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2018 Mextrek #7, June 14th - 17th 2018

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Location
Houston, TX and Phoenix AZ
First Name
Peter
Last Name
Shaddock
Adventure in Mexico is Just Around the Corner: June 14th to June 17th, 2018.

Come and join a group of adventurers in the magical mountains just south of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico for 4 days of great riding. Staying at a home base in the town of Galeana we will venture out on day rides to destinations and routes you wouldn't believe could still exist in these modern times. Following the adventures of TARA riders who mapped out these areas over the last 20 years you will surely have a great time. If you go all out and eat whatever you please, drink whatever you choose, and buy some souvenirs you will maybe spend $75 a day, less is you share a room with a buddy. The air is clean, the people are amazing and friendly, and the scenery is on par with anything you can find for 1000 miles in any direction.

This ride will be a warm one. The 120 mile ride to and from the mountains will be on the coastal plain, with highs around 90 or more. But in the mountains we'll see highs in the low 80's and lows in the 50's at night. Best perk of this time of year: 13 1/2 hours of daylight each day. So explore more, stop more, swim in cool waters more, and enjoy the balmy summertime in Mexico.

If anyone has questions please call me on my cell, Peter, 281-772-121 ONE

Payment of $25 covers a ride specific tee shirt, ride organization, amazing ride guides to help you on your journey, and a minimal donation to www.TWTEX.com. Deposits for cancellations up to May 14th will be refunded. After that, deposits will be forfeited but can be applied to future Mextreks.

Sending anther $25 to Trail Boss (Richard) gets you the indispensable Mextrek Ride Guide, a wealth of information about travel, planning, bike prep, road ratings, and maps and pictures with descriptions of daily ride routes matching the GPS tracks below. If you are a first timer I absolutely "demand" you buy a guide at least a month out so you can soak it all in before the trip. When I say, "Oh, we're doing the top of the world ride, wanna come?" I hope you have a basic idea of what that is. Truth is, no one does this, but it would be cool for riders to come with a basic knowledge of what is going on. The bonus is a beautiful book to sit on your coffee table or office desk daring your guests to ask, "Ugh, what is Mextrek".

Another donation ($25) directly to TWTEX ensures Scott maintains this wonderful website for another year and we have a way to continue these excursions until I am just too old to continue!

Google sign up: https://goo.gl/forms/VhAYWUYVvbFZ0Ih23

Paypal address and direct email for any questions: mextrekadv@gmail.com

Complete your reservation, make paypal payment, and I'll add you to a list of riders, updated every so often, and you will start getting email updates on the ride via email.

NEW REQUIREMENT 2018: ALL RIDERS **ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGED, HIGHLY ** TO PURCHASE A $25 BAOFENG UV5-R RADIO OR EQUIVALENT WITH HEADSET FOR BIKE TO BIKE COMMUNICATION See post #4 for details:

Mextrek #7, 2018, June 14th to June 17th 2018. Galeana, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

https://www.mexicodesconocido.com.m...e/public/nodes/1011/maravillas-de-Galeana.jpg

Wednesday, June 13th: Optional welcome dinner at Mambo's McAllen 6 - 11 PM

2017 Mambo-(nifica!)


Thursday June 14th

7 AM departure to Montemorelos in 2 to 4 groups of 10 riders or less.

Lunch stop in Montemorelos on the way down:


My group in 2017 Mextrek #6 taking in the beautiful views outside Montemorelos:

Waterfalls in wet times!

Friday June 15th and Saturday June 16th: 2 glorious day rides from Galeana to the nearby wonderful dual sport routes. Riders will self organize into ride groups.

Typical group ride out of Galeana:
IMG_5030-L.jpg


A "trail" explored in 2017. Amazing discovery route:

Amazing scenery!
8ddf0b860e6059cbc1d2db3105360189.jpg


Flats being fixed under the pine trees 50 miles into the mountains.

