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Wooooot... another installment. Good to see the dogs are socialized as well as their riders.

You left Taco Cabo, and it smelled bad to ride behind Wayne.....hmmmmmm.....

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9518328508_3f0b781895_o.jpg

Raindrops keep fallin on my head...rolleyes.gif

(LOVE this image-forgive my edits.)

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You've made my day (again)......thanks for the update.......agree with Paul, love that shot of you guys in the Ural!

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For those of you like me who can't get enough of Zina and Wayne's trip I found Alex's ride report on ADV. Here's the story from the Ural: Uraling The Great Divide

Thanks for posting that up...what was it you wanted me to do today? Sorry I didn't get to it. Too busy reading a great RR.

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Ural photo is perfect. I saved it my screen saver file. Thanks for posting!!!

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+1

9518328508_3f0b781895_o.jpg

Raindrops keep fallin on my head...rolleyes.gif

(LOVE this image-forgive my edits.)

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Zina, I have really enjoyed reading about your adventure. Thanks again for posting! Cant wait for more!!

........Hey DustyRock... You might start a new trend. The Squat could turn out to be the new Plank :lol:/>

post_13615_063394200_1376259907_thumb.jpg

For those not sure what Planking is :huh:/> check My linkbike_plank.jpg

Here's an example LOL

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Zina, I have really enjoyed reading about your adventure. Thanks again for posting! Cant wait for more!!

........Hey DustyRock... You might start a new trend. The Squat could turn out to be the new Plank :lol:/>/>

post_13615_063394200_1376259907_thumb.jpg

For those not sure what Planking is :huh:/>/> check My linkbike_plank.jpg

Here's an example LOL

Ha ! Good stuff ! People do some funny things. The planking vid was good for some laughs for sure. Gotta say "squatting" is definitely NOT in my European genes... No doubt with practice or the lack of things to sit on I (we) would become more proficient at it.... Guess its my inquisitive nature or perhaps the challenge to try to (walk like an Egyptian) or squat like an Asian ?....

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It's been fun sharing the ride, even though there's been no high drama of getting the tent slashed open by a bear.

Paul, nice photoshopping...and the only way anybody would know it's photoshopped is because the Ural is simply unable to move that fast (doesn't matter what shutter speed is used...). :)

Might be a few days before I can get another entry up. Gotta head up to the Bay Area.

Everybody, keep practicing your squats. When the armageddon is upon us and all the furniture has been destroyed, you will be delighted to have this skill.

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DAY 12 - JULY 15 - MONDAY

Kremmling, CO to Salida, CO

Simon usually sits right next to one of the bikes, convinced that we'll try to ditch him, but for some reason he's taking a chance this morning and sitting in the road. That's an impressive shadow for a dog of exceedlingly small stature.

0715_morning.jpg

My GPS has two sizeable blotches that grew from two small lines. They aren't a big deal but every time I glance down I think they're waypoints for water crossings.

0715_gps.jpg

It's a fast road into Kremmling that's also light on dust due to the recent rains. I can sense a Kum & Go waiting for us just miles away.

0715_tokremmling.jpg

This couple "skiing" down the road is moving along with decent speed. It would appear that she's parapalegic while he's an amputee. She's a fair way in the lead, which is surprising given the guns on the guy. Maybe she's the mechanic and he got the wheels with square bearings.

0715_ski.jpg

Dillon Reservoir is the largest water storage facility owned and operated by Denver Water. If you're angry at someone in Denver, you know where to pee.

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In Breckenridge, these two gents show interest in the Ural. They walk part way across the parking lot and stop, asking questions about the rig across a DMZ they won't cross. As another man — not sporting full-body orange — approaches their truck, the two dutifully retreat, showing us the SUMMIT COUNTY JAIL stamped across their backs. What I learn today: Dudes who run afoul of the law dig Urals more than DRZs. Can't blame them, especially since the camo paint job is the antithesis of their screaming orange togs.

0715_jail.jpg

The post-lunch scenery is excellent for digestion.

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Boreas Pass reaches 11,481 feet. Wayne gives a thumbs up for the DRZs that keep on chugging despite the thin air.

