Swamp: The Quest for Entelecheia and The Making of "The American Flesh Eater" Route

Hey Swamp,

Great report...dig your style.
I have an XT250 and I ride it everywhere. A lot of my friends give me shit that it is too small. All I tell them is why don't you grab your bike and follow me
Yeah no thanks is mostly what I get. Good on ya for promoting small bike adventuring


Be safe

Michael<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>

Enjoying your report. Savor the journey!

I think that this is finally going to motivate me to get my XT running again.

Charge on dude

Swamp --
Looks like you might have had lunch at the Oark Cafe on the 28th. Wish I'd have known you were going to be there. I'd have ridden down (with a couple of beers in my tankbag) to say "howdy".
Next time you're going through Northwest Arkansas give me a shout.

Bet there's one of them cool stickers somewhere in Oark too. I'll look for it next time I'm down there.

-- alonzo

oh man ! I would have loved to have some beer.
its a dry county there.

you're right. you might find one of them cool stickers somewhere in Oark

My buddy owns a 530 Christini and I've rode it. I wouldn't recommend it to anybody. Not to mention the damaged parts, and tool time that bike has seen. (It's maybe at 60 hours now)

awesome!

another epic ride.

That's a shame to hear.....

When it's working is it as incredible as you'd imagine AWD being for climbing up hills & over stuff?

It climbs up hills but you have to stay on the bike. I took it to a steeper incline with loose rocks, flipped the switch and attempted to simulate a "i'm stuck on the hill" senario. I had trouble jumping back on the bike and keeping balance/momentum, etc. It's not like what most people would think. Then when the rear wheel spins it goes where the front is pointing, not always want you want. IMO, the extra grip from climbing is highly outweighed by the poor mechanical feedback in the bars, bad predictability, and added weight.

In the same situation (I wasn't actually suck), I could have jumped on my 2-stroke dirt bike and powered up it no problem.

The bike feels sluggish/heavy and your arms are given a workout from all the feedback. On top of that, it's not confidence building both in 2wd and disengaged because the system still returns that feedback.

I was glad at the time to jump back on my XR650R. That's a pretty bold statement considing this is a $18,000 dirtbike that had 8 hours on it, not to mention 10 year newer tech.

He's since torn the front hub apart countless times for maintenance and recently took out the whole front hub assembly and repairing it at the moment. He's estimated his work time on the system is above his ride time, not counting the OTHER bike maintenance stuff which IMO, is almost equal to ride time.

This might be an isolated case, but even the owner is regreting the decision now.

BTW, this wasn't a premade bike. He bought the KTM, stripped it down, sent all the peices to Christini, had them build it/modify the frame, send it back, and then rebuild the bike again which is typical. I think they have "premade" CRF's and KTM 300's now. He's been in contact with Christini regarding most of his issues.

mind talking Christini bikes in the Christini section?

Day Five: Nevada Desert, Mountains, Canyons, Beauty and Oddness.
Im going to show you some pictures that will make you think of Nevada in a different way. It really is a beautiful state. The only way you can see it in this way is to follow creek beds, canyons, sand and rocks... so here we go.





I reluctantly get out of the hammock around 7:00. I Feel well rested.
its cold. Last night Dark blue clouds rolled in and dropped sleet and rain.
Heavy gusts of wind for about 3 hours then everything died. silence .. except for the coyotes.






















I cook up a cup of Oats, pack up my camp, apply my athletes foot cream, body armor and enduro boots.



The extra weight of the MSR Fuel Bottle in my backpack has to go. its bothering me.
so i dump the contents of the bottle into the gas tank.






























Today i will be going up mountains ,down mountains, through long stretches of desert wilderness, washes, and canyons. I dont have a stopping point / destination. Ill stop when i run out of energy and patience.






first on my list was to leave the ghosted mining town of Union in my dust...



































I ride through Union Canyon.
Large, plastic like bushes. i love that green color. the yellows are nice too. some of these bushes / plants smell like wet dogs. some have a repulsive sweet smell that makes me gag.








the canyon pass trail is filled with deep sand and at times turns into a creek bed filled with rocks. its a fun , interesting ride.

