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NC bound

oomis

oomis

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Leaving Saturday for a week. Going to spend a couple of days in Linville just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, and then headed to Robbinsville for the usual Deal's Gap nonsense.

I head down there every year, and while the area around the Dragon is starting to get a bit old for me, I'm headed down with someone who's never seen roads like that before. Doing this trip and seeing things through a new set of eyes is always fun.

Going to leave 5 am on Friday and put my new R1200GS on a trailer. That seems a bit wrong, but whatever - when I only have a week, I want to spend as much time on the good roads as I can. Also the guy I'm travelling with is on a Hornet with no fairing and no luggage capability...

I'm really looking forward to putting the GS through it's paces - it really seems to be an amazing bike, and the dynamic suspension is amazing.
 
What tires do you have on it, and yes, I'm envious of the trip, trailer or not.
 
Funny, I'm not sure what tires are on it. Whatever tires came stock - they're not particularly knobby, I'm just looking to burn through them as quickly as I can so I can get a set of Pilot Roads on.

At this point I'm twitching in my seat at work...I can't focus on anything except thumbing the starter button...
 
I'm heading to Maggie Valley, NC tomorrow with a large riding group. The April edition of Road Runner Magazine has an ad inside showing other riding options in that area (Little Switzerland) called Diamondback, Devil's Staircase, Lake James loop, Murder Mountain Run etc. Weekend weather is looking good although Thursday has severe Thunderstorm warnings through WV.
 
DJM said:
I'm heading to Maggie Valley, NC tomorrow with a large riding group. The April edition of Road Runner Magazine has an ad inside showing other riding options in that area (Little Switzerland) called Diamondback, Devil's Staircase, Lake James loop, Murder Mountain Run etc. Weekend weather is looking good although Thursday has severe Thunderstorm warnings through WV.
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I've ridden the Diamondback, and the back half of it (I think it's 226A) was littered with tar snakes - it really took the fun away from what would have otherwise been a great road.

Rode the Devil's Staircase too - that road is a bit nuts, if you have a large group make sure there's spacing if you're running it downhill.

I'll look into some of those other roads - I'm staying in Linville, just up the road from you. The plan is for us to roll in around dinner time on Saturday, and I'm absolutely going to be getting out for a spin as soon as our bikes are off the trailer. We'll be spending some time on the BRP as well, so keep an eye out for other Ontario plates, maybe we'll run into each other!
 
Safe journey. Post up a review of your bike when you get back, one of my favourite models.
 
I'm leaving for the Smokey Mountains Friday morning with a buddy on our Multistradas. Staying in WV Friday night, Roanoke VA Saturday, then Asheville Sunday. We arrive in Robbinsville Monday and will be spending 3 nights at the Two Wheel Inn. Say hi if you see us.

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Gary64 said:
I'm leaving for the Smokey Mountains Friday morning with a buddy on our Multistradas. Staying in WV Friday night, Roanoke VA Saturday, then Asheville Sunday. We arrive in Robbinsville Monday and will be spending 3 nights at the Two Wheel Inn. Say hi if you see us.

The only bike these days I am envious of is the Duck. These days I have gone back to big torque, I had a GS for many years but the duck I rode was way more modern bike for the street. I heard the skyhook is a huge improvement over the Ohlins electronic too.

I ride this puppy all the way down there and back last few years. I got some Givi keyless for this year.

I do have some italian on my bike. Marchesini wheels, Ram Italia single sided magnesium swingarm and Ram dual perimeter 16 inch front brakes and Swedish forks , off course...

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Enjoy the ride, I hope the weather is good...

BB
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Gary64 said:
I'm leaving for the Smokey Mountains Friday morning with a buddy on our Multistradas. Staying in WV Friday night, Roanoke VA Saturday, then Asheville Sunday. We arrive in Robbinsville Monday and will be spending 3 nights at the Two Wheel Inn. Say hi if you see us.
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I totally will. We are going to be in Linville for a couple of days, and then at the Two Wheel Inn for the back half of the week. You may be leaving as we're getting there, but if we overlap I'd love to share a beer. I have tons of questions about the Multis - when I was looking to buy it was really down to the BMW R1200GS (which I bought) and that Multi. Ultimately I think the BMW is the better bike for me, but I know I'm always going to be looking over my shoulder at the Multis...
 
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Lovely bike. Nice to have the Givi to tour then go twisties hunting.

I find this a useful resource....the routes are written by riders.

http://www.motorcycleroads.com/Routes/North-Carolina_109.html

Each state has a set and you can drill in closer.

Have fun.

