I took a week off work to road trip with my buddy Andrew. We wanted to go to Utah and Colorado, but there was still quite a bit of snow in Colorado, so we just stayed in Utah. Day 1: we drove to Lees Ferry after work and setup camp. Day 2: we hiked Cathedral Wash, AZ. 

Click here to see a video of the trail. 

Day 3: we hiked the Confluence trail, where the Colorado River merges with the Green River. I caught a ride with strangers on the way back and we did some rock crawling. The Tacoma got a flat tire and the spare tire was also flat. We had to leave the truck  there and bring a wheel with us to have a new tire put on in town. 

Day 4: I rode Fins and Things and Hell's Revenge in Moab. Fins and Things was fun and not difficult. I liked that it was one way so I was less worried about a head on collision with a side by side. I did Hell's Gate 3 times, but was not able to clean it without putting a foot down. Maybe next time. I did Fins and Things a total of 3 times because it wasn't very long. Then we camped in Monticello. 

Click here to see video of Fins and Things.

Day 5: I rode in Monticello. There was still some snow up on the mountain, so many trails were unrideable. 

Click here to see video of Monticello.

Day 6: Andrew was tired, so I got to do whatever I wanted. I rode the Hook and Ladder Cameo trails, just south of Moab. The trails were easy and kind of boring. It was scenic, but not as good of a view as Moab. So I packed up and went back to Moab. I rode Poison Spider/Golden Spike in Moab. Day 7: we dove back to Flagstaff.

Click to see video of Hook and Ladder Cameo and Poison Spider/Golden Spike.

I spectated the US Hard Enduro race in Moab, UT. Riding it Moab has been a bucket list item for me and I finally got to do it. I met a ton of great people and rode Metal Masher, Gemini Bridges, Cliff Hanger, Hell's Revenge, Poison Spider, Golden Spike, and Where Eagles Dare trails in Moab. The Widow Maker obstacle in Metal Masher was terrifying, but I did it and it wasn't actually difficult. 

Click to see video of Moab riding. Cliff Hanger, Poison Spider/Golden Spike/Where Eagle Dare, Metal Masher

My solo ride at Cliff Hanger had me a little worried becausee there was a few obstacles that gave me trouble. I kept tying and eventually got myself through them. The view was amazing on this trail. 

I really wanted to see a jeep or side by side flip over in Hell's Gate and my wish was granted. No one was hurt. I made it up Hell's Gate on my bike. It took me two tries, but I got it. 

My buddy Skyler had his bachelor party at Glamis, CA. I have never been to Glamis and it was a ton of fun. I brought my YZ450F for this trip with a sand tire. I compared my buddies paddle to my sand tire and the sand tire seemed to give just as much traction. I was starting to whip the bike on the side hill jumps. It was hot at Glamis, but there wasn't very many people there.

Click here or here for Glamis videos. 

I finally caved in and took the 300 to the dealership for repair. It TPS sensor ended up being reset and it was fixed. It was weird to be riding a 2 stroke again as I have gotten used to the 4 strokes. I led two different groups through my favorite gnarly wash in the Camp Verde area. 

Click here or here for videos of the wash.

I spectated the Grinding Stone Hard Enduro race for the 3rd year in a row now. Once again, it did not disappoint and I had a ton of fun. Cody Webb took the win this year. There was an additional race this year that took place on the street in Page, AZ. It was an endurocross style race that that was only for the Pros. 

Click to see some of the Grinding Stone Race video Race 1, Race 2, Race 3, and Race 4.

February was uneventful with my 300 still broken. Flagstaff forest roads are closed due to the snow, So I've been riding in the Prescott and Camp Verde areas on the YZ250F. I bought this bike because it was practically new and the price was too good. I plan to sell this bike and hopefully make a profit, so I'm trying not to ride it too much or break anything. The YZ250F is a super fun bike and I would love to keep it, but I don't want to stay on top of the 4 stroke maintenance. It is the GYTR edition and feels like a proper race bike. 

December 3rd was my last ride on my KTM 300. I rode a gnarly ride at Hayfield Draw with some friends. It was a great ride and I am going to miss this bike for sure. I sold the bike to my friend Veronika. I can't justify keeping two 300 2-strokes, although it was nice to have while my Gas Gas is being fixed. 

Click here to see video of the ride

The next AMRA race starting in January 2024 is the Blythe GP at Shorty's MX Park. There was a practice day offered on December 9th and I rode it on my new YZ250F. The YZ250F is probably the perfect bike for track riding. The suspension felt amazing on the track. It felt weird to be riding a 4-stroke again. 