I come to a section that opens up. there i find this old car filled with bullet holes. how it arrived here i can only imagine. i like to think of a couple good ol' boys were out high on 'shine and believing each other's lies one night. the passenger talks the driver into taking his car into the canyon. later .. the driver feels like an idiot and is pissed off at the passenger for daring him.





















the Canyon trail spills out right onto the Yomba Shoshone Native American Reservation.


Im heading far into the desert after this point so i need to get as much gas as possible now.
I see 3 tanks lifted into the air on stilts. After doing a ride by i see the first one reads "off road diesel ". the second one reads "diesel" and the third one reads... "diesel".

there is a large metal building. white. rounded on top.
guy inside dicking with a trailer tongue. trying to dig the jammed latch out or something.

me: "hey man, do you know where i can buy some unleaded gas ?"
man: "see that building over there that looks like a gymnasium ?
they can help you there"


so i ride over to the building. go in.

big fucking Native guy. probably 6ft 6" 300lbs. has a tiny child voice.
telling the lady behind the counter that he lost all his money last week and needs a job breaking rocks , anythings yadda yadda
they both look at me.

me: "do you have any unleaded gasoline ?"
lady: "yea i can help you with that"

back to the 3 large, lifted tanks.

we go to the one in the middle.

me: "my bike cant run on diesel ma'am"
lady: "oh this is an old Indian trick. we write "diesel" on all the tanks so that nobody steels our unleaded at night. only we know which one has unleaded. this one is unleaded".

hmm. neat trick.
fill up. fill out the ladys log book with my name address and phone number.









Head out:





















































at this point im still on the Yomba Shoshone Tribe's Land.
I meet a white truck going the opposite direction.
3 guys get out in "advantage" camo with guns... then turn and start
hiking up the mountain to do some hunting.






can you see their truck from here ?
















Im pretty sure this place was not meant to be disturbed.
so I didnt go investigate. I think it is a tomb or ritual cave.

















Nearing Ophir Summit.
















































for the next few hours i will be riding through the Arc Dome Wilderness area














now, its time to go over the top of the mountain then ride it down into the
canyon below i wonder whats down there ?





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXnCnn9Ip6Q








<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/nXnCnn9Ip6Q" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>








On the way down i find this bush full of berries. they smell poisonous so i dont eat them. im interested in them because these do not grow in alabama... in fact. nearly all the plants around me do not grow in alabama.













































http://www.youtube.com/user/dnbstudio2002#p/u/4/djMmiUAVvFE

<iframe width="420" height="420" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/djMmiUAVvFE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>















Down into the canyon i discover some old buildings. I imagine one is an old church. one looks like it may have been a saloon and then there are a few tiny homes.
































































deep in a desert canyon: Arc Dome Wilderness NV

















out of the canyon now.
I stop for lunch (Cliff "builders" peanut butter flavor protein bar)























This is the view from where Im standing

































As you can see. if you try to cross nevada in the dirt (which im trying) you must go through large sections of desert, then hit a mountain , find a way over or through the mountain, then go through the desert. .. repeat repeat repeat. its really cool riding.



so i head through the desert. feeling good about well... everything.







every moto-trip ive been on there is a day where the switch gets thrown and i become the trip. the anxiety disappears. its "the fall in".
today was the day of "the fall in".













after riding for a while i came to a small town.
















sorrygoddarant:
when you are in a desert.. you buy gas when you can get it. even if you dont need it. never say: "well ... ive got half a tank.. im ok". no , fill that fucker up god damn it because if you dont you Will run out.


so, i come to this small town.
sign reads "carvers, gas.." hell .. you read it :






the first step to the door reads "Badass"

























I walk inside


















http://www.youtube.com/user/dnbstudio2002#p/u/3/ZlUn9EJ2BjY

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ZlUn9EJ2BjY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
























now. ive come to yet another mountain range.
have to try to either go over them or through them.
i first try to go over them.

find a trail that leads into a valley.

i come upon a man a woman a teenage girl and a teenage boy.
they are in the valley cutting down scrubby trees that look like overgrown
juniper for firewood.