Gassing up where there is no gas:

Typical dinner scene in Galeana:


Sunday June 17th: Riders will group up and ride back to Mission. Target return 3PM in Mission. Those needing to be at work Monday (AKA in bed in Texas on Sunday) should depart by 7AM.

I have dedicated the next 9 posts for updates on:

1. Attendees
2. Communications
3. GpS
4. Lodging
5. Border Safety
6. Permitting / Visa
7. Insurance, Medivac, Spot
8. Prior trip planning and reports

NEW FOR 2018: We will use the Whatsapp application to keep in touch as a group both before, during, and after the trip. Whatsapp requires only a wifi connection for group messaging, pictures, and video so it is perfect in Mexico. We used this on our 2017 trip and with probably 500+ group messages it is a great way to stay in touch with the riders on the group. As you register, or send me a note, I will add you to the whatsapp group "Mextrek Amigos".
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Ride guide #1 Peter S ( Shadman )
Ride Guide #2 Thomas M ( ThomasM )
Ride Guide #3 Steve ( Fang )
Ride Guide #4 and 5 Everett ( Fox ) and Zahra (2 up)


Attendees: ($ = paid)

7 $ Peter VW
8 $ Kris A
9 $ Justin B
10 $ Curtis J
11 $ David B
12 $ Jerry M
13 $ Frank V
14 $ Jordan V
15 $ Shane D
16 $ Fabio P
17 $ Thomas P (no whatsapp)
18 $ Richard R
19 $ Scott R
20 $ Adam M
21 Ivan S UNPAID
22 $ Peter G

Need to register:
22 $ Peg W
23 $ Bob W
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Communications: If you plan to come to Mextrek we expect you to come with a radio, a charger, and some type of speaker or ear piece in your helmet. Amazon is your friend on this one:

Basic radio: 4 watt / 1 watt: UV-5R V2 About $25, includes charger and earpiece. Programming cable not required.

Extra power model (NEW): 8 watt high power: BF-F9 V2 About $36 - 38 (Recommended radio for 2018 ride). Same as UV-5R otherwise

With varying degrees of success we utilized the mighty Baofeng UV5-R radios on Mextrek 2017. They are amazing. The feeling of security a ride leader has when he also has a designated sweep with radio is amazing. And when everyone on a group is equipped the ride leader has the ability to tailor speed as requested, assess difficulty of terrain on slower riders, point out side tracks and stops for items of interest. In short, communication while riding in a group is a whole new realm of riding connected. I'll do my best to lay out the little info I know on radios and add points as others chime in:

Basic: $25 radio, supplied headset: One ear in helmet has speaker. Microphone is clipped to chin bar. Talking is accomplished by pressing the push to talk button on microphone or on side of radio.

Pros: Cheap, easy, worked for me last year.

Cons: Hard to talk and ride. Sound clarity at speed lacking. One ear aches a lot. No earplug in that ear. Radio has to be charged every 10 hours or so.

Basic with push to talk: $25 radio, motorcycle mounted, handlebar mounted switch $25 , upgraded headset $25

Pros: Motorcycle can power radio. Talking is possible with both hands on bars. Increased sound clarity. Able to broadcast at highway speeds.

Cons: Riders becomes attached to bike with headphone cable

Full shebang: $25 radio. Push to talk button $25 Sena SMH10 bluetooth headset $160 Sena SR10 bluetooth 2 way transmitter $195 Baofeng to Sena cable $20

Pros: Hands and cable free 2 way communication using push to talk button on handlebar. Sena transmitter can also route music from your phone and GPS audio from your garmin, all seamlessly. So you are free to jam tunes, get turn by turn directions, and talk to everyone on e the ride with both hands on the bars.

Cons: $$$$$$$$$$$$$, charging up every night (10 hours max use), becoming "that guy", Sena not staying affixed to helmet mount, potential for crash damage
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

GPS Tracks / Guidebooks:

If you haven't done so already please order one of Richard's awesome guidebooks and topo maps for the low price of $25. You order directly through Richard via PM on this forum: TrailBoss is his username.

