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- Joined
- Feb 28, 2003
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- Huntsville
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- Friday
Howdy,
Things are looking good! It is a beautiful day, clear and sunny with very little wind. I'm hanging out in the garage when John Hutchinson pulls up on his SV650S. Minutes later Vittorio appears on his Honda 919 followed by Scott Eichhorn on his Nighthawk 750 and Blake Johnson on his YZF R6. We stand around a bit doing the usual nice to meet you chit chat and then we hit the road. We had waited a few extra minutes because some other people emailed me and said they'd like to come, but I never heard back from them, so...
For today's route, I decide to try something different. Normally I would head out of Huntsville on the Northeast side of town and stay on the North side of US 190. This time we head out of town on FM 1374 which just makes a big loop out West then back East and comes out on I-45 in New Waverly. It is a nice little road with lots of fast sweepers, perfect for getting everyone warmed up for riding.
In New Waverly, we pick up Hwy 150 and run East a few miles. There are a few fun curves for a couple of miles on the way out of town. then it is mostly straight all the way to Coldsprings. We take a little side detour on FM 2693, which may also be shown as FM 2778 on the maps. On the road, it is actually marked at FM 2693 for the whole road. It just heads North off of Hwy 150 and then turns back South and comes back out on Hwy 150. It has some really good back to back sweepers, a little tighter than the stuff on FM 1374. The pavement quality is good with only a few minor patches. It is nice rolling pastures mixed with some woods. This also gives me a good chance to see how everyone in the group likes to ride so I can set an appropriate pace.
We dump back out onto Hwy 150 and run the rest of the way to Coldsprings. Already we are seeing a few other bikes out enjoying the incredible day. We stay on Hwy 150 all the way to Shepard. I'm thinking this is a fairly long stretch of boring. We should have picked up FM 222, it is a little out of the way, but it comes out at the same point. We cut through Shepard and head East on FM 223.
This is a fun little section of road. There is more traffic than I would like to see. It winds through the woods with some fun curves and then drops us out onto FM 787. This is more of the same, straight sections joined by a few esses that are kind of fun. The terrain is mostly flat with patches of woods. We cross Hwy 146 and keep heading East to the South end of FM 2798.
The Southern half of 2798 is mostly straight and not so exciting. The Northern half is much better. There are lots of woods and quite a few sections with nice strings of esses tied together. But they are still not long enough for me to get into a rythm. So I just focus on setting my lines and picking up the throttle as early as possible. John is keeping pace a nice distance back from me and Blake is right behind him. Vittorio keeps pace with us but hangs back a little farther with Scott.
We hit FM 943 and turn East. This runs along the Southern edge of the Big Thickett National Preserve. It is hard to imagine all of East Texas ever having been covered in woods this thick. There seems to be so little actual raw forest anywhere nowdays. Most of it is the timber company managed forests with all the trees uniformly spaced and all the same size and height. We turn North on FM 1276 and head up the Eastern edge of the preserve. The Northern 2/3's of this road is pretty good, more of the esses with some fun elevation changes.
We stop at an old gas station on the North end of FM 1276. There is a lady filling up her still running tractor with diesel. There is only one pump and it is 87 octane. Most of us go ahead and fill up because we are not sure how far it is to the next gas station. Vittorio decides to wait. While we are hanging out, we visit with a father and son on a bike trip out of Houtson. Daniel, the son, is riding a V-Twin, I think a Suzuki VX800? Not sure, but it is nice shape. His dad is riding an older model Guzzi of some sort. Nice folks. We waste way too much time here before finally getting back on the road.
We turn East onto US 190. There are red traffic cones on the double yellow but there are no signs anywhere. A road crew is laying down fresh crack sealer 
So I pull out and head East towards the road crew. They don't seem concerned to see us coming. We are going quite slow as the sealer is slippery and I don't want it spattering up all over my bike. As we approach the road crew, a pilot vehicle goes by in the oncoming lane. Hmmm.... I have a bad feeling we are in a closed lane!! When the last car goes by, we zip around the crew and get ahead of them on clean road. Right as I start to pass, a guy shoots a blob of tar out of his wand and it splatters all over the place :x Thank God none of it hits me or the bike! A short bit up the road we reach the end of the cones. The flag man just waves at us as we drive up in the wrong lane 
As soon as we clear the messy part of the road, there is a huge pretty modern gas station with tons of pumps and pay at the pump... DOH! I pull in so Vittorio can go ahead and top off and be in sync with the rest of us. Then it is back on US 190 for the drone to Woodville, followed by more droning down US 69 to Hillister and FM 1013, for more droning... I mean, there are a few fun curves here and there, but they are definitely the exception to the rule on this road. :|
We head North on FM 1005 and it is more of the same, but the fun curves are not as far apart. In fact, there are a few sections with some really fun esses and I can't help but crank up the zip factor a bit, John and Blake shadowing my every move. Blake is on new tires, having been convinced on a ride a week ago that his bald front tire really ought to be replaced He is amazed at the difference new tires make in how the bike feels and handles and in his confidence in the bike in the corners.
