Ted and Dana make the 3 High Rides

Ted Visscher and his girlfriend Dana Tucker of Knoxville Tn, are the first couple to tell us of their 3 High Ride adventure. Ted and Dana did the trip over two days, starting with Clingmans Dome and Mt Mitchell the first day, and the second day cruising down to Brasstown Bald. Ted was on a 07 BMW650GS Dakar, and Dana made the trip on a 96 Honda 250 Rebel! (The smallest bike yet to make the ride). Ted said their total trip was right at 500 miles. Here is a picture of them and their bikes on Mt Mitchell.

Volunteer Riders Trail Ride - Public Welcome!

On June 16th the Volunteer Riders of Knoxville will be hosting a free group ride at the North Sundquist / Royal Blue OHV area, just North of Knoxville on I-75. The ride will divide into at least 2 groups,( experienced and not-so-experienced) and the more advanced riders can plan on a ride of 30+ miles of trails. Less Experienced riders will take an easier and shorter route. This is a family friendly ride, not a race, and everyone is welcome. However, it is not the place to learn to ride. Kids are welcome, please bring them along, but plan on riding with your kids. We suggest kids be on bikes of at least 80cc.
Dual Sport bikes of 650 cc and smaller are welcome, but must have knobbies. This is a trail ride, not a dual sport ride. Expect rocks, mud, and creek crossings. There is no charge, but you will need a N. Cumberland / Royal Blue WMA daily permit (Type 036 - $12.50) You can get this at any Walmart that sells Hunting and Fishing licenses
For the full flier with directions and more info go to www.volunteerriders.com and look under "events"

Ride for Knox Area Rescue Ministries- May 19th

Saturday May 19th is the " Ride to Provide" a fundraiser for Knox Area Rescue Ministries. It starts at 1:00pm at Quaker Steak and Lube and ends at Smokey Mountain Harley Davidson. Ride fee goes to a good cause, plus you get  police help! For more info contact johnny.mcfall@gmcr.com, or call 865-680-6427

Knoxville to Bolivia! Come hear the Stories Tuesday

Next Tuesday, May 8th, there will be an informal showing of Mike and Tank's incredible trip to Bolivia on old Honda XL's. When you consider they started with a plan that was pretty much "Go to Texas, turn left, and ride until we can't ride anymore." you get the drift about the type of trip this was.  I have heard some of the stories, and honestly, they probably got tired of telling them 100 times over, so it was easier to just gather a group. The photography you will see from Central and South America is outstanding, and the stories that range from staying in abandoned buildings to avoid bandits, to being taken in by locals who treat them like kings, will make you wonder just how blessed two guys from East Tenn can be. You can get a preview of the show, and an idea about what they did on their blog, "kickstands and handstands". @ fairtanker.blogspot.com . Their blog is great, but their stories are better.

5th Annual Bikers for Scouts - May 19th

Saturday May 19th is the 5th Annual "Bikers for Scouts" at Tommy's Motorsports (I-75 - Exit122) (aka Clinton Exit).  All proceeds benefit the restoration of Camp Pellissippi, 10:00am Registration, Noon Start. Door Prizes, Silent Auction. $25 per bike includes a T-Shirt and Lunch at the end of the ride. Rain Date May 26th. For more info call Tommy's Motorsports 865-494-6500

Slate Creek Adventure Ride April 14th and 15th

April 14th and 15th is the best, and closest, opportunity to take part in one of the AMA Adventure Rides. Long time local racer/rider/promoter, and general good guy, John Strange is hosting this round, and has created 2 separate 150 mile loops which take you over some of the most beautiful country in East Tenn and Western North Carolina. Elevation changes from 1200' to 4300' keep things interesting, and route sheets are provided. The loops are a mixture of back roads, fire roads, and gravel roads which all start at Johns place in Bybee, which is just outside of Newport Tn. The ride is open to all adventure and dual sport bikes. Entry fee is only $60 for two days. For more info you can e-mail John at jbsaki@gmail.com, call him at 865-322-0193, or download the flier at the Volunteer Riders website under "Events".

Mr. Unlucky's bad day.

The day started out good. The rain had quit. The sun was out, and 4 of us were ready to ride in some brand new single track trail.  The trails we were going to ride were easy, except for one steep leaf covered downhill near the beginning, which I promptly crashed on. (nothing like deep wet leaves on a steep slope). My get off wasn't anything spectacular, but not so much for our fourth guy. The bike went sideways, hit a tree, and flung Mr. Unlucky heels over head. I saw the whole thing, but couldn't tell if he landed wrong, or hit something while in mid air. 

When he didn't immediately  get up to pick up his upside down scooter, we suspected it wasn't good. Something about the way he said "My leg's broke!" was convincing. That, combined with the fact that his foot was pointing in the wrong direction, and he couldn't even lift it off the ground sold us on his self diagnosis.

We weren't too far from the truck (less than a mile), and were within about 300 feet of an ATV trail.  His obvious pain let us know that if we were going to move him, we had to somehow stabilize his fu-bar'ed extremity. So in our best duplication of the scene from Apollo 13, we dumped out all we had to work with and figured out a plan. I had a small folding saw, so I cut a small tree to make a splint, but we had to find some way to attach it. What we finally ended up with was two freshly cut green limbs attached to Mr Unlucky's crooked right leg with Zip Ties, nylon straps, bungee cords and safety wire. ( A roll of duct tape would have been wonderful). This was very likely the first splint the hospital had to have removed by their maintenance department. It wasn't pretty, but it seemed to do the job.

After several hundred feet of sliding, lifting, and carrying Mr Unlucky, we finally got him to the truck, which we had managed to get within an 1/8th of a mile of the crash scene, but of course it was uphill the whole way. Later, we transferred him in the back of my truck which has a camper cover for the ride to the Broken Leg repair shop. Here they confirmed what we feared. Broken Tibia and Fibia. New internal hardware needed to piece it all back together. Next to making a splint, the best thing we did was not to take off his boot.

So, what have we learned form this lesson? #1, When something happens out on the trail, you have to figure out a way to deal with it. #2 A grown man is a hell of a lot heavier than you think. #3 You don't have to be going fast to break stuff, and #4 No First Aid kit is complete without a Folding Saw, Zip Ties, and Safety Wire!

Get Well Soon Mr Unlucky!(note: not his bike shown in picture)