Laughlin River Run 2009

...This year we enjoyed Laughlin with a more relaxed attitude. It helped that attendance appeared to be down. It was easy to find a parking space. We spent more time eating and drinking with friends. We shopped less and spent more time walking along the river.
...No 400 mile side trips this year. We took one side trip to the Hualapai Mountain Resort in the mountains above Kingman, for a great steak dinner. Hualapai Mountain Resort is high enough in the mountains that it is much cooler than Laughlin.
...We also took the short jaunt to Oatman and on to Kingman via old Route 66. I'll have photos of Oatman later.

...The Police seemed frustrated by the decreased attendance and accompanying lack of stuff to do. They were decidedly unfriendly. I noticed that if one Officer made a stop, at least five or more other Officers arrived, a sure sign of nothing happening.

We were noticing a shortage of shovel heads, so we started looking, this was the only one I saw.

...I bought a Windvest windshield while doing my shopping. I had it shipped home because I'm still not sure if I want a 4" or 6" windshield. The Windvest people were very nice and said that I could return it as long as it was in "as new" condition.

...I go to the Laughlin River Run every year because it is at just the right time of year. Winter is just about over but the weather is still iffy. By the time Laughlin arrives, I have been cooped up all winter and am ready for a road trip. Laughlin is the perfect start for the riding season.

Bishop to Laughlin, Via Death Valley

We are at Lone Pine, Ca, where we leave Hwy 395 and head into Death Valley. That's Mt. Whitney in the background, it's the highest point in the lower 49 states at 14,96f t. above sea level. It just shows how rugged this country is, that the highest parts of the United States and the lowest are within a few miles of each other.

This is the Panamit Valley, its the valley just before Death Valley. I love how the road just seems to go on forever.











This is Death Valley, taken from Artists Palette Road. The mountain in the background is Telescope Peak 11,049 ft., in the Panamit Mountains.

There were still a few cactus blooming.

This photo is on the road out of Death Valley on the way to Shoshone, Ca.. From there we headed south to Baker, Ca. on Hwy 15 then on to Searchlight, Nevada and on to Laughlin.

We Leave for Laughlin

We left for the Laughlin River Run on Tuesday, April 21, 2009. Marie decided to ride her Sportster. We got held up on the draw bridge over the Sacramento River on Hwy 12, so it was a good opportunity to snap a few photos.

We took Hwy 88 over Carson Pass, Hwy 88, like Hwy 80 and 50 is plowed and kept open all winter. We went through Minden, Ca., then over Monitor Pass, which was open. Sonora Pass and Tioga Pass were still closed due to snow.

The last photo is on Hwy 395, which I think is the most beautiful highway in America. The photo is above Mono Lake. Hwy 395 travels along the eastern side of the High Sierras. The mountains are 10 to 14 thousand feet and the area has many volcanic features.

We stayed the night in Bishop, Ca, a ride of about 400 miles.

Little Things Mean a Lot

....Marie made a couple of small changes to her Sportster. She added a lay down license plate and lay down tail light. Not huge changes, but I think these particular items affect the character of the motorcycle more than any other simple change. They make the bike look longer and sleeker.

....Neither the tail light lens or the license plate bracket are Harley Davidson products. HD does not make a lay down tail light and their license plate bracket is about three times heavier and three times more expensive.

Mount Veeder Road

.....The weather has improved since I rode Cavedale Rd., surprise, surprise, the killer storm did not happen and the drought has not yet evaporated all the lakes and streams in Northern California. I promised that I would get to Napa and ride the Mt. Veeder Rd.
.....Marie and I started by heading to the town of Sonoma for breakfast. Then we went over Trinity Rd. toward the City of Napa. The photo is at the turn off for the Mt. Veeder Rd.. I found the road smoother and wider than Cavedale Rd., and a very beautiful ride. The road does not follow the ridge as much but follows a clear stream.







The road drops into Napa where we caught the Silverado Trail and rode through the Napa Valley Wine Country to the town of Calistoga. After lunch in Calistoga, we went back toward Napa and at Saint Helena turn west on Spring Mountain Hwy.
.....The round trip was about 125 miles, it was a beautiful day and great ride.

