Category: Riding at Altitude

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Riding With Pain

On By PhotomotomanIn Adventure Touring, Camping, Motorcycle Camping, photography, Riding at Altitude, SurvivalLeave a comment

Often, I think of my youth. I was always able to find a way to get what I wanted done, as long as it only required physical effort. I was small for the first fifteen years of my life, small but spry. I was capable of almost anything physical that I set my mind to.

Once I turned 16 I began to grow and was no longer small. By the time I graduated from High School, I was an inch taller than the norm. I played a lot of contact sports and unfortunately broke a bone every year playing football, from 13 through 18. Fortunately, even though I had by then suffered two skull fractures, I seemed to have no permanent disabilities.

I joined the Fire Service when I was 21 and my injury history continued. I fell four stories in a fire when a structure collapsed, was blown off the roof of a building, and then through a wall of a building in a smoke explosion. Broken neck, broken back, herniated disks, dislocated shoulders, etc., etc., etc.

I assumed most of this was normal in some odd way, not reflecting on my luck, or lack of it, always healing and moving on. What I didn’t take into consideration was the cumulative effect of twenty accidents. It’s not that you aren’t aware, it’s that you have a job, a vocation, a position, an expectation, and a reputation to uphold. You are a character, known by some as Black Cloud, or Lucky Mac. Being Irish, you take it all in stride.

You finish your career, rise to be the Chief Officer, listen to the stories and anecdotes, receive your gold watch and plaque, and then walk out the door.

One morning you look around and realize it’s time to do something. If you’re ever going to do it, it has to be now. So you look through travel magazines, hobby books, and avocation publications. Nothing seems important, and nothing seems overtly interesting. One day you’re walking down a street and see something that does spark your interest, again. You had forgotten all the times you enjoyed doing what it was that this item enabled you to do.

You’re not ready to, heaven forbid, ‘retire’, so you consult and continue for a total of 43 years, finally appreciating that enough is enough. None of the men you worked with are around anymore. They’re living in Hawaii or Mesa, Arizona, still with the ‘old gang’ in spirit if not reality.

You take a few pictures with your iPhone, and keep walking. Along the way something inside you says, “I remember. It was fun, and I think I’d like to do that again.” So you make a point of going home and opening your laptop, searching for that one true thing. The joy you had when you were young. No responsibilities, no expectations of being the solid, hard-working civil servant or bureaucrat.

The next morning, I awoke, jumped in the car, and headed down to a dealership. There was one completely red, bright cherry motorcycle sitting on the floor. A 2002 Honda VFR800 VTEC. It was already fifteen years old, but it was pristine, sleek, beautiful, and apparently, fast. Not only was it fast, but it only had 11,000 kilometers on it. Not even broken in. Without a second thought, I said, “I’ll take it.” I rode it over to the insurance company across the street with a borrowed helmet and a temporary sticker. I registered it, insured it, and put the plates on with zip ties from the dealership.

I was a motorcyclist, again. Over the next week or so, I acquired everything I needed to be safe. The obvious ‘kit’ was procured and I began my adventure, again. The world would be my oyster.

When riding, nothing seemed to bother me, not weather, not discomfort, not pain. And then a major accident almost cost me my life after another six years of riding. One more inch of compression in the vehicle and I would have amputated my leg. Four more inches and I would have been decapitated. The surgery went well, and I was plated and screwed back together. Seven months later, I was riding again.

But one thing remained. Pain. Whether from the accumulation of my life’s idiocy or misfortune, I somewhat suddenly encountered pain, which although I had experienced a lot of it, had always subsided. Well, not this time. A year on from my accident, pain is my constant companion. I don’t believe in painkillers, so we have an agreement. I’ll continue to ride until my physical ability to do so isn’t possible, and pain will remind me that the time ahead is a lot less than the time behind.

I still solo camp in the mountains, but have to train to remain capable of climbing. I have several long trips planned this year into the mountains at altitude. I’ve made some concessions about making myself as comfortable as possible, but carrying an Everest pack and 70 pounds of gear isn’t as easy as it once was. Thirty miles in the mountains seems like a daunting task.

So, if you’re up in the Rockies and walk past a green Kawasaki Ninja 1000sx at a trailhead, covered up and locked up, I’ll be somewhere up ahead, camera in hand photographing the beauty that only can be found at altitude in the mountains. Say hi, share a cup of coffee, and tell me your story. I have all the time in the world. At least that’s what I tell myself.

Thanks for the company. Thanks for the experience and the memories.

youtu.be/F4F_K95ol8c

Ciao…

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Riding at Altitude

On By PhotomotomanIn Riding at Altitude, UncategorizedLeave a comment

How often do you ride at altitude, or have you ridden at altitude? What is it about riding at altitude that poses challenges to you? In this article, I want to talk about just that. What do you need to consider? Is there anything unique about riding at altitude, and if there is, how do you prepare?

I was a flatlander for most of my life, having never experienced altitude early in my life except for short explorations of volcanoes while on holidays. However, about fourteen years ago I moved to close proximity to the mountains in Alberta, Canada. I found that I enjoyed trekking, and while in those days I wasn’t riding, I started spending time at altitude and encountering the circumstances that led me to write this article.

I started with day camping, then a couple of days, and before long found I enjoyed being at altitude, even if the peaks weren’t over 10,000 feet for longer periods of time. More importantly, I discovered that weather patterns in the mountains can change, almost instantaneously, irrespective of what forecasters tell you about the impending weather.

