West Virginia beckons on the long weekend
- Thread starter MacDoc
- Start date
70 km to where I'm staying .....bit bagged but love the bike. Too hot now.
Detour in Renovo was rather fraught....mud rocks railway tracks and nose to tail traffic for 40 min. Not sure what that was all about but apparently a lot of small towns are having fall celebrations and blocking off streets. Long traffic jam in Ellicotville too.
But colors are gorgeous.
Detour in Renovo was rather fraught....mud rocks railway tracks and nose to tail traffic for 40 min. Not sure what that was all about but apparently a lot of small towns are having fall celebrations and blocking off streets. Long traffic jam in Ellicotville too.
But colors are gorgeous.
Pretty much caught mid Pennsylvania at peak.
Chilly ride to start - 5 degrees when I left - getting to 16 late in the day ...600 km or so mix of slab and some of the best twists anywhere on PA 144. Bike is very easy to handle and awesome brakes.
This innocent bridge leads to my fav bit of twists
I was a bit sore and tired at this point some 500 chilly km from home so not in attack mode - still getting the feel for the bike.
Somewhat less than impressed with the wrong side of the tracks in Renovo - said detour depriving me of the South side of 144 :-(
144 is across the river…I have NO idea why hundreds of cars got diverted down a barely there trail beside the tracks
This is the improved part….earlier was holes, rocks mud - 30 minutes of this crawling…not so thrilling after 7 hours of riding….new bike etc …..something must have happened as we stopped for 10 minutes…..the two emergency vehicles came the other way
Chilly ride to start - 5 degrees when I left - getting to 16 late in the day ...600 km or so mix of slab and some of the best twists anywhere on PA 144. Bike is very easy to handle and awesome brakes.
This innocent bridge leads to my fav bit of twists
I was a bit sore and tired at this point some 500 chilly km from home so not in attack mode - still getting the feel for the bike.
Somewhat less than impressed with the wrong side of the tracks in Renovo - said detour depriving me of the South side of 144 :-(
144 is across the river…I have NO idea why hundreds of cars got diverted down a barely there trail beside the tracks
This is the improved part….earlier was holes, rocks mud - 30 minutes of this crawling…not so thrilling after 7 hours of riding….new bike etc …..something must have happened as we stopped for 10 minutes…..the two emergency vehicles came the other way
nice ride home ,,,,swish through nexus
waiting out traffic on the new - destined to test out the Biffer off pavement it seems
I use TomTom app for nav and love the surprises it dishes up in the Winding Roads choice.
Most times they are just lovely back roads which West Virginia is full of - some more pics to come.
Once in a while it dishes up some dirt......most times I turn around .....well it was narrow and figured a little off pavement would not hurt ( I ride a KLR off pavement in Aus and the Vstrom here in Canada.
The Biffer is nice and low tho that wide rear would be a bear in any mud.
So I'm going along...1.7 km to what looks like a highway....come over a rise.....
Now had I stopped 1 foot further down hill I would have been turning around in mud as logging trucks ford the stream....one went by me as I pondered best approach to a downhill multiple camber turn with potential mud..
I'd not even tackle that in the KLR and the logging truck stopped first to check it out then rumbled across.
So heaved the bike back few feet to make sure I was clear of the mud on the other side and did a 16 point turn. Glad I had my Gaerne boots on for traction. Huffed and puffed getting around but kept is upright and then 10 km back on a dirt road.
Oddly the Biffer is better than the Vstrom when the strom has street tires on. The Burgman 650 was also fine as long as no mud and I think it's good practice to get off pavement once in a while.
More of a report later but except for the seat and to a small degree the windscreen the Biffer was a treat to ride distance and on the twists.
Roads that would have been teeth shattering on the Burgman were handled with aplomb and for the first time I did not miss the Burgman 650 brakes.
700 km today ....just waiting out holiday traffic and pondering seat....alternatine stock and Bead rider keeps me going but will look at other seats and also the taller screen.
More typical of the lovely byways Winding Roads found
they are pretty bikes clean even when in touring mode
hmmm seemed to have turned into a cartoon somewhere...
waiting out traffic on the new - destined to test out the Biffer off pavement it seems
I use TomTom app for nav and love the surprises it dishes up in the Winding Roads choice.
Most times they are just lovely back roads which West Virginia is full of - some more pics to come.
Once in a while it dishes up some dirt......most times I turn around .....well it was narrow and figured a little off pavement would not hurt ( I ride a KLR off pavement in Aus and the Vstrom here in Canada.
The Biffer is nice and low tho that wide rear would be a bear in any mud.
So I'm going along...1.7 km to what looks like a highway....come over a rise.....
Now had I stopped 1 foot further down hill I would have been turning around in mud as logging trucks ford the stream....one went by me as I pondered best approach to a downhill multiple camber turn with potential mud..
I'd not even tackle that in the KLR and the logging truck stopped first to check it out then rumbled across.
So heaved the bike back few feet to make sure I was clear of the mud on the other side and did a 16 point turn. Glad I had my Gaerne boots on for traction. Huffed and puffed getting around but kept is upright and then 10 km back on a dirt road.
Oddly the Biffer is better than the Vstrom when the strom has street tires on. The Burgman 650 was also fine as long as no mud and I think it's good practice to get off pavement once in a while.
More of a report later but except for the seat and to a small degree the windscreen the Biffer was a treat to ride distance and on the twists.
Roads that would have been teeth shattering on the Burgman were handled with aplomb and for the first time I did not miss the Burgman 650 brakes.
700 km today ....just waiting out holiday traffic and pondering seat....alternatine stock and Bead rider keeps me going but will look at other seats and also the taller screen.
More typical of the lovely byways Winding Roads found
they are pretty bikes clean even when in touring mode
hmmm seemed to have turned into a cartoon somewhere...
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Great pics! Looks like a little colour change down there too.
Couple of follow up notes.
http://www.ridersworkshop.com/wilderness-scenery-from-invisible-roads/
Trying to find a link to 326 as well but not finding as yet.
http://www.ridersworkshop.com/wilderness-scenery-from-invisible-roads/
Trying to find a link to 326 as well but not finding as yet.
