5 Riders, 6 Mountain Passes, 335 Miles, and 1 Front Tire....................

[Firehawk068]

This past Sunday was one of those days that I am thankful for two things.............................
I live in Colorado, and I ride an FJ..........................I was also thankful for a few other things on Sunday, but mainly those two..........



I met up with the same guys that I rode with the Sunday before, plus a couple other guys.......................We belong to a motorcycle riding group on "Meetup.com" that consists of a bunch of guys that want to get out and ride with a small group.  Tired of the motorcycle scene on Meetup, where most of the groups are cruisers, are organized by the same group of individuals, and joint-organized so that there is a parade of 30-50 bikes on all the rides, this organizer formed his own group that only sport/sport touring bikes are allowed.
The ride groups are usually small (we had 5 of us this time), and we ride at a faster pace................................Exactly how I like it!

We met up early(6:30am) on the outskirts of Denver right at the foothills, and as soon as everyone showed up we hit the highway headed west!

We basically took the same route as last time on I-70, where we occasionally would jump off the freeway and head down a little twisty stretch of road that parallels next to it.....



We quickly covered the first pass (Loveland) where the Eisenhower Tunnel cuts through at the top of the Continental Divide............





We stopped at a rest-area just outside of Frisco for a quick break, to take some pictures and have a wee............







On our way again down I-70, we cleared "Vail Pass" on our way to the little town of Minturn, where we stopped to have a coffee and a bagel at this great little coffee shop (I don't remember the name of it)





We were off the freeway now.................We headed down highway 24, a nice twisty 2-lane that took us up over "Tennessee Pass" where we crossed the Continental Divide again on our way south...................











The road straightened up a bit, and we were able to stretch the legs of our machines a little as we headed toward the next town.







We made a quick stop for fuel in Leadville, where everyone topped off their tanks...........................



Turning our machines North, we headed up highway 91 and quickly cleared the Continental Divide again at "Fremont Pass"................







We were treated to a gorgeous backdrop when we stopped at Clinton Gulch Reservoir, to take a break and shoot some group photos................







I was in good company, and aside from Danny's Concours-14, we pretty much made up the "1200 Club"...................I of course with my FJ1200, Paul with his VFR 1200, Dave rode his BMW K1200S, and Abbas with his Bandit 1250S..........................Of course they all wanted to ask about the FJ, and take pictures of the FJ..................Everyone always gravitates toward the FJ............One of the things I love about owning this bike............
At no point did I ever feel like I was down on power to these guys either.................The old girl kept up through the twisties with ease!



We continued North, and would meet back up with I-70 at Wheeler Junction................





After a quick blast down the freeway, we exited at Frisco, where we would roll through town, and head South on Highway 9.





We once again crossed the Continental Divide at "Hoosier Pass", and passed through the little town of Alma (The highest incorporated town in North America, 10,578 ft)
on our way to South Park............................................Where all Harley riders are known as "Fags"



We took a break for lunch in South Park. One of the things I like most about half-day tours on the bike, is that I(we) always stop at small little family owned places like this to eat.....................I had the best roast-beef sandwich I have had in a long time, and I probably would have just passed right on by if I was in the car with my family...............



After we rested and chatted for a bit, and filled our bellies, we headed East on highway 285................



We rode across the high plains through the town of Jefferson, and then up and over our final pass (Kenosha Pass)..................When we hit the town of Bailey, we encountered a bunch of weekend traffic heading back to Denver, so we decided to take a short detour down Pine Valley rd...............which lead us to SW Platte River Rd.



This is where we had our buzzkill.......................A deputy saw us make the turn onto SW Platte river rd, and decided that he thought we were going a little too fast down his road...........He pulled us all over, and gave Danny (the lead guy) a slight ass-chewing.................We only got a warning though, and we were all on our way.

We turned up S Foxton Rd, and headed up kennedy Gulch back towards highway 285................





We took it easy through there, and we encountered just a slight sprinkle of rain...................The clouds had chased us all day, but never caught us!

When we reached 285, we pulled off the road and said our "Goodbyes" to each other, as it was just a short stretch of road back to Denver where everyone would peel off and go their separate ways.....................That's when I noticed my front tire..........................I had used up the remaining tread that was left on it with all the twisty roads we did that day..............All of it !
I took it really easy the rest of the way home, and I was glad we rode at an easier pace through the gulch especially since the road was slightly wet in spots from the rain sprinkle............

The FJ ran flawlessly, and was super comfortable the whole day!
I am hesitant to send my Corbin seat to be re-covered, cause it's just so darn comfortable the way it is..................

It was truly an epic day of riding in the mountains.....................We topped 6 mountain passes, crossed the Continental Divide 4 times!, and I covered 335 miles from door to door....................

I'd say i got my money's worth out of the Pirelli Angel...................



I've got the wheel off, and a new Michelin Pilot Road 2 going on tomorrow to match the rear one.......................I hate not being able to ride to work when the weather is so nice!

Cheers everyone! 

[aviationfred]

Awesome photos and ride report. 

Fred

[The General]

Mate...What great Country! Great report too. When ya come from the other side of the globe I think it makes it even more fascinating....lucky the cop didn`t see that tyre ay!  Luv ya work.

[ribbert]

We stopped at a rest-area just outside of Frisco for a quick break, to take some pictures and have a wee............

Just HOW long since the guy on the black bike's LAST "wee stop"?

[yamaha fj rider]

Alan,

Great pictures, Colorado such a awesome place to ride. Cops seemed cool there, Fred and I can bear witness to that. Just flashed there lights at us and didn't stop us. Especially the second encounter.     

Keep the wheels turning.
Kurt 

[Derek Young]

What a great way to spend a Sunday Alan!  Donna and I spent 4 hours in a cave last Sunday.  While that was very cool, we would much rather have tagged along on your ride!  Nice pics as usual Alan.

Derek

[Dan Filetti]

My old stompin' ground!  I had ridden my FJ on every one of those roads and passes when I lived there.  MAN, does it bring back fond memories (and make me jealous!)

Thanks!

Dan

[Firehawk068]

We stopped at a rest-area just outside of Frisco for a quick break, to take some pictures and have a wee............

Just HOW long since the guy on the black bike's LAST "wee stop"?

LOL......................I thought the same thing after I posted that picture 

[Firehawk068]

Just a quick update on the front tire..................................

I'm all ready for the next ride! 

[Dan Filetti]

I'm all ready for the next ride!  

I have that tire (those tires) on my Gixxer.  There is ~2,500 miles on them and they still look brand new.  I was surprised that the nipples in the center of the tread took more than 500 miles to wear away completely! Nice tires in the twisties/ wet.

Dan

[Firehawk068]

I have that tire (those tires) on my Gixxer.  There is ~2,500 miles on them and they still look brand new.  I was surprised that the nipples in the center of the tread took more than 500 miles to wear away completely! Nice tires in the twisties/ wet.
Dan

That's good to know...........................I have had the rear one on the FJ since last summer, and it barely looks like it has any wear at all..........

[FeralRdr]

+1 for the Pilot Road 2's.   

I've currently got about 3,500 miles on a set on the Ninja and am very happy with them.  Though I wouldn't call them looking like new, they certainly are wearing well and still have plenty of meat on them (no obvious flat spots on them yet (front or rear)).  I really wish I could have put a pair on the FJ, but they aren't available in 16" tire sizes.