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@padamchen This is for you:
The day dawned calm and quite cool (high 40’s, but eventually low 70’s), and we were all geared up to ride out shortly after seven. A quick stop at the Subway next to Marathon Gas at the start of Odd Road at Rte 19 and we were ready to follow the Great Plan. And oh what a plan it would turn out to be.
"Lots of curves in coal country!"
Odd Road heading west starts off with a nice set of sweepers, and then launches into a set of tight turns all the way to the town of Odd, before continuing as Rte 33 to Rte 1. Along the way was a small town where A wanted to take a picture since it was his daughter's namesake, and in his unique style, managed to confuse B by insisting that he wanted to go right to the town when he should have said left. B continued merrily down Rte 16 to the one town that everybody at the lodge had warned us to stay clear of due to the drug problem there, while the rest waited for A to take his memento picture.
B, while alone and stopped in a drug-infested town, discovered that there was no cellphone service to call the others (or the police, for that matter) and therefore decided to carry on until the junction of Rtes 10 and 16, reckoning that whichever way the others had gone (and abandoned him in a drug-infested town with no cellphone service), they would show up at that junction. As B prayed for forgiveness for all his sins by the side of the road and made promises to God if He let him survive this town every time a rusty gun-rack equipped old pickup truck with shady characters glaring at him went by, the others showed up and B was only too happy to let them go ahead as A gave him a thumbs up (which looked suspiciously like the middle finger) as he went by.
All apprehensions quickly disappeared as the route headed west with a long series of absolutely delicious nearly 180-degree sweepers as it changed its nomenclature until Red Jacket. A short stint on Rte 49 lead us to Rte 194 and a great set of hairpins until we turned off on Rte 1499 to get to Rte 460. It was along this section we met great moving black cliffs (otherwise known as coal trucks) that caused some slowing down until they could be passed safely. The road surface was also slippery in places where the coal dust and clay had been pulverized into something more slick than wet greased graphite with added Teflon on a layer of ice.
Turning right onto Rte 80 had us go through Beaver Bottom (who thought of these names around here?) for a lunch stop at Time Out Pizza in Elkhorn "City".
"This makes Ohio look like the Interstate"
Bellies suitably filled, the ride through Breaks Interstate Park is very nice, with two particularly satisfying 180 degree horseshoe curves. Lesser mortals would continue on the Breaks Park Road down into Haysi, but, being the gluttons for punishment that we are, we turned on to Rte 611.
This road was mentioned in the September/October 2016 issue of Roadrunner Magazine which described it as "extremely tight, without a shoulder, and mostly surrounded by greenery .... ridiculously twisty road has no markings, and changes direction without notice". It does indeed require our full attention, just as they said. Reaching Clintwood, we turned on to Rte 83 eastbound, and proceeded to enjoy the sweeping curves at a good pace (at or below the "speed limit", of course ).
This pace came to an abrupt halt in the little town of Haysi where the Annual Fall Parade had blocked the Main Street. We had to wait it out for about 40 minutes as there was no other choice, although A did suggest riding down a railroad track for about a mile. There were no takers of his innovative suggestion. Having been roasted a nice shade of medium rare and dehydrated to boot, Rte 83 further east cooled us down quickly and nicely with supremely enjoyable curves till Vansant.
From here, there are several good choices to continue eastward (next time, perhaps?), but, in order to pile on the punishment after having sampled Rte 611, we took several 600 series routes southward and then eastward - 620, 600, 601, 621, 616, 664, and 645 - all enormously tight and challenging. This route was technical enough for some of us to conclude that the 600 series roads make our Ohio Valley route feel like the Interstate by comparison.
Rtes 67 and 460 provided some relative relief from technical riding before we tackled what A named "The Peninsula" (a seemingly pointless route addition turning a 5 mile jaunt into 20 miles of smiles). We took 627 and then 624 to head north on a small road numbered 9/06 that plays with an adjacent railroad track as it winds up besides a small creek. Every crossing of the railroad has concrete pylons close to the road, and there is one particular crossing of the creek that comes up so suddenly that it caused all of us to go wide.
We reached Rte 16 and headed southward on the eastern side of The Peninsula until we decided to stop at the aptly named Hillbilly Market for a short break. By this time, fatigue was beginning to set in, and we decided to lower the pace, given the lengthening shadows and the increasing chances of being intimate (involuntarily, of course) with four legged denizens of the forest.
Of course, lowering the pace did not mean selecting easier roads. Our route led us up the very technical 644 and 161 to the more flowing Rte 52, before another challenging stretch up Rte 71 till we reached the home leg on Rtes 10 and north up Rte 19. We reached the lodge just as dusk was falling around half past six.
All told, it was nearly 400 miles we covered that day, not one of them straight. We were all curved out.
Where are de photos?!!!
Cheers, Doc
A tire plug kit, a cellphone and a credit card is all that is needed for most riding.
Amazing pictures man! Unfortunately we Pakistanis can't afford these rides since these aren't locally available unless imported. I went with a Yamaha YBR 125-G. A crossover off-road. Planning to make a trip next month to Gorakh Hill from Karachi.
It is not the ride but the rider that makes for good riding. A YBR-125G would be great fun too, specially in rough terrain where its light weight would be an asset. Please post up your pics when you have them ready.
It has covered 2.5k km yet. I've got my exams this month and some petty stuff so planned to kick off next month while making up my protection gear along. Gonna put some pictures soon..People see my as a weirdo just cz I've got a gear on. YBR-G is a decent ride as compared to the evergreen CG-125. A Vibration Shop which freezes your a**.
I look forward to your pictures. Do not let what people say stop you from doing the right thing, not on the bike and not in life (and even on PDF ).
All thumpers vibrate, even if they have vibration damper systems.
Ironically. Atlas bring up the same crap every year calling it a new model but nothing changes except the stickers :v
Just like the Suzuki Mehran!
https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/suzu...inue-producing-the-mehran-in-pakistan.527350/
Exactly. It costs 106k now and has nothing except a seat, engine and headlight. :3