Got some kicks in PA last weekend ...1600 km in 36 hours nice to see green. went from 9 here to 33 in Renovo.
Enjoy.
 
busabim said:
I do have some italian on my bike. Marchesini wheels, Ram Italia single sided magnesium swingarm and Ram dual perimeter 16 inch front brakes and Swedish forks , off course...
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Nice ride. I think you have more invested in the fancy bits than most other motorcycles I've owned are worth!
 
oomis said:
I totally will. We are going to be in Linville for a couple of days, and then at the Two Wheel Inn for the back half of the week. You may be leaving as we're getting there, but if we overlap I'd love to share a beer. I have tons of questions about the Multis - when I was looking to buy it was really down to the BMW R1200GS (which I bought) and that Multi. Ultimately I think the BMW is the better bike for me, but I know I'm always going to be looking over my shoulder at the Multis...
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Sounds good. Our last night at Two Wheel is Wednesday. As soon as we arrive on Monday we'll empty the panniers and head to Andrews to pick up beer. Too bad Robbinsville is in a dry county.
 
Gary64 said:
Sounds good. Our last night at Two Wheel is Wednesday. As soon as we arrive on Monday we'll empty the panniers and head to Andrews to pick up beer. Too bad Robbinsville is in a dry county.
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Just checked, looks like we're checking into the TWI on Wednesday, so I'll catch up with you Wednesday night. My alcohol plan is the same - I'm looking forward to chucking my beer into my Jesse panniers, filling them with ice so it chills on the ride home!

See you on Wednesday!
 
oomis said:
Nice ride. I think you have more invested in the fancy bits than most other motorcycles I've owned are worth!
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Only thing I bought was the aftermarket Elka shock, everything else was free from the original owner which was a showbike for the Ottawa Suzuki dealership it came from. The bike had 13000 Original Km's when I got it 2 years ago.

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BB

The free akropovic titanium full system wasnt bad either...
 
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oomis said:
I totally will. We are going to be in Linville for a couple of days, and then at the Two Wheel Inn for the back half of the week. You may be leaving as we're getting there, but if we overlap I'd love to share a beer. I have tons of questions about the Multis - when I was looking to buy it was really down to the BMW R1200GS (which I bought) and that Multi. Ultimately I think the BMW is the better bike for me, but I know I'm always going to be looking over my shoulder at the Multis...
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Why Trailer a GS? Let buddy take the van you drive the bike.

I had a done up 2005 GS extra long Wilbers shocks wih Krauer hard bags, I got on one long trip due to having a newborn.

I was close to pulling the trigger on the multistrada a couple of years ago after selling the GS. Then this busa came along and BAM....

I heard there are some problems with the 2013 GS which is not unusual with complete BMW model change overs. I would never buy a new model BMW year that is why I bought 2005 instead of 2004. But they f---ed me with the powered ABS which was abandoned after 2 years.

Dynamic suspension is the future, I enjoyed the riding position of the GS for sure but I came from supersport bikes and they are hard to replace motor wise with anything else.

Here is current and old ride... Hard to go back to regular bikes after a Busa or ZX-14 plus the top end rush is something else.

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Hence the moniker...

BB
 
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busabim said:
Why Trailer a GS? Let buddy take the van you drive the bike.
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I thought about that, but with only a week, and having done that ride a bunch of times before, I'd rather put the miles on the jeep and trailer than the bike. I can get down there faster and have more time to enjoy the twisty stuff. If my riding buddy was set up for distance, we'd ride down. Maybe next year.
 
Sounds like I might see some of you guys down there next week. My plan is to super slab it to Gatlinburg and then slowly make my way up the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline drive on my way back. Not sure how long it will take me.
 
oomis said:
Rode the Devil's Staircase too - that road is a bit nuts, if you have a large group make sure there's spacing if you're running it downhill.
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+1
Stay in first or second gear at most. It's insane switchbacks with spotty road conditions in the middle (One blind switchback with a huge pothole in the optimal track lane, where I had to stand the bike up very fast.). And yes, space out unless you want to run into your buddies back.
 
Diesel said:
Sounds like I might see some of you guys down there next week. My plan is to super slab it to Gatlinburg and then slowly make my way up the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline drive on my way back. Not sure how long it will take me.
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I've done the entire BRP/Skyline combo several times - at a medium, slightly brisk pace with stops every 90 mins or so, slightly above the speed limit and hitting up the major tourist spots, it's a comfortable and amazing 3 day trip.
 
xfactor said:
+1
Stay in first or second gear at most. It's insane switchbacks with spotty road conditions in the middle (One blind switchback with a huge pothole in the optimal track lane, where I had to stand the bike up very fast.). And yes, space out unless you want to run into your buddies back.
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Is the Devil's Staircase NC 80? If so, I rode it last year on the recommendation of a fellow rider I met from Asheville. Got off the BRP on NC 80 and rode down to Lake Tohoma, turned around and rode it back up. It's a bit scary going down as it's easy to overcook a corner and heading back up to the parkway is way more fun.
 
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