A n00b's Journey.

It’s weird being 51 years old, and a n00b, but that’s the deal in hand, so I guess I’m going to have to live with it.


Evidently, a bit of background is appropriate in these situations:


I’m a 51 year old 236 lb. old fart. Got six kids (two step); divorced once; remarried and raising a second family of three kids --- one in high school, one in middle school, and one ending up grade school. Yup, I’m in the thick of it … again.


By all rights, I shouldn’t even be looking at this site. I’ve got too many responsibilities, too many bases to cover, too many people wanting and deserving a piece of me; but, I own a company, make decent money, own everything but the house and our travel trailer, and my amazing wife runs the house like a top. We both love our kids and love the parent thing, so the kidlets get plenty of time and attention daily. Add to that, Beth (my wife) is incredibly independent, as am I, and totally gets the idea that I kind of need my time adventuring. She even says, “Geez, honey, you earn the money, I think you deserve a toy from time to time just like the kids.” OMG, drop to your knees fellows, and thank the Gods for the wives we don’t deserve. Beth married me knowing I liked riding my bike. I had bought a TW200 after my divorce, and I ride it all over the hills around here. So she sorta knew what she was getting into. But, I’m not really a traditional motorcycle guy.



I had a Yamaha TY250 trials bike when I was 20 that I love to play around in the woods with.








Even then I didn&#8217;t really care about going too fast, I just wanted to go explore places. Got to drive around through the woods back when you could do that without thinking about a lot of politics. I even drove around <st1lace w:st="on">Lake Michigan</st1lace> on my trials bike one summer; it was absolutely fantastic and a complete pain in the ass. (Think no panniers or bike bags, a thirty pound back pack, and a trials bike saddle.)


I got into the family business soon enough, though, and once the trials bike was gone I couldn&#8217;t justify the cost of a motorbike against the kids dental bills. So, I road a mountain bike locally<st1:city w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on"></st1lace></st1:city>. The good news is that there&#8217;s lots of mountains in around <st1:city w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on">Bozeman</st1lace></st1:city><st1:state w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on"></st1lace></st1:state>, so I did get plenty of riding in---it was just at far less than one horse power.


(I gotta get around to this RR or I&#8217;ll be loosing any shot I got at even one star.)


Then the divorce. Nice 50/50 split---she got the assets, I got the debts. She didn&#8217;t get any of the company though, so I thought it was a good deal.

In short order, I bought a toy: a Yamaha TW200. I was back on a motor bike in the woods.



<o> </o>

A TW200 is a beautiful thing. First, it&#8217;s a Yamaha, and I loved my Yamaha trials bike, so the yellow bikes got my loyalty. (Why the hell did they switch to blue?). Second, it&#8217;ll take you just about as many places. Now, a trials bike can go, no shit, anywhere---with a real rider, not me--but a T-dub holds its own and is a GREAT bike in the woods. If it only had 400cc and a bigger flywheel, you&#8217;d be climbing trees; but it doesn&#8217;t and it&#8217;s doubly burdened by my potato digger body, so it&#8217;s fun as hell, though fundamentally underpowered.

Anyway, I run into this damn site! Friggen guys bombing around <st1:country-region w:st="on">India</st1:country-region> ,and <st1:country-region w:st="on">Angola</st1:country-region>, and <st1:state w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on">Alaska</st1lace></st1:state>, and even in my own back yard riding the Continental Divide. Holy Crap, that looks like fun! And then I find beemerboy riding around <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on">China</st1lace></st1:country-region> on a 200cc bike.




Fuck, I&#8217;ve got no excuse. Time to make my T-dub into an adventure bike.

I break out the grinder.




Build a little platform and bolt a milk crate to it.



Yeah, that'll work.



And I start planning a trip.

The sticker on the tailpiece (before I cut it off) said, "Do not load with more than 7 pounds." Ha!

Well ... that's what I said before I knew what it would do to the handling.

