Barabus
Well-known member
Wow- that was fun. Thanks for organizing that KG. I look forward to seeing everyone at Lake Isabella.
Death Valley Ride
- Thread starter Barabus
- Start date
Help Support Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum:
rickcorwn
Well-known member
That's all we get!!!!! "that was fun"
You guys spend months planning, you take up 6 pages on the forum leading up to this ride and all we get is "that was fun" Oh, and just to twist the knife a little we get this little teaser about Lake Isabella. What's this some secret little tryst you Kali guys have planned but don't want the rest of us to know about! :dribble:
Spill it! We need pictures :angry2: We need video :angry2: We need a complete and detailed ride report :angry2:
Don't you realize it's stuff like this that gets some of us through the winter. I mean it's supposed to be 32˚ tomorrow so they're talking about some sort of celebration like it's a heat wave!
So, so, so make it snappy :help:
Barabus
Well-known member
Rick,
Seems like the other guys are too tired after 950miles and three days. Really they don't have the energy of youth. HaHa. You might have to wait until tomorrow for pics, bc I do not post my horrible pics. I can tell highlights.
Eight bikes for central cal and 4 from southern cal, we met in Ridgecrest and rode some adventure sport road into the park. My front got slippery twice. We watched a bunch of BMW GS go by. They looked like they were having fun. Spent the night in Beatty- most of us were at the StageCoach Casino. A very smal casino for a two stop sign town. The major industy besides the casino was the local sheriff enforcing the 25mph speed limit about 20-30 times per evening. KG tells me that a ticket in a national park is a federal crime and a fine, but does not go on your state drivers license as points again. This may be the reason most bikes hit new personal tops speeds of 125mph and into the 140's. My gps indicated 125mph and speedo said 130. 80 felt like you could walk off your bike since it felt so slow. The town had two good resturant and we went to both.
Rhyolite is a miner 49er ghost town. The big gee wiz about Death Valley is that it is a desert area with lots of minerals in the soil. The exposed cliffs look great in multi colors at sunrise and sunset. The BMW airheads were camping with about 200 members in Furnace Creek. Barrie joined old friends for a couple beers. Note, he drinks with the BMWers and rides with the FJR's. Hopefully, he will retire the old connie and get a 2007 FJR. HE would like this community. Don Carver lost the total electrical system on his bike riht after the adventure short cut. We traced it to a fualty ignition wire, which tore out the bottom of the ignition. In all honesty that wire is only solder to a circuit board and doesn't take too much to come lose.
The ride out of DV was spectacular this morning. We had breakfast outside in Panimin. I'm sure someone will post some pic's that are worth a few thousand of my words.
Seems like the other guys are too tired after 950miles and three days. Really they don't have the energy of youth. HaHa. You might have to wait until tomorrow for pics, bc I do not post my horrible pics. I can tell highlights.
Eight bikes for central cal and 4 from southern cal, we met in Ridgecrest and rode some adventure sport road into the park. My front got slippery twice. We watched a bunch of BMW GS go by. They looked like they were having fun. Spent the night in Beatty- most of us were at the StageCoach Casino. A very smal casino for a two stop sign town. The major industy besides the casino was the local sheriff enforcing the 25mph speed limit about 20-30 times per evening. KG tells me that a ticket in a national park is a federal crime and a fine, but does not go on your state drivers license as points again. This may be the reason most bikes hit new personal tops speeds of 125mph and into the 140's. My gps indicated 125mph and speedo said 130. 80 felt like you could walk off your bike since it felt so slow. The town had two good resturant and we went to both.
Rhyolite is a miner 49er ghost town. The big gee wiz about Death Valley is that it is a desert area with lots of minerals in the soil. The exposed cliffs look great in multi colors at sunrise and sunset. The BMW airheads were camping with about 200 members in Furnace Creek. Barrie joined old friends for a couple beers. Note, he drinks with the BMWers and rides with the FJR's. Hopefully, he will retire the old connie and get a 2007 FJR. HE would like this community. Don Carver lost the total electrical system on his bike riht after the adventure short cut. We traced it to a fualty ignition wire, which tore out the bottom of the ignition. In all honesty that wire is only solder to a circuit board and doesn't take too much to come lose.
The ride out of DV was spectacular this morning. We had breakfast outside in Panimin. I'm sure someone will post some pic's that are worth a few thousand of my words.
