After a refreshing lunch it was time to brave the elements again , so we fire up our trusty quads & cross Rt # 61 & head southwest towards Minnersville, Pa. With full bellies , the pace is modest as I search & peck my way across some unfamilar territory in search of the trail that lets us access the next set of mountains! Some hunters are target shooting against a hillside , so I make a WIDE detour to bypass this ENTIRE area & head out acrossthe mountain in a different direction. At the top of the ridge I glance back & ONLY Mike Yucha is with me! WHERE did the rest of the guys go?????? Did someone get shot by a stray bullet or WHAT?????
Mike & I wait a few minutes & NOTHING!!!! So we back track & shortly see an UGLY sight! Chris is full of dirt from head to toe & the 700 4x4 Kawasaki is perched at a STRANGE angle off the side of the trail! NOT GOOD!!!!! After a brief exchange of info , its learned that the Kawasaki's ENTIRE left hand side A-arm assemble had somehow broken entirely off , locked up the front end of the quad & sent Chris over the handle bars & face first into the frozen turf! Chris is shaken , but OK!!!!! But the Kawasaki 4x4 is in SHAMBLES!!!!!
Today was our lucky day as Mike Yucha had spotted some locals & after a brief discussion , the local agreed to go get his pickup truck & return & extract the crippled quad .
After a 1/2 hour wait the local returns & the Kawasaki is loaded up for the ride back to Motel 6 & it's eventual journey back to Annapolis , Maryland for repairs.
After waving good-bye to a depressed fellow Speedball , we focus on getting back across the mountains safely & before it gets too late! Darkness is fast approaching & I don't want to be caught on some strange mountain top & get LOST ! So I head off towards St. Clair to locate trails that I can navigate with confidence no matter the weather conditions or DARKNESS! At NIGHT everything looks DIFFERENT , so being in FAMILAR turf once the sun sets is CRITICAL !
Within 1/2 hour we are past St. Clair & climbing the boulder strewn trail that accesses the powerline that heads over the mountain to Frackville, Pa.
By the time we get over the mountain & access the main trail to Frackville,Pa. it's DARK , so I switch on the Grizzly's BRIGHT foglights & head off at a VERY brisk pace!!!!! YEHAAAAAAAAAAA! The last hour or so is CRAZY as I drop the hammer & BLAST through every large mud hole & up every boulder strewn hill at warp speed , sending waves of water into the nearby woods! Mike Yucha is on my ASS at first & gets caught in the backlash of more than one HUGE tidal wave of water!!!!!! LMAO! With the extra bright fog lights , that turn NIGHT , into DAYTIME , I finally manage to put distnce between myself & my fellow Speedball's & stop every so often until I see headlights dancing through the woods. Time to drop the hammer AGAIN!!!!! LOL!!!!! By the time we BLAST & SLIDE the last few yards into the parking lot of Motel 6 , Speedy is grinning from ear to ear & FROZEN into a solid block of ICE!!!!!! YAHOOOOOOOO! COLD , WET , TIRED , but HAPPY !!!!!! What a GRAND way to end a 100 mile winter time ride !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After thanking everyone for a WONDERFUL day , it's time to get a HOT shower & head off to Cracker Barrel for some HOT food!
Hope MORE of you can scrounge up some WARM clothes & boots & join Speedy & the others for our NEXT Great Adventure in the mountains of Pa. !!!!! Your AARP atv buddy!
SPEEDY RACER
*** Click LOWER right for DAY # 2 RIDE!!!! Sunday Jan.4th *********************