Bethany 2009

I just got back from the Bethany ’09 ride, and while it wasn’t an overwhelming success for me personally, I did experience some new things for the first time, and make some new friends! Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right? Overall it sounds like everyone who attended went home happy, and in one piece!

BJ invited me to share space on his trailer with him and his friend Robin. Saves a 90min drive from the GTA! We arrived just before 8am, and were one of the first to sign-in and get our eggs:

As everyone else showed up it gave us a chance to oogle all the other bikes: “Oooh – where did you buy that from?!?”… waiting for the 9:00am start time: lots of other first-time club riders!

Then I did the first dumb thing of the day. Although this morning the bike started on the 2nd kick to ride it to BJ’s… and it lit right up after taking it off the trailer at the club… I was the guy that flooded it when we really were supposed to start. Doh!

Because I had my own GPS, I told everyone to head out and I would catch up. Here I am letting the bike sit for a few minutes, before trying to kick-start it again. It was easier to leave the kickstand on the cement so it didn’t sink into the gravel with all the kicking…

Success! Here the bike idles as I run around to put all my gear back on…

Then my second “less than optimal” decision of the day. Ecstatic that I was mobile… my head turned to thoughts of catching up… and the beginning of the route was easy sand road so maybe I wasn’t really concentrating on my lines. Which lead to me enthusiastically trying to throttle through the first “tiny mudhole” I came across.

As some of the other riders no doubt heard at lunch… I only made it about half way and spun to a stop. At this point the bike wasn’t really buried: the frame was clear of the mud. First time I’ve gotten stuck on a bike: but should be easy to get out, right?

Of course now that I was sitting at a standstill… I look over about 4 feet to my right and saw the mud-free rut I should have taken. Still convinced this was a minor setback, I started to slowly turn the bike around: ahead of me was a larger mud pit, and it was slightly uphill as well, so forward didn’t seem like a good idea.

Over the next 2 hours, this is as far as I got:

The Police drove by on their quads about 10 minutes after I got stuck. Initial impressions weren’t good: as I’m standing in knee-high mud, wrestling with a stationary bike so wedged in that it stood on its own: the nearest officers first words were “Are you allowed to be here?”

His partner walked around to see my blue plate, and they became considerably more friendly. Then came bad decision #3: when they asked if I needed help… because I had the bike about 1/3rd turned around I said “No, I’ll be fine”. So the went on their way… to warm many more riders to stay out of Raglan pits. I really thought I would get out of this, and it would be a funny story at lunch.

About 90 minutes pass, with me tugging and spinning the tire and digging and pulling on the front wheel, and I could move it no further. And I had only seen 2 more dirtbikes come by during that time. I had given up any hope of trying to keep my gloves or bike clean: digging the mud with my hands and the half-circle of plywood you can see in the picture.

So when the cops swung by a second time (“You’re still here?”) I asked if they could try to winch me out, and they were extremely helpful and friendly. But, because all we had on hand was an old towstrap found in the mud (obviously I wasn’t the first one to get stuck here).. which broke in about 2 seconds the best I could do was strip the tools/keys/GPS from the bike and have them take me back to the landing.

Oh yeah, when they dropped me off, they said they had to report that they had helped me… and oh by the way can we see your papers? Fair enough!

I called my sister, who Googled the phone number of the restaurant we were supposed to meet at for lunch, and I scratched it into the driveway with a stick (probably still there: had no pen and paper). Then I called ahead and left a message:

“Hello, Heaven on Seven!”

“Yeah, hi, uh… is there a big bunch of dirty bikers there?”

“No, but I’m expecting them, what can I do for you?”

“Tell one of them that the guy who flooded at the beginning is all right, don’t expect him, but he got stuck and is back at the starting point. Here’s my number..”

“Will do!”

Shortly thereafter Dave called and got the scoop, and let me know I won a prize for what happened to me. I didn’t ask what the name of that particular contest was: “Shortest distance travelled?” (he gave me a TimCard at the end, thanks Dave!)

So all I can do now is wait: take off all the gear and lay on the grass (until it started to rain)…

While the rest of the team was having lunch, I was dining on snack bars + CamelBak!

Soon enough BJ and Robin (and another guy whos name I forgot, sorry, really sorry, since you drove us half way in to my bike in your truck)…and we hatched a plan to get me out. Walk in with a few towstraps, a couple that were the ratchet-type, and pull me out

It was a bit of a hike:

Hopefully BJ posts some of his pics or video… because the towstrap idea was hopeless… but although I hadn’t seen almost anyone else all day… shortly after we arrive a large group of about 10 quads/bikes came buy and offered to help. We had winched my bike forward about a foot and were having a think about what to do next when an even larger quad rolled in, a large green Kawasaki and a rider that knew how to really drive it!

Long story short, we ended up winching the bike out: the quad was strong enough it pulled my bike out of the mud, backwards, and up about a 3 foot high 45degree incline! About 20 minutes later we were back at the start point and all loaded up. Special thanks to everyone who helped me and stayed around until I was out… with very very special thanks to BJ and Robin for walking in the road to get me (and back out again). They just met me today, and treated me like a friend!

A little over an hour later we were back at BJs house… which was only about a 15min ride away from my place. So I sit here now typing up my story, thoroughly exhausted, but no worse for wear.

I take responsability for everything that happened: it was my lack of experience and poor judgement that got me into this mess, and a bunch of OFTR members and the kindness of strangers that got me out…

…so I consider it my duty to try the NTR ride in two weeks and show the world I’m a little older and wiser! I had a great time today, despite what the pictures may show! Anyone got room on their trailer? 🙂