*Ride Report* Hold my beer and watch this...

[rocker59]

...I tried something new and different this weekend.

 

I was invited to participate in a 24-hour endurance rally here in Arkansas put on by some IBA-types.

 

The Nero Corsa got quite a workout...

 

Here's a report of my experience. My first competitive road rally.

 

Exitus Acta Probat, baby!!!

 

Part One:

 

Any of you in this part of the country, or any of you watching the weather channel this weekend, will know how nasty the weather turned out! Well, I was bound and determined to make a decent showing in my 1st 24-hour event. I felt kind of obligated, seeing as this is my home State and I would be riding the only Moto Guzzi, my trusty Nero Corsa...

 

This is what I did: SPANK 2009, Arkansas Edition. (George is known for putting on great rallies!)

 

This was rally HQ: The Arlington Hotel (a historic landmark in Hot Springs, Arkansas.)

 

Rally check-in and tech inspection was set for 5pm Friday. Hotel check-in was 3pm. I had originally planned on departing the house around 11am and making a leisurely 4-hour ride down to Hot Springs. Well, when I awoke on Friday morning and turned on the weather channel and pulled up the radar on my computer, I was shocked at the HUGE severe thunderstrom heading towards NW Arkansas from the Tulsa area. I immediately finished loading my bike and geared up. The sky was greenish, it was very humid, and I could hear thunder off to the West. Luckily, I was going be pointed southeast, so I thought I would be able to stay ahead of the storm. Quickly, I geared up and departed home about 9am.

 

My Route to Hot Springs included highways AR-16, AR-23, AR-309, AR-10, and AR-7. Pure two-lane Arkansas bliss! Click the link to see the map.

 

route to the rally map

 

Rain gear was not required on the ride down to rally HQ, but there was plenty of fog on "The Pig Trail" (highway 23) and on top of Mount Magazine (highway 309). Arrival in Hot Springs was at about 12:15, too early to check in, so I stopped for a bite to eat just down the street.

 

Central Avenue in Hot Springs. Bathhouses on the right. The Arlington straight ahead:

 

Magnolia's is just down the street from The Arlington and served me up a nice patty melt on marbled rye bread:

 

[rocker59]

Part 2:

 

After a bite to eat, I went over to Rally HQ to see what was happening. A few riders had arrived. Our parking was in the Arlington's covered valet parking. Nice touch by the rallymaster! The nice folks at The Arlington Hotel allowed me to check in early...

 

Since I had a couple hours 'til rally check in, I decided to take a shower then go for a walk...

 

Nice room, at a nice group rate!

 

The hotel:

 

 

The Medical Arts Building, tallest building in Arkansas from 1929 until 1960. Great Art Deco building incorporating "forced perspective" to make it look taller and more imposing. It's 16 stories tall...

 

This is what gave the place its name. Hot Springs.

 

At 5pm, we all checked in with the rallymaster. Total of riders turned out to be 22. After taking initial odometer readings, we took off on an odometer check/dinner ride to Cajun Boilers. My Nero Corsa looks quite diminuitive parked amongst the other rally bikes:

 

I enjoyed a really tasty order of grilled shrimp, then after eating the rallymaster went over preliminary items and basic rules for this rally... After that, it was off to the hotel and get some sleep for the big day on Saturday...

[rocker59]

Part 3:

 

The alarm sounded at 0600. I awoke and turned on the TV for some interesting news. The monsoons had set in. Rain was covering Arkansas. There were imbedded severe thunderstorms and tornado watches in effect. Great! This is going to be an interesting day...

 

We were required to be in the riders meeting at 0700. The list of riders included several IBR veterans, a few husband/wife teams, several 24-hour veterans, and quite a few rally n00bs like me...

 

Everyone present and accounted for, the rallymaster began the meeting by handing out rally packs and "flags"... I was a late entry, so I didn't get the rubber chicken that everyone else had to include in thier photos, I took along a stuffed cocker spaniel that the rallymaster had OK'd for me to use...

 

Upon opening the rally packs, the experienced riders recieved quite a shock... There would be a 1-billion point bonus for those riders willing to turn in thier laptops and GPS units!!! Of course, I would recieve this bonus because I'm a luddite Guzzista and don't even own a wrist watch, much less a GPS or mapping software!!! All but two or three riders turned in thier electronics...

