Chethro's WV & Nearby Travels

I've come to the conclusion that on the DR I'm better off talking about how long I rode rather than how far..lol.
It doesn't sound so pathetic.

So true! Prior to this ride I had 110 hours on the bike and 3400 miles, so an average of 31 mph. At least I'm saving on tires...I think.

170 miles in 5 hours. Took some small back roads of rough pavement North of Glenville and Reedy WV that I haven't been on. I almost cracked 5000 miles up to 4960...



One fun ass set of curves I hit every ride East. It feels odd being up above the field as you are going thru the turns.

Continued...

160 miles in 4 hours. Rt 36 south to 16 North. A couple of my favorite roads.







I took a small road That I hoped would come into Grantsville, but it turned to gravel, so I turned around. My front tire is getting pretty worn.

A nice cool day of 62F and 160 miles. Over half was small backroads between Grantsville and Arnoldsburg WV. I even did some gravel.

Continued....







The next few shots are an uphill hairpin you can see the upper guardrail thru the trees. I stopped just past the arrow sign but the hill was too steep to back up and get a picture there. That is the crappy selfie.

Love your pics. Wishing I could be riding SE Ohio and NW WV. How close are you to the WV panhandle?

Thanks!

Too far, I don't get any further East than Glenville WV and typically stay below RT50. I did make one run up to friends house in New Martinsville this year, but it's an up, rest/visit and back thing. I'm just a day tripper and 6 hours is my limit. I prefer 4-5 hour rides.

Almost 100 miles in 3 hours . The DR is a grand machine...

It was very windy today. Every time I stopped to P even in the middle of BFE it sounded like cars were about to come up on me.

This one is a little long, so many pics..















The road I didn't go down. There is a locked gate on the other end.



Leaves in flight...

Continued...











Hawk in flight...

Cont...

Then to the rougher roads I actually traveled.



I had to split some holes.





Typical WV ridge view in my area. This is near Woodrum lake.







Another dead end road, but I'm glad I went down it. The road was almost invisible.

V7 tire break in today. 200 miles in 4.5 hours. New Conti RA3 radials installed. Started out today at 45F and ended the ride at 66F. I like riding in the cooler weather. Less bugs in my teeth.

I did a similar loop to last week down Rt36 but took some back roads between Clay and Ivydale. Triplett & Ivydale roads were a curvy and beautiful ride. There were a couple branches off them that I have to try in the future. Then it was up Rt16 to Grantsville and back Rt5.

A little pull off near the Southern end of Rt36.












Next up, I crossed the Elk river onto Triplett.







I hit these twice!

Next I went down Ivydale road. I couldn't get a clean shot of a ridge view all day.








Last stop on Rt5.

I was in this area over the summer to do the WV portion of the TAT. I thought it was gorgeous then, but it is astounding with the fall colors.

Did you start the WV section of the TAT in Ripley? I have seen an ad online that says that's where it starts, but I have never actually seen the map.

This year the colors are a little better than the last two due to a bit more fall rain. Still not many bright reds though.

Yes, I did start in Ripley. Started in a parking lot in downtown and headed east towards Marlinton. It's not the longest section of the TAT, I think the whole day was ~150 miles and I crossed it in a day. The map is on Sam Correro's website for like $8 or something like that. I thought it was a beautiful ride and I met some interesting characters along the way, so in my opinion it is well worth it for a weekend trip.

220 miles in 5 hours. A very nice but breezy day. The Conti RA3's seem to stick pretty well and are more compliant in the rough verses the Sport Demons. The bike is handling very well. it handles everything that is thrown at and there are no unexpected sensations. I was able to get 5200 miles out of the front Sport Demon, but during last 700 miles I was getting a little head shake in bumpy curves. They were worn down to the wear bar and alternating tread blocks on either side were standing a few mm high and I believe that was causing the problem. I was thinking about getting Cogent DDC's next month, but I'm not sure I would notice an improvement. I have them on the DR650 and they are great, but with Ktech Razor III's, Racetech front springs and 15wt oil, I'm not sure it can get much better. I really like how the V7 rides and handles in all conditions just as she sits right now.

Todays ride was down Rt119 from Spencer, across Amma road to Rt36 at Left hand then out Triplet road again and down Widen Ridge to Birch River WV. Then I turned around and came back staying on Rt36 to Spencer on the last leg. Triplet road and Widen is 25 non stop miles of curves. Turning around gave me a total of 50 miles.

Continued....

Two of these curves in a row.

I rode through WV a couple of years ago on a street ride. It is a great motorcycle state. Looks like I need to bring my DR, too. Beautiful pics.