One great thing about modifiying your bike in this way is the relationship you build with your bike...trying this piece, having it fall apart on the trail, trail fixin, modifying when you get home - sharing the pictures on this site...of course, this only pertains to items that won't affect real rider safety...what I mean is that the relationship focus will be on the bike and its character, instead of the relationship being on the money to get the perfect parts for it...I have had several sketchy mods work and not work, almost all my other riding friends chuckled at...but great way to start, was just looking at the tw200 yesterday at the dealership and the put the ktm 950 next to it...go figure...also, i enjoyed your writing style and intro!!

Finally a n00b that knows how to properly introduce himself.
Welcome aboard and be careful in JoMomma.

Thanks, mate. Don't hesitate on the T-dub if you're looking to play around in the woods, they're a blast.

Thanks. It's always a bit scary. You really expose yourself to folks. But I'm a founding sponsor member and regular poster on another board (www.head-fi.org -- headphone audio fanatics) so I know the deal. The only way to properly do it is damn the torpedoes and dive in.

Onward ...

Labor day weekend, there’s a huge celebration in <st1lace w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Dillon</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">Montana</st1:state></st1lace>. The grandfolks live there, so Beth and I usually let the grandfolks play with the kids, and we party. She used to live there and knows the whole crowd. Saddly, this year a friend of Beth’s passed from cancer the week before the celebration. So, I was in for the trip without her this year. Grandpa Bob and Patsy have no problem with the kids; there’s a big carnival, a rodeo, and a parade, so I was going to be a third wheel if I hung with them. And the party at night was going to be a bit awkward if I hung with all my wife’s nurse friends. (Not that nurse’s can’t be a lot of fun, but I’ve already got a good one at home.) So I figured this would be a great time to head up to the <st1lace w:st="on"><st1lacename w:st="on">Pioneer</st1lacename> <st1lacetype w:st="on">Mountains</st1lacetype></st1lace> for my first adventure ride.


The logistics were a bit odd, I’ll admit. I loaded the kids and my bike in the van and drove to Dillon. Then drove to the base of the Pioneers, parked at the ski area, unloaded the bike, and started the 10 mile drive to the camp ground. Some adventure! Even at the time I thought, “Well, this is going to be fun, but it’s a bit lame. I want to drive here on a real bike.” I love my TW, but people drive REAL fast around here, and I’m afraid some drunk cowboy is going to make a yard sale out of me if I drive around on the flats. Oh, well, lame or not, I’m doing it and I’m going to have fun.
I head north.






It was a lovely drive on pavement for 20 minutes, and then I hit the dirt road to the campground. I almost dumped it a soon as my front wheel hit the gravel. Holy Crap the front was squirrelly! I shortly realized that if I let go of the bars I could get speed wobbles at 20 mph. Thank God I didn’t try to go very far. I guess I gotta start thinking about tank and tail panniers.

<o> </o>


<o> </o>
I get to the campground total elapsed time about 30 minutes from the van. Still, it’s the wood and it’s beautiful, and I’m looking forward to setting up camp, enjoying a cup of coffee, and then heading off to Coolidge ghost town about 4 miles down the road. At least I won’t have the handling problems.
<o> </o>
<o>
</o>
<o> </o>
An hour and a half later, I’ve got a bit of caffeine, tequila, and stink of cigar in my system and I’m ready to head off to my first adventure destination. Coolidge was a mining town established in 1909 and abandon in the ‘30s.






















Hey! That was fun! I'm an ADV Rider!



OH, shut up! Didn't you see that guy arm wrestling a cop in Angola!



Still, it was fun. I got a little fishing in on the way back to camp, and settled into the evening in my tent. Tomorrow it's 20 miles of tarmack through the mountains and then 4 miles of what my buddy called "bowling balls single track." He recommended I didn't take that particular trail, but there was a bitchen lake with lovely rainbow trout. Ptschyea, right! That's where I'm going.

Thanks for a great introduction. I can't say more than what has been said already, Great report!

Excellent! I sooooo wish I had a T-dub to play around on!

I've been to Bozeman a time or two (two of my brothers lived there and attended MT State) and would love to go there exploring on a bike!

Looking forward to lots more pictures...