The M Gene

There is a family in England known as the KE family, they have a language problem. Most of the family cannot speak, scientists say the impairment is genetic. The human genome has been mapped, so the specific genetic abnormality can be found by comparing DNA from the KE family to the map of the human genome. Find the gene that's different and bingo, there's the faulty gene, which the guys with the lab coat gene named FOXP2. It seems that the FOXP2 gene allows connections in the brain that make language.
.....You see where I'm going, the motorcycle gene, it has got to be there. It's hiding in the human genome like thousands, maybe millions of traits and connections. So how would we find it? We could apply for a grant, get some of those guys with the lab coat gene and do a study. Its really simple, get some people who could care less about motorcycles and compare their genes with those who eat, breath and live motorcycles. We could easily locate the motorcycle gene, but why bother?
.....The problem is that here we are with our oversize brains, thinking we are in control of ourselves, we think we will just figure it out and make it work. Most people believe that they could play the violin if they just put their minds to it, but you probably need the violin gene. It turns out that who you are, what you can or can't do, is written in your genes. Without the gene your brain doesn't make the connections. It seems that we couldn't even talk unless it is in our genes.
.....So if you have the motorcycle gene or even enjoy motorcycles, you probably have the M gene and your brain is happily making connections.

Cavedale Road Ride

It has been raining nearly every day. The news has been reporting on mudslides, drownings and assorted liquid mayhem all the while telling us that we are in a terrible drought. So when we had a break between severe thirst and drowning, I took off. Aimless as usual, I had lunch in Santa Rosa and headed east on Hwy 12 toward Sonoma.

When I came to Trinity Road, I decided to take the windy road over the mountain to the Napa Valley. Near the top of the grade I saw Cavedale Road and the sign that said, "Winding one lane road next 7 miles." Now we're talking my language. Finding a new road practically in your backyard is too good to be true, but true it is! This turned out to be one of the most beautiful and interesting rides in Sonoma County. .
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I started down the road not knowing where it would come out. The road actually loops back onto Hwy 12, but along the way there are great views of the Sonoma Valley and San Francisco Bay. I've seen The Bay from a lot of places but this was a very unique angle. Along the way I passed a hole in the side of the road, maybe the cave of Cavedale? At the end of the road there is a plaque giving the names of people who donated to get the road built in 1915.

















While doing some research on Cavedale Road I found some local lore that there was a high class brothel high up in the canyon and money was raised to pave the road to the resort. I also learned about another back country road that is nearby called Veeder Mountain Road, which I plan to ride soon, that is if this killer storm gets over before the drought.

Tour of California, 2009

My daughter Lee and I went to watch the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. The day was dark and very rainy and we stopped on a hill just outside of Calistoga to watch the race. There were some nice motorcycles, mostly BMW's. The California Highway Patrol, on their big BMW's, roared around, closing the road for the racers. There were lots of camera crews riding two up with odd antennas attached. I didn't see any Harley Davidsons. The Beemers are really quiet, I think that the whole event would have been well served to hear some Harleys. Race Marshals were riding various motorcycles making sure all the rules were being followed. I saw a KTM and an Aprilia but mostly the ubiquitous BMW's,

I also saw some bicycles.

Ducati Monster, '07 vs '09

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2009











I saw a new 2009 Ducati Monster at the dealer and was somewhat disappointed. What Ducati did was move everything out of sight. That big radiator, gone, the cool oil cooler, gone!

I'm sure the '09 Duc has these things and there is some evidence that they exist. I suspect the radiator(s) reside in the little black plastic box that is located just below the red trellis portion of the frame.

This bike was a "naked" bike, that means that nothing was hidden behind body work. By hiding all the components Ducati has made a different bike and to my mind, not as attractive.

Carquinez Strait

I took a little ride to San Pablo to have lunch with an old friend. The weather was fine and cool and I left early, so I would have a little time to take a little ride around, maybe have a look see.

The Carquinez Strait is the final part of the Sacramento River where it flows into San Francisco Bay. There are two bridges on Hwy 80 that cross the Sacramento near the town of Crockett. The new suspension bridge, the Al Zampa Memorial Bridge, carries southbound traffic and the older steel truss bridge handles northbound traffic.

