where did you TAKE your Tenere today?

eemsreno

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On your way to everywhere, , Iowa
I went out checking the conditions of some of the better backroads in the southwest part of our county. As I suspected, many of them had been freshly (and heavily) graveled by the county road dept., and were no fun at all. But I found several that were hard packed and good for riding, and made good time down to the best, gnarly, steep, rocky with lots of ledges, impassable when wet, trail in the area. This hill is well over 200 yards long, has a bunch of rocks and ruts (some large), and most of the ledges are a foot or so high, and has been the demise of many a wanna-be truck, jeep, atv, and bike that didn't have adequate ground clearance and/or good skid plates or rider/driver skills. On my old Bighorn 350, the hill would have been a blast today. On my only previous trip there on the Tenere last fall, I made it up just fine. When I considered going back down it that day, I said "Uh-Uhhh, too slick" and went out the long way around (about 6 miles).

Today, when I arrived, the hill was remarkably dry and only wet at the bottom, so I didn't hesitate and headed right up it. That was a mistake. A Tenere Noob mistake. Forgot to turn off the Traction Control. And it was still set on #1.... I made it up through the most gnarly parts, but when I got to the steepest section, I goosed it a little (wanting to get a little air over the last slope-fronted ledge), broke loose the rear tire, and BAM, the traction control slammed on the rear brakes, and that plus the steep hill killed the engine before I could slip the clutch, and just before the last ledge. And of course, my foot came down in a rut below the last ledge, so over we went. "Pearl" (the name we've given her) wanted to take a short nap.

My friend, Logan, helped me get her back up on her feet, and rather than go out the long way around, I wanted to practice going back down that steep, rocky hill using some of techniques I've seen on the MOTOTREK videos on YouTube. Logan wasn't too enthusiastic about that, but we were both impressed that I took her back down the hill like a boss, even over the places where the skid plate drug. Anyway, Pearl was none the worse for wear, only a little dirt here and there and a few scratches on the skid plate. And it was definitely a learning experience.



View from below, about a hundred yards up from the bottom, looking up. Pearl snoozing comfortably.


Another shot looking down from beside where Pearl was napping. It's further than it looks to the bottom.
View attachment 65866
Tim what is the name of that trail?
 

rodeoclone

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May 13, 2019
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SE-Iowa
That's Lookout Trail. The one I told you could be a real MF. It's short, but a good jumping off spot to some good riding.
You two and your Kirksville area pics are prompting me to ADV a little further south. Last weekend I went to Des Moines River road near Douds/Keosauqua but not as cool as south of the border. Do you use a paper map source, GPS, or just ride and see where the road goes? I’m the latter but use my phone to get me directionally home. Thanks for posting your ADV’s
 

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holligl

Find the road less traveled...
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I went out checking the conditions of some of the better backroads in the southwest part of our county. As I suspected, many of them had been freshly (and heavily) graveled by the county road dept., and were no fun at all. But I found several that were hard packed and good for riding, and made good time down to the best, gnarly, steep, rocky with lots of ledges, impassable when wet, trail in the area. This hill is well over 200 yards long, has a bunch of rocks and ruts (some large), and most of the ledges are a foot or so high, and has been the demise of many a wanna-be truck, jeep, atv, and bike that didn't have adequate ground clearance and/or good skid plates or rider/driver skills. On my old Bighorn 350, the hill would have been a blast today. On my only previous trip there on the Tenere last fall, I made it up just fine. When I considered going back down it that day, I said "Uh-Uhhh, too slick" and went out the long way around (about 6 miles).

Today, when I arrived, the hill was remarkably dry and only wet at the bottom, so I didn't hesitate and headed right up it. That was a mistake. A Tenere Noob mistake. Forgot to turn off the Traction Control. And it was still set on #1.... I made it up through the most gnarly parts, but when I got to the steepest section, I goosed it a little (wanting to get a little air over the last slope-fronted ledge), broke loose the rear tire, and BAM, the traction control slammed on the rear brakes, and that plus the steep hill killed the engine before I could slip the clutch, and just before the last ledge. And of course, my foot came down in a rut below the last ledge, so over we went. "Pearl" (the name we've given her) wanted to take a short nap.

My friend, Logan, helped me get her back up on her feet, and rather than go out the long way around, I wanted to practice going back down that steep, rocky hill using some of techniques I've seen on the MOTOTREK videos on YouTube. Logan wasn't too enthusiastic about that, but we were both impressed that I took her back down the hill like a boss, even over the places where the skid plate drug. Anyway, Pearl was none the worse for wear, only a little dirt here and there and a few scratches on the skid plate. And it was definitely a learning experience.

