Ride Reports ....

Scenic Ride .... Ride Leader: Britt Lolley

Our group of nine included, Luetta Schneider - Columbia, MO - XT250, Irwin Schneider - Columbia, MO - WR250R, Don Feldt - Wichita -KLR650, Bill Porter - Louisburg - KLR650, Jonathan Gerner - Kansas City, MO - KLR650, Joe Steve - Mission - DRZ-400. Desmond Poirier - Kansas City, MO - 800GS, Ken Clifford - Wichita - DR650 (sweep), and myself Britt Lolley - Wichita - DR650.

We left Eureka to the southeast with our first rest stop at the Fall River Dam. Then on to the southeast through the city of Fall River and on to Fredonia. Then a short run to Neodesha for lunch. After lunch we headed north to Altoona for gas. Then northwest to Woodson County Lake for a rest stop. We then rode through Toronto and north and east back to the lake.

We encountered quite a bit of freshly laid loose gravel, some nice paved backroads, a pesticide cloud, lots of dust and heat, plenty of bottled water and I hope enjoyable scenery.

I want to thank all who rode in my group for adapting to the conditions all day. It was nice to meet all of you and see some familiar faces also.
Lets do it again!

.... Britt

Scenic Ride .... Ride Leader: Chris Owens

I had the pleasure of leading a scenic ride through the Flint Hills. Members of the group included: Thurman Brittingham – Rose Hill, KS – KLX250S, Michael Betz – Shawnee, KS – KLR650, John Booth - Lees Summit, MO – DRZ400S, Khalid Ebrahim (ABE)- Wichita KS – KTM640 LC4, Kathy Hughes – Burlington, KS – TW200, Robert Hughes – Burlington, KS – DRZ400, Charles Leedham – Louisburg, KS – VStrom 1000, Joe Parsons – Shawnee, KS – VStrom, Monica Rutledge – Waverly, KS – KLR650, Calvin Rutledge – Waverly, KS – KLR650, Mike Sims – St. Louis, MO – XTZ Super Tenere, and Chris Owens – Garden Plain, KS – KLX250S.

This was the first experience for many of our members to ride the Flint Hills gravel backroads and enjoy the scenery. I could not have asked for a better group to ride with. All followed the ‘Golden Rule’, so there were no delays looking for lost riders and we did not have any get-offs. The only near flat fortunately revealed itself at the final fuel/rest stop for the day and was an easy repair due to the tubeless tire and team assistance.

The overall distance of our route was 210 miles and included mostly gravel with some blacktop. We initially headed west to a scenic overlook at Ivanpah.

We then headed north driving through the 777 Ranch to our next destination at Teter Rock. As we drove through the 777 we encountered both free ranging Mustangs and Cattle on the road. It was so cool to be within 50 yards of a Mustang herd of approximately 75 and have them initially run alongside of us before disappearing over the horizon. At Teter Rock, we were treated to views of numerous Mustang herds across the prairie.

Our route then took us south to Eureka for fuel and lunch. After lunch 4 of our members decided to get out of the heat and the remaining patrol headed southwest to Beaumont stopping to see a stone arch bridge on the way. At 3pm in Beaumont we were all being affected by the extreme heat and decided to forgo the last leg of the route. We rode through the wind farm and paused for pictures and to absorb the experience, and then headed back to camp. I clocked 164 miles for the day. We were treated to beautiful scenery, an abundance of wildlife (mustangs, cattle, deer, snakes, turtles, etc.) and new friendships.

I want to thank all the members on this ride for a great day in the Flint Hills. And, a special thanks to Thurman Brittingham for being the wingman, and Calvin Rutledge and John Booth for sharing the sweep responsibility. I look forward to our next ride! .... Chris

Scenic Ride .... Ride Leader: Phil Denk

Our group included myself - KLR650, Wingman: Cliff Crites - KLR650, Jim Hoffman - DR350, Tom Young - XCountry, Asa Young - XCountry, and Sweep Rider - Larry Ostrom - KLR650.

We had a great day despite the heat. Numerous "hydration" stops kept everyone in the game and I believe all held up well under the trying conditions.

We rode north out of Eureka Lake through Thrall and then west to pay homage to the rock (Teterville) and enjoy the view. Heading north over Texaco Hill we were passed (at high speed) by Ron Grundy's group. We gave a wave to the less fortunate travelers on I-35 as we rode north on 50 Road to Matfield Green. After a short break and pit stop to replace Cliff's rear brake pads (he actually had a spare set with him) we hit Sharpe's Creek Road to Bazaar. A short pavement blast on 177 Highway took us to Cottonwood Falls for lunch at Emma Chase Cafe.

