Central NJ

[kendenton]

Me and my obscenely loose chain (for which there was no excuse, I really should have kept on top of that better) are home safe and sound.  Don's expert reassurance ("aah, you should be ok"  ) helped quell my nerves during the long ride home.  I kept envisioning the chain snapping and wrapping around the wheel, flipping me and the bike over the divider into oncoming traffic on 476.  I did have one bowel-loosening moment - coming to the toll plaza at the bottom of 476 I felt a big strange vibration which my brain translated to "holy crap this is the end!".  Turned out it was the rumble strips.  

As always, a great time with the CNJ crew.

410 miles for the day.

Pics to follow soon.

[Sport-Touring]

[thinkjerm]

Got home about an hour ago.    Clocked about 330 miles.

Doc and TJ thanks for another great ride.

Jeremy

[marty2]

Home safe and sound. 234 mi(counting the tour the special group received) . Great day all around. Good to see everyone old and new.

Marty

[kendenton]

Well, some of the pics came out better than expected, some not so much.  The Hawk's Nest turned out to yield more keepers.

Just a little taste...

[Rebeltown]

Just got home about 09:00 PM.  Great day, great weather, great roads, great lunch, great new friends!  What can I say. It was truely a fantastic effort by those responsible for putting it all together.  Thanks Doc and TJ.    Can't wait to view the photos...  Marty, thanks again for the "Stokes State Forest Tour", my shocks will never be the same again.... Nice meeting everyone!  Gary

[chimera]

  I did have one bowel-loosening moment - coming to the toll plaza at the bottom of 476 I felt a big strange vibration which my brain translated to "holy crap this is the end!".  Turned out it was the rumble strips.  

Huh......I guess running over split firewood is just par for the course.........

Fabulous ride. Thanks to all who made it happen.

[kendenton]

Huh......I guess running over split firewood is just par for the course.........

Fabulous ride. Thanks to all who made it happen.

Well I had the whole "any second my chain is going to jump and kill me" thing going on, so that vibration scared the crap out of me.

The firewood?  That certainly got my attention  

[ST-DocLizard1]

This is the "short form" as Ken is preparing the eloquent version complete with a photo spread. I counted 24 takers for the Spring Shakedown yesterday. The largest turnout ever. We split into three groups and headed north after a staggered start. Savoring the best roads that Hunterdon, Warren, and Sussex has to offer, we wound our way up through the Delaware Water Gap Recreation Area to Peters Valley. Then onto Layton and finally over High Point with two of the three flights just barely caressing the edge of Stokes State Forest. The other group took the scenic route over some 8 miles of mixed surface in the park(Marty referred to this portion of his mysterious detour as the bonus plan). Lunch was hosted by the Erie Hotel in downtown Port Jervis.

After feeding the furnace and great conversation, the C-NJ Crew split up once again with some of us taking a more direct route back to the nest while others opted for immediate refueling and the second half of the Spring Shakedown Ride.

Three smaller groups ran through the Hawks Nest and then crossed into the Keystone State at Barryville. Carving up some corners and shredding some asphalt through Wayne County, we regrouped at Stroudsburg and said our final goodbyes.

I reached home with about 220 miles on the clock just after night fall.

Thanks to everyone for coming out and to Marty for being drafted into the role of "Pace" so we could split up into 3 flights for the day. Thanks to Ken for bringing his "big body" digital camera. TJ and I are very appreciative of your accolades and kudos, but without participation, rides like this just don't happen.

Welcome to the new faces:

Joe & Merry
Howie & Mary
Chimera
Rebeltown
Giuseppe



Doc

[FKaiser]

Thanks Doc and TJ for the route, and Marty for leading the "B" Group:  I didn't read the dual-sport optional in the fine text.    Who woulda thought the LT's could mow down trees and small farm animals with such ease.    I'd do it again in a heartbeat, the variation in terrain is enjoyable.

Always good to see familar and new faces...

[dgshaffer]

Although I had a great ride with some friends out into the PA mountainside, I was kind of bummed I didn't get a chance to get in on this one. Nice photos you took there!

[ERR]

Got home safe with 330 on the OD. My dog had a little surprise for me. Actually she is a 100 lb diabetic lab so there are no little surprises when it comes to her bladder. Not to self - she can't go 11 hours.

Thanks for the great route (not Marty's variant) and Ken's documentation.

dave

[howard richman]

Thanks for a great day and for allowing a Harley to come along.  Howie and I got home at 9:00 and put in about 328 miles.  Following a bunch of sport bikes on a Harley wore me out, I slept like a baby.

Doc and TJ thanks for a great ride and great time.  It was nice to meet everyone.

I hope I didn't slow anyone down.  I would like to come again if it's ok.

Ponytail (Mary)

[kendenton]

Thanks for a great day and for allowing a Harley to come along.  Howie and I got home at 9:00 and put in about 328 miles.  Following a bunch of sport bikes on a Harley wore me out, I slept like a baby.

Doc and TJ thanks for a great ride and great time.  It was nice to meet everyone.

I hope I didn't slow anyone down.  I would like to come again if it's ok.

Ponytail (Mary)

You looked great out there!

[ST-DocLizard1]

Thanks for a great day and for allowing a Harley to come along.  Howie and I got home at 9:00 and put in about 328 miles.  Following a bunch of sport bikes on a Harley wore me out, I slept like a baby.

Doc and TJ thanks for a great ride and great time.  It was nice to meet everyone.

I hope I didn't slow anyone down.  I would like to come again if it's ok.

Ponytail (Mary)

You and Howie are welcome anytime. It's not what you ride, it's how you ride

Doc

[molferen]

You and Howie are welcome anytime. It's not what you ride, it's how you ride
Doc

+1

Mary, you rode great out there!  I'd ride with you anytime.

John (the guy riding behind you the whole day)

[kendenton]

OK, I've finished editing the ride photos.  Thanks again to everyone ('specially Doc and Tommy) for accommodating the photography breaks.  Good idea on the go-ahead for Hawk's nest, that worked out really well.

I think there's some really great shots in there, my apologies to anyone that I didn't manage to get a keeper for. There are some duplicate images in there with alternate crops (horizontal vs vertical) as well.

If you would like one of these pictures (and I hope you might), I can do one of 2 things:

1) If you would like to print one yourself, I can send you the full-resolution (12mp) file.  You don't want to use the 1024x768 web image to make an 8x10.

2) I can send the file off to the CVS nearest you, and you pick it up at your convenience.  You pay CVS what they charge for a print, I'm not making any money off this.  You could do 4x6, 5x7, 8x10, whatever.

E-mail me the filename of the print you want (it will be in the address bar of your browser when you're looking at the full image) and we can go from there.

Follow this link: Central NJ Shakedown Ride Photo Shoot

One more teaser:

[Smoker]

Great shots, Ken. You've got a real talent.

Hey Jerry, how wide are your chicken strips?!!

[Rebeltown]

Ken, Great shots!  Your skill behind the lens makes us look kind of..aa, umm, err, well better than we really are...

Anybody recognize where my avatar picture was taken?

[JamminJere]

Great shots, Ken. You've got a real talent.

Hey Jerry, how wide are your chicken strips?!!

What chicken strips? LOL

On the PR2's I guess I have about 1/4" on the rear tire.. a little more maybe a 1/2" on the front tire.. Its all a matter of how/where you position yourself on the bike in hard cornering.. Guys that have no chicken strips on a street bike, aren't usually around too long...    It depends on the bike and the rim/tire sizes too.  Track days are one thing... on the street, I'll save a bit for another day...

JJ

[ST-DocLizard1]

Very nice and appreciated Ken.

Doc