When my wr was almost new---the fork seals started weeping a bit-------I cleaned them with a business card---and after 26,000 miles they've never leaked another drop. Mark
I ride Honda but a buddy of mine uses film, yea the old stuff, just as described earlier with the business card.
Another thing that I use is a feeler gauge (the long, flimsy style). They flex nicely and won't leave pieces of paper in there either. This has always worked great on my dirt bike.
That group of 16 is on the TAT, they would have been one day ahead of you. They have a trailer because they don't all ride everyday, some of them are in their 70's! I'll be in Port Orford tomorrow, had a good ride, blew a fork seal also just lived with the oil on my boot. Nevada was tough on me, I think I tried to ride it too fast.
9/13/11 (Wednesday) Total mileage: 308 miles Overall average: 33 mph Got up around 8 and walked over to feast on a breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast at the griddle house adjacent to the economy inn I was staying at. During breakfast a KTM 950 adventure with safari tanks and auxillary lights and full pannier setup with rack and bags pulls in. Didn't get a chance to talk to the guy since he was looking all intensely at his paper Nevada map and wasnt within earshot of me. He sat outside for as long as it took him to chart his course and was back on his bike and off. Wonder where he was going. After my delicious breakfast, I ride over to the dealership to see if I could get service on my weeping forks. In daily life, one almost always needs a reservation, and I didn't have one and would have to wait at least 4 days for an opening. Oh well, bought 2 standard front tubes, 1 rear manufactured by Kenda. They didn't have heavy duty ones. Also bought a number 5 race number to cut up and cover the extra hole on the rim from the tubliss rim lock. This would also double as rim tape to cover parts of the tubliss rim tape I cut that were bunching up. Checked out at 10:30 and went to work underneath a covered parking spot. Was done at 12:00. As noted in a earlier post, the tubliss bladder had a manufacturing defect. The hole didn't look like anything that was caused by abrasion. Also did the business card fork seal trick. (It didn't work, but I'm going to have another go at it with the wipers pulled down) While finishing up, i was shooting the shit with Jarrod, son of the owner of the hotel who checked me in the previous evening and was omnipresent during my whole stay, he use to race motocross in Sacramento. He and the staff there were very helpful and accommodating asking me if I needed anything to make my maintenance easier. After packing up, grabbed a gas station burrito and corndog and was off to Denio to catch the trail. The road back to Denio Junction Picked up where I left off yesterday at 3:30 and it was back to hill climbs and double track. The first obstacle was several water crossing. Not feeling like drowning my bike I take off my shoes and socks and walk it. It's about a foot and a half and the bottom is clay. I go for it and make it. There are several more and I make those before moving to higher ground. Parts of those tracks are super rocky so standing up is mandatory if you don't want fatigue to set in. Wierd to say, I know, but if you're set up proper standing can be more comfortable than sitting. That and you don't absorbs all that roughness, plus you can go faster. Nevada is a great state to ride in if you want to be with yourself in the sticks for long stretche of time on narrow double track. It seems like the most remote state I've ridden through. Again, today would see me ride into the sunset. Though not ideal when riding in remote places, the view is alway so much more glorious when the sun is going down. Strange colors illuminate the horizon and clouds and in this circumstance, strange is good. As I descend ond of the last strectches of elevation, there is enormous lowland, flooded with water (or is it a lake? It was so vast open and untouched -- did I say it already. Nevada is epic, y'all. After descending, it is around 7:30 and light is falling fast. I had come off the double track and onto open dirt and was feeling good about that, but then I enter it again. At this point, I need to turn on my Hid. The double track is over grown and claustrophobic and I'm doing my best not to cross rut. I'm also wary because I'm not sure what kind of surface I'm riding on. It looks chalky and fine and grey. I'm worried it might be silt. Almost go down a couple of times from the tire trying to climb a rut or the front plowing into softer surfaces. After riding in the dark in the bushes for about half an hour, I hit an open gravel road and am relieved. The moon is behind me and almost full keeping me company as I blast into the night. There something I really enjoy about riding in moonlight. Feel like I can ride all night without worry. Probably irresponsible, but I cut my headlights off on an open stretch of gravel for about 10 seconds and could still see the road and my shadow cast from the moon behind me. I would turn around and see the trail of dust kicked up moonlit, too freaking cool to express in words. My gps routes me to fort Bidwell California, the exact same route as the trail, so I know the roads are bigger. At around 9:15 I make it to ft bidwell. Nothing there, so I look on the gps and the closest hotel was in cedarville 22 mile south. Rode down and no vacancies in both hotels. the ride down was for lack of a better word, sexy. The road hugged a gigantic body of water reflecting the moonlight. Cedarville is eerily quiet as I fill up my tank. A stray black dog would walk up and down the street, at a good pace. He would meet up with with his other stray lighter colored buddy and they would walk back the other direction together noticing me but minding their own business. The next place to try was alturas, ca. Got there in about 25 minutes and it seems as though the whole town is booked. I should get into the hotel business. Even though the lady at the super 8 told me every single room in town was booked, I found s three bed room a couple of blocks away. Settled in, went the gas station and bought dinner and turned in for the evening.
Nevada is to be savored. I found myself blasting through at some points as well, but after finding a good even rhythm the ride becomes more enjoyable. It's very zen. Going continuously fast will f your bike up quickly in Nv.
Never really thought about how far Fort Bidwell is from Cedarville. I rode thru Cedarville on my Nevada TAT last year, but my route is better than the TAT...High Rock Canyon and all that. You probably won't ever get another flat now that you're running tubes.
