The ride started with me down-sizing to get Zi's 50cc down to the river bed - though after that heavy load, it promptly gave up the ghost, and refused to start!!! We stowed the bike amongst the reeds, removed the key, and continued with our ride....JJ was VERY amused with the sight of me on the 50, and insisted on taking a photo.: Sunday 10 June 07
Route/Distance : Umfolozi River Bed (West)/10-20kms estimated
Riders : Patels :Aroon, Heidi, Aziz, Adam; Seelan; Mcintyres:Steven, Denise, JD, Jenna; JJ; Eddy; Charl
Bikes : Hawkeye, Trailblazer, Conti, YFZ450, No Limit 150, Honda 250 4trax, Bom Outlander 800 Max(green), Bom Outlander 800 Max(Red), Bom DS650X
We met in the Hotel carpark just before 8AM, unloaded 10 quads from 5 bakkies and trailers, and kitted out 12 riders which included 4 kids and 2 ladies. A fantastic turnout for this ride, with a cross section of ride experience and competence.
On a perfect day, with high excitement levels, we made our way down to the river bed without incident, except for Aziz's Conti 50cc refusing to start after having to haul my considerable bulk down the hill!
Once in the riverbed, there was a range of riding areas including water crossings, mini-dunes and drag stretches, catering for everyone's riding tastes.
The Mcintyre family in full force - Denise, Jenna, Steven and JD had great fun in the river, with Denise declaring at the end that Steve needs to find himself another bike - she enjoyed the Honda 250 THAT much!Steven was quite comfortable atop the No Limit 150, and was impressed with it's abilities...I still think it needs spacers and better shocks to enable a more stable ride, but that's just ME!
What's more powerful than an A-bomb AND an H-bomb combined? Why, 2 Bombardier/Can-Am Outlander 800 Max's, of course! Thats JJ and Eddy showing off their machines, which can only be described as the SRT8's of quad bikes....Though JJ's Outty (affectionate term for Outlanders) had a Cowley exhaust fitted, the 1-on-1 drags against Eddy's similar bike yielded almost no advantage.
I was eventually invited to ride JJ's bike and I have the following to say:
I now know why I have not ridden this bike before - it's addictively powerful, supremely smooth and controlled, and is comfy as a dream....In 4WD mode, it pulls like a tow truck on nitrous, and even with 2 adults on board, the vehicle hauls faster than anything I've ridden thus far!!!
I WANT ONE!!!
Charl, on his Bombardier DS650, showing us how it's done in the big leagues....he held his wheelies for nearly 50 metres at a stretch!Seelan dusted off his YFZ450 to join us on this ride, leaving his son and his peewee 2-wheeler behind. Maybe next time he'll bring junior along, but it's fortunate the little one wasn't around to see dad get highsided by his bike in an overly aggressive manouver that saw the tyres bite too hard into the sand, causing the bike to flip onto it's side - no harm no foul though, and the ride continued, with this the sole incident all morning.
The bike has a list of aftermarket modifications, including pipe, filter and tyres - according to Seelan, the performance on this ride "unlocked adrenalin reserves" he forgot he had.
After starting cautiously during the first drags against the 2 Boms, he claims to have outclassed the lot of them, much to their dismay, in the later drags conveniently held without unbiased witnesses....
Man, this Bom could double as a family car!After a couple of hours in the river, the 2 family groups (Mcintyres + Patels) decided to call it a day, and turned back, with the speedsters (3 Boms and a why-EF-Zed) continuing upstream.
Just before reaching the entry/exit point, we came across another riding group, led by Geoff and Crezelda, and including a few 2-wheelers as well....
I towed the Conti 50 back up to the car park, and we all returned home after reloading the bikes on their respective trailers, feeling very satisfied with another great ride, having made new acquaintances and fresh cherishable memories.
Aziz and Liam, playing on an excavator, next to the White Umfolozi
Aroon+Aziz, Craig + Liam- THIS is what Father's Day is all about...
Shaun, in the middle of a great ride on the Hawkeye
Top Gun ?
Hogs at Ghost Mountain Inn
The ride started with me down-sizing to get Zi's 50cc down to the river bed - though after that heavy load, it promptly gave up the ghost, and refused to start!!! We stowed the bike amongst the reeds, removed the key, and continued with our ride....JJ was VERY amused with the sight of me on the 50, and insisted on taking a photo.
The Mcintyre family in full force - Denise, Jenna, Steven and JD had great fun in the river, with Denise declaring at the end that Steve needs to find himself another bike - she enjoyed the Honda 250 THAT much!
What's more powerful than an A-bomb AND an H-bomb combined? Why, 2 Bombardier/Can-Am Outlander 800 Max's, of course! Thats JJ and Eddy showing off their machines, which can only be described as the SRT8's of quad bikes....
Charl, on his Bombardier DS650, showing us how it's done in the big leagues....he held his wheelies for nearly 50 metres at a stretch!
Man, this Bom could double as a family car!
Having anticipated this ride all week, I was NOT about to let the rain dampen my spirits, so I stayed positive and was rewarded with this rainbow as I hit the N2 from Kwambo, on my way to doing a situation report of the conditions on the river....
After a positive sitrep, we assembled the riding troops in the parking lot of the Umfolozi River Protea Hotel, whose staff were very bike-friendly - they even allowed us to use their showers and pool towels before lunch...
Craig and family had ridden this spot one weekend prior to this ride, and he took the lead, giving us the pre-ride briefings, and fording the first few water crossings.
Steven and JD joined us, after being referred by Sully from Honda Empangeni. They rode atop a shiny new Honda 250 Fourtrax, which proved itself VERY capable, through the dune sections, as well as the watery sections - words like UNSTOPPABLE were being bandied around....
Water, water, everywhere - why did my Raptor have to drink?!
This was the last near-drowning on the trip, with all the sport bikes being much more cautious before taking the plunge.
