Brian A. Hopkins
Adventure Stylin' Made Easy

Oklahoma Dualsport Rally
12 - 15 Oct 2006

-- Bridges, Tunnels, Small Town Humor, and Wet Spots --

Thursday morning, the Dakar and I swung by Daniel's house at 9 a.m. to collect him and his Honda XR650L. I'd agreed to take the lead for once (everybody knows I hate to lead) and show him a few things that he might have missed on the way to Clayton Lake State Park. We were packed light. I had sent most of my gear with Rich Desmond, since he was hauling his bike down. And Danny's wife and boys (and even Okie, the weenie dog!) were planning to join him Friday night.

A big thumbs up for getting the hell outta Dodge. (Photo courtesy of Daniel Holloway.)

First on the agenda was an old iron bridge on Hwy 18, just south of Wolf, Oklahoma.  The Tiger and I had found it quite some time ago, but I hadn't been back since buying the BMW. I told Danny to ride across the bridge and I'd get his picture. Naturally, he couldn't do it without showing off.  Boys will, after all, be boys.

(Photo courtesy of Daniel Holloway.)

(Photo courtesy of Daniel Holloway.)

I asked Danny if he'd ever been to St. Louis.  No, not in Missouri.  St Louis, Oklahoma, a town that definitely has a sense of humor.

Coming into Coalgate, we learned Danny's XR only had about a 120-mile range with the stock gas tank. This became obvious when he ran out of gas a couple miles outside of town.  By the time I noticed he was missing and went back for him, he'd already laid the XR over on its left side to shift the last bit of gas trapped in the right side of the tank over to where it could be used.  It was enough fuel to coast into town and the first gas station we encountered, where we topped off his bike.

We then had brunch at a little country cafe in Coalgate.  Danny had chicken-fried steak; I had eggs and sausage.  Thus fortified, we pressed on.  The day was brisk and a bit overcast, but otherwise perfect for riding. A couple people at the cafe made comments about it being too cold for riding, but I just smiled. It's only too cold for riding when there's ice on the roads ... and even then, it's the road hazard that keeps me off the bike, not the actual cold. My heated vest and grips serve me well.

Next I showed him the tunnels under the railroad just east of Coalgate. Just the other side of this tunnel, I had made my first ever creek crossing on my Triumph Tiger. Though the water had only been all of four inches deep, my heart had been in my throat. 

These days, of course, I'm a mighty adventure rider with lots of water crossings under my belt.

We then proceeded to cross the Atoka Wildlife Management Area (WMA), sliding through gravel turns like a couple of old pros.  My plan was to find a route exiting south of the WMA to Hwy 43, which would lead us directly east into Clayton, but try as I might, every attempt to forge to the south met with gated obstacles. Very aggravating! At one such gate, making a tight u-turn over uneven ground, Danny and the XR went krumpf!  I tell you, those damn u-turns will bite you every time!

Now is this any sort of gesture to give your riding buddy, just because he laughs at you, grabs his camera, and takes photographic evidence before helping you pick up your bike?

In case you can't make it out, here's a closeup.  That's the universal "You're Number One!" hand gesture used by adventure riders 'round the world. Obviously, Danny's been spending too much time in the forums at advrider.com.

His XR was so distraught by the fall, that it wet itself.  Here's the wet spot.  This is particularly funny to me because just the week before, Danny's DR-Z400 left a wet spot in the parking lot at CrossTimbers Offroad Park.

Here, again, is the photographic evidence.  See the piddle spot?  How did it happen, you ask? Well, when Danny arrived and saw that I had my camera out, he rode by me on one wheel. (I actually missed that photo.  Ha!) He'd forgotten that he had just mounted new tires, which, like all new tires, are very slippery until scrubbed in. When he brought the front wheel back down and leaned to turn on the pavement, the front tire slipped out from under him and ... you guessed it ... Crash!  Naturally, the parking lot was full of dirtbikers unloading their motorcycles and getting ready to hit the trails. Nothing like having an audience, eh Daniel-san?

Of course, I just love teasing him about all this!

(Photo courtesy of Daniel Holloway.)

Here's my Dakar, same u-turn, turned safely and facing back the way we had come.  No droppage here!

After we returned the bike to a vertical state, it was necessary to perform a few minor repairs/adjustments.

I ask you, though, would you trust this guy anywhere near your bike with a tool in his hand?

After Danny fixed his bike, we backtracked to the west, leaving the WMA the way we'd come in.  That truly sucked.  Nothing aggravates an adventure rider more than having to backtrack. We then made a beeline on pavement for Clayton, stopping in Daisy so that Danny could get gas again (the Dakar was fine).  In Clayton, we bought our land access permits for the Honobia WMA (last year, I saw a number of riders get ticketed for not having a permit), topped off both our gas tanks, and rode the five miles south to the state park. While getting gas, Connie drove by (hauling her bike on a trailer) and honked at us.  Terry, an XR rider from the DFW area who's been out to Draper a couple times with me, showed up.  So did Phil Templeton and a couple others. Clearly, we'd come to the right place!