Solo Vs.Group Riding

Riding with friends is fun.  I do believe that the safety that is gained by having several riders with you is well worth it.   A group is easier to see than a solo rider, and if anything happens, then someone will be there to help out.  It's also nice sharing the sites with someone who shares your passion for riding a motorcycle.  However, there are drawbacks.  Riding with the wrong type of person may get you in to trouble.  People who like to go too fast, or ride dangerously, or even riders who don't know how to ride in groups can all cause you to have a really bad ride.  That being said,  riding alone has its benefits too.  You have a bit more freedom to stretch out in your lane and take the extra time to explore places on a whim.  Riding with friends, you almost need a plan in order to make sure everyone knows where they are going and no one gets lost.  Riding alone, if you see a road you want to take, then you just take it.  No discussion, no arguments  just go. This is the best kind of freedom.  You can see more of the area, and have an adventure.  That's what motorcycle riding is all about. The best of both worlds would be to find a buddy that has the same wanderlust that you posses and the same style of riding as you.   I tend to like to ride like a sport tourer.  I don't mind a little speed and twisty road at times, but I really like riding safely and comfortably for hours and hours.  Seeing new sights and meeting new people is important to me.   I have ridden with people who are track day junkies.  I've ridden with the pub to pub types, and I've even ridden with some of the ADV crew.   Truthfully, my favorite riders, are just like me.  

Ride to Enterprise Part 4! The Rattlesnake Grade

Yep, we finally get to the Rattlesnake Grade portion of this video series.   Quite the nice ride!   Enjoy!
(don't forget to like the video in Youtube!  You can even subscribe! )

Getting Episode 5 Ready!   It will be here soon!

Anticipa.............tion.

There are just 3 days left before I leave on my trip south.   I'm not sure how many are going, but we are headed to Enterprise Oregon to ride the Rattlesnake Grade!
  I am all packed up and have checked all the major points that one should check before leaving on a trip.    Weather looks good. Roads are open.  Bike is running like a champ.   We are all set to go.   But..... Its 3 excruciatingly long days until we leave.   It seems like each 24 hour day is a full week long.   The open road is calling, but I sit here at a cramped desk punching buttons.   Totally not fun!
I guess that's the breaks.  No matter where I go, or how I choose to get there, the days leading up to a vacation are always horrendously long.   At least nothing has gone totally haywire yet.   That's a good thing.   In fact, just a few weeks ago, the road just north of Boggan's Oasis had washed out and was all but impassable.   I thought that would be the end of our trip, but they re open it completely on Friday, the day before we leave!   Hot Diggity Dog!  
I really hope to get that sense of refreshment you get when you go do something that you have always wanted to do.   Actually completing this ride from start to finish is definitely a motorcycle checklist (I hate the term Bucket List) item.    Hopefully I can get a few more checks this year .  

What are the items on the list, you may ask?    Well,  let me tell you.   In no particular order:


I would like to ride across the US (West to East and North to South)
Trans Canada from Victoria BC to St John Newfoundland.
If I ever get the chance, It would be amazing to ride from my home in Spokane to Alaska.
I'd love to ride in Europe
I'd love to ride the Americas (from Canada to Chile).
Not that I would ever have time for any of these rides.  However, there are a few rides that I can do, and probably will.
Pacific Coast Highway from Seattle to San Francisco.
Glacier National Park (specifically the Going to the Sun Trail)
Yosemite National Park or Zion or both.
Lolo Pass. (right) -- 99 miles of twisty roads on that ride.
If I can't do the PCH, then just to the Redwoods. That would be fun.    I may do any of these, or all of these or even none of them depending on Time and Funds.  After all, a guy like me has quite a lot of responsibilities.  Family, Work, Faith, they all take tons of time.    Even if I don't get to ride these rides, I can still ride to work and around town.  It's still better than caging it!

Spring Ride to Enterprise Anyone?

It's almost time to ride!   The snow is nearly all gone and the sweepers are out.  The weather is almost warm enough for a good long ride.  And there is definitely one in the works.   A few of us are planning to ride the Rattlesnake Grade at the end of May.   To be totally fair, I haven't gone yet.  (well, at least not the whole road).  I'm kind of exited to go.  From piecing all the different reviews of this road together I have, what I think to be, a reasonable preview of the ride.

    The road from Asotin Washington to Enterprise Oregon is a pure slice of motorcycle heaven.  Right off the bat it has several excellent sweeping curves, including 3 that will swing you around nearly 180 degrees.  For a while after that, you have smooth sailing until you reach Field Springs state park.  That is the point where the road really starts to twist in all sorts of directions.  Depending on your speed, it can either be ten miles of the most scenic, or the most adrenaline filled travel that you have ever experienced.  The scenery is breathtaking for sure.  You are essentially riding through a rather large canyon system carved into the earth by prehistoric glaciers and raging rivers that has amazing views in all directions.  But here is where the adrenaline comes in.  If you should choose to push the speed a bit, the mix of the fast curves and the possibility of losing control and crashing in to the wall (or going off the edge and getting to see the canyon floor in the fastest means possible), will absolutely give you the biggest rush of your life.   By the time you cross the Grande Ronde river, at the halfway mark, you are ready for a break and possibly need a place to change your skivvies or maybe to get a bite to eat. Boggan's Oasis is a perfect place to stop.  Boggan's is a comfort food mecca! I doubt that you could leave that place hungry.  The location is also quite nice.  If you keep your eyes out, you may see some goats as well as other wildlife.  

At this point,  if you should choose to keep going,  you get much more of the same type of beautiful twisty roads.   From Boggan's  its quite the smooth and simple ride... until you get to the Oregon border.   At that point, the road turns back on itself, twice!  This is a good time to let you know, that from this point on, until you reach the end of the canyon it is a good idea to watch out for rock slides and other debris in the road.   It isn't unheard of to have a boulder just appear out of nowhere.   That being said, this stretch of road is well worth slowing down on anyway.  The views are amazing and there are a lot of little animals and birds that may just come in to view.   

By the time you pass Paradise Ridge Ln, the bulk of the twisties are done.  Don't fret however, because you will pass through the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest.  While it pales in comparison to what you just experienced,  the forest is still quite pretty.   So you've arrived at Enterprise, OR.  This may be a good place to stop, have dinner, get a motel and get some rest.  Or, if you are camping, there are several places to look at.   You may even want to go South, on to Wallowa Lake and pitch your tent at one of the prettiest lakes in the Northwest.  It's all up to you.    Just make sure you have some rest before turning around and doing it all again, but in reverse.