If I’m not careful I’m going to end up with the nickname “mudslide.” Â The photo above is from December, but it pretty well sums up yesterday’s ride on the edge of the Carizo plain. The only difference is that there was no sun yesterday.
I think I dropped the bike six times. A couple of times were on a hill that was, for the most part, made of sand. No shame there. A couple of times were on muddy hills. Once was on flat ground. Later in the day I discovered that my front fender was completely clogged with mud–and that was part of what was giving me trouble. The wheel wasn’t rolling freely and I was losing traction. Â
But I also need to get more comfortable slipping around. When the rear wheel starts to fishtail I have a tendency to overcorrect and then I just lose it.Â
Fortunately a lot of the ground around the Temblor Range in the southern part of the Carrizo Plain is ideal for dual sport riding. The trails are made of something like decomposed sandstone, well packed with some loose sand. Sometimes rocky. It was mostly the slippery clay that gave me trouble.Â
One of the big challenges from yesterday’s ride was the fog…40 feet visibility in some places. It made it hard to see the trail and impossible to take in the beauty of the valley.
Just for the heck of it, here’s a link to one of the four water crossings from last month’s VCARS ride. Part way through the water I goosed the throttle a little too much and nearly got over my head. So to speak.