Over the Columbus federal holiday weekend Debbie and I took our first long ride on the new Motorcycle (I will be posting about the new motorcycle soon). The weather was supposed to be cool but not terrible. However, cool turned into cold and cold turned to a mix of rain and snow.
This was also likely the last overnight trip of the season as we head, quickly, into winter! Winter sucks!
Sunday morning, we pulled out and headed south to Staunton, Virginia. Our goal was to ride “The Raptor”, 88 miles across 8 mountains with sections of twisties that rival the Tail of the Dragon.
The Raptor lived up to its appearance on the map. Multiple up and down hill switchbacks, tight twisty turns many exceeding 90 degrees. In other words, it is a lot of fun for riders that like this type of road. This is also a road, like the Tail of the Dragon, that if you don’t pay attention, AND ride within your abilities, you could get yourself into trouble.
There’s nothing quite like riding US Route 250, the Raptor, on a motorcycle. It’s a thrilling experience that takes you through some of the most scenic and challenging roads in the country. You’ll encounter twists and turns, mountains and valleys, forests, and farms, as you cruise along this stretch of asphalt.
When we finished The Raptor, I wanted to turn around and head back to do it again. But the temperature had dropped, and Debbie wanted to head to the hotel. Alas, I was relying on the GPS and did not realize it was set to “Scenic” not fastest. OPPS! About an hour into what I thought was to be, at most, a 30 minute trip I realized my mistake. 20 minutes later we made it to the Corduroy Inn and Lodge at Snowshoe, WV, our stop for the night.
At this point I started to understand fully (not that I did not already know from being there multiple times) that we were at a ski resort. Debbie and I started laughing about our situation and quickly made for the Inn.
The next morning, I walked out to see how the weather impacted the bike and parking lot. There was some snow on the motorcycle, but the parking lot was good to go, with no ice or snow. Also, upon check out we were told we should have used the parking garage… thanks guys we will know for next time.
By the way, our room at the Corduroy Inn was genuinely nice, we would stay there again.
Pulling out we headed first to Senica Rocks for breakfast and the view. It was cooling off even more and starting to rain so we spent little time on the view.
Back on the road we headed to the house and made it home on a filthy and wet motorcycle and looking forward to warm showers!