John

Great,more...!!!

Bravo and you deserve the title of a Mr. No0b....

I like the cigar stink...
LOVE the pic of that old outhouse

I'm enjoying this already...and yes, we all can't be in Angola with the natives...no biggie. You are not the only nOOb that has gotten inspiration from this site and it's krazy convicts, and have headed out seeking adventure...keep it comming!!!!

P.S. "I&#8217;ve got a bit of caffeine, tequila, and stink of cigar in my system and I&#8217;m ready to head off to my first adventure destination." That is a great sig line IMHO!!!!

<o></o>I slept better than I thought I would. Damn good sign that. I&#8217;m getting old and creaky. My shoulders and hips hurt if I sleep on them wrong. I haven&#8217;t been camping in about 8 years, and it was a bit rough that last time. But I dropped a dime on my gear, and my little system of inflatable pillows work well as I hugged them with arms and legs. It wasn&#8217;t a perfect sleep; 3 or 4 trips to the tree for a piss is about par for a 50 year old, but it wasn&#8217;t that space age pillow-top I sleep on at home either. None the less, it was plenty restfull, and that made me a HAPPY camper. If I was going to do this kind of thing, I better be able to get a decent night sleep. Seriously, if I hadn&#8217;t gotten a good night sleep that night, it might have been the end of adventure riding for me.

"What a pussy!" screams the crowd.

FYYFF, I believe is the proper comeback.




I also fell in love with my little stove that first morning. These new fangled gas stoves make a cup of coffee at 7,000 feet in no time. Having a hot cup of Joe before I even needed to take the walk to the crapper was huge. The steamy heat going down your throat and that ice cold circle around your ass makes for an explosive and exciting release into the unknown tank below. Yeah baby, I&#8217;m ready for a mountain ride to some pristine fishing now!


The Pioneer Mountains is a big ass butterfly-shaped wad of rock in <st1lace w:st="on">SW Montana</st1lace>, it&#8217;s also known as the Beavehead/Deerlodge National Forest. National Forest Service road 484, aka <st1:street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Wise River/Polaris Road</st1:address></st1:street>, is the lovely piece of slab that runs all the way straight through the middle. The East Pioneers are littered with high mountain peaks, but the west side is rolling mountains and valleys. It&#8217;s parted by the <st1lace w:st="on"><st1lacename w:st="on">Wise</st1lacename> <st1lacetype w:st="on">River</st1lacetype></st1lace> which meanders cool and lazy south to north. In January, it&#8217;s probably 10 feet under snow.







I stopped a number of places to breathe in the crisp air. There was this one tiny cemetery with 4 headstones in it. Evidently, a guy homesteaded with his family in the late 1800&#8217;s. His kids, and then his wife died. Coolidge, only 20 minutes back for me, was a two day hump for him in the winter. How did they do it? Evidently the guy lived there till the 1970s when they finally got him into town into some rest home in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1lace w:st="on">Butte</st1lace></st1:city>. I kept thinking he&#8217;d have rather died out there curled up some winter night in that little cemetery. Sorry, no pix.


Got to Lacy Creek at about 10am. Off the tarmack and onto a dandy fire road NFR - 1299. The T-dub handles fine with just camera and fishing gear. Four miles of this, and four miles of four-wheeler trail and I&#8217;ll be fishing. It a sunny day. I&#8217;m loving it. Except for the aliens.






I hear they are spiritual centennials for the buffalo gods who watch over the place.



<o></o>
Who am I to argue. I moo a few times and move on to the trailhead.
<o> </o>
When I get there it&#8217;s got beautiful signage and permissions for four wheelers and cycles. C&#8217;mon, how bad can it be, it&#8217;s part of the damn Pioneer Mountain National Trail? I&#8217;m going boulders or not.

