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+ Week Those Were the Days My friend.

Steve, Bob and I loaded up and headed up to Maggie Valley. Our home for the next few nights would be the Applecover Inn.

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This was a quaint little motel right in town within walking distance of several restaurants. The owner and his family lived here and ran the motel during the tourist season then lived in Florida the rest of the year.

Here's Steve with the owner, Derrick and his wife.

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Bob and the motel's vicious Guard dog:

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If you get the feeling that this was a friendly motel you would be right.

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Since we spent part of the day moving to Maggie valley we just went for a short local ride. Bob and I headed out and found the local ski area.

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After dinner Bob and I headed up to Waterrock Knob which was up off the BRP about 10 miles from the motel to catch the sunset.

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At this time I was still using and old 4 MPX casio camera. It took pretty good pics.

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Just a few comments about the guys riding with me. Steve was my regular riding buddy and we "meshed" well both during the rides as well as before and after. I had ridden with Bob a time or two but he was the new guy in the group. He fit in just like he had been riding with us for a long time. I couldn't ask for a better couple of guys to be up here with. I also got the chance to know Bob better. Bob had been riding dirt bikes with his sons who had recently finished school and moved out on their own. Bob also rode a Harley which he really enjoyed. Thiis dual sport thing was new to him and he was real enthusiastic about it.

Bob also had serious health issues. He told me his goal had been to live long enough to see his sons finish school and be out on their own. That had happened and every day now was bonus. He said he treated every ride like it was his last.......because it very well could be.

Moving on to the first full day's ride out of Maggie Valley. This would be a full day of riding and very dirt oriented.

On our way to Hurricane Creek "road"

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Hurricane Creek:

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This road was only 6.5 miles long but by the time we were half way through Bob was sweating so hard he had to take his googles off so he could see. He now realized why Steve and I had chosen to ride our much lighter small bikes today.

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One of the interesting things about Hurricane Creek is that after 6.5 miles it end abruptly at I-40.

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Carefully avoiding the speeding semis we jumped on I-40 for about a mile to the next exit and more dirt roads. We stopped at Buzzards rooost which is a rock overhand with about a thousand feet of air below it and a view of I-40.

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Then we branched off on another dirt road which was at least as challenging as Hurricane Creek.

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We had ridden almost all of the challenging portion of this road when we came to this.

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We looked around but couldn't find any way around this, at least not on the bikes. So we would have to back track several miles. Bob, who had been wresting his big pig of a KLR was not happy.


So Steve led the way out followed by me. Eventually I stopped to wait for Bob.


And I waited.


And waited.


No Bob.


So I rode back

Bob's bike had decided to take a nap. It was on a hill and in a position where Bob had not been able to pick it up. I tried helping him but the bike would just slide away. At that point I had a moment of inspiration.

This ride would be reported on ADV.


We couldn't just pick up the bike and ride away could we?


So.........

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Then we picked up the bike and rode off. When we got to the beginning of that road Steve had an inspiration of his own.

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Some easier stuff.

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We stopped for lunch in Hartford.

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One really cool thing about this motel was that although it was right in town it had a fire pit and normally had a campfire at night.

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The next morning we walked across the street and had some of the best pancakes I have ever eaten.

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Then it was another day of riding. This day would be more road oriented so Steve and I took the big bikes.

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Did I mention Bob rode a Harley?

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Lunch was some snacks we had picked up at a gas station store.

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We did get off road some.

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Posing by the motel sign the next morning.

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The last day Bob decided that his butt was done for and he would check out the Wheels Through Time museum. Steve also didn't feel like riding any more so I did a solo ride that day.


I ended up finding what would become one of my favorite roads.

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It's hard to explain why this would become one of my favorites. It starts out a narrow road with crappy pavement and soon turns to dirt as it climbs up and over a mountain.

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About the time the pavement began so did the banjo music.:D

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Then this turns into a really nice curvy and scenic paved road.

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I rode around some more before heading back to the motel, loading up my bikes and driving home.
 
As I mentioned earlier this was a very memorable trip for me. It wasn't just the riding. It was also being with some great people. I guess i also have always liked organizing and leading rides like this, especially when they turn out well and everyone enjoys themselves. It was especially gratifying when Bob told me that this trip was his best motorcycling experience ever!

These 6 days of riding are another great example of "those where the days" It was a great time but times change and you can't go back. With the exception of Steve I don't think I ever rode with any of this group again although I did see some of them again at TWO. Bob unfortunately passed away some years later:( Before he passed away he bought a Super Tenere and did some more fun riding. I didn't attend his funeral but saw a pic of the funeral home with his Super Tenere parked near his casket. It was a privilege to have known Bob and I'm glad now that I took some pics and recorded some of my experiences with him.

People pass away. Places change as well. That nice motel we stayed at in Andrews is no longer there. That restaurant we walked to and had great pancakes in Maggie Valley didn't stay open and I have never eaten there again. The Applecover Inn. I stayed there a few more times but Derrick and his family are no longer the owners. There is a sad story behind that as well. This is the story as I heard it. Some guy was messing around at the firepit and managed to burn himself. He sued Derrick and ended up owning the place.

