Joliet 0 Posted September 23, 2007 Just a quick note to get some info out there. I will add a couple of pics and more info tomorrow. Present were, KLRoger,Backhoedoc, Henry Hester, Papa Alex, Rexeverything, Joliet, Carguy, RideOrange. It was one of the nicest riding days I have seen in the desert. Mild temps and little or no dust. The wind came up in the afternoon about the time we finished riding. I heard rumors, but didn't actually see any one go down. We not only found sand to ride in but most of the bikes came back muddy! I had a good time and I hope everyone else did also. Thanks to all who showed up to ride, let's do it again soon. Ken backhoedoc gets the pyro award for the day. How many miles for the day doc? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirt dame 561 Posted September 23, 2007 whaaaa! I gotta get to bed earlier and quit oversleeping I missed another great one, especially the muddy part. I went riding too, and as I was driving out through the pouring rain, I was pretty excited about water, mud or even just plain old traction, but when I got to McCain, it was sunny and as dry and powdery as ever. What a bummer. I thought about you guys and wondered if you had gotten some rain to make the ride more fun. Glad you all had fun, wish I did too. Well I did have fun, but not as much as you did, I'm sure. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
backhoedoc 0 Posted September 23, 2007 Thanks again Ken for posting another great ride I just had a blast in the sand and mud and you just can;t get better people or weather to ride with. It once again as with all of these rides, is always nice to meet new riders and to share with them what We all have in common and that is to ride and learn from one another on how to be better at what we do. I;m already in for the next sand sliding adventure!! I ended up with a total of 229 mi on Sat. I had S2 and 79 all to myself and was able to wash off some of the mud in some brief downpours, just a great day of riding Have a great day the Doc. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
papaalex 5 Posted September 23, 2007 Great ride, thanks Ken and others for making it happen. I still remember how to ride sand My first time in sand on Dunlop D952, very very good, people behind me were complaining about being hit hard with rocks from my rear. It's interesting how sticky and hard that mud was then dry, takes a while to melt it with water. Next time DUNES papa. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rex_everything 0 Posted September 23, 2007 That was a lot of fun yesterday!! It was great riding with everyone and thanks to Ken for posting the ride. Sand is interesting to ride in, but very fun. We hit everything from untracked dry sand to huge puddles and endless woops. Cant wait to get back and ride more!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Crawdaddy 96 Posted September 23, 2007 It was one of the nicest riding days I have seen in the desert. Mild temps and little or no dust. The wind came up in the afternoon about the time we finished riding. I heard rumors, but didn't actually see any one go down. We not only found sand to ride in but most of the bikes came back muddy! Agreed! I took Fred (Snaildarter) out to Ocotillo Wells yesterday along with my friend Sean. Freddy is an Oregon boy and hadn't seen the likes of Ocotillo Wells before......and the conditions were ideal ......we rode a ~70 mile loop that covered the Badlands, Artesian Well, Gas Dome, Pumpkin Patch, Blow Sand, etc..... Conditions could not have been much sweeter.....moderate temps for this time of year and yes, even some mud on the skid plates at the end of the day!....riding through "tacky" washes was a nice change.....seemed odd to finish a ride "dirt free" since there was no blowing dirt/sand...... And the place was empty......as I'm sure it was further south where you folks were riding......Good thing we had GPS units/tracks to guide us to a few of the waypoints named above......we would've been floundering without directional guidance in areas that haven't been ridden in months..... We were sitting up on top of Blow Sand at about 1pm when someone on a plated KTM 525 rode up by us.....was that one of you folks? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joliet 0 Posted September 23, 2007 We were sitting up on top of Blow Sand at about 1pm when someone on a plated KTM 525 rode up by us.....was that one of you folks? Was he wearing camoflage riding pants? If so he is a member of this club but hasn't posted. We talked to him for a while at Dos Cabesas(spelling) siding. I don't remember his name but Henry might. Ken Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RogerTOWM 0 Posted September 23, 2007 Ken said he heard “rumors” that someone went down? I don’t know where he heard that! I didn’t see anyone go down. I do want to explain that my motorcycle has narcolepsy (a sleeping disorder that causes the afflicted to go to sleep at all times). This causes my bike to lie down and go to sleep. That must have been what he heard. He just misunderstood. Ken you have to listen better! I would also like to tell you that if you want a chance to ride a KTM 525 just drop your new bike about 12 times in front of Ride-Orange, then offer to let him ride it. Not only will he make it look like child’s play riding your hog out of the deep sand, he will make you ride his bike. It’s a great trick and it worked! The only bad side to this trick is that you have to give the bike back some time and you will want to get a KTM afterwards. I forgot how long it takes to get to Octillo so I left early and got there at 7 am (I hate being late). When Brian got there he introduced himself and offered to help me unload my bike from the truck. Knowing that I had to learn to unload the bike by myself I decided get the bike down while he was getting gas. In keeping with the tradition I started with my 1st ride with the club, I brought my bike down the ramp and dumped it on the ground! That was only the 1st fall of the day and was starting a pattern I would appear to repeat for the rest of the day. Know that I shut my eyes as I crash. So I can always honestly say I did not see anyone go down Saturday. I have not ridden a bike in sand since I was in my early 20’s and that was a long time ago. At 386 pounds dry the 08 KLR 650 is much heavier then the 2 strokes of my youth. At the riders meeting I was given some great advice on how to ride on sand. Keep the speed up, put your weight on the rear tire, keep your front tire up, get out of first gear as quick as you can, don’t fight the handle bars, relax and let the bike do the work, power through the turns. When I followed that advice I did fine. When I didn’t, I fell down. I am a slow learner so I fell down a lot. Fortunately sand is a forgiving surface. While I’m thinking about it I would like to say that the gear you wear is very important. If I had not been wearing boots my ankle could very easily have been broken on my last fall. So please wear your gear. I don’t know about everyone else but I had a great time! I would like to thank Ken for setting the ride up.Carguy for the tips and picking my bike up. Ride-Orange for showing me how it should be done and letting me ride his bike. Backhoedoc for giving me encouragement (although he hasn’t been over to rake my leaves yet). Papaalex and Rexeverything for the great company and support. Henry Hester for want he said after riding the honda650! These guys are terrific to ride with! They are good riders, very supportive, offer good tips and are fun. I can’t wait to ride with you guys again although I may stay off the sand until I’ve ridden the dirt some more and learned my bike a little better. Roger Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joliet 0 Posted September 23, 2007 That must have been what he heard. He just misunderstood. Ken you have to listen better! Roger, you don't know my wife do you, you two seem to think alike . Sorry to see scratches in such a nice new bike, but I don't know how anyone would learn to ride sand without a few scratches. There is no substitute for experience. I am glad I wasn't on your bike because I would have put some scratches in it too. There was some pretty tough going out there, I can't imagine doing it on a bike that was 100lb. heavier. Nice talking to you, see you at another ride soon. Ken Here are a couple of pics from the ride. The desert was calling to us before we even got there, I just had a feeling it was going to be a great day. The motley crew. It wouldn't be a ride without these! KLRoger's ride Thanks again for riding with me and making my day a little better. Ken Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirt dame 561 Posted September 24, 2007 Poor KL, don't sweat it. I thought if I wasn't on the sand ride that I wouldn't fall down. My Saturday ride took me and my 450 through plenty of sand, all handled with relative ease, but I managed to stall and fall over hopping up a little boulder and then the wind pushed me over when I was attempting to park on a ridgetop ! Neither of those spots were sandy. Guess I was just having a bad day . My bike almost fell over all by itself while parked, when a strong wind gust caught it and tipped the rear wheel off the ground. I caught it and rolled it behind a big rock, out of the wind. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirt dame 561 Posted September 25, 2007 Sand riding practice; the early days Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