We take up FM 252 and run it up to US 190 into Jasper and stop for lunch. This is really the first chance we get to just sit and shoot the breeze and get to know each other a little better. The Elijah's Cafe makes BIG burgers, so I just get my standard grilled cheese 
Trying to ride with a huge burger flopping around in my gut is not appealling to me, but apparently it is to everyone else hehe. Everyone is moving like old men after lunch.
Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves thus far. I am a little disappointed in the roads South of US 190. They all have some good sections, but those sections are such a small part of the overall ride that it harldy makes it worth the time and effort to get to them unless you live right by them. From now on, I'll probably stay with my Northern route as it has good fun most of the way with only brief boring parts.
We keep heading East, this time on Hwy 63 out of Jasper. We head South when we get to FM 1012. This is a really fun road with some pretty tight curves. We really have to watch for people on the road in a few areas though. The locals obviously are not used to much traffic. As I round one left hander, there is a truck in the oncoming lane about to turn right in front of me. I have to use the mid corner panic braking technique to slow it down enough to be sure he's not going to turn. Fortunately, John and Blake don't follow real close and they have more time to react. The rest of the run down to US 190 is fun and uneventful.
When we get to the outskirts of Newton, we head North on Hwy 87 to the start of FM 1414. This is another one of my favorite roads. I pull over at the start of the road to warn everyone of a few bad curves. There is a left hander that is behind the crest of a hill. Right as the bike tops the hill it has to be laid over to the left while it is light in order to make the corner. No biggie if you know about it! Then there is a sharp 25mph right hander, again, no sweat if you are aware of it. The last one is a 30mph right hander with arrow signs all the way through it. Even knowing about it, it still sometimes can get you. It looks wide open as you enter, but then it tightens up right at the crest of a hill. To make matters worse, a driveway empties right into that part of the curve and there is ALWAYS gravel in the lane.
I slow down, tap the brakes a few times to warn everyone else, then lay it over and clench. To miss the gravel I have to ride the edge of the double yellow. Even going slow it is still a little intimidating. I check the mirrors and John and Blake are right with me, following my line without trouble. As we zip away from the corner, we pass a few fellas on four wheelers with beer in the free hand. 
I keep checking the mirrors for signs of Vittorio and Scott. I don't recall how far back they were, but it was not too far as I just saw their headlights moments ago.
Then it hits me and I get that ugly feeling in my gut. We pull over and turn around. Someone did not make it. We haul *** back to the curve to find the four wheeler guys have put down their beers to help Vittorio upright his 919. Scott is pulled off to the side. Vittorio is fine and only has some grass stains on his hip. Apparently as he entered the curve he glanced at the white line on the opposite side of the road and before he even realized it, he was off the pavement. As soon as the front tire hit the grass and gravel it locked and washed out from under him. According to Scott, it then flopped over on its' side and rolled once without Vittorio on board.
The mirrors are toast. The right side footpeg bracket is slightly bent behind the rider pegs and the foot brake lever is slightly bent. Other than that, there is some very minor scuffing on the tank, radiator, crankcase cover, and the rear passenger grab handle. There is remarkably little damage!! Oh, and the left grip is ever so slightly bent back and down. However the bike is still rideable with out any trouble and fires right up on the first try. We turn it off and just hang out in the shade for a while to let the adrenalin settle before we continue on our way. The fourwheeler guys take off once they are convinced we don't need them to call for additional help.
After all the dust settles and we've relaxed a bit, we get back on the bikes and head for Burkeville for our next scheduled stop. We take a break at the Texaco on Hwy 87 and 63. They have clean restrooms and numerous pumps. I stick my jacket in their ice coolers out front :P A trick I like to use on warm riding days.
