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Kennedy Meadows July 4th W/E Report
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[QUOTE="GETMETOCA, post: 1077163, member: 28996"] Great to see Placelast start us off with the ride reports as I always enjoy his recaps. Plus, I’m a bit partial to placelast because he knew what “membrillo” was thanks to his wife’s cultural gravitations. :cool: My favorite Australian in the whole wide world (Quick Mick) has moved back to California within the past week or so, and luckily for me, he was keen to come along on the excursion sensing I was in need of some trail support, bike and attitude adjustments, and a longing for the good old days when we used to ride in a larger group of friends on a very regular basis. It’s good to have you back! Since he arrived in the US dirtbike-less, I had lent my KTM400 to Mick the previous week so that he could enjoy some seat time up in the wilderness of Oregon with some of his friends. He returned the bike to me with new Maxxis front and rear tires (He informed me that he’d “rode the knobblies” off the tires up in Oregon), new shroud graphics, and a host of other nice things like a pull strap on the seat for wrassling the bike off hillsides, and a lower subframe (I had “mentioned” I was looking to have the work done…and voila!) Mick has always been generous to his friends. The plan was to leave Modesto around noon on Friday and arrive at KM by 7 PM. I had whipped up a batch of Chile Verde and a peach cobbler to go with the other groceries I’d packed. I was excited with the prospect of setting up a camp kitchen with Mr. Luckey and he and I had chatted on the phone at least six times prior to our departures to coordinate the cooking agenda, firepower, and menus. Mick and I left a little later than planned and spent the next 7-8 hours catching up and talking about the old times, future plans, big ideas and a host of other topics. The miles sped by and once in the burg of Mojave, I pointed to a gas station hoping to get some bags of ice and some beef jerky. We pulled off, got what we needed then hit the road. Turns out we should have turned onto 395, but I pointed us in the wrong direction and about 20 miles later started seeing signs for Barstow and Las Vegas. One small detour later, and we were back on the right road toward our destination of Kennedy Meadows. It was dark by the time we hauled up 9 Mile Road and I was thankful not to have to see the cliff drop on the left. We finally find Fish Camp and Fish Camp overflow but do not see Mr. Luckey or anyone else we know. We pull up to some amicable campfire dwellers and ask if they’ve seen anyone from “DRN” A short while later, we find The Eel and then we find out from some other campers that there’s a sign on the entry post that says “DRN – TROY” Thumbs and Julie along with Mrs. MXBUNDY and one of the kids are also found nearby searching for the main party. Soon enough, we pull into Troy Overflow and find the main DRN campsites that Mr. Luckey has roped off for us. Near the glow of the campfire, we see old friends Placelast, Kelsorat, Mr. Luckey, and Chris (DirtJunkie)…soon enough the campfire is joined by the Bundy’s, Thumbs and Julie, The Eel. I get The Captain out and hone my bartending skills for anyone who might have a little captain in ‘em (raising right knee now ;) ). Sure enough, it’s 2:30 am and time to hit the sleeping bag. I am looking forward to working on skill drills with Mick and maybe some trail time the following morning. Saturday morning, Nikita (Mr. Luckey’s Malamute) wakes me up with licks to the face. I smell coffee and look outside the tent to see Mr. Luckey already has some coffee brewing so I start another pot knowing my own propensity for the caffeinated nectar. None of it goes to waste! A small group of us dine on crispy bacon and fried eggs. Mr. Lucky and I have both brought the obligatory salsa selections to go with, his green, mine red. Mr. Luckey lends Mick his KTM SX400 and we head out to a flat road to work on drills. My confidence and skill levels need a boost and Mick has me working on clutch control, rear brakes, and turns for about an hour. We head up Mahogany trail and put the skills to use over again a few more times. We’re reviewing the lessons on the side of the trail when our camp mates, placelast, The Eel, and Kelsorat join us from the opposite direction. We chat for a bit, make room for them on the trail to get by. The loose edge of the trail gives way under placelast’s