 

The rally pack opened, I could see some great bonuses available all over the State! I had anticipated Talimena Drive and the Ozarks, so that's what I went with... Many riders chose stops in Southern Arkansas... At least one rider attempted the time window bonus of photographing the duck walk at the Peabody in Memphis. (they missed it by only a couple minutes).

 

Leg One would end at Mount Nebo with a window of 7pm to 8pm.

 

There would be a total of 76 bonus locations available to riders in two legs. The list is long, so I'll describe the ones I visited during my ride...

 

Leg One of my ride would take me nearly 500 miles in 11 hours. All curvy twisty Arkansas two-lane roads. Most of it in torrential rain. Here's a link to my leg one map:

 

A map of Hot Springs to Mount Nebo the hard way

 

At 0800 we were released from the meeting. Many riders headed to a time window bonus at Crater of Diamonds State Park near Murfreesboro. the stop was open from 9am to 10am...

 

I departed at 0830 and grabbed a 2600 point bonus in at Hot Sprigs Mountain Tower

 

Then, I was a bit delayed by a wrong turn departing Hot Springs and missed the window at Crater of Diamonds by 5 minutes.... Bummer... 16000 points out the window!!!

 

Second stop would be Cossatot State Park for a photo of the sign and 1380 points:

 

This is where the rain started, and except for a short time in the afternoon, the ride would be completely defined by the rain and storms...

[rocker59]

Part 4:

 

Before the rain started, I found a beautiful road to enjoy with the Nero Corsa. From Murfreesboro, I went South on AR-27 a bit, then grabbed AR-26 Westbound. Man! What a nice little highway. Nice pavement, nice curves, lots of cattle ranches. Beautiful! I haven't really ever ridden down in this part of the State, so this was quite a treat!

 

the map to AR-26

 

Next stop would be Mena, in Western Arkansas. Here I would make my first fuel stop, then pick up the 2746 point bonus at the Studebaker dealer. Yes it was wet. I was wearing my old Nelson-Rigg rainsuit over my perforated Joe Rocket leathers:

 

From there it was up to Queen Wilhelmina State Park for a photo of the locomotive on display there for 2906 points:

 

Next, it was westbound on Talimena Drive. For a few moments up there, I thought I would be leaving the rain behind. It was quite beautiful being above the rain... That didn't last long... My 5th bonus stop was the Castle Rock Vista and a photo of the dwarf on the sign there for 5108 points:

 

The sixth bonus on my ride was a funny one. The rallymaster wanted a photo of a painted paw print from the streets of Talihena, Oklahoma...

 

At Talihena, it was raining quite hard. I decided to stop for a few minutes and contemplate the rest of my Leg One plans. Shelter was under the awning at the shool's gym. It felt good to peel out of my rain gear and rest for a few minutes. Maps were reviewed, then it was back into Arkansas for a few more stops...

 

From Talihina, I decided to head up to NW Arkansas. I know it well, and thought I could pick up some good bonuses there. The time I burned resting in Talihina would end up causing me to drop a couple of them enroute, but the plan was coming together. I made fuel stop number two near Alma, then headed into The Hills to bag 4762 points at the dam in Devil's Den State Park...

 

In this view, those of you familiar with the spot can tell just how much rain we had been getting Friday and Saturday here in The Hills. This is LOTS more flow than normal:

 

I took the twisties of AR-74 back to Winslow, then US-71 North a bit. I then hopped on AR-74 and ran this curvy backroad route over to AR-16, then AR-23 to bag the bridge over the Mulberry River at Turner Bend for 1406 points... "The Pig Trail" was especially wet and foggy!!! Intense riding!!!

 

I had realized time was getting short and I couldn't make Eureka Springs or Withrow Springs, so I headed South on AR-23 (retracing some of my route to the rally) to get a photo of the lodge there, gaining abother 5224 points...

 

Yes, it was that foggy up on Mount Magazine!!! And raining, too... Some of the worst weather I've ever seen this time of year. Maybe the worst I've ever ridden...

 

OK... Time running short, I head South on AR-309 for my third fuel stop in Havana, AR at the base of Mount Magazine. Then it's East on AR-10 to Danville, and North on AR-27 to Dardanelle, then AR-155 up onto Mount Nebo to end Leg One and meet the rallymaster who would give us the Leg Two rally packs...

