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| Crossing creek in Peru |
Feb 1, 2015
6 months already have gone by! I
am not too sure about the mileage we have done. I must have ridden 8,000 miles
already and we are still in Patagonia, about 400 miles south of Esquel and
going north. Last night, we camped in Las Pinturas Canyon, 6 miles away from
the cave containing printed hands painted by people living 8,000 years ago.
Tonight, we are just 15 feet away from the beautiful Lago Buenos Aires which
belongs to Argentina and Chile jointly.
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| Gravel in Las Pinturas Canyon |
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Since Jen writes
our blog faithfully, I will focus on stuff that she would not talk about.
The bike
still runs very well. It is extremely dirty, not washed once in 6 months, and
is now extremely thirsty for new oil and a new filter. On the way down, I
changed the oil in Cuenca, Ecuador, and then in Esquel, Arg, on the side of the
road. I collected it in a container and left it at a gas station. Since I could
not find anywhere an oil filter, I kept the old one on. Finally, I bought 3
filters in Punta Arenas, native town of Diego Rojas, our dear friend, who
coordinates everything that happens on the snow at Valle Nevado. I will change the
oil in the next few days. Two weeks ago, I shook the dust off the air filter: a
lot of dust came out of it. I have a new one but I will put it in when we are
done running the “ripio”, gravel roads.
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| First, but not last, ripio |
Talking
about the “ripio”, I have to tell you that I was very new to it. I don’t come
from a motorcross background, but I wish I had, like Drew Duffy, Paul Epstein
and many more of my friends. My bike is a monster for power, and for
weight...It’s super good on highways cruising at 80 mph for hours, but, put it
on loose gravel or sand and it gets so scary... Masaru used to say scary very
often... Well, after riding close to 500 miles so far on gravel, I am starting
to get used to it. The bike gets loose and slides a bit especially when the
road turns. I found out that if you go slow, it is awful. The best speed is
between 35 and 50 mph, depending of the kind of washboard you are running on. I
also learned to ride standing up for hours. Yesterday alone, we were on gravel
for about 100 miles.
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| Near Ushuaia |
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| So many miles of gravel |
When I get in a bit of trouble and start losing my balance
because the bike slides, I move back and gun it. It’s like skiing powder: more
speed is your friend. I am still apprehensive of crossing and running in loose
gravel as over the ridge between the car tracks. Yesterday, though, I went
slower and was doing SL turns across the ridges. I really try to relax, look
far ahead and keep steering the bike with my feet and knees. Yes, I try! I have
been doing all this with my really good Michelins Road tires, not OFF road
tires. I am hoping to find some Off road tires next week in Osorno, but it will
be too late to help me out on the Carretera Austral. I don’t want to buy them
in Bariloche or anywhere in Arg because the prices are so high. It will be
cheaper in Chile.
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| Going to Gobernador Gregores, Arg. |
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| Getting a better view |
Another big
experience for me is learning to ride in the wind. I never got pummeled so hard
by the wind than in Patagonia. And I have to say that we still have a few more
days of side wind. Yes, why is this wind always coming from the side? I bent
forward and down and put my face near my rear view mirror. The bike leans quite
a bit. The only way to anticipate the gusts is to look at the contour of the terrain.
Beware of 18 wheelers or buses that create turbulence! Before I got to
Patagonia, I was practicing to steer the bike with my knees and lean, keeping
an extremely light touch on the grips. I think that Jeff Sirjane talked to me about
keeping a light touch. Well, it does work very well when you pass a big bus or
an 18 wheeler. I tried also to tighten my grip as an experiment, and the bike
shook pretty hard. There is also another exercise that I do: I tighten the core
and this pushes the hips forward keeping my spine aligned. It makes it easier to
steer the bike while sitting and it relieves the soreness that usually creeps
in your upper back, for me anyways. It reminds me of sitting in a canoe tilting
it side to side. And of skiing, establishing the new angle before the actual
pressure, something not done by the great majority of the racers. Chris Frank
surprised me one day when we were training and racing in Europe. He showed me
what I was exactly believing in since years: getting the hip angle established
at the initiation.
Many do it
artificially by bending at the waist or lowering the shoulder, but that’s not
the way to do it efficiently. OK, enough of this skiing stuff! That is my past
life.
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| The real deal! This is a road going to Governador Gregores, Arg |
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| This Carretera Austral road was rugged for over 80 miles… |
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| Lunch break near the ocean in Peru |
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| Made it to Chillan ski area |
I rode twice with other bikers.
