Day Four: Thursday, Aug. 16th, 2001
After a great night's sleep, I am up and about around 8:30am. First order of business is to get a set of tires mounted on the VFR. It appears to be another beautiful day. Already there are bikes parked down by the store and I have been hearing bikes come and go up into the Gap. Some riders are just a little more die-hard than me, geez, riding out here so early? I walk around for a quick look and check the Tree of Shame to see what has accumulated in the last year. Pic 1 / Pic 2. Apparently, it has been a good year for the tree hehe.
When I get down to the store to find Mike and get the tires changed, I notice a sign on the front door regarding dynos. Hmmmm... That could be fun! I find Mike and tell him that before swapping tires, I'd like to do a full dyno run on the bike. "No sweat, it'll be fun!" So up to the shop I go with the bike.
Mike gets the bike up on the dyno and we strap it down good and tight. He gets out all the computer stuff and hooks everything together. He fires up the bike and lets the engine get warmed. I'm kind of anxious to find out what the bike is capable of doing. A few minutes later, we find out. Mike starts off doing 4th gear roll ons, then he switches to a full throttle run through all six gears. He makes several runs of each type to get a good average. The computer saves each run and then Mike prints hard copies for me to take home. Keep in mind that my bike has about 9500 miles on it at this point with the original air filter and spark plugs and we are up in the mountains. Anyway, at the rear wheel I got 94.9 HP at 10,700 RPM and 53.3 ft-lbs at 8600 RPM. Pretty close to specs for the '01 VFR. It would have been fun to have the 98 VFR tested as I have just put a full Two Brothers exhaust system and a K&N air filter on it.
I am amazed at how loud the VFR is when Mike is romping on the gas and blipping through the gears. I have never stood near the bike when it is running under a hard load. When riding, I typically wear ear plugs. I was not expecting the noise from the dyno machine itself. The sound of the drum spinning up is similar to the sound of a turbine engine whinning at high RPM's. This is great fun, I can see how it would be very addicting hehe.
After the dyno run, Mike gets to work changing out the tires. I intend to take the bike up and back on the Gap to break in the tires. It will be a nice slow relaxing ride. It takes very little time to change the tires and then I am ready to roll. I head back to the store with Mike to pay for everything. Then I get on my riding gear and head out. I can't be real specific about the price I pay because I am sworn to secrecy. Let's just say it is a sweet deal, darn near mail order prices.
I think that the Gap is more of a mental thing than really a serious road. That is not to say that it is not a very technical and dangerous road. But it seems that many people make it out to be more than it really is. I think the most dangerous thing about it is the nutcases racing along like they are on a track, cutting over yellow lines and passing in blind corners. The road itself is quite a relaxing and fun ride.
I just take my time, slowly getting over a little farther on the tires in each curve to scrub the rubber a bit more. Before long I have some guys behind me and I just wave them past so they can get back to racing. About midway through, I stop for a quick picture of the road at a spot that gives a good idea of the curviness of the road Pic 1 / Pic 2. Just about every curve has skid marks going in, some that make it and some that leave the road. A nice reminder.
When I reach the scenic overlook at the end, I pull over and chat with a few other bikers. We do the typical, "where you from? how far? how many days!? are you nuts?!" Then it is picture time and I watch as the guys take turns heading back into the gap and winding out their bikes as they pull away from the overlook. Then I bring up the rear.
By the time I get back to the Crossroads, there are bikes everywhere. It is nearing noon. I had hoped to meet up with Richard and Lisa White and Jim Huber, all friends from Houston that are supposed to be coming through here this morning on their way to the Pisgah Inn for the rallye. So I hang out for a while and visit with the folks hanging out in front of the store. Finally around 2:00pm I decide to check out and make my way toward the Inn and call it a day.
When leaving the Gap, there are two ways to head South. Taking US 129 will bring you to Robbinsville. Taking Hwy 28 brings you down off the mountain alongside the Little Tennessee River. This is the route I take. As I weave in and around the mountain side, I catch the glinting of the sun off the surface of the water in the corners of my eyes. There is no traffic and I am left alone again to simply focus on the road. It never ceases to amaze me how many awesome roads there are in North Carolina and how well maintained they seem to be.
