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Sunday
24
November 2002
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Some friends invited me
to go on a Charity ride. They said there would
be lots of people and it would be fun. They said
there would be Quadra cycles and motorcycles. It
is to raise money to help improve the roads in
one of the Barrios near here.
I asked if the roads would be really bad. I
explained that my bike is very HEAVY (It is a
Yamaha 600XT, 600 lbs) and though to control on
severely vertical places. They said they were
pretty bad, but they would help me if I got in
trouble. I told them I would definitely turn
back if there was any rain.
There were about 200 riders. That is good for
the fundraiser. I noticed most had 4 wheel drive
Quadra cycles, next was 2 wheel drive Quadra
cycles, and all motorcyclists were YOUNG and
dressed in full moto cross protective gear.
We headed out and cruised through two towns on
the nice paved road. Then we broke off and
started down a very steep, rocky stretch and I
thought if I could find a place to turn around,
I should go back. I was having Hell trying not
to fall, sliding on the rocks with the brakes on
most of the time and always in first gear.
I made it to the bottom of this section and
everyone took a break. I asked if anyone had a
cell phone. I wanted to call a taxi/truck to
come and get me. Of course, even if they had one
it would not work down in this riverbed.
Then it started to rain. I am scared shitless to
ride on the asphalt in the rain and now I was
going to have to ride up in it. I REALLY WISHED
I COULD CALL A CAB.
We did not get 500 yards up this nasty, narrow,
trail when people in Quadra cycles started
getting stuck. The hot dog motorcycles passed
them, but I had all I could do to keep the bike
from falling over as I waited for them to clear
the trail. It was raining really hard by now and
then the clouds rolled in.
For the next hour, I spun, clawed, and ground my
way up this God forsaken mountain trail. The
word switchback has a profound meaning now. They
are 180-degree turns, but these were so sharp
and straight up that I had to keep the motor
revving, feet out to the side, and bounce off of
the edge of the turn to not fall down or fall
over. Wet rocks, rain, GREASY MUD, and fog are
not any fun.
We got to a place where they went straight up
again, but there was a "road" to the
right, I asked a couple of guys who were
stopped there where it went. They said they did
not know. It was level for the 100 yards I could
see through the cloud so I told them I was going
to take it and took it.
By
now there was lots of water running down the
road and it was really rocky, groovy, slick mud.
I was able to maintain my control and finally
got to a house where there was a man out
front. I asked him for directions to get to
Acosta. He told me stay to the right on the way
down the mountain. That was not completely true, since
once when I took the right turn, it was a DROP
OFF. I stopped just before the 50
foot drop to a river. It took 15 minutes to
get the bike turned around so I could get back
on the "road".
I
had to stop a couple more times to ask
directions and bend my shift lever back so I
could get out of 1st gear. I did not fall and
made it back to the house.
I did not take any pictures for obvious reasons.
I will get the shift lever fixed tomorrow.
All of the other riders finished the trip. Only
one girl got a compound fracture of her leg when
she fell off backwards from a Quadracycle. I am
a much better rider now than when I started on
this trip.
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