59 Club Ride to Mount Baldy.

Well, I got to the shop this morning and looked at the clouds, they seemed to be as Grey as our Economy, but, being a Motorcyclist and from the Mother country, I have grown up with this despondent looking weather and knew that what ever happens, we will ride today.

So, we met up at Aleas cafe as planned and even though everyone was texting us NOT to ride, we thought to hell with it, if its bad, we simply turn back, so we all gathered outside Aleas for our Morning ride to mt Baldy.

A nice little turn out, despite the weather and we were all eager to get going and see what Mother Nature could throw at us, but I was looking forward to it immensely.

So, with an eye on the weather, we all suited up and got ready to ride out to mt Baldy and with Gray clouds moving quite fast and our way, we wanted to just ride and see what happens.

Once we got through the 57 freeway and Bare leading, he got all discombobulated and we ended up going back on ourselves a few times, but we got to the 210 freeway and got off at Azusa and boy is it nice up there, with plenty of curvy bends and a 5000 feet elevation, this was sure to be an interesting ride.

Anthony on the left was a New rider on a Stock Thruxton, so I kept behind for the upward journey just to check he was ok, he rode fine and I told him not to think speed is key here.

After a few miles, the lads pulled over to let the slightly slower riders catch up, it was also good to have a chin wag and check out the environment as it sure was fresh out here as the temps were in the 40’s.

The weather had not changed and I could see low clouds in front of us so I was expecting some Fog at some stage but what ever we find will be a great experience for the lads.

Ok, we saddled up again as the clouds were coming in thick and fast and we had a long way to go, so it was now time to get together and just make our way up the mountain.

Well, My FOG light came in really handy today and was super stoked to be able to use it to its fullest capability and let people know we are on the road as it was thick fog!

We had 2 mishaps, Dietricks bike slipped away from him on the Median and also bare completly came off his bike and landed on the floor, but he shook it off and we picked him up.

What we call “Pea Soup” back home and this was as far as we could go to be honest as visibility got down to about 3 feet and at 5000 feet up and wet, not a good thing.

Plenty of fire trucks and Paramedics were over shooting where we were parked and we redirected them to where all the other Emergency vehicles were heading, just hope they were all on the same call.

Matt, James and Anthony survey the area and for Anthony and Matt this was a first experience of what I would call ” European weather” But great experience for them.

So, we decided to go back down the mountain and ride another way back, as it was pretty wet up here and the roads were getting a little slippery and of course zero visibility.

We redirected the Ambulance as they missed the turning but after even 10 seconds after the paramedics left us, you could not even make out the flashing lights in the fog!

Only 20 feet away and losing sight of the Ambulance, so that was a prefect indicator for us to jump on our machines and head down the mountain, to drier area.

 

 

Mike and I wait as the rest of the lads get ready to jump back on their machines and we head down to warmer climates but it was so quiet up there it was eerie!

Plenty of great scenery to look at as you ride down the mountain and I really enjoyed my self today, nothing like getting on your motorcycle and clearing your head.

We all pulled over by Azusa canyon and waited for everybody to catch up, before we heading onto another part of Mt baldy as there is plenty to ride and the weather was better here.

A great shot at just some of the bikes that were part of our entourage today and want to thank them all for coming out and taking a chance on the weather today.

We pulled off at the top of another great area and it was such a really cool view, Plenty of places to ride up here but the Fog was up on the next ridge, so we rode another way.

Miles and miles of Canyons and nice to see it is still green up here, it feels good to be out in the California countryside and these sights are everywhere here for all to see.

Road does narrow in places and, as the sign says, it so narrow that there is no divider line so be careful when you are up here as people are hauling arse some days.

So, the road ahead is the one that we voted on taking as that brings us to the bottom of the mountain but plenty of curves and switch backs, many almost caught me out!

You can see one of the roads that people travel on, and I really did enjoy what these roads threw at us, but you must also be awre of rocks and Dirt that fall onto the road too.

Time to get back on the machines and travel down the hill and get some grub at the end of the run, well deserved thats for sure.

James Matz cool Yellow Trumpy enjoyed the Twisties today and I think everybody became a little more road wise after the ride and thats always a good thing.