Click here to see video of Blythe

I traded my 2020 KTM 125SX for a 2018 YZ450F with a coworker who really wanted a 2-stroke. The 450F will be an awesome bike for high speed riding, track, and the cinders. I found out there is a MX track in Rimrock with lessons from Justin Buckelew. The track conditions were perfect. It had rained the day before and the track was freshly groomed. There was a lot of doubles on the track with really sharp lips on the take off and landings. This made me nervous because I am used to jumping table tops, where I can work my way up to clearing the jump. Buckelew was a great teacher and I was able to clear several of the jumps by the end of the day. 

I rode the turn track in Cornville several times on the 450F to prepare for the Blythe GP. I decided to do the race on the 450F. The Gas Gas was still being worked on. I ended up removing the engine from the frame and cleaning the bottom end with soap and water, then rinse, then cleaned with gas, then oiled. I received my cylinder and re-assembled the bike. It started right up. It was very smoky at the start, which I expected because I put so much oil on the bottom end, but it would not idle without the cold start. I checked for air leaks, spark plug, tested the CCPS, but I think the issue was the air screw circuit on the throttle body that I must have missed during cleaning. I didn't see the second hole and I thought that the one I did clean was for the cold start and air screw. 

Click here to see video of the YZ450F in Flagstaff

Click here to see video of the YZ450F in Cornville

The last AMRA race of 2023 took place in Vicksburg. I have never ridden here before and didn't know what to expect. The race course was mostly silt and it was impossible to see at times. There was a track section with a lot of rollers and deep silt ruts on the landings of the jumps. I almost crashed hard on a tiny jump due to landing in a massive rut. The track was watered and kep the dust down for about 10 minutes. There was a twisty single track section that was pure silt and I had to wait until the rider in front of me had a little distance because I couldn't see anything and it was nothing but sharp turns in deep ruts. There was also an optional 'Hard' section going over big tires and logs that I didn't even see until the 3rd lap. The hard section was probably the best part of the race. By the end of the race my bike would not idle. 

Click here to see video of the race

When I returned home, I cleaned my air filter, which was super dirty. There was a small amount of dust in the airbox and a bit of dust on the butterfly valve in the throttle body. I cleaned it and tried to start my bike, but it wouldn't start. Not good. I started diagnosing the issue. The spark plug was dirty. A compression test showed about 60PSI. I then noticed that the intake boot on the throttle body was not tight. I have not touched this since I got the bike. I contacted AEO Powersports to see if there as anything they could do to help me because they told me the bike was ready to ride and an inspection fee was part of the cost of the bike. AEO said because I already cleaned the filter and started cleaning the airbox that they cannot help me. 

My heat is broken. My brand new bike with less than 20 hours already needs an engine rebuild. I took the cylinder off to inspect the piston, cylinder walls, and crank bearing. The piston comes coated black and all the coating has worn off. The cylinder walls had no cross hatches and slight up and down scuffing. The crank bearing had no up down play, so that is good. 

I shipped my cylinder off to be re-plated with a new piston. I still cannot believe that I have to do this on my new bike. It should need re-plating at 300 hours or more, not 20. I'm mad at AEO, but ultimately it is my fault for not checking every single bolt. Most of the bolts had a mark with a paint pen that I was watching to see if any loosened up. 

I rode a lot in October. I felt like I had to make up for lost time due to my wrist injury. There's nothing quite like riding single track through the fall foliage on the aspen trees.  

Click here to see video

The Ghost Riderz club put on a Sprint Enduro race at the Cinders in Flagstaff. I'm really glad it was not a Hare Scramble, because it would have been nothing but dust the entire race. The race was a blast. I was 2nd to last for the start order, but I didn't mind. My bike did awesome and I did alright. I wasn't pushing myself too hard because I was still wearing the wrist brace I had my presumably last doctors appointment for my wrist on Monday. 

Click here to see video of the Hualin Ash Sprint Enduro Race

The doctor's appointment went well and I was all healed up. The MRI results showed that I had torn a small hole in my ligament, but it should heal fine without surgery. 

I tried my first motocross race at ACP. I was rusty and not use to riding my 125SX as well as rusty on the Vet track at ACP. I got last, except for one DNF racer. I wish I was able to get a practice day in before the race. I left the race somewhat discouraged. I knew I wasn't willing to give that race my all because the risk of injury felt way higher than compared to an off-road race. I still want to ride MX track on occasion, but I will probably not be racing much motocross. 

