Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Fourth Annual Last Bass Lake 250 Dual Sport Ride Oakhurst Elks Clubgrounds BY (Left) With the aid of a friendly rock, the author explores the limits of frustration while trying to fix the rear-tire problems on his trusty XR350. Many riders came by to commiserate, offer suggestions, or lend a hand. RON SOBCHIK OAKHURST, CA, JULY 14-15 Il7he OC Duallies/California Trail Rides put on another very successful dual-sport motorcycle adventure in the beautiful national forest that surrounds the Bass Lake area. As at last year's ride, we staged out of the Oakhurst Elks Club. They have a shaded camping area about the lodge that has full hookups for the RV crowd and also areas for tents. Another "duallie" and I rode up together Friday afternoon in my pickup_ Four years ago, Larry Langley, president of the OC Duallies and head of California Trail Rides, had been putting on the Bass Lake 250 For a number of years and was getting burned out on all of the traveling required (Fullerton to Oakhurst is approximately 300 miles) to layout the course and coordinate the event, so he threatened that "this is going to be the last Bass Lake Ride." When the riders who annually attend this event got wind that he was serious, they rallied and found some local talent to help Larry. As a result, the ride continued. but each subsequent ride has been called nth annual "Last Bass Lake Ride." The Oakhurst area was cool and dry and very pleasant. It had rained the previous Sunday. and the trails were less dusty than they could have been. On Friday, the Elks provided a dinner of chicken-fried steak, salad and mashed potatoes. The restrooms were better than those of some of the campsites we've endured, but they could have benefited from some shower facilities. Some 120 riders registered for the two-day event, with Saturday's roll chart showing a 160-mile ride that would take us right up to the very boundary of the Ansel Adams Wilderness, through some of the most ruggedly beautiful country I have ever seen. Saturday's ride took us up into the Sierra National Forest east of Highway 41, almost over to Mammoth Pools. This year, Jones' Store served as the lunch stop. The course was at least 50-percent single-track. some of it very obviously cut just prior to this event. U 44 AUGUST 22, 2001 • cue I I awakened to find I had a rear flat tire. which would plague me through the first 80 miles of the event. After pulling the Shrader valve and filling the tube with flat-proof, I reinflated the tire and hoped for the best. After about 20 miles, it became obvious that the flat-proof hadn't stopped the leak and I was fated to ride the balance of the trail to the lunch break with a low or flat tire. Despite this handicap. I was able to enjoy most of the morning loop and make it to the lunch break without incident. At lunch, we pulled the rear wheel and replaced the tube with a spare carried for just such eventualities. We looked at the -extra-heavy-duty offroad bib mousse tube. and it didn't appear to be leaking. What was leaking was the brand-new tube with which we had replaced it. By this time, I'd had it with tubes and tirechanging and opted to take the bailout route and return to camp. Other riders that I talked to later told me this was a very wise move, as the afternoon's "hard way" took the riders through the Whiskey Creek area. which has some steep and rocky downhills. This would have been no fun at all on a rear Flat and would probably have destroyed the tire and the rim, or worse. When we returned to camp. I again removed the tire and Found that the replacement tube had a pinhole leak on the rim side and that the tube we had replaced had no discernible leaks. I patched the spare tube, and we replaced the valve inside the stem on the HD tube and - voila! - no more tire problems. e n e _.S (Above left) The scenery In the Sierras Is awesome, and a big part of why some 120 riders participated In this year's event. Here, a group of riders has stopped to reset their odometers while others are Just taking in the scenery. (Above) Even the lunch breaks offered Incredible scenery, as evidenced by the view from the patio at Jones' Store. I did learn several valuable lessons through this whole adventure. Firstly, replace the existing CO 2 tire-inflator system that I have with a bicycle hand pump. An extended problem like this can leave you with a bunch of empty CO 2 cartridges and a flat tire before you find and fix the problem. A good pump, on the other hand. always has air. Secondly, carry a good patch kit that does not need glue, such as the Skabs kitrn which is available at Malcolm Smith or other shops. My patch kit had a tube of glue that had punctured and dried out - not a good situation out on the trail. Thirdly. carry a few spare tire valves. as they can fail as easily as the tube can and leave you just as stranded. Fourthly. inspect and replace the rim band (or duct tape) that protects the tube from the spoke nipples inside the rim every now and again. This can wear thin over time and allow the end of the spoke to give you ongoing problems. After dinner, we retired to the campground and prepped the bikes for the next day's event. The roll chart indicated that we would be doing about 120 miles on a route that would take us right up to the very boundary of the Yosemite National Park. Sunday's loop would take riders over on the west side of Highway 41 through the Miami Mountain area. When we saw this, the older riders wisely retired to bed. while the young Turks stayed up and partied'The next morning was beautifully clear and cool. It's really amazing how much better a bike steers when the proper amount of pressure is in the rear tire. Our route took us in a northeasterly direction. and the ride threw in several fairly challenging hard-way trails right away to get us warmed up. Most of the route was uphill, with gravel or dirt roads interspersed with hard-way single-track that took us through the trees and across numerous streams and water crossings_ The trail was laid out well, with the mileage being right on, and strategic corners and potential hazards being well marked with ribbon. Lunch was at the Lost In The '50s Diner near Fish Can:tP. The food and the service were excellent (and the waitresses weren't hard to look at, either). and this prepared us for the second half of the ride. We learned that by breaking into smaller groups of two to three riders, we could keep the amount of dust to a minimum, and also that keeping the group together was a lot easier. The afternoon trail took us downhill on a particular scenic and challenging single-track trail. Plenty of rocks, branches and a few fairly narrow sections kept us on our toes and prevented boredom. Eventually, the dirt trails led to Sky Ranch Road and a lO-or-so-mile paved ride back to camp. After packing up the truck and hitting a local public shower at Bass Lake. we bid adieu to this beautiful area and headed downhill to the central valley and eventually Los Angeles. If you get a chance to tryout a dual sport ride, give it a go. You will need a street-legal motorcycle !with registration. license plate. headlight, and quiet exhaust) capable of going 60 to 70 miles between fuel stops, and, as these events are usually staged in the forest, a legal spark arrestor is a must. Although it isn't required, a membership in a dualsport club makes finding a riding partner and participating in the event a lot easier, and it is also just plain fun to be around the members (most are "retired" racers or enduro riders) who are always ready with a story. joke, or an offer to help if you have problems. The events are usually around $50 to $70 and normally include an event shirt or hat and often Saturday night's dinner. CN

• Cover