I got off the freeway and took a photo at the C&H sugar plant which is just up stream of the bridges. I rode though the town of Crockett, keeping as near the river and in the industrial area as much as possible.

I happened onto a road called Carquinez Scenic Drive. I don't think I saw another car on the road. I rode down to a sleepy little town called Port Costa, then along the scenic drive to Hwy 4. I stayed on Hwy 4 until it crosses Hwy 80 and becomes San Pablo Ave.

It was good to see my old friend, we had a late lunch and talked till dark. It was a cold ride home but I didn't stop to put on warmer clothes. It was one of those times when the cold felt invigorating.

My Uncle Jack's Side Hack

The photo of the Moto Guzzi in the previous post reminded me of my Uncle Jack. My Uncle Jack lives in Fresno. In the late 60's, early 70's, we used to ride dirt bikes. I had the DT1, 250cc Enduro, my Dad had the AT1, 125cc Enduro and my brother had his Yamaha Trailmaster 100. Jack had a Yamaha 175 Enduro and a couple of Yamaha 90's, which had the gold gas tank just like the DT1.

Jack also had a Moto Guzzi, which I never saw, but I certainly heard about. I suspect it was an Eldorado model, which were made from 1971 to 1974. Jack and his wife Shirley had a terrible accident on the 'Guzzi. They had a front tire blow out. Jack struggled for control, but hit a telephone pole. Jack was hurt but Shirley was hurt worse. They survived but Shirley still suffers.

On a visit in 2002, Jack was just about to sell the side hack thats in the photos. I think it was very cool so when I ran across the photos, I had to show them. I've also got some old film photos of us all riding the dirt bikes, I'll scan them soon and get them onto the blog.

Two Cool Bikes

Here are two very cool bikes I saw in Sonoma this morning. The first if a 850 Eldorado, Moto Guzzi. These were made between 1971 and 1974. The second bike is a Harley Davidson Sportster with a side car.

Ray’s Motorcycle Diary Anniversary

This is the one year anniversary of this blog. When I first started this blog I envisioned it as a real diary. I thought I would write about every time I got on a motorcycle. That idea cooled quickly. I found that I wanted to write about special rides and ideas.
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Riding a motorcycle changes your perception. Motion, time, distances are all subtly altered. Riding a motorcycle lets the rider experience the world in a way that is very different, sometimes mystical and ethereal, sometimes just fun transportation.
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I haven’t had anyone give feedback for some time. I hope someone is reading this blog out there. I would appreciate some help with ideas to make the blog better, so please give some feedback. I hope that if you do read my blog you have enjoyed what I have written.

You can email me at radford@pacbell.net

Summer in January

This week the weather had been warmer so when Greg said he had business in the town of Martinez, the Contra Costa County Seat, we decided to ride the bikes. Greg would have taken the Ducati but a flat tire put the Duc out of commission. Greg rode his 1973 BMW 75/5. This bike is a classic and runs like a top.
The weather was so warm and beautiful that Greg called it, "Summer in January."













We pulled into Martinez and parked near the court house. Near where we parked was the car pictured. It is clear from the perforations in the sheet metal around the front tire, that the driver was unable to stop, perhaps his brakes had failed. Lucky for him, someone, possibly a helpful peace officer, assisted by shooting out the tire.
Anyway it was a great ride. Martinez is intriguingly different. It's an industrial area on the Sacramento River and the location of huge oil refineries. I'll get back to the area and take more pictures.

La Mediterranee

We finally got some nice weather. At night it is still freezing but during the day it was warmer and clear. Marie and I decided to go for a short ride on my bide. We thought we would take a ride, perhaps to Sonoma for coffee or Novato for a salad.

After some thought we decide to go to La Mediterranee in Berkeley. I have been going to this restaurant for close to thirty years and it hasn't changed much in all that time. La Mediterranee has middle eastern food. I like Chicken Calicia, shredded chicken with almonds , chick peas, currants and cinnamon and wrapped in philo dough. Its served with hummus and salad with feta cheese.
We started out on a short ride and ended up taking a long ride. We got home late and it was cold, but we had great food, a good day.