post your pix from this weekend

snowride,,,take it easy
(sung to the tune of Foghats slowride) That one will stick in your head while riding in those conditions.

A lot of the area we ride is located around the current and old Welland Canals. The tunnel picture I posted previously ran under the third Welland Canal. The third canal (ca. 1881) has been modified and is now used as a system to allow water to bypass some of the locks on the present (4th) canal.

Where you see the edge of the water, it drops about 15 feet into what was a lock in the third canal. The present canal is seen in the background.



One of the flow control buildings.



Another large control building.



When I was a kid, we used to body surf at the bottom of this one when they would open the gates and allow a heavy flow. It would also pour over the dark area on the left hand side like a waterfall. I think that's why one of the nicknames of the area is "The Showers." When it's not flowing (it seems to happen much less often these days, for some reason), you can actually ride down into the water, but it's really slippery.


The way the weather has been going, it's probably one of the last rides this season. What a depressing thought...

hi-dez husky hijinx

what would turkey-day be w/o a husky in the dez? back in the day? fast guys had'm. now? fast guys still do. slow guys w/ big bucks ride sumpin else.

got an invite to camp out with my long time best bud and the prospecter's mc. this is mr. burson's neighborhood right down the street from ridgcrest. the weather was freezing, in the 20's at night but the days were calm and roost-perfect. "tank" got some sniffs and sneers from the "other brands" as it's stock, no fancy this or that and it aint got 10k invested in it...but it does have a DOT tire on the front and a bald mx hide on the back.

tank was ready, so was i, my buddy tips his visor and it's on. btw, he's a former #1 BITD open expert and N1 125 plate holder for eons on his KX500 so i got my work cut out for me as i'm by far 8-10 years his senior. we're charging hard and he's the only one not in my way. the only place i had a disadvantage was in the transport sections between the tighter stuff as i just simply ran out of gear...but otherwise the shiver/ohlins suspension went from rocks to chop to giant crusher g-outs and truck-whoops w/o a snivel and it let me realx and just screw on that sweet middle-upper middle grunt. it was a great mix of tight and open, bush-surfing, goat-trails, scary canyon up-n-downs (do NOT go off here) and all that. peeps slow down for stuff, the TC 250speeds up and slams it w/o bottming, swapping or clanking. what an insane combo of plush and progressiveness. the bike just goes straight through the worst crap w/o any drama or headshake and makes my job a breeze.

my buddy knows these places intimately so all i gotta do is stay glued to his fender and eat roost for two hours and try not to mow anyone over that gets in the way i dont see as we blow by while they're swapping, paddling, endoing etc. it's totally on like donkey kong.

bout 90 mins in my lame shoulder begins to seperate a little but i aint letting up. i squeeze with my knees and gut it out till we get back two hours later to an awesome feast put on by the prospector's mc. you have NEVER seen so much food. tables lined up for miles with every t-day careation imaginable. i stuffed my dust caked face, that more resembled a weathered catchers mitt, then hit the tent for some therapy.

the sniffers and sneerer's? had something else to day about the lil hoosk and the ancient maniac behind the bar riding like charlie manson with a torn 25 y/o yoko jersey flapping in the breeze.

epic.

happy turkey day guys and gals- special thanks to prospectors for letting me in on their gig. these guys are truly great hosts and it's not the first time i've eaten at their table.

1- base camp: last of the tent campers...... in 20 degree weather.
2- too much grub...unreal.
3- the gang happliy feasting and enjoying an american tradition.
4- tank at rest
5- too true. a desert icon.

dood- yer nutz!!!

now that's thrill seeking.

It's not as bad as it might seem. It was a very strong current, but it would only get a couple of feet deep.

What was nuts was that people that would jump off the cliff on the other side of the building. The first shot shows the cliff area, the second shows how it looks when drained in the winter.

And since this is the ride report section, there is single track that we ride all along the area atop the cliff, but at a comfortable distance.

As I said, it was other people that would jump off the cliff.

I agree about old structures. Really amazing stuff. There's a lot of history in this area based around the 4 different canal systems dating back to 1824. Most of the structures (pump houses or gate buildings) I've shown are from around (I think) 1913-1932.

This is the same area when the water is not drained. The two pictures are an eye-opener as to 'what lies beneath.'

Incidentally, the drained picture, and the one in this post are not my shots. I'm hoping they drain that part of the canal this winter as I'd like to get some of my own shots, and do some exploring!

ok- gotta say....aint seen a seat like that since perris sx and travis preston showed up on his new katoom with one like that...oh the jokes. and sand in Wa? where'd all the moss-n-snot go? must be in arizona. you come south and not call me?

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great snowy shots DD!!!

oops- forgot...i thought your coast was all rocks and logs floatin around with grizzly bears on them. dig the contrast of woods and dune. that'd blow my little mind. like what doesnt.

that first pic is nuts !