From: nelson@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com
Newsgroups: rec.motorcycles.dirt
Subject: Suzuki Dual Sport Ride
Date: 6 Oct 92 22:35:44 EST

 I just got back from my first organized off-road ride. It was the Suzuki
Dual Sport Ride put on by the Enduro Riders Association in McAurthur, Ohio.
I had alot of fun, but I gotta share some of my experiences with some of
you who have asked.

 I got there about 9:15 on Friday night. I was concerned that I was late
because registration was to run from 6:00 to 9:00, but the office was still
open. I signed up and then went to pay and the guy asked for $75. Needless
to say I was suprised because they guy on the phone said it was $55 and all
I had brought was $80. The guy at the door said the extra $20 was for an
AMA membership. I went ahead and paid the money, although I had serious
doubts as to how I was going to get home on Sunday. One of the guys with
the ERA, Ken Duasch, was kind enough to lend me $10 for gas (all I had taken
was the $80 and an American Express card). Needless to say, Ken was a
lifesaver.

 Ken said to park anywhere I wanted. The start of the event was in the
Vinton County Fairgrounds and the whole area was filled with campers and
bike trailers. I parked my truck and took a walk around. The guys parked
next to me were from the same part of Ohio that I am (Akron), so we
struck up a nice conversation that extended into Saturday. I was very
impressed with the friendliness of everyone. When I told someone I was 
there by myself, about a half dozen people volunteered to ride with me
and keep me out of trouble. Nicest bunch of people I've ever met!

 My ride for the event was my recently purchased Suzuki DR350S. I was told
by everyone I talked to that I should have bought some aftermarket tires
before riding in the Southern Ohio woods. Boy were they right! I am not a
very experienced dirt bike rider. I only have about 5 miles of actual dirt
riding under my belt on the DR, and they were not nearly enough to prepare
me for this ride. The DR held up very well with only a plastic hand guard
being damaged (but fixable). I wish I could say the same thing about my
poor out of shape body. I hurt in places I'd forgotten I had!

 The event started on Saturday with a short street ride. Then we hit some
pretty easy trails (even for me). Then to some gravel roads, blacktop, and
then back to the woods. The second set of trails was a little more difficult
including a pretty nasty uphill section. Fortunately we haven't had much 
rain in the last month so the trails were kinda dry. Then a couple more
gravel roads and a blacktop section. The gas truck was supposed to meet
us at about the halfway point but it was nowhere to be seen. We stopped
for lunch and all the real bikers were complaining about how easy the trails
were. I thought they seemed kinda easy as I had not yet layed the bike down.

 After lunch, we hit a much more challenging set of trails, including a
really nasty creek bed. I (of course) got stuck in the creek bed, and one
of the guys I was riding with had to help me get unstuck. We were about
midpack and the guys before had turned the creek into one big rut which was
smaller than my skidplate, but unfortunatly it was also higher. Then the
trail degenerated into one big mud run where I layed the bike down in 
one really nasty section. Then some more gravel roads where the dust was
so thick I couldn't see 5 feet in front of my face. I almost when over the
side of a hill because of the dust! The guys I was riding with also started
to run out of gas at about 70 miles. They all had two strokes and I couldn't
help them. I had plenty of gas left. We finally found the gas truck at
about 80 miles (after having to share gas between two CR's and a YZ490).

 After about 83 miles, we hit the last section, which had been used by 
the club in their Qualifier the year before. There was a bail out sign
which I didn't see which would have enabled me to skip the section.
The guys I was riding with were all very experienced so they didn't think
I would have any problems. WRONG!! It was the most humiliating, painful,
and eye opening time I have ever spent on two wheels. I got stuck in another
creek bed (damn tires). I hit 6-7 inch logs twice at 30mph each time and
lost it both times (that's what broke the hand guard). I also totally
lost it on a very long uphill section when I forgot to stand on the pegs
and the front end came up on me. I wimped out on the last 5 miles and
took a short cut through a field to get to a road.

 I got back to the truck about 5:30. I hurt everywhere. I had a great time
and met some great people. One of the guys in my group was 62 years old!
He was riding a CR250 and made me look like a schoolboy! We are planning on
getting together to ride again real soon. There was a guy there who had put
his NX-650 on a trailer and hooked it to his Gold Wing and rode here from
Louisiana! Another guy had a '67 Greeves. I also saw alot of old dual sports
and a bunch of new MX bikes. 

 If you ever get a chance to ride a Suzuki Dual Sport, do it! It's the most 
fun you can have with your clothes on!

From: mcclend@hpnmdla.sr.hp.com (Mike McClendon)
Date: Wed, 7 Oct 1992 15:23:02 GMT
Subject: How do you weld plastic?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Santa Rosa, CA