Anthony did extremely well today as a Newbie and I am so glad he chose to come out with the 59 club and get involved with motorcycling that we do here in the O.C.

 

What an awesome sight as we pulled over to take in the View, and the dam is clearly visible atop this ridge and a good stop to be able to take a photo to show you lot.

 

So, next time you go out for a ride and you are in So-Cal, try out Mt baldy as it has many roads and curves that you will enjoy as much as we did, what a blast lads, Thanks.

look us up at www.meetup.com for many more rides that the 59 Club O.C. will be doing, be great to have you aboard.

 

Below is some photos that I had on my other camera and took briefly and wanted to share, I love riding with everyone and making new acquaintances and sure look forward to meeting some of you who are reading this Blog.

This where we finished up after the ride and boy was a brilliant time, I actually enjoyed the cold and the Fog, as it reminds me of home and how lucky we are here in Southern California when we have Tee Shirt weather most of the year round.

 

A fun bunch to hang out with and we clocked up over 100 miles today so a big hats off to you all for daring to come out when everyone else said dont do it, we conquered!

The roads were pretty good today, a few higher up had surface moisture on it and of course, the road up in the clouds were wet, but halfway down was great fun and I loved it.

It was a brilliant time as far as I was concerned with plenty of Triumphs sprinkled in for good measure, sure looking forward to some more rides, so keep checking the site.

This was the very end of the ride but to get to this point, you had to negotiate some cool twisties and switch backs and I loved every minute of this ride on my Thruxton.

I just took photos here and there to try and show what was at the ride and who was there, as many of you email me to say you look at the blog with interest, so here you are.

BS Corner, where we swap stories on how bad ass it was to the ” oh my Arse was in my mouth” part of the ride, that was my part I think and it was true !

 

I am sure looking forward to future rides with you all and hopefully many more people that want to become part of the 59 club as it is all about having fun and getting on the road.

My Wing Man Big D- he loved the ride on his 904 cc Thruxton and the camaraderie is second to none, which makes this all the more to having many events and rides.

The Highlight and headlight of the day as we reach a small plateau and stop for a photo or two as this was the last part of the ride before we headed home for the weekend.

Bare- the man- the Myth and the legend, this guy has fallen off more times than a derby Jockey with vertigo, but- he gets back up and on his machine with not a care!

We try and stop at a few points, either for a photo opportunity, or to take in the great views California offers, and even just to take a breather as some of the bends certainly a wake up call.

Thats my Green Thruxton and she performed brilliantly as we took corners that were unbeknownst to me and handled it with ease, so glad I have a steering dampener though.

Seems Mike and me are always in the dirt, but doesn’t bother us a bit, a quick scrub on the road cleans them off and we are back into it like a kitten with a ball of wool!

 

 

Time for a good chinwag and laugh about the near miss we had with a push bike or just the way a corner came out of nowhere as that was heard many times today!

Ha Ha, it looks like Dietrick and James are ready to go at it in hand to hand combat, but I think it was bloody cold up there and James was warming his mitts up quickly!

The other side of that hill was a bloody massive drop, I would hate to be the fella on the wrong side of that at 100 MPH and I am sure people at some point here have done just that!

Mike surveys Big Z’s mad machine, this bike had more tricks than a Magicians hand book and the rear tire was fatter than a Sumo wrestler and sounded so crisp!

Big Z explains the size of Burrito he is going to Demolish when he gets home after this ride in the mountain, I think he will accomplish it too, big lad and great fun !

The 3 Amigo’s discuss the days events, Anthony on the left is a Newbie but a great day to learn how to take corners and bends and deal with different weather conditions too.

Matt the Trojan, this USC lad loves to ride his Bonneville all over the place and enjoyed his day out and will be looking forward to the next one thats just days away!

If you did not shut off coming up this way, its a long drop the other-side, so many places to ride up here but- don’t let the roads fool you into making you go faster.

 

 

Thanks to James, Dietrick, Zach, Mike, Matt, Bare, Tom and Anthony for coming out with me. It made my day and always fun to hang with everyone.