Tail of the Dragon Ride Report

[Thalas'shaya]

Hey, gang...  I finally got around to writing up my recent ride down Tail of the Dragon and Cherohala Skyway, which I got to ride on my way home from Atlanta.  Bragging Talking about it at the DFW Chapter meeting last week was a good incentive to finish it up.  It also helped that the photos we bought all finally arrived.  Anything showing us on the bike is credited to killboy.com.  Anything showing us off the bikes or a landscape was taken by Rose. 

The Dragon was really a fun ride.  I was apprehensive that it'd be too crowded to be fun, or that it wouldn't live up to the hype, or that I'd be exhausted or just bored by the end of it.  It's long and challenging enough to be fun, but not so long that I wouldn't do it twice in a day.  The traffic was blessedly light and well-behaved and the LEO presence was not overbearing.  We had a blast!

The wordy version is here.

But here are some photos for you visual-learner types:
This was the weirdest ride we saw all day:


Here we are at the base of the tail, high overlooking the dam.  I was arguing with Rose about a technical point dealing with USB connectors in our gadgetry, and I insisted we take this photo so that the state troopers would know where to dredge for my body when I lost.  And I did lose.  She was totally right.


I didn't get EXTREME lean, but I got some decent angle in there...


Valk coming down the trail:


Rose on her Yamaha:


Rose liked the Cherohala Skyway best.  I have to admit, there is something nice about a road with PASSING LANES after the Dragon.    It wasn't all the crowded on either one, really.  It was a Friday, so that probably helped, and it was threatening to rain all day, although it never really did.  That probably helped, too.  Here's the top of Cherohala:


And the end of the trail...  we had a good jawbone session with a fellow who was in the neighborhood for the Honda Hoot.  He'd trailered his bike up from Florida and was duly amazed when we explained that we'd ridden out from Texas.  We gave him directions back to Knoxville and sent him on his way.  I hope he made it in time for supper.


Wistfully,
Thalas'shaya


edit by dm...fixed link...

[RainMaker]

Great pics - you have a gift for the captions as well.  However, cannot connect to the "wordy" version of the trip.  Not sure why not but I'm getting a double "http"

RainMaker

[godfire]

I had to play with it, but I got there....slow day at work.
http://www.thalashouse.blogspot.com/2008/07/road-goes-on-forever.html

[Thalas'shaya]

thanks, godfire!  it's been forever since i had to use BBCode to make clickies.  I guess I need more practice. 

[QOTFU]

That bike is hysterical. What did the sign on it say? I wonder if the fan was plugged into anything???? LOL.... they need a car. Great pics btw.

[fiddle mike]

Great shots and ride report.

I posted a picture of that scooter that I'd ripped off from somewhere on the net.  I was told that it has been seen in Sturgis, the Hoot  and who knows where else and that the owner is a real long rider.

[Thalas'shaya]

the little black fan down the front was mounted to a car battery, or so it appeared at a casual glance.  it's entirely possible he'd wired all his accessories off it.  the fellow who rode it was a venerable and long-toothed gentleman who seemed comfortable answering questions about his ride.  i didn't get to speak to him myself, but he turned up at one of our gas stops so i got to see him from across the pump.

the sign on the side we photographed was the ten commandments, or at least his interpretation of them.  he had another sign on the far side but i don't remember what it said. 

[RainMaker]

I think that Razorback license plate says it all.....