Sport-Touring the Dalton Highway?

Finished the last three

Just seen the first video, and very enjoyable. I have daydreams of doing a similar trip but across Canada from (say) Toronto. Who knows? PS You don't need an off-road bike with knobbly tyres to be an Adventure rider. It's all in the mind.

In my mind, I'm always right. Then I wake up and I find that I'm wrong about everything.

Not really experienced, but it seems that learning to ride dirt bikes when you are young instills some basic skills that stick with you when you get off the pavement.
The wood bridges looked slick, but I never felt any slippage.
Of course, I never ride near the limits on wet surfaces.

ROFL!

Caused by my "tunnel-vision" focus on the BunBurner Gold 1500...
It seemed to me to be a near-impossible feat, and I convinced myself that I would have to stretch each tank in order to reduce my fuel stops by ONE.

As the tank dropped into its last gallon, I passed up a gas station that was a mile away from the highway, planning to take the NEXT exit.
Unfortunately, there was no fuel available from that point to the Tennessee line.

i watched all the videos covering the dalton, and plan to watch the rest, Can u point me to the section in your video that everyone calls roller coasters hill?

thank you for sharing...

thank you for the report and video. I was up north to deadhorse in july and your shots were great. There is so much to see...i know you will have to return, i have made three trips and will return with a good video camera....horsemoto on the loose !!

I do believe that was the best ride report I have seen yet! Watched all the episodes, awesome footage & editing! Thanks for sharing that fine piece of work.

Nice! Can't wait to give it a go myself!

That was great. I even managed to up vote the first and last videos. I will go back and up vote the rest.

Great job on the videos. Have watched the first four and just gotta stop and get some sleep before its time to get up. Your videos are addictive! Great job with the combination of video and still shots and your comments are perfect.

I enjoyed watching the video's.
Man, you sure got your share of rain

Rick,

Epic.

Watched the first video and was hooked. Just finished the last of 7 videos in one sitting. I just could not turn away from your adventure. I plan on a very similar trip this summer to Deadhorse and hope to thrown in the Dempster Highway for good measure.

Your editing was perfect, natural sounds/silence and music in the right places, mix of video and stills kept my interest and you added just the right amount of naration. You did a great job. Props to you and the mighty Concours. Thanks for taking us along on your trip.

Woody

Great videos and trip report!!!

I did the ride to Prudhoe Bay in mid-June and it's hard to explain to people what the ever changing conditions were like.
Now I can show them your videos!

.

I wish I could.
I heard about Roller Coaster Hill a lot on IceRoad Truckers, but I didn't mark it on the map, and I don't remember seeing a sign for it.
It may be the hill in the still photo in the intro....

But there were some other landmarks with signs.....

Good video and thanks for sharing! You are not that far from me so good to know another Carolinian made a trip up there. Speaking of that, what riding gear did you wore? How did it handle both hot and cool/cold weather? Still trying to find a good textile jacket/pant that can do well in both weather at budget price.

i was just curious, i can't imagine it's as bad as they make
it out to be on tv.... looks like a straight drop on tv....

This is my all time favorite RR!

Good point....
I had seen photos of the extreme grades on some of those hills as well, and I actually wondered if I would be able to climb them if it was muddy.
It turns out that telephoto lens manipulation can make a mountain out of a hill.
I went up & down Rollercoster Hill and BeaverSlide without even knowing it.

I had to go over Atigun Pass in the mud both times due to the Calcium Chloride truck/grader work.
That's a 12% grade, and it was definitely noticeable, but there was never a question whether I would be able to get up it even with my street tires.

The most challenging parts were the deep mud and deep gravel sections which happened to be on near-level grades.
And that deep mud "terror" I went through on the way up was 50mph smooth packed dirt when I came back 2 days later.

I get a chuckle every time someone says that the Dalton is a piece of cake -- a quick run-up and run-back -- after doing it once.
It's all about the weather and the construction. Could be a dream or a nightmare.

Here's an overview:

Joe Rocket Meteor jacket - black/gray
5 years old
Water resistant
Lots of vents and an insulated liner

First Gear riding pants
can't think of the model...
5 years old
Almost water-resistant
textile w/ armor and an insulated liner.

Tourmaster Sentinel Rain jacket & pants - yellow/black
Water-resistant
Also used as an extra layer when it got too cold.

Tourmaster Solution boots
Almost waterproof.
Comfortable - only footwear for a month

Chino boot rain covers
waterproof until they rip apart
Great for mud - my boots stayed clean

Held Steve gloves down to 50 degrees F

Thick insulated no-name winter gloves for colder

Scorpion EXO-900 Transformer
Convertable modular with flip-down sun visor
Full face in cold/rain
Open 3/4 in the hot weather

Aerostich 3-finger glove covers
Waterproof for the rain
Windproof for the cold

Duofold Polar long underwear
to make up for not having true winter outer gear.

REI merino wool socks

CAMP7 mummy bag
30 years old
Company no longer in business

Eureka tent
18 years old
Son's old Boy Scout tent found in the closet
Water resistant in a few places :eek1
Now replaced by new REI Half Dome 2+

Kelty Noah's Tarp 12 X 12

Exped Synmat 7 sleeping pad
Insulated
2.8 inches think
Built in pump

Empty 20-oz. Gatorade bottle
Always kept in tent


BTW:
I just purchased a new jacket this week for hot weather :
Olympia Airglide 3 mesh
Hi-Viz Yellow
Waterproof zip-out liner
Insulated zip-out liner

I decided to wear it to work today to test out the "waterproofness".
It was raining and 46 Degrees F when I left home.
I got to work warm and dry except for my crotch - not a fault of the jacket.
I think with the liners in, it may be as warm as my other jacket!

I almost bought this jacket for $289 in Sept for my birthday gift, but held off.
Now it's on closeout at RevZilla & Motorcycle Superstore for $159.