Wilsons Sandbox

The Details.......San Diego Big Bike Dual Sport Ride Saturday April 26th. First, I've had to eliminate some dirt sections because the ride ended up being about 250 miles and taking 11-12 hours, which is too long for most people, so I shortened it. It will still be a fun ride. Unfortunately, San Diego County doesn't have miles of trails/dirt roads to offer without doing a lot of pavement in between. We will be meeting 7:30am at Jimmy's Family Restaurant in the parking lot (Von's shopping plaza) at the corner of Olive Lane/Town Center Parkway and Mission Gorge Rd. in Santee. Address for Jimmy's is 9635 Mission Gorge Rd. If you want to eat breakfast first, get there earlier. Breakfast/lunch stop is only 2.5 to 3 hours into the ride in Pine Valley, so decide what you want to do beforehand. Also, towards the end of the ride, we will be passing "The Hideout" saloon and restaurant, so that can be a place where people can stop to eat later in the day, a good spot for refreshments or a BEER and to BS about the ride !! Everyone should get going by 8-8:30 the latest to get back at a reasonable hour. The ride will take about 8-9 hours. Easy route will be about 200 miles with about 20% of it being off-road. Challenging route will be about 210 miles with about 30% off-road. Challenging sections will be challenging to people with little or no experience on the big, heavy bikes in the dirt, but OK for most novices (depending on your experience) on KLR's, XR's, DR's, etc. First gas is about 77 miles into the ride in Pine Valley. If you need gas again, it is available in Julian (middle of ride), then Ramona near the end of the ride. Please have your bikes prepped, have spare tubes and tools in case of any problems on the trail, and ride with someone else - "the buddy system". Also, you need a tankbag with a map pocket or a strap-on map pocket (available at most bike shops) because you must navigate this ride following mileages and your odometer. Maps and mileages with different sections will be handed out. Hope to see you out there !! Randy Lazar '95 Ducati E900 Elefant