Upon arrival we took off the tail bag, GPS and my back pack and stored them in George's Truck and signed up. Lots of strange stares when I pulled up to the line on a bike with a fairing. Yes, the 640 Adventure has fairing, it is an adventure/touring bike used in Rally Races. The race started and I let the field roll off and I took chase only to find out a 640 can really haul the mail in the dirt and as turn 2 came up, I found that a 350 pound bike with 5 gallons of gas added on doesn't exactly stop like my 250. Luckily no one was run over when I blew the turn and tried to relocate the banners to the far side of the spectators.
I also found out that the suspension, that had been revalved for a 140 pound vertically challenged person didn't fair too well with my 200 pound J-Lo booty squashing it like a roach. Whoop after whoop, logs, rocks, washouts, all sent signals to my wrists and but cheeks that the valving was way too soft or I needed to go on a diet!!
I did pass quite a few people and quite a few passed me back but after about 90 minutes of the 2 hour event the noodles I used to call arms lost their starch and went limp, I couldn't hold on any longer and not only was my life in danger, so was anything still standing that go in my way including trees, people, bikes and woodland creatures of all sizes. The bike was a beast on that tight twisty course.
I pulled off and waited for George to come out of the woods and while I was chatting with a couple guys who had hedged bets against me finishing, I stepped into a low spot and dumped the bike right there in front of everyone just so they could be entertained and get the monies worth on the day. Thankfully they helped me pick the pig back up or it may still be laying there barring thieves.
I re-attached all my junk and headed home covered in mud. As on the way down, I decided to take some pictures for a photo scavenger hunt where you have to take pictures of certain objects with your bike. One place I stopped was the Spread Eagle Tavern in Hanoverton, Ohio. While I was photographing the historic building a gentleman baring fruit approached me and offered me something to eat. As he handed me the food he said; "Here, you look like you have been on the road for days and could use something to eat". All I could do was laugh and tell him I was just coming home from a race and was fine. I guess there are still some good people in the world. We chatted about the history of the area, I thanked him then headed straight to the Little Ceasers in Massillon then home. Pizza sounded way better than apples and oranges, they just don't compare...
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