Chair that could do 130 mph.On a freeway you could just layback on the backrest and go. The weight with rider was close to 1000 pounds. It was unaffected by normal winds and any truck traffic. With the after market progressive suspension it handled great on freeways and minor twisties. I thought I could handle it pretty well on most twisties. But I was to learn otherwise.

I have already posted an article on my first day on the bike. Rather then repeat it here you can check it out from my web site. Well now it has been a year and not quite but almost 20,000 miles. On the advice of others I did not immediately add the risers and peg lowering options. Now I find that while I on longer freeway rides I might like to have a little bar rise. Once I hit the twisties I would not want them. I am not quite totally upright but almost. As it is now I could not make full use of a backrest. But as it turns out I am quite comfortable and do not have any back issues.

I often wondered on my VTX what it is like riding behind a full faring. Well now I know. It is great. With the windshield in the full up position it is very quite and almost no wind. I used to wrap a Velcro wrap around my legs to keep my pants from flapping. But behind my fairing it is very smooth. In the rain I can ride dry as long as I am moving.

The electric windshield is a very nice feature. On the free way you can raise the windshield up as you ride with a switch. In the high position it is almost windless. I do not mind looking thru the windshield. But if I do I simply lower is a bit. As you hit the twistied you lower it down to get it out of the way or in sport position. Overall it moves up and down around a foot. In the rain you can roll it fully up and when your visor gets covered in water you drop is for a few seconds and the water is blown off. Same in the heat. If your head gets hot drop the windshield to get more air on your head. Its and awesome feature.

On my VTX I had a range of around 150 or 160 miles total. So gas stops were always on my mind. In riding with the ST group I was always the one with the shortest range and several time the group almost ran me out of gas. Now with 7.7 gallons I am the super tanker. Even with poor gas mileage I have a range over 300 miles. So I really do not even have to think about how much gas I have. This year I have lost my way a couple of time and then explored new and unmapped territory with no worries of were the next gas was. I would never have found the Lost Road on the VTX. I would have HAD to turn around rather then explore because gas would have been critical. In the case of lost in the Oregon back roads I WOULD have run out of gas.

There are a couple of complaints of the ST1300. One is a heat issue. I on the first 90 degree day thought that my right leg was a little hot. But that was the only time. It never really got hot weather wise in the northwest so perhaps that is why I no not believe I have a heat issue. I did ride to New Mexico this summer and I had several days of over 100 degree weather. Other then the weather was hot I did not have any motorcycle hot legs?

The other issue is a high speed wobble. I have never experience this and have been up to the 135 area. I don't think it will be a problem for me as I do not normally ride at that speed. I do it now and then just to do it. But as I get over 120 my mind starts to throw thoughts at me of what if? So I slow down. I have only talked to one ST rider who thinks he had a wobble at 145. The documented ones seem to be mostly European police motorcycles that are very loaded up with high loads and high lights on poles.

With the saddle bags and Givi top box I have all the storage I need without any extra bags strapped on. If it is a camping ride then I will of course have to strap my camp bag on the passenger seat. But otherwise I have plenty of space.

I thought that I could handle the VTX pretty well but now I have learned how hard I was working in the twisties. I noticed that the first weekend. Now in the twisties I will have the windshield down and leaned forward gliding thru the corners. I could not now go back to aCruiser. I sat on my VTX once after a couple of months and if felt so strange. I thought how did I ride that?

I still dont like tight switch backs and 20 mph corners but other then that I am loving my St.

Thanks

Randy The X Man

Open Comments November 2008

2008-11-02T12:33:00.000-08:00

Hi All

This space is available for any comments you may wish to make

PNW Road Riders Pelican Run

2008-11-01T11:08:00.000-07:00

The Pelican run is an annual weekend run by the PNW Road Riders to Pacific City Oregon. It is generally the first overnight ride of the year in early spring. This year the date was April 12 -13.

This year we were treated to an excellent spring weekend. The weather was great and we enjoyed many of the great NW Oregon roads. Check out the ride report for full details.

Thanks

Randy The X Man

Deals Gap of Washington.

2008-11-01T08:49:00.000-07:00

I have never ridden the real Deals Gap just seen it on videos. I have asked the question before "were is the Deals Gap of Washington". Some one suggested the Flowery Trail road in Eastern Washington. Highway 142, Hurricane Ridge, and Windy Ridge are other thoughts.

I think Windy Ridge has been closed all season due to a washout. It also seems that there has been construction on Hurricane Ridge this year. So not much going on there for 08. But I did ride Flowery Trail road this year. I have to say that for me it is one of the very top rides in the state. It is around 20 miles long. Very nice pavement with lots of what I would call mild twisties and only a few switch backs. For my personal riding style it was perfect. I like the high speed sweepers and mild twisties that I can see coming.