Last but definitely not least was 5 Mile of Hell. This has been a bucket list ride for me for quite some time. 5MOH is located in Green River, UT. My Canadian riding buddy James was driving down from Canada and we rode 5MOH it together. The ride itself was about 8 miles (maybe 5 miles as the crow flies). It was not as difficult as I had thought. I was burning a bit of rubber because I still had the stock tires on my Gas Gas and the rubber was a harder compound. We were supposed to ride in Moab after, but there was so many good riding spots in Green River, so we just stayed there. 

Click here to see video of 5MOH

Additional 5MOH videos here

September was uneventful as far as riding was concerned while my wrist healed. I went camping a lot with new friends. 

I got good use out of my camper trailer.

Kuma normally doesn't like water, but she finally swam across the creek during a walk. 

I almost ran over this snake in the road, luckily I was able to spot it. 

I purchased a 2023 Gas Gas 300 EX from AEO Powersports. This is my first ever new vehicle. I love my KTM, but I wish it were the XC model instead of the XC-W. I like how the linkage feels for the shock vs the PDS. Gas Gas is owned my KTM and essentially the same bike. The Gas Gas came with Braketec clutch and brakes, but I swapped them with the Brembo off my KTM. I also swapped the Mako 360 handlebar mount from the KTM. I added a radiator fan, radiator brace, skid plate, TPS guard, rotor guards, hand guards, and silencer with spark arrestor to the bike immediately. Nothing fancy. 

My second ride on the bike was a Hard Enduro Clinic with Max Gurston. Although I was still getting used to the bike, it did awesome. It rained pretty hard during the clinic and made some slippery wet conditions, but that was fine because it is good to practice in these conditions. There was also an ATR club ride and women's ride going on at the same location on the same weekend. 

Click here to see video of the clinic

The day after the clinic, I was messing around on my trials bike with another ride I had just met. He setup a trials corse using cones. There was a large rock that had to be cleared as part of the course with a sharp turn immediately after. Normally clearing a rock is no big deal if you have momentum, but going fast would ensure that I miss the turn. Trials riding is often about going slow and perfecting technique. I tried to hop the rock using a double blip technique, but I was late on my second blip and the rear tire was no longer weighted so I was unable to lift the front end. I went over the bars and caught my fall with my hands. I immediately felt pain in my right wrist.

I had broken my wrist and would have to wear a cast for at least 8 weeks. I got to choose the color of my cast and I chose red to match the new bike I was not able to ride. 

Click here to see the video of my crash

I gave my first official dirt bike lesson to a one of my co-workers. She owns an adventure bike as her 1st bike, but I think she was afraid of crashing. I let her use my DR-Z 125L for the lessons. I showed her the body position and a few things for her to focus on. It was my goal to have her feeling more confident by the end of the lesson. I tried to explain as much as I could so she would understand, without overloading her with too much at once. After doing some drills, we rode a small section of single track and she as doing great. At the end of the lesson she was feeling more confident and was amazed at some of the things she was able to do. 

On June 4th, the RJ Russo Kelly Canyon Enduro race took place in my hometown of Flagstaff. Arizona Trail Riders was the club putting on the race and I had already joined ATR, planning on working the race. Although I was an ATR member, I didn't know very many of the other members due to the club being based in Phoenix and I wasn't able to make any of the meetings. I met Travis Constant, owner of Arizona Dirt Bike Tours, while camping and he let me ride his Talaria electric bike. The Talaria was a very cool blend of mountain bike and dirt bike. I wouldn't mind having one myself. 

The race was an enduro format with 4 tests. I helped to mark the 1st test. We used ribbon tied to clothespins, which we clipped to tree branches and paper signs stapled to wooden stakes or trees. Wrong way signs were put at intersections in case a racer took a wrong turn. There was about 5 of us marking the course and we would leap frog past each other to set up markers. The course is mostly single track, so it was easy to mark. 

The day of the race, I was stationed at the road crossing in the middle of test 1. I had to make sure road traffic stopped if there was a racer crossing. After the last rider past, I swept the rest of the race while taking down the course markings. It rained mid day and made some sections muddy, but I'd prefer that to the dust. As far as I could tell, all the racers enjoyed the race. 

