I took my Hawg Ty with the new torque converter on a test ride of 8 milers through some of the trails I know would be a good work out and if I broke down had a chance for some help if I needed it.
After having an aborted test ride earlier this week where the master like securing clip went into orbit, I was a little leery about a 2ND breaking for some reason that was not obvious.
This being a Sunday ride I expected the Park to have a few folks out walking,jogging, mountain bike riding and maybe even a Dirt Bike or two.
As it turned out my favorite parking spot was occupied and I had to drive an additional mile to safe spot where my trailer would not be an issue to other drivers.
This actually worked out well as it gave me some time to run up and down the paved Park's drives and really stress out the drive system and see if any part failed. None did. The torgue converter engaging under full throttle sets you back in the seat smartly. The bike being heavy plus all the crap I carry along with my butt is a load on the Predator 212 engine.
Start of the trails 1/4 mile past the gate.
Ill be riding a few trails you have seen before,just much farther out to the west than I normally go.
The lower portion of the mountain is nice with the trail having a few rocks and boulders allow a chance to blow-out-the-cobwebs a little as well as backing off the throttle quickly and seeing if the repaired "button's" hold up in the driven clutch/pulley. They did.
For the most part Trail Heads are clearly marked and you have several choices as to the type of trails you want to go on.
The trails change all the time by the Rangers. This is to stop severe erosion by heavily traveled trails and flash floods during our monsoons.
Out here ,unlike most of the USA, damage to the land takes over 50 years to heal. Some of the trails close to where I ride still have Tank Tracks from WWII training. One trail in Santa Fe still has Wagon Wheel Ruts from the 1800's.
As I'm climbing up the mountain I find that the T/C does require a little more throttle to keep the clutch engages as compared to the jack shaft drive system.
It is much smoother and quieter as well.
As you climb above 8,000 feet the rocks start to appear. This is due to more wet weather than at lower elevations and also due to our very high winds in the fall and spring.
The first leg of the ride would be easy to do even on a hard-tail,small tired minibike.
Climbing up past 9,000 feet the air is cooler but the sun is very intense in the open areas.
The tell-tail signs that I will be in the boulder fields soon.
And sure enough, here they start. These sections of boulders will go for a few hundred yards in some places and then just open up into a flat field of trees.
Another Trail Head, I actually go off to the right as I want to descend the mountain and find the flash flood trails where riding is more of a challenge.
Here was the first chance to test the T/C for belt slippage and engagement. I needed to feel how the bike responded to applied power.
Another open section going to the East and up a couple hundred feet.
A Mountain Biker, A Pit Bull dog and his handler said Hi as I caught up to them. I have the LED head light on and they said they saw me well before they heard me coming. That is good. Running into a Dirt Bike doing 50 on a blind curve would not be fun.
A really nice portion of this trail that winds through the pine trees.
END OF PART ONE. many more to come.
After having an aborted test ride earlier this week where the master like securing clip went into orbit, I was a little leery about a 2ND breaking for some reason that was not obvious.
This being a Sunday ride I expected the Park to have a few folks out walking,jogging, mountain bike riding and maybe even a Dirt Bike or two.
As it turned out my favorite parking spot was occupied and I had to drive an additional mile to safe spot where my trailer would not be an issue to other drivers.
This actually worked out well as it gave me some time to run up and down the paved Park's drives and really stress out the drive system and see if any part failed. None did. The torgue converter engaging under full throttle sets you back in the seat smartly. The bike being heavy plus all the crap I carry along with my butt is a load on the Predator 212 engine.
Start of the trails 1/4 mile past the gate.
Ill be riding a few trails you have seen before,just much farther out to the west than I normally go.
The lower portion of the mountain is nice with the trail having a few rocks and boulders allow a chance to blow-out-the-cobwebs a little as well as backing off the throttle quickly and seeing if the repaired "button's" hold up in the driven clutch/pulley. They did.
For the most part Trail Heads are clearly marked and you have several choices as to the type of trails you want to go on.
The trails change all the time by the Rangers. This is to stop severe erosion by heavily traveled trails and flash floods during our monsoons.
Out here ,unlike most of the USA, damage to the land takes over 50 years to heal. Some of the trails close to where I ride still have Tank Tracks from WWII training. One trail in Santa Fe still has Wagon Wheel Ruts from the 1800's.
As I'm climbing up the mountain I find that the T/C does require a little more throttle to keep the clutch engages as compared to the jack shaft drive system.
It is much smoother and quieter as well.
As you climb above 8,000 feet the rocks start to appear. This is due to more wet weather than at lower elevations and also due to our very high winds in the fall and spring.
The first leg of the ride would be easy to do even on a hard-tail,small tired minibike.
Climbing up past 9,000 feet the air is cooler but the sun is very intense in the open areas.
The tell-tail signs that I will be in the boulder fields soon.
And sure enough, here they start. These sections of boulders will go for a few hundred yards in some places and then just open up into a flat field of trees.
Another Trail Head, I actually go off to the right as I want to descend the mountain and find the flash flood trails where riding is more of a challenge.
Here was the first chance to test the T/C for belt slippage and engagement. I needed to feel how the bike responded to applied power.
Another open section going to the East and up a couple hundred feet.
A Mountain Biker, A Pit Bull dog and his handler said Hi as I caught up to them. I have the LED head light on and they said they saw me well before they heard me coming. That is good. Running into a Dirt Bike doing 50 on a blind curve would not be fun.
A really nice portion of this trail that winds through the pine trees.
END OF PART ONE. many more to come.