0715_boreas.jpg

We've seen a lot of cows so far, but these are our first Texas Longhorns. This one looks self-assured enough that I snap the pic as quickly as possible so I can get both hands back on the bars. They might be extremely docile, but I still would never turn my back on anything with two bayonets glued to their heads. And hey, doesn't the sky look a little dark?...

0715_cows.jpg

...Oh, that's because it freaking is. The rain begins gradually but reaches full annoyance before too long. An ordinarily easy road is now soft with mud and the DRZs are tracking wherever the mud wants it to track. I can't speak for Wayne, but I think this is the hardest riding yet. Actually, there's no real riding involved — I'm just applying the gas and accepting whatever comes.

0715_rain.jpg

We make it into Hartsel, which is a little drier than where we were at. We're not feeling optimistic about the weather clearing up so Wayne calls the Super 8 in Salida and reserves a room (it looks like he's giving himself a "time out" in the process). We make the decision to bypass a dirt section into Salida since it's marked with a water crossing. A recent storm has caused flash flooding through parts of Colorado (along with a rare funnel cloud on Pikes Peak) so that crossing is probably anything but a crossing at the moment.

0715_hartsel.jpg

The rain has backed off but it's still not a Kodak-moment type of afternoon.

0715_tosalida.jpg

We finally knock out the pavement miles and arrive at the Salida Super 8 where our own Hot Tub Time Machine awaits us. 1986, take us away!

0715_hottub.jpg

183 miles, 4:29 hours moving time

0715_map_sm.jpg

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Working on the next entry...only a few days left to write up. Must. Keep. Focused.

As for Wayne: Yeah, he's a talker, not a typer. Anybody who has ever struck up a conversation with Wayne will wonder what happened to the last few hours or his or her life. :lmaosmiley:

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Anybody who has ever struck up a conversation with Wayne will wonder what happened to the last few hours or his or her life. lmaosmiley.gif

Harsh.

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Hey that's Ken,s Cabin in the background :good:/>/> You notice no trees-they were all cut down years ago to make snow sheds for the railroad. The road is actually the railroad grade.

0715_boreas.jpg

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As for Wayne: Yeah, he's a talker, not a typer. Anybody who has ever struck up a conversation with Wayne will wonder what happened to the last few hours or his or her life. :lmaosmiley:style="font-size: 9pt;">

Inquisitive and interesting to converse with. I always leave with more ideas than I came with...and a few questions.

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hey zina----met you at bar 10 and wayne at thru jim martin (little plug for martin motorsports)---what great adventure---been readin report on adventure riders also, you both have a great gift with telling a story----thank you for taking us along!!

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DAY 13 - JULY 16 - TUESDAY

Salida, CO to Chama, NM

It was such a hard night of partying for Lola that her soul fled through her eyes so it could get some rest in a quiet corner before re-entering that burly body for another long day of riding shotgun.

0716_super8.jpg

This couple stared at us all yesterday afternoon as we unpacked, and they're back this morning to pick up where they left off. Don't they know how to work a TV? They are travelling with someone related to them, as a loud command to get their asses in gear is delivered by a woman whose nerves seem frayed by the responsibility of caring for aging parents (whose only pastime is staring at strangers).

0716_oldsters.jpg

Alex and Wayne chat about whatever it is dudes like to chat about (pick one: vehicles, weapons, team sports, action movies, or mammalian milk-delivery devices.) Wayne's concentration is not 100% there because he's been complaining all morning about how his boots seemed to have shrunk as a result of the previous day's rains. Apparently, they are so tight they're causing a bit of pain.

0716_chatty.jpg

Wayne looks at the line between pavement and dirt while Simon looks at whatever dogs with cataracts think they're looking at (pick one: food or food).

0716_firstdirt.jpg

The rains from the previous day make this stretch of road perfect. There's no dust and the traction combined with moderate surface imperfections makes it a blast to ride. I give it a thumbs up.

0716_thumbsup.jpg

Marshall Pass is at 10,842 feet so Simon puts on his hangdog "I've got altitude sickness so how about a medicinal biscuit?" face.