 

The weather was 'orrible... Visibility up on Mount Nebo was not much more than 100-feet. Maybe less. It was raining hard, and it was noticeably colder than it had been down below... I checked in with 15 minutes to spare at about 745pm (and with about 500 miles run), turned in my note to the rallymaster for 10,000 points, then got off the mountain as quickly as possible to plan Leg Two...

 

Many riders chose a McDonald's in Dardanelle for planning Leg Two. I did the same...

[rocker59]

Part 5:

 

By 830pm I was at the McDonalds in Dardanelle with many other riders, planning our attacks on Leg Two.

 

This was a tough decision. There were several riders at the checkpoint who threw in the towl and told the rallymaster they were heading straight for the hotel. Experienced rallyists. They'd had thier fill of the weather. Seeing that had an impact on this rally n00b. As I sat in a booth at the McDonalds, looking at the map, and at the potential bonuses, I contemplated doing the same, though a call to an experienced rallyist friend of mine steeled my resolve to add more points to my total!!! (thanks bg)

 

Choices, choices. There were some big bonuses available for me if I retraced my route into NW Arkansas and down to Talimena Drive. Looking out the window, I could see lightning in that direction. I didn't really have it in me to retrace that route in the dark and stormy night... A weather report told me that severe storms blanketed southern Arkansas. That was out. I didn't know the area that well, and wasn't in the mood to meet any tornadoes face-to-face. I made the decision to focus on central and north central Arkansas, trying to decide what I could get done... A hot shower really sounded good, so getting back to the hotel around 3am factored into my plan. I'd overheard a couple of experienced riders say they were staying out all night. Knowing they'd made some really big bonuses earlier in the day, I knew I was probably out of the hunt for a top finish, but I wanted to make a good showing...

 

Looking at the map, I really wanted to head up into the north of the State, but my fuel range was going to be an issue. I had been refueling at @150 miles and putting in about 4.4 gallons. 35mpg wasn't going to help me tonight. Looking at the map, I knew I'd have trouble grabbing the bonuses without running short on fuel, since many gas station/stores up in The Hills close early and don't leave the pumps on at night...

 

The decision was made to stick to Central Arkansas. Leg two would look something like this:

 

Leg Two map

 

Another rider, Kreis Weigal, decided to ride a few of these together. Good idea, considering they were obscure and it was getting late. We departed for Leg Two at about 10pm...

 

First thing was to top off with fuel in Russellville, then run the I-40 slab down to Morrilton. There were several bonuses between Morrilton and Conway. Kreis kept slowing down to the 65/70mph range and I was getting frustrated, so I decided to pass him and encourage him to pick up the pace. He'd said he would lead for awhile because of his lighting, but I was in a hurry to get after it!!! When we pulled off the interstate at Morrillton, he told me what was going on. He had his CB on listening to the truckers. Apparently the State Troopers were working the stretch between Russellville and Morrillton that night. As he yelled (we both had helmets and earplugs) that he was slowing due to state troopers, we looked across the street and saw two Troopers leaning against thier cars looking at us... Funny moment, as I'm sure they heard Kreis yelling about "cops on the interstate"... We waved at them and rode on...

 

First was a stop at the Bucket List Cafe. Well, the direction said "Birdtown", but it's really nearer to Center Ridge. Of course, we didn't know that in the middle of the rainy night on curvy AR-9. Needless to say, we burned almost an hour and almost 50 miles on this snipe hunt. It turns out that we turned around in the parkinglot of this business, but it was so dark, we couldn't see the small sign we were looking for... Bummer... 3090 points I wouldn't be adding to the tally.

 

We decided to head on down to Petit Jean State Park and get a pic at Petit Jean's grave. No problem, right?, since I grew up in central Arkansas and had been there many times... As we entered Opello, getting ready to turn onto AR-154 and head up the mountain, we passed a local cop approaching us in the oncoming lane. He lit up his bar as he passed, but didn't turn around and come stop us... I was going near the posted limit, so I don't know what was up. We were just glad that we didn't get pulled over...

 

We had another spike in blood pressure when we arrived at the gravesite. It was so foggy up on the mountain, that visibility was literally 20 feet. It was amazing. Even though I knew where I was, finding the grave took us a good ten minutes of searching around with flashlights. There were no night lights and the dark and fog were really intense! Finally we found it and got our pics. Bonus ten for me. A nice 8466 points!!! As you can see, even with a flashlight and a flash on the camera, it was difficult photographing the bonus that night even though it was literally only 20 feet away!!!

