2007 - Vintage TAT Ride - OK, NM, CO

Thanks

Gentlemen, I need an address to overnight the correct tool for your next mud crossing!!!

​

Man, those rock! what website are they on?

Way to go guys - now this is my kind of adventure ride report - nothing more fun than taking old iron out for a "little" ride, huh? Until last year, I regularly took my old DT250 out for 100 mile dirt rides, solo without any cell phone service. Always a good time when you have nothing but your wits to help you.

Looking forward to following your adventure.

This thread is and will continue to own!

I saw your report from Conejos River, I need to get to Colorado, I head up to Alberta every summer and hit the trails its very similar. I might alter my route this year and drop you a line!

The DT400C and the RT1 are in Lake City and headed to the final destination of Monticello, UT. Mission is nearly complete, to ride Ok, Nm, and Co on the old beasts of the past.

Notice: Any one riding the CO TAT be prepared for some issues, Roads washed out on West side of Marshall Pass, the North route is still snowed in. Took some work but made it around the washout. Several of the National Forest roads are closed, again took some work but all was good.

Will lay it out later, got to focus on getting the Mountain Bike thru its last leg tomorrow. Damn, I wish it wasnt over yet.

Go Vance! You make me wish I still had my '68 DT1.

Thanks to your post, I'm gonna go to work on mine for next year's journeys. Thanks! I look forward to more photos!!!

1975 DT400B

Can't wait to see the rest of the pictures and read the report!



sixer

I was in Decoys office when he sent the pictures of the mud tools, they are KTM parts, check your local dealer or I will have Decoy send out the part #'s. He said they really do a great job and beat the hell out of using eating utensels. Kieth

here is a picture and a part # I hope 54829035000 KTM part #

Kieth,

I think a set of those are a must if riding that stuff in Western Oklahoma. The front locking up from the mud wasnt so much a problem but the back was locking up too and freezing up the motors. I have not seen anything like it.

Thanks for the support, I will tell you that this has been the best ride ever on these old bikes. They performed very well and as Joe allowed "we rode the piss out of them".:eek1 :eek1

Back to the real world, the last section was a killer, I will not Hijack Vinnie's thread here but I just wanted to say that it would not have been possible to to do this ride without the never endiing genreosity and dedication of Vance H. (aka Vinnie the snake) thanks a ton man,

I rode a Honda 650L after I toasted my DT400 the scond day, and it was hard to do it with that bike, to do it on the vintage bike was a major feat. And Iron butt Joe is riding his RT360 back to So. Florida as we speak. That my freinds is a serious rider.

Dman

After the last refreshing stop for all of us to catch our breath, hearing every changing noise in each bike, conversations going from "my bike is really running great" to "something is pinging in your motor" to "I did not hear nothing" to "are we really going to try to make it.



We came across a little town of Elgin, Ks. Need to stop in there if traveling the TAT. Great little "nearly ghost town" for pics. I took the RoadLessTraveledMovie.com guys thru there the day I got to ride with them.

Elgin, Ks - Photo Op.


Joe, "What?"


All is find and dandy as we progress towards the Tall Grass Praire. Bikes killing all the fly bugs with in a half mile. Yahama Lube leaving a blue trail behind and all riders starting to settle in for the next several days of riding.

Little riding along we do and then trouble starts at the Tank Battery in the Tall Grass Prairie.


Mako's DT400B won't start. He kicks and kicks and Kicks. Finally, we pull start him and it fires shortly and off we go.

Dman blowing thru the H2O.


Vinnie & Joe






After the several hours of grinding away to make Newkirk, Ok for fuel we get a break, fuel up and then:

Welcome to Oklahoma Boys: Dman and Mako


Just kidding, the local Police was a good sport and let us play a little.

The problems for Mako just got worse. It takes Joe about a quarter mile to get the bike fired up, I tried to kick it over and "hey Gary, this thing has not compression"

Finally at about 24 miles from Blackwell, Ok, Mako lets us know he has cooked the motor. What now? Get to the motel and get to work.

24 mile tow job with Vinnie's DT400C


At the motel Dman starts it again, Mako has his bike all over the parking area. Motoguy is working to get his RT3 Running and back in the game after a 9 mile showing the first day. Then Dman picks on the little guy who owns the place.