Piece of cake for a few miles. Sure it&#8217;s rocky, and there&#8217;s patches where I&#8217;ve got to stand, but no problem. Then it starts to get a bit steeper, boulder patches are happening more often, and I&#8217;m up on my feet half the time now. Second mile goes by and I&#8217;m sweating my ATGATT ass off. Time to stop for a pee and a pic.
<o> </o>



I hear it's also traditional to mention: boy, that hill was steeper than it looks in the picture.
<o></o>
Well, the next two miles are a bitch. My little TW is already straining at 8,000 feet and she&#8217;s throwing grenade sized rocks out that back continually that would have otherwise gone to much needed traction. BTW, did I mention that I have a dead battery? Didn&#8217;t have time to get a new one before the trip. Kicking over a 200 is no problem, but, did I mention that TWs don&#8217;t have a kick starter? Yes folks, stall out on a boulder strewn trail laughingly designated as a four-wheeler, and your in for a wrestling match to turn her around to bump start and loose 50 yards to the hill. No! There&#8217;s no pix for this part. I just wanted to get to the lake.



Well, it was worth it.
<o> </o>


<o></o>Find the bike, Waldo.







Didn't even see a fish jump for the first hour. Kinda late in the season and the fish aren't rising. So I throw a little red worm on the hook and cast out into the deepest spot I could find. I slowly drag the line through the water and it goes down maybe 15 feet into the deep blue. I thow it in about 10 more times. Fuck it. I'm pulling it in to head out. And the line start wiggling. Ho-rah! I start winding in the line and see the silver little bugger twitching around as I pull it out of the hole. And then, in a flash, the line goes slack.

Time to head back down that trail.


Oh, man, <st1lace w:st="on"><st1lacetype w:st="on">Lake</st1lacetype> <st1lacename w:st="on">Schwinegar</st1lacename></st1lace> is tasty.
<o> </o>


Last pic and I'm out of there.

A true adventure rider to the core, noob or not this is what it's about. Excellent report.

Suffice it to say I had another lovely night’s sleep. I wanted to make it back for the parade to share it with the kids, so I was up and out early the next morning. So I packed up the bike and made it back to the van pretty quick. The way back to Dillon passes right by Bannock. OK, I wasn’t on my bike, but some of you might come by one of these days, so I went in for some pix.
<o> </o>
If you’re ever by this way don’t miss Bannock. It’s very well taken care of by the State Park system, and you can walk through about half the buildings.

Here's the main hotel.




and its stairwell.



The old school house,





and inside.



The church,



and inside.



The jail,



, don't think I went inside.


"Bachelors Row" was a back street.



Here's a close-up of one of the pads.



"Come on in and check out my insulation, baby."



Probably looked good back in the day.

This was the govenors house.




Aw, hell! That was fun. But I want a bike, I want a big bike. I want a bike I can range out and hit the hundreds of places like this easily within reach on week-end. Waaaaa, waaaa! I want a bike.

Looks like I'm gonna get one.

But it homecomming tonight, our teenage son is going to need his picture taken with his date, and the wife just reminded my I need a shower before the Mom's will be showing up with gangly teenage boys and bouncing teenage girls all dressed to the nines and ready for their first Freshman dance. Guess I'll have to tell you the rest of the tale tomorrow.

This just gets better and better!

Great intro! Welcome along
The bike don't matter as much as what ya do with it!

Love the pics, the 1st twisty road one and the abandoned houses are great.

(camera nerd question: Whaddya shootin with? It's somethin wiiiiiiide angle!)

The road is SWEET! Please take the ride someday, in fact, lemme know if you're in the neighborhood and I'll give you some local advice.

I've got a Canon 10D digita SLR, and a 10mm to 20mm zoom. Have a 18-125 too, but I just love a wide angle. You kind of need it around here; always want to get a bit of Big Sky in the pic if you can. I have it for shooting gear at the headphone geek rallys. We call them meets, but same thing. Here's a few wierd geek pix for you.





Yeah, it's pretty wierd, but of you think that's a bit too geeky, you should also know I play jazz on the ukulele. Here I am on another camping trip.



You should probably just ban me now.

If the wheels still turn you can ride it!

That rack should hold up just fine Gadget Boy.
<img src="https://vanceforster.smugmug.com/photos/26469447-M-1.jpg">

Go Noob Go!