While their rugged, round-the-world styling and expedition-ready features suggest otherwise, some adventure bikes work better on the road–much better–than they do off pavement. As word of this open secret spreads, they’re being bought more and more by riders who appreciate their overall utility, upright seating and solid aftermarket support.
Suzuki’s original DL1000 V-Strom is one of the standard bearers of the street-leaning ADV bike, striking a balance between RTW looks and performance and streetwise utility that makes it a champ in the bang-for-the-buck sweepstakes today.
Maybe seeing in advance where the market segment was going, Suzuki gave the DL1000 the 996cc L-twin from the TL1000S sportbike, modified for the midrange and low end it needed for low-speed riding and for hauling luggage. The 90-degree cylinder spread technically gives the engine perfect balance, but the rods are slightly offset side-to-side so a little vibration creeps in.
Even more is apparent in some 2002 and early ’03 models, which produced a low-rpm vibration far outside the norm. Called “chudder”–a combination of chatter and shudder–on online forums, it’s curable with an improved clutch basket. Even then, though, the big Strom dislikes being lugged.
A decent skid plate is a necessity if you plan on taking your Strom off-road. Shown here in the August 2007 issue of Rider.
One big compromise resulting from hanging the TL’s engine from the DL1000’s stout aluminum frame is a worrisome lack of ground clearance. The oil filter, oil cooler and the front cylinder’s header pipe all sit dangerously low and forward enough that a sturdy bash plate isn’t just a fashion accessory, but a necessity for off-roading. On pavement and smooth fire roads the suspension works adequately, but serious trails should be avoided.
It’s much more suited to the street, where small upgrades–a replacement shock and a fork kit–bring big rewards in handling. The brakes are just average, requiring stainless lines and high-performance pads to bring out their best. The 33-inch seat height is a problem for some, making lowering links a hot seller in the aftermarket.
Another aftermarket staple for DL1000 owners is an improved windscreen, because just about anything is an improvement over the stock one, which though stylish is ineffective at reducing buffeting at the helmet level. The fairing, too, deflects some wind but not as much as its appearance suggests.
It’s also an enormous parts bill waiting to happen in case of a fall–every fairing panel’s part number should end with “-$$$.” Fueling issues on some bikes can be cured with a tuning module, while other bikes run cleanly stock. Rough running has also been traced to dirty fuel filters, which many riders simply bypass.
Problems to watch for on used DL1000s include flaking engine paint, rusty or warped brake rotors and corroded hardware. Check the fins on the radiator and especially the oil cooler for damage, and make sure the brake pads don’t stick in the calipers and drag on the rotors.
If there are scratches on the plastic bodywork indicting a fall in the past, check for broken mounting tabs or missing grommets. An often-neglected check is to crawl under the bike and inspect the bottom rear shock linkage for play; the bearings inside are vulnerable to repeated spray from rain and can dry out, causing slop in the suspension.
Prices range from about $3,600 for a first-year DL to around $8,000 for a 2012; factor in accessories and condition accordingly.
2007 Suzuki V-Strom 1000, as seen in the August 2007 issue of Rider.
2002-2012 Suzuki DL1000 V-Strom 1000
PROS Big torquey engine, do-it-all versatility, above average reliability.
CONS Nosebleed seat height, rust and corrosion prone, vulnerable and expensive plastic parts.
Displacement: 996cc Final drive: Chain Wet Weight: 517 lbs. Fuel Capacity: 5.8 gals. Seat Height: 33 in.
Riding high above the Gorges de la Nesque in Provence on one of its many “balcony” roads carved into the rock canyon walls. Photos by the author and Genie Tuttle.
Would you travel halfway around the world for an 11-day motorcycle touring vacation that promises fantastic roads and scenery, delicious food and drink, interesting foreign culture, fun and camaraderie every day? Of course you would.
What if each day’s route was a secret, and you had no idea where the tour is going other than the arrival airport, not even the hotel names? Signing up seem a little nuts?
Well, it probably is, but that hasn’t stopped Edelweiss Bike Travel’s Mystery Tour from selling out both times it has run, partly because of the company’s solid reputation for delivering everything in the first sentence above and partly because of repeat customers, from both the original Mystery Tour (now called the Life is Beautiful—Alpine Wonderland tour) and other Edelweiss motorcycle tours.
The tiny village of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, with its narrow streets and vaulted passageways, is considered to be one of the most beautiful in France.
