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I know most of you just want to go to Arkansas and do hardcore trails, but I thought I would post this up for the few who might like a dualsport kind of ride. 200 mile days on asphalt, forest roads/ trails , and wonderful gravel county roads.
I hope to be able to go back down with you guys for the April fools ride, but if you pick the same weekend I'm good with that.


Eureka Springs, Arkansas. April 2-3-4 is the weekend we picked this year. Usually a Thursday afternoon ride for 5 to 10 of us, then the two main days are Friday & Sat where a whole bunch of riders show up. Please come join us you will love the area.

The Travelers Inn is the host hotel. Call 1--800--643--5566 to book a room. Last year we almost filled the place up and they have 60 rooms. 45$ plus tax gets you a room with 2 queen beds. Gary the guy who runs the place says to say you are with " backroads touring " and you will get put right next to the other hoodlums attending. He also said he booked the Swedish bikini team to help out with backrubs and such (not). We also get to use their meeting room for our breakfast which they provide, and any meeting or BS sessions we have.

I asked Larry M. from Manhattan Ks to help with planning the event. He said yes , so he is the new main man. I will still be there and help out. Several routes are planned as usual to make it a good time for all.

Just as a little legal disclaimer--------- this ride is nothing more than a group of like minded people getting together to celebrate life. No groups or people are in charge, and what you do at this ride is totally up to you. YOU are responsible for what you do or don't do as far as attending goes. We all want to ride and have fun, so smile, be nice, and be safe.

David H

Yes siree, April feels like a long way off. I have already started experimenting with some routes. I need to cross match a couple more map sources to up the chances the roads really exist. I accidentally led David down a road this fall that had us both thinking we would be packing our bikes out in pieces. Hopefully I can come up with some new routes through some places we haven't seen before. I foresee a late winter pre-ride in my future. Troy gave me some good ideas this fall for some roads I could integrate into a alternative trail ride route.
Things might look different when we get in the White Rock area this spring. When I was there a couple weeks ago, they had signs and maps posted for extensive prescribed burning.
David and I will keep you posted as plans come together.

The routes are coming along nicely for this year's rides. I put together a few pictures from past rides and some pictures taken around the White rock area. http://picasaweb.google.com/MacWildcat/Eureka#slideshow

I have two dual-sport routes created for Friday and Saturday. I also have a tentative route created for Saturday for anyone interested in riding more trails. We would trailer down to the White Rock/Mill creek area and spend the day riding easy to moderate difficulty trails. This route would require both a trail-worthy bike and a competent rider. I have ridden these trails on a DR650, anything larger/heavier would be a lot of work. Adequate bike protection and knobby tires will be a must.

For the dual-sport rides, 50-50 tires or DOT knobbies will make your experience and your riding partners day more enjoyable. The DS routes are approximately 200 mile loops each day, being able to navigate poor road surfaces helps finish the day.. Weather and riding conditions can be pretty variable in April, be prepared for anything from dry sand, loose gravel on top of solid rock or gumbo mud (tires, tires, tires). Last year we got a little wet ( I think I dried out sometime in June!). We have also experienced temperatures in the high 20's in the morning, to 70's in the afternoon.

A helmet, boots, gloves and good jacket are the minimum protection you will need. Any additional body protection you have will only keep you safer. In the past few years we have been lucky, only a few minor bumps, bruises and sprains. There are usually a few water crossings, boulder fields, and steep hills. Did I mention good tires?

The routes are created with MapSource. I will have the routes available later for downloading. If you have experience following a GPS route consider leading a group of your fellow riders. We always need route leaders. There are definite advantages, you get to see everything first and you don't suck dust all day! The optimum group size is 5-7 bikes, anything larger seems to slow down the pace. With the distances we are covering a good consistent pace will get you done is about 10 hours. If you finish the entire route you have something to smile about. There are plenty of opportunities to take a shortcut home if only want to ride part of the routes.

Larry: could you post this info on the BTK in Wichita? sounds like a hoot.

