Trans Pyrenees Ride

[ricoyam]

Although not a Beta experience I though I'd share a ride report from the Trans Pyrenees ride I did earlier this month.

This was a big deal for me. At 61 years of age it's the first time I've had a passport or been out of the US other than down to Encinada, Mexico.
The ride was hosted by Off Road Services in Portugal, run by Nuno Leotte and his cousin Manny. They pre-rode the route and made the necessary arrangements in the summer. The ride started in Colioure, France. A beautiful town on the Medeterrainean coast. Nuno is also a distributor of the Portugeuse built AJP motorcycles and I was anxious to get a ride on one. Unfortunately his fleet of 450's was sold in anticipation of their new 600 being released. They weren't ready in time for us so Nuno rented a pair of Dakar prepped Husky 450's for my friend Barry and I to ride. They're nice bikes. Good strong engines and good handling. It took a bit of getting used to the big fixed fairing the Dakar bikes run and the bike was too tall for me. The too tall thing resulting in at least one stop and flop for me each day except one. The worst part is with my bum shoulder and five gallons of fuel, I couldn't pick the thing up by myself. I spent a lot of time apologizing and being slightly embarrassed.

We departed Colioure under clear skies leaving the beautiful sea behind. Soon we were off the pavement and scooting along some nice smooth two track roads. For the most part this is the type of trail we rode. Nothing too technical or difficult but that was fine. It left more time to take in the scenery. That Tuesday we started was also a holiday in Spain. As we climbed there were quite a few people out. Hikers and probably mushroom pickers. It didn't cause any trouble but it made me notice how accepting the people were of off-road bikes motoring past. Not what you'd expect in the US. By the end of the day we had logged around 220 miles. You could also feel the weather was changing. The first night was at a nice and warm family ranch style hotel. Barry and I splurged for separate rooms and we stayed in recently converted stables. Sounds funky and looked funky but they were real nice inside and more than comfortable. We had a great family style dinner. Not complicated with an entree of chicken cannelloni but fresh home baked bread and fresh salad and of course great wine. I'll say right now that all the lodgings and restaurants were first class for the ride duration.

The following day we got some rain starting in the afternoon and it stayed with us off and on for the rest of the day. We were pretty cold and wet when we reached the next hotel. Luckily they had enclosed, secure parking and each evening the chase crew had us checked into our rooms and our gear bags delivered. All we needed to do was shower and meet up for dinner. We had a very nice dinner in the hotel restaurant. Fancier then the previous night but it lacked the warmth of the family setting.

The third day started in the rain. After a couple hours I was thinking if this keeps up all day it's going to be miserable and if on cue, within a few more miles the sky started getting brighter. By around eleven the rain stopped and we took a break to regroup. At this point Nuno offer the prototype AJP 600 he was riding for a quick try out. It was real nice with a lower seat height than the Huskys and a super smooth powerful engine. I suspect if they can get them certified for the US they should sell well. Later that afternoon my buddy Barry fell in the biggest mud hole we'd see all week. Sadly not caught on film. We stayed that night in the medevial town of Alcazar. The hotel was a building built in the early 800's and the city was in the shadow of a big castle. Fantastic!

We had seen the last of the rain but there was still some slick Adobe and slippery rocks to contend with. As I said the riding was not technical but the days long and tiring. Some standing and flowing water and the tight switchbacks that had been with us since the beginning. I fell on a slick concrete culvert and landed on my bad shoulder reinjuring it. I also took a wrong turn following the GPS and ended up on someone's farm. Three unhappy looking men came out after I turned around but I didn't stop. Just rode past apologizing in English. We ended that day in another medevial hotel, this one sharing a plaza with a large church. The architecture was fabulous. Dinner was in a neighborhood tavern. They sat us down at a long table and fed us while the locals were cheering the bullfighters on the TV. The food was again very good and we got a real flavor of the town.

Because of my shoulder and I also sprained my thumb, I was thinking about calling it quits but Barry reminded me there was only one day left. Damn, how would I feel if I didn't go the distance? I did and it was fine. Thank God for ibuprophen. As we came down the mountains we got into some faster riding. I had a blast and it felt good to open the bikes up. We ended the ride back in France in Sant Jean Pied de something. We stayed in what I could best describe as a country club without the golf course. It would have been a nice place to stay for a week or more. The following morning we hopped into the chase truck and drove down to Navarra, the site of the Six Days and caught the final motocross special tests.

We went back to Barcelona that evening and the next day I had free so I went and checked out the Barcelona motorcycle museum. The next evening PDT I was back at San Jose Airport and my big adventure was over. What a great week!

ORS Does a couple of other rides. One is the length of Portugal and the other is across Morocco. I just need to figure out how to get the money together for another trip. If anyone else is interested in this "Trip of a Lifetime" let me know and I can put you in touch. It's an experience you'll not regret.

[mtdirtbag]

Nice ride report Rico! I hear you on the short inseam/tall bike portion of your report. I think I was the only one to drop his bike on our 2700 mile ride to Hyder, AK and back. The DR is just too tall when fully loaded down and if I did not have a good spot to put down a foot meant I was more than likely going down, three times in the 9 days of riding.