When my wife Genie and I committed to the “MT” starting and ending in Nice, France, in June 2018, it felt like agreeing to do a trust fall with a stranger—you know he or she is probably going to catch you, but there’s always that tiny bit of doubt. We knew we’d be in good hands though, if not on good roads, since the MT is the one EBT tour led by Managing Director Rainer Buck and his wife Gaby, who may not know exactly where we’re going but have lots of company credit cards.
Rainer was assisted by guides Michael Goebel and Pablo Piferrer, who between them have nearly 20 years of experience guiding EBT tours around the world and made the 17 of us riders and co-pilots from the USA, Austria, Mexico and Switzerland feel like family.
Limestone cliffs form the walls of the Ardèche Gorges; their most famous feature is this 197-foot stone arch called the Pont d’Arc.
Canyons, Napoleon and Beautiful Villages
Once rescued from the row upon row of private jets and wall-to-wall resort high-rises surrounding Nice airport on the French Riviera, that afternoon we sipped prosecco in celebration of a rider’s birthday while “rookie” guide Rainer, or RR, gave the first tour briefing on the veranda of a lovely hotel in Vence, in the foothills of the Maritime Alps above Nice.
The Mystery Tour is different from other EBT tours in that—since only RR and the guides know each day’s route—the group stays together the entire time, with no riding off on your own. It’s also one of EBT’s Royal Tours, so all of the meals are included, even lunch on all but the rest day. Each of us also received a crossword puzzle, the six clues for which were printed on RR’s fresh T-shirt each day. Complete the puzzle correctly and you might go with RR on a special bonus ride on the penultimate day—more on this later.
With no clue from RR where we were headed except his daily dubious cry of “North!” we left Vence in the morning and instead headed west, over the 3,159-foot Col de Vence (Vence Pass) in the Maritime Alps. The endlessly winding road rising up through a green forest and imposing dolomite-type rocky mountains set the stage for the rest of the tour (rated a 4 out of 5 for difficulty among EBT tours), since we spent very little time on the center of our tires, or even in fifth or sixth gears.
The Sénanque Abbey was founded in 1148, and monks have always lived there since except for a few decades, growing lavender and tending honeybees.
Quite happy I had chosen an agile BMW R 1200 RT for Genie and me, as we explored an 11th-century church at the first of many coffee stops, I was also thankful for the mesh riding apparel we had brought for the warm temps in Southern France.
Picking up the Route Napoléon, which the emperor took on his return from exile in Elba in 1815, we zoomed around its smooth cambered corners through the diverse landscapes of Provence at a fun, brisk pace set by RR and most of the group riding BMW RTs, R 1200 and 800 GS models and Ducati Mutltistradas, with a guide in back sweeping up the slower riders.
Wildflowers were everywhere on the June tour.
Detouring onto snaky roads far above gorgeous valleys and down alongside turquoise-green rivers, lunch was at a 9th-century chateau perched high above the verdant scrubland. Our first of many deep gorges and the tunnels and arches along amazing “balcony roads” carved into the canyon walls high above were on the dessert menu as we rode along the spectacular Gorge du Verdon in the afternoon—at 15.5 miles long and up to 3,000 feet deep it’s aptly nicknamed the Grand Canyon of Europe.
Clinging to the cliffside in the Ardèche Gorges.
This part of France is also famous for its endless “blue gold” lavender fields, and the afternoon coffee-stop village of Moustiers, voted the prettiest in France—which is really saying something!
Briefly rejoining the Route Napoléon, it took us into Château-Arnoux-Saint-Auban for the evening, the end of a 162-mile riding day that was about par for each riding day of the tour. The chase van driven by one of the guides and carrying our luggage and a spare bike was rarely more than an hour away from the group, yet somehow always managed to beat us to each night’s hotel.
Many of Europe’s highest passes are in the French Alps.
Hotels on the 2018 MT ranged from, as RR put it tongue firmly in cheek, “zero to five stars,” which really meant that the one lovely auberge or inn on a bucolic farm in the Côtes du Rhône (the famous wine region in the Rhône Valley), my favorite, simply didn’t have a Michelin rating. The rest of the accommodations were equally or more wonderful, whether it was a castle, modern hotel with a river view, in a historic city or the base hotel in Vence.
Sustenance on the Mystery Tour was delicious, varied and frequent, and the vin superb.
