Long Time, No Post... Colorado!

Well, many days have passed since my last post and I have seen many new places ;)

I got up on Monday morning, June 28th and said goodbye to my Mom and Brother. It was great to see them and hang out in Boulder for a few days. I had come into Colorado hot and fast with dates and appointments pushing me hard forcing me to ride in the dark. I missed some great scenery and was determined to see it during the day. My plans at this point included a visit to the Grand Canyon and then off to New Mexico to visit my Dad. Between here and there was wide open and I was definitely going to take my time and just figure it out along the way... (I'm sure that many of you know how that goes against every fiber of my personality make-up). It should be fun.
I left Boulder and headed straight up the mountains! So Beautiful!

It was certainly a ride filled with stunning views and great roads. I was smiling most of the day. The only problem was this nagging thunderstorm following me... I was headed South through the Rockies thinking that I'd stay at one of the campgrounds peppered all over my map. The weather was nice but I wasn't interested in getting wet. I just kept going from small town to small town, looking over my shoulder the whole way but had no luck shaking the storm clouds. I put on my rain suite at one point when it was clear that I would be riding through a downpour, and I got a little wet but not drenched... phewww! I decided that staying in a hotel would probably be a better way to spend the night. I landed in Gunnison, CO and pulled up to the "ABC Motel". I dropped my belongings in a room and walked to a small brewery for dinner.

Oh yeah, I rode on a lot of dirt roads that day. Pretty hairy with all of the weight on the back of the Multi...

Pike's Peak Hill Climb

Well, after a mad dash to get to Colorado and being inspired by the Pike's Peak Hill Climb... Michael and I took off for Colorado Springs. The Ducati set-up was impressive despite their recent loss of their Promotions Manager :) We spent the day walking around the staging area and watching competitors take to the mountain. All of my Ducati friends were fun and we even got to run into some friends from top Ducati Dealerships around the country.
Gregg Tracy and Alexander Smith are the two riders for Team Spider Grips Ducati and put the smack down on the mountain and class in which they raced! Gregg took a First in class while Alexander finished Third after crashing during his run-up. Very impressive!
We had a great time. :)

Day Hike in CO

Mom, Michael and I went to the mountains to escape the heat in Boulder and to take a hike.

Get to CO ASAP!

I woke up in ID and knew that I had to get to Colorado in order to make the events at Pike's Peak. My rear tire is burning up fast so I decided to pull over and make a few calls to Denver Ducati dealerships in order to set an appointment for new "shoes". After a couple of calls I got it settled with Erico Motorsports. They agreed to install two new tires first thing Friday am, the very next day.
At first the weather was perfect. It was still early morning and they air was light and cool. As time moved forward the temp heated up quick. I was running fast and sticking to the boring flat highways in order to make good time. Then... my bike started to swerve all over the place. I knew immediately that I had a flat tire. I pulled off the road to confirm that my rear tire was completely squished. SHIT! I had just crossed into Colorado and was basically in the middle of B.F.E. Fortunately for me, I had cell reception. After calling my insurance carrier, Foremost, I was told that help was on the way. The mechanic arrived after an hour and 1/2 and took 45 minutes to plug my tire... which ended up putting me way behind. I was expecting to arrive in Boulder by 10pm at the latest but I had now idea when I would arrive after this small set back.
I rode, rode, rode. I ended up missing much of the great scenery as I was riding through the evening in the dark. I noticed deer and other wildlife many times and that made me quite nervous. But in the end, I arrived safely at my Mom's home in Boulder where she and my brother were waiting. I think that I got there around 1am.
After feeling pretty beat up from riding all day I decided to hang in Boulder for a couple of days and take it easy with my peeps :)

Road Trippin'

It's been a few days since I have been able to post and there is a good reason. I've taken to the road on my moto :)
I left Portland on Tuesday afternoon with the Pike's Peak Hill Climb in Colorado Springs, CO as my intended destination. I took my time roaming through the mountains (and volcanos) of Eastern Oregon. I camped Tues night in Ochoco National Forrest. It was BEAUTFUL! Huge redwoods everywhere. There was another solo motorcyclist camping there. "Wayne", invited me over to his site for beers and story swapping. Considering that it was my first day out, I was fresh out of tales... He on the other hand had plenty. Wayne has been taking a month off for 15 years to roam by Harley and really enjoys it. I could totally see why! Maybe this is my first trip of many to come.
I got up early the next day and after looking a bit more closely at the map the night before I realized that there was a lot of ground for me to cover in a short time period.
I ended up taking some advice from Wayne on roads that may help reduce the time and was actually impressed with Northern Utah. Did you know that it is really pretty there??? I didn't! I was blown away by the changing scenery from high plains desert to high elevation mountain passes filled with more evergreens :)
Unfortunately, I can't say the same about Idaho. I rode across the bottom of Idaho and it was just boring and HOT! I couldn't get through there quick enough. I'm sure that Northern Idaho is pretty as I could see large mountains off in the distance. Maybe later I'll have time to make a run through. I ended up on Pocatello, ID for the night and stayed with our friends at Motel 6.

Racing in the Short Track Mtn Bike series was a blast. Actually, it was pretty rough but in the end I had fun. After speaking with an official during sign-ups, I entered in Men's Cat 2 35-45 years old. I was worried that I'd be riding with others way better... It turns out that I was :( At one point I even considered quitting but a competitor encouraged me to keep going. I finished the race in the last third of the field. I wasn't happy with my level of fitness but I still had tons of fun. Kayla and Shannon came to cheer me on and to ring the cow bell :) They both took lots of pictures!

Short Track Racing in Portland