Flying Monkey Adventure Rally

[Crawdaddy 96]

Roger (Strega), Curtis (Fabless) and I carpooled out together, rode together and had a great time.....I'm sure some of the other SDAR folks who attended will pipe in with photos/stories........

Casa de Curtis:

We got caught in a DOWN POUR on Friday heading back from Hatch, Utah.....that made things interesting ......the only thing worse than riding slippery/snotty trails in a thunder storm? ......Getting off your bike to deal with a gate

Sweet view of my WR250R in Bryce Canyon on Saturday....the backdrop/view isn't too shabby either....

Wrapped up the weekend with another ~130 mile ride on Sunday.......Strega, Fabless, and I pulled down ~500 miles during our 3 day stay......good times for sure

[fudgypup 4]

Wish i could have made it this year. Love your pics.

[kkug 146]

WOW that is the nastiest rain picture I have ever saw !

[Crawdaddy 96]

......the only thing worse than riding slippery/snotty trails in a thunder storm? ......Getting off your bike to deal with a gate

In hindsight there IS something worse......the reason you don't see Curtis in the photo Roger snapped is because he was off to the side shivering......AND peeing in the driving rain

My heated grips were on high the rest of the afternoon.....

[TrophyHunter 15]

Very nice. Why it's an Adventure, I guess.

That's some snotty stuff alright.

[SXP 1]

[SXP 1]

[SXP 1]

[Strega 0]

Had a GREAT time riding the big bike, even in the nasty stuff. The rainy part was a real challenge and the nastiest stuff I've EVER ridden in to date. I can't believe the sheer amount of water that came out of the sky in such a short period of time. I was actually more worried about getting struck but lightning than crashing in the mud at that point. I saw 2 lightning strikes on a peak to the west no more than a 1/2 mi away, and that was nutty.

Here are some pics... (All of the pics are HERE

Day 1:

Day 2:

Fabless, Crawdaddy, Covered in Windbreaker, Hobiee

Day 3:

[hobiee 28]

yup thats me putting out the forest fire lol

[Bagstr 287]

Nice camera work gents. Thanks for sharing

Love the fact that you were riding in jackets. I thought you all were going to get cooked.

[kkug 146]

Good times-- Utah is great--so much riding to do.

[CalNub 0]

Looks like an awesome trip!

STREGA! What do you use to take still photos while riding? I've been trying to figure something out other than a GoPro, but haven't had much luck. Those shots are awesome!

[KTMrad 508]

Alright, some great photos ! Beautiful country.

[Strega 0]

Looks like an awesome trip!

STREGA! What do you use to take still photos while riding? I've been trying to figure something out other than a GoPro, but haven't had much luck. Those shots are awesome!

I just use my little digital camera and take pics, I ride with 1 hand and take pics with my left. I have the camera on a lanyard so if I need to let go to grab the bars I do.

[GeoMoto 0]

GeoMoto's Picture Link

Hello Everyone,

Thank you to everyone that came out to the ride!

Above is the link to some of the photos that I took over the weekend.

I will post video asap!

-Jesse

[Fabless 0]

Day One

Several months ago I read about this trip and signed up, thinking that any trip near Zion must involve spectacular scenery and interesting riding. Then, a couple weeks ago at the Big Bear Run, I bartered lodging for a ride with Strega, and together we gave Chris the nudge to join us.

Last Thursday I packed my sidecases and rode down to Strega’s to load up in the early afternoon. When I first bought my bike, I added the cases and rack thinking I’d use them for longer trips; since then, they’ve been mostly employed for getting to someone’s truck or trailer to carpool to more distant destinations. The racks do serve as good crash protection and subframe reinforcement.

Crawdaddy showed up shortly; we hitched the trailer and were moving before 3PM.

The dried lakebed just west of Primm held water, the first time we’d seen it like this.

We stayed in Mesquite for the night and drove the remaining section to Zion next morning. It had been a few years since I’d first been in Zion, and driving through the park in such conditions reminded me that I needed to come back to spend time there on foot.

We arrived at Zion Ponderosa just ahead of 10AM, checked in and unpacked.

These “cowboy cabins” are advertised as accommodating up to 6, but practically hold 3. Their proximity to water and the showers & toilets make for a good arrangement.

We wasted little time getting unloaded and dressed, and were riding just ahead of noon.

Our first route took us on a loop northward along North Fork then northeast toward Panguitch.

We were soon on more interesting, challenging trails in the woods of Dixie National Forest.

A couple sections involved rocky climbs winding through the trees, too entertaining and intense to stop for pictures.

Over the next few days, we would frequently encounter cows grazing in meadows bisected by two-track, where Strega took this shot:

Passing a skittish calf is no fun.

A turn took us into Rock Canyon which lived up to its name. Some research is needed to determine the provenance of these piles of boulders, seemingly man-made.

Strega and Crawdaddy make a stop in open country headed south toward Hatch in the late afternoon.

As we continued south past Hatch, we were abruptly caught in a torrential downpour which soaked through my riding gear in a matter of minutes. As I began to chill, I remembered that I had installed heated grips and set them on high. Heavy rainfall has a funny way of heightening the urgency of needing to make a pitstop, so the gate seemed as good a time as any. Thankfully Roger was there to capture the moment with this shot.

