Slayed the dragon
- Thread starter stevec314
- Start date
jjrj
Member
Ya, what a road. Did it several times in '99 on a '99 Road King with the wife on the back. Dr Doolittle is right. Don't try to over ride the road or the machine you're on. We took it easy and the wife took pix as we were riding. Don't try to keep up with the crotch rockets or you'll be riding home in an ambulance. We stopped at Deals Gap Store, grabbed a soda and got back on the serpent...riding 40 - 45 taking it easy, when all of a sudden I hear a high pitched wine, and zoom, a crotch rocket passed me so fast I thought I was standing still. Well, a few miles further on up comes a sweeping right hander, I get half way through all keeled over and there was gravel across the road. Thank God I wasn't going very fast or we would have wiped out big time. The guy that passed me on the crotch rocket wasn't so lucky, or cautious. There was his bike in the ditch off the left hand side and he was in the ditch on the right hand side. We stopped to see if we could assist. Some lady had already called 911 and was comforting the rider when we walked up. He asked me to check his bike, so I did. The brake pedal had went through the crankcase and all the oil was out of it. All the plastic on the right side was mangled, broken levers and mirrors, etc. So I told him he wouldn't be riding anymore that day, just to concern himself with his injuries. We stuck around til the emt's and cops got there. I heard the cop say that this scene happens several times a week in the summer. They have since started patroling that road more and enforcing the speed limits a little more stringently.
So, we got back on the Road King and finished our ride. We have ridden all throught the Smokies, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and to Maggie's Valley and the Cherokee Indian reservation. We work camped there at Gatlinburg for 3 months and loved it. But, if you really want a hairy ride, try Highway 9 from Santa Cruz California to Los Gatos, or Skyline Boulevard off Highway 9 towards San Francisco. If you screw up there you're dead, cause I don't think the guardrail, where there are guardrails, would keep you from going down a couple thousand feet. They'd be scraping you up with a shovel. Very, very beautiful ride, just have to take your time and enjoy the scenery.
JJRJ
sharpscuba
Banned
JJRJ you are so right about hwy 9 in Cali.I have never done it on a scoot but it is a beautiful ride.And don't forget the pacific Hwy from Monterey to Big Sur.
Sharpscuba...you got that right! Pacific Coast Highway 1 aka PCH is a nice ride...pick it up near LA Airport or Malibu, Santa Cruz, past Big Sur, up to the San Francisco bay area, Bodega Bay, Ft Ross and beyond, all the way up, there are plenty of inland loops if you want to do some sight seeing or canyon scratching, but just go north all the way to the Oregon border or farther if you dare...this is the whole dragon, not just the tail, so there are plenty of technical twists and turns along the way. Take warm gear, maybe some simple camping gear/bag/tent, cause you just may want to rough it, though there are plenty of B&B's, camping or the usual hotels & motels. Be aware that fog in some areas can make it hazardous, but if the weather is fine the views and vistas of forests and beaches are spectacular...the smell of ocean air, redwood & eucalyptus groves are amazing to the senses just riding thru a canopy of them.
Just one ride and you'll be hooked... :small3d026:
Just one ride and you'll be hooked... :small3d026:
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jjrj
Member
Your right the PCH is a beautiful ride. We've done the coast on the scoot from north of Bodega Bay to Santa Maria. The Devils slide area south of Pacifica is an awesome site. It always great, but make sure you bring your leathers cause it can get pretty chili. I drove a 40' diesel motorhome from the Columbia River to San Diego. What a beautiful drive. We lived up in the redwoods at Felton for several months, had a huge redwood tree right next to the motorhome. There are soooo many good rides around Santa Cruz. We would just point the bike in a different direction every time and go exploring. The road from Hollister down to Pinacles is really nice and no traffic. Yosemite, Kings Canyon are also good day trips. We like to slow down maybe even stop and enjoy the view. I was there 7 years and enjoyed every ride.
Be safe
JJRJ
Mattman4403
Junior Member
Going south on Blue Ridge get off on 226 to ALT226 head west (more or less till you get lost or find the parkway again. Little burg called Little Switzerland that you go through. Looks familiar when you have been throught the dragon.
bikermonkey
Active Member
Great you had a good time on the Dragon, Slickrick from this site and I posted some pics somewhere on here of us on the Dragon. Four of rode it that day and Slickrick and I got there six minutes ahead of the others. I'm from Corbin Ky and hit the Dragon a dozen times a year, it's always fun. Anytime this summer any of you guys want to hit it, just holler. FYI, the Cherohola pky just down the rode from the Dragon, had more biker deaths than the dragon,,, it's sneaky.