Triumph Visit - A Fantasy...

Last month I wrote about how I hoped to visit Triumph's Hinckley facility when I visit England. As long as I'm fantasizing about it, I may as well fantasize about how it could play out.

Day 1 - Hinckley

I arrive at the Hinckley Triumph building on a cold, drizzly morning, much like Spring days here in Seattle. But the sun is breaking through the clouds. The entrance to the Triumph plant looms ahead, a cultural icon along the lines of Admiral Horatio Nelson's ship the Victory, the Royal Shakespeare Company or Westminster Abbey. Pure British Brilliance. My family watches as I slowly walk towards the entrance, stunned at my good fortune. A stray sunbeam shines down on the door JUST as I reach it.

Stepping inside, I give my name to a polite, cordial receptionist, who looks remarkably like Kate Winslet. She phones the kind person tasked with showing me around the plant. As I wait there in the lobby, Superbike champion Carl Fogarty breezes through the front door, there to consult with the company about some secret corporate development plan. He is used to greeting overwhelmed fans and so interprets my inarticulate grunt of greeting as the "It's an honor to meet one of the world's greatest motorcyclists. So exciting to see you here!" and responds as if I had actually uttered something polysyllabic.

A little while later, I am escorted inside and have the once in a lifetime experience of seeing a location where THE best motorcycles in the world are built and to hear some super secret plans for improving their 1050 cc engine. How do you improve the best motorcycle engine ever designed? Do your worst, use any torture, from the rack to Justin Bieber music....I'll die before I tell.

My visit to the plant is nearly over and we are making our way back towards the lobby, when suddenly an irate Foggy comes storming down the hall, muttering curses to himself. "Bloody Hell," he exclaims, cursing the brilliant but ill-timed good fortune of a member of his team of riders, who eloped with the REAL Kate Winslet just before a planned raid into Germany. He continues his cursing and suddenly sees me being escorted out.

"Oi! Mumbling American guy! I'm short one man. Can you ride? Can you actually maintain balance on two wheels without falling off or riding into a wall? WHAT ARE YOU MADE OF?" I mumble assent and am swept along with his plan as a spare rider, Foggy's desperation becoming my big opportunity. It's off to Germany in the morning.

Day 2 - The Nürburgring

Early morning sun shines down on a Nürburgring that is relatively dry, yet still cold. A local Trabant enthusiast's club has just finished a couple leisurely, breakdown-filled laps around the track. They pull off to top off the oil they have been leaking on the track, smoking ill-smelling f6 cigarettes. Six of BMW's official test riders, clad in lederhosen and just having consumed a breakfast of sauerkraut and Bavarian beer, mount their Gelände/Straße motorcycles and begin making their sturdy, agricultural way around the track.

The rearmost rider has just settled into his groove for a couple comfortably complacent laps around the track, when he realizes that there is strange sound growing in the distance. It is an unsettling sound, one which nearly unmans him and sets his hair standing on end. It grows louder, this howling, manic sound like Bruce Lee howling out his aggression as he leaps into the air to kick 3 people before touching down to Earth again. It is the sound of pure, focused aggression and it is coming relentlessly his way.

And then, looking back over his shoulder, he sees the first Speed Triples rapidly getting closer, like a pack of wolves running down their prey or a squadron of Spitfires hunting for Messerschmitts.

The BMW riders struggle to maintain composure as they are, one after the other, brutally passed and left in the dust. The final Triumph rider seems a little slower but as his helmet radio rings with Foggy's curses and then "Hey, mumbling guy! Give it some welly and the first round is on me tonight," he brazenly twists the throttle and leaves the BMWs foundering and dispirited in his wake.

Later, sitting at the Ace Cafe with my new mates, I sip a beer and we swap stories about how we shattered the confidence of BMW with one brutal raid. I try to look like this:

Even if I look more like this:

But meditating on the fact that I have barely managed to add my name to the Triumph legacy, I smile and say to myself, "We few, we happy few..."

"...we band of brothers," finishes Foggy and we raise our glasses together in salute of a deed well done.