One of my reasons for doing this ride report is too preserve those memories. Occasionally I can go back and "relive" those old days.


Edit: I did ride with Bob at least one more time. That's coming up.
 
August 2010

At this time I was spending my weekdays down in Columbus for work and commuting home to Marietta for the weekends. I really wasn't riding that much but when i got the chance I went dual sport riding in the North Georgia mountains. One weekend in August of 2010 I actually got to go riding both Saturday and Sunday due to an unexpected change in my work schedule. I took advantage of it.

On Saturday I rode my KLR and went riding with a group.

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I had forgotten about this ride but both Bob and SloDon are in the pic above.
Included in this group where Bob, Paul and Jeff (Marbleminer)

Jeff in front of Helton Creek Falls.

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I rode ahead to get some creek crossing pics.

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One of the guys on the ride made a video.



I also did a much more detailed ride report way back in the day: https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/north-georgia-dual-sport-weekend.608353/
 
I went out by myself on Sunday. It was forecast to be a real hot day and I wanted to ride the DR250 so I loaded it in the truck and drove to jasper where I unloaded to start the ride.

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I took back roads and a few dirt roads up to Two Wheels Only.

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I had lunch at TWO

Some TWO regulars admiring my buddy Mike's Buell.

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Some more regulars relaxing after lunch. That's GT, TWO owner in the center.

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I headed off and did some exploring.

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It was 95 degrees and humid when I got back to Jasper. I was glad to be able to drive home in my air conditioned truck.

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I had another great weekend later that month. First Debbi and I went to the Vortex in downtown Atlanta to meet another inmate (Wanderboy) and his friend for dinner. Interesting place with some motorcycle stuff on display.

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Not exactly ATGATT but I guess they didn't really need it
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Debbi, Jeremy and Wanderboy with his Road King.

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The next morning I got up early and headed off to meet some other inmates in Jasper. Except of a little city riding my route was a pretty nice ride.

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I stopped by my old place of employment.

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Then it was more fun roads to Jasper where I met the others.

Markhdtech:

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Magnum1B

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Air2spare

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Those where the days my friend....

That was the title of a song by Mary Hopkin that came out in 1968. Yes some of us were around back then. If you remember this song then you are old! I took the liberty of modifying the lyrics a bit to fit this ride report.

… Those were the days my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd ride and ride forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd ride and never lose
Those were the days, oh yes those were the days

I think many of you are like me. You have been riding for a long time. Its not the same as it used to be. Remember those days when riding was an all new adventure? Remember when we were immortal and would be able to ride forever?

I still remember.

I remember how it all started. It probably started the same way for me as it did for you, with a bicycle. Actually it was more than one bicycle as I had several. What a revelation. I could go much faster than I could run and I could go much farther. The problem is that pedaling could get tiring. Going up hills was no fun. Going downhill was much more fun. Why couldn't all roads just go downhill?

There was a solution. It was called a motorcycle. Wouldn't that be so cool. Some of us put cards on our bikes so that the spokes would hit them when we rode and it kind of sounded like a motorcycle.

But it didn't get us up those hills any faster.

Some kids in the neighborhood had mini bikes. You might remember them. Briggs and Stratton lawnmower engine, centrifugal clutch, no gears and only a rear brake that was very crude.

Something like this:

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One really lucky guy had one of these:

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I really lusted after that Honda but would have been happy with a plain mini bike. My parents wouldn't let me get one. I guess those were not the days.....................yet!

Those days are coming up..........
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Those Hondas were actually dogs. Certainly better than a lawn mower motor BUT for the same money you could get one of these. The Yamaha Mini Enduro was the first factory mini bike to actually be like a real dirt bike. (the mini enduro started a whole mini-motorcycle craze). I had a 71 back in the day and about 10 yrs ago found a really ragged out rusted one on ebay out of Fla that ran, bought it and restored it. What a labor a love!
 

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Those Hondas were actually dogs. Certainly better than a lawn mower motor BUT for the same money you could get one of these. The Yamaha Mini Enduro was the first factory mini bike to actually be like a real dirt bike. (the mini enduro started a whole mini-motorcycle craze). I had a 71 back in the day and about 10 yrs ago found a really ragged out rusted one on ebay out of Fla that ran, bought it and restored it. What a labor a love!
It's all relative. Compared to the one human power bicycle I was riding the CT70 was a real rocket! On the other hand a friend of mine had a 5 HP lawnmower engine powered minibike and claimed it would run away from the CT70's in a drag race.
 
The first bike I owned was a year old Yamaha 80 in '66. I paid $200 for it from a friend that sold it to get college money. I only had a ''junior drivers license" (could only operate sunup to sunset), which I did. I ran the wheels off that thing, putting 5,000 miles on it in less than five weeks. When stopped at a gas station to see a buddy who worked there, a guy approached, asking a lot of questions about the bike. He offered me $300 on the spot, and I signed the registration over to him. I thought he was going to follow me home, but as he loaded it up in the back of his pickup he told me "you got $300 kid, take a taxi !" I had to call my Mom to come get me...:)
OK-sorry to derail the thread.
 
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