Well, I went to the mountains of NC for the annual Fall Ride. My buddy Wayne went with me, riding his Goldwing. Fred had planned on joining us, but was not
able to make it in order to be with his sweety, who was recovering from surgery....sorry you couldn't make it, Fred....you were missed. Wednesday, we spent
our time riding on 226, 226-A and 80 near Marion. We had to wait the rain out for a while on Thursday and Friday to let the rain pass and the roads dry out. On
Thursday, we took the SUV down to Shroader's Honda to look at some Corbin seats for Wayne's Wing. When we got back to Franklin, the roads had dried out
and we rode up Hwy 28 to 19 and then, back to Franklin. Those who are familiar with this road know why it's my favorite road I've ever ridden. Forget
the Dragon....ride Hwy 28. On Friday afternoon, we rode the Wayah Road and Hwy 28. Saturday arrived with perfect weather. We left Franklin and rode Hwy 28
south through Highlands down into Georgia, where we picked up the Warwoman Road into Clayton. From Clayton, we took Hwy 76 to Hwy 197 which took us to Helen,
GA. From Helen, we took 356, 348 and 129 to get to 180, which is called Wolf Pen Gap Road. This road took us to Suches, GA which is at the intersection of 180
and 60. If you're looking for outstanding curvy roads in that area, be sure to check out 197, 348 and 180.
At Suches, we got some gas and took a break. When we got ready to leave, Wayne commented that something didn't look right with my rear tire. He said he had seen something flashing on it when we were on the Wolfpen Gap Road. I rolled the bike back a little so he could look at it. What he found was not good at all. Here's what we found:
This was a big surprise, since I had checked the tire condition before I left on the trip and was convinced that plenty of tread remained for the trip. I guess this was an indication of how Wayne and I were riding the curves. :shock: It turns out that there were 4 such wear places on the tire, spaced out 90 degrees from each other. Anyway, we were 80 miles from Franklin at that point. We decided to try riding very conservatively and see what would happen. Every time I wouuld roll into a left-hander at about 30 mph, I would brace myself for the big blowout. After about 40 miles of that, my nerves were shot and we pulled into a church parking lot to re-think our plans. I knew I could call Honda Rider's Club, but they would have taken my bike to Tacoa, GA, which was a long way from Franklin. Finally, we decided that the best approach was for me to take Wayne's Wing back to Franklin and get the trailer, return, load the bike up and get it back to Franklin safely. That's what we did and fortunately, our trip didn't have a disasterous ending. I can just imagine what a blowout would be like in a left-hand curve at about 30 mph....not pretty.
Anyway, I'm back home and the bike has a new rear tire. I am a little concerned about my left floorboard, however. I believe it's time to replace it. What do you think?
At Suches, we got some gas and took a break. When we got ready to leave, Wayne commented that something didn't look right with my rear tire. He said he had seen something flashing on it when we were on the Wolfpen Gap Road. I rolled the bike back a little so he could look at it. What he found was not good at all. Here's what we found:
This was a big surprise, since I had checked the tire condition before I left on the trip and was convinced that plenty of tread remained for the trip. I guess this was an indication of how Wayne and I were riding the curves. :shock: It turns out that there were 4 such wear places on the tire, spaced out 90 degrees from each other. Anyway, we were 80 miles from Franklin at that point. We decided to try riding very conservatively and see what would happen. Every time I wouuld roll into a left-hander at about 30 mph, I would brace myself for the big blowout. After about 40 miles of that, my nerves were shot and we pulled into a church parking lot to re-think our plans. I knew I could call Honda Rider's Club, but they would have taken my bike to Tacoa, GA, which was a long way from Franklin. Finally, we decided that the best approach was for me to take Wayne's Wing back to Franklin and get the trailer, return, load the bike up and get it back to Franklin safely. That's what we did and fortunately, our trip didn't have a disasterous ending. I can just imagine what a blowout would be like in a left-hand curve at about 30 mph....not pretty.
Anyway, I'm back home and the bike has a new rear tire. I am a little concerned about my left floorboard, however. I believe it's time to replace it. What do you think?
