a sea of mud

[Rick G]

I had a short but fun ride today. I went for a ride on my "new " XL350 . We have had some pretty sever rain storms in the last few days  and the soil in this part of the desert is called "calechi",  its a clay thats water proof . When dry its like concrete nearly impossable to dig in, but when wet it sticks to tyres, boots   
anything  that comes into contact with it.
I havent ridden a dirt bike since 1976. I used to race TT and enduros  and did a lot of trail riding, but dirt riding did not come naturaly to me , like road racing. I had to learn it. Well today ,I had to learn it again .

I was riding down Bank street, past where the pavement stops , to where new construction is taking place. The road was a sea of mud,  with small lakes  everywhere. I proceeded cautiously (big mistake!!) and managed to get right in the middle of this morass , when the front end slid out . In my struggle to compensate, I hit the ground  (I use the term loosley) and broke a clutch lever . The best part was all the mud on my left side,  on my back, on both legs and all over the bike.
I righted my self and restarted the bike and had a second shot at it . Only this time ,I turned up the wick  and kept my weight over the back of the seat  and jumped up on the pegs . This kept the front end light so it did'nt plow  and drop me in the mud again.
I rode home  and hosed my bike and my self off My wife wanted to know what on earth I was doing squrting my self .I thought it prudent to not elaborate to her about my mis- adventure. ;D

[kwells]

that sounds like some awesome riding....
wish i had a dirt bike in my stable

[pullshocks]

Cool story Rick.  Nothing like getting dirty on the trail.  All my dirt bikes have pedals, but I'm sure its a similar experience.

[mdskinner731]

ha ha... my bro on our lil 1996 kawasaki ke100 we had got that stuck pretty bad.. riding through the trail in the woods he came upon a mud hole that was normally nothing to go through.. well he hit it about 4th gear wide open.. (ya i kno hes dumb thats a lil fast) and ended up getting stuck in skidder ruts that were perfectly spaced apart for the rear tire to drop in one and the front tire  in the other.. he flew off of the bike and cleared the mud pit.. that was the last time that bike ever ran right

[h2olawyer]

At least mud makes for a softer landing!  I had several similar experiences on my old KDX175.   ;D  Glad getting hosed off was the worst that happened!

H₂O

[Walt_M.]

The description sounds like Georgia red clay, don't have too much of it here in north Fl but it is around. And if it is like red clay, it was not a soft landing. Wet red clay is like a half inch of grease on concrete, most unpleasant.
I'm glad my new property has none of it, just sandy loam. Prefect traction for my YZ!

[mdskinner731]

im with walt_m.. georgia red clay sucks.. very slick when wet. and a hard landing

[h2olawyer]

Colorado has its share of clay soils.  Nasty stuff.  Walking through it, if you get more than sole deep, it sucks your shoes / boots off. Where I always rode, the get offs were of three choices - rocks, trees or mud / dirt.  Of the three, mud was definitely preferable!  I had a couple get-offs in boulder fields.  Glad I was only 20 when those happened.   ::)

H₂O

[kwells]

I've been thinking about finding a yz250.  Oh the fun...and injuries!

[inanecathode]

You should get an old rd or something, something you wouldnt mind thrashing.

[kwells]

oh I wouldn't mind thrashing ANY dirt bike because they all would be thrashed

[Rick G]

This area of the Mojave is infamous for its calechi. When the backhoe arrived to dig the pit for my septic system, it scratched at the dirt for hours ,and it was a big Case with lots of power. The stuff can't be touched by dynamite!! When I started to dig a grave for my old pal , Furby ,  I scratched a pit about 2inches deep and filled it with water , and came back the next day.
When its wet , it forms large 6 inch thick globs on your boots, or anything else it touches!
I only wish some one had been there ,with a camera to record my decoration in the mud.

[Walt_M.]

Did you make a 'mud angel'?

[Rick G]

Well , sort of , more like a mud snake  or  eel. I lit on my left sholder and left a large pocket from my fat arse . my left leg was under the "water" .  But next time I'll try a mud angel and get pics.!!!!! ;D :D