My Long-Ass MotoGP 2011 ride

[salsashark]

Days: 8 (5 Riding / 3 @ MotoGP)
Mileage: 3100'sh
Route: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=...7b8d0e0d&msa=0

Day 1 - Denver, CO to Tonopah, NV - 866 miles
Ahhh, day 1 of the big trip. Bike's packed up, I'm out the door nice and early (ok, I actually got a later start than I wanted). Hit the road at 4:30 am. Hit the ground running and continued straight through the day. By the time I go to Tonopah, the camel back was empty, I was hot and tired and the margarita I ordered at dinner was magnificent!

Utah, before the blazes of Hell opened up!


A couple of notable ride throughs... from here on out, the desire to document every turn fell off exponentially as the temps rose. It's a very scenic ride and the boredom of straight desert roads are broken up with nice little twisty sections in hidden canyons.

I didn't take this pic, but I was there so what the hell.
I rode the Extraterrestrial Highway... Move along, nothing to see here.


One more thing... If you ever decide to ride out this way, mind your fuel! The roads are long and straight and beg for triple digit speeds, but at 170+ miles between gas stops, you'd better be damned sure you can make it. I had to dial back the speeds severely the last 50 miles. I fueled up in Tonopah - 4.9 gallons in a 5.3 gallon tank. That's as close as I ever want to come to running out.

Day 2 - Tonopah, NV to Salinas, CA - 411 miles
Otherwise known as the morning of OMG!!! The morning was beautiful, the roads were empty and Yosemite beckoned. Heading into the east side of Yosemite was amazing. Twisty two lane roads through mile after mile of forests without any sign of beetle kill. It was so choice! If I had to choose between Yosemite and Yellowstone, I would go back to Yellowstone, but it was a beautiful day of riding.

I dropped out of the mountains and from Yosemite Junction all the way to the San Luis Reservoir just plain sucked. It was hot, flat, and smelled of cabbage. Occasionally there was a strawberry patch or garlic patch to break up the monotony, but mostly cabbage... it was no fun.

After that, I dropped down into the Monterey Valley (or whatever geological feature it is) and the ocean air swept in brought the temps back down from 102 to 68... All within about twenty miles. It felt really nice!

Again, sorry, no pics. I was too busy riding and enjoying life in Yosemite and riding and hating life after...



Day 3,4,5 - GP TIME!!! Mileage unknown
Welcome to another misty Leguna morning


The future sounds cool... I really enjoyed watching the e-power race


Let's not give Clear Creek County any ideas


Colorado representing


Saturday Morning Practice at the corkscrew


The new Buell!!! One sexy carbon beast



CSC Dinner

[salsashark]

Race on the Row - bike night at Cannery Row


Bad camera phone pic


The Motus guys are very cool. I hope they succeed. That bike looks and sounds great.




This paint caught my eye


Ready for the big event


Day 6 - Salinas, CA to Eureka, CA - 409 miles
Races over, time to head north. I took off around 9:00 to avoid rush hour traffic and tolls on the Golden Gate Bridge. A ways outside of Salinas is where I had what some might call a baptism of fire in the lane sharing world. Traffic ground to a halt on the 101 so I jumped in with both feet and wormed my way through 10 or so miles of stop & go. It's amazing to be in an area where cagers are conscientious and aware of motorcyclists. They would get out of your way and let you through. I couldn't even imagine doing that here... not with all the "this here be my lane" drivers... but we'll leave that debate for another thread.

Mandatory photo op


The rest of my day consisted of mile after mile of PCH. It was amazing, tiring, breathtaking, you name it... there's probably going to be an "ing" at the end.




Lunch stop was in Gualala, CA at Bones Roadhouse... I could smell the smoker from the road and it was a must stop. They have a great smoked turkey sandwich. Any guess how they chose to decorate?

[salsashark]

I got into Eureka around 9pm and immediately sought out sustenance! Which came in the form of ten tasty little friends.


If you're ever out in Eureka, check out the Lost Coast Brewery. They have some great beers. Unfortunately, they don't distribute in CO (yet).

Day 7 - Eureka, CA to Elko, NV - 632 miles
From Eureka to Redding was an amazing morning ride. Dense forest, more twisty roads, and only the occasional construction slow up. Highway 299 came highly recommended by some local riders I met and it truly didn't disappoint.

One more thing to do before leaving CA...


...probably not the best idea before riding several hundred miles in 90+ degree heat, but it sure was good.


Day 8 - Elko, NV to Denver, CO - 761 miles
Time to get the HELL out of Elko. If you've ever had the great fortune of staying in Elko, then you already know what I'm talking about. Anyways, no picture taking, it's time to go home.

[aerofaze]

Niiiice. That Monster's paint job is kinda cute, though I don't think I'll be doing that to mine anytime soon. And the 10 tasty little friends towards the end there look delicious. Fun to see all the other CSC riders out there, too.

Anyway, wow. Salsa, your trip reports have always been excellent. Glad you made it home safe!!

[BC14]

Good report. Looked like a great trip.

[Sean]

Looks like a solid trip!

[asp_125]

Epic! Glad you got home safely.

[Keyser Soze]

<---Jealous. Looks like it was a blast.

[Matrix]

Leaving for a trip similar to this on Wednesday (much jealously by the way!). Where did you fill up prior to Tonopah? I was looking at a little town called Ash Springs which according to google is 154 miles. That's the edge of my range at normal speeds much less triple digits.

[Nvr2late]

Nice meeting up with you in Cali!

[ChrisCBX]

Nice meeting up with you in Cali!

+1 on what she said.

Your ride was certainly an adventure. I would like a ride like this as well. A ride built around a destination such as the MotoGP race. We will be riding the the first Moto race in Austin. That will hopefully be an adventure as well.

[salsashark]

Leaving for a trip similar to this on Wednesday (much jealously by the way!). Where did you fill up prior to Tonopah? I was looking at a little town called Ash Springs which according to google is 154 miles. That's the edge of my range at normal speeds much less triple digits.

I filled up in Caliente - 192 miles to Tonopah. At highway speeds, I can eek out just over 200 miles before I get nervous.

I think Ash Springs is your best bet. Unless you go around the south side of Area 51. The roads are very straight and very flat between Caliente and Tonopah. Also, watch out for the last 30 or so miles going into Tonopah, they were doing chip seal, so it really slowed me down (and probably saved my ass )

Nice meeting up with you in Cali!

It was a lot of fun... thanks for letting me scoot in along the fence!

+1 on what she said.

Your ride was certainly an adventure. I would like a ride like this as well. A ride built around a destination such as the MotoGP race. We will be riding the the first Moto race in Austin. That will hopefully be an adventure as well.

Keep me posted on that adventure!

[Cap'n Crunch]

Awesome trip... Great write up.

[tecknojoe]

Epic

[BC14]

+1 on what she said.

Your ride was certainly an adventure. I would like a ride like this as well. A ride built around a destination such as the MotoGP race. We will be riding the the first Moto race in Austin. That will hopefully be an adventure as well.

Oh yeah, I'm totally looking forward to that trip.. As well as a stop at http://schlitterbahn.net/nb/

[ChrisCBX]

Oh yeah, I'm totally looking forward to that trip.. As well as a stop at http://schlitterbahn.net/nb/

Schlitterbahn is definitely part of the Austin MotoGP trip.

[Matty]