0716_marshallpass.jpg

It's a fine day to cruise into the Rio Grande National Forest.

0716_riogrande.jpg

Once we're back on pavement we wait to regroup with Alex. Wayne still cannot believe how much his boots have shrunk and how hard it is to shift. Just standing there makes his feet throb. He asks me how my boots feel. I tell him they feel great — spacious, even. Hmmm...

0716_waiting.jpg

...we realize at the same moment we must've swapped boots! None of our riding gear is identical except for the boots and all this time Wayne had his size 10.5 feet jammed into my 7.5 boots. When I am done crying and snorting and slapping my thigh — it's hilarious when you're not on the suffering end of it! — we have a boot repatriation ceremony. Only after my boots are back on my feet do I realize how (deliciously) sloppy Wayne's boots were. I feel like I'm going from a full-size sedan back to a compact.

0716_boots.jpg

It's lunch time at La Garita, a single-business kinda town.

0716_lagarita.jpg

Although La Garita is in the middle of nowhere, they've still got what really matters.

0716_wifi.jpg

After lunch we hit some fun two-track that has a TAT flavor. There are plenty of puddles from the rain and for my street friends who have never ridden through mud,

of how it can send your bike in a random direction.

0716_mud.jpg

Anybody notice I haven't crashed on this trip yet? Well, that lucky streak ends here and now. We made a brief stop and upon resuming I wipe the camera cover and focus on Alex and Wayne to try to get some nice footage. I'm not paying enough attention to the terrain and

that slaps me into the dirt. I'm on a slight bank so there's hope I can pick up the bike without destroying my spine and every muscle attached to it. I put my back to the bike, grab the handlebar and the rear rack, and dead lift the pig for all I'm worth. I'm surprised I get it righted (minor back soreness the next day) and catch up to Wayne who's waiting for me.

0716_crash.jpg

Wayne is probably telling me how much better his feet feel right now.

0716_twotrack.jpg

A lot of bicyclists must've been wandering onto the airport property because there were many of these signs to keep them on the proper path.

0716_signs.jpg

Del Norte has a grocery store so we grab some items for dinner. Wayne and Simon look away as if they don't know each other: Wayne is ashamed of having a puny, girly dog and Simon is ashamed of being seen with the filthy homeless-looking dude.

0716_delnorte.jpg

You can buy buffalo meat online from a company in Del Norte — these must be the blissfully ignorant steaks-to-be.

0716_buffalo.jpg

South of Del Norte are miles and miles of switchbacks that wind up and down around several mountains. It's such physical riding I'm not able to take my hand off the bar to do my one-handed shots. I try to take video but the battery in my action cam is dead. For those who know the true value of a squiggly line on a map, I'm sure you can appreciate this bit of twisted intestine.

0716_switchbacks.jpg

After that long stretch, we need a break. While we're hanging out, a camp host working in the area ask if we'll deliver a message to the campers at Spectacle Lake (it's just far enough away he doesn't want to make the round trip). Colorado recently had several large wildfires so a campfire restriction was in place. Thanks to the heavy rains of late, that restriction has been lifted and he wants us to tell the campers at Spectacle Lake. We tell him we will pass on the news.

0716_break.jpg

Wayne finds the few campers and spreads the word. I wonder how people didn't believe him and stuck with their plans of making smores over the Coleman stove.

0716_trailer.jpg

By the time we get to Chama, NM it's around 7:00. Chama is a bit of an armpit, but we're so tired we're willing to find a place in town.

0716_chama.jpg

Twin River Trailer Park is where we decide to lay our heads tonight.

0716_rv.jpg

But not until we wolf down another big pot of Alex's Taco Soup. It's the dinner of elite athletes and adventure riders.

0716_dinner.jpg

251 miles, 7:19 hours moving time

0716_map_sm.jpg

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3 sizes too small..? Hilarious.

Many have taken solace in an armpit. No worries. Thx Z

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SOB LMAO.... The wrong boots, good stuff !!

Looks like the look of surprise or disgust when she was busted looking at doggie porn ? A little privacy please !

0716_super8.jpg

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