We dined like kings as well, sometimes on French specialties like pâté and veal but more often on meat entrees with truffle-infused sauces and farm-to-table vegetables and salads, sumptuous fresh baked bread and a wide variety of cheeses. RR is passionate about wine, too, so he made sure that a nice selection of local vin rouge and vin blanc was available each evening and treated us to a special tasting one night as well.
Southern France is also home to the Carthusian monks who create the intoxicating neon green liqueur Chartreuse, which some of us enjoyed one night with Cuban cigars to the smooth sounds of Michael’s folk guitar and vocals. One really can’t say enough about guides Pablo and Michael—their efforts and camaraderie helped make the tour magnifique.
The River Tarn formed 33 miles of spectacular Gorges du Tarn flanked by limestone cliffs as much as 1,640 feet high.
Gorgeous Gorges, Endless Passes
The food, hotels and culture stops, such as the Caverne du Pont-d’Arc in the Ardèche Valley with its 36,000-year-old cave paintings, sprawling 12-acre Bamboo Park in the Rhône Valley and historic villages and towns with their lovely old French architecture and genuinely friendly people all made for a deliciously rich experience during our regular stops, lunches and evenings. It’s truly amazing I didn’t gain more weight, or run out of camera memory cards. But the raison d’être of the Mystery Tour is the roads and riding, made all the more fun by not knowing exactly what was in store each day.
No wider than a walking path through its arches and tunnels in places, the magnificent Combe Laval is virtually suspended from the side of the canyon.
Southeastern France is laced with deep gorges carved over the centuries by impressive rivers like the Verdon, Nesque and Tarn, and the ride connected the many gorges with the beautiful valleys, mountains, plateaus and national parks of Provence, the Languedoc region and French Alps. We crossed one of the most extraordinary areas in France, the Cévennes, on the Corniche de Cévennes, a wide sweeping road originally built in the 1700s by the Huguenot army that this day was nearly deserted and like a racetrack through the forest flora.
The 2018 Mystery Tour group enjoys a “boot” beer (we’re done riding but still in our boots) in a hotel parking lot in the Côtes du Rhône.
Our rest day—yet another riding day for many in the group—was among the spires and massifs of the Gorges du Tarn on the Tarn River, where some of us hiked, swam and kayaked before ascending and circling the Causse Noir and Causse Méjean on the bikes, giant limestone plateaus of rich farmland surrounded by gorges and strung with more exciting balcony roads and tunnels. If there was a problem with the roads and scenery on this tour, it was not being able to look away from either….
Looking down from 8,688-foot Col du Galibier.
From the Parc des Grands Causses we made a giant U-turn back toward Nice and the Côte d’Azur, but some of the best riding was yet to come—the French Alps. Over the next several days we conquered a dozen passes lined with snow in places, including the 2nd- through 5th-highest in France, and briefly crossed into Italy over the 9,003-foot Col Agnel to have a refreshingly different lunch of pizza and pasta while the three crossword puzzle winners enjoyed a helicopter tour with RR of Mont Blanc, at 15,777 feet the highest in Europe.
Descending from yet another pass in the French Alps.
After returning to France, the finale was a twisting ascent up to La Madone d’Utelle for a tasty picnic lunch skillfully prepared by Pablo at this hilltop sanctuary with a 360-degree view over the French Riviera. How he got the big van up—and down—that crazy road I’ll never know. Just one of the wonderful mysteries of the Mystery Tour.
Picnic time at the sanctuary of La Madone d’Utelle, high atop a mountain with a view of the French Riviera.
The 2018 Edelweiss Bike Travel Mystery Tour is now called the Life is Beautiful—Magical France tour and will run next June 6-26, 2019. The arrival airport for the next Mystery Tour is Athens, Greece, May 3, 2020…but shhhh, it’s a secret! For more info visit edelweissbike.com.
1975 Suzuki GT250M Hustler. Owner: Chris Wesney, Templeton, California.
Back in the early ’70s Suzuki was looking into the inevitable future and concentrating on getting into the four-stroke market, while still making good money from its two-strokes. And the predecessors of this GT250 Hustler had helped a lot.
Its parallel twin engine, perfectly square at 54 x 54mm bore and stroke, had first seen the light of the showroom floor in 1965 as the X-6 Hustler, a 250 tiger, which astounded the American motorcycling mind with a 90-plus-mph top speed and six-speed transmission. The engine was a simple piston-port design, with new-fangled automatic oiling, and cylinders were aluminum with iron liners.
