Bar 10 2009

[TrophyHunter 15]

The planning for this ride included my son-in-law (1R0NM@N / Brian), my son & I. Dan broke his hand a week prior to the ride so plan B was put in place. My 72 year old Dad had bikes from Husky's to Suzuki's, etc in his past so I asked if he'd like to join in. My "family bike" WR250 was going to be too tall so Bikeslut was gracious enough to loan the TW200 for the ride.

I picked it up from Fakename in top shape with fresh maintenance & wash. It ran perfectly the entire trip and the size was perfect for Dad. He sends his thanks....and a few $$$$ to pay for service (which is next on my list). Dad also picked up a new front & rear tube for the ride which will be going with it to the BS estate.

On to the ride.........

We arrived at the Falcon Ridge on Friday & met Dad in the lobby. He'd already met some of the ride participants so we got a room, sorted equipment & went to Walmart for a few last minute items.

There was a piano in the lobby of Falcon Ridge but it was obviously not for playing. See sign. ....and nobody did.

Some last minute tire repairs by some BBTR folks. I walked up to them as they were putting in a new tube thinking I'd get some information about the ride..."so, how many times have you done this?".........they were obviously thinking about the tire......"just once today"......

Dad, Brian & the only guy with a full head of hair.

Dad & Brian heading out of Mesquite. It's hard to tell, but we had a constant 20 mph crosswind with very strong gusts. Even at 30 mph, it pushed my bike over a few inches more than once.

Welcome to AZ...

You've seen it before, and here it is again. Lotsa great signs on this trip!

Oddly, I didn't see any signs about free range cattle. Not like, they're free, more along the lines of "they might be in front of you when you come around the corner."

Because every ride report of a long trip has one. Nature helping nature.

Our future for the next several minutes. It was still windy, just not as strong. As we increased elevation, the temperature started dropping. Brought layers which would come in handy later.

Dad deciding which way to go.

Taking a page from ACoop, a rolling shot with Brian & Dad ahead.

Dad & Brian making their way along the hard pack. Lots of small rocks which made cornering fun. Notice the flowers in bloom...everything was in bloom...nice!

I learned all my pic techniques from AKCooper. FN tried to teach me but I couldn't retain it all. Point & Shoot works. Those dark clouds would come into play later. Notice it's dumping a few miles behind us.

Endless supply of fun! This may be a good time to thank Jim, Miguel, Frank & all the BBTR folks for a GREAT time!

Dad had a slight correction and chose to head for the wall...which was better than the alternative... No droppy the Slutbike though..

This was my first ride where I was responsible for using the GPS to guide us to our destination. With that in mind, I'd like to call this shot "Mistake Canyon".... A little 4 mile detour until Dad stopped "there are too many cow tracks on this road"

Dad & I at Butch Cassidy's hideout.

...and miles to go before I sleep....

A few minutes prior to this pic, we stopped to put another layer on. Just in time..it snowed on us. I took a pic, but it didn't show the snow like I'd hope (back to FN for more lessons).

Made it to the Bar 10 Ranch, "reserved" our bunks inside before they were all gone, and headed for the North Rim.

The trio at the overlook. Thanks to Boat440 for taking the shot!

One of the hazards on the ride. I rounded a corner to find one in the middle of the road. Brian passed three & must have spooked 'em cuz they bolted in front of Dad. On day 2, we crossed several pastures. There were 5 standing in the field watching me...even when Dad & Brian passed them, they didn't lose focus...creepy. I guess they sensed I was thinking about the previous nights dinner.

Good food, warm showers & GREAT people!

There are beds in these but we opted for the "outta the wind & cold" bunk house.

Dinner & plenty of it. The beef roast must have been cooking slow for a while...tender...with a little BBQ sauce. Thinking of BS, I paired this with a nice glass of water.

The kids riding the steel horses, roping the steel bull. They were smilin' & enjoying every minute!

End of Day 1. Coming back from the rim, we found a frustrated LC4 operator. I towed him into the ranch...Brian said he's never seen so many people dive for cameras in his life....a blue bike towing a KTM. We'll see if anything pops up on the BBTR or District 37/38 sites.

Sunday AM brought in a family who'd been rafting. They got their permits in 1992!

I can't tell you how many bicyclists we saw that undoubtedly benefitted from this sign. Mostly because there weren't ANY! I'd like to know what regulatory agency spent our tax dollars on this one..and it wasn't the only one...

Creepy staring cows. We opted not to do the hardway out due to gas restrictions and respect for the BSTW. There was a double jump looking thing prior to this we were warned about by Jim from BBTR. He said it gets a few riders each year cuz it comes up quick. We were looking for it about 10 miles from the schoolhouse and found it....slowly. Keep this in mind if you ever do the Bar 10.

Dad & Brian heading back to Mesquite.

Some of the BBTR leadership on a snack break. Dad's looking at the rear shock after the bike entered a harsh whoop at mach 10. Blew the retaining ring off of the bottom...rider said it's time for a new shock body. Ouch.

Road into Mesquite with Brian close behind. I missed taking some shots of the very long rocky switchback drop into the valley. Lots of decisions to make on that descent with several problems if you mess it up.

End of Day 2.

This was a great ride with a variety of terrain & elevation (a little over 6900 feet on day 2). There were tricky sections with bad results if it didn't go right and wide open dirt roads. I'm glad Brian & Dad went as family time is always good! A once in a lifetime trip with wind, snow, good food, lots of jokes, views forever and great people!

[bikeslut 1]

good report Ken

[Strega 0]

Great pics! Feels like I was just there! Oh wait....I was...

[Crawdaddy 96]

Thanks for the flashback......glad you had a great time.......never doubted you would

[blind_in_1_ear 0]

nice report....i think next year i will be out there too....

here's to dreaming!!!

Blind

[dirt dame 559]

There are beds in these but we opted for the "outta the wind & cold" bunk house.

Great report. I like the Covered Wagon theme of camping, as long as they are comfy and have enough covers to keep warm. .

And not too far from the bathrooms.

[SnailDarter 0]

Nice sounding trip --- but WHERE"S THE MUD?

Looks WAY too dry..

[Beezzz 6]

Nice report. thanks.

Beezzz

[tntmo 887]

Looks awesome, like the kind of ride I could take my wife on and she would enjoy it.

[RogerTOWM 0]

Great ride report! Beautiful pictures! And your father has reinspired me! I’ll be 52 soon and was starting to wonder how many years I would be able to keep riding motorcycles. But your dad has 20 years on me and is still going!