Tomorrow there is a group ride to Frazier Park... It looks like a 150 trip one way so it's gonna be most of the day. I think Jake is gonna go. I'll try and get some pics and write it up soon. I have to go change the oil and give the bike a quick once over today but it's so damn hot I haven't stayed outside for long! Anyone who wants to go, we'll be leaving Santa Margarita at 0930. We'll be on main st, just look for bikes... </TD>
Ride Report Ok, here's the story... Sunday turned out to be a great day for a ride. I got up checked my tire pressure, checked and adjusted my chain, gave Scratch a quick once over looking for anything weird, (I had done a pre ride cleaning and inspection the day before so I knew there wasn't much to check) and then fired her up. Off to the station for some go juice. After gassing up, I headed to Tina's Place in Margarita for some breakfast and java. While I stuffed my gullet the others started trickling in. By the time all were gathered we had a count around 14 or so ranging from 650cc - 1300cc and age 30s - ??? (I dare not insert a number or the old codgers er I mean age enriched may be offended :biggrin::biggrin We rolled out pretty much on time to the cheers and waves of the gathering crowd of onlookers. Okay, so there were only two old guys sitting on a park bench, but they may have been cheering and waving on the inside... We headed down Hwy 58 east and out to McKittrick at a brisk pace and then stopped to gather and thin the herd. At McKittrick, the numbers dwindled a bit as some riders had other tasks to attend to. Scratch's younger brother had to drop from the pack to head back home at this point so it was only me representin the Interceptor after that. Those remaining headed down 33 and then I believe we turned east on Cerro Noroeste. At this point, we had a good run tryin to keep up with a 350z. Only the first bike in the line got around, then Zach on the SV 650 and then myself just stayed behind as the pace was pretty good considering we didn't know the road and the Z driver obviously did. I must admit I was impressed and we chatted with him a bit once we got to the next gas station. Apparently we weren't the only bikers who thought Sunday was a good day for a ride judging by the parking lot at the Screaming Squirrel. Our group didn't want to brave the wait there so we headed up the hill a bit to Texans and Tarheel's (or vice versa) BBQ. We all were pretty pleased with the food and the service. I had the NC pulled pork sandwich was was pretty good, and filling to boot. The spicy sauce was more sweet than spicy, though. The restaurant is the building in the background. After filling our collective bellies, the group thinned out again. About half headed back which left 5 of us going on. We headed up Mt Pinos to the Nordic Base which was nearing 6000 ft, if I remember correctly. From there we headed down where I snapped a few shots of the scenery. Here's one of the few action shots I got during the ride. I just missed getting a pic of a nice Ferrari that was headed up the mountain. It was very pretty. I don't know the models, but it was VFR red with louvers on the side and a big yellow badge behind the front tire. Then we headed down Lockwood Valley Rd. I was able to snap a couple more action pics during this leg. Lockwood Valley was pretty fun but we had to keep an eye out for debris. There were quite a few places where I noticed stray rocks into our lines. The terrain made a definite shift as did the weather as we came down Lockwood Valley. From there we made our way down to Hwy 33 again and then began coming back towards the coast. At the 166 cutoff we split again and Zach (SV650) and I headed right on 33 back towards Taft. I had to stop in Maricopa to get a pic of this oil pump cause I thought it looked cool. It's completely wooden and the sign on it says it was used during the iron shortage during WWI. After gassing up in Taft, we headed west on 58. I have written this ride up before and some of the pics may be familiar, but there are some new angles and at least one new place that shows up. Here's that new place I mentioned in the next pic... In the next pic, you can see how the road winds back and then disappears to reappear in the upper right part of the pic as it snakes it's way up and then eventually wraps around the hill. In the next pic, it's taken from the same place but on full zoom and if you look closely, you can see Zach waving from the other side. And, last but not least is a pic I snapped just before heading down into the valley and temperatures nearing 100. From there, we settled in and headed all the way back across. We finally parted ways when I took Hwy 229 up to Creston then Hwy 41 west to A-town where I promptly fell flat out on the floor and rested. Now one day later, over 300 miles later, all I can think of is, "When can I do it again?"
