Rides & Roads
Scenic Roads & Routes, Great Destinations & Events
GREAT ROADS: Cherohala Skyway
I first came to ride the Cherohala Skyway a few years after it opened, in 1998 or ’99. I rode up with a group of CMA friends from the Atlanta area, and we spent a day riding the parkway from Robbinsville NC to Tellico Plains TN. After a hearty late lunch at the popular Tellicafé on the western end of the skyway, the group turned around and rode back across that afternoon. It was early October as I remember, and the mountains were awash in the colors of autumn- gold, orange, red, purple, with pine evergreen interspersed.
It was magical. I was hooked.
Return to Iron Horse
4 1/2 years. That’s how long it’s been since the last time I rolled in and set foot on the grounds of Iron Horse Motorcycle Lodge in Stecoah, North Carolina. Had it really been nearly that long? My memories of our last trip here in many respects feel like yesterday. Phil, Ted, my friend Lyle, and myself, all enjoying one of the most beautiful, colorful autumns in recent memory, up in the mountains of western North Carolina. We stayed in one of Iron Horse’s creekside cabins, waking to the gentle burbling stream every morning. Delightful meals, even more delightful people, nightly campfires, and exceptional hospitality by owner Jerry Goss and his staff. We even rode a trio of Yamaha Nikens, those mechanical silverback gorillas, across the famed Tail of the Dragon, along the Cherohala Skyway, and a stint on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Iron Horse owns and operates Wolf Creek Rentals, just down the street from the lodge. More on that shortly.
I remember it all as if it were yesterday. And yet it’s been almost five years. Too many years.
Why We Ride- How A Movie Became A Mission
Bryan Carroll is a man on a mission. He wants to see childhood brain cancer eliminated in our lifetime. And he’s determined to help make that dream happen. Bryan, the producer and director of the acclaimed 2013 motorcycling film, “Why We Ride”, along with his friend and colleague James Walker, love motorcycling, and love the motorcycle community. And like so many in our community, Bryan and James have big hearts for philanthropy, specifically for children’s causes.
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Daytona Bike Weekend
In the early hours of Thursday, March 6, 2025, I left home pulling my toy hauler/trailer, headed for Daytona Beach. I had loaded in the trailer my Honda Monkey and CB500X , and my friend David’s Triumph Bonneville 1200. David was pulling his teardrop camper with his Mercedes as we headed on our way to Florida. The weather was good and we made it to the Florida line somewhere around noon.
Daytona, here we come!
Triumph and BDR Debut a New South East Route
Now in its 15th year, most of the great and more well-known BDR routes are out west, from Texas and South Dakota westward, with the exception of Montana. But here in the Southeast, the home of Road Dirt, we’ve not had the opportunity to experience the BDR rides like our western brothers and sisters. That is about to change, with the development of the soon-to-be publicly announced South East Backcountry Discovery Route (SEBDR). Finally, some BDR close to home.
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When the Ride Goes Wrong
There are times when nature, dumb luck and poor planning conspire against us. You can take all the usual and sensible precautions before rolling into the wild: check the weather report, carry your own personal chrome-plated barometer, even stick your head out the window. Feeling unencumbered and packing light, the skies are clear, a soft cool breeze caresses your cheek, the bike rumbles instantly to life and you think to yourself with a smile, what could possibly go wrong?
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Bloomberg Article: A Road Dirt Response
To Gideon Litchfield and his article for Bloomberg magazine titled “The Allure of The Motorcycle is Stalling Out,” I say come. In his article the author celebrates his new US citizenship by embarking on a three and a half week, 5000 mile ride across America. Stating that his primary sensations were discomfort and boredom, Litchfield asserts motorcycling is pointless, perilous, impractical, the least freeing form of transportation there is and it is a bad idea in general. The only reason to do it, he says, is that it is “sexy”.
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MZ’s Moto Memories: Kawasaki Concours
While there, I also happened to see a brand new, gleaming fire engine red Kawasaki ZG 1000- the Concours- sitting on the showroom floor right next to the Triumphs. I had been a Kawasaki man since my first G4TR “Trail Boss” I got as a kid and had probably already owned at least 20 more Kawasaki street bikes by then, mostly 3 cylinder two-strokes. And they had a reputation for being fast. The Concours was based on a 1000cc Ninja, which I knew was fast, but the Concours had a shaft drive, which appealed to me for distance riding. It also had a 7+ gallon fuel tank and detachable hard “briefcase” bags that looked like they should be on a BMW airhead, with an optional dealer-installed trunk bag as well. And it was only $8800 brand new. The decision wasn’t difficult. I put the beautiful Hinckley sport tourers right out of my mind, and wrote a check for the Kawa Concours.
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Ken’s Op-Ed: Riding the Tail of the Dragon, Pt. 2
It seems that while riding on the fabulous roads that lead to and from the Dragon, some of the riders in the group got separated from each other, which is not unusual. It was before GPS, but they all had maps, and the route was not very complicated. But one guy (I’ll call him Jack . . . short for Jackass) fell quite a bit behind, whether intentional or accidentally. At some point he decided to catch up to the group. So he began to speed up and got frustrated by the slower moving traffic on the two lane roads. “Jack” began to pass cars and other traffic by crossing the double yellow lines and passing on the left and right at breakneck speeds. Apparently, some of the folks he blew past were startled and other drivers got the crap scared out of them. Someone among them called the police on Jack for riding like a crazy man.
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