me " do you know if this trail will take me over the mountain "
man: " not sure, we dont go back there"

me : "ok thanks !"



so i ride to the top of the mountain. lots of creek beds, uphill switchbacks rocks and more rocks.

i find a giant solar panel connected to some kind of antennae. :huh






















i go over the summit and start trying to get down in the valley.
I find this stuff:















the path closes out. everything is covered in that juniper desert tree gnarly weed. so i get off the bike and start hiking around. scouting for a way down.







i spot this old mine












video of me scouting around for a possible pass through..and talking to myself :





http://www.youtube.com/user/dnbstudio2002#p/u/2/BcU957njmRQ

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BcU957njmRQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>






ah.. shit. i cant get through. pisses me off. spent all that time finding a way around those fences and following dead ends ... just to get to this ULTIMATE dead end. meh. i ride back down. meet the woodcutters again. "you guys know about that old mine thats on the other side of the mountain, just past the summit ?" them: "nah, .. there is an old mine back there ?"








so i go back out, then ride to the next valley over. maybe i can pass through these mountains instead of trying to go Over them.. jeez (Glad i got gas even though i didnt need it ).





http://www.youtube.com/user/dnbstudio2002#p/u/1/UG044m2_tns



<iframe width="420" height="420" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UG044m2_tns" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>








this time i made it through. ha haaa!



and what was on the other side of the mountains ? you guessed it.
more desert. loooong stretch of desert. deep sand. absolutely beautiful landscapes. ooey gooey eyeballs. ooey gooey eyeballs.




































most of Nevada is "open range", no fences. the cattle , horses just roam free.


this is a heard of wild mustangs. not sure if you can see how long their hair is. but man, they were awesome. just running around free in a painted dream world.









































well .. then what? you say.
well then if i wanted to continue East (which i did want to) i had to cross another set of mountains. (at this point the novelty was wearing off quickly)






















so i headed into the canyon to try to pass through the mountains.

at this point i was nearly at reserve, AND on my way to blaze blindly into another canyon to "make a pass".. lol at making a pass. so i was slightly er.. apprehensive. yes. just slightly







copied directly from my ride journal:
"something about Nevada that makes the mind drift toward the stars. so much contrast from the desert the mountains and the sky. so much empty space filled with distance that is unoccupied by humans and void of water."










so i get back into this canyon.. like deep deep into the In-zone of this mo'fo.

i start weaving through these trees. the trees keep getting tighter. then i start seeing these mine shafts. i nearly rode right into this one.















the trees close in too much. i start to worry too much about my gas and the decreasing amount of daylight. the shadows were getting pretty long at this point.



these next few pictures is what i had ridden myself into. this is what i was surrounded by:





























:huh





so i aborted and followed my tracks out of the desert forest ( desert forest?)


i hit a highway hoping that when i ran out of gas a car would help me out.

at this point it was dark and i was CERTAIN i was going to run out of gas.

getting cold. loud god damn wind noise. had to change from mirror goggles to clear safety glasses. wind going directly into my tear ducts. irritated. .. i had run out of patience but not gas.

i run a "natural" tank so i can see exactly how much gas i have. i couldnt stop looking at it.

then i see a town coming up that wasnt even on my GPS unit :huh




Rachael






tiny.







looks like a bar.








i go into the bar.
me to bartender: " got any gas"
bartender: " yea we sell it out of 5 gallon cans. its $10 / gallon. gotta buy 5 gallons"
me: "sell it to me.... got any beer?"




so i sit down and have a beer and order a cheeseburger.

i see this guy keep looking at me. he is dressed different than everyone else around here. most people are dressed like truckers and farmers t-shirt , jeans , ball-caps (you know). this guy is wearing a tie. looks slightly "not right" in a shifty eyed way.


bartender brings me another beer.
"guy over there bought you this"
me: "ok"


guy comes over.

guy: "do you know where you are ?"
me : ".. uh Rachael nevada ?"
guy: "No..do you know where you are....?"

