TwoWheelsGood does Four Wheels in UT

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Hello, my name is Rich and I'm a Utahaholic...I just can't get enough of this place! First came out in '94 on a solo, 12k tour on a CBR 1000 and have been back many times on motos and bicycles. Very special place for me.

This trip was about pre-running some routes for a 2-up ride with my wife in June. I had ridden much of this on the 570 but wanted to proof it out on the big bike, and figured that carrying a mtn bike on back would keep me from stoopid while solo. Would also allow me to get in some riding, especially in Moab.

I arrived in St George on Friday, May 2nd and had dinner with my athletes racing Ironman St. George, then rode motorcycle support for the race on Saturday, carrying a race official/draft marshal on the back. Official was an athlete and constantly hit me up for free coaching advice during the ride Next time I'll bring a taxi meter.

My day was done by 3p, loaded up the bike...and just waited for an early AM start the next day.

Day 1: StG to Torroweap to Kanab to Escalante

Took the whatitsname high speed dirt to Trumbull School House

Then to Torroweap

Had the entire overlook all to myself, took a CiD inspired pic

Then onto Fredonia and Kanab, for lunch at Houston's Trails End. A few hotties working, sorry no pics.

Next was Johnson Canyon to Skatumpasomething Road.

Checked into the Circle D and now time for dinner

Total: about 270mi, nearly all of it dirt. I think next time I'll try Cottonwood Canyon from Page to Escalante. I've done Smoky Mountain from Big Water (?) and Escalante is my go-to stopping point in the Staircase area. Circle D is a good hotel, friendly owner and a great value.

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Day 2: AM MB ride, then Escalante to Moab

Woke up early to hammer out some work, then took an easy ~2hr spin in Cedar Wash. Makes a horseshoe next to the cliffs to the south of Escalante. Learned that deep sand uphills suuuccckkk on a mountain bike.

Didn't see a soul out there, except cows, just how I like it.

While loading up the bike to ride to Moab I found that one of the bolts holding the back rack on was very loose. Per Murphy, took me damn near an hour to sort it out so I didn't get out of Escalante until the crack of 12:30p.

Stopped at the Kiva Koffeehouse on Hwy 12, where the coffee is $$$ but the stinky hippy kids are free.

Hwy 12 from Escalante to Boulder is just off the charts stunning. Pic doesn't even come close

Rolled through Boulder, Torrey, Capital Reef, stopped in Hanksville for gas. Then north on 24 to 70 through Green River, then jump off to take some dirt into Moab. I found out that the high mass of the mtn bike makes for an interesting experience in deep sand -- when the moto starts moving side to side, as it will in sand, the bicycle adds a second, slightly delayed steering input. I learned this while passing a long line of side-by-sides at speed. Nerves of steel and ninja sand skills saved the day!

Total: about 150 or so miles to Moab, I think.

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Day 3: Mountain Biking

As you can imagine, it's a PITA to stage from the 990 for a bike ride, so I wanted something close to town that I could ride to...with my cycling kit and mtn biking shoes on under my Motoport gear .

Moab Brands Trails was the perfect fit, a series of Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced trails, as loops and connectors. Basically right across the highway from the entrance to Gemini Bridges, north of town.

Played "Follow the Lines" and "Connect the Dots" for a couple hours

Another CiD inspired pic, while texting my cycling friends back home, busting their balls about not being out there with me

Did some work in the afternoon then took a spin on the 990 along the CO river to Onion Creek. Very fun with about a dozen small water crossings! Sorry, no pics, I suck.

[TrophyHunter 15]

An area I want to get some time in. Couldn't talk the wife into the park tour in the truck but we did make Zion. Need to get out there again - maybe another Bar10 with some extended time.

Thx for taking the time to post up.

[Covered in Dust 163]

Good stuff Rich, I miss that bike every time I see it. Your legs seem to have a little more tone to them than my old dogs.

CiD

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Day 4: Moab to Panguitch

Woke up early for a quick ride out to White Rim sans bags, mtn bike, etc. HEAVEN!! This bike fookin' rocks!

