A Day on an Adventure 950

My day started at 4 am, freakin alarm going off way to early is all I have to say. Why so early? Well I had the 6 am flight to LA, and from there it was a 3 hour drive north to Santa Maria where I met up with Sean for a ride on the big KTM 950 Adventure. I had been looking forward to this ride for some time.

The ride started out as a typical Mitch and Sean fiasco. We roll into the gas station and I put the debit card into the machine, but then the stupid buttons for picking the fuel grade are backwards from back home, so we cancel the sale, which in turn renders my debit card useless at the pump for some reason. So Sean went to pull his out, but pull it out from where? It wasn't in the little compartment on the bike, nor his jacket pocket, nor the other jacket pocket, and ultimately it wasn't in the back pack either. Well no big deal, we just cruised a few miles back to his apartment, picked up the wallet and went back to the petrol store, or gas station if you talk like a normal person.

I was a bit sketched out on the first part of the ride, well actually the whole ride but felt better near the end. The wind was blowing pretty hard as we worked our way out to the mountains east of Santa Maria. We must have rode through this one vineyard for nearly 8 miles and that is when I just blew my own mine. How? Well I started thinking about how many vines full of grapes did it take to make just one bottle of wine, then I started to think of all the different wines out there, and then I thought about all the liquor stores that stock wine, and well you get the idea. Before long it was like thinking about time travel and how confusing that whole thing gets. The conclusion of all this deep thought was simple, it takes a $&(*^& load of grapes to make all that wine, especially when you start thinking of all that Carlo Rossi the bums drink and those big boxes my sophisticated brother likes.

Sean tells me at the start of this twisty asphault section that I should ride the bike like a motocrosser on the pavement, and not to worry if the back wheel starts to step out or if the front feels like it is drifting a bit. Also, just stick your foot out like you are railing a berm. I thought to myself yeah right, but as I watched Sean go into the first few turns, well that is exactly what he was doing. Me, well I was quite a bit more mellow and soon found myself quite away behind Sean.

I was glad to see the dirt, and we rode a majority of the ride on some fast two track with banked turns that were slick and just about perfect for a drift here and there, something the 950 did with ease. Now we all know Sean can ride a bike, no doubt a solid A rider off road, but man he really kills on the dual sport. I couldn't even stay in his dust for long!!!

All in all it was a great day. I know I keep talking about getting one of these bikes, but now I want one even more. Here are a few shots of Sean, and then down below are a few of me.

Later you all.