Here are tracks we used at the Fall Colors Tour 08 tweaked by my friend Mike, some White Rock, Mill Creek to Oark.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost ... ostcount=7

Thanks for the tracks, I can always use more route resources.

katbeanz wrote:Here are tracks we used at the Fall Colors Tour 08 tweaked by my friend Mike, some White Rock, Mill Creek to Oark.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost ... ostcount=7

I can't open that with MapSource ... and MapSource will open other GPX files for me. Anybody have a good copy of the file? (I have downloaded it twice and tried to open it directly.)

I can't get it either, just a part of it, I forgot attachments are messed up until ADV upgrades servers. Waiting for Mike's reply via email.

edit, PM me an email address or email me zodran@yahoo.com and I'll forward it. Dean

katbeanz wrote:I can't get it either, just a part of it, I forgot attachments are messed up until ADV upgrades servers. Waiting for Mike's reply via email.

edit, PM me an email address or email me zodran@yahoo.com and I'll forward it. Dean

Somehow, AJayHawkFan was able to open it in MapSource and sent me the file. I will try to upload that file and post it here. AJay... noted that MapSource gets finicky with him as well.

Found this on gpsxchange, Eureka Springs to Oark.. .

http://www.gpsxchange.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=787

You have to be a member to download from there.

safiri wrote:

katbeanz wrote:I can't get it either, just a part of it, I forgot attachments are messed up until ADV upgrades servers. Waiting for Mike's reply via email.

edit, PM me an email address or email me zodran@yahoo.com and I'll forward it. Dean

Somehow, AJayHawkFan was able to open it in MapSource and sent me the file. I will try to upload that file and post it here. AJay... noted that MapSource gets finicky with him as well.

So it gets weirder ... the file that did open yesterday, causes MapSource to crash today ... Other GDB and GPX files open fine, but not this one!

safiri wrote:

katbeanz wrote:I can't get it either, just a part of it, I forgot attachments are messed up until ADV upgrades servers. Waiting for Mike's reply via email.

edit, PM me an email address or email me zodran@yahoo.com and I'll forward it. Dean

Somehow, AJayHawkFan was able to open it in MapSource and sent me the file. I will try to upload that file and post it here. AJay... noted that MapSource gets finicky with him as well.

This works ... for now:
http://home.everestkc.net/malsin/Motorc ... cksGPX.gdb
(The name has GPX in it, but it is in GDB format. I tried converting it to GPX but that caused MapSource to close.)

T shirts can be ordered if you want one. As long as at least 12 people order them the shop will do a run for us. Cost will be12$ for short sleeve and 14$ for long sleeve t shirts. That cost is for any shirt up to and including XL. XXL will be13.30$ for short sleeve, XXXL will be 14.60. for shortsleeve. Add the extra 2 $ for long sleve if you want that. Shirts will be blue and have the same design as last time. Link below should get you a look. Pre payed orders only, can be sent to me at David Hemphill 1536 North 1175 rd, Lawrence Ks 66046. If we don't get a big enough order I will tear up your checks. Shirts will be picked up at the ride.
List size and sleeve you want.


http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/p9 ... directlink

I just talked to Gary the guy that runs the motel and he thought the ice storm shouldn,t affect our ride unless you are doing ATV or single track down by White Rock.

Interesting development, coincidence, or?

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost ... stcount=42

I'm in. Me and another rider will be heading down from KC on Thursday. We have a reservation.

Thanks.

The routes are completed! The route were created in the old MapSource Roads and Rec software so t will work with nwere versons of MapSource.

http://members.cox.net/jklm/Mapsource/Eureka09.gdb


There is a little explanation to go along with the different routes listed:

Both days rides have the route divided into two parts;
JasperA and JasperB
WhiteRck09a and WhiteRck09B

I divided the routes in two parts because we have had problems in the past with some GPS units having limited waypoints per route. You can tell if you try loading a route and get the message "Route Truncated" When you try to view the route on the GPS, not all the route will show.

The first part of the White Rock route has a alternative route (WhiteRckAltA) that shortcuts about 35 miles on pavement in order to get down to the White Rock area sooner Ths route also includes a section that is pretty rough and rocky. It also loops down around Shores Lake.
There is also a small alternate loop for the Jasper ride and the White Rock ride that are more difficult. Both alternate loops have waypoints listed at the beggining and end so you know when you reach them.
The Jasper section (AltJasper) is near Parthenon and includes a steep, long uphill section that can be pretty difficult on a large bike, or mild treaded tires.
The White Rock loop (HardWhiteRock)is a abandoned road that is pretty difficult. This could be a real workout and should not be attempted on a big bike.