Move forward eight years, and the rather similar GT250 Hustler appears—but with Suzuki’s Ram Air System (RAS) bolted to the top of the engine. The rubber-mounted hood was first seen on the company’s 1972 triples, the GT380 Sebring and GT550 Indy, which was the beginning of the Grand Touring series. The approach was simple enough, with this rather angular shroud aiding the cooling of the triple’s middle cylinder, sending more air through the cooling fins.
On a parallel twin this was more problematic, but useful in keeping the noise down. Two-strokes from the ’60s were notoriously rackety, especially in warm-up mode, and prone to give out a ringing and pinging sound from the fins. Strips of heat-resistant rubber were used in the 250’s cylinder-head fins to reduce the noise. All very civilized.
RAS was also a sales gimmick, giving the previous T250 model a new look. The factory was claiming the GT twin developed 31 horses at 7,000 rpm, but “Cycle” magazine used a rear-wheel dyno to measure the 1973 model’s horsepower: 22 at 7,500 rpm. The same magazine got a mere 20 horses when testing the similar 1975 version. As the humorist types back then liked to say, Suzuki was measuring power at the top of the piston.
It is true that Suzuki with this GT version had knowingly cut back on the power. This was because a major effort had been made, wise or not, to give the touring rider a quieter ride. However, it took some bright light to take the 26mm Mikuni carburetors apart and measure the slides; they had been lengthened by 6mm, which meant that full throttle was an impossibility. Two-strokes made a lot of noise from the intakes, so Suzuki used the longer slides on the GT–hence the slightly quieter engine. When found out, Suzuki immediately switched to correctly sized slides.
A battery and coil supplied the sparks, and the battery was a mere five amp/hour. Americans were coming to accept the electric leg, but because of weight and costs, no such starter was on the GT250. The rider’s left leg provided the starting mechanism, not that pushing the left-side kickstarter was much of a problem.
The engine was Suzuki solid, with the crankshaft running on three ball bearings, the one-piece connecting rods having needle bearings both top and bottom. Gasoline passed into the crankcase via that pair of Mikunis, while lubrication was done by the improved CCI (Crankcase Cylinder Injection) automatic-oiling arrangement. Just to make sure that the end bearings on the crankshaft were properly taken care of, they were pressure fed using CCI’s multipoint injection system. Compression ratio was an acceptable 7.5:1. The oil tank, part of the right side cover, held 2.8 pints and had a little window to alert the rider when oil was getting low.
Helical gears sent power rearward to a multi-disc wet clutch and then through the tranny, with its own oil supply. Sixth gear was very much an overdrive, which helped reduce noise at touring speeds.
Frame was a double cradle, with a major change from its T250 predecessor found under the four-gallon gas tank; instead of one large beam, there were now a trio of smaller tubes, strengthening the chassis and allowing for a more positive feel in the corners. The frame extended under the seat, so there was no bolt-on addition. Since this had touring pretensions, wheelbase was extended almost an inch to 52 inches for better high-speed stability.
The telescopic fork was adequate, as were the pair of adjustable shocks on the swingarm. Both wheels were 18-inchers, carrying a 3.00 tire on the front, 3.50 on the back. Front brake was a competent single disc, with a drum at the back that was activated hydraulically. Above the headlight were a speedo and tachometer. Wet weight was a hefty 350 pounds, 50 more than the original X-6.
The GT designation did not really live up to the bike’s touring abilities. As a solo bike, it was OK in the quarter-liter category, but with a passenger on board taking off from a stop was both a bit slow and noisy. If the engine was pulling less than four grand, a stall was quite possible, and quiet departures were not to be had. Plus the seat height of 31 inches meant a relatively tall rider was probable, leaving not much room for a passenger. The saddle was narrowed at the front, for those with challenging inseams, but not very comfortable for the rider when carrying a passenger.
In the end the GT250 Hustler, now a pussycat, only lasted three years. The RAS was removed, and the bike became simply the GT250 for the next two years–with bigger fins in the head to aid in cooling. That Ram Air System apparently served mainly to slow things down.
This 1975 model seen in the photos, in Aztec Yellow, spent much of its life in boxes and was only recently put back together–the only thing missing being the left side cover, which comes from a different year.
Travel from Yuma to San Diego via historic U.S. Route 80 and the wood Plank Road, and you’ll see how unforgiving the desert can be. Photos by the author.
Picture a scene in which hearty travelers traverse barren and windswept sand dunes on roads of rough-hewn timbers. I am not talking about some prehistoric time nor am I forecasting a dystopian future. No, my friends, many still-living Americans could tell you of this strange and fascinating tale set in the American Southwest.