After a great meal and a short break we went south on 177 to Buck Creek Road and Den Creek Road then west to (my favorite) Coyne Creek Road. Young Asa made the save of the day as he picked a good line through a large mud hole and piloted a heavy bike through a truly slimey section. We took in Clements bridge and then on south on G Road to Cedar Point to see the old mill.

A short pavement hop took us to Florence for fuel and drinks then off through the flat lands to Cassaday. From there, Flint Hills Road took us to Battle Creek Road and then south on Sallyards Road through the 777 Ranch. A turn east on Ivanpah Road took us back to camp.

My thanks and congrats to all in my group. You proved yourselves to be very steady and capable riders. Also, I'd like to give a special thanks to my sweep rider Larry Ostrom. Larry has ridden sweep for me on several Stampedes. He is a master of the sport and having put up with me, he will never again have to prove his courage or patience.

Hope to see you all next year! .... Phil

Advanced Ride .... Ride Leader: Ron Grundy

Our advanced ride consisted of Bill Hanson, Dennis Schell, Scott Spears, and Michael Stanfield all riding 450 KTM's. Steve Hoover and I rode Suzuki DRZ 400s while Keith Harris rode a WR250 Yamaha.

We rode north from Eureka Lake through Thrall and stopped for some scenery from the top of Texaco Hill. Some of the group hadn't been to Teter Rock before so that was our next stop. It seemed that there were even more mustangs roaming the hills that morning than usual.

From there, it was down "D" road, through 777 Ranch, through Reece and on to Tripco for fuel for those of us with small tanks. We jumped on the old railroad bed at Severy and managed to ride most of the way to Piedmont before we came to a fence. Eight miles of railroad bed is almost true off-road riding! Jim and Lila's Cafe was awfully busy, so we rode over Junkyard Road to Beaumont for lunch. The hotel was packed as well with motorcyclists of all types and a few planes coming and going. We had a nice cool-off period and a good lunch. Then, it was back north to Reece and over to Eureka.

I hadn't met Scott, Michael, or Keith before. It was great to meet and ride with some new guys! It was a hot and dusty 142 miles. Let's do it earlier next year!

...... Ron

Intermediate Ride .... Ride Leader: Roger Baugh

Our patrol consisted of sweeps Barry Wood and Denise Burkholder of Towanda, both riding KLR650s, Jason Murray - Wichita - Yamaha Tenere, Bruce Leach - Wichita - WR250R, Frank Barr - Buhler - XT500, Tracy Smith - Bashor - KLR650, and myself - Roger Baugh - Wichita - KLX250S.

We left camp as the last group out, riding to the north-northwest on a scenic road shown to me in early June by ride leader Ron Grundy. The road parallels the more heavily traveled Lake and River roads, and offers some very picturesque views.

Working our way up to Teter Rock, we stopped a short while to enjoy the vista and view of the wild mustangs before heading south down ‘D’ Road and the eastern route into Cassoday for fuel and refreshments. Leaving Cassoday, we worked our way up to Coyne Creek Rd., and into the only mud section found the entire day. All riders covered their mounts with "battle mud" in good fashion, then we took the opportunity of shade to plan out our next moves.

Lunch location was decided upon, and we rode from Clements to Camp Wood Road, then into Elmdale. From there, we rode to Strong City and the Longhorn Cafe. Frank’s bike was having either ignition or carburetor issues, so he retired it in Strong City and the remaining six pressed on to Elco and ‘Stonehenge’. Following arrival at Stonehenge, we discovered a large nail in Bruce’s rear tire, so repair time was needed. Blasting south out of Elco and just a few miles from camp, the Tenere lost its oil drain plug, so additional downtime was added to the ride.

Despite the mechanical issues, all riders made it back without any real issues and in good physical shape. We took-in plenty of fluids, and all handled the 100+ heat in good stride. We also had a couple of close encounters with deer, but of the ‘Kodak Moment’ variety, and not the adrenaline pumping kind. In sum, it was a beautiful day to ride out into the Flint Hills, and with a group that rode well together for nearly 175 miles. Here's our route maps ... we completed all but the Diamond Springs loop.

Until we ride together again ....

... Roger