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Having a great time here so far. We got in Thursday afternoon and went riding today. Rich and I did this huge hill in the dunes

AltRider announced today a new line of protection parts (skid plates, oil cooler guards, headlight guards, radiator guards, luggage racks, high fender mounts) for the Ducati Scrambler as well as three Triumph bikes: Bonneville, Scrambler and Thruxton.

A reason to show up for the 2016 Conserve the Ride june 10th-12th. Have you ever ridden past a closed gate on the side of a gravel road and wonder where does it go? Your mind dreams up some amazing offroad adventure with a perfect mix of dirt, rocks, and elevation changes. Then you continue on you’re way past the gate, shaking your adventure from between your ears and returning home. This isn’t the case with events like the AltRider’s Conserve the Ride. Many factors make this ride one of the most accessible adventure rides on the east coast. With gates opened, trails clearly marked and GPS files downloaded getting into trouble or lost would prove hard to do. A main loop of gravel and tarmac is laid out with options leaving and rejoining the route. With 4 levels of difficulty in the optional sections clearly labeled at the trailhead and discussed in the rider meeting. Three very new, very different options were opened up this year - all wide single track multi-use trails with a small crushed shale top coat laid down over miles of bermed corners with varying levels of difficulty. The best way to describe it is to call it sand or mud’s easy to ride cousin. The front tire would push a little, but not wash out from under you. After completing these segments, one rider said that he’s learned more about off road riding in those options than he has in 12k. Another rider who’s been training for a shot at the Dakar came out laughing, proclaiming that was the most fun he’s ever had on big bike. Showing up alone for a group ride isn’t a problem either. AltRider’s 2013 Conserve the Ride was my first time at one of these events, and was where I met my ADV friends (#fatankleracingteam) that I still ride with at multiple events throughout the year (there is about 20+ of us now). Those who don’t come in a group find it easy to join a small group of other riders with similar riding abilities. This event is not a race. There’s no mix of big bikes and packs of wild ex motocross racing dirt bikers who will blow you into the weeds as they pass you (as experienced at other events). You won’t find yourself trapped under your bike with no one to help you. The crowd at this event is outgoing, helpful, and excited to be there. You can’t really have a tip over without having 3 people helping you and your bike up before you’ve caught your breath. Unlike some events your entry fee covers nearly everything and you will have a hard time spending any money on anything other than gas. Unless, that is, you were tempted to bid on the Rev’It, Bmw of Manhattan, Kissel Motorsports, Kenda Tires, or Rox Speed FX donated goodies, where all proceeds were donated to the Seven Mountains Conservation Corp (more on this later). Organizers of this event have catered to your every food and beverage needs. Fellow ADV rider and local owner Michael Marx of World’s Fare Catering takes care of all the meals. Full plates with seconds available of the best food I’ve ever had at any event makes two and a half days away from home easy. The event is further eased by a very local craft beer brewery; the Elk Creek Cafe. The only thing you need to decide is if you are going, where you’re pitching your tent, and which options you plan on doing. This year’s 150+ mile route has by far been the best route yet, scouted, marked, and swept by the Seven Mountain Conservation Corps. The SMCC is a local non profit dedicated to maintaining and improving a massive multi-use trail system in conjunction with the PA DCNR (Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources). These folks put a lot of hard work into this event and it shows in the amount of fun that all riders had. A portion of your entry fee goes back to this worthwhile organization. Even with a three week old “new” bike and the stock road oriented tires on it, you can still enjoy events like this. Do a couple of the options. Even if you don’t have any formal training. You might drop it, or get some scratches on it, but the next time you’re outside your local starbucks and someone asks: “Where have you been on it?” you’ll have an answer. Also, for about 2 months you won’t be able to tell a story without starting it with: “This one time at the Altrider ride.” I originally wrote this article for ADVMoto magazine and if you don't have a subscription you should probably look into it.

Out here in Pahrump scouting trails with Curtis and Sky for AltRider's Taste of Dakar in March Yesterday's route across the dry lake bed. I was cold riding up and stopped at Tecopa hot springs to warm up. This is a pic I found on the Interwebs. I thought this lady looked funny Cold this morning Lunch at Pioneer Saloon

AltRider SYNCH Dry Bag The AltRider SYNCH (siNGk) Dry Bags are the culmination of 15 years of off-road camping experience, world traveling, and soft goods design, all rolled into a single easy-to-use and durable package. Each bag has a fully tape-seam sealed, D-shaped body construction made of 14oz vinyl coated fabric (“Truckers Tarp”). The SYNCH bags are designed to be 100% dust and waterproof, engineered to withstand the most extreme temperatures and wet weather over hundreds and thousands of miles of trails and roads. SYNCH was designed with accessibility and flexibility in mind. Each bag features daisy chains for easy lashing of camping gear like bed rolls and tents. There are four anchor points with high strength nylon D-rings for strapping the bags to the bike and for connecting bags to each other. All of the anchor patches are made from a military grade, waterproof and chemical resistant neoprene. Designed for quick entry, the side openings allow access to either of the bags two openings without having to release the tie-down straps. This holds true when the bags are stacked on each other as well. Each dry bag includes tie-downs, and the 25 and 38 liter include stacking straps. One end of the tie-down features a soft-loop style closure, perfect for attaching to crash-bars, trellis frames, luggage racks and other great tie-down points. The other end is a heavy duty, steel wire-gated military grade nylon snap-hook for securing to the bags. Features list: Wide-mouth roll-down opening with cinching straps 14oz waterproof and durable “truckers tarp” Military-spec neoprene on all anchor patches Tape-seam sealed construction for water and dust proof performance Daisy chain(s) for extra gear lash-points Nylon D-rings for tie-down and stacking options Custom tie-down straps (can be used as shoulder straps for portage) Custom stacking straps (for connecting to other bags and gear) 6 styles available; 14 Liter Black, 14 Liter White, 25 Liter Black, 25 Liter White, 38 Liter Black, and 38 Liter White

