Tonya and PQBON's WebLog

My ride today with Cal BMW

In the continuation is the email that describes the route.

The ride was a lot of fun. The roads were perfect. I felt more comfortable on a motorcycle then I have since my accident. The ride was from Mountain View to Coalinga via Hollister. The roads were fast and smooth and mostly clean. I didn't scare myself once nor screw up, that was nice.

There were 3 incidents on the ride. One R100GS had a clutch problem, one R6 who wasn't part of our group crashed, and one R1 who was part of our group crashed hard. The photo page shows the stops in the trip and the accident results.

The riding was fast, and quick and fun. Other then stopping for the incidents it was a great day of riding. I used a trip odometer to track the millage. It was 320 miles or so. We made a great loop down and back. I definitely want to go back along this route. The views were amazing. Unfortunately, I was unable to stop and shoot them as we were either riding or stopped at accident scenes. I would like do the same ride with out any of the drama. The valleys were beautiful, the hills were green and spry. The trees were nice and green and rivers and brooks were flowing and the bugs were out in force. The trout were out eating the bugs and the fisherman were out trying to catch the fish. It was a great day.

For those concerned about the rider of the R1, he was awake and moving at the scene. He was disoriented and confused. He was life flighted away and assumed to be OK and in the hospital again. The R6 rider was fine and talked to me when he was testing out his bike to try and get home. His bailing off was at the right moment and he separated himself from his bike. It slid into the barb wired fence, while he slid in the gravel and got up.

Sunday Shop Ride - March 7th, 2004 Destination: Coalinga, Perko’s for lunch (Perko’s Telephone # 559-935-3531) The March 7th Shop Ride will be on paved roads, heading southward in search of warm sun! Kari and Gail will have the shop open at 8:30 for coffee, bathrooms, air for your tires, etc. This ride down to Coalinga via the back way should be beautiful at this time of year. All the fields will be green and if we are lucky, we'll catch the poppies blooming. Even without the flowers it is a lovely ride. Speeds will be moderate, and there are plenty of good stopping places. This is a very hard ride to get lost on, but if some of you have taken this ride with us before and are willing to lead or sweep, we might break into a couple of smaller groups, depending on the turnout. I will of course have maps. If we have lunch at noon, we will be back in the Bay Area by 5:00 or 6:00 pm, at a leisurely pace. Remember, this is an informal ride, there is no sweep or other support. RIDE ROUTE: Leave at 9:00 am from California BMW, head south on 101 to 25 to Hollister. Stop at Chevron station at south end of Hollister and gas up & regroup. It is approx. 60 miles, 1 hr. riding time to the gas stop. Leave Hollister south on 25 at 10:15. Take 25 south towards Pinnacles, past the Pinnacles, all the way to the turn-off for the Coalinga/Los Gatos Road. This road is at the bottom of a steep hill after several very long straightawaysl, Hwy 25 goes right, but our road leads off directly south. We will stop here at the intersection and regroup. Coalinga/Los Gatos Road is very tight and twisty in places, and has a number of blind corners, so please exercise extreme caution on this road. We'll be going right by the entrance of Clear Creek, for you GS riders to mark on your GPS's.... We'll follow this road till it ends at a T intersection in Coalinga. Turn right and follow Derrick Blvd. past the oil wells and into town. Perko's Restaurant is on the right at the light, at the corner of Main Street and Derrick. Perko’s usually can seat us all at one or two tables, so the first one there should let the hostess know how many are coming. We should be arriving around noon. After lunch and a stop for gas, we turn right as we leave Perko’s and take Hwy 198 out of town to the west. We stay on 198 till the intersection with Hwy 25, the follow 25 north all the way back to the Chevron station at the south end of Hollister. The Coalinga-Los Gatos Road rejoins 25 near Bitterwater, about 40 miles out from Coalinga. This is the road we took coming down and it is a good regrouping point for the final ride back to Hollister along 25. Next stop is the Chevron station in Hollister for gas (we’ll need it!). I may stop for coffee in Hollister, and the ride is officially over. Ride Safely, watch out for each other and have fun! Kari MAP REFERENCES: AAA Coast and Valley Section covers the whole route nicely. Emergencies: CC Rider Towing (Cole) - 510 913 2275 BMW Roadside Assistance - 800-225-1575 RIDING IN A GROUP: DON’T FOLLOW CLOSELY. IF YOU COME TO AN INTERSECTION, WAIT FOR THE NEXT RIDER BEHIND, SO HE OR SHE CAN SEE THE WAY. BE SURE THE RIDER ACKNOWLEDGES YOU BEFORE YOU TAKE OFF. THAT RIDER WAITS FOR THE NEXT RIDER, ETC. UNTIL THE SWEEP ARRIVES, SO NO ONE GETS LOST OR LEFT BEHIND. NO SPEEDING IF YOU ARE IN THE GROUP! NO RIDING DANGEROUSLY! FASTER RIDERS MAY RIDE AHEAD. Safe speed: The safe speed for road conditions will differ from rider to rider. You are responsible to pick a pace that is within your ability. Do not ride beyond your limits! If you ride beyond your safe limit you expose yourself and others to risk and injury. Riding in a group: Do not follow too closely! Ride in staggered files on the freeway, and leave a safe distance between you and the next rider. Avoid following too closely especially on narrrow roads. Passing: If you must go faster, put your blinker on and pass at a safe spot. If you see a rider behind you preparing to pass, move over and give plenty of room. Don’t speed up! Breakdowns: The sweep riders and riding friends may stop and provide assistance. It is not safe for the whole group to stop for one rider. Taking off early: There are plenty of opportunities to take bail-out routes and head home early. An alternative return from Coalinga that is not as tight as Highway 25 is via 198/25 back to 101. This is easy if you take 198 to 25 north to the Lonoak cut-off, which rejoins 101 at King City. Please let the ride leader or someone in the groupknow that you are bailing out so we don’t wait around and go looking for you. Best regards, Kari Prager CaliforniaBMWTriumph/2490 Old Middlefield Way/Mtn. View/CA/USA/94043 Phone 650.966.1183/Fax 650 966 8340/e-mail Kari@calmoto.com/ www.calmoto.com /Next Shop Ride Sunday, February 1st. '04 Spring CLASS Track Day - May 26th, Sears/Infineon. Fall CLASS Track Day - Nov. 24th - Laguna Seca. Posted by pqbon at March 7, 2004 11:33 PM | TrackBack