The Author in the Mountains Camping

Add riding a motorcycle into the equation, and you have a lot more to be concerned about. The mountains are absolutely beautiful, especially in Alberta and BC where the peaks seem to hover almost directly overhead. I became hooked on riding in the mountains, and spent every moment of my free time there. But having mountains in very close proximity can also be hazardous.

Environmental Hazards

The first thing you need to consider, is you. Are you physically prepared for riding in the mountains? Do you have the right equipment? Be aware that in the mountains, temperatures can drop very quickly. For every 3000 foot increase in elevation, air temperatures can drop anywhere up to 10 degrees Celcius. Add rain, or ice fog and you will feel that change even more acutely. Be aware that the higher the altitude, the greater the risk. In Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and a few other locations in the US you can be at more than 10,000 feet in elevation and your physical conditioning may be part of the problem.

Years ago, I was in Colorado, trekking near Long’s Peak.

Four Japanese climbers had just reached the upper wall on the east face of the mountain (photograph above). As I came up the trail, a Park Ranger, who wa a rescue climber was standing at the top of a trail of the adjacent mountain that I was climbing up. I asked him how it was going, and he turned around and said, “A lot better than it’s going for them.” He passed me his binoculars and I could clearly see the four climbers, staggered on the face, about fifty feet apart. Over the top of the peak a wall of icy air was coming down like fog, and snow was now descending on the group. They became aware, but worst, they were only wearing light clothing, shorts and climbing boots. It was obvious they would be in serious trouble once the snow and ice reached them.

“They have no idea how cold this is going to get.” said the Park Ranger. I tried to radio them and let them know that a storm front is coming, but no one seems to have communications equipment or isn’t monitoring it.” It was obvious that they would be unable to get off the face of the mountain, as at this point, it was all technical climbing.

I stood transfixed watching as each climber in turn tried to find either a bivouac tent or warm clothing, however none of them were successful in getting into a tent or finding appropriate clothing in time. Over the next hour we watched, horrified, as each in turn became hpyothermic and then, stationary. The storm lasted the night, and minutes after determining the outcome was goint to be deadly, I made my way down the mountain, having put on winter clothing, even though this was August. The next day, the Air National Guard sent a helicopter up the face and managed to deploy Search and Rescue Technicians, who bundled the bodies and slung them to the helicopter to be taken down the mountain.

Two of those climbers died that day. The other two somehow managed to get into their bivouac tents after I left, and survived and were evacuated, with frostbite. The daytime air temperature was about 18 C. yet in just under fifteen minutes at 14,000 feet, the temperature dropped from about 15 C. to -15 C. It was an outcome I will never forget. I carry emergency clothing when at altitude, even in July, because you just never know. And, having said that, even though I knew better, I found myself on one occasion in a similar situation, on July 24th, but that’s another story.

Your motorcycling gear should include the following:

  • Warm gloves, waterproof
  • Raingear
  • Good clothes with layered thermal protection
  • Warm boots
  • Head bandana or hood for under your helmet.

It is not uncommon to encounter rock slides in the passes, especially if rain has occurred prior or during your ride. When cornering, stay alert and look beyond the apex of the turn. It’s not unusual for there to be rocks on the road.

The next consideration, particularly in some locations at higher altitudes, to encounter animals on the road, especially mountain goats. They will congregate on the asphalt, licking salt off the cracks in the road, and believe me, they are not prone to moving. In fact, if you come up on mountain goats too fast, there is the potential for Rams to deliberatly run into you, which can spoil your day. I had this occur to me in Alberta on a highway while driving my Fire vehicle. A Ram left a rather large dent in my door, so unimpressed was he with me attempting to drive between them.

Remember that at altitude, the following can occur.

  • Frost heaves in the roadway, that leads to potholes or large bumps in the road,
  • Gusting winds in the valleys, particularly where higher mountain elevations are common,
  • blind corners with either no shoulder, or guardrails right to the edge of the pavement,
  • Loose rocks and gravel,
  • Very slow moving RV’s and campers,
  • Narrow bridges with alternating directional crossings,
  • wildlife
  • Black Ice on the asphalt can kill you. Pay attention to the temperature and stop if ice is forming.

Riding tips while at altitude:

Stay to the outside of the road when starting your turns through blind corners. That way you can see farther down the road ahead. Don’t hug the inside of turns. All it takes is one unobservant driver in an RV to veer over the line. If you want to stop and photograph, do it at lookouts and places where you can park safely. Last year I watched a bike get ‘punted’ right off a mountain in western Canada, because the rider left his bike close to the white line on the shoulder of the road. Unless, and even if you know the road, don’t drive in the mountains at night. Animals can come right off the shoulder with no notice. Hitting an Elk is probably one of the quickest ways to get killed.

Remember that some of the wildlife may not be benign. If you come across a Grizzly bear and her cubs, DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT decide to pull over and take a picture of the cute cubs. Again, five years ago I saw a Japanese tourist and his new wife, without any knowledge of the danger they were in, walk between a mother grizzly and her cubs with his back turned to her, while photographing. I screamed at him, and he ran back towards me, a look of shock on his face. I had no words. If you’re going into places where wildlife live, know their behaviours and plan accordingly.

If one mountain goat crosses the road in front of you, be aware there are likely a dozen more about to do the same thing.

One way to lower the risks is to not ride through mountain passes at night. Animals, especially the larger wildlife, like to move in elevation at night from where they feed during the day to where they sleep at night.

Be prepared, whatever you do, and then enjoy the ride. If you’ve thought through the ride you’re about to take, you will be prepared. Enjoy it and keep the shiny side up.

Ciao…