All Thursday 2-21-13 (Glamis)
- Thread starter mmjsport
- Start date
Good time today and what an adventure. Had a nasty fall at the end of the day now I'm super sore with a swollen shin and shoulder. I think I've had enough dunes to last me a LONG time lol
Want some cheese with that wine? It was fun for sure. I'm ready to go again.
Oh forgot to post up the results lol Well when I originally changed the stock gearing on my bike and added the 52 tooth rear sprocket, my chain was a link or so short, so I ended up buying a new longer one. So it actually helped when putting on the paddle since I was able to move the rear tire far enough back where the paddle never made any contact on the rear shock guard.
Yea, yesterdays adventure really showed me the importance of a GPS. I do have a GPS app on my phone that gives me coordinates and tells me how to find our way back...but there was no service out there in the dunes.
After finding our way into the bigger more secluded area of the dunes, my buddy's aluminum sprocket gave out as the hard constant spinning wore the teeth down almost completely, leaving nothing for the chain to grab (Steel sprockets FTW!). And since we were out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by massive steep dunes, we couldn't walk or push the bike back. We were going to try and double man it on my bike back but riding on steep hills in sand is hard enough with one person, there was little to no way we could of done it with two. So we needed to figure out first how to get back to camp, and then how to get the bike back. We were hoping to flag down a UTV or sand rail that could of strapped the bike down to it but that was more than likely not going to happen.
So as the afternoon approaching and fearing darkness, getting ourselves back was the main goal. I got on one big hill, my brother on another hill nearby and we waved our arms to passing riders. After nearly 45 minutes, some nice folks on quads stopped. Turned out that one of the guys on the quads had a GPS so he was able to tell us the coordinates of the bike. (If it wasn't for him having a GPS, we would of had to try and "remember" where we left the bike to come back for it but in the middle of a sand dunes area 45 miles long by 6 miles wide is near impossible with out GPS coordinates)
A guy on a utility two seater quad gave my buddy a ride back to camp. Once back at camp, we hit up the guys with UTV's at the Vendors who we figured have helped stranded riders before. One guy who worked there said he's done it several times and said he would help and he had a GPS. Only problem was the GPS was having issues and would not accept new coordinates. With only a couple hours of sunlight left, I was thinking the bike was going to sit overnight and get stolen. My buddy then began to ask random people at their camp sites if anyone had a working GPS. With a little luck, a nearby group did. So we gave him the coordinates and he led the way.
So, this trip showed me the importance of a GPS, and now the search for a quality user friendly GPS starts.
After finding our way into the bigger more secluded area of the dunes, my buddy's aluminum sprocket gave out as the hard constant spinning wore the teeth down almost completely, leaving nothing for the chain to grab (Steel sprockets FTW!). And since we were out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by massive steep dunes, we couldn't walk or push the bike back. We were going to try and double man it on my bike back but riding on steep hills in sand is hard enough with one person, there was little to no way we could of done it with two. So we needed to figure out first how to get back to camp, and then how to get the bike back. We were hoping to flag down a UTV or sand rail that could of strapped the bike down to it but that was more than likely not going to happen.
So as the afternoon approaching and fearing darkness, getting ourselves back was the main goal. I got on one big hill, my brother on another hill nearby and we waved our arms to passing riders. After nearly 45 minutes, some nice folks on quads stopped. Turned out that one of the guys on the quads had a GPS so he was able to tell us the coordinates of the bike. (If it wasn't for him having a GPS, we would of had to try and "remember" where we left the bike to come back for it but in the middle of a sand dunes area 45 miles long by 6 miles wide is near impossible with out GPS coordinates)
A guy on a utility two seater quad gave my buddy a ride back to camp. Once back at camp, we hit up the guys with UTV's at the Vendors who we figured have helped stranded riders before. One guy who worked there said he's done it several times and said he would help and he had a GPS. Only problem was the GPS was having issues and would not accept new coordinates. With only a couple hours of sunlight left, I was thinking the bike was going to sit overnight and get stolen. My buddy then began to ask random people at their camp sites if anyone had a working GPS. With a little luck, a nearby group did. So we gave him the coordinates and he led the way.
So, this trip showed me the importance of a GPS, and now the search for a quality user friendly GPS starts.
Wow that sucks Trav. Can't you use your computer to locate your lost SPOT?
Or, just keep them serviced (changed) at acceptable time tables, and not try taking the bike out to the dunes, when the sprocket teeth are probably already laying over like palm trees in the wind.
Yeah, that is when a GPS really comes in handy. Or when you find something cool out in the desert like all of the plane crash site memorials, you can mark them as waypoints so you can find them again on future rides. Thers 5-6 out in the Cal City area.
I really got mine as more of a "toy" to just track my route so when I get home I can load it into the computer and then into Google Earth so see the trails we rode. But as you found out, they can always come in handy.
I really got mine as more of a "toy" to just track my route so when I get home I can load it into the computer and then into Google Earth so see the trails we rode. But as you found out, they can always come in handy.
Or, just keep them serviced (changed) at acceptable time tables, and not try taking the bike out to the dunes, when the sprocket teeth are probably already laying over like palm trees in the wind.
That is always the best thing to do, but I don't monitor my friends or someone else's bike/gear when we go riding. So if they break down because they weren't keeping up with maintenance, then so be it. But regardless if its their fault or bad luck, I will do everything I can to help out. And having a GPS would have really come in handy.