Adventure to Flat Rock

letsxplor · 11-10-2008, 11:32 PM

A few weeks ago I took a trip to the Flat Rock Music Festival, just south of Asheville, NC. I rode Lubelle, my trusty '06 Bonnie. This was a memorable trip - it was the first time I've gone on a bike camping trip on my own.

Plans were to leave out from Birmingham, AL Thursday morning around 9AM, stay with friends in Chattanooga Thursday evening, then take Hwy 64 and some local roads across TN and NC to Flat Rock. On Wednesday as I was going over the bike, tightening, lubing and adjusting, I noticed the front brake pads were a little thin and I should probably change them before I head out. No biggie, the last time I had ordered bike-toys from newbonneville I bought some brake pads. Out comes the Haynes book, on go the new pads, brake pressure good, all is ... almost... well. On the test ride I had a horrible squeal - the instructions weren't kidding when they said I needed to lube the back of the pads. So, it's getting late, I figure I'll take care of it first thing the next morning - shouldn't take me more than 30 minutes. Hah.

The next morning I took the pads back off, applied the lube, reassembled, then couldn't get pressure built back up in the brake system.

Ok, guess I gotta bleed the brakes. Now, I've never bled brakes in my life, but I've watched my dad do it and understand the concept so it shouldn't be that hard. Suffice it to say, it was. Without going into the sordid details, after two or three trips back to two different parts stores, multiple liters of brake fluid and my state of mind swinging from irate to calm to anxious to determined, I finally got her in riding shape around 11AM. So by the time I was calmed down, loaded up and ready to go it was 1:30PM.

AAaaaannnndddd.... I'm off. Beverly Hillbillies on two wheels...

...more to come...

indianscout · 11-10-2008, 11:36 PM

YES, ANOTHER RIDE REPORT!!!!!!!

.

KatC · 11-10-2008, 11:38 PM

Looking forward to hearing more!!!! When we are packed like that T call us the traveling goat family. I like the Beverly Hillbillies much better!!!

letsxplor · 11-11-2008, 12:19 AM

I head up the super-slab I-65 to Ft. Payne, then get on Hwy 11 to get into Chattanooga over Lookout Mountain. Of course, since I got the late start and lost an hour to time zone I hit it just at rush hour. I weaved my way thru town, staying off the interstates and made it to my friends' house. Had a nice visit, stayed up too late, and headed out Friday morning. Didn't take a lot of pics on the road... here's one on the way out, Ocoee Dam in TN.

I had two main concerns on this trip. 1) Rain was forecasted in and around Flat Rock all day Friday and 2) Gas was very scarce in the NC mountains due to the hurricane in Texas. The prior week the Asheville locals had waited in line for hours for fuel. When I hit NC, the rain started, and 89+ octane gas began to disappear. I had gotten some interesting routes from regional forums, but decided to stick to the main road so I wouldn't get stuck with no fuel - I also erred on the side of caution and began looking for a place to top off the tank after 50 miles on the tripmeter. As I rode on, regular gas was all that was available, and every town had one or more stations that had fuel, but I was always warned that it would get worse as I went further east. Luckily, there was a gas shipment to the area that Friday, so I never had to wait more than 10-15 minutes. Still, it was sloowwww going.

......

KansasKawboy · 11-11-2008, 03:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by indianscout

YES, ANOTHER RIDE REPORT!!!!!!!

.

Luna Tique · 11-11-2008, 04:25 AM

I'm hooked

letsxplor · 11-11-2008, 08:24 AM

The farther east I went the more beautiful the scenery became, but I'll have to give y'all a rain check on pics, cause with this rain I wasn't stopping any more than I needed to. One particularly gorgeous but grueling stretch took me up, up, up, behind a pickup towing a trailer, then an 18-wheeler, going about 5-10mph! Not fun! Though I have to say the NC locals are very courteous to riders, waving me past when there was open road.

And the rain fell. I was testing out my new Fieldsheer jacket, and it did a good job of keeping me dry from the waist up. I just wish I had bought the pants to go along with it. Instead, I had Frogg Toggs that I had picked up from the local Cycle Gear. Yes, they were waterproof where they covered my body, but they rode up ABOVE my boots! About an hour outside of Flat Rock I began to feel water trickle into the top of the boots.

Visibility was limited, though I did appreciate the squeegee built into the thumb of my left glove. And I had missed a turn somewhere. Well, I got two choices at this point - stop at the next motel, or continue on to the festival. Not much of a choice though, gotta push on through...

letsxplor · 11-11-2008, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KatC

Looking forward to hearing more!!!! When we are packed like that T call us the traveling goat family. I like the Beverly Hillbillies much better!!!

ummm... I'm not sure I want to admit this on the internet...

but I was singing a little song in my helmet that I made up to the tune of Beverly Hillbillies theme song... I think I've blocked it from my memory now!

ridingAK · 11-11-2008, 08:47 AM

Great report so far! That is a nice part of the country for riding. I sure hope the weather got better for you and you took more pics later in your adventure!

Astir · 11-11-2008, 07:55 PM

Ride report!

Love it so far! Can't wait for more...