Mayer to Crown King has been a bucket list ride for me ever since I heard about it a few years ago. More specifically, the 'Bull Run' trail. I was able to join a great group for this ride. 5 of us total, all of 300 2 strokes. Kevin lead the ride and he is an A class AMRA racer. He was a little concerned about my abilities for this ride because I race C class. 

We started of on some fast flowy single track. After a few miles of that we started the Bull Run trail. It is through a creek bed and there was a good amount of water flowing. The rocks in the water are super slick, like riding on ice. There was a ton of challenging obstacles. We had to help each other out on a few of them. I only dumped my bike twice for the day. Unfortunately, I used most of my GoPro battery before the gnarly stuff at Bull Run. Before reaching Crown King I was a little concerned about my stamina level because I was getting very tired from this Bull Run trail. After getting a beer and burger in Crown King, I was feeling somewhat refreshed. We took the Bradshaw trail back, which was good, because I don't know if I'd be able to Bull Run again. The Bradshaw trail was fast and flowy with a few obstacles. 

Kevin said I did great for this ride, which is a relief to hear because I'd hate to be that person who holds up the ride. Overall, this is definitely one of my favorite rides. I can't wait to do it again. I would not recommend doing this ride alone. Take lots of water, snacks, tools, and electrolytes.  

285 hours and it is time for the top end. My bike ran fine, just doing preventative maintenance. I decided to do the work myself. After I got the cylinder off, I was not seeing cross hatches on the walls. So I shipped the cylinder off to millennium tech to be re-plated. 

While I was waiting for my cylinder, I got my Blaster running and took it for a few rides. I forget how gutless that engine is, especially with the heavy mud tires. I decided to swap sprockets from a 14 front 40 rear to a 13 front 44 rear. That should give me a little more power. 

I also got new tires on my street bike. I tried to fix the leaky gas cap, but was unscuesfull. The plastic tank is warped and doesn't seal well at the the gas cap. It is so warped that the tank plastic side panels don't line up with the bolt holes, so I had to leave them off. I guess I can't pop wheelies with a full tank of gas. 

I purchased a small camper trailer. It is built out of a truck bed. It has a canopy cover, solar water tubes on the roof, a table that mounts to the side, a compartment for water jugs, a sliding rail for a cooler, mounted propane tank, and a bed inside. So far I am very happy with this trailer. It is small enough that my truck pulls it no problem. 

I took my mountain bike out several times. With all the snow melting, there was quite a bit of water flowing, where it is usually dry. 

Finally, I got my cylinder back. It's hard to see in the picture, but the cross hatches look great now. After putting my bike back together, It started up no problem. I did 2 heat cycles before riding it at Wing Mountain. I didn't notice a difference in power. Unfortunately, I missed the Prescott AMRA race on May 13th. 

It feels great to be riding my main bike again. I felt like my mental health was going down the longer I wasn't riding. Even riding my friend's Beta, another friends YZ450F, my blaster, and my MTB it still wasn't satisfying my itch to ride. I needed to ride MY bike on some challenging single track. 

The Grinding Stone Hard Enduro race is held every year in Page, AZ and is part of the US Hard Enduro series. This is my second year attending. Page, AZ has unique terrain consisting of a ton of deep extra fine sand and large sandstone mesas (slick rock). I did a race in Page in 2021 with AZOP and it was all in the sand. The Grinding Stone race is held at the same location, but the sand track that I raced is the media/spectator loop. That is what makes this race unique and so much fun to spectate, because you get to ride to each of the obstacles and watch. 

This year, there was 3 races. Racers had to complete a single lap in the first race to qualify for the second race. About 70% of the racers were not able to complete a lap. The race course remains mostly the same for the second and 3rd races, but the lines are adjusted to be more difficult. The top 30 riders of the second race qualified for the last race. 

A few people I race with in AMRA entered this race. They were not able to get a lap in on the first race. They are B class riders (I'm C class), so that tells me that I am not ready to enter this race myself. I tried a few of the obstacles on my 300 in between races and struggled on some of the easy obstacles. I eventually got it, but it took me a few tries. I was not brave enough to try any harder obstacles. I really didn't want to get injured or break my bike. 

Grinding Stone was a blast to watch and I plan on going again next year. Trystan Hart won again, with Cody Webb in 2nd. It is mind blowing to watch these racers make it up obstacles that look impossible. Maybe someday I'll have the skills, endurance, and guts to enter this race. For now, I'm happy just to watch. 

