KTMrad 508 Posted October 5, 2010 Today was the end of the 2010 Lucky Explorer Rally in Nevada, a yearly ride for Ducati Elefant Riders and their friends. My friend Alfred in Vegas has been putting on this ride in Nevada for about the last 5 years........... Today, after leaving the leftover crew at the Tonopah Station Ramada Inn / Casino, I had quite a little Adventure towards Bishop, CA. Alfred showed me a dirt route over the mountains south of Tonopah, so I explored it. We had rain and thunder / lightning yesterday, and more today. As I went over Coyote Pass and dropped down into a canyon, the eerie black clouds said they were going to dump on me.....so I was planning on stopping to put on my rainsuit. Just then, saw a couple of caves in the canyon wall and decided a great spot to stop. As I was putting on my rainsuit and getting a few photos of the ominous clouds, lightning and thunder started to blast all around me. When I saw horizontal lightning less than a quarter mile away, I decided it was time to sit out the storm in the cave. As I watched lots of lightning and hail, at least an hour and a half passed by before the lightning and thunder calmed down to where I could get back on the bike and ride. I continued on the dirt road, which now had small washouts and little rivers running down the middle and across it. I made it to pavement and was going to get a room in Dyer, but the lady didn't answer who owned the place, so the next closest was Bishop, about 90 miles away. So I rode in the rain, dodged more lightning bolts and made it to Bishop a little after 6pm. Forecast may be rain for a few more days........if so, I'm coming home early. The Sierra will have fresh snow up high, and all the other areas will be wet, muddy and probably have washouts. Not good for riding by myself. The previous days.......left Thursday September 30th at the crack of 11am to arrive in Tonopah 10:30pm that night, after 490 miles in the saddle on the KTM 950. Friday, Saturday and Sunday were good days of Nevada riding through Mountains and across vast valleys. Sunday was an epic ride plotted out by GPS Kevin......we crossed 3 mountain ranges and zig zagged across them at over 7000 - 9000 feet......awesome riding, great scenery. Hey Bagstr, too bad you missed the awesome route Kevin laid out for us on Sunday....it was by far the best day in Nevada yet ! I'm at the Vagabond Inn in Bishop typing this out right now.......adios, see you soon. Photos to come after I get back to San Diego. Rad Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kkug 146 Posted October 5, 2010 Sounds like a great trip -We are going up the the Bishop Dual Sport this weekend--I hope it will be tacky ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KTMrad 508 Posted October 5, 2010 Sounds like a great trip -We are going up the the Bishop Dual Sport this weekend--I hope it will be tacky ! Looking out at the mountains and judging by the snow level now, and more thunderstorms and rain coming over the next few days, you guys are going to have a very interesting dualsport ride in the higher elevations.....actually, I bet there will be too much snow in some areas. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brett 0 Posted October 5, 2010 That sounds like a great adventure, Rad. But what I wanna know is, did you get my tank bag wet? You shoulda borrowed the rain cover too. Now you have to buy me a brand new one. I looove new tank bags! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KTMrad 508 Posted October 7, 2010 That sounds like a great adventure, Rad. But what I wanna know is, did you get my tank bag wet? You shoulda borrowed the rain cover too. Now you have to buy me a brand new one. I looove new tank bags! Brett, your tankbag getting wet is not reason for a new tankbag ! Thanks for letting me borrow your bag. Yesterday, my 76 year young friend took me on an epic 200 mile ride into Death Valley National Park, then to a bunch of ghost towns and mining camps. I have a new idea for an SDAR Club Ride just an hour and a half from Bishop, starting from a Ghost Town where you can stay in the old buildings......more to come on that. My Adventure Ride is turning into a great week, now staying in Bishop for the Bishop Dualport Ride this weekend ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