I completed this ride/event in 2013 and 2014. Both times were great and I would recommend for those in the general PNW. It isn’t nearly the event the Taste of Dakar is down in Pahrump NV, but still a good event. Unfortunately, it looks like AltRider will not be doing in 2015 (typically held in August.) However, I wouldn’t be surprised to see in again in the future or potentially complete your own ride in the area. if you get the chance there are a lot of great options on the Olympic Peninsula/Olympic mountains. I do have some GPS tracks and maps I could share for those that are interested/PM me. 2013 was held at Satstop Center which is roughly straight north of Montesano WA off of HWY 12. There are a lot of riding options in the area and it is a bit remote. The facilities were decent but not the fanciest. Below is a screenshot of the event. Red was route in, yellow was morning, blue afternoon and purple out. 2014 was held at Skokomish Park on Lake Cushman. The facilities were top notch but the campground/area is pretty busy. AltRider setup a good sized event area and kept our group together. Red was route. You can see the silverware mid-point which was the lunch stop. The blue is the pavement back to camp. It is good ride for pavement and included on many of the day rides from Seattle (Hood Canal Loop) but you did end the day with 70 miles of slab back to camp. Here is a slimmed down event summary: (Food was catered by Mary from the Skokomish Indian tribe both years and was great.) Friday – Everyone arrives and sets up camp in the evening. Signing up for groups begins and typically ends at breakfast Saturday. Dinner, event introduction, campfire, a few drinks, and then early to bed for the ride. 2013 event had a large grassy area were everyone setup camp with a few who went into the woods. 2014 had RV type campsites shared by tents and then areas between the campsites where the rest of us squeezed in. Saturday - Eat a hearty breakfast and break into groups based on skill level for a staggered GPS-led ride. This event typically has everyone on the same tracks regardless of skill. The higher skill riders typically just go faster and have more side adventures. 2013 tracks include quite a few switch backs which allow advanced/faster riders more mileage while allowing slower/less advanced/casual riders short cuts. 2014 routes were a bit of a disappointment for me as I had the same route from a book/GPS tracks already. It wasn’t nearly as challenging/enjoyable as the 2013 routes. After a riders meeting and brief training seminar, head out onto your adventure ride through diverse terrain amongst the stunning forests, bridges across vista’s and lakes, twisty dirt road and gravel roads. Halfway through the Saturday ride, we’ll stop for a scrumptious lunch at a scenic picnic point. Come back from your epic day of riding to a big dinner back at the campsite. There is typically some sort of speaker/videos/awards event after dinner. Fire and drinks continue through the evening. Sunday – Typically includes a good breakfast and then everyone breaks camp. 2013 include good a GPS track back through the mountains from camp to 101. 2014 was choose your own adventure (left on your own to map it out.) The ride includes: 2 nights of camping under the stars at a campground than years past GPS self-led routes in the Olympic National Forest (near the Hoh Rainforest.) 5 delicious meals prepared by the Skokomish tribe – fresh oysters from the local bay, elk stew, seafood chowder is on the menu Locally crafted beer to be enjoyed nightly by a crackling fire Awesome prizes and giveaways from event sponsors Off-road teaching seminars from informative instructors. Optional/additional fee off-road training on Friday before event. I personally didn't take too many pictures of the event but here are a few. Great views from all the peaks. Our group found a side excursion near Lake Quinault where we able to get on the river rock. We had a small group of about 4 bikes heading back to Seattle. Apparently there was a 'Scooter Club' ride that jumped on behind us. I have never seen a full lane of the ferry taken up by 2 wheelers.

Picked up an AltRider Rear Brake Master Cylinder Guard for the KTM 1190 Adventure / R , and an AltRider Side Stand Foot for the KTM 1190 Adventure / R today at the EuroMoto 2015 today. Was able to call in and order them ahead of time and have them bring them to the show to avoid shipping. Thanks Altrider! Always a pleasure to deal with. The rear master cylinder guard looks like this... And the side stand foot like this... I didn't get home in time to install them today. But hopefully I'll get a few minutes tomorrow, as I don't think it'll take that long. However I'm throwing a 5th birthday party for my son... So who knows. All that aside, when I get it done, I'll post up some pics and initial thoughts. Then return after some thorough use and review it again. Currently I'm already running their bash plate and rear racks. Suppose I should get some good pics of those as well. So far so good with them. I'll say a little more once I get a couple pics up. If anyone else is running Altrider kit and would like to contribute, by all means, jump in and get after it! *Just to clarify, I have zero afiliation with Altrider other than enjoying they're hard parts and 2013 and 2014 Hoh rallies.

Official ride report thread for this year's TOD event