The 1st time was for about 2 hrs on my way to Esquel. I was with 5
other guys and we were going really fast: sometimes at 90 and with curves and
passing cars, trucks and busses. Thinking about it, it was really good exciting
fun, but also very stupid. The 2nd time was between El Calafate and
El Chalten. His name is Mauro from Bariloche, physicist, studying for his PH.D,
and riding a Honda 250. Our friend Emilio would have enjoyed meeting him. He
had lunch with Jen and I in our Casa Movil, (camper van). I have to say that I
don’t mind being alone for 5 or 6 or 7 hrs on the bike. There is so much to
see! And every once in a while, I stop and wait for my wonderful “esposa” who
drives the Casa Rodante.
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| Werner Willimen from Luzern, Sui. Hope we see you again |
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| Maurio riding to El Chalten |
I have to admit that I dropped
the bike 4 times, and every time I was not moving. The first time was going down
a steep cobble stone street, at a stop sign. It is a no-no to stop with the
front brake and having the wheel turned to the side. I knew this but made the
mistake.
The 2nd time was in Patagonia when I stopped to
wait for Jen. I was putting the side stand down and a violent wind gust hit me
and pushed the bike down.
The 3rd time was in Ushuaia when I was looking at
a spot to camp. I was not paying attention at all to balance the bike and it
went down once more.
The 4th and last time, so far, was pulling to the
side of a small gravel road with a ditch very close to the road. I moved to the
side but my right foot never touched ground...This time, I could not pick it
up. My dear Jen came to the rescue!
A fellow biker from Florida fell on a gravel road at 75 mph.
Wow, first of all, this is quite insane. He broke his right riding foot peg,
and the rear passenger foot peg. Luckily, he did not hurt himself. I think that
he was probably showing off, because he was riding with a group of 5 or 6.
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| Carretera Austral |
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| More Carretera Austral |
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| Tough section of dirt above Bariloche, Arg. |
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| Wind effect on the bike in Patagonia |
Every day, I dream about my next
bike. It will be lighter, less powerful, but fast enough to run at 80 mph all
day. I need to be able to pick it up all loaded. I started to write a list of
all the changes that I will do to it so it fits me. Among others, I want a
front 21 inch wheel, off road tires, dual front rotors in the front, upgraded
suspension, big adjustable wind screen, good wide foot pegs, big aluminum
cases. I have reading about the BMW Sertao 650 and Kawasaki. I would be riding
it 30% off-road and 70% on the pavement. Don’t take me wrong, I still like the
big GS1200 for its comfort and power and handling at speed, on the pavement.
In
Osorno, we will pick up Janique on Feb 8th. Can’t wait to see her!
Looking forward to see Brendan
and Gerry Lenihan in Palm Springs, CA, Annie and Luca in Truckee, CA, Janique
in Portland, ORE and Marc in Fernie, BC.
I still
have a small dream that might come true in August, when my dear Jen starts
working again at GMVS. I could make it all the way to Alaska and ride back to
VT after reaching Prudhoe Bay. If the snow stops me, I will turn around sooner.
Jeff Sirjane, are you reading this? It would be more fun and safer with a
partner. We could meet in Portland, ORE. You could fly your bike or ride it. We
would be riding to Alaska and back to VT.
We meet
many very interesting people that we would like to spend much more time with.
As Jen says, another year, we could come to Chile, rent a small place, and take
side trips. Doing this, we could get to know people.
I do ride for the joy of riding but
I ride trying to see and learn as much as possible about the people and the
marvels of this beautiful continent: this is what I do with my dear Jen. We
often stop and visit sites, museums, or just spend 2 days at a beautiful site. Every
morning, I get dressed, start the bike and go. Sometimes, I go fast, 80mph, and
sometimes, I go slow, 60mph, looking around at the beauty of the scenery, and
trying to spot the wild life, mainly the guanacos, animals very similar to the
lamas. They are always in big families with a dominant male that checks things
out and leads the group. The adults jump the fences, but the young ones sneak
through the fences or under the fences. Many times I stopped along side the
road and observed them. Strange enough, very seldom they run across the
highway, which is good for us. It is not like our northern deer. I would never
drive at night!
Close call this morning out of
Las Pinturas Canyon
About
10 sec into the ride, there was a very steep hill, the steepest that I have
been on so far. It was a very small rutted sand and rocky road/trail... I was
still in 1st gear, got up for balance, and gave it more power. The
bike lurched forward and started jumping up and down over huge dirt waves. The
front wheel was leaving the ground, not as much as Drew can do it, like at his
graduation, and I came close to lay the bike down. I grabbed the clutch to stop
the jumping, but had to give gas so not to stall. Finally the top was close and
things quieted down: what a relief! This was way out of my comfort zone. Jen
made it with the van a few minutes after and she commented that it was tough
also.
Feb 5, 20015
Many things happened since last
Feb 1st.
Janique will be in Santiago on
Feb 11
th. We are trying to be there to pick her up.
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| End of the road. Is Alaska next? |
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