…So I have described, to the best of my ability, our travels from Denver to Red Canyon Lodge, UT. Moving forward I would like to let my video do the rest of the writing for me, as I have to start preparing my restaurant reviews. Video should be up today or tomorrow. ENJOY!!!
….45 minutes in the Conoco gas station was all we needed to get our body temperatures back to normal. As we rolled out and back up to Vail pass it only took 15 minutes for my body temperature to return to freezing. The road was long and tiring, but as we made it through the curves of the Vail Pass- the sun started to break through the cloud cover. Normally, I would be rejoicing, but with our more than obvious luck, I knew we were in for some more fun. The snow stopped, and the rain began.
The rain continued, and from where I was sitting, it seemed like it would never end. To make matters worse, my speedometer had stopped registering my speed, my check engine light had turned on, and I was scared to continue riding on my motorcycle because of the possible damage that could ensue. Curve after curve, wind burst after wind burst, we had finally made it to Glenwood Springs. We pulled into the nearest gas station, parked the bikes and nearly collapsed. The intense concentration spent ensuring our bikes didn’t take a dive from the mixture of rain and wind made us tired and hungry. Our hunger got the best of us, so we decided to stop at Doc’s Hollidays Salloon, a local Glenwood Springs bar. We were so rain-soaked, that we decided to strip our top layers off at the booth- the other guests shot us weird glances. After a beer and burger per person, we were back on the road. Although our heads were back in the game, we had a long way to travel and little time to do it before night fell. … Mile after mile, this is where any motorcyclist finds the time to find him/herself. Any problems one may have: rough work week (or year, depending on your situation), fight with a friend, or even the need to stop life and be thankful. I promise you this is that time. Mile after mile I wish it would never end.
8:30 PM and we finally make it to Red Canyon Lodge.
This is why we ride through Rain
Red Canyon Lodge was worth the wait.
… Finally, rolling into the Isle hotel, we get a room, hit the nastiest buffet I have ever experienced and start the gambling… Bikes are loaded up, I put away the camera and we rolled out of Blackhawk. Soaking up every second of sunshine possible. As we cover the same road that literally 12 hours ago was blanketed in ice and snow, we gain a new sense of appreciation for Colorado weather patterns. Meeting up with I-70, we stopped at the original gas station in Idaho Springs for an ever so nutritious McDonald’s breakfast. As Sean burns his tongue on the fresh piping hot coffee – Adam and I pull up weather forecasts. We all sit and discuss the slight chance of precipitation expected for our ride into Utah. Our conclusion is that although it will be raining on and off for most of the day – a dry rider is a happy rider. I put on my look-a-like green fishing pants and fill up my tank.
Waiting for Sean to finish filling up his bike, I inspect tire pressure and try to clean some of the dirt off my chrome pipes. Our bikes start-up – and we rumble off to Vail pass. 5 minutes outside of Idaho Springs the rain picks up steam and we start climbing altitude.
Something that needs to be pointed out about rain and motorcycles is that the first 30-60 minutes after the first rain in a long time is when dirt and oil begins to wash off. Tips from the motorcycle riders safety course would recommend taking a coffee break if possible- if not, ride slow and straight up. Hmm- I-70 is filled with curves, bends, and fresh sand from snow fall earlier that week.
Anyways, we keep climbing and eventually the rain starts turning into snow. Its early so the frustration isn’t as omnipresent as yesterday. With 6 miles left till Eisenhower Tunnel, the speculation grows. Eisenhower tunnel is a very interesting portion of I-70. As I mentioned before the weather can go from sunny to complete white out within minutes. Let me take a blurb from a previous post, “Eisenhower tunnel is roughly 11,000 ft and the scary element is you literally could go from sun shining to complete white out snow storm. Needless to say, handle bars gripped with all my might, body tense and nervous, we ride out of the tunnel and are met with even more snow. Lucky for us the snow wasn’t sticking to the ground”. It honestly is one of the more intense feelings I had during this trip- Going through the tunnel all I could picture was layers of snow on the ground, my front tire slipping, and me biting asphalt. The snow although not bad, made a pretty good case for us to slow down. Descending from the height of Eisenhower Tunnel is a long and steep road, keep the bike in the early gears and let my engine do most of the breaking for me.
Passing Breckenridge the snow intensifies and next up is copper ski resort. In between where we were and where we were going stood semi trucks, snow, and next to zero visibility. As the snow fall increased, I started thinking about the possibility of this trip coming to an end. I signaled to Sean and Adam that we had to pull over, so I took the exit ramp for Copper.