Round 4 with AMRA was the Copper Classic race in San Manuel. It was about a 5 hour drive to reach San Manuel, but I did take the scenic route passing through Payson. Once again, I was happy to be out of the cold and in some nice weather. I was not able to practice riding this location before the race, so I was going into it blind. I have a brand new tire on the rear, the Tusk Crossbite. I chose this tire because it's knobs look like they will do well in sand and because it was only $50. 

On Friday, I setup my camp near the pits. The race was a hare scramble. For C class it was 2 12 mile laps, so I did not need to use the pit stop. I wasn't feeling nervous before this race for some reason, just excited to ride. I had just gotten a new camera, the Insta 360 X3. I wasn't sure how to mount it yet, so I didn't use it for the race. 

The race was another dead engine start, which is fine with me because I have electric start. I decided to go for the hole shot, but I tipped over in the first corner. I was quickly back up though and didn't loose much time. Most of the race was flowy single track with few places to pass other riders. I managed to pass a few people, but I got some mesquite branches stuck in my chain/wheel and had to pull over to rip them out. About 10 people passed me as I did this. I spent the rest of the race trying to pass as many people as I could. Some riders were nice enough to pull over when I was behind them and allow me to pass. A few riders I got stuck behind for 10-15 minutes unable to pass. There was an optional enduro section that I missed the first lap because I was following closely on the rider in front of me and missed the sign until it was too late. The second lap I hit both enduro sections. I had no trouble with the log hops; I wish I would have taken the enduro line both laps, because it was a great opportunity to pass. I got 13th in my class out of 27. Not bad, but I felt faster than many of the other riders, I just couldn't pass.  

After the race, I camped another night north of Oro Valley. My Wal-Mart tent and classic Coleman cooker served me well. I got to hang out with my Tucson friend on Sunday. I then camped another night in Rio Verde (Cave Creek). On Monday I rode the single track trails in Wildcat OHV. The weather was perfect and with all the recent rain, the it was very green with blooming flowers everywhere. 

I decided to race with AMRA this year on my 300. Unlike the AZOP races I've done in the past, AMRA is designed for dirt bikes only, so the track doesn't have to accommodate quads and side by sides. The first 2 AMRA races are held at Arizona Cycle Park, aka ACP. ACP is Arizona's largest dirt bike track. ACP has an old school track, vet track, SX track, and nationals track. I've ridden at ACP one time a few weeks prior on my 125sx. I spent most of my time on the vet track. By the end of the day, I was able to clear all the jumps on the vet track.  

On January 6th, I drove down to ACP. There was an hour long practice with the track setup for the race. The race track went through all the motocross tracks at ACP and out into the sandy desert. It was intimidating because there was so many people there and I was getting passed a lot. I say multiple people crash in the sand whoops. I even had someone slam into my back tire when I braked for a sharp turn, but my bike and I were fine. The race was split up, because there were so many riders. All of C class went first, then B, A, and AA class raced together. Super minis, then minis finished the day off. I decided to race Open C. I could have entered Vet30+, but in my experience, the older guys are faster than the younger ones.

There was an issue with the transponders that ACP forced us to use. The race was delayed due to this and I had to wait on the starting line for at least an hour. Finally, we got the 5 minute warning. It was a dead engine start. Then, without waring, we got the green flag. The track was muddy, as we were the first to use it. I rolled the jumps on the SX track. I was a little too excited in a straight away and couldn't slow down in time for a turn. I laid the bike down, but I did manage to stop before the barb wire fence. I was quickly back in the race. I finished the rest of the race without issue. I was trying to keep a constant steady pace. I saw some people pass in a hurry, then I passed them when they crashed on the sand whoops.

My riding buddy Dan raced with me on Saturday and let me borrow his easy up tent. It was nice to have so much space, compared to my walmart tent I've been using for years. I was even able to fit my bike in the tent and get a good nights sleep, without having to worry about my bike being stolen. There was 1 food vendor and their pulled pork was very delicious. I would have been nice if there was a few more food vendors though, because there was hundreds of people here. It was very cool to watch the AA riders. They are on a whole other level of fast. Unfortunately, GoPros are not allowed on helmets for AMRA. I forgot to bring my chest mount clip, so I didn't get any footage racing. The race was live broadcast though. I purchased a few photos too.   