Some nice folks from West Virginny took my pic, only people I saw on the rim before exiting to Moab via Potash

Now to ride to Panguitch. Plan was to ride the 70 to the 72, then take some dirt at elevation near Fishlake before getting on 25 (I think?) to 89 to Panguitch. Being from SoCal, of course I didn't bother to check the weather first, like a dumbass. Crazy headwind on the 70 and dark clouds up ahead...so I decided to try to explore an canyon on my GPS next to the 70 but was denied in short order by some rocks and boulders. Too much while solo and loaded up weirdly. Stopped just before a rain line to gear up, which didn't include the packable down jacket and Klim goretex jackets that I had decided to leave in my truck in SG .

So the 70 kinda sucked. Then I got off on the 72 and didn't fire up the topo map to see what elevation trouble I was headed into. 6k and rain become 7k, 8k and sleet, 9k and snow, then 9k...and then more 9k...and then pushups on the shoulder, hands around the exhaust, and iced up visor. Finally got down around 7k and a town, with no services. Kept going and locked up both wheels for a sign that said "hot soup."

So...soup, 2 cups of coffee, cherry pie, ice cream, 100 pushups outside and I was back in business. Then it got really bad, with <30 temps for the 75mi to Panguitch. When I got to the hotel I tossed the clerk a $50, said I couldn't sign anything, gimme a key and a bath!

Steak and Full Suspension Ale for dinner.

Total: probably 250-300 for day? Dunno.

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Day 5 (I think, I may have lost count): Panguitch to SG to LA

Slept in, woke up to ice covering the bike. Confirmed it would start , put it in the sun and walked down the street for coffee and a muffin. Took my time gearing up, geared up, ungeared to defuse a work thing, geared up again and just putted to Zion, to stay warm-ish. I always hit Oscar's in Sprindale on my want out of / into SG but my plans changed when I saw this sign:

Stopped in Carmel Junction at the Thunderbird Hotel for a turkey sammich on ho-made bread and some ho-made Thunderberry pie .

Zion pic

Totals:

After Action Report coming soon

[Bagstr 288]

Killer, how the elevation changes un-expectedly in Utah.

Nice cycling shoes!

Thanks for the Report!

[Dress4Less 162]

Cool...great report...love the Mtn Bike "Wheelie-Bar" for the 990...!

[Goofy Footer 539]

Looks like a great trip, thanks for taking the time to share the experience and pics. It must be rewarding to ride there, go off road on the big bike and knock out some miles on the pedal bike, then ride back into your garage!

btw on an unrelated noted, have you been to Azusa Canyon? I'm trying to learn more about the mountain ranges outside LA.

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

AAR:

@Chris, the bike is awesome and my garage is very complete with the 990 and 570. I have exactly what I want and plan to keep both bikes for along time...and maybe add a 200c 2T . I had a blast on White Rim, unloaded, and thought how fun it would be to dice it up with Riggah out there on the 990s. We need to get the UT Band back together for another trip, but on big bikes!

@GF: yes, I live ~5 miles west of the base of Azusa Canyon. I've been cycling everything in the Angeles forest for over 14yrs so let me know what you need.

Notes:

• Not sure if this is the best setup for offroad exploring, as the bicycle limited where I could go...which was probably not a bad thing considering I was solo. But I have a cracked subframe for my troubles, as those lazy KTM engineers didn't account for the leverage of a 25-30lb mtn bike bouncing around at the end of the long lever. Weak, that. . Not a huge deal, as I have a buddy with good welding skills and I'll have him beef up the failure point. At a minimum, I'd like to be able to pack up the rig on Saturday, ride pavement up to Big Bear and take a few miles of easy forest road to stage at a trailhead. But I'm pretty sure I won't take this rig on extended off road trips, simply because the ~4hrs of mtn biking I did do significantly compromised, depending on how you look at it, the ~25hrs of motorcycling I also did. Instead, I could have just rented a mtn bike in Moab for a couple days. Done.
  
