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Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2019 11:53 am
by Firebolter
ImageJacob by WILLIAM HUGHES, on Flickr

ImageSand Hill by WILLIAM HUGHES, on Flickr

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2019 4:21 pm
by BamBam
Nice looking trail, relatively devoid of roots and rocks!!! :eats:

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:44 pm
by Bucho


Trying to figure out how to post pics from imgur. Struggling a little...

This was a great trip. Janis and I traveled in the VanOWar. This is at our camp on second night, Long Lake. It was great. We had the entire place to ourselves.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:48 pm
by Bucho



It was amazing how much public land there is in Michigan. Once you get an hour past Detroit its nice country. Snowmobiles, OHVs, and dirtbike ONLY trails are everywhere!

We rode four days and were on single track 98% of the time. And there was plenty more that we never had a chance to ride.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:56 pm
by Bucho

Pat/Wingfixer

The trails were FAST! I was a little out of my comfort zone for most of the week. Third gear became my "normal" riding gear and faster sections I'd run 4th a lot. Even clicked it up into 5th in a spot or two. Most of the guys were running faster than I was. Especially when young Jacob got on SkinnyJ's Yami 450 he was up to ludicrous speed w/ the rest of them right behind.
But it was fun to ride something different for the week. Even if I came to hate the whooped out sections.


SkinnyJ



Bill/Firebolter

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:59 pm
by Bucho

This is Bill right after he flipped his bike going up a steep rutted out section, (most of us did the much easier go around).



Here is J. The trail often turned into these little "gulleys". They could get deep and narrow and would rip your feet off the pegs if you weren't careful.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 5:03 pm
by Bucho


A few spots went through logging areas. They were often more open and this led to even faster speeds...



I didn't participate in late night drinking activities. I generally went back to my van early to read before bed. I'm not sure what the guys did for the rest of the night but this seemed to be their drink of choice.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 5:08 pm
by Bucho
Here is our valiant leader on the trail. All must hail him as the greatest planner of epic riding quests.







Here is Janis, our crazy Latvian brother. We were very glad to have him on this trip since he is going back to his home country.
We hope to ride again in the future. A northern European DAMN riding trip may to be in order to go visit.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 5:13 pm
by Bucho
We camped at Chandler Hill campground our last three nights. It was funny that this was the nicest place by far we camped. It was real civilization, you could get a shower, wash clothes, buy ice... Yet for some reason we had decent cell service everywhere except at our campsite. So we would have to walk/ride up this nearby hill to be able to make a phonecall to check in w/ family. I found this strange sign at the top. The campground people certainly had a sense of humor. I was afraid to ask for an explanation.





I think this was from last day of riding. Honestly didn't seem too bad while we were riding, but there were a few dusty spots.

Re: SJ Michigan Trip 20-25 July 2019

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 8:20 pm
by juddspaintballs
I had a great time. Thank you, Skinny J, for putting together such a great trip. I'm glad I went. The trails were amazing, your planning was precise, and I think everyone had a great time.

My buddy Jason told me that he smacked a low limb on Tuesday and actually wound up with a concussion. He's doing alright, but he said he was hurting pretty good by the end of Wednesday. He posted some of his pictures here:
https://jasonmiddleton.smugmug.com/DAMN ... /n-MNHQGG/


I got my pinky looked at yesterday. It is officially *not* broken (again). This surprises me given the size it swelled up to and the colors it turned. I moved it around a good bit today and it appears to still be working. I'm still limping around on the knee, but it's mostly just sore and stiff. I don't think I actually damaged anything there. Relatively minor injuries considering I went over the bars the bike and it landed on top of me.


Here's a few pictures I took:

A couple hours away from our first campsite, this really cool storm rolled in over us:
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Day 1 at camp:
Image

Image


Phil and Janis's Beta shifter repair:

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