Day 10 – Riding in the hills of Boulder, CO

Day 10 – Boulder, CO

Date: 06/11/2016 Saturday
Starting Location: Boulder, CO
Ending Location: Boulder, CO
Starting Odometer: 9035
Ending Odometer:
9206
Mileage Today:  170.5 Miles
Mileage Total:  2352.7 miles
Today’s MPG:  46 mpg (A new record, highest MPG so far)
Total Average MPG:  43 mpg

Bike Service (A minor cleaning)

The bike had gotten a bit dirty over the past 2000 miles, so I decided to wash it, and give it the equivalent of a good nights’ rest in a hotel.  Once completed, the bike was spic and span, and ready for the coming ride later that morning.

Getting out of Boulder

Jim decided on a nice ride from Boulder, through the hills, stopping for lunch along the way, and making our way to Fort Collins.  From Fort Collins, we would make our way back to Boulder.

The route is shown below, and as you can see, it looks like a whole lot of great roads for Motorcycles.  The problem was that we chose the same morning for our ride as the local triathletes chose for an Iron-man Triathlon.  So, traffic was hell for about the first 45 minutes.

611-Route

We did the route in a clockwise direction, and along the way we experienced more traffic, and even as the traffic started to clear, we were then confronted with slow drivers, that don’t want to pull over and let faster traffic by.  If I had to make a guess, about 50% of our ride was either dealing with traffic, or these slower drivers that I mentioned.

But, for the other 50% of the trip, the roads and the company were great.  Jim rides a BMW S1000-R, which is a sport bike, with 160 hp, and immense torque.  To put things in perspective, my Audi S4 has about 420 hp.  My BMW GSA has twice the power to weight ratio of the car.  Jim’s bike has almost three times the power to weight ration as my S4.

The S1000-R

PICTURE OF JIM’S BIKE

I’ve ridden an S1000-R only once, and found it to be a rocket ship on two wheels.  BMW makes two bikes in this style/class, and they are the S1000-R and the S1000-RR.  The “RR” is the version that is Homologated for racing in the Super-bike series, while the “R” is a little bit more tame, and has slightly less performance.  After riding the S1000-R, it’s hard to imagine that anyone would want the more powerful version.

The Ride

So, as I tried to stick on the back wheel of Jim, I found it nearly impossible, without crossing my safety line. So, I did the best that I could, and we each rode at a different pace, on those sections or road where we weren’t behind traffic.

Jim is the kind of guy that is a whole lot like my Brother Carl.  Jim seems to know everyone, and he enjoys the kinship that comes from knowing your neighbors, and local merchants.  As a result, he can make things happen.  So, with the flick of the wrist, he was able to book us into the 3PM brewery tour at the Odell brewery in Fort Collins.

611-Odell1

The tour was quite interesting, but there were two issues.  First of all, we were riding motorcycles, so we couldn’t enjoy any of the beer at the brewery.  Secondly, we were wearing all of our riding gear, and so the tour was a bit uncomfortable as we wandered into and out of the various rooms where the beer is crafted and bottled.

The Odell Brewery is really quite a place.  It’s situated on the North side of Fort Collins, and it seems that the owners have turned this brewery into a sort of destination spot.  There is a beautiful patio area, with numerous rooms for enjoying the beer, and even a food truck on the grounds so that you can eat, while enjoying the beer.

They have music at the brewery a couple of times each week, and they treat their employees like a family, offering a stock program, free beer, and even a sabbatical to the UK after you’ve been with the company for 5 years.

I’ve taken a few pictures of the brewery during and after the tour.  Enjoy.

What’s in store for tomorrow?

Tomorrow (Sunday) will be my final day in Boulder.  We’re planning a short ride, which we expect to start at about noon time, and last for just a couple of hours.  When the ride is completed, I’ll take a little time to wash my Riding Jacket and Pants, and clean the inserts on my helmet.  Both of which tend to really absorb lots of sweat from the many miles on the road.

Monday morning will come early, and it’s another big mileage day.  So, I’ll pack and prepare the bike the night before, and be ready to leave Boulder at 6AM, headed across Colorado into Utah again.

 

About the Author

Cliff Musante

Cliff Musante is a technologist, business leader, motorcycle enthusiast, father, grandfather, and more. In June, 2013 his passion for motorcycles was revitalized, and he set out to ride across Patagonia. Since then, he's logged thousands of miles, ridden across the US, and on July 10, 2019, he began a 120 day trip through Europe, and then on to Russia, China, and parts East. This 'Blog is the story of all of his adventures.