There is a spot after Ft Bidwell, can't remember exactly how far, but I bent a front wheel there from a little ditch that had been cut straight across the road. May have been filled in by now but you might want to keep an eye out for it. The tire didn't go flat and I was able to complete the ride but had to replace the wheel when I got home. I sent it off to be repaired but they couldn't fix it.
Hey Simon, Just wanted to say this is a great thread. I am loving the many photos and more so, the many details of where you stopped, ate, slept, turned, got lost, re-routed and was awestruck. You are getting close to the conclusion of this adventure and I am looking forward to the many details and descriptions for the next few remaining days. My hat is off to you.
I think that it was in Nevada where I ran through a barbed wire gate. It didn't really hurt the bike, but took a lot of skin of my elbows and made my knee swell up. Nevada was my favorite part. Miles and miles of miles and miles. Several hundred miles just like this. EXCELLENT RR, as good as any I have read, better than most. Thanks for taking to time to do it. I definitely want to do the western TAT again.
9/14/11 (Wednesday) Daily mileage: 151 miles Overall average: 22 mph Today was a lazy day. I had pushed really hard yesterday getting out of Nevada in the dark of night that and ended up staying in Alturas, which was neither here nor there. It was too close to Lakeview, Oregon, but too far away from Crescent Lake, which was the next sensible stop as mapped out by Sam when conceiving the TAT trail. Hotel in Alturas It didn’t matter to me really, as I’m am subconsciously transitioning from the TAT to road trip mode. For the last couple of days, I’ve begun to realize that this is all ending soon in a matter of days, so I should not take anything for granted. The forest road in Oregon seem are many and windy, but so far are very manicured. There are roads on that map that just aren’t there or have been decimated by deforestation, or mining that they are more suitable for a single track trailride than a cross country adventure ride. Getting up this morning, I took my sweet time and left at around 11:00. I really wanted to take the backtrack on the route I took last night to see what it looked like during the day. On the way, I missed the original easy way from Alturas to Cedarville and instead too the mountain road way, which contained a myriad of reroutes due to the aforementioned deforestion. Granted this is northern Cali, but its close enough, I get the feeling Oregon will be similar. Lake City Flour Mill At around 1:30 I make it to Cedarville, and the town feels different, but mostly due to the fact that road construction was taking place right on the main drag. Would be nice to experience it otherwise, but regardless, I take a leisurely lunch at the Country Hearth cafĂ©. I got the Taco Salad special. Inhaling that, I ride north to Fort Bidwell to catch the TAT. On the way, that sexy body of water I saw last night was just as big, but NOT sexy. The moonlight goggles had created an apparition that wasn’t there. Last night, I had visions of bungalows down by the lake… Lakewood, a resort town with young northern California lovers water skiing by day, and drinking exotic drinks in the evening with the moonlit lake as a backdrop -- I might've imagined I was on the Pacific Coast Highway under those circumstances. Think Madmen. The real story is the road hugged vast farmlands and the body of water... relatively shallow I think, muddy and pedestrian – fit for raising livestock. That body of water to my right as I head north The mountain range is to my left A cool church on the way up As I catch back up to the trail at Ft. Bidwell, the road winds me up the mountain, and the roads are wide and covered in gravel. Going from California into Oregon was a nonevent… no sign welcoming you or anything, just a cow grating. As surmised from my earlier experience getting to Cedarville, the mountain roads are similar. Going up again It is a bit strange as during the light yesterday, I was riding in a land full of low lying sagebrush, and a day later, horizons lined with tall old pines. I was happy to see a change, and I think the riding here on out should be less challenging. Its kinda nice actually because it’s like the cool down stage of a workout. Because I’m assuming the riding is more straightforward, I can focus on things like stopping by Crater Lake and checking out natural hot springs with hopes of taking a dip. Abandoned shaft A nice big tall tree to admire after days without... Somehow, old school looking trucks like these and the Pacific Northwest go hand in hand At around 4:30 I descend the mountain straight into the town of Lakeview, Oregon. The town itself is really nice and I see they are proud of the fact that they were finalist for All American City in 1988… a great year. Its emblazoned on their water tower next to an American flag. Lakeview lodge is very nice, and nice people run it. I highly recommend. Since I was in exploring mode, I did some research into some hot springs and found that Hunter Spring was located not too far away, there was a note it was in danger of closing because of the city and a mining corporation. Regardless, I decide to take a ride and explore, and was met with a gate and no trespassing sign as I get closer. Oh well, it was sunset and a ride is always welcome, especially without luggage. A picture to remind myself I was actually there The sun hitting the land makes it all look very painterly Love the sunsets on the west Love the sunsets on the west, part II Exploring town After getting back, I went over to Jerry’s Diner in town for a rib dinner, and back to the hotel where I am now using the Lakeview Lodge’s computer to process images and type this report. Good night.
Good morning, I've updated post to include pictures from the last several days. They are Post #: #206 #213 #228 #235
Nice pics!! When you try the card trick again, try less angle on the card, just barely let that one corner stick up there further. I've never failed on that trick if the fork tube wasn't scored. If you have something like WD40 you can stick the nozzle up there to help clean some of the dirt out. On a positive note at least it's not leaking on the disc side.
Thinking ahead, any recommendation on an ideal campground near Port Orford to end this amazing journey. Somewhere wild... somewhere fierce! Just kiddin'. If I could ride to it on the beach that would be awesome too. Kinda like the last celebratory stage of the Paris Dakar riding next to the Lake.
Not sure about camping, but AirborneAndy stayed on a boat when he got to Port Orford: (his post is here ) P.S. your pics have been fantastic! Now aren't you glad you did all of Nevada?