 

Bonus eleven was simply a photo of a street sign at Bigelow, good for 2100 points. It's a nondescript little town along the former Rock Island's "Choctaw Route". Not much to see here, but it was on the back way to our next bonus. I'm sure it was here to keep us off the slab. Funny, but the weather sent many riders back to the slab after Petit Jean. I knew the roads, so told Kreis I'd lead us.

 

 

As you can see in the map link, I-40 is on the north side of the river, AR-9 and AR-60 made for a nice little backroads route.

 

Bigelow route map

 

Bonus 12 for me would be the Chinkapin Oak/Pecan at Toad Suck, Arkansas... Links for this are hard to come-by, but Toad Suck used to be a tavern near the location of the present Corps of Engineers lock and dam on the Arkansas River. The tavern also operated a ferry here. The ferry operated until the lock and dam with bridge was completed in 1973. Back in the day, riverboats would stop at the tavern. Usually when water was low on the river. Folks on the river boat would drink at the tavern, "sucking down drinks until they swelled up like toads". Good marketing, maybe, by the old tavern's owner, but the name stuck, outliving both the tavern and the ferry...

 

The Chinkapin Oak/Pecan is a natural abberation. Apparently an acorn and a pecan that had fallen to the ground grew into one big composite tree. A photo here was worth 6874 points... Again, it was dark and rainy... We actually turned around right at the bonus point but didn't see it... We retreated to a closed gas station to get dry and to try and figure out where it was. Luck was with us and a local, curious about what we were doing at 1am in Toad Suck in the rain on motorcycles, led us to the tree so we could claim the bonus! He thought we were nuts! He was a lot of fun, and got a kick out of our story of "a scavenger hunt"...

 

Here's the local dude hamming it up for the cameras

 

From Toad Suck, we headed the few miles into Conway for another fuel stop... The original plan was to bag a theater in Searcy, the Clinton Library in Little Rock, then the railroad museum in Pine Bluff... Well, it was 130am Sunday. It had been raining relentlessly all day. I really wanted that shower and a nap before scoring at 8am. I told Kreis that I was "done" and heading for The Arlington.

 

At that point, Rob Bolger (he had lost all his Leg One points due to missing the 8pm checkpoint by minutes, but was still out there rallying) pulled into the gas station and asked us where the hell "Toad Suck" was located?! I departed, leaving them to contemplate the rest of the morning... Turns out that they headed for Pine Bluff after Rob bagged the Chinkapin Oak/Pecan, but the rain was so bad they turned west towards Hot Springs, arriving only 45 minutes behind me.

 

I decided that it was getting too dangerous to ride the twisties back to Hot Springs. It would have to be slab. I-40 to Little Rock, then I-30 and US-70 back into Hot Springs. I encountered some of the worst rain on this leg. There were places with literally inches of rain on the road, especially US-70 and the "ruts" in the asphalt from the 18-wheelers... The new tires really did thier job, though, keeping me shiny side up and carrying me safely back to my hotel room...

 

Here's the last leg of my trip: last leg map

 

I arrived shortly after 3am. About 18 hours on the road. Approximately 700 miles travelled... Do I look tired in this pic?

 

one more part to follow. Stay tuned...

[rocker59]

Part 6:

 

So, after checking in with my "rally coach" on the phone at around 0315, I stepped into the shower. I turned that water up HOT and literally stood there for 30-minutes. I was tired and sore and that water felt good! Then I set the alarm for 0600 to allow me a nap before heading downstairs for scoring...

 

The alarm awoke me promptly (and waaay too soon) at 0600. It took me a few minutes to talk myself into rolling out of bed. I quickly dressed and headed downstairs to the parking garage. At around 0700 the rallymaster came down and started checking odometers. The new speedo I installed last week was showing 2049. I started the rally at 1354. 695 miles logged. Interestingly, in mapping my route to write this report, the mileage came up to 696. I'm going to check it again, but my odometer also seemed pretty accurate when I checked it against the mile markers on I-540 coming home...

 

At 0800 the riders assembled in the Magnolia Room at The Arlington for scoring.

