Five Chickens..No Six...Slay The Dragon!

Post by **Boxer** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 8:03 am

Some Dragon! The dragon was oppressed Yesterday by tons of Milwaukee chrome and heavy injections of testosterone.

We gathered at Robbinsville and headed down the road. One of our group made the wiser decision and peeled off for the Skyway.

The Deals Gap store was much like it always is, busy busy busy.

These little scooters were the most fun to watch!

We made our way up the road...very s l o w l y, behind a truck, and turned around to come back and take an obligatory photo at the overlook.

I don't know what happened to Mike's face in that photo. I think Robbie was tinkering with his radar jamming device or something and it caused the photographic air waves to distort in my picture.

We ended up taking Hwy 28 around to Franklin, stopping off in Stecoah for a burger and fries. After Franklin, it was time to head home. It started out slow at the Dragon but we did some good riding on 28 with Mike as our leader. I'm almost ashamed to say the 4 R1150Rs were being led all day by a 1200GS. But he did good!

See a longer version of this report with more photos at http://www.slablog.net

Post by **DJ Downunder** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 11:05 am

Thanks Boxer..it looks like you guys had perfect weather...

DJ

Post by **boxermania** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 4:11 pm

I'm afraid that the Gap has fallen prey to tourism, it was basically unknown 6 years ago and the word spread out too fast.....once the car clubs, no offense, stated coming out I saw the begining of the end....

I don't mean to use it to run your bike flat out and expose life and limb, but to take a spirited ride it can't be matched.....puttering behind traffic is OK, but not nearly as visceral.....

Well, I'm glad that you guys had fun....the run on 28 to Franklin is still semi unknown and a good ride.....and got home safe and sound.....

Post by **CycleRob** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 10:25 pm

Boxer,

I do not own a RADAR jamming device. He's joking, I swear! We were almost underneath those 240KV transmission powerlines, maybe that did it. Leaving the camera lens-up in the Sun also can desensitize the CCD.

I was fine with the arrest-me now pace following our grey haired fearless leader on the R1200GS. I promised my wife I would be careful on this ride, so I returned home with a 1/4" (6mm) chickenstripe on my rear tire. Since there were frost warnings that morning, I wasn't comfortable going any faster on that still chilly, shady mountain road surface. I also waited at roadside turnouts, 3 seperate times about 2 minutes each, for unpassable groups of slowpokes in front of me to open up clean road ahead of me. Then rode at my pace until I caught up to them again. When I arrived at the Store, where I thought we had planned a key-off stop, the 3 OilHead riders were waiting for me, engines running, aimed to re-enter the roadway. I got the impression they were worried about me, seemingly ready to turn around and find me in the woods.

FYI, The entire 11 miles has a double yellow line, 70+% blind curves and very short straight-aways. We encountered one bad accident where one such illegal pass went really bad. It seemed to have just happened and explained why there were almost zero oncoming vehicles. Torn up shoulder grass and a long trail of destruction going off the road, between (?) the trees, down at least a 20 foot drop-off into the stream or a tree. There's no way to ride that pony without getting severely hurt or killed. Our extended rest stop prolly prevented one of us from being hit head-on by a squid.

If you would like to see a 30 second long, 8MB movie download of a hastily taken panoramic scan style sweep at our rest stop, Go HERE and click on the green rectangle.

Pics to follow soon.

The entire trip for me, on my BC-800 bike computer was 6hrs 54min wheels rolling, 324.4 miles, 47.0 MPH avg, 89MPH max. Stock seat . . . . my ass is still sore.

Post by **DJ Downunder** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 11:10 pm

Thanks CyclrRob...that's a great little vid...

...and I spotted a beautiful Gold Roadster..I think you must have to only one of that color...nice.

DJ

Post by **GypsyRR** » Mon Oct 02, 2006 2:51 pm

More videos, please. .......... and I couldn't quite make out what you said about the Harley???????

And - what river was that?

Post by **Boxer** » Mon Oct 02, 2006 3:01 pm

Gypsy-I think it was a new Harley with one of those new italian shifters on it. It's called a "Pizza Shift" Harley.....Right Rob?

Post by **wncbmw** » Mon Oct 02, 2006 3:42 pm

Here is my meager contribution to the ride photos!

The group at the Overlook: It overlooks a small lake which my map says is the upper reaches of Tellico Lake. What river it used to be, I don't know.

A link to the rest of my photos:

http://h2oman.smugmug.com/gallery/1958552/1/99518090

A fun day but perhaps you guys can see why I avoid "The Dragon" except off times. The mix of cruisers and wanna-be racers, who don't care where they pass or what they do to get through your group is unnerving. Too many other good roads to ride around here.

Post by **CycleRob** » Tue Oct 03, 2006 12:57 am

I looked pretty sad in that pic, straining to hear the phone at my house ring. I got happy when my wife picked up and she liked the background noises. There was only 2 bars on the signal, but I got thru. Following that pickup truck at the speed limit thru the Dragon drove me crazy too, but there were so many good roads everywhere. GA-129, on my way to meet the group before we met Vann in Robinsville, was just like the dragon, except the road was wider and the elevation changes were steeper. It was deserted too. It's 45 miles from my house, so a bike mounted 5 minute video to show everyone the road is my plan for this year.

Yes, The Pizza Shift is a new model H-D.

Click on the blue links below to see more pics:

HERE we are at our gas station meeting point in Robinsville NC, a stone's throw from the Microtel Inn I stayed at 3 years ago at the first BeaksterBash.

Our bikes parked at the biker's motel in the parking lot of the Dragon store.

That's Vann in the red sweatshirt, checking out bikes going by. It was a cold morning ride for me and it finally warmed up enough to turn off the heated grips. We are standing in Tennessee, high on a mountain.

You know these guys by what they type. I was sleep deprived, Vann is just his happy-ole-self and Boxer started loosing patience with the picture taker, who BTW took FIVE pictures while we waited. He thought it was just one. This was the best of those 5

It was almost like a Mini-Bash. Great weather. Rare and memorable roads. Great chow at lunch, friends everybody knows and a persistant Da-ja Voo. Nobody got hurt (in our group). Even a big fun twisty ride going home afterward. My dog Sadie went berserk hearing dad's Beemer pull in the driveway and reacted like I was away for 2 weeks. Ann wound her up with "Dad's Home!", I'm sure. Steaks for supper and pics-n-movies replayed on my laptop. What a day. All for less than twenty bucks. Sweet!

Post by **wncbmw** » Tue Oct 03, 2006 4:52 pm

Good Lord - look at all the gray beards in that last picture!

Post by **Beemeridian** » Mon Oct 09, 2006 5:53 am

Post by **CycleRob** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 10:51 pm

FYI for the rest of you . . .Beemeridian is well acquainted with Vann & I and is not joking. Those tears, I'm sure, are for missing out on our very short notice Dragon day-trip ride. He doesn't have a grey beard of wisdom, so he may not have fit in.

BTW, I'm leaving tomorrow for NJ & CT in the Civic to attend my nieces wedding and visit family, so I'll be away for 8 days. Both of the 50R's wheels are in the trunk for a new set of Z-6's. I'd rather change them myself, this Sunday at My Shop.
I'll have only brief, spotty Net access during that 8 day period so my usual contacts may not get a timely response.

Post by **Beemeridian** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:30 am

Post by **DSKYZD** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 11:41 am

Very sorry to have missed this one. I was in the area believe it or not, but not on the bike. Wish it would not have been so crowded for you. I appreciate the pictures and stores either way.

Thanks!

DSKYZD