I recently happened upon a magazine article that mentioned a wood plank road that spanned the sand dunes linking the southernmost portions of California and Arizona. With my interest piqued, I dug deeper and discovered that the Old Plank Road was operational for more than a decade and was ultimately displaced by a paved portion of U.S. Route 80 in 1926.
Almost four decades later, U.S. 80 succumbed to Interstate 8. Now, the Plank Road is a fascinating, crumbling relic of the early 20th century; however, long portions of Historic U.S. 80 are still passable as an interesting alternative to I-8 from Yuma, Arizona, to San Diego, California.
That was enough for me. I dug deeper into the history of the Plank Road, researched Historic U.S. 80, charted my course and packed the bags on my BMW R 1200 GS. I was off to discover the Plank Road and ride as much of Historic U.S. Route 80 as possible from Yuma to San Diego.
The Ocean-to-Ocean Highway Bridge is the impressive opening act to the Yuma to San Diego trek. The bridge spans the Colorado River, and its 1915 completion date coincides with the Plank Road. Its name indicates its importance in the nationwide, transcontinental Ocean-to-Ocean Highway.
Yuma to El Centro – in Search of the Plank Road
The sun-drenched starting point of my ride was the history-rich city of Yuma, Arizona. Now snowbirds in massive RVs converge on the city in winter like their winged migratory counterparts. However, Yuma was once a centerpiece of the Old West, and has been a transportation hub of the Southwest for more than one hundred years.
I began my trek west at the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway Bridge, which spans the Colorado River in north Yuma. Now on the National Historical Register, the bridge was completed in 1915, which coincides with the early years of the Plank Road. The area directly surrounding the bridge is home to a cluster of historical sites. The Yuma Territorial Prison, which sits directly adjacent to the bridge, was an intriguing walk back into the rough-and-tumble Old West. The close-by Colorado River State Historic Park dates back to the late 19th century and preserves a small number of the Plank Road timbers in a display.
After riding over the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway Bridge, a quick left turn placed me immediately on Historic U.S. 80. The road took me by crumpling adobe structures, over the All-American Canal and through the sandy desert. Whereas nearby I-8 is smooth, wide and boring, Historic U.S. 80 is narrow, cracked, undulating and entertaining. It requires attention and a bit of slaloming to avoid jarring reminders that it is a historic route. The long suspension on the BMW was tailor-made for the unpredictable road conditions.
A ride on Historic U.S. 80 requires vigilance. Sand drifts, potholes and crumbling margins speak to its relegation to secondary status.
After this opening act of my Historic U.S. 80 tour, I rejoined I-8 for a bit. Portions of Historic U.S. 80 are relegated to spur status–they “spur” off of the interstate but terminate without rejoining the new route. One such spur is Grays Well Road.
The Grays Well section of the original route is now a well-paved ingress into the Imperial Sand Dunes portion of the larger geological feature known as the Algodones Dunes. These dunes are what made the Plank Road necessary in the early 1900s. After enjoying a short, beautiful ride through shining sand hills, I came to the site that contains the longest and best-preserved portion of the Old Plank Road.
What I found was a stretch of the Old Plank Road that spans the equivalent of about five football fields in length. The road is protected from potential damage by off-road vehicles with metal, sand-worthy barriers, but visitors can touch and walk the Plank Road section. The road is intriguing. It has weathered and rusted into a heaving work of art.
One can almost hear the rhythmic thumping of Model T tires when visiting the protected section of the wood Plank Road. The vast majority of nearby interstate travelers have no idea that this historic relic even exists.
So why was the timber road ever built? Quite simply, it was commercially important to have a direct route here from the growing and thriving San Diego coastal area to the west. While asphalt and concrete road building techniques of the time worked reasonably well on the harder surfaces of the area directly east of the coast, the shifting sands of the Algodones Dunes posed a huge quandary for road builders.
San Diego businessman Ed Fletcher was the driving force that ultimately led to the construction of the Plank Road. That bumpy, ever-changing, maintenance-intensive endeavor continued as the transportation solution for crossing more than six miles of the dunes from 1915 through 1926.
I walked, touched and studied the Plank Road in solitude. Not a single soul even drove by in the substantial time I spent in the surreal dunes. When I finally pulled myself away, I took another short ride on the interstate before jumping back on Historic U.S. 80 toward the California towns of Holtville and El Centro. The long, straight stretch of the historic road gave me time to ruminate on the Plank Road and the challenges of early travelers.