Last edited by a moderator:
rickcorwn
Well-known member
Thanks, I needed that :thumbsupsmiley:
WW'sFJR
Well-known member
DV Riders,
I want to thank all you guys for a terrific and memorable ride.
Sorry about the no beer deal at the Ensenada Inn but the food was great.
Going through my photos now.... I missed the best shot ever on the way
out to Olancha. A real classic.........the prospector, burro and the dog.
Barry, how about posting those action shots ??
My sentiments of this ride:
WW's FJR
Death Valley Howl
I want to thank all you guys for a terrific and memorable ride.
Sorry about the no beer deal at the Ensenada Inn but the food was great.
Going through my photos now.... I missed the best shot ever on the way
out to Olancha. A real classic.........the prospector, burro and the dog.
Barry, how about posting those action shots ??
My sentiments of this ride:
WW's FJR
Death Valley Howl
Minuteman
Well-known member
B) Minuteman here. I want to second a big thanks to George for planning and leading the ride to Death Valley. It sure is a spectacle to see and the weather timing was perfect. I really appreciate the fast pace ride and the rolling and curvy roads, it made for a fun ride, and having the knowledge of knowing all the best food and drink stops. That Prime Rib dinner for $12.95 was a great deal considering the size of the slice. I thought the room rates were very good at $45 a night for new rooms with double queen beds. Overall I had a great time. I'm looking forward to a return trip before it gets too hot and do a dual sport ride in the dirt. I was pleasantly surprised to see all the dirt bike riders in Beatty NV and the National Park. Just must stay on dirt roads. All the guys were good riders and that added to the fun ride. It was a plesure to meet and ride with you guys. Hope to do it again soon.
Thanks, Again. Dan
{PS} Don, send some pictures of the good food and camaraderie.
Thanks, Again. Dan
{PS} Don, send some pictures of the good food and camaraderie.
Fairlaner
The Bartender Whisperer
WW'sFJR
Well-known member
DV Buddies,
Here's my share of the photos for a starter. A Photo Story 3 first for me.
Sorry no cool tunes yet to accompany it...........I have to figure that part out.
I regret now not getting that Prospector shot on the way home and more restaurant shots
sort of figured they were covered. Hint hint.........
A little ride weirdness =:
A large flock of small birds flew in front of me and just as fast made a 180 degree turn. I found out what they were chasing at the Four Corners intersection. Millions of bees. We were covered fairly well but there were people walking around and gassing up all around. So what's so cool about an open face helmet and a t-shirt.
Oh, one more note to self........try not to loft the front end too much on the 100 mph downhill
just before Stovepipe Wells. :yahoo: Most exhilarating.
DV 2007
Thanks for the thrill. I had a great trip. It was all good :clapping:
WW's FJR
Here's my share of the photos for a starter. A Photo Story 3 first for me.
Sorry no cool tunes yet to accompany it...........I have to figure that part out.
I regret now not getting that Prospector shot on the way home and more restaurant shots
sort of figured they were covered. Hint hint.........
A little ride weirdness =:
A large flock of small birds flew in front of me and just as fast made a 180 degree turn. I found out what they were chasing at the Four Corners intersection. Millions of bees. We were covered fairly well but there were people walking around and gassing up all around. So what's so cool about an open face helmet and a t-shirt.
Oh, one more note to self........try not to loft the front end too much on the 100 mph downhill
just before Stovepipe Wells. :yahoo: Most exhilarating.
DV 2007
Thanks for the thrill. I had a great trip. It was all good :clapping:
WW's FJR
Barabus
Well-known member
Larry,
Very nice video!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Very nice video!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great Ride. The weather was awesome. Couldnt have picked a better weekend. Cant wait for another ride. Great riders, great scenery and a fun trip. Thank to all those that particiapted and made the trip. Hope everyone made it home safe. Here are some pics.
We will have to do more action shots and some video shots next time.
Check Um Out!
We will have to do more action shots and some video shots next time.
Check Um Out!
dcarver
Well-known member
The route:
My Death Valley ride started in Atascadero, CA. Fearless leader George and Robert were there, Rudy and his son Brian, (riding Rudy's BMW) a feller that just happened upon the ride but had to bow out later to meet his Dad.
McKittrick CA. Home of the Penny Bar saloon. Been by there hundreds of time, did not realize the hotel was home of the Penny Bar! Some of the riders were already tired after the exhausting ride from Atascadero to McKittrick. We waited there for George's friend Mike to arrive.
