May 29, 2008
LEO's
Here is an inventory of the Law Enforcement Officers I saw out on the road Monday:
- Bernalillo: Pulled over a car.
- US 285 (short stretch of divided highway between NM 599 and NM 503, goes through several pueblos): One cruiser pulled over two bikers, another cruiser sitting atop an overpass.
- NM 503: LEO pulled over an automobile.
- US 285: One LEO on the road, another parked in the median.
- Bernalillo: LEO pulled over another car.
In addition, I heard from a biker couple in Pojoacque that enforcement (especially for DWI) was extremely tight around the Red River Run. Not a bad idea, but likely to hamper enthusiasm for next year's ride among the imbibers.
Posted by Underblog at 6:15 AM | TrackBack
May 28, 2008
Cager's View of Red River Run
Roomie and I decided more or less at the last minute to go up to Taos on the holiday weekend. Friday morning found intermittent rain and cold and once more (as was the case when we went to Mora / Las Vegas) I chickened out and made my peace with going up in the "cage." After taking in the 750 to get its fork seals replaced, we proceeded north. Each time we encountered precipitation, Roomie would point out what a smart idea it was to go in the car.
We took Old Route 66 to San Felipe Pueblo's Main St and then cut over to I-25. From the casino, we continued north on I-25 to 599. We opted for a drive through Nambé Pueblo and Chimayó, and found ourselves taking the high road to Taos.
The rain continued off and on into Saturday morning. By 10am Saturday, however, I found myself wishing that I had brought the 851.
Taos was loaded with motorcycles, notwithstanding the inch of snow predicted for Red River on Friday night. Every motel had a dozen or so motorcycles (mostly but not exclusively Harley-Davidson). All the restaurants were customered in the same manner. Saturday, we trailed a pair of slow-moving bikes on a piece of the Enchanted Circle between Taos and Angel Fire, but eventually they pulled over at the crossroads and we were able to make the lower loop from Angel Fire to Mora (which I had done in the opposite direction back in November to Sipapu and then through Dixon and up Embudo Canyon back to Taos. At Ranchos de Taos, we cut over to NM 240 and then over to Upper Ranchitos Rd, where we found ourselves craving chile at El Pueblo. Bikes were everywhere along the route but the back roads around Taos, going in every direction. I cringed a little each time I saw motorcyclists "do the wave" to each other.
By Sunday, I had decided that weather permitting I would return on the Ducati and experience some of these roads properly.
Posted by Underblog at 6:16 AM | TrackBack
High Road to Taos Loop
I was determined to take the Ducati on a couple of the roads up north on the last day of the holiday weekend. According to Google Maps, the route would be about 282 miles and take 7 hours 15 minutes to complete. I guessed that given my propensity to violate speed limits where it is safe and reasonable to do so I might shave some time off the estimate.
Click here to see the actual route.
Old Route 66 and I have become good friends, since I take it for the NM 14 Loop and to ride up to Santa Fe. Likewise NM 503 from Pojoacque to Chimayó is becoming quite familiar. The stretch to Peñasco, however, I had done only the one time on a motorcycle, though I had just driven it in a car two days before. Between Chimayó and Peñasco, the landscape changes from high canyons of dry scrubland to lush meadows separated by forests of pine.
Truchas is pretty much the frontier between the pines on the north and the pinkish mesas on the south. For some reason, the folks in Truchas saw fit to pour their garbage off the side of the hill for some number of years. From the village, twisties invite the rider pretty much all the way to Las Trampas. Las Trampas sits among a bunch of farms at the bottom of a canyon. Just past the village is a wooden flume carrying water. The old flume has recently been replaced with a new one, made of a hollowed out log.
From Peñasco, all directions provide excellent riding opportunities. To the east, one may follow the Rio Peñasco through some delightful high-speed twisties to Sipapù; to the west one may drop down to Dixon and its apple orchards. To the north, NM 518 rises to a pass among the pines and proceeds through a long series of twisties down into Ranchos de Taos, which sits at the town's southern edge. There are some high speed sweepers as the road flattens out and follows the river.
Once arrived in civilization, I followed the traffic leaving Taos down NM 68. NM 68 is usually too crowded for my taste, but the passing ability of the Ducati and my nerve to pass platoons of vehicles allowed me my most pleasant experience in the canyon. The Rio Grande is running high and brown during the run-off, and the canyon walls loom high above one set of gorgeous curves after another. At NM 75, I got off the bike to stretch.
Dixon is an old apple farming community in a canyon near the confluence of the Rio Grande and the Rio Peñasco. From Dixon, the road does some up and down twisties through the Picuris Pueblo. There are some dramatic canyons along the way as well. Since the gas station in Picuris was closed, I would have to refuel back in Pojoacque, on the other side of Las Trampas and Truchas.
I downed a bottle of water at the gas station in Pojoacque, and took another break under I-25 at the San Felipe Casino. All told, the mileage from Google was about right (I clocked 290 miles), but I covered the distance in about 5½ hours rather than the 7¼ estimated. Still plenty of time to the mow the weeds grass.
Posted by Underblog at 6:16 AM | TrackBack
May 21, 2008
What Are the Odds?
As usual, I have been obsessing with Ducati's on eBay. And also as usual, I have been relieved when I see that there is nothing for sale that I absolutely must have. And that those things that I must have I cannot afford. A second reason to keep an eye on the market is to gauge what the "street price" is of my motorcycles. This week's listings provide an exceptional opportunity to evaluate the fleet: both a 1991 Ducati 851 Superbike and a 1990 Ducati 750 Sport are up for sale. Someone could in one week replicate a good portion of my collection.
