February 2006

— Dale presents a copy of Journeys to Governor Mark Warner at the public signing of Exec. Order 104 creating the Governor’s Motorcycle Advisory Council.  —

 

There’s No News Like New News

100% manufactured in the US of A, baby.  Spelling and grammatical errors are our way keeping your attention. Thank you for caring. Trademarked names are used for identification purposes only. Content of this newsletter is measured by weight, not volume.

 

Unless noted, all text and images on this page are Copyright 2006 by Dale Coyner.  No one else would dare claim it.

Dale’s 2006 Calendar

 

I hope we’ll get a chance to meet some time this year. I have a number of events scheduled where I’ll be doing a Journeys book presentation and/or book signing. If you find yourself nearby one of these events, please stop by and say “Hello.”

 

Need a speaker for an upcoming rally or club event? Drop me a line!

 

Sat., March 18 -- Unionville Kawasaki Suzuki Open House, Unionville, VA (www.villagefeed.com)

 

Sat., April 15 -- Mortons BMW Open House, Fredericksburg, VA (www.mortonsbmw.com)

 

May 19 thru 22 -- Backroads Magazine Spring Break Ride – Shepherdstown, WV to Natural Bridge, VA (www.backroadsusa.com)

 

June 24 and 25 -- Blue Grass Camp Night to benefit the Blue Grass Book Bank, Blue Grass, VA (www.bluegrassbookbank.org)

 

July 21 thru 23 -- Carlisle Summer Bike Fest, Carlisle, PA (www.carsatcarlisle.com)

 

October 5 thru 8 -- GWRRA VA State “Rally in the Valley”, Salem, VA

 

Greetings Folks,

 

There’s a lot of stuff happening around Appalachian Highways. Thought I had best send you an update before February turns into May!

 

Anyone interested in an Appalachian Highways group ride later this year? E-mail editor@appalachianhighways.com if you’re up for a weekend of back road touring through the Appalachians that would also benefit the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

 

Be sure to check out the calendar and pay me a visit this year. I’ll be adding new dates as plans firm up.

 

Many Happy Journeys!

New book:  I just put the wraps on a new book about motorcycle touring that Whitehorse Press will publish in the Summer/Fall timeframe this year. Unlike other touring books that highlight around-the-world riding, this book (title TBD) will focus on North American touring, that is, the type of touring that most of us do on a regular basis. Thanks to the many riders who responded to my request for photos. I think your pictures add a lot of interest and variety to the book..

 

New council: I mentioned a while back that Virginia was considering the creation of a governor’s council on motorcycling. I’m please to report that in mid-December, Governor Mark Warner did exactly that, signing Executive Order #104 creating the Governor’s Motorcycle Advisory Council (on the back of my Gold Wing). The council is headed by Robert Crouch, former counsel to Gov. Warner and now a member of the Kaine cabinet. Gov. Kaine has already indicated he will continue to support the work of the council. I’m honored to be a part of the group and will keep you up to date on the council’s activities and accomplishments.

 

www.motorcycleva.com

 

2007 WV Calendar: David Hager of Omar, West Virginia contacted me about a calendar he’s publishing that features scenes from the Mountain State. If you’re a West Virginia fan (and I know many riders are), you’ll recognize and enjoy many of these scenes. You can order a copy of the calendar for just $12, including shipping. That’s just 3 cents a day to beautify a two square foot section of your home.

 

www.postcardheaven.com/appalachianhighways

 

GWRRA VA: Thanks to Keith and Carol Lindgren, Virginia District coordinators for the Gold Wing Road Riders Association who invited me to present at their “Wingless Weekend” state rally a couple weeks back. I met a lot of great folks who enjoy riding and also had the opportunity to try out a new booth display. If you participate in a motorcycle club and would like to have me come talk about the Journeys book at a club meeting or regional rally, drop me a line.

Registration opened for motorcycle training classes in Virginia in early December and a few week later slots were filled for months in advance.  Training here begins in February in some parts of the state, so that means in just a few weeks, hundreds of new, enthusiastic and inexperienced riders will be joining us not just in Virginia but throughout Appalachian Highways territory.

 

It happens that the recent e-mail I got from Janet Brock, a reader from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, was especially timely. Janet, a new rider herself, asked me about rating routes in the Appalachians so new riders could choose fun routes that weren’t too technical. That’s a good idea and it got me to thinking about the ways I would adjust my touring plan if I were bringing along riders with less experience. Here are a few ideas that came to mind.

