Off-Roading - Chattahoochee National Forest

Today, I made the 75 minute ride up to Suches, GA to meet up with some Dual Sport riders at Two Wheels Only (Everyone calls it TWO) Motorcycle Lodge. This area is biker heaven - regardless of what you ride. Highway 19 North of Dahlonega to Highway 60 is all twists and turns as you climb up the mountain. TWO is at the intersection of Highway 60 and 180 (Blood Gap Road). This entire area is surrounded by National Forest land. TWO is my kind of place. Bunch of bikers of all ages riding all types of bikes. Inside the main building at TWO, it's set up like an "up north" lodge. http://www.twowheelsonly.com/

KLR.NET

I met the 7 guys I rode with on a dual sport Forum for KLR Riders http://www.klr.net/ . There were a couple of riders form the "Trail Sharks" Dual Sport Club in Rome GA with us, 2 brothers from Lawrenceville, and another guy from Norcross and a few others. They all rode KLR's of various vintage. They were a friendly bunch - which didn't surprise me because everyone is friendly down here!

After we stood around for about an hour visiting and drinking coffee, we mounted up and took off up Wolf Pen Gap rd for a ways and then eventually broke off the pavement for the dirt. Wynne, the guy who lead the group, took us on some great fireroads and trails - some high roads, some low roads, some rocky roads, and several mudholes and creeks. The guys were very prepared and serious about their off roading - nothing pretty about the bunch I can assure you. Lots of old caked on mud on their bikes, and modifications that weren't bought at the store. I was pleased that they all wore the proper gear and all were very responsible riders - but, I can also tell you that the 2 brothers from Lawrenceville were pretty fast through the woods as they had to keep waiting at intersections for the rest of us! I kept up pretty well and only "almost" dumped the bike 1 time. By the end of the day, I was tired, had mud dried on my pants, and the bike was filthy dirty - AWESOME!

Antonio "A.J." Johnston - Football Player

Antonio recently started his first season of tackle football. Full pads, 2 hour practices, tackling the first day - awesome! It's been tough for him and the other boys given the heat, but he is toughing it out. He is really enjoying it. Right now, they have him playing various positions on the offensive line. He has played some defensive positions too in practice but I think during games he is going to be blocking for his QB.

Football is pretty serious in the Southeast U.S. These coaches are not messing around. They do a great job keeping the intensity up while trying to teach many boys who have never played.

Antonio has a new nickname - coaches call him "A.J.".

KLR 650 Mods, Georgia Plates,and a black eye

Last Saturday night, after everyone went to bed, I went out to the garage to install a couple of critical modifications to the KLR. First, and probably most important, is the center stand. The bike only comes with a side stand, which can be a dangerous choice for standing the bike on uneven terrain. I should know, I got a black eye a couple weeks ago - long story - didn't drop the bike but wacked myself right in the eye with the left mirror catching it from falling. NASTY - my entire lower part of my eye turned bloodshot red. I went to the eye doctor - all is well. In addition to the safety aspect, is the ability to do routine maintenance with the back wheel elevated.

The second modification I did was installing "Bark Buster" hand guards. The bike comes stock with handguards but they are pretty much cosmetic. If you were to hit a tree limb or even worse, crash, they would buckle easily. Bark Busters have an aluminum frame that is pretty tough (they look cool too). Here are some pictures of the mods - no, I did not take a picture of my eye (lol).

I also got my Georgia License Plate. Definitely easier than getting my Georgia License - was in and out in 4 minutes - can you believe that?

PoBoys Cruise In, Canton Georgia

Saturday night me and the boys went with my neighbor Wayne to the weekly "PoBoys Car Club" cruise in over in Canton, GA. Wayne took his beautifully restored Firebird and we met a friend of his who has a restored Camaro. The kids had a great time - there were some awesome rides!

First Day of School Aug 10 2009

Monday was the first day of school (yep - EARLY START). It was also Brianna's first day of school as she is now a Kindergartener. The kids really enjoy their school, Whitlow Elementary. The week went ok considering Whitlow is a brand new school.

Amicalola Falls - Blue Ridge Mountains

I rode up to the Blue Ridge Mountains today (the kids pooped out and didn't want to go so so Belinda gave me a free afternoon!!!) and visited Amicalola Falls State Park. The falls are the largest cascading water fall in the Southeast U.S. Very beautiful. I met up with my good friend Michael Arter and his daughter Meg. We had a nice visit and hike. We parked halfway up - and took the 450 stairs up to the top - then went all the way down the steps to the base, then hiked the woods back to the car. All in all, at least 1,025 stair steps and some a nice up hill hike. This particular park is where many people who hike the A.T. (Appalachian Trail) start as it's only 8 miles from Springer mountain from here. There is a great visitors center with some great history of the A.T. and Georgia's 75 miles of trails that are part of the A.T. They also have some beautiful animals that were rescues found in various locations around the park. I particularly like the Owl - cool bird.

On the way back home, I stopped at Dawson Forest and ripped down some dirt and gravel roads. I came up on a river that crossed one of them - chickened out - no way I was going to try it being that I was by myself - that would have been very foolish. Next time though - when I take a friend with me!

Big Canoe Lake home visit

Last Sunday Belinda and I and the kids went up to our neighbors lake home on Big Canoe. This is an absolutely beautiful area. Big Canoe was first developed back in the 1950's and has very strict rules about developement and use of the lake. The shoreline is very pristine because the homes are built up in the woods and there are no docks allowed. Also, no powerboats - only electric, paddle, or row. When you drive in Big Canoe, it's like driving into a State Park! Stephanie and Stephane were great hosts - they are becoming very good friends of ours and their kids and our kids play well together.

We caught 4 nice Trout (the limit on Big Canoe) and then after lunch, we went for a hike.

Ride up to Helen Georgia

Last Saturday I went for my first ride on the KLR. I had no clue where I was going - only that I was headed north in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains - some great riding. I ended up in a little town called Helen GA. It was kind of funny to come across this town not knowing what it was - because it's a huge tourist area, and Helen is a re-creation of an Alpine Village - yep - right in the middle of North Georgia! I stopped at a German Restaurant and had a very tasty Bratwurst and side of warm German Potato Salad - yummy!

I took delivery of my 2009 KLR 650 Dual Sport Bike last Tuesday! I love this bike! I can't wait to hit the trails - I have mapped out several trail waypoints on my GPS for the Chattahoochee National Forest which is 45 min from the house. Might head up there this weekend if I can find the time. Looking forward to getting dirty on this thing!