 

Then it was off to Sunday Brunch in the Venetian Room at the Hotel. This is a great place to eat if you're ever in Hot Springs! After a great meal, the rallymaster announced the results and awarded trophies. To my surprise, there were only three DNFs! As the rallymaster announced them one-by-one, I began getting more excited. He went up the list from last to first through 22 names and my name didn't come up until number five! That's right, your fellow Guzzista scored a top five finish in a 24-hour rally his first time out with a total score of 1,000,072,576 points! I was a little shocked, but very happy I had stayed out for those last three bonuses!!!

 

The winner, Ken Meese, stayed out until 0745 and accumlated 1,000,130,468 points!!! He had a fuel cell and had decided to bag several bonuses in North Arkansas overnight where fuel was scarce, then get a sunrise photo bonus at Mount Nebo before jamming back to rally HQ. He had a great ride! Looking at the other winners, I was glad I called it when I did. The four other bonuses I'd planned on getting before heading in were only worth 16,530 points and would've only moved me into 4th position... Of course, if I'd gotten those AND the first bonus at Crater of Diamonds, I would've made 3rd... But that's all "shoulda, woulda, coulda"... I'm quite happy with my performance and with the performance of my V11 LeMans Nero Corsa. I made mistakes and wasted time at some stops (partly due to the weather and its difficulties), but I learned a lot! I look forward to trying this again sometime soon. Maybe try a couple 12-hour events... We'll see...

 

Here's the score sheet:

 

1-Ken Meese 1000130468

2-Tom & Rosie Sperry 1000105759

3-Eric Vaillancourt 1000100081

4-Mike Mehaffy 1000084596

*5-Mike Taylor 1000072576

6-Dennis Powell 1000068782

7-Doug Steeb 1000061781

8-Mike Gragg 1000056654

9-Mike & Betty Ligons 1000048362

10-Allen Dye 1000045738

11-David Morgan & Jan Cote 1000023746

12-Darrin Hicks 71628

13-Kreis Weigal 60772

14-Scott Harrison 59374

15-Michael Snodgrass 50990

16-Brian Collins 49570

17-Al Landry 45596

18-Heidi Still 43396

19-Robert Bolger 26406

20- Jim Mulcahy 0

 

Aaron & Rene Miller DNF

Winston Oxley DNF

Tony Hudson DNF

 

Afterwards, I loaded up and headed for home, taking AR-7 to Russellville, then because of lingering rain and fog, hit the slab the rest of the way home. I sure was tired! (and a little sore) And it sure felt good to get back home!

 

homeward route map

 

Some final notes:

 

The old Nelson-Rigg 2pc rainsuit that I got ten years ago held up well, keeping me dry all day, believe it or not!!!

 

The Sidi OnRoad Sympatex boots that I've worn on every ride for the past five years kept my feet dry all day long!!!

 

The Alpinestars "waterproof" gloves that I bought for this trip were "waterproof" for only a few hours. I should've bought two or three pair! Shopping for something to keep my hands dry longer is a new priority. If it had been colder than what it was on this ride, low- to mid-50s, I'd have had to throw in the towel much sooner...

 

I need a good tankbag with a good map pocket. Taping maps to the tank in plastic sleeves didn't really work out all that well, although I thought it would be a stroke of frugal Guzzista genius... I think I'm going to get one of these with the optional large map pocket: Daypack II

 

A fuel cell would be great. I could've gotten a lot more done on this ride with a 300 mile range! I've been thinking of one of these: Tourtank

 

Of course, for rallies that allow them, a GPS is going to be a "must-have" item... (a good watch, too, probably )

 

The Z6/ME880 tire combo started off feeling a bit strange, but by the time I got back home I was liking them! They really push water out of the way!!! I was quite impressed and also glad that I'd put on fresh rubber for this ride. I'd have had to call it much sooner, if not for the fresh rubber!

 

Well, that's all I can think of right now, except it would sure be nice if someone would come disassemble my bike and give it a thorough cleaning for me!!! 695 miles of wet roads have left it with quite a coating of road grime!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for sticking around for this looong ride report...

 

;D

[doug m]

Sounds like quite the adventure! Congratulations on a good finish....you should be proud of the Guzzi. Nero's rule. Best regards, Doug.

[Orson]

Thanks for the write up!

 

I enjoyed it

[tikkanen]

Great road trip, Rocker!

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

Søren

[commando tod]

Well done, Excellent finishing result and an equally excellent report.