Surprisingly none of us succumbed to the less-than-ideal traction; there would be plenty of chances for that in the following days. As the rain died off and we descended, warmth slowly returned to the bones; back at the ranch, a shower and change of clothing breathed new life into us.

We met up with Rekha and Samir at 8 for dinner at the restaurant in the main lodge. Food was not bad, which was a fortunate thing since this venue was our only nearby dining option.

[Fabless 0]

Day 2

Next morning, Rekha prepared a fine breakfast of thick blueberry pancakes, eggs and bacon before we headed out. Today we rode together with Brian and CiD.

CiD, coverered in mud

Outlook toward the bluffs southeast of Hatch looking out into Bryce. Lots of windy forest roads here.

I got my first flat in the middle of Bryce.

A little warm and exposed to the sun, but not a bad place to replace a tube, and the heat softened the tire, making removal easy.

Crawdaddy had his doubts, but the wooden dowel came through again, propping up the front end of the bike this time. Here, Strega helps me get the stem through the rim.

Took 35 minutes to get moving again.

Rode through a birch tree tunnel.

Had my first crash in a mud hole a few miles later. That was forgotten when we happened upon this vista looking westward in Bryce, a perfect place to stop for “lunch”.

Rain in the distance threatened but never hit us.

More vistas further down the road.

Hobiee somehow manages to drop his bike on an easy section. Terribly embarrassing.

Actually, he’d leaned his bike over on a steep section and it broke the sidestand.

Lunch next to the North Fork turnoff.

Altogether, we rode around 200 miles this day.

[PbdBlue 46]

Awesome pics and a great RR. Wife and I are planning on taking the motorhome next year and basing some rides out of Tropic Reservoir and Duck Creek. Looks like you were close to both places. Anyone have any tracks to share?

[Crawdaddy 96]

Awesome pics and a great RR. Wife and I are planning on taking the motorhome next year and basing some rides out of Tropic Reservoir and Duck Creek. Looks like you were close to both places. Anyone have any tracks to share?

Nice pics all!

At some point I'll edit my active/exploring tracks so we have some established tracks for next year

[SXP 1]

Awesome pics and a great RR. Wife and I are planning on taking the motorhome next year and basing some rides out of Tropic Reservoir and Duck Creek. Looks like you were close to both places. Anyone have any tracks to share?

Nice pics all!

At some point I'll edit my active/exploring tracks so we have some established tracks for next year

Chris - Did you get my two tracks for the two days of riding we did? I'd put in a waypoint for the natural spring.

[Crawdaddy 96]

Chris - Did you get my two tracks for the two days of riding we did? I'd put in a waypoint for the natural spring.

Yep, but I haven't even looked at them yet......focused on getting ready for Mammoth next weekend.....

[Fabless 0]

Day 3

I thought our last day of riding was the best, as it took us through the widest variety of terrain including some really nice wooded trails that wound back and forth seemingly optimized for riding fun; a section of lava boulders that was challenging; and two-track through meadows. And it had the least amount of asphalt.

Rode out along North Fork again.

Made a water crossing into what turned out to be a private road and turned back.

Strega took many nice riding shots of me including this one.

Stopped in a stretch of wide open meadow. The riding here was fun, as the road frequently made tight turns and was marginally maintained in sections with rocks, ruts, and marshy sections.

More lava rocks.

Some of the best riding was on the forest roads, with lots of bermed, closely-spaced turns, rocky sections and climbing. There were two hard sections: a ~200m slight incline through trees, littered with large boulders and mud holes that were difficult to avoid; and a ~100m segment of 100% large lava rocks twisting through an opening in the woods.

Stopping for a food break in a forest clearing.

Filled up with 103 miles on the odometer since the North Fork turn-off. The 690 was covered with evidence of an encounter with the mud, which happened when I made the wrong turn in a wide mud maze in the forest. I was consistently getting 52-54mpg each day, which was gives this bike a comfortable 150 mile range with the stock tank.

Took a detour to Crystal Falls, which we made a half-hearted attempt to hike to in our gear, but did not reach.

Dwarfed by the landscape below Crystal Falls:

Strega took this photo of a rocky descent through the forest.

Chris had a knack for making the right turns to add interesting sections but ultimately we were back on familiar highways headed home.

Back at the ranch, getting all the mud off the bikes was a project

In the morning we had vacated our cabin and left the truck and trailer parked in front of the cabin. Turns out we could have been assessed a late penalty for this, but Zion Ponderosa Resort was very kind in waiving the $50 fee (after some negotiating by Crawford).

We rode about 130 miles this day, finishing up around 4 before heading back through Zion.

View through a portal in the 1.1 mile tunnel in the park:

Solar fields.

This was a great trip. Three consecutive days of plentiful dirt riding through Dixie National Forest with friends provided a much needed break as well as many chances to repeatedly practice lessons from past rides.

[Bagstr 287]

Fabliss,

Nicely Done! Thanks for taking the time to put the report together.

So what was Strega mad about?

That 690 is a pleasure, ain't it. A little extra work in tight quarters, put with a little room a delight. No messen with you once your hit an open road,

Bagstr

[hobiee 28]

Pro moto billett has stood behind their product and have since sent a new stand my way free of charge. Pretty cool of them they didn't ask but three questions and had the stand on its way.