Mike was riding a Honda Shadow and was truly the iron man minimalist of the group. One sweatshirt, one leather jacket, one pair of leather chaps and ready to ride. And Mike rode too. Limited by a 3.2 gallon / 150 mile range, Mike became my best bud; I'm a CBA member you know.
On to Ridgecrest where we met the SoCal gang and had lunch at Denny's. Several of us noted that many of the cooks and most of the employees were, ahh, a little hyperactive and had pin point pupils.. hmm. Ridgecrest, meth capital of the world? At least the food was good.
George, Mike and ??
Robert, stuffing 20 pounds of **** into a 10 pound sack.
Up from Ridgecrest into the southern portion of Death Valley Park via Wildrose road. Wildrose is a mostly paved, pot holed goat road. While running sweep, with Mike and Skuel (Steve) ahead of me, my bike just went dead. D-E-A-D. No electricity anywhere. No gauges, no horn, no lights, no nada. Coasted to the side of the road and issued a loud Oh ****. Broke down in Death Valley on a road hardly anyone uses and my last two life lines have ridden on around the corner.. They didn't see me! Buzzards start to hover, the air temp suddenly drops and I realize 'this could be a predicament'.
Here's Barry eyeballing all my farkles...
Off comes the seat to gain access to my meager tool kit. ****.. Why didn't I buy that GOOD tool kit? Ok, let's start from the top. No power. Ignition on/off, nothing. No gauge sweep, no lights, no nada. Broken ground? Busted battery terminal? Sure wish I was more familiar with the FJR platform right about now.
Looking up, here comes Steve and Barrty, looking relived. They were really expecting the worse, that I had crashed my brains out and they were going to be instant EMT's.
I explained the mechanical situation and we quickly formed a good working team. I gave Steve my AAA card and he contacted AAA using my old Nokia phone (the other two cell phones had no signal!) and Barry and I started using my 12 volt air compressor as voltage tester.
Long of the short, 2 hours later we had the FJR running again. The positive wire leading into the ignition switch assembly had pulled out, complete with solder tab and switch contact point. Simply cutting the red and brown wire and wire nutting them together, turn the key to on and life is good once again. BTW – Steve was impressed with AAA towing service. They asked all the right questions and had dispatched a guy from Ridgecrest, about 2 hours they said.
So, a big THANK YOU to Barry and Steve for turning around and helping, and also to George, who had safely herded the flock to the night's destination then turned back around looking for the 3 lost sheep.
The next day, Saturday, was the sightseeing day. Rhyolite was first on the list. Rhyolite was a major town back in the day with a general store, a railroad depot, and probably a whore house too.
This is when Babarus got his groove on so to speak.
Don't ask, don't tell, eh Barry?
Really cool artistic thingies.
Then of course the great coasting race got launched. Even at 2mph, FJR pilots are competitive!
Rudy
Brian, Rudy's son and nice guy.
Barbarus at full tilt.
My Death Valley ride started in Atascadero, CA. Fearless leader George and Robert were there, Rudy and his son Brian, (riding Rudy's BMW) a feller that just happened upon the ride but had to bow out later to meet his Dad.
McKittrick CA. Home of the Penny Bar saloon. Been by there hundreds of time, did not realize the hotel was home of the Penny Bar! Some of the riders were already tired after the exhausting ride from Atascadero to McKittrick. We waited there for George's friend Mike to arrive.
Mike was riding a Honda Shadow and was truly the iron man minimalist of the group. One sweatshirt, one leather jacket, one pair of leather chaps and ready to ride. And Mike rode too. Limited by a 3.2 gallon / 150 mile range, Mike became my best bud; I'm a CBA member you know.
On to Ridgecrest where we met the SoCal gang and had lunch at Denny's. Several of us noted that many of the cooks and most of the employees were, ahh, a little hyperactive and had pin point pupils.. hmm. Ridgecrest, meth capital of the world? At least the food was good.
George, Mike and ??
Robert, stuffing 20 pounds of **** into a 10 pound sack.
Up from Ridgecrest into the southern portion of Death Valley Park via Wildrose road. Wildrose is a mostly paved, pot holed goat road. While running sweep, with Mike and Skuel (Steve) ahead of me, my bike just went dead. D-E-A-D. No electricity anywhere. No gauges, no horn, no lights, no nada. Coasted to the side of the road and issued a loud Oh ****. Broke down in Death Valley on a road hardly anyone uses and my last two life lines have ridden on around the corner.. They didn't see me! Buzzards start to hover, the air temp suddenly drops and I realize 'this could be a predicament'.
