Run to the Curves Ride Review

AKA The Coronado Trail

Saturday morning, May 17th dawned bright and clear promising a beautiful day for BMMC’s 3rd Saturday Ride Event for May -- Run To The Curves. 42 BMMC members gathered at the Pavilions by 7:30 and soon thereafter, Ride Hosts Bart Iden and Chris Christner briefed us on the ride, riding safe, our gas/bio stops and where we were having lunch. Bart then introduced our Ride Captains and then talked us through the new procedure for organizing into three groups, which worked very nicely.

Chris Christner led the first group swept by Jim Whiting and Ray Williams; Bart Iden led the second group swept by Ed Judge and Don Walton and Glenn Murray led the third group swept by Bill and Sharon Harris who also carried the satellite telephone. Thanks everyone for helping out and supporting the club rides.

The groups arrived at the Manor House in Safford for lunch around 11:30 and BMMC WAS the lunch crowd where we met up with several BMMC members who were riding separately. Service was prompt and soon we were on our way to the curves. The groups stopped in Clifton and Morenci for a refueling/bio stop while your webmaster and photographer for the day rode on ahead to set up for some action shots at the Chase Creek Canyon Overlook which is the location of the graveside of C.A. Chamblin (click on photo to enlarge). Check out the slideshow for action shots of your fellow group riding club members rounding this climbing right hand corner.

The Coronado Trail road surface was in overall good shape with only a few corners with gravel or rock. As the group traveled North and gained altitude, dark clouds could be seen ahead and the temperatures began to drop. Some stopped to put on raingear as a precaution as well as for warmth. Many members commented they did not see the "Arrow Tree" on the ride up. Here it is -- click on it for a larger picture. It is located on the left side of the road after a tight left hand curve about 1 mile or so before you reach the Blue Overlook. If you missed that, it would be about 5 miles before Hannigan's Meadow. My GPS showed a maximum altitude of 9,355 feet a couple of miles before Hannigan's Meadow and there were still some sizeable snowdrifts remaining on the side of the road.

Some of the group stopped at Hannigan's Meadow for a short break and to let the beauty of this outstanding road sink in. Some of the overlook views were spectacular and you could see for miles--it was hard to maintain concentration. Chris Christner will need to tell his story of his one-man braking seminar on correct braking techniques when he rounded a corner only to find a young mule deer in the middle of the road. Can you say 'stoppie'? Both deer and Chris survived the experience without any harm. The rain held off until we reached Alpine when we encountered a light drizzle which ended a few miles later as we began to lose altitude.

Spirits were high as the group checked into the Rode Inn, spiffed up and joined their fellow BMMC'ers at the club sponsored reception complete with veggie dip tray and an assortment of hot wings plus an ample supply of adult beverages.

About 7:30 or so the group began dispersing with many heading towards Booga Reds for Mexican food. The group was up early Sunday morning with many enjoying the complimentary continental breakfast and a cup of coffee before hitting the road home. Most were on their way back to the valley before 8 am.

Many thanks to Bart and Chris for organizing and hosting this ride. This is the second year in a row for this ride and based on the enthusiastic comments from our group, I predict "Run To The Curves 2009" will show up on the ride calendar for next year.

Note: If you would like a free complimentary copy your "action photo" emailed to you, please drop me a note (click on Ray) and tell me which bike you are riding. I recognize most but not all of you on your motorcycle, so let's make sure I send you the right one! I will send the original full size image and they usually run around 2.5 megabytes in size.