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Post by david on Jan 13, 2022 21:49:59 GMT -5
My buddy and I are planning my post retirement two to three week motorcycle trip, some time in 2023. Parameters: bikes to be 90cc to 120cc, no freeways or fast highways and preferably very little traffic, a scenic place with reliably nice weather, some good food along the way, some camping, but hopefully motels every other day or two. We both used to ride trail bikes and small road bikes, 40 years ago, but no riding since then, so we want to keep riding challenges to a minimum.
I am thinking somewhere on the gulf coast, smokey mountains, or Adirondacks, but have never been to any of those places.
Kind of crazy, but fun to plan. Due to moves in and out of state, neither of us have motorcycle licenses anymore nor do we have motorcycles. We will likely rent if we can rather than transport the bikes.
Do any of you travelers have suggestions for areas to explore?
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Post by billhammond on Jan 13, 2022 21:58:08 GMT -5
My first reaction was that if you are considering the Smokies or the Adirondacks, you're gonna HAVE to have bigger engines than 120cc, especially if you're carrying camping gear. There are serious inclines in those regions. Gulf Coast, not so much.
Ideally, go someplace warm, in the so-called "shoulder" season to avoid crowds and high lodging bills.
Fall in the Driftless Area would set your hearts aflutter.
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Post by howard lee on Jan 13, 2022 22:01:47 GMT -5
I highly recommend the Adirondack Mountains in summer.
And there's always the Blue Ridge from Virginia into the Carolinas.
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Post by aquaduct on Jan 13, 2022 22:16:58 GMT -5
Like Bill said, make it to my house in Strasburg with a decent size (don't even know if anyone makes a 120 cc anymore outside of kids dirt bikes) and I'll point you in any number of cool directions that you'll love.
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Post by david on Jan 13, 2022 23:29:14 GMT -5
Like Bill said, make it to my house in Strasburg with a decent size (don't even know if anyone makes a 120 cc anymore outside of kids dirt bikes) and I'll point you in any number of cool directions that you'll love. Wow, thanks Peter. Strasburg looks like a really cool area. We would prefer to ride 35 mph on gravel roads and travel a short distance than to drive at 60 on smooth blacktop. That is a really challenging aspect of our planning. You are right about small displacement bikes. I see that Honda is making a 125cc Honda trail bike: powersports.honda.com/street/minimoto/trail125-absThe next step up appears to be the Yamaha TW 200 and Suzuki VanVan 200. Very similar little bikes and probably what we will end up with whether we buy or rent. An inspirational video here, has the riders with the current Honda 125 and a 1975 Honda trail 90: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Geb_QFxp_hsThe riders, are younger and lighter than us, but not nearly as smart and good looking as my buddy and me. |
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Post by Cosmic Wonder on Jan 14, 2022 0:51:27 GMT -5
David. You really need to rethink the 90-120 cc parameters, bikes like that are seriously underpowered. I rode a Kawasaki 125 scrambler in high school, but that was 55 years ago and I weighed half of what I weigh now and there was a lot less traffic on the roads. My Vespa displaces 278 ccs and it’s fast enough to stay out of trouble mostly. People drive crazy. You need some extra power to stay safe.
Mike
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Post by Marshall on Jan 14, 2022 1:02:11 GMT -5
Those guys were crazy.
I had a Suzuki 120 in HS. It would not run hard @ 50+ for more than an hour without seasing up. If you let it cool down for 30 minutes it would start up and run again. It ran fine around town @ 35 mph.
Rode a Honda 50 a few times in college around town. Very under powered.
I never liked gravel.
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Post by jdd2 on Jan 14, 2022 5:26:37 GMT -5
One of the popular ways to tour vietnam (pre-corona) was to buy/rent a bike in saigon and ride to hanoi (or the other way), sell it when done. Two to six weeks depending on how fast you go, and how winding your route may be. 50cc wouldn't cut it, something in the 100-200cc range, that could handle rain-soaked, sometimes muddy roads.
