2012 Kaslo National Road Run

[c.o.]

Great Stuff Cory. You may have heard me laughing, but I want you to know I was laughing with you, not at you. Sometimes a road trip can bring a little more adventure than you were looking for. Thank You for taking the time to chronicle your trip for us here and looking forward to more.

Kyle!!! I did hear you laughing and I was chuckling along with you. I never worry too much about a minor breakdown. On the other hand if I have a catastropic failure I get a little stressed about having to load a bike into a truck.... I always say that a day broke down on the road is always better than a day at work!!!

That's a great observation Kyle. I remember breaking down on my '41EL back in the mid 70's, on a lonely back road about 40 miles from Tampa, Florida. It was over 3 hours before anyone stopped to help. You have a lot of time to think about your situation (maybe too much time) and start to question why you ever thought a motorcycle was going to be fun. I'm loving this thread Cory and looking forward to more installments.

Eric, I can't even count the times that I've wondered why I do what I do with this old motorcycle stuff. Once in awhile when it's really crappy, I sway to thoughts of a modern push button bike. Then I wonder why I kid myself like that. I'll go through all the hell an old bike can dish out just to wrestle it out onto the highway. I think it's that need to experience the "old days" in some sort of way.

As a favorite author of mine says, "Adventure's suck while your having them." Seems like yours might fill the bill. Great to read and see the pics though. Can't wait for the rest.

Eric, your favorite author is right!!! Adventure's can definitely suck at the time but the stories they produce last as long as our minds can recall them. I have no complaints about this last ride. As I said to one gal who noted how sopping wet I was.... "It's all part of the experience...."

The way I explain it to the modern biker riders is that every ride is an adventure.

You nailed it Louie! That's as straightforward of an explanation as it gets. I've had modern bike riders come right out and admit that there is no way that they could make a motorcycle "that old" go down the road....

[c.o.]

Saturday morning brought a fairly heavy fog but no rain. The power was still out and it was a good thing the local gas station had a generator or not much of a ride would have been had! A couple of Shovel riders and myself decided it was time to make an attempt at the Trout Lake loop. Gary, John and I got to the end of the pavement and hit the gravel road. It's a road that the locals and forest industry traffic use. It's in pretty good shape overall but the edges were to be avoided due to the rain. I did see one single wheel track precariously close to the edge on a tight corner. I'm thinking it may have been from a sidecar.



We headed south to the small settlement of Trout Lake. It's a real backwoods type town and has the coolest gas pumps going!! It was a bit of a shock when the gal at the gas station locked the door after we showed up though!!! We were just a merry bunch of travelers and I mentioned that John should go knock on the door and calm any worries she may have. He worked some magic and she came out to fill up our bikes. She was really careful about things and mentioned that other bikers had been particular on their tank levels earlier in the day. The pump we filled from was the red one and it was dated 1915 and the one beside it was from 1904!!!



When all was settled up we rolled our bikes clear from the pumps and soaked up the vibe for awhile. If nobody talked all you could hear were the birds and bugs!!!




We saddled up and stayed the course. The road got a little hairy with tight switchbacks, washboard and potholes. There was some mud and water to splash through but man was it a blast!!! We had easily 50 or more miles of this type of riding!!! It was definitely the funnest ride of the whole trip!



I hit the throttle a little when we got back to the pavement as I was running tight for the banquet. I made it just in time and it was top notch all the way. The Northern Rockies Chapter did a really good job putting this all together and enticing a wide variety of bikes and people to make an appearance. I'm anxious to see what they come up with the next time around.

Other than that it was another night around the fire and a pack up session Sunday morning for the trip home. We had picked up another Shovel to travel with and we all made a bee line for the ferry. We ran into a group from south of the border and had a nice chat. Three of the fellas had ridden from New Jersey. Two were on modern type bikes but the other looked to be an original paint generator Shovel. There was also a pickup with a remarkably original '47 Knuck in the back with Indiana plates. I had a bit of a drool over it and noted some of the details this bike had to offer. It had been at the rally but I never got a chance to take a good look at it. I was glad I got a second shot.





The boat dropped us off on the other side and it was basically fuel stops and a couple of visits with friends on the way home. The weather was good and I arrived home safe and sound, tired but satisfied.

[BigLakeBob]

Great commentary! No wonder people came from all over with that great scenery. Those gas pumps are the coolest, I didn't know they still could be used, but why not I guess just can't swipe your card. How are the ferrys, does your bike slide much on the sidestand with the steel diamond plate? Bob

[c.o.]

Definitely no card swiping at those pumps Bob.... She actually filled us up and trusted us to pay!!! For all I know she wasn't worried cuz she had a shotgun under the counter... The first time I ever rolled a bike onto a ferry I contemplated about it sliding or possibly falling over if the water was rough. Any worry was discarded though. The deck isn't slippery at all.