Part VI: The Home Stretch

Having accomplished all of the things that I wanted to accomplish on this trip, I found myself limping into Nelson utterly exhausted. Fortunately, the North Shore Inn had a room available and so I had a relaxing last night in Canada.

The next morning, I made a point of looking up the old firehouse used in the Steve Martin movie Roxanne. These were the last pictures that I took during this, my best trip into western Canada yet. The next day was a LONG riding day and it was great to be back home.

Part III: Reaching the Rockies

One great thing about traveling through Western Canada is that there is an incredible variety of different regions and climates to choose from. I've had the good fortune of seeing many of them, in my travels.

The Pacific coast North of Vancouver has some magnificent ocean vistas. There are areas like the Cariboo region that are pretty arid and there is even a small desert near Osoyoos. The forests and mountains are absolutely stunning, from the Cascades to the Selkirks. It's immensely attractive to know that you can find any kind of environment you enjoy there, in the Western Provinces.

But there are mountains and then there are Mountains. You know you've reached the Rockies when you start seeing vistas like the one above at practically every turn. From about the time you enter the recreation center of Golden heading East, it just keeps getting better and better...now, you're in the Rockies! Once you reach your destination, your next move may be checking into your hotel (which you WILL want to have lined up ahead of time, especially during peak travel periods) and then proceeding to enjoy your visit.

Chances are some sort of recreation in the parks will be involved, whether it be a light walk, a serious hike or canoeing. Here I'll digress a bit to describe the scope of these Rocky Mountain parks:

The Parks of the Canadian Rockies include the large green diagonal region on the right (with the towns of Jasper and Banff in it) as well as the green block on the border that it points toward. The contiguous area includes the large National parks of Jasper and Banff (in Alberta) and Yoho and Kootenay (in British Columbia), as well as the 3 BC provincial parks of Hamber, Mount Assiniboine and Mount Robson. The park straddling the Canada-US border is the International Peace Park made up of Waterton National Park in Alberta and the US Glacier National Park.




The parks have a great deal of variety between them and some research into your options is well worthwhile. Banff is arguably the most well-known and is justifiably famous for its many attractions. Jasper is also also pretty popular and the Icefields Parkway (blog entry from a prior visit) connecting the two is regarded as one of the most spectacular drives in the world.

While those  two parks attract the lion's share of tourists, the adjacent parks of Yoho and Kootenay are also breathtaking in their scenery AND much less crowded. During the course of this trip I got to take a short hike (with stimulating elevation gain) in Banff but also looked around Yoho and Kootenay some more. I love ALL of them and only hope that some day I can finagle a multi-week trip where I can just delve into them without having to always be planning the next day's destinations.

Heading East on the Trans-Canada Highway, the first of the National Parks that you encounter is Yoho. Yoho is named after the Cree expression of awe and all I can think is that understatement must have been a cultural norm among the Cree. A fraction the size of Banff or Jasper, it is chock full of breathtaking sights,
It is a park I have had a deep affinity for since I started looking at BC's wealth of outdoor parks. In 2009, I was heading towards Yoho in a trip that was cut short by an accident. In my 2010 trip, I finally managed to visit Yoho (description here).

At this point in the trip, I was just passing through Yoho, buying park passes (below) and a few souvenirs. On the way home, I passed through Yoho again and took some pictures that will be included in a later post.

 Meanwhile, here are a couple more pictures of the Kicking Horse River, taken near the Field Visitors Centre:

 From Field, I pressed on to Lake Louise in Banff. A major goal of this trip was to socialize with my friend Rob (@xSiteable on Twitter) and his family. I called him from Lake Louise and he kindly invited me over to have barbecue with his family. But first I had to check into my motel, which I thought was in the nearby town of Canmore but was actually a little past Canmore in the picturesquely named town of Dead Mans Flats. Here is a picture of my motorcycle outside of my motel, there.

After dropping off my gear, I made my way over to Rob's house, where I had the good fortune to meet him and his awesome family, as well as a few friends who dropped by for barbecue.

(That's us below at Rob's place. He's the younger dude on the right.)