Race Day 2: The race was delayed again, but not as long as the first day. I was prepared for the green flag this time after the 5 minute warning. I got the hole shot. It was awesome being the first person on the track out of the hundreds of people here. I overshot the first jump and landed on the flat, but it was fine. I eventually got passed by a few riders. The track was changed for the second day, but there was no practice to see the changes. I got mixed up in the wash and couldn't see the small arrow pointing out a turn. The AMRA volunteers were less than helpful in telling me which way to go. Besides that, Everything went well during the race. I passed a lot of people and was overall just having a ton of fun. I was planning on doing a no footer on the first vet track jump, but I got the checkered flag, so my race was over. The transponders were having issues, so I still am not sure how I placed. I wasn't hurt and had fun, so it's a win for me.

Bad news. Canyon MX is closing at the end of 2022. I was told the land is going to be turned into housing development, so not only is the tacks closed, but the surrounding desert areas will also be closed. My 125SX has a fresh top end, chain, sprockets, and tires. My work has a Christmas shutdown for about 2 weeks and I used that time to go to Canyon as much as possible. 

I think I ended up riding Canyon 5 times in December. It is a 2 hour drive from my house, but is the closest track. I was able to clear a few more jumps that I couldn't before, but not all of them. 

On December 31st, The last day Canyon was open, I did my first no footer on a jump. I'm not usually one for tricks, but there was someone taking pictures and I had to give it a shot. I also discovered another couple turn tracks behind the main track, that I didn't even know was there. It's even more a bummer that Canyon is closing. 

I had a lot of great memories at Canyon. It was the first MX track I've ridden, I broke my first bone here, and I meet some cool people. It's now a 3 hour drive to the closest track. 

Check out my instagram for video footage. @azdirtbikerider

www.instagram.com/p/Cm21VQireM1/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 

www.instagram.com/p/CmKQfP3POBX/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 

www.instagram.com/p/CmdD54pLqg9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 

I participated in the 'Howlin at the Moon' dirt bike event hosted by Arizona Trail riders. I have never done one of these events and thought it looked fun. I didn't know anyone else at this event. The event was held in Payson, AZ at the Elk's Lodge. 

I didn't realize it would be so cold and almost regretted signing up. I out found one of my Instagram followers lived in Star Valley (10 minutes from Payson) and she let me sleep at her place. I was so glad to not be tent camping. It was 32 degrees in the morning when I left for the elks lodge. My bike almost didn't start. Luckily I brought my mitts that fit over the handlebars to block the wind on my hands. 

Breakfast was provided at the Elks lodge. There was 3 different routes to choose from. A, B, or C in order of most difficult to least. I chose 'A' since I was on my 300 and most the people at this even were old guys on much bigger bikes. I grouped with 3 other people. The trails were fun, there was a few water crossings, a ton of rocks, and some really muddy sections. I was concerned I wouldn't have the stamina for the next 2 rides. 

I rode with my buddy Theodore down in Rimrock. He said there was a new wash he wanted to explore and I'm always game to explore and ride washes. The riding conditions were great. No dust and cool temperature. There was a massive rainbow in the direction wer were heading. 

The wash ended and Theodore said if we rode over the hill in front of us, there should be another wash to loop back. The hill ended up being pretty difficult and I had to help push Theodore's TTR230 at one spot. 

After we made it over the hill, there was no wash. We were running out of daylight and the TTR didn't have a headlight. I would have been fine with my Baja Designs light. We ended up riding over another hill and eventually found a wash leading us back. 

Check out my Instagram for video footage. @azdirtbikerider

www.instagram.com/p/Cj1fBPSJOIN/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 

I have an elk hunt coming up in December, so I decided to do some scouting and familiarize myself with the area. I rode all the areas my dad told me he'd like us to be. I didn't see any elk, but I know the roads now. I then decided to go to Casner mountain trail. It is a scenic ohv trail that connects Flagstaff to Sedona/Cottonwood. The last time I rode it was 3 years ago on my DR-Z400E. I remember there being a steep downhill section with large loose rocks. I lost my balance and tipped over on my DR-Z. I have thought about that hill quite a bit, but never made time to come back. 

Click here to see the YouTube on my DR-Z400E, 3 years ago. 

That was 3 years ago., 3 bikes ago, and that was before I had any training sessions with Ryan Wells (AZDirtBikeTraining.com). I've done 3 races since then. and spent quite a few hours on the track. Not to mention all the single track  riding. I was feeling confident about hitting this hill again. 

Before I got to Casner mountain trail, I stopped at the REDROCK SECRET MOUNTAIN trailhead (picture below), a hiking that I would like to do someday.