Here's Barry eyeballing all my farkles...
Off comes the seat to gain access to my meager tool kit. ****.. Why didn't I buy that GOOD tool kit? Ok, let's start from the top. No power. Ignition on/off, nothing. No gauge sweep, no lights, no nada. Broken ground? Busted battery terminal? Sure wish I was more familiar with the FJR platform right about now.
Looking up, here comes Steve and Barrty, looking relived. They were really expecting the worse, that I had crashed my brains out and they were going to be instant EMT's.
I explained the mechanical situation and we quickly formed a good working team. I gave Steve my AAA card and he contacted AAA using my old Nokia phone (the other two cell phones had no signal!) and Barry and I started using my 12 volt air compressor as voltage tester.
Long of the short, 2 hours later we had the FJR running again. The positive wire leading into the ignition switch assembly had pulled out, complete with solder tab and switch contact point. Simply cutting the red and brown wire and wire nutting them together, turn the key to on and life is good once again. BTW – Steve was impressed with AAA towing service. They asked all the right questions and had dispatched a guy from Ridgecrest, about 2 hours they said.
So, a big THANK YOU to Barry and Steve for turning around and helping, and also to George, who had safely herded the flock to the night's destination then turned back around looking for the 3 lost sheep.
The next day, Saturday, was the sightseeing day. Rhyolite was first on the list. Rhyolite was a major town back in the day with a general store, a railroad depot, and probably a whore house too.
This is when Babarus got his groove on so to speak.
Don't ask, don't tell, eh Barry?
Really cool artistic thingies.
Then of course the great coasting race got launched. Even at 2mph, FJR pilots are competitive!
Rudy
Brian, Rudy's son and nice guy.
Barbarus at full tilt.
Last edited by a moderator:
dcarver
Well-known member
continued
Followed by breakfast at Furnace creek.
Left to rear - Rudy, Mike McNutt, Minuteman Dan, BMW Barry, Barrry Barbarus, dcarver, KwanaJawdge George, WWW'sFjr Larry, and Ducati Jeff.
Dcarver doing a valve adjustment.
Artists Point - WW'sFjr, Barbarus, Minuteman.
Action foto!
BadWater
continued
Lunch at Shoshone
Complete with LEO. How'd he know we'd be there?
Cool bar.
Found this old air compressor? Out back of the bar.
A fast ride ensued leaving Shoshone back to DV park. The boyz were setting the ponies free. I attempted to keep up but backed out when the nagging voice in the back of my head kept saying 'Race speed in Levis is just ******* stupid, stoopid'. So I backed out. Here came WW'sFjr (Larry) and we ran at moderately reasonable speeds.. then had no clue where we were. The front pack was waaay ahead, the back pack waaay behind.. So Larry fired up his GPS and all was good so off to Dante's view it was.
The Beemer I always wanted.
Steve making tracks.
Followed by breakfast at Furnace creek.
Left to rear - Rudy, Mike McNutt, Minuteman Dan, BMW Barry, Barrry Barbarus, dcarver, KwanaJawdge George, WWW'sFjr Larry, and Ducati Jeff.
Dcarver doing a valve adjustment.
Artists Point - WW'sFjr, Barbarus, Minuteman.
Action foto!
BadWater
continued
Lunch at Shoshone
Complete with LEO. How'd he know we'd be there?
Cool bar.
Found this old air compressor? Out back of the bar.
A fast ride ensued leaving Shoshone back to DV park. The boyz were setting the ponies free. I attempted to keep up but backed out when the nagging voice in the back of my head kept saying 'Race speed in Levis is just ******* stupid, stoopid'. So I backed out. Here came WW'sFjr (Larry) and we ran at moderately reasonable speeds.. then had no clue where we were. The front pack was waaay ahead, the back pack waaay behind.. So Larry fired up his GPS and all was good so off to Dante's view it was.
The Beemer I always wanted.
Steve making tracks.
Last edited by a moderator:
dcarver
Well-known member
Back at Beatty we walked for dinner and found the Red light district!
That night, back at Beatty, someone had the wise idea of eating 'authentic Mexican food' so we, uhh, ahem, walked the ½ mile for food.. No DUI's please. The place was packed, and one of our fjr pilots was quickly falling in love with our teen age waitress. Seriously smitten. Here's a pix of her. Read her T-shirt to determine her education / age level.