me: "mm.. no . where are we?"
guy: "AREA 51 is a few miles down that dirt road right outside that door"
me: "what ?"


guy keeps buying me beer.
im thinking: this guy wants to get me drunk , tie me down, cover me in lotion , cut open my stomach , hook my intestines then spool them out of me onto a giant wooden thimble.


guy: how old do you think i am?
me: er. . you look about 48 or 52
guy: yea.. ive been here for a while. but i look pretty young.
im really 923 years old.
me: are you serious ? are you fucking with me?
guy: no, let me the story of how i found this place.
i was in the Arizona desert. i met an Indian Shaman who gave me an Eagle feather and told me to come HERE. I have been here ever since.



THATS WHEN I TURNED ON MY HELMET CAMERA





http://www.youtube.com/user/dnbstudio2002#p/u/0/nMYJRLHcfnA


<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/nMYJRLHcfnA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>










... yea hellllooooo Captain InsanO


so ,
I ended up staying in this old trailer behind the bar.
there was some big fat sweaty fucker in there on the couch.
i slept with my knife next to my pillow. I had obviously landed at the clown farm.








__________________________
next time, the quest continues. ARIZONA, replacing parts and other minor adjustments
__________________________



Swamp

VERY well done, excellent choice of route, landscape, photography, top notch.

Photos below:

The first is a mining adit (horizontal entrance), with tailings spilling out of the entrance.

Next two photos show a rosehip (fruit left after the flower finishes) from a wild rose, they are edible and also make good tea.

Keep it up please~!

Great RR so far swamp. Excellent pics and videos. The one with the guy in Area 51 is hillarious. What video camera do you use? Keep the RR coming. Looking forward to the next installment....

Dude this is just BAD ASS!!

JOE !! LMFAO!


Mr. Sleezy, Thanks for clearing that up for me. i appreciate it.
love the info about the rosehip and the mining adit.
again, thank you sir.


cornbread,
nice to have you along for the Ride Report


motoPsycho,
I run a Drift 170x camera. its not an HD camera. It has a remote control. It takes 2 AA batteries. i love it.
same camera i used in baja, costa rica. the only thing i dont like about it is that it makes the obstacles look puny.

Swamp --
What sprockets were you running on this trip?
-- alonzo

15 T front and 53T rear (what i use for single track riding in alabama) running 110/100 rear tires
top speed was 54mph... and thats going downhill with the motor screaming.
so my average speed was probably around 20-30mph.. maybe slower.


--Gravlee

great pics man, and quick thinking on the helmet cam... better duplicate your youtube account before some civil rights folk say you've violated an alien and demand take down lol

Tuesday 9/13/2011


I wake up really early. I feel dirty from sleeping in the bed. it had sweat stains
on the sheets.














these were the pictures that hung on the walls of the room


























It was pretty chilly when i walked outside. I think it was around 7:00


My front sprocket was wearing out. big pile of metal shavings beneath it.
"hell yea, im going to wear this bitch out ". something satisfying about that.






I head out.

Something white catches my eye off to the right.
Strange because there was a whole lot of nothing and then this white thing. hard to miss. I walk up to it . its bullet-proof .. however its not redneck proof.

im thinking: " hey, thats that secret drop box thing from those alien movies and conspiracy shows ". ...








so i ride that bitch..































the natives had erected a silver ET.
it didnt have balls or a penis so it must have been a statue of a female ET.



















I arrive at the "knotty Pine" . a breakfast joint in the town of Calliente NV.
Old town that sprung up around a Rail Road station a long time ago.



















Women here like to wear 80's perms 1/2 blonde half brown , stone washed jeans , leopard print, silk shirts that tie in front. Red lips red nails ... you know the "lot lizard " look.

but god damn it, they sure know how to make a coma inducing breakfast.
And THAT my friends.. is sexy












3 pancakes
2 eggs over easy
2 sausage patties
toast
hash browns
coffee


This breakfast surely would have killed a lesser man...
such as a Frail, Aids Ridden, African child


filled their crapper up to the rim then hit the road feeling , healthy ?









