Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

One more before Winter

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • One more before Winter

    So we tried to get a SWOXS (SouthWest Ohio XS riders group) ride together, but it fell through. So today I took the planned ride anyway, or something close to it.

    It was a crisp 40 deg F when I left this late morning about 10:30 or so. After some pre-ride fluid checks, I took off through down town and headed out for the east. Destination…Portsmouth Ohio. Seen pictures of the impressive flood wall of Murals, but never been there and seen them. I took an expedient but not to traveled path along Rt 32.



    Kind of a superslab but a back country version. Not a lot of cars and few redlights. Nice scenery.

    After about 2 hours of riding I came up on Rt 73, this is a two lane road that winds through the countryside and a few very small towns.



    After passing one such small town I arrived at another hoping to fill the tank and discovered the only thing open on Sunday is church. Yep, that kinda small towns. So back up the road 5 miles to get gas and heard the clerk tell a gent he could not sell him his liquor on Sundays. Nope..not even beer. Was an interesting and relaxing change from the city where anything goes if it makes a buck in tax revenue.

    So I arrived in Portsmouth Ohio at roughly 2 or so at the flood wall of Murals. Steppenwolf has posted pics of his bike in front of this particular painting before. Sorry about the glare.



    Here you see the view up and down the wall from this picture. It is a full ½ mile long and covered end to end with these murals.





    It was very impressive. I took a shot of the mural describing how they are done and by whom but it came out with a glare as well, hope you can see some of it. Note that the wall is poured concrete, not large stone or block and is not cracked.



    So I rode around to the other side of the flood wall and got this shot of Thunderstruck with this cool looking cable hung bridge in the background.



    Then I went back and found these cool murals and thought it was interesting to get a picture that showed so many different types of horsepower in one shot!!



    And closer up pic of the train picture just for Steppenwolf!!



    I came back in on rt 52 which winds along the Ohio river. It provided plenty of opportunities to umm…let the horses breath a bit. Lets just say that a few slower moving vehicles were “Thunderstruck” as the beast roared by. It was interesting to feel my competitive instincts almost feeling I was racing the river back home. Or perhaps I was racing hypothermia!! Here are a few shots of the road and the river.









    Maybe not exactly the PCH, but as close as we get around here. Overall a nice ride, it only warmed up to maybe 55 or so today, so having been home about two and half hours I am starting to warm back up!! I have got to get something that covers my neck and chin before I do that in this weather again. Not a bad day..roughly six hours in the saddle and 260 miles or so.
    Last edited by DGXSER; 11-22-2009, 06:35 PM.
    Life is what happens while your planning everything else!

    When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt.

    81 XS1100 Special - Humpty Dumpty
    80 XS1100 Special - Project Resurrection


    Previously owned
    93 GSX600F
    80 XS1100 Special - Ruby
    81 XS1100 Special
    81 CB750 C
    80 CB750 C
    78 XS750

  • #2
    Now that is a nice ride..wish I could have made it with ya but work called and that comes first.That particular ride could be made into a two day ride easy..soo much to see here in southwestern OH.The Portsmouth MC club house,looking into the mirrored sunglasses on the 3rd pic has their white house in it which is at the west end of the wall....
    Glad one of us made it..thanks for sharing....
    '80 XS1100 SG
    Don't let the good times pass you by..grab all you can
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_Z4cjUlIo4

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by STEPPENWOLF View Post
      That particular ride could be made into a two day ride easy..soo much to see here in southwestern OH.
      I could easily see that happening. By the time I got to Portsmouth I was ready to stop for a bit. Only spent maybe 15-20 minutes in town really. Then headed out for home. So that six hours was just about ALL seat time. If we had the typical crew, we would have easily spent another two to three hours in gab time in there. And there was a few places along the way that could easily have taken hours more of exploration between parks and towns I went through and or past.
      Life is what happens while your planning everything else!

      When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt.

      81 XS1100 Special - Humpty Dumpty
      80 XS1100 Special - Project Resurrection


      Previously owned
      93 GSX600F
      80 XS1100 Special - Ruby
      81 XS1100 Special
      81 CB750 C
      80 CB750 C
      78 XS750

      Comment


      • #4
        Nice ride report

        That looks like a really good ride.I would love to see portsmouth and all the murals.
        It snowed here today.So no riding anytime soon.I had to settle for working on
        an XS850 today.Still fun for me though.I had to feed the wood stove to keep
        it fairly warm.
        So could you feel your fingers and toes?lol
        I rode a couple times last winter on my SG.It was below freezing and I wore ski pants heavy gloves and 1000 gram boots.My fingers still froze.But it was fun anyway.
        Rick
        80 SG XS1100
        14 Victory Cross Country

        Comment


        • #5
          Anything under @ 60 degrees or so, I wear a balaclava type thing like this...


          Balaclava


          I don't pull it up over my nose or mouth though because it will get wet from your breath. Just about chin level. I bundle the rest of me up pretty well in the cold, but even riding at 17 degrees last year, my neck won't get cold with these. I pull it up over the back of my head a bit and to my chin in the front.. then put on my helmet and try not to pull it down.

          For my hands.. I wear mittens like snowmobilers do. With all your fingers together.. plus the Thinsulate insulation, they keep my hands warmer than any gloves ever have. Going to try those little air actuated hand warmers in them for my trip next month. You just have to get used to braking and clutching with all 4 fingers.

          Great protection for cheap... And thanks for the report.


          Tod

          P.S. Can't tell from the glare.. but is that an XS in the mural in the first pic? Not an 1100.. no disc brake I can see..
          Last edited by trbig; 11-22-2009, 08:01 PM.
          Try your hardest to be the kind of person your dog thinks you are.

          You can live to be 100, as long as you give up everything that would make you want to live to be 100!

          Current bikes:
          '06 Suzuki DR650
          *'82 XJ1100 with the 1179 kit. "Mad Maxim"
          '82 XJ1100 Completely stock fixer-upper
          '82 XJ1100 Bagger fixer-upper
          '82 XJ1100 Motor/frame and lots of boxes of parts
          '82 XJ1100 Parts bike
          '81 XS1100 Special
          '81 YZ250
          '80 XS850 Special
          '80 XR100
          *Crashed/Totalled, still own

          Comment


          • #6
            Tod..it is a Cl 500 or 650 Honda..
            '80 XS1100 SG
            Don't let the good times pass you by..grab all you can
            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_Z4cjUlIo4

            Comment


            • #7
              My hands and feet were not to cold really. Only had gym shoes on (hi-tops but yeah should have been boots for safety ) I had insulated leather gloves on and actually took some of those pictures while riding at 70 with bare hand and had to keep going without glove as ine are to tight to get back on one handed and I am not confident to ride no handed at speed. But even then my hand did not get to cold.

              I think the cold on my neck just got to my body and maybe even was going down my back though I did not feel it. I typically wear a scarf tucked iside my jacket in this weather and do fine with it, but I like those Balaclava things. Will keep an eye out for something like that. Maybe a good item for the kids HoHo list .
              Life is what happens while your planning everything else!

              When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt.

              81 XS1100 Special - Humpty Dumpty
              80 XS1100 Special - Project Resurrection


              Previously owned
              93 GSX600F
              80 XS1100 Special - Ruby
              81 XS1100 Special
              81 CB750 C
              80 CB750 C
              78 XS750

              Comment


              • #8
                '80 XS1100 SG
                Don't let the good times pass you by..grab all you can
                https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_Z4cjUlIo4

                Comment

                Working...
                X