I don't know if anything I have seen in Washington comes close to the videos of Deals Gap or not. But Flowery Trail is a ride you need to do. For me I am not sure if I would even like Deals Gap as it looks like a lot of tight switch backs?

This is a great ride. What do you think?

Thanks

Randy The X Man

Were has the Summer Gone

2008-11-01T07:51:00.000-07:00

Man my last post here was in January. Still learning how to use this blog I guess. So I will give it another go. Was just viewing all my ride reports for this year. Wondering the best way to get them on the blog. Then I thought crap just post a link. So here it is my Summer of 2008 in review.

http://www.nwbikers.com/RD_RideReports08.html

Overall this has been a great summer weather wise. It has been pretty dry with lots of sun. It never got hot which I miss, but most do not. It seems that we had only a few days of 90 plus. But I will not complain about that just mention it.

I am closing in on around 20,000 miles for the year. Which I think is about a record for me. some keep better records but mine are a little loose. I think I started at around 3500 and am somewhere over 22500 now. I will try to remember Jan 1 to record my mileage next year.

The New Mexico ride finally happened for me this year. New Mexico has always been calling me for a ride. This year the ST Rally was in Taos New Mexico and was to good to miss. We ended up as a group of 4 or 5 as we got to Taos. The weather was pretty good but did rain on us pretty had on the Million Dollar Highway 550 on the way over. That looks like a great ride but not in the rain.

Next year the ST Rally is in Minden Nevada. That should be a great ride with good ride routes all the way there and back. In addition to 3 days in the Northern California area.

I invite you to take a look at the ride reports and associated videos. There are a couple ride reports that could us some updating but I cannot say when that should be done.

You can find all the Videos on the Video page here is the link.

http://www.nwbikers.com/P_Videos06.html

Please feel free to leave a comment.

Thanks

Randy The X Man

Deals Gap of Washington.

2008-01-17T15:49:00.000-08:00

Where is the Deals Gap of Washington State. I have never ridden the real Deal Gap or Dragon. It is 318 corners in 11 miles of scenic North Carolina. Looks incredible.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tail_of_the_Dragon

Here is a video. Dont get sick.

http://www.motonorthwest.com/VIDF_YellowWolf.html

So is there something similar in Washington State. There are of course thousands of great rides of all kinds. But I cannot think of something similar in Washington. It has been suggested that the road from Chewelah to Usk could be it?

http://www.nwbikers.com/RDWRD_FloweryTrailRd.html

Sorry I do not have any video of it. It does appear to have a pretty twisty section. But seems along way from 318 corners in 11 miles?

Highway 142 from Goldendale to Lyle is nice?

http://www.nwbikers.com/RDWRD_Hwy142.html

So what do you think?

Thanks

Randy The X Man

http://www.nwbikers.com

Some of my Favorite Rides in Washington

2008-01-06T13:37:00.000-08:00

These are my favorite 5 rides in Washington State

Highway 20 from Rockport to Twisp.

Omak Lake Road (The Secret Hwy)

Hwy 261 Starbuck

Windy Ridge Mt St Helen's

Cache Creek Rd North Central Washington

These are a few of my favorite Washington State rides.

What are your 5 favorite rides. Please leave a comment and let me know

Thanks Randy The X Man

http://www.motonorthwest.com/

2007 in review.

2008-01-01T11:51:00.000-08:00

Well I have been staring at this blog for a while now so I guess it is time to start writing something? 2007 was a very interesting year. Summer wise here in the Seattle area it was not very good. It was nice for about a week and a half the first of July. Most people around here will tell you that summer starts after the 4th of July. This year the 4th was great. But that only lasted a week and a half and that was about it for our summer. Spring and fall were also a no show as far as any good weather was concerned. I think we are firmly in the grips of Global Warming or a better term I Global Climate change. For us in the northwest that means grayer, cooler, and wetter.

But I did get around 18,000 miles this year. With some excellent rides.

One of the best was the weekend at Clarkston and the Lo Lo Pass ride. You can view the complete Ride Report at http://www.nwbikers.com/RDRI_LoLoHwy12.html

All the Ride Reports for 07 at at http://www.nwbikers.com/RD_RideReports07.html

So I will say farwell to 2007 an now look ahead to a whole new year. You can check out my 2007 in detail at http://www.nwbikers.com/Tour_07.html

I hope you all had a great 2007 and have an even better 2008.