Echo Canyon "state recreation area "



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLlJJ5vBY0g




<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/eLlJJ5vBY0g?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
















Riding through the desert then into a small shrubby tree wooded canyon hilly..er area . i miss a turn and ride at least 30 minutes in the wrong direction fun riding though. the whole time being rained on. not heavy just persistent. some rattling sound driving me crazy.

pretty through here. lots of trails branching off.

Piece of shit TrailTech Endurance computer is falling apart. garbage . waste of money. not angry. funny they call it an "endurance computer".








I ride into the town of Modena Utah















my sprocket is making a crunching sound.. crrchik crrchik crrchik
"i wonder if this thing is ever going to give up ?"














The little town has a Post office / Gas Station that have both been abandoned.

























i spend about 20 minutes looking around, taking pictures and eating a protein bar. i see no one and hear nothing. i like this town.








































i ride through the town.

I see an older woman working on a big, brown old kawasaki :huh

so i pull in to her drive way.

she lives across the street from this old place:



























she had Burning Man memorabilia tied to her chain link fence and nailed to her home. i could tell she was very attractive about 30 years ago.
super nice lady.


i asked her if she had any WD40.

she spun the rear wheel while i hosed the chain down.


asked her if she had gone to Burning Man this year.
turned out that this was the first year she had missed the event.







I stop near Vayo Volcano. sprocket is chipping teeth now. crunchy critter.
crunchy critter. i call information 1411 . looking for a yamaha dealer near St.George. I find one called Motozoo. call them and order another 15T front sprocket. It will take 2 days for the sprocket to arrive at their shop.. cool. ill just hang out in Snow Canyon for a while, do some bike maintenance and a needed re-rejet.






i ride into St. George
make a stop at the local Auto Zone to do an oil change.
then go pick up a few beers and a can of pork n beans.


















I head to Snow Canyon State Park.
Find a good camp site next to the canyon wall with lots of shade.
perfect for my hammock.


















I cook up the Pork n' Beans and conduct a side-by-side-taste-test-comparison between Modelo Especial and Coors while listening to Russian Circles on my phones MP3 player.
















Conclusion of the Entelecheia Taste Test Comparo:

Coors is a better product and has so much more going for it than the Modelo :
1. vented wide mouth can
2. bolder thicker taste
3. a specific origin "Golden, Colorado" Modelo is simply "Hecho in Mexico"
4. Coors has Mountains on the can. Modelo has some stupid old building on their can.















Im delightfully surprised to catch a pretty good buzz off the 48oz combo.






























my view of Snow Canyon State Park































by the time i had finished writing in my travel journal it was dark.

on the way back to the campsite i was dragging my feet like the cave man i am.. and happened to kick something which made a familiar "big bolt bounding across the ground " sound. i picked it up and set it on a picnic bench to examine in the morning.





_________________________________ ------ -_-_---_ ___**



Wednesday 9 /14 /2011

the next morning i woke up cooked up my special "ADV Oats"







and got to working on the bike.


copied from my travel journal "the real ride report" :

"As I sit here smoking , drinking and eating candy bars. I believe that the Great Wolf Spirit of Motorcycle Adventure made me stop in this canyon. To find this motor mount bolt and Repair the bike so that i may continue on my quest"




The bolt that i kicked across the ground last night




I cant believe it just fell out right next the bike.

its the bolt that my fucking motor hangs from :eek1













im pretty sure one of the reasons i found it was because i made this Voodoo Creeper and hung it from the tree yesterday before nightfall. I made it to keep away Skin Walkers and evil "blair witch project " demons. ..yea i know you think im a hippie or something now but.... kiss my ass it worked.





























































Carburetor Settings:
start of ride-no snorkel , 42.5 pilot, 130 Main

settings for Utah and Colorado
changed the main to 127.5




the carburetor bowl was filled with lots of dirty vagina. so i cleaned that out pretty good too.




ran awesome after that.

























next time :
Arizona and Escalante Wilderness areas and front sprocket gets FUBARed





Swamp (DGravlee)





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Good stuff! Your descriptions of Nevada are spot on. I've explored much of the terrain you covered! Really digging the surreal look of your photos.