Mako - Nascar Impressions



Motoguy "I think I got it"



Good Work Mako.


"I think I got it, if the bike wont run I'll ride the broom".


Mako's Problem - the "Dial-a-jet" aka "dial-a-seeze"


"I am not telling you again"


Night falls


Mako works late into the night.


Vinnie, Jgres and Dman check our oils and off to bed we went. All I can say is one hell of a Day for the Trans America Trail - OK Day 1

Summary:
Departed: 08:00 Broken Arrow, Ok intersected the TAT at Pryor, Ok
Arrived: 17:30 Blackwell, Ok

Motoguy RT3 - Down at 9 miles
Mako's DT400B Down with 24 miles to go.

Your guys are killing me----this is great stuff, and I am really enjoying it. Brings back such fond memories of days gone by where you rode awhile---and then worked on them awhile---just the way it was.

Me and Gaspipe are always dreamin'--------we are always talking about how we wish we could go back in time and ride all over circa 1953----when there was no land closures--you could just about ride anywhere---no global warming---hardly any private stuff you couldn't ride on---no greenies.

But we also had another dream----to ride back then on a 2008 model

You guys are my heroes !!!

Great report guys , don't recall ever reading a trip report on old iron like those, can't wait for more .

P.S. woulda been cool to have a Hodaka in the mix, I recall drooling over a Combat Wombat when I got the chance to ride my cousins little Hodaka 100 (Ace100?)

The morning started with rainy clouds, forcast of scatter rain just west of Blackwell and then potential clearing as we head West.

Everyone is excited with the 9:00 am departure as Mako and Motoguy worked well into the night fixing their bikes for the ride. Plan is a short day to Buffalo, Ok and camp the night there.

The day started with high hopes. We all fired up at 09:00 hrs as planned, chase truck in tow.

6 miles North of Blackwell and the motel, Mako's overhaul locks up and ends his hopes of the Vintage Ride. "Dial-a-Seeze" Strikes a second time on the trip.



Quick regrouping of the minds and riders, the quick decision is made to unload my Honda XR650L and put Mako on it to continue the trip and move forward to beat the weather. Quickly we unloaded the Honda and Loaded the first official casuality of the Vintage Ride on the Chase Truck and progress West on Day 2 of the TAT Vintage Ride.

The ride is looking up, bikes are grinding away, smiles are coming to the faces of the riders and all is well. Maybe not. Mile 24 for Day-2 Dman on the Radio, "Vance, I just froze up". "snxlkdgf me" not another one. We out of spare bikes, spare heads, and what now.



Motoguy is having problems keeping up so I thought no problem we can make this work, then I realized that Dman was the froze up bike, now we got two "dial-a-seeze" DT400B's and one RT3 barely running.

The effected rider had a quick meeting along side the road and decided that Makotosun and Motoguy would go back to Blackwell and arrange for rides back home to Washington and Oregon. Dman would take the operations of the Honda650L and we would proceed West with Three.

Couple of long hours in the rain while the chase truck takes what he can haul back to Blackwell and returns to load Dman's DT400B, we finally get going at about 13:00 hours.

Life is good on the TAT once again.


We begin cruzing and having a better day after the loss of two fellow riders and three bike. I don't know about Jgresh but myself, I had all kinds of weard noises coming from the motor, the front end, the bearings, O MY GOD, Not the oil pump. After the panic inside, all seemed to be working quite well actually other than my imagination.

Just cruzing then my dear friend Jgresh passes me on the muddy road. I slow to watch as he is putting on quite the show. BOOM, he busts his arse, as I ride up on him laughing , I realize that this may be bad:eek1 , no this is bad:eek1 :eek1, I pass Joe then Boom, I bust my arse.

I roll over to wave Dman off, but tooooo late, Boom he follow suit.


This mud is like no other, I mean it is bad shxx, and took a toll on the bikes and the riders.


First it locked up the front wheels and then the back, we messed with, muscled with and finally after 4 hours we had completed the "Mile from Hell"


We worked out way out, myself with a little help of the wheat field next to us. Only place I could get traction and keep the tires rolling.

At the end of the Mile-O-Mud.


More of Day-2 later