You get info, general info, specific info, tips, maps, route descriptions with small maps, pictures, and all sorts of warm fuzzies and fuzzy mink glove good feelings after taking a day or two to fully digest the content.

And the rides in the linked GPX files match up to the rides in the guidebook perfectly, so there is very little guesswork deciding which routes to take.

And a little pro tip....downloading google earth onto your PC will allow you to preview a GPX file and see in great detail the route, topography, etc... if you are the type to preview what you are going to ride. Email with actual GPX files is going out to all registered participants in 3...2...1....

http://www.texasadventure.net/mextrekgpsroutes/

Thanks Richard for all the work on these files and the guidebook. They are awesome!!!!

Roamer worked on GPS tracks in 2017 prep. He writes:

• I created a MexTrek 2017 event in RideWithGPS and added the GPX files to the event (first link).

• You can make the routes available for offline use on the RideWithGPS iPhone/Android app - second link has instructions on how to do this.

• You might also consider downloading a map of the Galeana region for use when internet (cell access) is not available (third link).

If you find all this bewildering, let me know and I'll do my best to help.

Edit: The helpful folks at RideWithGPS explained how to add a cuesheet with turn-by-turn instructions to each of the files. You might want to wait a few days for me to get this done before downloading for offline use.

https://ridewithgps.com/events/43513-mextrek-2017

https://ridewithgps.com/help/offline-maps-iphone

https://support.google.com/maps/answ...rm=iOS&hl=en
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Lodging:

Mission June 7th: Book your own rooms in Mission. Rate is $67 or so, and you can sleep 4 in a room. It is a nice hotel and having a room there on Friday night ensures you'll have free and secure truck and trailer parking while in Mexico.

Clarion Inn 3700 Plantation Grove Blvd, Mission, TX 78572 Phone: (956) 519-9696


Galeana, Nuevo Leon, Mexico: We will book the entire hotel 3 months in advance. All individual bookings will be thrown out the window. Unless 100 riders show up there will be plenty of single occupancy rooms available. If you snore, it doesn't matter, the dogs can out-bark any snorer.

Mextrek Ride Headquarters: Hotel Magdelana. On the main square in Galeana. 52 beds.

Alternate hotel: Hotel Jardin ( 3 doors down from Magdelena). 32 beds.
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Permit Information:

Personal Visa (FMM): 7 or 180 day. 7 is free. 180 costs $36. If staying over 7, or unsure, get 180 days.

Motorcycle TVIP: AKA, Permit for bike. Must have valid registration in your name (wife / mom / sister doesn't count...do a family title, transfer $5, with state of TX), no lien or lease, with license plate # matching what is on the bike. Pay $40 fee and $200 - $400 deposit. Check out when you leave Mexico and get $200 - $400 deposit back.

Where: If you are the cautious type, get your TVIP and Visa in advance at the Austin or Houston consulate / Banjercito office. If you have time to get it the day before Mextrek at the border (office closes at 10PM) you can do it at Anzualdas Crossing (2 miles away) or 24 hours at McAllen crossing (10 miles away). Worst case, skip breakfast and get it at 6:30 AM the border office.

Caution: If you get it in advance and don't make the trip you will have to cancel it before the date it comes into effect at the office you got it from. Otherwise you'll have to make the trek to the border at some point to have it cancelled, as if you made the trip.

Duh: One bike per rider. No truck and trailer if the bike gets a TVIP. Without a TVIP you likely will not make it through the trip without some hassle, threat of bike impounding, bribes paid, and mental anguish, although it is possible.
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Insurance:

Mzungu writes: Well, this is not a "how-to" but "how I do" as everyone's requirements are different. In summary:

- Baja Bound for motorcycle damage and liability
- Ripcord to get me from a point of injury or crime to a hospital and for "get me in the door for treatment" assistance
- MedJetAssist to get me from remote hospital to my US hospital

There are other companies that are a good or not so good fit for me for this trip. Please research those and decide for yourself.

I've previously booked a policies with MedJet Assist on motorcycle trips and for hunting dangerous game on safari in Africa and in remote Alaska regions -- I thought MedJet would come to me in the field - they do not. I finally read the policy.