White Out
Well I have received about 5 or 6 stern talking to’s regarding my missing blog post. The easy way out of this would be to tell everyone following this blog that I was so into the Blackhawks making it this far in the Stanley cup finals that I was distracted- however that is not the case. The truth is… I want to make this video and the story of the encounters and experiences absolutely out of this world. I want to make sure everyone understands my love for this machine, and realizes why I even started this blog. The video camera we used- we lost the power cord, so we only got about 15 minutes of footage off the camera. I want to make sure I have sufficent footage and pictures to make this come alive in the words, music, and video I present.
With that said- I have a pretty tough deadline of the end of this week for both Saturday and Sunday releases. So tonight if you are looking for something to do- I suggest watch the Blackhawks kick butt in the Stanley Cup finals.
Next video will be posted on Tuesday.
Clock hits 2:45 PM and there is a slight celebration at the office, for another productive week. Lunch was spent under the sun, I was nearly roasting to death, but all I could think about was that in a matter of hours I would be on the road on two wheels, riding my stresses away.
3:00 pm rolls around and I duck out early, hop in my car, speeding my way home. Everything was going so smooth. All the sudden I am slamming on my brakes as I turn the bend to enter the highway- traffic. I was anxious to leave- I knew I had a little more packing to do, but not much. Adam was planning on leaving from his work at 4 PM on the dot, and we would convene in Idaho Springs at 4:30. Semi- not -focused on the road, I look to my right as dark clouds start rolling into Denver. The rain begins.
Nothing can ruin my excitement for this vacation.
I get home, finally, after a half-hour of sitting in rain soaked traffic. I speed into my room, line the inside of my travel bags with a trash bag, put my clothes inside and tie it off. Head outside to the garage, and do a mental check of everything I needed for this trip…
I am all set to go.
The rain starts to get heavier… I was trying to fit my bag on the back of my bike with a bungee cord, because for as great a bike as Victory’s are the saddle bags are impossible to find at a reasonable price. Sean meanwhile is preparing himself – complaining that he lost something. 4:15 rolls past us and I can sense Adam’s frustration. I am all set, IPOD in hand, helmet resting on my bike mirror, as I press Sean to hurry up. He claims he lost a piece of registration that he absolutely needed; probably a good idea in hindsight.
4:45 hits us hard- My frustration is rising rapidly… Sean exclaims he finds the required piece of paper…. We set out on our bikes as Ryan closes the garage door behind us. We are on the road. FINALLY!!!!!!!!!
I-25 hits us like a brick wall. Traffic isn’t even moving, and I am getting angry. 30 minutes to get 10 miles, then up 6th Avenue to I-70. We are hauling ass, but slow down as the rain continues to pick up. We start getting pounded by rain- literally near impossible to see. Luckily, I bought a pair of the ugliest green rain pants to protect me from the rain. The entire time I feel my cellphone in my pocket buzzing like crazy – I know its Adam, either pissed as all hell or worried or both. 15 miles outside of our rendezvous spot we start seeing light snow. Gradually increasing density is making it scary to learn around the curvaceous turns that I-70 has to offer. Its become even less visible. True to 4-spoke form- this is what I should have expected. Finally we made it. Rolling into the gas station, Adams face looks relieved yet frustrated – understandably.
The weather center reports increased snow fall throughout I-70. A friend of mine, Margot Ritz sends me a warning text of the whiteout at Vail pass. Its decision time. I vote to stay in Blackhawk, CO so we don’t lose the 40 miles we just traveled. I threw in the added incentive of free booze. Sean and Adam agree- you can sense the frustration because our plans were being canceled. We wanted to hit Steamboat that night- see friends, eat good food, and be closer to our destination for tomorrow.
However, in agreement we roll over into Central City, CO (roughly 14 miles over a mountain pass). The snow starts accumulating real fast, and my fingers are literally frozen. My gloves were already wet from the rain, and the higher altitude, colder temps and hard falling snow makes my hands numb. I took off my glove thinking it would be warmer? No such luck. This was getting dangerous… heavy snow fall plus frost bite. 2 miles away from our hotel, our tires start fish tailing. The chances of us laying the bikes down is increasing ten fold every inch we ride. Finally, rolling into the Isle hotel, we get a room, hit the nastiest buffet I have ever experienced and start the gambling…
Hey Everyone,
Thank you for your patience on the updating of this blog! Also thank you for the incredible feedback and interest shown in this project! I have most of the stories ready to post along with some correlating videos.
Here is how it will all work out. I will post about a day, a part of a day, a ride, or an experience- with attached photos or video to help the imagery, and I will keep doing that until the trip is finished (roughly a new one everyday!). Stay tuned- and let your friends and family know!
Pay day was yesterday, and it seemingly all disappeared because of a recent purchase I made. It was the same camera used to shoot this…
http://www.goprocamera.com/video