Posted by Underblog at 6:13 AM | TrackBack
May 19, 2008
Traffic
When I dropped off my AMRG buddy at PJ's the other day a week ago Friday, I took Academy from San Mateo to Tramway. On the return, I took the same route, only to see an overturned SUV, the concomitant pulled over cars ("witnesses"), and the usual suite of emergency response vehicles. Fortunately, the incident occurred in the opposite direction of travel. Had we been a half-hour later, I am sure we would have been stuck in traffic for a very long time.
Posted by Underblog at 6:19 AM | TrackBack
May 13, 2008
One More Thing
One of the Albuquerque Motorcycle Riders Group folks is enamored with Ducati's, and we had discussed for a while how fun it would be to take the two Duc's up to Madrid. Last Friday we did just that. His brother dropped him at the house after they had dropped off his Triumph at PJ's to get some desperately needed fork seals installed. While checking the tire pressures on the 750, I noticed a little smudge below the right fork seal. Uh-oh. The gaiter covering the fork tubes was completely soaked. So Friday I will take the 750 back in to PJ's to have its seals replaced.
Regardless, the trip to Madrid and back was spirited and scenic.
Posted by Underblog at 6:13 AM | TrackBack
May 4, 2008
(Not Quite) Sipapu and Return
The Albuquerque Motorcycle Riders' Group arranged a "quick ride to Sipapu" for burgers. I adore all the roads in these parts of Santa Fe, Taos, and Mora counties, and so I strongly suspected I would be joining them. I convinced The Finance Manager from work to join us, further enforcing my commitment to ride on Saturday. Up until the last minute I was undecided on which bike to ride, but I went along with my initial feeling and brought the 750 Sport. The Finance Manager had seen the bike but we had never gone riding together with me on it, and the AMRG folks had never seen it before. As it turns out, none of them could tell the difference between the two bikes anyway.
Unfortunately, Georgie (today's organizer) learned that the resort at Sipapu was closed until Labor Day. Perhaps he meant Memorial Day, but in either case Sipapu Burgers were out of season. I suggested that we stop at Leona's (whose name I had inconveniently forgotten at the time) at Santuario de Chimayó for tamales. There was some question (again due to the season) whether Leona's would be closed too, but we decided that we would give it a shot. Cinco de Mayo Weekend is the occasion for increased law-enforcement activity along the highway, and so Georgie's policy of "speed limit plus 5" seemed to be a prudent course. We got underway about a half-hour late, and already the Finance Manager was beginning to make noises about peeling off somewhere along the way and heading home early.
We took NM 313 north from US 550, the same route I took last week on the 750 as part of the Madrid Loop. On NM 313, we passed what I take to be a flock of Dusky Grouse. They looked like small grey turkeys. On this ride, we bypassed the frontage roads and stayed on I-25 another few exits past NM 14 to NM 599. Police presence was abundant. Three sets of red-and-blue flashing lights were present on 599, and several more on NM 503 near the Nambé Pueblo. One of the things I enjoy about the AMRG is that stops are prearranged and discussed in advance. That way, the group can regather and stick together. There is little to respect in a group that in effect "ditches" its members. We stopped at Hollywood Casino for this purpose, and again past the first stoplight on NM 599. We arranged to collect ourselves and fuel up in Pojoacque.
In Pojoacque, Georgie suggested that I lead the way through the twisties to Chimayó, where we would collect the cruisers. I had never continued on NM 503 to NM 76, always having taken the Santuario turn off. To say that the stretch of NM 503 between the Santuario turn off and NM 76 is twisty is something of an understatement. The road is not only narrow but strewn with fist-sized rocks. It also snakes through some neighborhoods that are positively European in their rights-of-way and building setbacks. Very scenic, however, but very challenging.
Once the group assembled at NM 76, I then led us to the Santuario, where surprisingly few of these folks had ever been before. All went according to plan, though the 1.1 miles between Chimayó and the Santuario road somehow put several minutes between the sportbikes and the cruisers. Lonche at Leona's was splendid as always, and I think next time I may try a burrito con chicharrones. At Santuario, it was decided that rather than proceed to Sipapu, we would return via NM 4. The Finance Manager split off Pojoacque while the rest of us took the scenic route.
On NM 502 (a "safety zone"), we proceeded at the speed limit plus five. While I was riding up front, a coyote ran across the road, requiring me to hit the binders in a hurry. Once we made the turn off for NM 4, we stopped in White Rock to fill our tanks. Here, I convinced the group to check out the Lookout we discovered on the last AMRG ride I attended a few weeks before. NM 4 was a total blast. I got a little ahead so I pulled over at Bandelier to let some others catch up. By the NM 501 turnoff I had pretty much caught up.
The stretch of NM 4 from the 501 turnoff to NM 126 is perhaps even better heading south than north. Once around the cages, there was much passing of motorcycles. As folks got ahead they would pull over and let others lead. Since I always had a light on in my rearview mirror I did not much worry about getting too far head. Still, it was pretty fun breaking the "ton up" on some of the larger sweepers. After a pause at NM 126 to collect the group and meet a fellow rider from Tennessee breaking in his new GS 1200, we indulged in some spirited riding until the Village of Jemez Springs. Beyond the Village it was more or less a calm ride to San Ysidro, where we collected the group for goodbyes.
All told, mileage was about 235.