 

1) Plan routes with reasonable lengths and multiple stops. New riders don’t have the same saddle stamina as veteran riders, so plan to cover fewer miles per day. A 150 mile route might be a long day for a new rider, especially if they don’t have all the right gear or haven’t made changes to their bike for increased comfort. I would throw in a planned stop every 90 minutes to two hours to give them a chance to stretch or take a comfort break. This applies to new co-riders, too.

 

2) Choose roads that new riders can enjoy at a reasonable pace without having to concentrate exclusively on the road. Any rider who has completed a training course should be able to handle most roads, but routes with switchbacks and off-camber curves require them to slow down and focus so much on technique they can’t enjoy the ride. You can readily identify roads that are better suited for beginning riders by looking at a topographical map.  Here’s an example.

 

The eastern US has three main geological features, the Coastal Plain (flat, straight roads), the Piedmont (mixture of modest curves and elevations), and the Ridge and Valley region, aka “The Mountains” aka “The Good Stuff.” Significant elevation changes and challenging roads. If you are planning rides that include new riders, consider choosing roads that will give them a chance to hone their skills and improve confidence before you lay waste to the big curves.

 

New Riders—How To

The Piedmont region is an excellent choice for finding roads that contain interesting roads that aren’t too technical and mix in enough elevation changes to make rides interesting. One road in particular that stands out is US 522 which runs from Powhatan, VA up into central Pennsylvania. US 29 and US 15 are okay in stretches and even US 11 that parallels much of I-81 is a good choice if you’re not in a hurry.

 

You don’t have to abandon the mountains either. Instead, choose roads that run through river valleys and parallel the mountains. Several good examples come to mind including US 219 through West Virginia’s Greenbrier Valley and US 220 north of Covington, VA is a fantastic ride all the way into Maryland. Both offer short sections of challenging curves but most of these roads feature wide sweepers that are fun for veteran riders and good practice for new riders.

 

Into Pennsylvania and the northern reaches, it gets a bit trickier. As you can see by the topo map, the Appalachians take a big turn toward the east and then crumble into disarray as the ridges approach the New England states.

 

I hope readers who are familiar with good beginner roads will share some routes with me and I’ll pass them along in a future edition. I’d like to pass along a few more ideas for making a new rider’s first touring experiences good ones.

 

3) You need to demonstrate good riding habits because new riders take their cues from you, just like kids learn from parents. Last year our small riding group was joined by a new rider who came out of the house wearing dress leathers and no gloves. When he saw that we were observing the rule “All The Gear, All The Time,” he went back to his garage to get a real jacket and gloves.

 

4) Before you pull out on a ride, review the route you’ll be following as well as the rules of group riding. New riders should understand the importance of maintaining a staggered formation with a one second following distance between bikes (that helps keep the group tight and prevents cages from cutting into the group). New riders some times have trouble maintaining a constant speed or staying in the proper third of the lane they’re supposed to be in, so you’ll probably have to work on this a bit.

 

5) When new riders are in a group with experienced riders, put the new riders “in the cradle.” That’s the position between the front bike (ride captain) and the last bike (back door). Never put a new rider in front or one who lacks confidence in their riding skills. A riding buddy and I made that mistake once by having a new rider lead going over US 250. The new rider was intimidated at having to lead experienced riders and couldn’t focus on riding. As a result the rider misjudged the entrance to a corner, low-sided and crashed. They weren’t seriously injured, but it was their last trip on a bike.

 

6) Keep your group size small and your speed down. With newer riders, split into more groups so you have no more than one or two new riders in your group. And by all means, keep your speeds down. Remember, even on unchallenging roads, new riders have a dozen things running through their mind as they try to stay in their lane, keep the right following distance, approach turns properly, scan for hazards, etc., etc.

 

Well, I think you get the idea and I don’t want to start preaching. It’s tempting to presume that someone with a few ice cream runs under their belt is ready for longer, harder touring. But just like an exercise regimen, new riders need to develop their riding muscles gradually. They can’t do it all at once. Keep that in mind as you plan this year’s tours so that the new rider(s) in your group will come back from your trip hungry for more, not ready to bail.