Scott, Blake, John and Vittorio (left to right).
Same guys slightly different order and closer shot
You'd be hard pressed to notice this bike flipped!
After some ice cream and a nice rest, we head North up Hwy 87. the stretch of 87 from Burkerville to Hemphill is one of the top five highest rated roads in Texas according to a RIDE TEXAS magazine poll. I don't know if I would rate it that high, but it is good. It has lots of really fast sweepers, some slower tighter stuff, and it wanders down into some thick woods so at times it feels like we are riding in a tunnel. We see some other bikes heading South, a few cruisers and some Goldwings. This section is nice because the curves come close enough together that I can actually start to get a bit of a rythm going. Today is an "on" day for me. Feels good. Vittorio and his bike seem to be doing fine and that is also good. We're a long way from home and it would have been tough if he, the bike or both could not have continued the ride.
At one point, Hwy 87 crosses over one of the legs of the Toledo Bend Reservoir. It is a perfect place for a photo opportunity! The shoulder is nice and wide and there is very little traffic. The only drawback is that on the side where we stop, there are ugly power lines hanging right over our heads. I need to do some photoshopping! We are running a little behind schedule. Usually by this time we are already on the far side of San Augustine. It is close to 5:00pm and we are still at least an hour from there. So we hop back on the bikes and head for Hemphill. The rest of Hwy 87 heading North is nice, but it is more of a cruising road, not a curvy road.
In Hemphill we head West on Hwy 84 through the historic old town square with the really cool old town hall. There is a really neat old timey drugstore with a soda fountain and good diner style food on the square. I can't remember the name, but they close at 4:00pm so you'd need to get there early! A few miles out of town, we pick up FM 1592 and head North to FM 2784. Both of these roads are only a few miles long, but they have some really awesome sweepers where we can get in some serious leaning!
John Hutchinson on his 2001 Suzuki SV 650S
Almost missed Blake Johnson on his 2001 YZF R6 because my camera is so slow! That's Vittorio coming up behind him.
Off for another pass so I can try to get better shots.
Blake looking smooth, as he has all day.
Vittorio Bonomi on his 2002 Honda 919 leading the way and followed by Scott Eichhorn on his 91 Honda Nighthawk 750.
No shots of me, I was busy kneeling in the grass on the shoulder shooting the pics and poised to spring out of the way in case one of these guys decides to look at me!! 
I've got to get a DV camcorder for these rides! A few passes suffice for now and we keep moving.
We hit Hwy 103 and head East a few miles to pick up Hwy 21 and double back to the West. Just a few miles after getting on 21, we come over a hill and are greeted with the sight of the road going down into a tight right hander at the bottom of the hill, then shooting across a low valley to the other side, making a sharp left and heading up the side of the other hill out of site into the woods. I really should get a picture but we are really getting pressed for time and I don't want to slow everyone down right as we are about to hit such a fun spot! A few miles later and we reach the turn off for FM 330.
I stop the group again for a quick roadside conference. I explain that we can stay on 21 and run it a few miles into San Augustine, or we can do this little loop and it will take us an extra twenty minutes or so. Either way, we are gonna be heading back int he dark at this point. So the issue is just whether anyone is really pressed for time to get back. I explain that I would hate to bring them so close to such a cool road and not run it. This is the baited hook that snares them all! 
Off we go!
FM 330 is a lane and a half wide at the really wide spots. There are no cut and fill graded sections anywhere. It simply follows the undulating countryside. It gets way down in the woods. The late evening sun pierces through the leaves and branches, casting shimmering patches of light on the pavement. This is not a go fast road, it is all about soaking up the experience. Something you'd totally miss in a car :? It eventually dumps us back out onto Hwy 87. We head North looking for the start of FM 353.
FM 353 runs back down to San Augustine. It starts off innocent looking enough and then gets really fun! There are a lot of places where I really get that swooping heavy in the seat feeling at the bottom of gullies followed by the lighter than air feeling as I lean into the next corner at the top of the far side of the gulley. There are some really tight esses with good elevation changes. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of driveways off to the side so we can't really rip it up through here. There are some bad curves as well, but as long as you ride a conservative 6/10ths pace, it is not a real problem. When we reach San Augustine and stop at Fausta's Fried Chicken restaurant for a break, the grins are splitting the helmets wide open
The sun is getting really low on the horizon and we are going to be riding right into it. Just minutes ago as we were coming in on FM 353, there were a few corners where I could see where it went before I got there, then all of a sudden is disappeared in the glare and I just had to trust that it was still in front of me and aim for the exit of the corner Of course, the enormous amount of bug guts on my faceshield probably did not help 
We top off the bikes and head down Hwy 21 to US 96, then turn South for a block to the start of FM 1277.
If you're looking for fast smooth sweepers, FM 1277 is your road. :hail All of the curves are perfect with really good visibilty. It is always hard for me to come through here and keep the speed sane. The corners just beg you to lay on the throttle and lean for all you and your tires are worth. It is about twenty minutes of weeeeee....! 
All to soon the end of the road arrives and we find ourselves on Hwy 147 just North of Broaddus.
There is not much to Broaddus, unless you like to eat Catfish! There are several places here in town that are really good. It seems like every bass boat in Texas is out this weekend. I don't know if some kind of event is on for this weekend, but there are fancy trailers and big outboards everywhere. Every motel and campground around is packed to the hilt. Fortunately, none of these guys are on the road. I don't recall having passed a single boat trailer all day...
We stop in Broaddus so everyone can switch to nighttime riding mode. Clear visors replace tinted visors, extra sweatshirts come out, then we are back on the road. It is a straight snoring shot down Hwy 147 to Hwy 63 just outside of Zavalla. We have to cross a longgg bridge over a leg of the Sam Rayburn Reservoir and I notice the sun hanging low on the edge of the horizon and another big shoulder... 
Time for more pics!
John Hutchinson / Blake Johnson / Vittorio Bonomi
Scott Eichhorn / Your's truly / Setting sun / A beauftiful sillouette
Seconds later the sun drops out of sight. Off we go again, miles to eat and bugs to splatter, but hopefully not eat! No sooner than the sun vanishes from the sky, it starts getting cool and drops into the low seventies. It has been in the mid to high eighties all day, perfect. In Zavalla, we head South on US 69 for more snoring miles until we reach Colmesniel and pick up FM 256.
We're only on FM 256 a mile or so before we turn West on FM 1745. There is a LOT of loose sand and gravel in the intersection. There always is for some reason, so I go extra slow so the guys behind me will see what is going on and slow down as well. Now it is just plain old dark! We are off into the woods with the VFR's awesome lights blazing a path into the night. It is a shame too because we have to really keep the pace down as this is a heavily deer populated area. Also, FM 1745 has some serious patchwork being done on it right now. Huge sections of pavement are just gone... completely, nothing but a gravel strewn hole in its place. Hopefully this is a temporary state of affairs because this is a really fun road.
We have a few deer induced braking moments, but nothing real serious. Soon we are in the tiny metropolis of Chester on US 287. It is about 8:30pm and I'm thinking the married guys really ought to be calling their wives about now to let them know we are all still alive. Most of them were expecting us home around 6:30-7:30pm. We are gonna miss that by a long shot After a short break and getting gas, we keep moving West on FM 1745 until we reach FM 942. Normally, during daylight hours, this is a fantastic stretch of roads with some really fun sweepers and good pavement. We follow the Southern loop of FM 942 until we reach US 59 and then head South to Livingston.
Blake and Vittorio are going to run on down US 59 into Houston. It is about 9:45pm now. Vittorio has to get all the way back over by the Horse track on Beltway 8. Whew! John and Scott opt to follow me down US 190 back to Huntsville and pick up I-45 for their run South. The ride back along 190 is nice. It gets down to the low sixties and is a little chilly. My throttle side hotgrip has a broken wire and won't work, the left side is cranked up and cooking! I set a nice steady pace and we quickly reach Huntsville. I make sure John and Scott get to I-45 and then say goodbye.
I get home right about 10:30pm, 452 miles showing on the odometer. Everyone else is easily going to beat that by at least a hundred miles or more. The cats are all standing around the food bowl whining like they have not been fed in weeks 
It's not like they don't have enough spare fat to last them a few weeks :P It was a great day. I'm a little bummed for Vittorio. Goofing up the bike always sucks. It could have been much worse but thankfully it wasn't. His wife is just relieved to have him home in one piece 
Until next time...
For a week or so, if you want a full sized (1600 X 1200) copy of any of the pics, you can download them from here:
http://sfriday.com/twtpics/ETBB2/fullsize/
The filenames are the same for the small and large files.
Things are looking good! It is a beautiful day, clear and sunny with very little wind. I'm hanging out in the garage when John Hutchinson pulls up on his SV650S. Minutes later Vittorio appears on his Honda 919 followed by Scott Eichhorn on his Nighthawk 750 and Blake Johnson on his YZF R6. We stand around a bit doing the usual nice to meet you chit chat and then we hit the road. We had waited a few extra minutes because some other people emailed me and said they'd like to come, but I never heard back from them, so... For today's route, I decide to try something different. Normally I would head out of Huntsville on the Northeast side of town and stay on the North side of US 190. This time we head out of town on FM 1374 which just makes a big loop out West then back East and comes out on I-45 in New Waverly. It is a nice little road with lots of fast sweepers, perfect for getting everyone warmed up for riding. In New Waverly, we pick up Hwy 150 and run East a few miles. There are a few fun curves for a couple of miles on the way out of town. then it is mostly straight all the way to Coldsprings. We take a little side detour on FM 2693, which may also be shown as FM 2778 on the maps. On the road, it is actually marked at FM 2693 for the whole road. It just heads North off of Hwy 150 and then turns back South and comes back out on Hwy 150. It has some really good back to back sweepers, a little tighter than the stuff on FM 1374. The pavement quality is good with only a few minor patches. It is nice rolling pastures mixed with some woods. This also gives me a good chance to see how everyone in the group likes to ride so I can set an appropriate pace. We dump back out onto Hwy 150 and run the rest of the way to Coldsprings. Already we are seeing a few other bikes out enjoying the incredible day. We stay on Hwy 150 all the way to Shepard. I'm thinking this is a fairly long stretch of boring. We should have picked up FM 222, it is a little out of the way, but it comes out at the same point. We cut through Shepard and head East on FM 223. This is a fun little section of road. There is more traffic than I would like to see. It winds through the woods with some fun curves and then drops us out onto FM 787. This is more of the same, straight sections joined by a few esses that are kind of fun. The terrain is mostly flat with patches of woods. We cross Hwy 146 and keep heading East to the South end of FM 2798. The Southern half of 2798 is mostly straight and not so exciting. The Northern half is much better. There are lots of woods and quite a few sections with nice strings of esses tied together. But they are still not long enough for me to get into a rythm. So I just focus on setting my lines and picking up the throttle as early as possible. John is keeping pace a nice distance back from me and Blake is right behind him. Vittorio keeps pace with us but hangs back a little farther with Scott. We hit FM 943 and turn East. This runs along the Southern edge of the Big Thickett National Preserve. It is hard to imagine all of East Texas ever having been covered in woods this thick. There seems to be so little actual raw forest anywhere nowdays. Most of it is the timber company managed forests with all the trees uniformly spaced and all the same size and height. We turn North on FM 1276 and head up the Eastern edge of the preserve. The Northern 2/3's of this road is pretty good, more of the esses with some fun elevation changes. We stop at an old gas station on the North end of FM 1276. There is a lady filling up her still running tractor with diesel. There is only one pump and it is 87 octane. Most of us go ahead and fill up because we are not sure how far it is to the next gas station. Vittorio decides to wait. While we are hanging out, we visit with a father and son on a bike trip out of Houtson. Daniel, the son, is riding a V-Twin, I think a Suzuki VX800? Not sure, but it is nice shape. His dad is riding an older model Guzzi of some sort. Nice folks. We waste way too much time here before finally getting back on the road. We turn East onto US 190. There are red traffic cones on the double yellow but there are no signs anywhere. A road crew is laying down fresh crack sealer So I pull out and head East towards the road crew. They don't seem concerned to see us coming. We are going quite slow as the sealer is slippery and I don't want it spattering up all over my bike. As we approach the road crew, a pilot vehicle goes by in the oncoming lane. Hmmm.... I have a bad feeling we are in a closed lane!! When the last car goes by, we zip around the crew and get ahead of them on clean road. Right as I start to pass, a guy shoots a blob of tar out of his wand and it splatters all over the place :x Thank God none of it hits me or the bike! A short bit up the road we reach the end of the cones. The flag man just waves at us as we drive up in the wrong lane As soon as we clear the messy part of the road, there is a huge pretty modern gas station with tons of pumps and pay at the pump... DOH! I pull in so Vittorio can go ahead and top off and be in sync with the rest of us. Then it is back on US 190 for the drone to Woodville, followed by more droning down US 69 to Hillister and FM 1013, for more droning... I mean, there are a few fun curves here and there, but they are definitely the exception to the rule on this road. :| We head North on FM 1005 and it is more of the same, but the fun curves are not as far apart. In fact, there are a few sections with some really fun esses and I can't help but crank up the zip factor a bit, John and Blake shadowing my every move. Blake is on new tires, having been convinced on a ride a week ago that his bald front tire really ought to be replaced He is amazed at the difference new tires make in how the bike feels and handles and in his confidence in the bike in the corners. We take up FM 252 and run it up to US 190 into Jasper and stop for lunch. This is really the first chance we get to just sit and shoot the breeze and get to know each other a little better. The Elijah's Cafe makes BIG burgers, so I just get my standard grilled cheese Trying to ride with a huge burger flopping around in my gut is not appealling to me, but apparently it is to everyone else hehe. Everyone is moving like old men after lunch. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves thus far. I am a little disappointed in the roads South of US 190. They all have some good sections, but those sections are such a small part of the overall ride that it harldy makes it worth the time and effort to get to them unless you live right by them. From now on, I'll probably stay with my Northern route as it has good fun most of the way with only brief boring parts. We keep heading East, this time on Hwy 63 out of Jasper. We head South when we get to FM 1012. This is a really fun road with some pretty tight curves. We really have to watch for people on the road in a few areas though. The locals obviously are not used to much traffic. As I round one left hander, there is a truck in the oncoming lane about to turn right in front of me. I have to use the mid corner panic braking technique to slow it down enough to be sure he's not going to turn. Fortunately, John and Blake don't follow real close and they have more time to react. The rest of the run down to US 190 is fun and uneventful. When we get to the outskirts of Newton, we head North on Hwy 87 to the start of FM 1414. This is another one of my favorite roads. I pull over at the start of the road to warn everyone of a few bad curves. There is a left hander that is behind the crest of a hill. Right as the bike tops the hill it has to be laid over to the left while it is light in order to make the corner. No biggie if you know about it! Then there is a sharp 25mph right hander, again, no sweat if you are aware of it. The last one is a 30mph right hander with arrow signs all the way through it. Even knowing about it, it still sometimes can get you. It looks wide open as you enter, but then it tightens up right at the crest of a hill. To make matters worse, a driveway empties right into that part of the curve and there is ALWAYS gravel in the lane. I slow down, tap the brakes a few times to warn everyone else, then lay it over and clench. To miss the gravel I have to ride the edge of the double yellow. Even going slow it is still a little intimidating. I check the mirrors and John and Blake are right with me, following my line without trouble. As we zip away from the corner, we pass a few fellas on four wheelers with beer in the free hand. I keep checking the mirrors for signs of Vittorio and Scott. I don't recall how far back they were, but it was not too far as I just saw their headlights moments ago. Then it hits me and I get that ugly feeling in my gut. We pull over and turn around. Someone did not make it. We haul *** back to the curve to find the four wheeler guys have put down their beers to help Vittorio upright his 919. Scott is pulled off to the side. Vittorio is fine and only has some grass stains on his hip. Apparently as he entered the curve he glanced at the white line on the opposite side of the road and before he even realized it, he was off the pavement. As soon as the front tire hit the grass and gravel it locked and washed out from under him. According to Scott, it then flopped over on its' side and rolled once without Vittorio on board. The mirrors are toast. The right side footpeg bracket is slightly bent behind the rider pegs and the foot brake lever is slightly bent. Other than that, there is some very minor scuffing on the tank, radiator, crankcase cover, and the rear passenger grab handle. There is remarkably little damage!! Oh, and the left grip is ever so slightly bent back and down. However the bike is still rideable with out any trouble and fires right up on the first try. We turn it off and just hang out in the shade for a while to let the adrenalin settle before we continue on our way. The fourwheeler guys take off once they are convinced we don't need them to call for additional help. After all the dust settles and we've relaxed a bit, we get back on the bikes and head for Burkeville for our next scheduled stop. We take a break at the Texaco on Hwy 87 and 63. They have clean restrooms and numerous pumps. I stick my jacket in their ice coolers out front :P A trick I like to use on warm riding days.Scott, Blake, John and Vittorio (left to right).
Same guys slightly different order and closer shot
You'd be hard pressed to notice this bike flipped!
After some ice cream and a nice rest, we head North up Hwy 87. the stretch of 87 from Burkerville to Hemphill is one of the top five highest rated roads in Texas according to a RIDE TEXAS magazine poll. I don't know if I would rate it that high, but it is good. It has lots of really fast sweepers, some slower tighter stuff, and it wanders down into some thick woods so at times it feels like we are riding in a tunnel. We see some other bikes heading South, a few cruisers and some Goldwings. This section is nice because the curves come close enough together that I can actually start to get a bit of a rythm going. Today is an "on" day for me. Feels good. Vittorio and his bike seem to be doing fine and that is also good. We're a long way from home and it would have been tough if he, the bike or both could not have continued the ride. At one point, Hwy 87 crosses over one of the legs of the Toledo Bend Reservoir. It is a perfect place for a photo opportunity! The shoulder is nice and wide and there is very little traffic. The only drawback is that on the side where we stop, there are ugly power lines hanging right over our heads. I need to do some photoshopping! We are running a little behind schedule. Usually by this time we are already on the far side of San Augustine. It is close to 5:00pm and we are still at least an hour from there. So we hop back on the bikes and head for Hemphill. The rest of Hwy 87 heading North is nice, but it is more of a cruising road, not a curvy road. In Hemphill we head West on Hwy 84 through the historic old town square with the really cool old town hall. There is a really neat old timey drugstore with a soda fountain and good diner style food on the square. I can't remember the name, but they close at 4:00pm so you'd need to get there early! A few miles out of town, we pick up FM 1592 and head North to FM 2784. Both of these roads are only a few miles long, but they have some really awesome sweepers where we can get in some serious leaning!John Hutchinson on his 2001 Suzuki SV 650S
Almost missed Blake Johnson on his 2001 YZF R6 because my camera is so slow! That's Vittorio coming up behind him.
Off for another pass so I can try to get better shots.
Blake looking smooth, as he has all day.
Vittorio Bonomi on his 2002 Honda 919 leading the way and followed by Scott Eichhorn on his 91 Honda Nighthawk 750.
No shots of me, I was busy kneeling in the grass on the shoulder shooting the pics and poised to spring out of the way in case one of these guys decides to look at me!! I've got to get a DV camcorder for these rides! A few passes suffice for now and we keep moving. We hit Hwy 103 and head East a few miles to pick up Hwy 21 and double back to the West. Just a few miles after getting on 21, we come over a hill and are greeted with the sight of the road going down into a tight right hander at the bottom of the hill, then shooting across a low valley to the other side, making a sharp left and heading up the side of the other hill out of site into the woods. I really should get a picture but we are really getting pressed for time and I don't want to slow everyone down right as we are about to hit such a fun spot! A few miles later and we reach the turn off for FM 330. I stop the group again for a quick roadside conference. I explain that we can stay on 21 and run it a few miles into San Augustine, or we can do this little loop and it will take us an extra twenty minutes or so. Either way, we are gonna be heading back int he dark at this point. So the issue is just whether anyone is really pressed for time to get back. I explain that I would hate to bring them so close to such a cool road and not run it. This is the baited hook that snares them all! Off we go! FM 330 is a lane and a half wide at the really wide spots. There are no cut and fill graded sections anywhere. It simply follows the undulating countryside. It gets way down in the woods. The late evening sun pierces through the leaves and branches, casting shimmering patches of light on the pavement. This is not a go fast road, it is all about soaking up the experience. Something you'd totally miss in a car :? It eventually dumps us back out onto Hwy 87. We head North looking for the start of FM 353. FM 353 runs back down to San Augustine. It starts off innocent looking enough and then gets really fun! There are a lot of places where I really get that swooping heavy in the seat feeling at the bottom of gullies followed by the lighter than air feeling as I lean into the next corner at the top of the far side of the gulley. There are some really tight esses with good elevation changes. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of driveways off to the side so we can't really rip it up through here. There are some bad curves as well, but as long as you ride a conservative 6/10ths pace, it is not a real problem. When we reach San Augustine and stop at Fausta's Fried Chicken restaurant for a break, the grins are splitting the helmets wide open The sun is getting really low on the horizon and we are going to be riding right into it. Just minutes ago as we were coming in on FM 353, there were a few corners where I could see where it went before I got there, then all of a sudden is disappeared in the glare and I just had to trust that it was still in front of me and aim for the exit of the corner Of course, the enormous amount of bug guts on my faceshield probably did not help We top off the bikes and head down Hwy 21 to US 96, then turn South for a block to the start of FM 1277. If you're looking for fast smooth sweepers, FM 1277 is your road. :hail All of the curves are perfect with really good visibilty. It is always hard for me to come through here and keep the speed sane. The corners just beg you to lay on the throttle and lean for all you and your tires are worth. It is about twenty minutes of weeeeee....! All to soon the end of the road arrives and we find ourselves on Hwy 147 just North of Broaddus. There is not much to Broaddus, unless you like to eat Catfish! There are several places here in town that are really good. It seems like every bass boat in Texas is out this weekend. I don't know if some kind of event is on for this weekend, but there are fancy trailers and big outboards everywhere. Every motel and campground around is packed to the hilt. Fortunately, none of these guys are on the road. I don't recall having passed a single boat trailer all day... We stop in Broaddus so everyone can switch to nighttime riding mode. Clear visors replace tinted visors, extra sweatshirts come out, then we are back on the road. It is a straight snoring shot down Hwy 147 to Hwy 63 just outside of Zavalla. We have to cross a longgg bridge over a leg of the Sam Rayburn Reservoir and I notice the sun hanging low on the edge of the horizon and another big shoulder... Time for more pics! John Hutchinson / Blake Johnson / Vittorio Bonomi Scott Eichhorn / Your's truly 
/ Setting sun / A beauftiful sillouette Seconds later the sun drops out of sight. Off we go again, miles to eat and bugs to splatter, but hopefully not eat! No sooner than the sun vanishes from the sky, it starts getting cool and drops into the low seventies. It has been in the mid to high eighties all day, perfect. In Zavalla, we head South on US 69 for more snoring miles until we reach Colmesniel and pick up FM 256. We're only on FM 256 a mile or so before we turn West on FM 1745. There is a LOT of loose sand and gravel in the intersection. There always is for some reason, so I go extra slow so the guys behind me will see what is going on and slow down as well. Now it is just plain old dark! We are off into the woods with the VFR's awesome lights blazing a path into the night. It is a shame too because we have to really keep the pace down as this is a heavily deer populated area. Also, FM 1745 has some serious patchwork being done on it right now. Huge sections of pavement are just gone... completely, nothing but a gravel strewn hole in its place. Hopefully this is a temporary state of affairs because this is a really fun road. We have a few deer induced braking moments, but nothing real serious. Soon we are in the tiny metropolis of Chester on US 287. It is about 8:30pm and I'm thinking the married guys really ought to be calling their wives about now to let them know we are all still alive. Most of them were expecting us home around 6:30-7:30pm. We are gonna miss that by a long shot After a short break and getting gas, we keep moving West on FM 1745 until we reach FM 942. Normally, during daylight hours, this is a fantastic stretch of roads with some really fun sweepers and good pavement. We follow the Southern loop of FM 942 until we reach US 59 and then head South to Livingston. Blake and Vittorio are going to run on down US 59 into Houston. It is about 9:45pm now. Vittorio has to get all the way back over by the Horse track on Beltway 8. Whew! John and Scott opt to follow me down US 190 back to Huntsville and pick up I-45 for their run South. The ride back along 190 is nice. It gets down to the low sixties and is a little chilly. My throttle side hotgrip has a broken wire and won't work, the left side is cranked up and cooking! I set a nice steady pace and we quickly reach Huntsville. I make sure John and Scott get to I-45 and then say goodbye. I get home right about 10:30pm, 452 miles showing on the odometer. Everyone else is easily going to beat that by at least a hundred miles or more. The cats are all standing around the food bowl whining like they have not been fed in weeks It's not like they don't have enough spare fat to last them a few weeks :P It was a great day. I'm a little bummed for Vittorio. Goofing up the bike always sucks. It could have been much worse but thankfully it wasn't. His wife is just relieved to have him home in one piece Until next time...For a week or so, if you want a full sized (1600 X 1200) copy of any of the pics, you can download them from here:
http://sfriday.com/twtpics/ETBB2/fullsize/
The filenames are the same for the small and large files.
I did go to the Montgomery County fairgrounds to drop off the money I collected, though. I had my oldest son with me and after dropping off the money we went for a ride up 149 to Anderson. Sort of a ride with kid. 