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Post by aquaduct on Jan 14, 2022 8:47:44 GMT -5
Like Bill said, make it to my house in Strasburg with a decent size (don't even know if anyone makes a 120 cc anymore outside of kids dirt bikes) and I'll point you in any number of cool directions that you'll love. Wow, thanks Peter. Strasburg looks like a really cool area. We would prefer to ride 35 mph on gravel roads and travel a short distance than to drive at 60 on smooth blacktop. That is a really challenging aspect of our planning. You are right about small displacement bikes. I see that Honda is making a 125cc Honda trail bike: powersports.honda.com/street/minimoto/trail125-absThe next step up appears to be the Yamaha TW 200 and Suzuki VanVan 200. Very similar little bikes and probably what we will end up with whether we buy or rent. An inspirational video here, has the riders with the current Honda 125 and a 1975 Honda trail 90: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Geb_QFxp_hsThe riders, are younger and lighter than us, but not nearly as smart and good looking as my buddy and me. Alright buddy, got to go pick up my kid for our Udvar-Hazy jaunt (largely out Route 50 through God's country of Loudoun county) so I'll try to make the hard sell quick (yes, I love this place). I know for a minimum that Millring, Hammond, Dub, Howard, and Evan have been through here. Most of those pictures Howard posted are from probably 100 miles from my house (my back deck looks out at Signal Knob at the end of the Massanutten). Local main roads like 11, 7, 50, and 55 are 55 mph and the freeways like I81 and I66 are mostly almost invisible to daily life if you want them to be. The speed limit on the Skyline Drive is 35. And the roads out here, being where the Federal government lives, are perfect all the time. And you can always find enough trails off the beaten path to indulge any middle age motocross racer wannabe fantasy you may have. These are the motorcycles you need, made by Amish and you can pick them up at the factory in, I think, Indiana on the way out. Janus MotorcyclesThe area was settled in the early 1700's. Winchester still has George Washington's original frontier fort from 1756 when he served in Lord Fairfax's army. We've got Civil War stuff to blow your mind (including cannon holes in buildings) coming out our ears. The place reeks history. And we have easy bike access to West By God Virginia, Maryland, and even into Pennsylvania. Access to DC going east is doable on a bike on back roads, but kind of sketchy going through northern VA. Still, I can take you out to the metro station in my truck and you can go into DC and kick around for a day or two. It's well worth it at least once in your life. That's all I have time for at the moment, but keep it in mind. |
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Post by majorminor on Jan 14, 2022 9:07:20 GMT -5
For an incredibly sucky adventure stock up on bear spray and good camping and fly fishing gear and drive in to Elk City Idaho and take the Magruder Corridor east and over in to Darby Montana. I'll buy you a bear....uh...I mean a beer. offroadingpro.com/magruder-corridor/ |
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Post by Marshall on Jan 14, 2022 9:34:28 GMT -5
You'll be underpowered on any hills on that 120. Those guys were only making 5 mph on the big hills. Find a 250 or 350. It'll handle the same and you won't ever crap out on a hill.
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Post by dradtke on Jan 14, 2022 9:38:36 GMT -5
I see Bill has already recommended the Driftless Area. Easy to find good breweries, too.
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Post by james on Jan 14, 2022 11:35:04 GMT -5
A friend and I tootled around the various terrains and inclines of rural Vietnam on Honda 150 dirt bikes. They performed well.
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Post by david on Jan 14, 2022 13:47:11 GMT -5
Well, great advice and suggestions friends! As to power, I suspect you are right: The 125 and 175 cc bikes of my youth were 2 stroke, therefor lighter and more powerful than todays 4 strokes of similar engine displacement. And as Mike points out, I am about twice the weight I was then. So it makes sense to go bigger, especially as we will have camping gear and food to haul.
Steve's sucky Montana route sounds great as does Peter's neighborhood with the area photos Howard posted. Peter is a great salesman, and has a great product to sell. I would love to see that part of the country. The Janus bikes are very cool, though a bit expensive.
Thank you all for the input.
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Post by billhammond on Jan 14, 2022 13:54:22 GMT -5
Are you guys fly fishermen?
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Post by TKennedy on Jan 14, 2022 14:36:14 GMT -5
if you come to Alexandria you can get your motorcycle rocks off at Casey's Amusement Park and then fish, jet ski, pontoon, paddle, bike, golf, and if you bring your instruments I can get you a gig.  |
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Post by Village Idiot on Jan 14, 2022 14:40:25 GMT -5
Neither of you have ridden a bike in 40 years, aren't used to the horsepower you'd be requiring, and you're thinking of the Gulf Coast, Smokey Mountains or Adirondacks? I'm not a biker by any stretch of the imagination but if I were in your shoes those those places would be at the bottom of my list. Sure, there might be times of the year when the traffic isn't as heavy as others, but if the weather is good enough for biking in any of those places, it'll also be good enough for fairly heavy traffic. I would take a look at Bill's suggestion: Fall in the Driftless Area would set your hearts aflutter. The Driftless Area was formed by what did not happen there. While ice age glaciers made their way through the midwest, the Driftless Area remained largely untouched. The result is some really interesting topography better explained by a geologist like Tamarack. The result, plus the location, also means some pretty cool stuff for bikers. The roads wind and turn through fantastic scenery but you are not driving up and down hills. Traffic is minimal when compared to other places. There are lots of local inns, hotels, eateries and towns that truly reflect a non-tourist view of America. And you'd meet people doing the same thing you are doing. The Driftless Area is a known spot for mellow bikers. |
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Post by Marshall on Jan 14, 2022 14:55:42 GMT -5
Traffic is minimal when compared to other places. There are lots of local inns, hotels, eateries and towns that truly reflect a non-tourist view of America. And you'd meet people doing the same thing you are doing. The Driftless Area is a known spot for mellow bikers. Except when Hammond comes roaring through in his muscle machine; strikes fear in the hearts of mellow people everywhere. |
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Tamarack
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Post by Tamarack on Jan 14, 2022 14:57:27 GMT -5
Another recommendation for the Driftless Area (Every geology major in the Midwest has been there) I don't recall how or why the glaciers missed it, but there are some impressive geologic features, including the Baraboo Syncline.
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Post by billhammond on Jan 14, 2022 15:30:59 GMT -5
Another recommendation for the Driftless Area (Every geology major in the Midwest has been there) I don't recall how or why the glaciers missed it, but there are some impressive geologic features, including the Baraboo Syncline. And what, dear Doctor, caused the formation of the amazing Liess Loess Hills in Iowa's Monona County?   |
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