1990 KLR 650

The stories this bike could tell are to many but the one that sticks in my mind is 100 miles on Mt. Diablo.

When was the last time you got to ride on the trails on Mt. Diablo and not worry about a Ranger.

It was the early 90's and we put on Horse Endurance rides on the mountain where you would have to complete 100 miles in 24 hours on a horse. My wife's company Sportack was a sponsor and I marked trails for years in my Toyota 4X4. One year it rained and they wouldn't let us on the trail for fear of tearing it up. We talked them into letting me ride my KLR (wasn't easy to convince them) and off I went. You can't imagine how much fun I had. Blasting down fire roads that were wet enough to get great traction but not so bad as to be bogged down in the mud. I probably did 200 miles just because I was having so much fun but then it happened.

I pulled up to a trail that I had never been down and a friend who wasn't a big motorcycle fan said "We should walk down and mark this one, not ride the bike". I said "Why". She said she didn't think a motorcycle could do it. "Do horses do it" I asked. She said "Yes" and that was enough for me and down the trail I went.

About 1/4 mile down I hit a switch back that couldn't be done. I had to lay the bike down and drag the bike into position to make the turn. OK, off again and about 200 feet there was another one, and then another and another. I drug this KLR so much it broke the side stand kill switch and now the bike wouldn't start. Time to push.

To keep it short I got out about 9PM that night and I was exhausted. Horses can bend in ways big bikes can't. If it would have been a little 125 it would have been fine but at 400lbs the KLR is not a tight trail bike. I think I was the last person to legally ride a motorcycle on the trails of Mt. Diablo but even if I wasn't it was one of the best times I've had.