Preparedness

I guess you could say that it’s just one of those things. You know, every now and then life throws you a lesson about humility as a gentle reminder of just how small and somewhat insignificant we really are. Such was the case for me today. I had come to the conclusion (for those of you who remain skeptics, yes, on my own) that I have been working entirely too hard over the past few weeks and had not really recreated to the point where I was relaxed and didn’t feel over-burdened. Only one cure…motorcycle ride!

Ever since we first came out to Oregon I had a road in mind to ride that Chey and I found and drove in a cage that took us from Grants Pass, through Merlin and on to Agness and then Gold Beach. It’s a series of roads that include interstates, county roads, Bureau of Land Management and US Department of Agriculture roads. Quite the mix I must say! And, let’s not forget, the route follows the Rogue River (through the Siskiyou National Forest) out to Gold Beach and the return trip follows a US highway along the Smith River through the Six Rivers National Forest as well as the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. While it seems like a lot, it’s only 250 miles, but the first leg of the trip will take better than 3 hours to complete!

As I said before, Chey and I took this drive last year in a rented Kia Rio. I knew just from driving it in a cage that this road was going to test my riding skills but I didn’t know how much. That is, until today. I had always thought of myself a very skilled rider. Shoot, I teach motorcycle safety and in order to do that, you need some skills. What I had never done before today was to really put everything I know to work all in one trip! Oh, I’ve been to the Dragon and I’ve ridden through the mountains of California and Nevada. I’ve ridden in deserts and through Death Valley. I’ve ridden in extreme cold and I’ve ridden at night. Still, none of that compared to what I encountered today. Today God taught me a thing or two about both me and Him!

Leaving the ‘house’ I rode up Interstate 5 and stopped in Grants Pass for some liquid gold (a.k.a. gasoline at $4.12/gallon) and a quick cup of coffee. It was cool still at about 65 degrees but that would soon change if I stayed in the valley. Knowing I would hit better than 5,000 feet I did have my liner should the need arise. After swallowing the last bit of what I deemed to be the worst coffee I’ve had in a while, I fired the Bike-A-Lounger up and headed north on I-5 again for just a few miles before turning off at exit 61 and Merlin Road.
Merlin is one of those quaint little towns that make you wish you didn’t live so close to the city. It has its own charm that just invites you to stop and sample some of the hospitality that abounds in places like these. People wave as you ride by not because you’re on a bike, but because they’re just friendly folk who like to wave to strangers passing by as if to say, next time, don’t be in such a hurry and stop for a while. You know…like Mayberry. Merlin has only one problem. It’s small. I heard that once someone spit on the sidewalk and they issued a flash flood warning! Ahh, I kill me! Hey, I’ll be here all week!

Leaving Merlin you start to see the rural side of life and the road connects with Galice Rd (pronounced ga-leece) and the side roads become fewer and even less are now paved. The hills here prevent much farming but they do raise some cattle. After just a couple of miles you see the river and the river businesses start. Rafting, tubing, fishing, etc. It’s all here and they all take Visa and MasterCard! Pretty soon the side roads no longer look like roads, just trails and paths. The road has just been sweeping turns and small hills and valleys. There’s nothing new here and not much to challenge even the newest of riders, but that’s all about to change.

There’s a small wooden sign that directs you to Agness and Gold Beach. Only 66 miles from the start of BLM-34-8-36 to Gold Beach. Not far at all! There’s also another sign warning you that the roads are not maintained in the winter and that you may encounter snow drifts that will block the road. It’s July so I think I can forget that one. There’s one more sign also. One that warns people with trailers and commercial traffic to tune their CB radios to channel 10. Just in case.

BLM-34-8-36, also known as Bear Camp Road, starts to rise at this point and also starts to get a wee bit twisty. Now we’re talking! This is the kind of road motorcyclists of all kinds like to see. There are nice long sweeping turns as well as some pretty tight ones. I also notice that it’s now a one lane road not much wider than your average full size pickup truck.
It’s pretty easy to get caught in a rhythm and then allow complacency to set in. The first blind turn will certainly cure you of that as you encounter your first boulder in your path! Let me see here, I have a choice as I recall…I can straighten the bike and brake hard or I can change my turn by straightening the bike and then leaning in at a different angle.

Freeze. This is one of those lessons that I really thought I was prepared for. I knew there was no-one behind me, but I still couldn’t see around the whole turn. If I stop I may get hit by an oncoming truck and if I change my path in the turn the same may happen because now I’m in the middle. Hitting this thing is not an option so I have to stop or go around.
I decide that the best course of action is to stop before getting to Mt Everest. I’ll still be in the middle of the road but at least I’ll be far enough away that any oncoming vehicle should also see it and go around the other side leaving me relatively safe. After stopping and going around the other side I find that there is no oncoming traffic and a safe place to pull over and go back and relocate the offending chunk of mountain. Good deed done for the day! So, lesson one, don’t become complacent! That’s an easy way to get hurt, or worse! Worse, by the way, would be to hurt the bike.

Continuing up the road you just climb and climb on your way to just over 5,500 feet. The views are nothing short of spectacular from up here. You can see the whole Cascade Range from here and some of the major peaks. Lots of Christmas trees to see! One big drawback to all these trees though is the shadow they cast. It makes it real difficult to see the road surface and any abrupt changes that may lie in your path. This is the time that you really want to slow down. Quite a number of times I was surprised by a severe dip in the road (and no, I’m not referring to any of the people here) that’ll just about launch you off your perch!

At the top of Bear Camp Road is Bear Camp Overlook. Talk about a view! I decided to stop here and take a bio break and perhaps a quick bible study. Instead, I meet up with some campers who have trailered up some dirt bikes and had been out exploring the woods from up here. Though I didn’t get to see it, they told me that they had found a small pond that was just as clear as glass teeming with all manner of fish! I didn’t bring a fishing pole anyways.
As we continued to talk, I learned that Bill (the one who did most of the talking) was a fellow Christian and that Bob, his friend was his latest ‘project’. I told Bob that, while I wouldn’t apply any additional pressure, I would certainly pray for him and we did. When we were done, Bob said he thought it was pretty cool that a stranger would be concerned about the soul of another enough to stop and say a prayer. Sounds like it’s working!

After leaving the overlook the ride takes a decidedly downward tack! Like most everyone else, I like heading downhill better than up…less work. Again, the shadows are playing tricks on me and I bottom out in what has to have been a crater caused by some errant meteor! Like Daniel Stern said in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, “Wow! What a hole!” Next on the menu is what little maintenance is being done and a nice long spot of dirt and gravel. Big, heavy bikes don’t like soft dirt.

Finally I can start to smell the ocean and what will soon be Gold Beach. I plan to stop and get some lunch, call the wife and tell her how much I wish she was here and how I was glad she wasn’t when I certainly would have launched her off the bike on a couple of holes! After lunch I head down US 101 towards Brookings and catch US 199 and will head home along the Smith River. What a great day to ride! I went from cool in the morning to cold on the coast and on to hot when I got back into the Rogue Valley. Prepared for them all I was!

So, there it is. I was able to experience a lot of what we teach in the MSF all in one ride! I also learned a bit about myself and my skills. Though I was fairly certain at the onset that I was absolutely ready for the ride, I truly didn’t anticipate encountering a whole class worth of potential risks in one ride! I did come away from it with a whole new perspective and respect for what man and God can throw at you. Being prepared is always the right thing to do. Physically, mentally and spiritually!