Newsletter No. 23
August 20, 2022

A few fans have asked if I am ready for the off-road challenges I have on my route plan for Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. After all, my safety riders seemed to make small work of these roads (if you can call them “roads” in some places). They had again scouted them after my crankshaft broke in 2019 but - then again - these guys are seasoned former motocross and desert racers from Southern California on highly technical adventure motorcycles (they made me say that!). Today, I made a valiant effort to find out if I had what it takes.

Upon arrival to Pusheta Creek Motocross Park in Wapakoneta, Ohio, as I looked at the track and the speeds and skills of the riders on the track, it suddenly occurred to me that maybe I was biting off just a bit more than I could chew. The conditions at Pusheta Creek are far more aggressive than what I expect to encounter out west, but maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe. But I was there and it was a nice day, and seemed like a good way to break the ice... hopefully only the ice.

The folks running Pusheta Creek were great hosts and the participants all friendly. The guy parked next to me was very nice, complementary, and encouraging… as he carefully situated his chair to watch me head out to the track... and then he helped me push it up the ramp into the trailer when I was done. After all, how often do you see a 100-year-old street bike up close at a motocross track? Turns out he’s member of a Dayton motorcycle club that meets up Wednesday nights. He thought they’d love to see the bike too, so I maybe I have an engagement next week.

Anyway, Pusheta Creek let me ride on their “beginner track” today. It didn’t seem so “beginner” for me though. Truth be told, the road in the pit area was comparable to what I’ve seen out west, and probably should have been the extent of my practice today. But my testosterone was running high as the Henderson crackled its 14.2 horsepower, so there was no stopping me! I was here to do some riding!

The track itself was freshly plowed, churned up, and watered. Great for motocross, not so much for the old Henderson and its lackluster rider. Still, it was much better than what CK Shepherd found in Indiana in June 1919... mud so deep he could stop, step off the bike, and the bike would just stand vertical all by itself.

During a phone call just before I arrived, one of my safety riders told me an old motocross credo: When in doubt, gas it! And when I hit the track, that’s exactly what I intended to do, right up until the mud clogged my wheels and slowed me down, the bike wobbled, I encountered some unescapable ruts. It occurred to me pretty quick that all this could quickly devolve into an unhappy ending if I pushed my luck. Yeah, I only rode one lap, but it was awesome! I did it! I challenged my fears and rode a lap on far worse “road” conditions than I am expecting next month, and I didn’t break me... or the bike! Another great day and experience for me and the Red One. I did the “table top” ramps, corners, churned up mud, ruts, and all that motocross track could throw at me. But, truth be told, I’m still shaking a bit. Using a motocross track for practice just to impress a couple fans? What was I thinking??

But it was a great learning experience, especially being I was by myself (no expert coaches egging me on), and I feel better with what I learned today. Plus, did I mention how nice everybody was and what a great day it was? Well, I can’t overstate both. I still have a smile etched on my face as I’m about to lay down for the night… in one piece thankfully.

This video is shorter than most, and I apologize for that. It does not do justice to the day. If you stay past the credits, you can see a couple guys going off the table top jump on the real race track the staff was trying to get me to ride on. I told them that I’d be back next week for that, then I left the track under an assumed name, never to be seen again. But I’m smiling on the day, that’s for sure. Thanks to all of you for inspiring me to do this and hopefully I’ll see some of you on the off-road portions of my upcoming trip.