The ride back home was the best day of all. The breakfast at Panamint Springs was really tasty.
Then, the threat of rain made the ride more fun!
Robert flying his FJR
And here are two photo's of the fearless leader, George.
and the best of George
Man, I got to tell you, this was one fun trip.
and.. Orangevale, dude, you gotta tell me your posting of pix secrets. This took waaay too long.
That night, back at Beatty, someone had the wise idea of eating 'authentic Mexican food' so we, uhh, ahem, walked the ½ mile for food.. No DUI's please. The place was packed, and one of our fjr pilots was quickly falling in love with our teen age waitress. Seriously smitten. Here's a pix of her. Read her T-shirt to determine her education / age level.
The ride back home was the best day of all. The breakfast at Panamint Springs was really tasty.
Then, the threat of rain made the ride more fun!
Robert flying his FJR
And here are two photo's of the fearless leader, George.
and the best of George
Man, I got to tell you, this was one fun trip.
and.. Orangevale, dude, you gotta tell me your posting of pix secrets. This took waaay too long.
Last edited by a moderator:
Barabus
Well-known member
I'm looking forward to the NorCal/Central Cal/ SoCal meeting at Lake Isabella. Should be lots of fun. Great pics by Larry, Steven and Don!! Very cool.
Last edited by a moderator:
Coyote
Well-known member
It looks like you guys had a first rate trip. I may have spotted a few of you at Scotty's Castle Sunday morning. If you left the valley that day you done good. I was riding with a Bay Area group. We left at 6:00 am Monday (in light rain).
Here is picture of me riding my FJR through one of the flash floods we had to cross. The water wasn't bad, but the gravel was like quicksand. This was on 190 west of Stovepipe Wells. After that we rode through a snow storm on Towne Pass. :dribble: My windscreen was completely covered in ice.
Timing is everything sometimes. :clapping:
Here is picture of me riding my FJR through one of the flash floods we had to cross. The water wasn't bad, but the gravel was like quicksand. This was on 190 west of Stovepipe Wells. After that we rode through a snow storm on Towne Pass. :dribble: My windscreen was completely covered in ice.
Timing is everything sometimes. :clapping:
Last edited by a moderator:
dcarver
Well-known member
Hey Rick, did this help?
Barabus
Well-known member
Great Photo. Wow, 24 hours really makes a difference. We had breakfast outside and were warm in our gear.
Last edited by a moderator:
WW'sFJR
Well-known member
Coyote,
Thanks for sharing the FJR submarine photos, we were watching the weather
for a long time before the DV ride day. The sky looked about ready to let us have it Sunday,
rain and snow. Going south was no picnic either, we got beat real hard by strong gusting winds.
Glad we bailed on the idea of going back on Hwy 14 through Mohave. That must have been
brutal on a bike.
I know it sounds sadistic but I would have liked to take a run at the slosh you went through.
WW's FJR
Coyote,
Thanks for sharing the FJR submarine photos, we were watching the weather
for a long time before the DV ride day. The sky looked about ready to let us have it Sunday,
rain and snow. Going south was no picnic either, we got beat real hard by strong gusting winds.
Glad we bailed on the idea of going back on Hwy 14 through Mohave. That must have been
brutal on a bike.
I know it sounds sadistic but I would have liked to take a run at the slosh you went through.
WW's FJR
Khunajawdge
Toto El Mundo!
Wow!
Barrie, Larry, Steve, and Don did such a great job on their reviews, I feel inadequate.
I am (ahem) working on my presentation, but it's not yet ready for "prime" time due to daily work schedule (which my time schedule, apparently saved our ***** from the the frozen flood on Towne pass?). Glad the the group (Coyote) from SF made it through OK.
We ALL gotta take care and advise/inform our own on ride conditions, No?
I'll be posting on "Ride Reports" not in "Regional Ride Planning" as "this post" finds itself!
Cheers until next time, and let's be careful out there!
:clapping:
Barrie, Larry, Steve, and Don did such a great job on their reviews, I feel inadequate.
I am (ahem) working on my presentation, but it's not yet ready for "prime" time due to daily work schedule (which my time schedule, apparently saved our ***** from the the frozen flood on Towne pass?). Glad the the group (Coyote) from SF made it through OK.
We ALL gotta take care and advise/inform our own on ride conditions, No?
I'll be posting on "Ride Reports" not in "Regional Ride Planning" as "this post" finds itself!
Cheers until next time, and let's be careful out there!
:clapping:
