Idaho Centennial Trail 08

This winter has been long!

Riding has been limited to the Murphy area. I always feel guilty riding those trails; they are so overused and crowded.

My good friend Andrew called and wanted to do the Idaho Centenial Trail this year; I piped up, "Lets do it this month,

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I have had some great rides in the Owyhees since March, I love the desert this time of year." Andrew, being the instigator, organized the group. Since we are a bunch of middle age has-ben thrill seekers, the group seemed like a slam-dunk.

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Our group started with Chris Robin AKA Rooster

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One thing I can say about Rooster, he is fast, very fast, blindingly fast. He truly deserves to be an pro level rider but we let him ride with us anyway. We didn't get any good pictures of him because he usually had his nose down, grit in his teeth and was way ahead of us.

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This is Dennis Boone, Dennis. He quietly runs a successful refrigeration business near Twin Falls and the father of two daughters. He is a very competent rider. Dennis rides his big one liter KTM like a little dirt bike and never seems winded or the least bit out of control.

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Next is Andrew Hyman, riding a big one liter KTM Adventure, Andrew is a career thrill seeker. He spent years as a mountaineer and guide followed by years of competitive canoeing the Texas Water Safari then a short stint as a desert racer before becoming the father of twin boys who are the joy of his life. Andrew, it's good to see you back on the bike and enjoying some fresh air, it's also good to see the boys growing up so fast. He and Piper are heroes to me for being such good parents.

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Lastly am I, Chris gave me the name of Captain Amazing. I forgot to bring leisure pants like the rest of the crew; I ended up scaring everyone with my polypropylene underwear at the campfire the first night, he started calling me Capt. Amazing. I liked that better than old guy. What can I say; I am an eccentric old guy who can still ride on the upper end of average. I have lots of opinions about riding but not much else. A lifetime of riding competitively but I know my time has passed for any kind of glory. I ride very carefully.

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Back to the ride; we left Mountain Home Idaho about 1:30 Friday afternoon with the intention of meeting Dennis at end of the bombing range road at 2:15 p.m. Of course after a late start we rode up on a typical Bruneau Idaho happening.

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I couldn't help but feel these cowboys, herding cattle, as the original adventure riders. They looked in their environment and ready to take any challenge thrown at them. Adapting and keeping a keen eye on the herd as little ones tried to escape. They were at one with their horses riding high in the saddle. Skilled beyond appearance, they had trained their bodies to react instantly to inputs from the horse, cattle and each other; they worked in perfect harmony. Much the way I strive to ride, not fast, but as perfect as I can. Learning to trust your ride, instinct and judgment.

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I lit the wick on the old 640 and blasted out to the intersection where we were to meet Dennis, he was taking it easy as usual. The ride out, on kitten head sized gravel, gave everyone important feedback on the status of their suspension, tire pressure dropped at that intersection as well as suspension adjustments to be made that night, were planned.

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All of these bikes are of the high strung Austrian variety, race bred and set up meticulously for solo riding without gear. The inputs from the ride were noted and off we went, each with many pounds of camping equipment.

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We arrived in Murphy Hot Springs in just a few minutes after re entry only to find out the

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Hot Springs pool had been drained, no problem for this crowd. With the bikes unloaded and tents set up we headed to Jarbige for Gas and dinner.

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Rex the dog was in a bad mood but he seemed to finally accept us.

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After a great steak dinner at the Red Dog we gassed and had a great ride back. The group dynamics were starting to form and this was looking like an epic ride. Every one spoke the same language about riding a dual sport bike; steer with the pegs, up and off the seat. We made mince meat of the road to Jarbige and back, the bikes were running superb, as all of the careful setup started to pay off.

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Back at camp, it looked like we were the first campers this year. We found plenty of firewood. We were over 5 thousand feet and it got cold that night, Andrew had just bought a new down sleeping bag, it was supposed to be good down to 15 degrees! He said he was freezing at 40 and had a rough night. It looked like MSR was going to buy back one of their top of the line down bags very soon.

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The rest of us rallied in the morning for a few different concoctions of eggs. We all agreed that freeze dried food was much better than expected. Chris had a mixture of potatoes and such, we heard a story of how he endured endless meals of powdered eggs every morning while deployed during Desert Storm, it was to hideous to repeat.

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Off we went, the Nevada border was just a few miles downstream.

Part II will be the Idaho Centennial Trail from Nevada to Winter Camp