Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Don Wood Tested. Don Wood Approved.

On my return from Laconia, NH. Bikeweek 2011 I had the time to do some mountain riding. I decided I would ride my motorSickle threw the Adirondacks and the Catskills of NY. Other than rain, I had a great ride threw an area that I had only traveled in a Freightliner truck years ago. It was a wonderful and very mountainous area. I made my camp at the end of the day close to the NY, PA. state line and I pulled out my map. I decided to break my own rule and travel a bit on the interstate. My reason was to get out of the populated area I found myself in. I pulled off the interstate in Strasburg, Va. and I found state highway 55. and this is where my journey begins. Within 15 miles of the interstate I found myself on a two lane mountain road with 9% grades and corners that were labeled at 15 and 20 mph. Switch backs and hairpins were the recipe for the rest of my day. There were more than a few times that I had to slow down, not that the bike couldn't handle it. It was more for a chance to get my mind to catch up. Do twisties for 30 minutes straight and know this. Your mind can get to the point of overload and the only thing you can do is slow down.
This road led me into The George Washington National Forrest. Not a house or store for miles after miles. The topography of this area was set back when 2 large land masses collided and they called the area Pangaea. Unlike the spikes and peaks of the Rockies, this area is dominated by a heaving of the earth that ended with ridge lines all of the same heights. This area is also known as The Allegheny Mountains which is the northern section of the Appalachian Mountains. Highway 55 led me into the area known as The Seneca Rocks National Rec. area.

Seneca Trail

From West Virginia (WV) Cyclopedia

The Seneca Trail, or Warrior's Path, was the Native American highway from upper New York into deep within Georgia. In West Virginia, it followed, in general, the Alleghenies. From the South Branch of the Potomac, at Seneca Rock, it crossed the Allegheny Mountains near the headwaters of the Cheat River, then, by way of Cheat Mountain and Shavers Fork of the Cheat, it led almost direct to Elkins. From there it continued westward, with a branch to the south.

When the King of England in 1763 issued a proclamation forbidding further settlement beyond the mountains and demanding the return of settlers who had already crossed the Alleghenies, a line was established roughly following the Seneca Trail. That line formed the boundary of "the frontier" during the French and Indian War. The highway comes into Tucker County near the famed Fairfax Stone (http://www.wvexp.com/index.php/Fairfax_Stone), a boundary between West Virginia and Maryland.
When I came out of the Seneca Area, after another series of twisties I entered The Monongahela National Forrest. A beautiful undisturbed  area That was just begging for me to push my moterSickle to the edge of its abilities.  I have at times rode on the razors edge but I am only 6 months into recovery from the last crash so I kept the throttle on the safe side of that razor. I'll tell ya. I have ridden all over and I was having a ball. The roads were well maintained and well marked. All the corners were posted with a recommended speed limit and milage signs to the next town were posted often enough to keep me from fretting about my gas situation.

Shortly after exiting the Forrest I came down a steep grade as I looked at the landscape of the city of Elkins, WV. A small town of around 8,000 people. This town is big enough to have some good food stops and services if needed. Thankfully I needed nothing from this town except for 30 minutes in a car wash bay as I waited for a heavy rain to pass. I continued south west along the valley floor with mountain ridges to my left and to my right. Threw a couple of smaller towns in the valley and once again I was twisting up the side of a mountain and back into the National Forrest. My road ended for the day in the small town of Summersville, WV.  at The Tractor Bar listening to Jasmine Cains Band. ( She was quite surprised to see me.)
The total route from Strasburg to Summersville was 240 miles. I took a total of 5 hrs to get to my destination. I was packed for all weather conditions and I was thankful for how I packed. You can plan on hitting all forms of weather from hot and cold to wet. I'm sure that there are times in winter months that this road is completely closed to all human traffic.
In closing I will say this... Highway 55 through Virginia and West Virginia is in my top 5 roads in the US. Time of year could be a deal breaker on this road. Plan on doing this ride alone. It doesn't matter if you are in a group of 50, you will need to be alone on this one. No formation riding on this road.

State highway 55 through VA. and W.V. is DON WOOD TESTED. DON WOOD APPROVED.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Checking to see if this is working.

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Don Wood Tested, Don Wood Approved.

I will be starting a new online business idea today. Here is the premise of my idea. I will be reviewing and testing all manner of products, places and people that would interest the MotorSickle community... for example. lets say I get a new tent from a manufacture. I will test it for its pro's and con's. I will report to you my findings and hopefully, you will be able to order that product from this blog. I plan on concentrating on "new to market" items. Camera's, camping gear, riding apparel and other such items. I will also be writing about places and things that I find on the road. That might include a restaurant or a specific highway.

If you have any idea's of a product or location that I should check into please let me know. PEACE&GREASE
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Monday, June 13, 2011

Laconia. 2011

Don Wood here. Coming to you loud and proud from Cycle  Source Magazines, mobile World Headquarters in Laconia, NH. for the 88th Annual Bikeweek. Much to see here in the New England area. I will be reporting back from time to time just to fill yall in on whats going on. There will be video posts also on Rally tv.com. Go check it out.  The sun just came out. First time in 3 days. I'm goin riding.

PEACE&GREASE

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Tennessee ticks and the US Government

A couple of days ago I was working in the back yard.. OK. Shit head. I'll rephrase... I was walking across the back yard to change the filter on the pool. This is a thing that I do quite often. This time though was different. As I walked into the house I had a small sharp pain close to my belly button... Once again, I found myself before my wife with my T-shirt up around my forehead... Honey...??? Yep. Sure as the world I had a Tick attached about an inch from my belly button.. My first thought was, " well, I believe you have bitten off more than you can chew." As I grabbed the little blood sucker and started to pull I realized,, " Hey, this fucker's got a pretty good grip". Then I started thinking about all the wisdom I have been given over the years about Ticks. It's amazing the volume of information that has been given without even a little coke-sing. as I went to the bathroom to get the petroleum jelly and the tweezers..." ""and the thought crossed my mind""".... This little fucker is just like our government... Of no consequence in my life and then without any prompting on my part, this insect has entered my life and now I must deal with it... Understand this... How I deal with this could have a profound effect on my life and by extension, my families life.

I'm not by any means a conspiracy theorist but there is a lot going on in our government that can not be simply explained. I do know this,,, our country can not sustain the path that it is on and if I need to I will cover my government with petroleum jelly until it can't breath and pulls its head out of my flesh.. Then I will pinch it's little head, toss it aside and drive on with what benefits my family, my friends and me.

by the way.... "Seven" dust from the garden store or Sulphur from the farm store sprinkled around the yard will rid the area of just about all the bugs... Chickens do a good job, too.