Soon I am down along the banks of the river, following it's graceful bends between the surrounding mountains. The road is level and lazily winds its' way through the woods. I eventually cross a bridge and the road takes me up another mountain side away from the river and deep into the woods. The forest is lush and damp. The recent rains in the weeks before my arrival have caused to the humidity to be higher than I remember from my previous trip to this area. I slip into my riding trance and time fades into the background. Before I know it, I encounter the construction zone that runs the last few miles of Hwy 28 before hitting US 19.
My plan is to run up 19 to Cherokee and the start of the Blue Ridge Parkway. It seems counter to normal thought to think that a four lane highway could be much fun. However, US 19 is a rolling curving strip of beautiful smooth asphalt that winds its way through the Smokey Mountains. The nice thing about this area is the lack of commercial development and the abundance of thousands of acres of wild forests. The sun is now high in the sky but the temperature is a nice cool 82 deg. F. As much as I enjoy riding alone, I can't help but wish that all of my riding friends were here to enjoy this with me.
It is not long before I reach the exit for old US 19 to Cherokee. The last time I was out here and we rode this stretch of road, the tourist traffic was horrendous. Of course that was a Saturday, Today the traffic is heavier than I would like, but nothing too bad. Soon the road is following the path of yet another of the many rivers in the area. I notice the abundance of the weed, Kudzoo, draped over the sides of cliffs and completely covering large area of the woods. It has small blossoms on the leaves yielding a subtle sweet aroma that floats in the air. Some times it is barely noticeable and others it is so strong as to be overwhelming. In places the covering is so thick it appears to be like a carpeting, causing the landscape to take on an otherworldly look.
Old Us 19 dumps out into Cherokee. I can tell I am getting closer to town by the increasing presence of cheap Indian tourist trinket booths along the sides of the road. Then come the signs for the Casinos, Big Chief Business number one. And then there is the traffic. As quickly as possible I work my way through town. It is at least an hour or more from the start of the Parkway to the Pisgah Inn, even at a brisk pace. So I decide to stop for a quick Snicker snack, drink and a nature break before heading out into the middle of nowhere. The I head North out of town on US 441 a few miles to the start of the Parkway.
The Parkway immediately starts climbing up into the mountains. I quickly leave behind the traffic and any thoughts of Cherokee. Again, there is nothing but lush forests in every direction for as far as I can see. How awesome it would be to live in this area so that I could ride these roads whenever the mood hit me! The temperature is already dropping into the low seventies. The Joe Rocket Phoenix jacket is getting a tad on the cold side now, but I have already settled into a groove and don't want to stop. Once again, I find my self on the Parkway with a newly scrubbed in set of tires on my bike. The handling is great, even with the weight of the GIVI luggage. It is starting to get a bit overcast and the temperature is dropping even further. How I am starting to wish this bike had heated hand grips like my 98 VFR. But it is only a little further.
Soon I reach the parking lot of the Pisgah Inn. Already there are quite a few bikes parked together in the lot. As I pull in, I see familiar faces from the rally last year. I feel a sense of excitement about the weekend building already. This is going to be fun. I check in and get the bike unloaded so I can get back out to the parking lot and start tire kicking with the rest of the folks. It does not take long to find Eric Sheley, he is a bit conspicuous.
It is not long before Jim Huber comes rolling into the parking lot on his sweet red 2001 Suzuki SV650 S, an ear to ear grin splitting his face in half. I walk over to greet him and notice that his tires are balled up at the edges of the tread and are hot to the touch. Apparently, he had quite the exciting ride on the Parkway as well hehe. While we are talking, Richard and Lisa pull in as well. It is a little after 5:00pm and it is quite chilly. The Inn is located on the mountain ridge and is exposed to some pretty stiff crosswinds.
Before long everyone's stomach turns their attention to dinner plans. The nice thing about staying here at the Inn is that it has a very nice restaurant on site. It sits perched on the edge of the ridge, massive floor to ceiling windows lining two of its walls, giving a splendid view of the valley below. Dinner is great. Afterwards we migrate back out to the parking lot to down a few beers and greet those who are still trickling in from their long rides.
Everyone is tired and it has been a long day for most. Somehow, I managed to miss everyone that made it over to the Gap during the day. I'm not sure how I could have missed them unless they just happened to come through right as I was in my room for a moment or while getting the tires installed. Oh well, we'll all get to ride together tomorrow. Around 10:30-11:00pm, Jim and I head back to our room to call it a day. I give Beth a call to let her know I'm at the Inn and everything is cool. Then it is off to bed, ear plugs in my ears, rumor has it Jim snores pretty loud ;-)