• Not going to take Mrs 2WG out there on the bike in June, it will likely be too hot. Instead, we're scheming a 2-3wk trip through the area and up to Coeur d'Alene, ID and back in mid June through early July. Truck, 990 in the back, and the dog. I'd like to show her some of the stuff I've done out there, as easy half day rides with the pup parked in the room -- Burr Trail and Notom Road, a quick spin out to White Rim via Potash Rd and return up Schaefer Trail (she's a little sketched by exposure though) and out via Gemini Bridges.
  
• 606 front and Motoz Tractionator rear. Great setup, works everywhere, done.

[bikeslut 1]

nice ride report, thanks for taking the time!

regarding the bike in the back... I've considered for years how to do that, and as you (and others) have suggested, it makes for a long lever... has anybody pulled the rear wheel too, and strapped it up front? I was thinking, IF I made my own, that's what I would do; it would shorten up the lever by quite a bit, and take the wheel/cluster part and get it off the back of the lever

Utah pictures NEVER show how amazing it is; I used to go there every year mountain biking with buddies, and proposed to my current wife from atop Angel's Landing... and haven't been back since ... hey!

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

I rolled my own rack, such as it was, for a DL1000 years ago:

• Yakima fork mount rail rack.
• Secured to the bike in the front by a ratcheting tie down secured to one passenger foot peg, passed through the bike mount where the roof rack rail would go and through to the opposite passenger footpeg.
• Bike rack secured in the back with a wignut bolt thingy from Yakima, drilled through the Givi rack mounted to the back.
• Ratchet down tight ^this^ tiedown
• Tie downs from the bicycle handlebars to the passenger pegs to further secure everything.
• Front wheel bungeed to the bicycle frame ('02 Calfee road bike, probably about 18lb all in.)
• The forks of the bike were right behind me and I could put a duffel across the seat, on top of the bike rack rail, under the downtube of the Calfee. Ran saddlebags also.

So the rack itself was very light weight vs ~15-20lb for what I have now. And the weight of the bicycle was much farther forward and mostly on the passenger seat (?)

I'm thinking now I'll go back to this system and sell my current rack. 2x2Cycles.com, perfectly good and secure for road riding. But, as I found, not the best for if you're going offroad and bouncing a bike up and down at the end of a long lever.

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Yep...in '05 I rented an RV in StG with 3 friends, all training for Ironman Coeur d'Alene, and we cycled to Moab, with my not-yet-wife driving SAG for us. I think we kicked 2 cases of wine and about 100lb of steaks by the time the trip was finished. Went back on '06 on a Goldwing for our honeymoon.

...time to take the backend of the 990 apart and get this subframe out to have it welded...yeehaw.

[hodnettjj 0]

I passed by your favorite gas station in Golden Valley today, Maverick... I almost stopped for a picture... almost...

[kkug 147]

Thanks Rich for taking us along. Great report !! Does anyone ever do some type of side rack for the Mtn Bike -- kind of like those surfboard racks the guys put on a motorcycle ?

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

I passed by your favorite gas station in Golden Valley today, Maverick... I almost stopped for a picture... almost...

Ah...was the circus freakshow in town again?

[TwoWheelsGood 0]

Thanks Rich for taking us along. Great report !! Does anyone ever do some type of side rack for the Mtn Bike -- kind of like those surfboard racks the guys put on a motorcycle ?

I've seen pics on the net of guys mounting a fork mount to the right side passenger peg and...doing something else with the rest of the bike. Can't recall what.

I've had people ask me about wind. Wind isn't the issue. I've ridden this rig on crazy wind and you get blown around, just like you'd expect on a moto on a very windy day <shrug>. The key is to keep the mass of the bike close to the load triangle and avoiding a long lever if you plan to bounce around on dirt roads.

[Crawdaddy 96]

Good stuff Rich!

[danrider 5]

Nice time, and pics

[mtnmanseth 0]

Awesome trip report, Rich! About 30 of us used to pilgrimage from Montana to Moab every year to ride mountain bikes;that place is every bit as amazing as they say. Love the descriptions of the bike mount, always wanted to load my bike on the DR...