I abandoned the full trail ride of White Rock. The logistics were going to be difficult. If anyone wants the route for their own use, send me a PM.

Wow! You put a lot of work into that! I figured out how to deal with gdb. I downloaded it but since my mapsource didn't want to open it I uploaded to gpsvisualizer.com and it converted it to gpx. I first copied and pasted the xml from the gpsvisualizer window not seeing the link to the gpx.

Planning to do some camping and riding.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost ... count=5256

EDIT, been trading PM's on ADV with a fellow who lives real close to Eureka Springs that I plan to ride with in a week or so. He says none of the road numbers for Madison County are accurate. This would be a bannable offense on ADV, but here's his PM.

Hey Dean..not to throw a wrench in the works but you might want to let the "trip Gurus" know that all the roads in Madison County have CHANGED!! I just looked at the map you sent, and none of the madison coutny road numbers on it are correct now..thanks to our King and Master, Judge Fowler and his stupid 911 team of morons..it's been that way now for abt 5 yrs and many of the mapping sources are just now starting to get the updates. I think if the guys follow GPS tracks and IGNORE the county road signs, then they should be good..but if they start reading the signs, then they are screwed.
dan

He doesn't do gps, doesn't need to in his backyard, but I sent him the link to the gdb and gpsvisualizer. I think it's a good idea to have his input in case there are areas to avoid.

The time is drawing near! Hope everyone is shaking the winter cobwebs off the bikes, preparing them for a couple days of Ozark fun. There is a couple more items concerning this get together.
1) I developed routes so that gas stops are no further than 100 miles apart. The gas stops are all based on past gas availability, we have been surprised before when there wasn't gas where we had fueled up in past years. We will make adjustments when this occurs. My best advise would be to top off the tank whenever we come across the opportunity for fuel. If you know your bike has less than 100 mile capability, if possible plan to carry a small auxiliary supply. There is usually enough KLR super tankers along that we can do some siphoning if needed.
2) If you are looking for maps that will give you decent road detail, I suggest the Delorme Gazetteer. It's a pretty good all purpose map, but it does have it's flaws. Like stated in a earlier post, counties have ways of changing road designations. The Delorme is also notorious for showing minor roads that haven't existed since the 1950's. (Just ask Uncle Dave, I took him down a couple doozie that we both were thankful we survived. Had us thinking the only way we were getting our bikes out was going to be in pieces.) I am making up small section maps that cover all the routes on four 8X11 pages. I'll have copies ready for the ride leaders (another perk to leading a group!).
The Ozark Nat'l forest maps have more up to date info/better detail than the Delorme but unfortunately doesn't cover the entire area we will be riding.
3) I will have ride waivers available Thursday night. The best part of the waiver is the cell number and emergency contact info at the bottom. Comes in handy during the ride if something happens or a group gets separated. It will e up to the individual ride leaders if they want the folks riding along with them to fill out a waiver. I'll try to get a sign up sheet for us so I can write up a ride report with some basic info about the group after we get back.

T shirt sales close at noon Wed. March 18th. , if you want one hurry up and contact me. hemphill@sunflower.com . look back several posts to see details on ordering. If I get your email I don't need the money right away just pay when you get it. cash only at this point.

See you all soon, David h

My name is David H and I'm helping get this ride going. You all know by now this is diversity weekend at Eureka. Not to worry, cause we have been there before with this group and all worked well, no hassles. We are gone riding so much you don't really notice them.

We will be having a group feed Sat. night at the motel catered by a local meat market owner named Mann. Just think how good you will feel when your nibbling on a Manns wiener, Bad joke , but I could not help my self.

On the serious side we will be having a group dinner. If you want to join us sign up with Gary ( the motel manager) when you sign in for your room. Also Sat night after dinner is the group get together for bull shitting and talking about how good we ride our bikes. Bring stories about past rides, and possible future rides. Snowball will be the MC again this year. Dang only 2 weeks to go.

See you there, David H