The views at Casner mountain did not disappoint. We have been getting rain and there are thousands of small yellow sunflowers. I rode the tail on top of the road until the final switchbacks down. I didn't want to ride to Sedona today and I can see some rain clouds in the distance. It was then that I realized that I already did the hill that I struggled with last time. It was such an easy ride that I didn't think any of the hills I just rode were 'THE hill  It is possible the road got cleaned up in the last 3 years, but I'm going to tell myself it is all me and my badass KTM 300XC-W TPI w/ TSP high comp head, tune, and custom suspension by KTM Tom. 

To end my ride, I got poured on pretty hard. I tried to go fast to get to the track quicker, but these fat rain drops hurt when your going 60mph. Oh well. I'm just glad we're still getting rain. 

Click here to see my recent YouTube of Casner mountain on my 300 XC-W. 

My buddy Skyler and I drove down to phoenix to pick up his bike from his sponsor. We decided to go to Canyon MX to make the drive worth while. It was triple digit temps at Canyon MX. Luckily the heat kept the crowds away and the track was fairly empty. 

We messed around on the enduro track in between main track sessions. Skyler was brave enough to go over the large tires first. Then, I did it. It is actually very easy. There is a smoother ramp up the tires, so no wheel pop is needed. 

Every 10 of so minutes we'd drink an entire water bottle because it was so hot. I soaked my jersey in water before hitting the main track, but it was dry in just a couple minutes. I had to open my truck's emergency MRE to get the electrolyte pack to avoid heat exhaustion. After the sun set it cooled off a bit, but it was still hot. I can't wait for it to cool off, so I can come here more often. My 125SX maintenance should be finished by then. 

A coworker wanted to tag along one of my rides and take some pictures. I brought the DR-Z 125 for him to ride. He was doing fine on the DR-Z, so at the end of our ride I let him try my 300. He immediately went straight for a ditch that he didn't see, whiskey throttled, and sent my bike hard into the ditch. Luckily he was not hurt. The same cannot be said for my bike. The handle bars were bent, the handguard was broken, the front fender was broken, and the forks were twisted. At least my coworker got some good pictures. 

I already had a few cracks and broken pieces on my plastics, so it was time to order a plastics kit. The forks were easy to fix, just loosen the lower triple clamp bolts, axle bolts, and push on the forks a few times until the wheel faces straight again. I decided to get CR High Bend Pro Taper Evo bars. I've always like the CR bend. I also put a Mako360 bar clamp, completely unnecessary, but I wanted to try it. Same with the TSP high compression head, completely unnecessary, but I wanted to try it. 

My rear tire was starting to loose knobs, so I had it replaced with the Tusk Recon. I've run this tire before and it works great for single track. I replaced was the headlight switch because it was cracked (before my coworker wrecked my bike). This was the hardest part of all the fixes/upgrades. The previous owner of the bike added blinkers, horn, blinker indicator, and high beam indicator. The connectors for the replacement switch was not the same and I had to do some testing with a multi meter to figure out what is what. On top of that I blew a fuse, making it even more difficult to figure out. Eventually I did get it though. 

The last thing is the Pro Taper Pillow Top Grips. These are my favorite grips. I'm not a big fan of waffle grips.  I've never dealt with 'lock on' grip before. It was a pain to get the old grip off the throttle tube, but I refused to buy another throttle tube. Eventually the grip came off after soaking it in kerosene. 

Overall, I think my bike looks pretty good. I'm a little disappointed the plastics kit didn't include airbox cover or headlight shroud, but I kind of like the orange pieces mixed with black. 

I know this isn’t a motorcycle adventure, but I’m using it as my first blog entry anyway. I was lucky enough to get invited on a rafting trip to Hell's Canyon in Idaho by my friend Rory. I was also lucky to get the time off work during our busy season. I have never done a rafting trip before, so this is all new to me. After spending a few hundred at REI, I was able to pack my dry bag with everything I needed, hopefully.

Rory and his girlfriend Morgan picked me up at 6am. We loaded his Tacoma and trailer the night before. I slept through most of the drive out of Arizona. I've seen it before, so I wasn't worried about missing anything. 

We stopped in Kanab to get gas and continued through Utah. There was a stream of running water running parallel to the highway and mountains made of slick rock. We set-up camp just after getting into Idaho. There was a constant loud buzz from the thousands of cicada bugs. After the sunset, the cicada's went quiet and we heard elk bugle not too far away. It's so nice to be outdoors and away from work. I'm excited and nervous for rapids to come. I have no idea what to expect for this trip. I guess I'll soon find out. 

