In MN, to resurface a lot of the roads, they will cover it with tar, and then this really small gravel crap. Then they will let it sit for like 3 or 4 weeks for all the cars to mash it in,then come by with a street sweeper to pick up all the execess. Needless to say, it is in NO WAY bike freindly
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Cale-Kat suggested a good pointer. I lived in the country and had to deal with gravel every day. Keeping your feet on the pegs creates a better balance point. Another very good point is to keep the engine pulling along. If you ride a Kat the four way flashers are a good safety feature. It keeps both hands on the bar and no waving traffic to pass.
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dang 9 miles of pea gravel lets see..... i would turn around as soon as I saw it or take another route even if it was 15 or 20 miles cause i know it had to be the worst expirence ever and road riding is kinda fun plus all them cagers on your tail. I would probaly have a nervous breakdown after a mile lol.
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That stuff is all kinds of dangerous. I'd be riding slower too. When you feel that front tire dancing around and then the rear tire at the same time!! Yeah its definately not fun. All you can do is ride it out slowly, dont make any sudden accelerations or stops if you can help and definately take the corners slow. Be careful waving cars past you cuz they'll speed by and fling those little stones all over the place at you.
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Gravel's fun . Keep your rpm's low , and stay off the front brake . I like 2nd gear at about 20-ish , or maybe 3rd about 30-ish if I'm feelin froggy . And no sudden direction changes . Just stay loose and GUIDE the bike , don't try to CONTROL it . THat's when you end up FIGHTING it , and bad things happen .
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Thanks all for the Responses... I've changed my route to County Road 5 now, which, turns out, has the coolest twisties in my area... It's about 4 miles longer, but man is it fun. Guess I'll take that route till they cover it with pea gravel.... P.S. I would have turned around, but I was afraid to even think about it. In fact, I thought about the next curve, and I think the Kat got mad, and squirreled out on me The front brake was a good point to note, I'll put that in my long list of "From the KR site". I tend to use the front/rear brakes 50/50, so that might have made the ride a little less scary. My back still hurts from being so tense!!
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I live on a gravel road so I understand your 'delightful' run-in with it. You were correct in playing it safe. I ride on my gravel road for about 3/4 of a mile before it turn to a 'chip-seal' road and then ride on it for about 7 miles. The gravel can be quite an experience, especially if they just graded it. The best bet is to keep your arms loose and go with the flow. If you ride stiff armed the bike will want to dance all over the place. Its tuff but you get used to it after awhile.
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Originally posted by Steve_GuelphIf you ride a Kat the four way flashers are a good safety feature. It keeps both hands on the bar and no waving traffic to pass.
I'm pretty sure my 99 Kat doesn't have hazard lights. Do any of them?I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death. - George Carlin
Join the Zietgeist Movement
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...3847743189197#
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I remember doing that going across that back-road short-cut from Tapaco to Fontana Village. It sucked. Glad to hear you found an alternative route, which was going to be my general suggestion...
Originally posted by Cale_Kat"Street Strategies - A Survival Guide for Motorcyclists" by David Hough.
He describes a situation where you enter a gravel road and the front wheel starts to plow in the deep gravel. Your instinct is to slip the clutch and reach out with your feet to help prevent a spill. But that doesn't work. He suggests you shift more of your body weight to the footpegs which places your weight lower and allows you to keep the bike more vertical.
My add-in to the above advice: low, low RPM's -- be a couple gears higher up than you would normally be at that speed, so the bike is less twitchy in response to throttle inputs -- plus try to be as smooth as possible.
Originally posted by Yellow2002KatI'm sorry, but I have to ask. What is pea gravel?
Originally posted by Yellow2002KatOnly roads I really hate riding on down here is on the grooved pavement. Makes me clench my jaw a bit on clear days, but makes traction better on those torrential downpour days (June - September; 3:00 - 5:00 every day).
Originally posted by skasnerI'm pretty sure my 99 Kat doesn't have hazard lights. Do any of them?
Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet
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Originally posted by The CyberPoetOriginally posted by Yellow2002KatOnly roads I really hate riding on down here is on the grooved pavement. Makes me clench my jaw a bit on clear days, but makes traction better on those torrential downpour days (June - September; 3:00 - 5:00 every day).
You know what I really hate?. Riding down the highway and seeing that sign with the car raised on the two driver side wheels followed by the sign that reads "uneven pavement ahead". Not too bad if there are two lanes, but if one lane in either direction certainly not motorcycle friendly .****** WAS...Ma Ma Ma My Katana ******
Si hoc signum legere potes, operis boni in rebus Latinus alacribus et fructuosis potiri potes.
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Originally posted by skasnerOriginally posted by Steve_GuelphIf you ride a Kat the four way flashers are a good safety feature. It keeps both hands on the bar and no waving traffic to pass.
I'm pretty sure my 99 Kat doesn't have hazard lights. Do any of them?
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Originally posted by Yellow2002KatYou know what I really hate?. Riding down the highway and seeing that sign with the car raised on the two driver side wheels followed by the sign that reads "uneven pavement ahead". Not too bad if there are two lanes, but if one lane in either direction certainly not motorcycle friendly .
Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet
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Originally posted by CyberPoetOriginally posted by Cale_Kat"Street Strategies - A Survival Guide for Motorcyclists" by David Hough.
He describes a situation where you enter a gravel road and the front wheel starts to plow in the deep gravel. Your instinct is to slip the clutch and reach out with your feet to help prevent a spill. But that doesn't work. He suggests you shift more of your body weight to the footpegs which places your weight lower and allows you to keep the bike more vertical.
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