Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127926
, In Tenn essee , t he week JW befo re Thanksgiving (the ride starts a t Picket Sta te Rus tic Park near the Tennessee / Kentuckv bo rder) can be colde r an d wetter tha"; Cali fornia ns are used to. That also makes tra il obs tacles a lot slicker - not that hard-packed clay hills or moss-covered rocks or fa llen trees need mu ch cold rain to multiply the difficulty factor co ns iderably . It' s safe to say that no one in the gr oup felt chill y after that first happy section of trail. Oh, the grou p: It 's hand-picked by Bramblett, of cou rse. After all, it is his ride. As for criteria, it's pretty simple: "It's go t to be somebody that has a good attitude and has gone reall y ou t of their wa y to help us in the pa st ," Bramblett explains. "It's kind of a wa y of thanking people. Other people tha t come along, lik e Rand y Stephen son - he' s a friend from w a y ba ck - he knows th e trails really well, and he's just fun to go riding with . Mark H yd e - e v en thou gh h e wo rks for a competitor, Suzuki, Mark's jus t a good guy. "This year, with 17 riders," Brambl ett continues, "that was the largest group ever. Normally, we have about 12 to 15 as the max. Unfortunately, I probably ge t 50 o r 60 p eople who call up and w ant to go . You have to tell some of them no," So, besides guys like Stephenson and Paul Jo rd a n , who both help as trail bosses, ther e are heroes: Summers and his father, Wad e, of cou rse, and repea t participant Jeff Russell. Also in the hero category t!li s year were newco mers Randy Hawki ns (with mecha nic Dale Stega ll, w ho proved highly entertaining with his wide-open philosophy); Hyde (u nofficia l recipient o f the Bozo Crash awa rd) ; and Alan Randt : Among th e Summers s ponsors we re Megla and . Wiseco's St eve Johnson, back fo r his second tim e. A few m ore fr ie n ds o f Bramblett's, a cou ple of journalists, and that' s 17. Of course, witho u t help from others, like Summers Racing's Phil lind eman (su p port-truck driver) and Pat Shepard (mea l qu een ex trao rd ina ire), life on the trail would 'v e been merely lif e on th e trail. As it was, plen ty of great food wa s always read y at the designated stop s, where one co u ld reach into his gear bag and ge t a dry jersey or another dab of No-Fog cloth. In add ition, Jordan and his friend Earl Brockman helped tremendously by clearing sectio ns of trail in th e w eeks befo re ; Summers never had to fire up the sma ll Poulan chain saw he carried on his XR, wh ich certainl y h elped keep things rolling . HEAVE HO A few spots, however, proved imposs ib le to ride through , even fo r the heroes. Ever been on a trail rid e where long, strong rope is carried by at least one guy - and then have to use it? Not to tow dead bik es, mind yo u, but to hoist bikes up and around narrow passages safelv. The FBI rid e features that. How about s ections where three g uys are required to lift bikes over moss-eovered rocks, because a slip would mean a 20foot drop into a boulder -strewn stream below? The FBI rid e featu res that. You see, it' s all part of the plan. "I kind of like s tu ff really te chn ical, . where it req uires a whole lot of effort, " Bramblett insists, further revealing his (Above) Scott Summers and Randy Hawkins take'a breather after conquering a se ction. This year 's FBI Trail Ride covered about 60 miles the first day, 120 the second and 146 the third, with the last two hours being a ride In the dark. (Right) One 01 each day's highlights was a Pat Shepard meal. Here, she grills steaks at Earl's. (Below)Wade Summers lines up ~ shot at Earl's Pool Hall, a one-room establishment ded icated to pool and dirt bikes, In McKee, Kentucky. It's no Holiday Inn, but no motel chain could match its amb iance nor do a bette r lob 01 building camaraderie. 15