Journal · Bench Racing
Finally my first real ride
<p>Yesterday I wrote a story about <a href="http://vintagemoto.ca/notes/some-adjustment-are-in-order">finally getting the engine running properly</a> and the suspension working a bit better. I was also pining about not having a place close by to go for a ride. When I woke this morning and did some further editing on that story, it drove me over the edge. Maybe I should have gone into work. The marina is very busy on the May long-weekend and I am sure they would appreciate my help but I worked Sunday, so I decided to claim holiday Monday as my own.</p> <p>The decision was made, it was time to go for a real ride... but where? I know the suspension is too soft for Motocross, especially Sand-del-lee. It is a track that is now part of the Canadian Nationals circuit so the jumps are big and the ramps are steep and I think I would have a lot more fun doing single-track. I have to admit though, it would be fun to show the bike off a bit, but that will come soon enough. A couple of years ago a neighbour gave me directions to some trails near Calabogie and I took Rose with me to ride for the day. We mostly did dirt-road riding but I did spy some nice single-track that day so I decided that was the place for today.</p> <p>I got my gear from the basement and did an inventory to make sure I had enough protection. I loaded up the bike on my horrible and not road-legal trailer and filled the gas-tank. I filled the camel-back with some water and was ready to go. I spent a few minutes with Mrs. Vintage Moto to let her know where I would be riding and when she should expect to hear from me. I am not sure if there is cell service out there, so leaving some sort of a flight-plan is only good sense.</p> <iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1IBejFw-S_-ykDb1NISkIjeFHGr8&hl=en_US" width="100%" height="300"></iframe> <h3>This is where I parked for the ride. It took about an hour to get there.</h3> <p>I was hoping I might run into other riders and maybe join up for little while and get to know the area. There was not a soul to be found so this was definitely a solo ride. </p> <p><img src="https://youtu.be/csNS23jYSiQ" alt="Parking" /></p> <h3>I need to get an action cam, but until that day arrives, I will just use my phone and iMovie.</h3> <p>I have to tell a little story about my gear. I bought a matching pants and jersey about 15 years ago from Johnny Grant. He switched from Suzuki to Yamaha so he needed Yamaha coloured gear. I had a Honda at the time and really didn't care if my gear matched my bike so long as it fit me. The price was right and I bought Johnny's Suzuki coloured gear. I later bought a Yamaha and kept the gear. Last summer at Sand-del-lee Johnny commented that I was still wearing that same old gear I bought from him. It is still in good shape so why not? I now have a Suzuki to match the gear although the Suzuki is about 15 years older than the gear. </p> <p>Along with the pants and jersey, I have boots that my brother Pat gave to me. I have pink Scott goggles that I bought for the kids, I have knee pads that I bought in B.C. the <a href="http://vintagemoto.ca/notes/the-epic-multi-generational-bc-dirt-bike-adventure-of-2015">year I got hurt</a> and I have a kidney belt that no longer fits... or does it? You see since reaching an all-time high weight in excess of 240 pounds at Christmas, I am now down to 221 pounds. I thought I was going to need to visit Johnny again and buy more of his old gear but it all fits again. It fits good- just like it did when I bought it 15 years ago. I am a big guy, I could carry 240 alright, but I feel a lot better losing that 20 pounds.</p> <p><img alt="The gear" class="img-responsive" src="/images/0/8/0/e/e/080ee6494b02056dd2599d1577cf9238b67d626d-01-the-gear-is-hung.jpg" /></p> <h3>I finally have gear that matches my bike and it fits again too.</h3> <p>Alright, enough rambling... how did the ride go? Well, the ride went really well! I packed a few tools in my camel-back just in case. I noticed right away that I had too much rear brake pedal so I stopped and tightened the adjuster nut. The old bike has drum brakes front and rear and I must say, they work just fine. They are a lot different than the new bikes, but they do the job. </p> <p>I got into the single-track immediately. It is a sandy pine-tree forest and the ground is covered with pine needles. The tracks are easy to follow and it is tight, a lot of turns. Mostly first-gear stuff and when there is a straight stretch, it doesn't last long. I wound my way through the trees, along some swamps, up and down some small hills. I was taking it slow getting to know the bike and area. I came to a bigger hill that was covered in big boulders and I lugged right up it. This engine will lug surprisingly well. At the top of the hill is a turn and then down the other side. I applied the brakes and to my great surprise, the rear brakes were gone.</p> <p>I pulled over and had a look, the brake cable snapped right at the adjuster. I pulled out some tools and removed broken parts and put them in my bag. I was feeling congested. I get asthma in the spring and I didn't bring an inhaler. So now I am fifteen minutes into my ride, I have no back-brakes, I am alone and I am asthmatic. I figured this might be the end of the ride, I might just go home, but again, you just never know.</p> <p><img alt="The gear" class="img-responsive" src="/images/c/7/7/5/e/c775e29a6e6f52b6ed92435a44cb03a718e388cc-brake.jpg" /></p> <h3>Another fuzzy Blackberry Passport shot showing the missing brake cable.</h3> <p>I kept on riding and after a while I my lungs were fine and I got used to riding without the rear brake. It is a good thing I was riding alone, I could go at a safe pace without being tempted to do something I should not. All the trails seemed to end right where I parked and time after time I got back to the car and just turned around again and did a few more circuits. There was much more to see, but I was having a blast in the tight trails. I will explore next time.</p> <h2>Bike Impressions</h2> <h4>For this kind of riding, the bike worked really well.</h4> <ul> <li>The suspension is very soft which is great in the woods although it will be tough on the motocross track. </li> <li>The motor could not be better. It ran really good at low-speed, I could lug it when I needed to and the power was always there no matter how tight the trails or open the roads. When coming into the power band there is a huge hit, it really rips and seems to have great power everywhere. Does it compare favourably to the 2016 KTM 300XC I drove a month ago? Yes, it holds it own!</li> <li>Perhaps for single-track riding I should put a larger rear sprocket just to slow it down a bit and help on the big hills.</li> <li>I like the big wide soft seat. I was sitting most of the time and my butt is not sore. 10-minutes on the 300XC and I was sore for a week.</li> <li>Brakes worked fine. I would have no problem locking up the front brakes if I had to and the rear brakes were great until the cable let go. Of course I would rather have disk brakes, but these are fine.</li> <li>Handling was superb. At first I felt the front end to be a bit hard to manage, but within 15 minutes of riding, I never had that feeling again. The bike is very light especially the front end and it turned on a dime in that very tight sandy terrain.</li> <li>It is loud. If I am going to race it, I doubt it will pass sound-check.<br /> <img alt="Riding" class="img-responsive" src="/images/a/d/e/a/2/adea2adb0a539f3303fd414a82bd69af47de268d-my-view.jpg" /></li> </ul> <h3>This is what it looks like when riding here. I loved the trails.</h3> <h2>Riding Area Impressions</h2> <p>I loved the area. I stayed quite close to the car but it was hard to tell because the trails were winding every direction. The area I rode felt a lot bigger than it actually was. At first I was worried I would get too far away and have a hard time finding my way back but that was not the case at all. There are a lot more places to explore so I am definitely coming back.</p> <iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1XuHc2ECo8upbXW5wq3dP5Q8AXnY" width="100%" height="380"></iframe> <h3>I turned on my tracker. I rode 25 KM. Total running time was 1hr-25min. I hardly ever got out of first gear. I did quite a few loops.</h3> <p><img alt="Selfie" class="img-responsive" src="/images/1/7/0/a/1/170a1978a693e9c6ec7d4da8641241b399ebe834-selfie.jpg" /></p>