Spending the evening with Rob and his crew was a much-anticipated high point of the trip, It was a great evening, which I'd been looking forward to for quite a while. We planned to meet the next day for Happy Hour and Rob also had a great suggestion for a hike to do the next day.

Part II: Setting out and entering the Canadian Parks

Work had been pretty harried right up to the day before I departed for this trip to the Rockies. I'm a medical programmer for a small but very cool company in Seattle. And of course, with small companies, there's never a dull moment. However, I completed a custom programming task for a customer and was able to walk out the door free and clear, the day before departing for Canada.

The first day on the road was really a mile burner, about 400 miles from home in the Everett area to the town of Revelstoke. The whole point was to get almost to the entrance to the Rockies so that the second day would be all spent riding through the cool stuff that was the point of the trip. So on this trip, I was out the door at 7am and didn't make any real stops or take many pictures until nearly the end of the day.

(Here are some pictures and narrative from the 2010 trip, however: looking for Eureka's Cafe Diem in Chilliwack; stopping in Canada's "Country and Western Capitol" in Merritt; Kamloops)

Getting into British Columbia and driving is always something I look forward to: traffic is lighter and the drivers almost ALWAYS keep right except when passing. Encountering an oblivious left lane camper like the ones who infest Seattle is really rare. Traffic moves briskly...

One quick stop for gas and a sandwich in Kamloops, where I was asked by a Russian family how to get back to the Trans-Canada Highway. Having to dig through my belongings to where the map book was buried was a little embarrassing but I did manage to find the map book and help them. The takeaway from this to keep maps easily accessible even when I know the route. Chances to interact with people are something I want to INCREASE, since just blasting along limits the enjoyment of these trips.

During the 2010 trip, having to take a detour around a bad accident scene had me arriving in Revelstoke pretty late and I was unable to make one planned stop. Craigellachie is the spot where the last spike in the Canadian Pacific Railroad was driven, fully connecting Canada's East and West coasts. This time, I was riding into Revelstoke in the afternoon and managed to stop there. These plaques commemorate the event and location.

This cairn contains an official marker, commemorating the event. One interesting bit about the cairn that I did not know until  later is that the cairn has embedded in it stones from all Canada's provinces and territories at the time that it was built.

Here's a mediocre shot of the last spike,conveniently painted gold along with an arrow pointing towards it.

Moving along towards Revelstoke, here are a couple shots of the picturesque Three Valley Lake Chateau.

Having reached Revelstoke, I checked into the Alpine Inn and Suites.It was definitely a place where I'd stay again, reasonably priced for a motel on the edge of a National Park in Summer and pretty motorcycle friendly, with the owners making a point of saying that they hoped I'd visit again. The room also had a refrigerator and microwave.

Having checked in pretty early, I went out to wander around town and pick up some food. Revelstoke is a neat little town and its prime location makes it a place that I look forward to eventually staying in and not just passing through, some day. A friendly Canadian couple on a  Harley stopped to ask what the Tiger is like (fantastic and a bit more comfortable to ride for longish distances than the Speed Triple) and we talked motorcycles for a few minutes.

Walking back through the town, I happened across some neat photo opportunities. Saint Peters Church seems to have the gravestone for Walter Moberly, mentioned on the Craigellachie plaques as having discovered the Eagle Pass.

And there is no disputing the aptness with which the Mountain View Elementary School is named

 

The next morning, I quickly checked out of the motel and pushed on towards the Rockies. After Revelstoke National Park comes Canada's Glacier National Park, with its grim warnings of avalanche dangers and tunnels tasked with protecting parts of the road from falling debris. The next few pictures were taken at Rogers Pass. They illustrate well the increasing beauty of the area. The purpose of the artillery piece is not to repel American invaders but to trigger controlled avalanches.

 Then account of this second day will continue in the next entry, which covers actual entry into the Canadian Rockies.