View attachment 65864

View from below, about a hundred yards up from the bottom, looking up. Pearl snoozing comfortably.
View attachment 65865

Another shot looking down from beside where Pearl was napping. It's further than it looks to the bottom.
View attachment 65866
They always look tamer in the photos. It's like "I've done worse than that!" until you face it in person.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
 

timebak

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May 15, 2019
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169
Location
Rogersville, Alabama, USA
You two and your Kirksville area pics are prompting me to ADV a little further south. Last weekend I went to Des Moines River road near Douds/Keosauqua but not as cool as south of the border. Do you use a paper map source, GPS, or just ride and see where the road goes? I’m the latter but use my phone to get me directionally home. Thanks for posting your ADV’s
rodeoclone: I use paper maps (DeLorme Atlas & Gazetteer), along with research online before going, if I have time, on Google Maps. But then when riding, I'm always on the lookout for interesting looking sideroads and intersecting roads. We need to go for a ride some day, or afternoon, soon.

They always look tamer in the photos. It's like "I've done worse than that!" until you face it in person.
holligl: LOL!! You got that right! The photos certainly don't do Lookout Trail justice. It's WAY more gnarly than it looks in the photos.
 

timebak

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Rogersville, Alabama, USA
Neptunes net, CA was a ghost town they shut down the moto parking just 2 days ago.
moto.monk: I sure do like those yellow Teneres. I looked for a yellow ES, but never could find one quickly enough before it was sold. Also, what brand and model of windshield is that on your bike? Do you like it? I'm running the tall factory 'shield and up here on the windy plains of northern Missouri, it's a little lacking in protection. Also, is your 'shield acrylic or polycarbonate?

Thanks,
Tim
 

gv550

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Listowel, Ontario, Canada
moto.monk: I sure do like those yellow Teneres. I looked for a yellow ES, but never could find one quickly enough before it was sold. Also, what brand and model of windshield is that on your bike? Do you like it? I'm running the tall factory 'shield and up here on the windy plains of northern Missouri, it's a little lacking in protection. Also, is your 'shield acrylic or polycarbonate?

Thanks,
Tim
Yellow bikes weren't available with ES in USA and Canada.
 

timebak

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Joined
May 15, 2019
Messages
169
Location
Rogersville, Alabama, USA
Yellow bikes weren't available with ES in USA and Canada.
That's what I thought. I've called about some yellow ones I saw for sale and asked if it was an ES and gotten either "No", "Yes", "I don't know", "I think so", or "What's an ES?" And that was usually from dealers. The geniuses at the local Yamaha dealership have never even seen a Tenere of any kind.
 

VRODE

Easy Does It
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Aug 7, 2014
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940
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Northern Vermont
Took Godzilla out after a looong winters slumber today. Just a quick doodle about. 41 deg and only spots of blue sky. New EBC pads work well. A little more initial bite, but that might just be cause they’re new. New air filter this weekend and we’ll be ready for some social distancing.
 

holligl

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Fish Creek overlook, Rt 88 AZ. Reopened in the last month from Tortilla Flats up to this point. Closed from here to Roosevelt lake due to rock slides and wash outs. No guesses when it may re-open. I may go back with hiking gear to go down to Fish Creek. A major fire last summer, and subsequent flooding closed this historical "Apache Trail".


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timebak

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Rogersville, Alabama, USA
Fish Creek overlook, Rt 88 AZ. Reopened in the last month from Tortilla Flats up to this point. Closed from here to Roosevelt lake due to rock slides and wash outs. No guesses when it may re-open. I may go back with hiking gear to go down to Fish Creek. A major fire last summer, and subsequent flooding closed this historical "Apache Trail".
Wow, those pics sure bring back memories. I haven't been out in the Apache Flats/Fish Creek/Roosevelt Lake area since the mid-80's. I've still got photos that I took this time of year out there of wild flowers and scenery and such. I worked for NASA then, and was on TDY in Phoenix for several months while Unisys Space Systems was building a bunch of test equipment for us to use on the Space Shuttle. Several times, we'd ride out to Pumpkin Center and eat dinner in the downstairs of the little general store there. We'd make big loops out of Phoenix in all directions, out through the surrounding countryside, and back to town by a totally different route. One of our favorite rides was up to Crown King for dinner and beer. That was back in my Kawasaki KZ1000 Shaft days.
 
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