There is little in overlap in coverage (which can cause a catch-22 resulting in no coverage at all when coverage overlaps between two or more companies as the insurance companies point at each other and say "you first").

Here's a good article:
https://expeditionportal.com/buyers-...tion-services/

Medivac Insurance:

Tricepilot writes: The short, technical answer is that MedJet air evac insurance is purchased separately BUT air evac insurance is included with most policies underwritted by MexAdventure. The following quote is from my Guide to Riding Mexico on Adventure Rider:

"Mexadventure advertises: "Medical Evacuation Insurance and Plane Tickets Home are automatically included with our Mexican auto insurance policies"!

FAQ: So, why bother with the extra expense of MedJet?

Answer: If you need medical air evacuation, go with the pros whose job it is full time. Based in Atlanta, experienced on a daily basis doing this, always on their "A" game. When Whiskeysmith crashed in Mexico, and was hospitalized in Parral, we thought he had MedJet but all he had was Mexadventure's "Platinum" coverage which appeared to offer medical extraction as a bonus. I was on the phone with their rep all night long as was told to "call back tomorrow" - and this was a Spanish speaking operator in Mexico City. You want that when you are in a tough bind? I don't. Don't get me wrong, I've been with Mexadventure for years, and always go back to them. But I consider medical extraction by air the same way I do a parachute: you want some extra, seldom used, old model lying around the back of the hangar on your back when you jump? Or do you want the state-of-the-art, tested frequently, highly rated rig on the other end of the line when you pull the coord? Your body - Your money - Your choice."

Spot (and other) Emergency Locators:
 
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Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Peter, I'm thinking hard about this. But I really wanted to thank you for your mad skillz and enthusiasm and making this work for all the rest of us. Yer awesome! :dude:
 
2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

This Sucka’s paid up. [emoji12] In! ?[emoji965][emoji1303]

Thanks Peter!!
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Oh yeah, in of course...paperwork to follow.
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Hi there

I have been riding for 40 years, but a long time since I have played in the dirt. Anyway, I succumbed to buying an Adventure bike and very interested in participating in some of these Mexican rides. Do you guys trailer down there or do people ride down from within Texas e.g. Houston?
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Hi there

I have been riding for 40 years, but a long time since I have played in the dirt. Anyway, I succumbed to buying an Adventure bike and very interested in participating in some of these Mexican rides. Do you guys trailer down there or do people ride down from within Texas e.g. Houston?

My best guess is that 1 in 5 rides down. Usually, but not always, on the larger cc bikes.

I prefer to trailer bacause when (not if) something happens to my bike in Mexico, my truck is max 2 miles from a border crossing. Almost every Mextrek we see a bike hauled out in a pickup.

Also, its great to have a fresh set of dry clothes to change into at the border. As well as a day less clothing to worry about lugging along the whole way. And a place to leave my toolbox, semi valuables, etc...

These are my thought from the saddle of my 62 mph crf230f. On a real ADV bike I might reconsider.

But by far the best reason to trailer to the border is: TO SHARE THE RIDE and enjoy the fine company of the adv community on twtex.
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Thank you and what you says makes sense. I'm intent on making one if not both of these rides with my new toy and meeting many of you.
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Thanks for doing this Peter. Can't wait!
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Will there be any street bike riders on this trip?
 
Re: 2018 Mextrek #7, June 7th - 10th 2018

Too early for me to commit. Sounds like a good adventure!
 
My sincere apologies to everyone for the date change for this ride. The revised dates are June 14 to 17th. I'm contacting the *3* registered riders directly to inform them of the change.
 
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Yo Peter happy "post Boxing Day"! I'm 100% in for MexTrek #8 (already registered & paid), but currently only 65% for MexTrek #7... due to a potential summer vacay conflict.

I'm registering & paying with good intentions, and hope, of joining your MexTrek #7 posse! Can't wait to see the Blue Boombers on the mountain. Ciao - Curtis
 
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