Northbound, we drove through Boise. Miles and miles of farms and farm equipment. Everything here is so green, unlike Arizona where everything is so dry. We met up with James and AJ. We drove parallel to the snake river in hell's canyon on a twisty road. There was a sketchy dirt road on the other side of the river that looked too dangerous to take a truck on. It did look fun to try on a dirt bike, maybe someday. We set-up camp right next to the river, on the Oregon side. If we crossed the snake river, we would be in Idaho and the time zone would be an hour later. I saw a bald eagle chasing another bird. Later we saw a black bear and her cub across the river. It is so quiet and peaceful here. There are no cicadas and no mosquitoes. When the sun set, the crickets started to chirp. It's almost bedtime and we're still waiting for more of our group to show up. Dakota  and Carolyn arrived late. 

Day 1

We met at Scotty's at 7am. All 11 of us, ready to hit the river. It took a few hours to set up and rig the rafts. I can't believe how heavy they are and how much control 1 the person with the oars has. I went on Dakota's raft with Carolyn. There were 3 other rafts with our group. We had 2 class 4 rapids planned for today. We stopped to scout the rapids before hitting them. The first class 4 rapid was really fun. Even though I have never met Dakota before, I was confident in his ability to navigate the raft through the rapids without flipping the raft. We did hit some big waves, Dakota yelled for Carolyn and I to hit the front of the raft. We got completely soaked, but we didn't flip. The water is cold and there are a few clouds blocking the sun. I was just about dry when we reached the next class 4 rapid. Dakota got us through no problem. We barely got wet. A little ways further, we set-up camp. The salmon, potatoes, and beats for dinner were delicious. We did all the difficult stuff today. The next 5 days are going to be worry free rafting fun, in theory.

Day 2

After breakfast burritos, we set-up off on the rafts. Rory and Morgan rode in the ducky. There were a few class 3 rapids and the last class 4. We were told to visit Wild Bill by some other rafter the previous day. We parked the rafts next to a fast flowing creek, had lunch, and hiked the trail. It led us to a hidden oasis. There was a cabin, a large green grass field, Cornhole, and several other people. We were greeted by a man riding a 5 wheel john deer, Wild Bill. He was very nice and chatted with us at the picnic tables. Keep in mind, the only way to bring supplies here is via boat. When we got back on the water, Carolyn and I got turns rowing the raft. I was able to do a few rapids on my own, class 2 I think. We found a camp spot with a big beach. The pesto and tuna salad for dinner was great. I learned a new game called 'Trout'. Everyone stands in a circle with a drink in their dominant hand. Then, a beer is tossed around, no particular order. If you fail to catch it, you get a letter until it spells 'trout'. If the beer breaks when you fail to catch it, you have to shotgun the beer. If the beer leaks just a little, it's a wet fish and the game continues. I was doing well, but on my first missed catch the beer popped a hole in the can, so I had to shotgun it and I got a 'T'. That was the only letter I got. The water lever rose several feet up the beach throughout the night. When I went to bed, the stake anchors that were hammered about 10' from shore into the beach were under water. Hopefully the rafts aren't beached by morning when the water lever is down again.

Day 3 

The rafts were beached, so we had to lift them back to the water. Calm waters, small rapids, and clear skies. A very relaxed day with the exception of the occasional jet boat that doesn't slow down, leaving us to deal with the large wake. We visited a museum. I rode both duckies. Our camp spot had an amazing view, probably the best so far. We did see two rattlesnakes at our camp. Sonoran dogs for dinner. Light painting and tequila til bedtime.

Day 4

It is common for men to pee off the raft into the river. Matt was doing this, but he didn’t see the group of people on the shore where he was facing. He just waved; It’s only awkward if you don’t wave first. The merging of the salmon river made the river twice as wide with a lot of current. The water temperature was also a lot warmer due to the salmon river not being dammed.

Day 5

A calm day with now big rapids. I could start to feel that the trip is near the end and it bums me out. It's going to be difficult to leave this paradise and return to working 5 days a week. Camp is on another private beach. AJ and I cooked dinner, we served stir fry.

Day 6

Only 9 miles for the last day. Nothing too exciting, just enjoying the mountains, water, and nice weather. There are quite a few new houses on the Idaho side of the river. It took a couple hours to load up the rafts. I’ll miss this place. It was worth the 2 day drive, even with gas being more than $5 a gallon. I couldn't have asked to go with a better group or for better weather.