Visiting the Canadian Rockies Again (Part I)

Last week, I had the good fortune to make a much anticipated return trip to the Canadian Rockies. The map above shows my overall route, 1584 miles in 5 days. I'll be gradually adding from the 300ish decent pictures that I captured but for now, here are some of the highlights:

• meeting my friend Rob and his family, Amy and Zoe, some of their friends and co-workers
• a great day hike up Sulphur Mountain in Banff
•  capturing my own photos of the cliff that killed my first Triumph, three years ago
• tagging Kootenay National Park, the only of the Big Four that I hadn't seen before
• visiting Yoho National Park again

It was a great trip and it's going to take some time to organize all of the pictures and impressions I gathered there...in the meantime, here's a brief outline of the trip's timeline:

Day 1: a quick blast up the Trans-Canada Highway and the Coquihalla Highway to Revelstoke, BC. Not many stops along the way, though I did stop at Craigellachie, the spot where the Canadian Pacific Railway completed its span across Canada, connecting East to West.

Day 2: continued across Rogers Pass, through Yoho National Park and into Banff. Met up with friends.

Day 3: visited Kootenay National Park, took some photos around Banff and climbed Sulphur Mountain, met friends for happy hour at the awesome Banff Ave Brewing Company

Day 4: unfortunately, had to head home. A brief stop at a couple favorite spots in Yoho NP and then back through the Rockies to Revelstoke. Headed towards Nakusp this time. First ferry ride with a motorcycle, from Shelter Bay to Galena. A visit to the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre in New Denver. Past the cliff that totaled my first Triumph 3 years ago. On into Nelson, whose supposed tradition of hot tubbing was not easily found

Day 5: a couple photos by the firehouse from Steve Martin's movie Roxanne and then the long ride home

Thanks for reading!

Western Canada Travels, Past and Present

The map above shows all of my motorcycle travels into Western Canada on one map on the face of  it, it seems like decent coverage for just a few trips up North.

Until you pull back the map a bit and look at how much of British Columbia, Alberta and the Northern Territories I haven't traveled yet. There's a tremendous variety of places to visit yet: the Yukon (e.g., Whitehorse, the blue X above) and Haida Gwaii (the islands with the black X) are particularly interesting. There is also a lot of cool stuff in Southern Alberta, circled in red.

Even in the places I've already visited, there are also many more things to see and do. The Canadian Rockies are a treasure trove of experiences and there's also a lot more to see and do in the nearby Cariboo region.

I can't wait to get back!

2011 Motorcycle Show - New and Improved

I spent some time yesterday wandering around the 2011 motorcycle show and thought I'd post up some comments here.

First of all, I have to give Harley-Davidson some kudos for their cool and engaging booth. I'm not a Harley/cruiser kind of guy but their setup was nicely done and staged so as to make the visitor part of the booth. From the bike that the curious could actually hop on, fire up and rev to the "how to pick up your bike" clinic, it was all very well done.




A booth I make sure to visit at each bike show is the Touratech booth. They provide top quality farkling and gear, have terrific guest speakers and events at their Seattle facility and are fantastic at working with customers. Here's a fully farkled F800 GS at their booth.



For me, the highlight of this year's show was to be having Triumph there again. I believe they make some of the best bikes in the world, with top flight build quality, excellent design and a fun mischievous side missing in "serious as a heart attack"sport bikes. Their booth was consistently packed while I was there. I even saw a visiting fan with a Triumph tattoo. (Note, there will be a cautionary post to Triumph following this one)




After last year's coup at launching the Tiger 800 like an arrow at BMW's GS heart, Triumph stepped up the competition with the new 1200 Expedition. A bit heavy for my taste but a gorgeous bike. BMW had better guard their lunch.



My long time favorite, the 1050cc Speed Triple, released in a higher spec R version this year. This one goes to fricking 12.



The very popular Street Triple looked a little embarrassed at appearing in "I have a sensitive side" purple.



A modern classic Bonnie and a Thruxville custom put together by I-90 Motorsports.



Triumph's America cruiser, hopefully not named that way because they see ALL Americans as overweight and slow, with poor ground clearance.



There may have been some Japanese bike manufacturers at the show as well.



As always, there were some great custom bikes for eye candy.