rear tire and we have fun watching placelast toss his bike and take the tumble himself rather than risk any damage to his new KTM350. Good save! Back at camp, another ride is organized for the riders looking for some fast trail action. I opt to go for a fun trail ride with MrsMXBUNDY, her two daughters Delaney and Brinna and her neice and nephew. I will lead and Mrs. Bundy will sweep. We head out of Troy and over to the fun connector trail that takes us over to Fish Camp. Keeping the four children between us was at times challenging as their skill levels were all at different rates, but the experienced MrsMXBundy did a fantastic job of sweeping and communicating, and soon enough, the five of us were in sync with the ebb and flow of a small group trail ride meandering through the forest. Nine very fun miles later, I was rewarded back at camp with a rousing “Thank You Natalie!!!” loads of smiles, and small palms of high fives for leading the group on the ride. (Priceless!). After everyone returned to camp, Kelsorat is feeling some pain after a bout with a tree so I fixed him up with The Captain. This must have done the trick because a while later, he had a smile on his face and wandered into my camp kitchen rattling the ice cubes in his cup seeking just one more. (Yes! I have converted another) Throughout the course of the day, Kav, Scar Tissue (Tim), 426 Pilot and family, Big Schafft and family, 2Strok4Fun and family have also arrived at the DRN Campground. I make the rounds getting to know the new people who I have not met before. Turns out 426Pilot’s wife and I share the same name! Sunday morning starts out similarly to the day before (good morning licks from Nikita, hot camp coffee, eggs and bacon). Today, a small group (Bundy, DirtJunkie, Mick, Mr. Luckey, and myself) will do some fun trails. Mr. Luckey and Mick will lead/sweep me as I am in need of some herding/shuttling at times. It’s on this one 75-yard rocky uphill section strewn with large rocks and roots that I was able to finally use my newly found clutch control skills. It was this very section two years prior that kicked my butt and I think it was Mr. Luckey or Farmer John who had to eventually finish the job and ride my bike up for me. It was an incredibly empowering feeling to get up the rocky trail on my own and also have a cheering section waiting for me at the top upon completion. The day was shadowed by a possibly broken foot for Chris (Dirtjunkie) and a nauseating headache for MXBundy. Dirtjunkie’s foot was later swollen and bruised all the way across the top of the foot to the ankle. A head on near miss between Mick and some other fast guy out on the trails resulted in a severely dented header pipe on Thumb’s KTM200, but no injuries, thank goodness. The evening’s camp potluck starred Kav’s incredible deep fried turkey, some killer MXBundy Steaks, Corn on the cob, salads, 2Stroke4Fun’s smoked salmon planks with capers and onions, Mr. Luckey’s Sausage and Peppers, and some wonderful roasted vegetables brought by 426Pilot’s wife. Did I miss anything? Eddie and I were low on propane for the gas lantern, so I pulled out my trusty NiteRider HID helmet light, previously used for 24 hour races, but in this case, duct taped to the top of the easy-up, it made tremendously good camp lighting. :boss: I remember looking around at all the familiar faces and friends deep in conversations, laughing, eating, drinking, and having one hell of a good time. This is what it’s all about for me, the friendship, the camaraderie and the good times. :ride: The Captain and the Two-Buck Chuck flowed like hot lava and by the end of the evening (which lasted until sunrise for some….) included some other creative concoctions like Mountain Dew and Midori. The next morning was slow to start as the night had been long, and ultimately no one wanted to start the task of pulling down tents and the camp kitchen or to start saying our goodbye’s. But start we did, and eventually the Kennedy Meadows campground was returned to it’s pristine state. Mick and I said our farewells and headed down the hill around 1:30 PM intent on finding a Starbucks by the time we hit Bakersfield. Thanks to everyone for a tremendous time. Placelast, your impending move to another state will create a void, so we are fully expecting you to return now and then! Best of luck to you! [/QUOTE]
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Kennedy Meadows July 4th W/E Report
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