Much of Historic U.S. 80 runs parallel with and in close proximity to the interstate, but it is worlds apart in terms of traffic and fun. There are remnants and ruins of structures that were left to languish in the desert heat when traffic was rerouted to the newer and faster interstate.
Historic U.S. 80 runs through the hearts of both Holtville and El Centro, as both were supremely important to the commerce and trade of the time. Either of these cities can serve as a gas and food stop on this route; I found a hotel in El Centro just off the Historic U.S. 80 route.
The Cleveland National Forest spans 460,000 acres of desert and chaparral.
Ocotillo to Laguna Junction – on the Winding Road
While fascinating and historically rich, the prior day’s ride was, for the most part, straight. Motorcyclists, by nature, love curves and that is what this next leg of my ride on Historic U.S. 80 had to offer.
After a breakfast of huevos rancheros in El Centro, I made my way to Ocotillo. After rolling through the town, named after a type of cactus, I rode a nicely curvy stretch of I-8 until I came to the exit for the Desert View Tower. The tall, eclectic stone structure, which dates back to the time of the Plank Road, sits on another Historic U.S. 80 spur west of the interstate.
After a short visit to the tower, I crossed the interstate to the south onto a long, intact loop of Historic U.S. 80. The road is instantly winding and remains coiled for miles of highly entertaining riding. The little desert oasis town of Jacumba Hot Springs is home to its namesake spring, a few colorful buildings and a clothing-optional resort. I am sure to everyone’s delight I opted to stay clothed and keep riding.
The GS is right at home with several brethren outside the Jacumba Spa Restaurant.
At a few points along the route, the tall international border “wall” could be seen to the south and there were sporadic signs warning that the region is subject to illegal drug trafficking. However, from the rolling perspective of a motorcycle saddle, there is a slow-paced calm to the area.
I rode through several small clusters of humanity and miles of unspoiled nature toward the Campo Indian Reservation and the Cleveland National Forest. The road conditions are variable and there are sections of concrete as well as reasonably maintained asphalt. However, from a pure riding perspective, I found this to be the most entertaining stretch of the route.
The Jacumba section just north of the U.S./Mexico border is the most curvy and entertaining of the ride.
Laguna Junction to the Beautiful Balboa Park
At Laguna Junction, Historic U.S. 80 runs north of the interstate for a while as it winds to the west. I passed through the small towns of Guatay and Descanso Junction, and the increased elevation of 4,000 feet brought with it a nice mix of oak and pine trees. Where Historic U.S. 80 melds back into I-8, I could see several now impassable portions of the old road in the mountains to my right.
From this point on through Alpine, El Cajon and La Mesa, Historic U.S. 80 flirts with and becomes the interstate and other roads intermittently. The ride in this stretch was much more frenetic and filled with traffic than the rest of the route, and rolled through historic commercial districts and residential communities as the ride became increasingly urban.
The entrance of the stunning Balboa Park is an impressive foreshadowing of the treasures within.
After several miles of this suburban jockeying, I rolled to the end of my tour as I entered the stunningly beautiful Balboa Park. The “Jewel of San Diego” spells the approximate end of the Historic U.S. 80, and a perfect end to the ride. The lush natural environment combined with fantastic museums and entertainment venues like the Old Globe Theater make Balboa one of the most delightful parks in the Southwest.
My final stop was the San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park, which houses a nice collection of historic motorcycles alongside vintage and unique cars and trucks. Fittingly, the museum features a creative display dedicated to the Old Plank Road, which brings it to life and provides a fine overview of this significant part of transportation history.
The San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park features a current exhibition that brings the Plank Road to life.Historic photos and staged exhibits in the museum show the wonders and challenges of crossing the Imperial Dunes.
Riding Considerations
Being a desert region, this ride is best made from fall to spring. The summer months are sweltering. Road conditions are extremely variable as there are sections of both asphalt and concrete. Potholes, sand and some broken tarmac should be expected. For a detailed series of route maps, visit americanroads.us/ushighways/ushighway80.html.
It’s also an enormous parts bill waiting to happen in case of a fall–every fairing panel’s part number should end with “-$$$.” Fueling issues on some bikes can be cured with a tuning module, while other bikes run cleanly stock. Rough running has also been traced to dirty fuel filters, which many riders simply bypass.
