Geek's Guide to Colorado.

for the San Juans you should shoot for 13k elevations.... a few of the good ones are just under 13k and a couple are just over 13k. I've had my bike run great up to 12k and struggle to get over Imogene's last approach.

An example of how I jetted my XR600 and XR628:

Stock main 152, FMF Q2 and Powerbomb header, NoToil filter with skin.
152 would get noticably fat and affect rideability over 10k ft.
148 ran good to 13k and up (Imogene) and worked well at 4,000 ft (Moab)

Jetting changes on an XR are pretty simple to make - bring a few mains and a couple of pilots and change if you need to. Going 1 leaner on the main should work.

Just be careful about jetting too lean, you will cross passes 12,000 ft or so but most of the time you will be below that and you don't want to be too lean most of the time.

If you base out of Ouray you will be a little over 8,000 feet. If you are going to be running on the road from trail to trail, say around Montrose, you will be even "lower" and running at speeds from 55 to 65 mph.

No, just followed the Colorado State Highway map (it's a good map, get one on line) for the main stuff and Latitude 40 maps for the single track.

Seems like after Pearl Pass on the Crested Butte side I turned left on 400 and followed my nose. Into this...





Beautiful isolated valleys behind this, below and east of Pearl.

Dropped down into this and left as it started raining.



Bearing left (west) I came out at Taylor Pass, rode down into Aspen west of town like I came in and off to Basalt.

This thread got me fired up about moving back to Colorado. Can't wait for June to get here!

should not be an issue....going from 152 to 148 worked for the 13k elevations and I ran it all over Colorado and down to 4,000 ft in Moab with excellent results.
Going to Baja and running at sea level I just went up to 155 and 158

I am getting some route planning for 2014 started and I was wondering what maps you use for that area. Does the Lattitude 40 maps cover the whole area?
Thanks a billion

I rented a cool cabin in WhitePine which is just west of Monarch Pass. There's good rideing (Tomichi, Hancock, St elmo) out the front door and it's relatively accessible to places like Salida, Tincup, Pitkin, and even Crested Butte (about 60 or 70 miles, I think). If you google "Tomichi Cabin" you should find it.

Great thread here mate.

So just to be clear, I'm at 55 and 158 now at sea level. You would suggest 148 main? Thanks for the advice!

pick any of these places and have a nice soak at the end of each days ride:
http://boxcanyonouray.com/
http://www.orvishotsprings.com/lodging.htm

6 Guys and 7 days in Ouray, CO. A quick video. Great Time thanks to the planning help on this tread.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KGyaBXzZh0&feature=share&list=UUaO853_nmGVE8UbsnsP3QSg

Thanks CO Geek!

Looks like you guys filled it up......nice video

That is a great clip !
We are making preliminary plans for a 2014 grand trip ourselves.
You just can't beat Colorado. Period.
Great thread Geek. The ADV community appreciates.

After 25 years of saying I'm going to work less in the summer I finally cut back some and traveled to CO last June to explore.


It was such a positive experience that I've set the dates for 2014's effort dubbed "The CO Dirt Bike and Brew Tour". The riding was obvious but enjoyed discovering every little towns local brew pub.



June 21 is the departure date arriving in Buena Vista the evening of 22nd. 15 hours from Daytona to St Louis then 15 more to BV! I'll camp by the River at Ruby Mt by Four Mile for 2 nights. And spend the rest of the week exploring Taylor Park.


I plan to run Brecktreck again on the last weekend of the month. 240 miles of dirt, left camp at 7am and returned to camp at 10 pm - kick ass day!


Mrs Manfu is flying in and we'll spend the 4th of July in Ouray before she flys out of Durango on the 5th.

Most will be solo but I was bless with some locals showing we around last time including being the first vehicles of the season to cross Tin Cup Pass!


I welcome anyone's generosity. Either info or fellowship. Capable but lazy rider on EXC500, camp out of my rig and prefer to explore a few days and move on.


Wheeler trail in Quartz.

The 2 month countdown starts tomorrow!

Awesome thread!

It's crazy to see you guys riding bikes on trails or areas that I've hiked and climbed, and thought they were tough enough on my own two feet.

Thanks for the excellent info from page 4 Geek, 7 of us from West Michigan will put it to good use soon.
We're headed to Ouray for 4 days of riding the COBDR then moving camp to Buena Vista for another 4 days of riding, exploring and enjoying those wonderful Rockies!

Subscribed! Some buddies and I will be coming to CO from Dallas 8/16-8/23...plan on riding a bunch of this stuff around Silverton, Ouray, and Telluride. We generally come every year but have mainly stuck to the pavement, but this trip we are riding a bunch of stuff off the beaten path. 2 1150gsa(s), 1 1200 gsa, 1 950 super enduro, and 1 F800GS so we are prolly gonna stick to the big bike friendly stuff. Thanks for all the info guys! Can't freakin wait!!!

Hey 1TRAK, that is funny. I'm leaving with a group of 7 from west Michigan soon too ;-)

Been up here for the past week or so - it is overwhelming. Also, so nuts with many mountain bikers, Jeeps, 4 wheelers, ATVs and hikers coming the opposite direction. Its a good thing seeing so many people outside, just adds a bit of concern when on the gas. Beautiful area! Up in Crested Butte.